All of Me

Not a Chance

Sebastien Laurent

Her lips tasted better than her name rolling off my tongue and now I want more.

I know it sounds cliche, but there was a spark when our lips met and I knew she felt it too with the way her lips moved in sync with mine. I hadn't planned to kiss Naomi... While I of course was enjoying my time with her and wanted more of it, I genuinely wanted to see the Atlanta skyline. But when she invited me to sit next to her and I was the closest to her I'd been all day, I was captivated. Then, when she turned to me with that look on her face, and I just knew she'd be blushing if it weren't hidden by her beautiful brown skin, kissing her felt natural. And she accepted it, kissing me back... until she wasn't.

"What the hell are you doing, Mr. Laurent?" she blurts out after pushing me away.

"Kissing you," I respond plainly. It felt like she was enjoying it too and I felt the warmness of her checks while I held her face. "Were you not kissing me back?" I raise a brow.

"I mean, I was, but er— I didn't realize— I wasn't thinking..." she averts her gaze. "Please go back to your seat, and... don't do that again."

My brows furrow in confusion because she seemed to be enjoying it as well, but I respect her wishes and return to my spot across from her, though my eyes remain on her as I attempt to analyze the indecipherable look on her face. "Did you not like it, Naomi?" I ask. "Because to me, it felt like you were enjoying it just as much as I was."

Her eyes finally return to mine, but this time she does so with a glare. "No," she responds curtly. "That was a mistake and it shouldn't have happened."

"I don't think it was a mistake," I retort with a smirk. "I think you're attracted to me as much as I am to you and you enjoyed that kiss as much as I did."

Naomi's eyes go wide and she opens her mouth as if to speak before closing it tight and tensing her jaw. She looks away out the window of the cart and leans her head on her hand as we start our descent.

"The tour is over, Mr. Laurent," she says coldly without looking at me. "I'm sure you can find your way back to your hotel... alone."

I sigh and relax back in my seat, not bothering to protest.

###

Naomi Monroe

I can't believe I kissed Sebas— No! Mr. Laurent. I am a professional and that was very unprofessional. However, it was probably one of, if not the best kiss I've ever experienced. There was a spark there, as cliche as that sounds, but it was probably just because I'm attracted to him and the man is easy to like. I mean, he dedicates his life to investing in and supporting underserved people and sharing his wealth. What's not to like about that?

Whatever. None of what I'm thinking about right now matters because it was wildly inappropriate considering I'm the journalist who interviewed him, plus, I'm not interested in being his Atlanta bootycall-slash-adventure, or whatever the fuck he would consider me. And that will never happen again because I will never see Mr. Laurent in person again. I'll just coordinate with his team on the interview film.

As soon as I cross the door into our apartment, my roommate Gianni rushes up to me.

"Mimi!" she shouts as if she's not just 10 feet away from me. "Please, can you help me with my hair for tonight?!"

Other than my family, Gianni is the only other person I'm cool with calling me Mimi. We've been friends since first grade and she's practically like my sister. After finishing undergrad, we decided to get an apartment together here in Atlanta. At first, I was hesitant about rooming with my best friend of over 15 years, but it all worked out and only proved the fact that we are meant to be considering we haven't killed each other yet. Though, it works out that we barely have much overlap in the apartment most of the time. She sleeps through most of the day while I'm away at work before she goes to evening classes for her MBA program and a few late nights out of the week and through most of the weekend, she's out stripping.