A Dangerous Affair Chapter 15

A Chapter by Repgreece

Stephanie and Tom on the sofa

Tom moved to the oven and took out the chicken, whilst Stephanie slid off the counter top. She looked down at her blouse and peeled the wet material away from her skin, shaking it by the collar as she attempted to dry it out. Tom’s attention was diverted from the chicken to Stephanie, and he spilt some hot fat onto his hand as he carelessly placed the dish onto the hob. He cursed and dived towards the sink, turning on the cold tap and holding his hand under the water.

“What have you done?” Stephanie exclaimed, rushing to him and glancing down at his hand.

He grimaced. “It’s okay, I just burnt my hand a bit.” He pulled his hand out from under the water to study it.

“Keep it under there,” she urged, pushing his hand back. “You need to keep it cold for a while or it’ll continue to burn.” He stood with his hand under the stream until the water made it numb with cold. “How does it feel now?” she asked.

“It’s ...” he began but changed his mind. “Actually it’s really, really bad.” For a split second she looked quite concerned until he continued. “I don’t know how I can bear it if you aren’t able to make me feel better.” She rolled her eyes at him, took hold of his hand and, to his amazement, she raised it to her lips and kissed it. Just as he thought his luck was in though, she abruptly dropped his hand, saying,

“It seems all right to me, come on let’s put the meals out before they get cold.” And taking two plates out of a cupboard, she began to dish out the food.

“Well, you can’t blame a guy for trying,” he said under his breath.

“What?”

“Nothing. I’ll set the table,” he replied, reaching into the fridge for a bottle of white wine and hoping that it would help her to loosen up.

They sat in the lounge at the dining room table to eat their meal and chatted about past articles they had written, before Stephanie eventually broached the subject of the Carlton story.

“Do you think that we’ll get a telephone call from him?” she said out of the blue.

“Carlton?” He knew exactly who she had meant.

“Hmm.” She was hesitant to bring up the subject again but he had said that they needed to discuss the story and share everything, and they would be working on it again the following day.

“I’m not sure. I’m also not sure if I want him to call or not. If he does, it could be even more risky for us now if he suspects something.”

She sighed and put her fork down. “Look Tom, I suppose that I owe you an apology for today. It wasn’t the wisest of moves on my part.”

“No.” He couldn’t disagree.

“Still, if I could have just...” She watched his expression change and stopped. “Yes well, we’ll just have to see if he phones or not and go from there.”

He nodded and changed the subject. “By the way, I was right to take the risk...about the potatoes,” he added, “you’re not a bad cook Steph.”

She smiled. “Well, I suppose that you’re not bad yourself Tom.”

He wondered if she was referring to his cooking or to himself in general.

They finished the meal, discussing cooking techniques and recipes, and it surprised her that of all subjects they could have talked about, he was interested in that one. He didn’t seem like the kind of man to enjoy spending time in the kitchen, but then how did she know what kind of man he was? She had to admit to herself that she may have had preconceived ideas about him.

After having eaten, they took the dishes into the kitchen and she began to think about leaving. He sensed this and ushered her back into the lounge.

“Hey, you want to watch a film? We have that wine to finish off too,” he said, heading for the television and DVD collection. He started to search through the films.

“I really should be going home now. It’s getting late,” she replied.

“Come on, it’s not that late Cinderella. Grab the glasses and the bottle, and I’ll find a film.”

It felt odd being there with him like that. Okay, so they had enjoyed a meal together, but to sit and watch a film...somehow that felt strangely intimate. The kind of thing a girlfriend and boyfriend would do. She collected the wine nonetheless, placed it on the coffee table, picked up her glass and took a seat on the sofa, curling her legs underneath her. Well, if she was going to stay for a film, she may as well make herself comfortable.

He placed a DVD into the player and joined her. It was one of the action films that took up practically all of his DVD collection, but he had little else to offer her. He had never really worried about this before with previous dates, expecting the women to accept his choice in film, but now he wondered if she would enjoy watching it and part of him wished that he could put on something less stereotypically male.

