Wanting to Remember,Trying to Forget(16)

These days Max seemed to take up more of her thoughts than Richard. Strange but true. He was all she could think about. This relationship with Sofia was affecting her more than she had anticipated, but she would get over it eventually. When Richard came home in a few weeks all this madness would come to an end. The comment Amber just made would be ancient history. In a few weeks she would remember how much she loved Richard and stop thinking about how much better off she would be with a guy like Max.

* * *

“Sofia,” Max muttered impatiently, “it’s too bright.”

“Max, that’s our brand color. You canno’ just change it.”

Max slowly exhaled an aggravated breath. After an hour of debating over the bright yellow Sofia wanted as the background for the homepage, he was ready to start pulling his hair out. They finally managed to set up a decent website for Bit-by-Bit, with hyperlinks added for buyers to scan through the product range as well as the necessary payment options should they wish to make a purchase. Sofia also suggested that he set up a page for DIY tips and Max had done so but then it was time for them to add the finishing touches before the presentation on Monday and that’s where the trouble started.

“Just think about it,” he said. “A man comes home and his wife says; the kitchen cupboard fell off its hinges. You need to fix it. The man eats his dinner, has his beer and just before he goes to bed, he remembers that he doesn’t have the right tools. A vague memory comes to mind about an ad he saw and a website that can solve all his problems. He goes to his computer, types in the address, and suddenly a shrill scream breaks the silence. His innocent children wake up crying. His wife rushes in, and finds her husband, blinded by the bright yellow light on the computer screen. He is inconsolable. He never wants to visit that site again.”

“Wow!” Sofia pulled an unimpressed face. “That was so dramatic.”

“It’s the truth. It’s like walking into the frickin sun! No one will want to visit this site. It’s too hard on the eyes. I’m not saying change the color, I’m just saying tone it down a bit.”

“It’s no’ that bad, Max.”

He threw his hands up. “Fine. How about we settle this in a democratic way.”

She smiled and he couldn’t help but notice how pretty she looked in a pair of jeans, a simple gray T-shirt, and her thick hair neatly tied up in a ponytail.

“Rock, paper, scissors,” he said when he managed to stop staring. “I win, we change it. You win, we keep it.”

“Deal.”

“On three. One…Two…Three.” Max threw out a flat hand, but when he noticed that Sofia had her fingers out in the shape of a scissor, he quickly drew in his fingers and clenched them into a fist.

“¿Qué haces?” Sofia asked.

She had asked him that enough times for him to know that it meant “what are you doing?”

He smiled. He liked it when she spoke in Spanish. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he replied innocently. “I didn’t do anything.”

“What was tha’?”

“What?”

“Tha’? What you just did? You cheated.”

Max bit his lower lip. “No, I didn’t.”

“Yes, you did. You had paper and you changed it to rock. Mos’ people would ask for best outto three when they lose, but you cheated.”

“I think you’re hallucinating. The bright yellow must be affecting your brain.”

“I canno’ believe it. Who cheats at rock, paper, scissors?”

“I didn’t cheat.” Max sat back in his chair, looking offended that she would dare accuse him of such a thing. “But if you’re so adamant about it, let’s do it again.”

“Fine.”

“Fine. One…Two…Three.”

Sofia threw out a fist but Max threw a fist with his index finger pointed out.

Confusion crinkled her pretty face. “What’s tha’?”

“This is a stick of dynamite and it can blow up rock, paper, or scissors.”

“You can’t do tha’!”

“I just did. So I guess that means I win.”

She leaned back in her chair and sighed her defeat. “If you can stoop to such levels, you must really wan’ to change it, so go for it.”

Max was disappointed that she had not given him more of a fight. Danny would have never given in so easily. Danny! How did she always manage to pop into his head? He squashed the thought and got to work changing the background. He felt Sofia leaning closer and he suddenly found it difficult to breathe. His throat clenched and his palms became sweaty.

