Davis, Liz - Slivers of Moonlight (Siren Publishing Classic) (6 page)

She watched him through the window of the restaurant, her eyes following the sight of her ex-lover until he disappeared into the darkness of the parking lot. As soon as he was gone, she noticed the anxious feelings inside of her evaporate. Yet despite the sense of relief she felt, there were still vestiges of an unpleasant feeling lingering in the pit of her stomach.

As she cleared away dishes and finished up her shift, she found herself glancing over her shoulder numerous times. She also looked out the windows and over at the restaurant door, as if expecting to see Dylan walk through it once again. There was this nagging feeling inside of her that he was hanging around the parking lot, waiting until she finished her shift. Maya tried to convince herself that she was just being paranoid and overreacting as usual, but something inside of her was telling her to watch out. It took some time for all of the tense feelings to completely leave her body, but by the time she grabbed her purse and headed for the door, she was already feeling considerably better.

Just as she was exiting, she saw Evan walk up to the restaurant. As he approached, she felt a tingling heat in her lower belly, and a pressure began to fill her loins. His hair wasn’t in a ponytail, but worn loose, the dark strands perfectly framing his chiseled face. Clad in black jeans and a long-sleeve gray T-shirt, she found herself irresistibly drawn to his presence.

He smiled and reached out to grab her, encircling his hands around her waist. Then his lips were against hers, engaging her in a tender kiss. His mouth was hot and tasted of peppermint, and she didn’t want the kiss to end, but she knew that now wasn’t the time or the place to engage in a passionate lip-lock. What if Dylan was still out there somewhere, waiting and watching from off in the distance? Alarmed by this thought, Maya reluctantly pulled her lips away from his. Eyebrows furrowing in response, his lips curled into a funny little half smile.

“Is something wrong? Does my breath smell bad or something?”

Giving him a nervous smile, she responded, “No, of course not. Everything’s fine.”

Grabbing her hand, he replied, “Okay. You ready to go?”

“Yeah, let’s get out of here.”

They walked toward his Jeep, and once they were safely inside and pulling out of the parking lot, Maya felt herself immediately begin to breathe a little easier. No longer held captive by anxiety, she felt a sense of pure freedom. She was embarking upon a new chapter in her life and was thrilled that Evan was going to be a part of it. It had been a long time since she’d experienced happiness in a relationship and was determined not to let anything ruin it.

As they pulled out onto the road, Evan said, “Sorry I was late. I stopped by my house first to have a quick shower and change my clothes. I figured it couldn’t be too pleasant kissing someone who smells like they’ve been working on cars all day.”

Shrugging her shoulders, Maya replied, “I’ve smelled worse. And besides, I like the way you smell after a long day at work. It kinda turns me on.” She smiled, flashing him her dimples.

“Oh, there you go showing me your dimples again. Those things are like kryptonite to me.”

Her grin widened. “Well, I have to have something to match the power of those lips. Otherwise I’d be helpless.”

As they came to a stoplight, he leaned over to claim her mouth once again. “I think I’ll have to test these lips out to see if they still have the same effect on you.”

As he leaned in to kiss her, she placed her hand on his neck, sliding it up into the strands of his hair. She felt his breath ghost against her mouth, and his lips were just beginning to brush against her own, when they were abruptly jolted from the flow of the moment.

The sound of screeching tires suddenly filled the air, followed by the impact of metal on metal. Both of their bodies were jolted forward as a car hit them from behind, launching them sharply against their seat belts. Maya grunted as the safety belt dug into her ribs, feeling as if the breath had been knocked out of her. A curse fled from Evan’s lips, and then he reached over to check on her, making sure that she was all right.

“Are you okay?”

She nodded slowly, a little stunned from the sudden impact. “Yeah, I’m fine.” Glancing into the rearview mirror, she tried to see who it was that had rear-ended them, and saw the culprit to be a gray SUV. Evan pulled off to the side of the residential road where there wasn’t any traffic, and then he put the car into park.

After taking off his seat belt he said, “I’ll just get this straightened out, and then we’ll be on our way. Be right back, okay?”

Maya nodded, keeping her eyes peeled on the rearview mirror. As the SUV door opened she saw a tall, slim woman wearing a gypsy skirt get out. Even from this distance, Maya could tell that the woman was very nervous, and as Evan came toward her she began apologizing profusely. She handed him some papers, which Maya guessed was probably her registration, then showed him her license. Then she saw Evan say a few words to her and walk back to the car.

As he made it back to the car, he opened the door and spoke to her. “Maya, honey, can you open the glove compartment for me and hand me the registration papers from out of there?”

She opened the glove compartment and dug around a little until she found what she was looking for, then handed them over to him.

“Thanks. Be right back.”

As Evan exchanged license and registration information with the woman, Maya glanced into the rearview mirror every now and again, just to see how things were going.

She couldn’t help her nosiness, and besides, they had just gotten into an accident, so she wanted to make sure that everything was all right. After five minutes passed she began to feel a little impatient. She took another glance into the mirror just in time to see the gypsy skirt lady hand Evan a business card. This didn’t bother her at all, but what did pique her attention was the fact that the lady had placed her palm against his arm. The woman’s hand lingered against his bicep for far longer than was necessary, and Maya could tell that this woman wasn’t just giving him a touch of concern, but was outright flirting. She didn’t have to hear what they were saying to understand what was going on. Then she saw Evan nod his head and point to the car, as if indicating that someone else was inside. Using that as an excuse, Maya exited the vehicle. She was just beginning to walk around to the back of the car when she heard a voice call out to her.

“Maya?”