They began to watch the film but as it progressed the long day, the large meal they had just enjoyed and the wine began to take its toll on Stephanie, and she found herself fighting to keep her eyes open. She’d have to leave in a minute, but she’d just wait a bit longer. She was warm and comfortable; she’d face the cold of her car in a minute or two.

Tom looked across at Stephanie and noticed that she had fallen asleep, with her head rested on the sofa arm and her legs curled up on the cushion. He looked at her for a second as if he was trying to decide what to do. After a moment’s hesitation, he eventually put his glass down and moved to the space between her and the back of the sofa, nudging her across slightly. She stirred then and looked back at him in bewilderment.

“Shhh,” he said, making a point of looking engrossed in the film.

In the back of her head she knew that she should get up, but her body seemed exhausted and she really didn’t have any energy. She’d wait until Tom had finished watching the film. Nevertheless, before she knew it, her eyes were closed again. By the time the film had finished both of them were asleep.

Tom suddenly woke, and it took him a few seconds to remember where he was. His heart jumped with excitement when he saw Stephanie in his arms. She had her face turned away from him and his one arm was underneath her, wrapped around her middle, his other hand resting on her arm. He lay completely still for a few moments just looking at her. Then his fingers started to stroke the soft skin on the inside of her arm, slowly running up and down it, loving the way she felt under his touch. She didn’t stir so his hand moved of its own accord to slide down the side of her body, where it came into brief contact with the side of her breast. His heart began pounding. He knew he shouldn’t be doing this but his hands couldn’t seem to get enough of feeling her. He turned his face into her shoulder and brushed his cheek against it, breathing in her scent. He would have to stop soon, but he wanted to prolong the moment for as long as he possibly could.

Stephanie slowly opened her eyes as she felt something trail down her arm. She felt Tom behind her and realized suddenly that it was his fingers. She lay frozen, her heart thudding. Then his hand moved and her eyes widened in shock as she felt him touch the side of her body. Her face flooded with colour and her breathing quickened. Then his hand was at the side of her breast and she tried desperately to hide the sudden impulse to gasp. She felt his head move to her shoulder and she closed her eyes then, afraid he would know that she was awake.

Tom shifted slightly, bringing his chest into even closer contact with Stephanie’s back. Before she could stop herself she trembled, her body instinctively pushing back against him. He lifted his head then to look at her face. She kept her eyes closed. Was she awake? He found himself wondering what she would do if he turned her around now and kissed her. How would she react? Would she slap him, or would she kiss him back? Would she want him to touch her as he desperately wanted to? He wanted to feel her react to him. He wanted to pleasure her.

This had gone on long enough. Stephanie realised with sudden shock that she was allowing Tom to seduce her. She had to be more careful or, before she knew it, she’d end up in his bed. She moved away from him and sat up, making a point of stretching as if she had just woken.

“I guess I fell asleep. What time is it?” she asked.

He bit back his disappointment and looked at his watch. “Two o clock. Sorry Steph, I fell asleep as well.”

“I had better be going or I’ll be falling asleep at the office tomorrow too,” she said, searching for her bag and standing up.

“I should phone for a taxi,” he pointed out.

She shook her head. “You won’t get one now, I’ll be fine Tom.”

He thought for a moment. “You could stay here. Then you won’t have to drive.”

She looked warily at him. “No thanks. I’ll be fine, honestly. I’ll see myself out,” she said, grabbing her keys from off the coffee table.

He followed her to the door nonetheless and she turned to say goodbye.

“Thanks for the food Tom. See you tomorrow...or today,” she amended.

He laughed, and she felt a sudden warmth at the way his smile made him look so incredibly sexy. She certainly would have to watch herself!

He was itching to lean forward and experience what it would be like to feel her lips under his, but she was back to the old efficient Stephanie of the office. She’d never go for it.

“Night Steph,” he said, watching her walk away.