“Max,” she said seductively, “can I ask you something?”

He nodded without looking at her.

“Have you ever thought abou’…abou’ kissing me?”

Max choked and disguised it by clearing his throat. Every woman he had ever dated had felt it necessary to make the first move. Even a timid woman like Sofia felt compelled to take matters into her own hands. There must be something that he was missing. He knew he was a bit slow on the uptake but he was shy, insecure when it came to the opposite sex. He was a little low in the experience department and no one knew this pathetic little secret except Danny.

Again, he pushed Danny out of his mind and focused on the very interesting topic at hand. “Oh…wow!” The nervousness came out of him as a stuttered laugh. “Uh…kissing you?” He nipped his lower lip when his eyes met hers. “It…uh…it never crossed my mind.”

Sofia smiled at him as if she knew he was lying and moved closer to him. “So you haven’ thought abou’ it? No’ even once?”

“Maybe…maybe once or…twice…and if right now is included…then…um…maybe three times…but that’s it. Sorry, I just…I just don’t find you…all that…attractive.”

She moved her lips closer to his ear. “You don’t find me even a little pretty?”

He shut his eyes, trying not to think about the way the R rolled off her tongue and the half-pronounced T when she said the word pretty. “No…uh…not even…a little.”

She gently nipped his ear with her teeth and his breathing quickened. “How about the accent?” she asked. “I’ve heard men can’t resist a Spanish accent.”

“Accent?” He swallowed hard. “What…accent? I didn’t even notice…an accent?”

She slowly climbed over him, straddling her legs over his hips. She lowered her head and began whispering sweet Spanish nothings into his ear. This was his breaking point. This woman was a temptress of note. His hands moved up to rest on her hips while her hands slowly began undoing the buttons of his shirt.

She lifted her head and looked down at him. “You still don’t find me attractive?”

“I…uh…” Air was now being pushed out of his lungs in short gasps. “I…uh…I think I need a better look…just to make sure.”

She smiled almost triumphantly and leaned closer. “Like this?”

“Um…a little closer.”

She nodded and leaned closer. “Like this?”

“That…that yellow must be affecting my eyes. Maybe just…a little closer.”

She closed the remaining gap, leaving mere millimeters between her lips and his. She moistened her mouth with the tip of her tongue and Max had to remind himself to keep breathing. “Like this?” she whispered.

He gently ran his hand over her cheek, stalling to find enough courage to close the gap. “Like this,” he said before his lips touched hers.

Her mouth moved sensually over his. He was tentative at first, but the more she massaged his mouth, the more he began to lose himself in her spell. He felt her hands undoing the rest of his buttons and then the buckle of his belt. His hands, however, were firmly pinned at her waist, afraid to do anything more. She broke the kiss, whipped off her gray T-shirt, and tossed it on the floor. “You can touch me, Max.”

He looked at the gorgeous breasts trapped beneath the thin cotton bra, just waiting to be released for his exploration. He could feel his nervousness returning. One part of him was tempted to go forth and explore whereas the other part was so afraid that this would end in disaster. Either she would end up feeling rejected, or he would end up feeling like an incompetent fool. Tough choice. A choice that was taken out of his hands the second he heard the door open.

“Danny!” Max shrieked, almost falling off the chair.

Sofia quickly stood up and attempted to cover her chest with her T-shirt. Max stumbled to get to his feet. His mouth opened to say something but no words came to mind.

He watched as Danny took in the entire scene. Topless Sofia. His unbuttoned shirt. His unbuckled belt. She smiled and he could tell that there was something else behind that smile; the slightest hint of anger, but mostly just hurt.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered. “I didn’t mean to interrupt.”

She slowly walked away and moments later he heard her bedroom door slam shut.

“Well, tha’ was awkward,” Sofia said as she pulled on her T-shirt. “I think I’d better go. You can finish the homepage by yourself, can’t you?”