Conflicted by Lisa Suzanne

my husband,” I blurted, holding up the screen.
    He nodded once with clear disappointment and stood, and I watched his retreating back as he left the room, closing the door behind him.
    I cleared my throat, shocked over Cole’s words and then worried why John was calling. I immediately thought something was wrong. We rarely spoke on the phone, opting instead to communicate via text message. “Hey. Is everything okay?”
    “The hot water heater broke. I’ve been taking cold showers.”
    It figured something would break while I was out of town. I was always the one who had to put in the order with our apartment manager whenever something broke. I wasn’t even sure if John knew how to do that. “Did you call the super?”
    “Where’s his number?”
    “I taped it on the inside of the medicine cabinet.”
    “I’ll call tonight when I get home. How late can I call?”
    “I don’t know. Leave a message if he doesn’t answer.”
    “What do I say?”
    Sometimes he was beyond helpless. “Probably your name, apartment number, phone number, and the problem.”
    “If I text you the number, will you just call?”
    I sighed. “Seriously, John?”
    He was quiet.
    “Fine. Text me the number and I’ll call.”
    “Thanks.”
    It was my turn to be quiet. I was so tired of stupid shit like this. I was out of town on business, and he had the balls to ask me to call about the stupid fucking water heater?
    “Well, I guess I’ll talk to you later,” John said.
    “Okay,” I hedged, waiting for an I love you or an I miss you that never came.
    “Bye.”
    The call ended before I had a chance to even say goodbye.
    It was moments like that—phone calls like that—that pushed me further and further away from John. Meanwhile Cole was telling me he wanted to sit across the table from me so he could look at me.
    After his admission about his seating choice at lunch, I felt like Cole was now actively working to steal me away from my husband, and I was pretty sure that I didn’t want to fight against that.
    I tossed my phone down on the night table beside the bed. It was time to stop thinking, because all thinking did was bounce me back and forth like a ping pong ball.
    I stood and walked to the door. I closed my eyes and drew in a deep breath.
    I was really going to do this.
    I turned the handle, and my eyes immediately found him. He was on his laptop again, but this time he looked up at me when I entered the room. Our eyes met and locked, and he set his laptop down and stood.
    “Ms. Cleary?”
    I took a step toward him, and he took a step toward me. We both moved toward each other until we met in the middle. His hand came up to cup my neck, and my eyes closed as I leaned into his warm touch.
    I took a deep breath, that clean scent washing over me.
    I opened my eyes, and he was a breath away from me. “I think it’s time to start calling me Lucy.”
    He closed the final gap between us as he pulled me closer with the hand around my neck. He wrapped his other arm around my waist and hauled me against him. “Okay, Lucy,” he said, and then he touched his lips to mine.
    He stopped and looked at me as if thinking it through, but I didn’t want to think. I just wanted to feel.
    And then his lips collided with mine, firm and assured. He opened his mouth to allow our tongues to dance together in a slow tango.
    Every feeling left my body except the desire that twisted through my veins and exploded everywhere. I thought of nothing other than how good it felt to finally kiss Cole Benson.
    The way my body reacted to him was unfamiliar. I’d forgotten what true sexual excitement and craving felt like. It had been missing from my life for far too long, but Cole’s kiss was the spark to reignite the passion I deserved out of life.
    His hand around my neck moved up to grip my hair as he kissed me with arrogance and dominance. He took control, and my body begged for more as my hips involuntarily bucked toward his. My hands gripped his hard