As the familiar voice called out her, she turned to face them with a feeling of dread.

“Dylan? What are
you
doing here?”

“I was just driving along, and got rear-ended. I never expected that you would be the driver.”

“My friend was the one who was driving, but it wasn’t their fault. An SUV hit us from behind, so I guess it caused a chain reaction, and since you were in front of us, we ended up hitting you.”

Looking at Evan’s vehicle with a gaze full of curiosity, Dylan asked, “Whose Jeep is this?”

“It’s my friend’s car. He was driving me home.”

“So it’s a guy?” His brows drew into a slight frown.

“Yes, it’s a guy.”

“Well, who is he? Are you going out with him?” His lips were set in a straight line, and his body became tense.

As the sound of footsteps came from behind her, Maya knew that Evan was approaching.

“Is this him?” He glared at Evan, sizing him up. “Why didn’t you tell me you were seeing another guy?”

“Who is this?” Evan asked.

Before Maya could say anything, Dylan responded, “Her
boyfriend
.”

“
Ex
-
boyfriend,” Maya said in a firm tone of voice.

“Oh, so now you’re dumping me for him?”

“We were already broken up, Dylan.”

“I thought we were getting back together.”

“Well, you thought wrong.”

“
Really?
So what you said to me on the phone last night, that was all just a lie?”

Maya could feel Evan’s gaze upon her, and she could see from her peripheral vision that the look he was giving her wasn’t a good one.

“You talked to him last night?” Evan asked with a questioning gaze.

“Yes, but it didn’t mean anything. He was the one who called me. I don’t want anything to do with him.”

The way Evan was watching her made her feel terrible, so she shifted her eyes away, training them upon Dylan with an angry stare.

“You told me you would think about us moving in together. Why would you say that if you didn’t want us to be together?” Dylan’s voice was tense with anger.

“Because you kept
bugging
me about it. I just told you what you wanted to hear so you would leave me alone. Look, I’m sorry, okay? But I think both you and I know that this relationship is over. Now will you please just leave me alone already?” Her voice was rife with emotion.

Taken aback by what she’d just said to him, Dylan responded, “So that’s how you really feel, huh? Wow, okay.” He stood there just looking at her, as if he expected her to say something more.

Maya found herself unable to look at Evan straight on, as she felt too embarrassed to even meet his gaze. She knew what he must be thinking of her, that she was untrustworthy and only interested in playing games with him, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. She’d made a grave mistake last night by talking to Dylan.

I’ll think about it.
Those three little words had really done her in, and now she would have to pay for speaking them.

“Look me in the eyes and tell me you don’t love me anymore. Tell me you have absolutely no feelings at all remaining for me, and I’ll just walk away. You have my word.” Engaging her in a steely gaze, Dylan waited for her reply.

Evan’s eyes were trained intensely upon her. She could feel the heat of his stare, and she knew he was anxiously awaiting her response.

Staring Dylan straight in the eye, she said, “I fell out of love with you a long time ago. It’s over between us, okay?” Turning away from him, she headed back to the car.

“So you have absolutely no feelings for me anymore. None?”

Whipping around to face him she, hastily replied, “Why are you doing this? You had your chance with me, Dylan, and you blew it. So please, just let me go.”
She turned and headed for the car, and then climbed up into the passenger seat.

She watched from the Jeep as Dylan stood by the side of the road. He seemed to be in some sort of shock because he wasn’t moving, only standing there as if he were in some sort of a frozen daze. He stared at her for a moment, and then his eyes were upon Evan, fixing him with a gaze that was nothing short of pure animosity. She watched Dylan’s mouth form some words, and then she saw Evan turn his back on him and walk away.

Once Evan made it back to the car, he got in and shut the door. But he didn’t turn the key in the ignition. He only sat there, his eyes focused intensely upon Dylan’s car in front of them. Maya heard the sound of a car starting up, and then Dylan drove away, advancing through a stop sign as he sped off down the street. They sat in tense silence for a few moments before Evan finally spoke.

“So do you still love him?”

“No.”

“But you still have feelings for him, right?”

Maya sighed, glancing out the window at the houses that lined the street.

“I really don’t know why you’re asking me this.”

“It’s a simple question.”

“Even if I did, it wouldn’t matter because I don’t want to be with him anymore. I want to be with you.”

“But a part of you is still lingering with him.”

“What? Why do you say that?”

“You asked him to let you go, as if he still has some power over you. As if there’s a part of you that’s still hanging on to him, a part that’s afraid to move on.”

For a moment, Maya couldn’t remember saying any such thing, and then it came back to her. It was true. She had said it.

“But I didn’t mean it like that. I am ready to move on, and I want to move on with you.”

Shaking his head, Evan averted his eyes, glancing out the window.

“Evan, please just listen to me.” Placing her hand on his arm, she tried to get him to make eye contact with her. “Please don’t be mad at me.”

Turning his attention back on her, he responded, “I’m not mad. I’m hurt.”

“I don’t want him, Evan. I want you. Can’t you see that?”

“You may want me, but a part of you is still with him, and I don’t like that.”

“I want nothing to do with him, so why can’t you just believe me?”

Disregarding what she had just told him, Evan said, “You spoke to him last night. Was this before or after I called you?”

“After, and the conversation meant nothing to me. He was the one who called.”

“So what did you talk about?”

“Not much, really. He asked me to move in with him, but I told him I didn’t want to.”

“He just said you told him that you’d think about it.”

“I only said that so he’d leave me alone. He wouldn’t stop bothering me.”

Evan remained silent, his eyes fixed on some random point beyond the windshield.