Mr. Valentine's Heart

Torn

~Cherise~

I think I slept one-hour last night. I tossed and turned, fretting about what happened between Caleb and myself. I acted like a bi.tch in heat, and I have no idea what came over me. I was embarrassed by my behavior and wasn’t at the same time. A part of me felt at peace with everything as if it were natural or something.

I was going to quit. I intended to call in today and give my two-week notice. Then, a voice kept telling me to go see Caleb. It’s the same voice I’ve been hearing lately. I swear I need to see a doctor.

It took all my courage to get up and ready for work. I purposely arrived early because I didn’t want to deal with Breyanne or anyone else. To be honest, on the elevator ride up, I was still thinking about how to quit once and for all.

I let myself into his office, finding it empty as expected. I walk over to his desk, looking at how neat it’s kept. He’s meticulous, and I guess that’s a good thing when you are the CEO of a company.

My mind started to drift, and the events of the previous night wash over me. The idea that I did what I did and had to see my boss now had my nerves becoming more and more out of control. I missed the sound of the door opening, but not the sound of his voice. “Cherise?” I slowly look up, finding his light brown eyes on me. I shift, becoming more uncomfortable. “What are you doing here?”

“I…I’m sorry. I shouldn’t be in here.” I push off of his desk and walk toward the door. As I walk past him, his arm shoots out and wraps around my waist. He pulls me toward him, securing me to his body with his arm, my back to his front. I suck in a breath at being this close to him. I feel his nose at the base of my neck, and I don’t miss him breathing me in deeply, causing a shiver to run through my body.

“You can come in here anytime. I would never turn you away.” His breath tickles my skin, and I close my eyes, trying to reel my feelings in. “I’m really surprised to see you here. I thought you’d try to quit.”

“Honestly, that was my plan. I was going to tell-” His words finally sink in. “What do you mean by ‘try’?” Caleb’s mouth is on my upper back, his soft lips burning my skin in the best possible way. I feel them turn into a smile, and he chuckles.

“Exactly what it sounds like. I wouldn’t have let you run away from me, no matter what.” I turn in his hold, pressing my chest against his body. He looks down at me, and I shiver at the look in his eyes.

“I'm confused. You are talking about not ‘letting me run away’ and I could ‘try’ to quit. What exactly are you saying?” We stare at each other for a bit, not saying a word. He reaches over and lets his lips connect softly to my forehead.

“I've already told you how I felt about everything. That hasn’t changed. What happened last night was-”

“A mistake, I know. I'm so sorry. I don't know wh-” Caleb's hands are on my face, and his lips are on mine, silencing me. I cover his hands with mine and let my body melt into the kiss. Caleb pulls back and kisses my nose, only to pull back further and look at me.

“Don't.” His voice is husky, and I hear the emotion in it. “Don't ever finish that sentence or say that to me. What happened last night was amazing, not a mistake. It was everything and more. I can't wait for that again, well, being intimate with you, that is.” I feel tears filling my eyes, though I have no idea why that is. “I told you that I want to explore this with you and I meant it. There's no second guessing for me or thinking that this is wrong. It's very right.” I let out a shaky breath and put my head on his chest. What am I doing? What the hell has come over me? I know I should move my head, but my body won't cooperate. Caleb takes that opportunity to rub my back, and I fall even deeper, letting my feelings take over.

“It's so weird, what happened. I never felt like that before.”

“What do you mean?” I shut my eyes, cursing my loose lips. I swear, when I'm around him, I have no filter. I'm ready and willing to say anything and everything that pops into my head. This has got to be a sign of some sort of illness. Caleb's hands drop to my waist, and he pushes against me. My head comes off his body, and he captures my chin, pulling my eyes to his. “Talk to me. You can tell me anything.” I sigh and close my eyes.

“It's going to sound crazy and I don't want to be that crazy lady that you ended up kissing that time.” I feel his lips on my forehead.

“In my entire life, you could never be that person to me.” He lets go of my face, and I move forward, placing my chin on his chest.

“This is going to sound so crazy. I don't even want to tell you.”

“Trust me. I swear, i got you.” I sigh and close my eyes.

“It's just that last night I was… overwhelmed. I was getting images of us together.” I feel his chest vibrate with laughter.

“You were fantasizing, huh?” I shake my head and open my eyes.

“No, that's not what I mean. It was almost as if I was being sent the images. There was also a voice telling me to do what I did. It was so compelling that I couldn't ignore it. It was as if someone was in the room, even though it was just the two of us.” Caleb stares at me, and I'm immediately defensive. “See, I knew I shouldn't have told you.”

“Have you heard the voice before?”

“Hmm?”

“The voice you said you heard. Have you heard that voice before last night?”

“Uh, yeah, once or twice. I also heard it this morning.” I look up at Caleb; he looks like he's thinking hard about something. “What's wrong?” He looks at me and kisses the top of my head.

“It's nothing. I think that you want me so badly, but you are scared to give in so your other self is just nudging you in the right direction.” I chuckle at his words.

“Nudging in the right direction, huh?” Caleb has a sexy grin on his face.

“Yeah. It's like in the movies when the person has the devil on one shoulder and an angel on the other, but they are in their own likeness. I know you want me, and it's okay. Just give in to the feeling.” He winks at me, and I roll my eyes, playfully slapping him on the chest.

“You are a mess.” I rest my head on his chest, letting the sound of his heartbeat lull me. I could be like this forever if he let me.