“Jim…you can tell me anything.” She tried to keep a straight face, but was having too much fun. It was exhilarating to have taken speech from him.
Not that they had needed words.
Not in the break room.
Pleasepleaseplease get me out of here, I’ll do anything!
Not in the conference room.
You are unbelievable. Revenge will be sweet. Watch and learn, Beesly.
Not in the kitchen.
“D’you wanna tell me something? You look like you wanna tell me something.”
Nope, can’t think of anything.
“You look like you have something really important to say and you just can’t for some reason.”
So lame. Not gonna get me.
Then she crossed a line – “you can tell me anything” – and everything changed.
Huh. Anything.
He looked down. She couldn’t believe she’d said that. And as she was thinking she’d killed the game, he looked back up.
Anything?
She stared, unable to see anything but his eyes.
He held her gaze a moment longer, then stood.
Follow me.
She did. He stopped at his desk, retrieved something from a lower drawer, then headed toward the hall. He stopped once more at the roof access ladder, and turned to her.
Still with me?
Um. Sure.
She watched the breeze play on his hair as they walked to the center of the roof. Tiny gravel crunched under their feet. Somewhere below a truck was reversing into a loading dock.
He stopped, looking down at what he held, then turned and handed it to her.
It was a small white envelope with her name on it. She was at a loss, and glanced up.
Go ahead.
Inside...a Christmas card? What—
Pam,
The things in this teapot are special to me because they remind me of you. They bring to mind your smile and your laugh, and make me want to do everything I can to see that, to hear that, again and again. If I could make a wish this Christmas, it would be that I would have the chance to make you smile every day for the rest of your life. You deserve to be happy.
Jim
She reread it several times, then simply stared at it. Your smile…your laugh…again and again…for the rest of your life.
You deserve to be happy.
“Jim.”
She swayed a little; he stepped forward, steadied her. His fingertips were warm and light through the sleeves of her blouse.
She was afraid to meet his eyes. She could feel their weight where her hair hid her face. If she looked up now, she would know that the card said what she thought it said. She would know, finally, irrevocably, that he wanted nothing else in the world.
And he would know that she did, too.
When he brushed her hair out of her eyes, she closed them. When he gently lifted her chin, the sun warmed her eyelids.
She opened her eyes.
Pam.
His eyes were calm, green pools. Warm and cool at once in a way she couldn’t wrap her thoughts around. She wanted to live there, in those eyes, always.
Safe.
Needed.
Desired.
Her hand moved up, tentatively traced a line … temple … cheekbone … jaw. He turned his head, pressing his lips to her wrist, and the card fluttered to the rooftop.
Her eyes were closed again when she felt his lips begin to move along her arm – slowly, lightly – to the inside of her elbow, then to her shoulder. She felt her hair lifted from her neck, only to be replaced by his breath – one, two, three.
When his lips touched the skin under her ear, she gasped. She couldn’t feel her legs.
His hands held her lower back, and she felt for all the world as though she were floating, anchored only to those hands, those lips, that heat.
Then his lips were gone, leaving a ghost of warmth on her neck. She opened her eyes.
I love you.
I know.
I wish—
Granted.
His lips on hers were soft, then firm, then demanding. He tasted like coffee, no cream. Her hands were in his hair, on his neck, his chest, his back, his belt. He pressed her to him until no space existed that was not them. A wave that had begun in her belly toppled and crashed as it reached her breasts, her groin, her ears, her knees. She sighed his name. He moaned hers.
She landed.
She hadn’t heard his voice in hours. It had cracked and rumbled like a thunderclap, and she stood dazed in its wake.
Panting.
Blinking.
The card lay at her feet. He stood motionless as she picked it up, pressed it to her belly, felt the fading tremors through the paper. Raised her eyes.
Pam?
Me, too.
She returned his smile.
Then laughed.
“You owe me two Cokes now.”
Author's Chapter Notes:
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
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