Zoey

Carter carried on a conversation with my dad as if they’d been old friends who hadn’t seen each other in a long time. After we finished eating, my dad decided it was time to leave.

“I better get going. I have to be at the hospital tomorrow morning at six a.m. Thank you for dinner, Carter.”

“You’re welcome, John. Have a safe trip back to Connecticut.”

“I will. Sweetheart, it was good to see you.” He kissed my cheek. “Take care of that finger.”

“I will, Dad. Be careful,” I spoke as I walked him to the elevator. “Tell Dad I said hi and I miss him.”

“He’ll certainly be jealous once I tell him we had dinner together.” He smiled.

Once the elevator door shut, I walked back to the living room and found Carter sitting on the couch with another glass of scotch.

“I’m going to go to my room for the night,” I spoke.

He held up his glass and didn’t say a word, basically saying that he didn’t care. I sighed as I went to my room, shut the door, and changed into my pajamas. It was ten o’clock and I was getting ready to go to sleep for the night when I heard a loud noise coming from the kitchen. When I went to see what was going on, I found Carter on the floor in a drunken stupor with the bar stool knocked over.

“What is going on?” I asked as I bent down.

“The fucking stool was in the way,” he slurred.

“Are you okay?” I asked as I grabbed his arm to help him up.

“I’m fine.” He jerked out of my grip.

He tried to stand up, but he kept falling back.

“Please let me help you to bed,” I spoke. “It’s not going to kill you to take some help from me.”

He glared at me and once again tried to get up, but couldn’t. I sighed as I grabbed hold of his arm and helped him stand. Placing his arm around my neck, I guided him up the stairs as he stumbled quite a few times. I wanted to ask him why he drank so much, but I already knew. He was trying to drown his sorrows about Nora. Once we reached his bedroom, I helped him over to the bed and he fell back.

“Fuck,” he spoke as he put his arm over his forehead.

“All you need is to sleep it off.”

I bent down and removed his shoes and socks while he attempted to unbutton his shirt. He was failing, so I tried to help him. He grabbed my wrists and held them tight while his eyes burned into mine.

“Come closer,” he spoke in a low voice.

I stared into his drunken eyes and brought my face closer to his. He let go of my wrists, softly stroked my cheek with his thumb, and then wrapped his hand around the nape of my neck and pulled me closer until our lips were mere inches from each other. I gulped and before I knew it, his lips were brushing against mine. The smell of liquor infiltrated my space while the taste of scotch fell upon my lips. This was wrong—wrong on many levels—but at the moment, I didn’t care. It felt too good to pull away. Our tongues met as I placed my hands on each side of his face. Our lips moved in sync and his other hand made its way up my shirt. He groped my breast and let out a moan at the same time as sounds of pleasure escaped me. He rolled me over on my back and hovered over me as his tongue explored my neck. Suddenly, he stopped and rolled off me and onto his back.

“You need to go back to your room,” he slurred as he placed his arm over his eyes.

Silence overtook me for a moment as I stared at him. I climbed off the bed, and before I walked out of his room, I spoke, “Sleep well, Mr. Grayson.”

I climbed into bed, laid my head down and tucked my hands underneath my pillow. As I lay there, the tormenting events of just a few minutes ago haunted me. The softness of his scotch-stained lips against mine sent exhilarating vibrations down below. The feel of his hand on my breast made me tremble from head to toe, and the way his tongue explored my neck made me feel in such a way I’d never felt before. Ever. The brief sexual moment I experienced with Carter Grayson was unlike any other. Tomorrow would be awkward to say the least and I lay there and wondered if he would say anything about it at all.

I was up early so I could shower and get dressed before heading to the hospital to pick up Nora. I nervously walked into the kitchen and saw Sadie standing at the stove preparing some oatmeal. I let out a deep breath when I saw Carter wasn’t there.

“Good morning, Sadie.” I smiled as I poured myself a cup of coffee.

“Good morning, Zoey. Breakfast is almost ready.”

“Thank you.”

I took a seat on the stool and held the coffee cup with both hands wrapped around it.

“Have you seen Mr. Grayson yet?” I asked.

“No. Not yet. I’m sure he’ll be down soon.”

Sadie set my bowl of oatmeal down in front of me, and as I was eating, my phone dinged with a text message. Picking it up, I noticed it was from Carter.

“I’ll be bringing Nora home in about a half hour.”

I stared at his message in confusion. He was already gone and at the hospital?

“Apparently, Carter isn’t here. He’s at the hospital picking up Nora,” I spoke to Sadie.

“Oh. I thought he was still home. I’ll keep his oatmeal warm, then.”

Before setting my phone down, I replied to his text.

“Okay.”

I had assumed we’d pick Nora up together, but I guess there was no assuming anything where Mr. Carter Grayson was concerned. Nerves stirred inside me at the thought of seeing him after last night. I finished my oatmeal and took the last sip of my coffee when I heard the elevator ding and the doors open. Taking in a deep breath, I walked into the foyer.

“Welcome home.” I smiled at Nora.

“Thanks, Zoey. It’s good to be home.”

“Are you hungry? Sadie made oatmeal.”

“A little bit.”

“I have to head to the office, Nora,” Carter spoke as he bent down and kissed her cheek.

“Okay. I’ll see you tonight,” she softly spoke.

Carter stepped into the elevator without so much as looking at me. He either didn’t remember what happened last night or he just didn’t care. I wheeled Nora into the kitchen and over to the table then poured myself another cup of coffee.

“How did things go with Carter last night?” Nora asked as she slowly ate the oatmeal that Sadie thinned out for her.

“It went okay. He was just typical Carter.”

“He got drunk last night, didn’t he?”

“How did you know?” I asked.

“I could tell by his eyes and the fact that no matter how much cologne he put on, the smell of scotch was still on him.”

I looked down and traced the rim of my coffee cup with my finger.

“He was pretty bad. He couldn’t even stand up, so I helped him up to bed.”

“I hate when he gets like that.”

“Does he get drunk often?” I asked out of concern.

“Not as much as he used to, but he has his days. I can tell he likes you, Zoey.”

“No he doesn’t.” I gave her a small smile as I sipped my coffee.

“I know my brother, and I see something in his eyes when he looks at you. Just like I see the same thing in your eyes when you look at him.”

“Nora, I don’t have—”

“Be patient with him, Zoey.” She placed her hand on mine.

I gave her a tender smile and finished my coffee.

“I’m going to my room now,” she spoke. “I have a phone call to make.”

I got up from my seat and she put her hand up.

“I don’t need help getting to my room. But if the phone call goes well, I’m going to need you to take me somewhere.”

“You just came home from the hospital, Nora. You really shouldn’t be going out today.”

“I had a seizure and they kept me in that damn place to run some more tests. I’m fine.”

She wheeled herself out of the kitchen and I looked at Sadie, who had the same look of despair on her face that I had on mine. After a few moments had passed, I heard Nora call my name. Walking into her room, I noticed she had grabbed her purse.

“I need you to take me to my attorney’s office. It’s only a couple of blocks from here.”

“Okay. Are we going now?”

“Yes, and this little trip is to stay between us. Carter is never to know. Understand?”

“Of course.” I nodded.

I helped her with her coat since the fall days were turning much cooler and we went down to the lobby. When Joseph saw us coming, he smiled and opened the door.

“You never saw us leave, Joseph,” Nora spoke.

“Of course, Miss Grayson.” He winked.