The Secrets Between Us | ✓

|59|

Anaya stirred slowly from her slumber, her eyes fluttering open to the harsh morning light that seeped through the curtains. As she sat up, her hands instinctively reached for her temple, the remnants of a pounding headache reminding her of the previous night. She couldn't help but berate herself for being so careless. How could she have gotten drunk? She was supposed to escape, but here she was.

The bedroom door creaked open, and Icarus walked in, carefully balancing a tray in his hands. Seeing her awake, he offered a warm smile and handed her a glass of water with aspirin.

"Thank you," she mumbled, her voice barely above a whisper. She avoided meeting his gaze, her cheeks burning bright red with embarrassment. Despite Icarus warning her to stay in her seat, she had climbed onto his lap, acting too forward, too wanton. It had nearly caused a disaster as the car veered towards a tree. Thankfully, Icarus managed to avert the collision just in time.

"What are your plans for today?" he asked.

She was relieved that he wasn't teasing her. "I'm not sure. I suppose I'll rest."

In truth, her intentions were far from resting. Once he left, she planned to reach out to Lisa and go shopping. It would be a casual outing that didn't require notifying Icarus. She would go somewhere far away so that they would never cross paths again.

And that's how their story would reach its final chapter.

"Let's watch a movie then," Icarus suggested.

She blinked up at him. "Uh, I-I want to sleep. I have a headache. You needn't keep me company. Focus on your work, okay?"

Icarus raised an eyebrow and bent down to look into her eyes, causing her heart to flutter. "You were saying something else last night when I was trying to focus on the road."

Anaya stared back at him, the memory of her audacious, whiny words echoing in her mind. Why don't you pay attention to me?

She bit her lip and fidgeted with the empty glass in her grasp. "What did I say? I can't remember anything."

"Oh?" He inched closer and brushed his lips against hers. "You wanted me to kiss you a hundred times."

Her eyebrows furrowed, a mixture of confusion and disbelief crossing her features. "No. That's not—"

He interrupted her protest with a triumphant laugh. "Hah! So you do remember!"

She handed the glass back to him and got out of bed. "I'm going to freshen up."

"I'll make you breakfast."

She paused on her way to the closet and slowly turned around, her gaze narrowing on him. "Where's Lisa?"

"I gave her the day off."

She frowned. Could he have read her mind?  "Why? Is she okay?"

"I wanted to spend time with you."