Miranda sat back in her chair and breathed a silent sigh of relief. Almost to dessert and no one had said anything to suggest they had an inkling about her and Drew yet. Of course, Drew had managed to convince Jordan to switch seats with him, so he was now seated directly next to her. It wouldn't be so bad, if he didn't keep finding little ways to touch her, driving her absolutely crazy.
"Please pass the potatoes, Drew," Nancy said.
"Okay," he answered, then made sure his hand passed over hers as he reached for the bowl.
"Could someone pass the salt?" Kayla asked.
"No problem, sis," he said, his hand grazing Miranda’s breast as he reached for the shaker. "Oh sorry," he said, looking at her with an amused expression. "Close quarters at this table."
The trouble was, each time he touched her, every time he found an excuse for their bodies to interact or their eyes to meet, she found herself falling deeper into an abyss she might not find her way out of. He knew what he was doing, too. She was aware of that. But she couldn't stop it, didn't even know if she wanted to.
"Mommy," Tommy said, a welcome break into her spiraling thoughts. "Where were you last night?"
"What do you mean, honey?" No questions. Not now. Not when they had almost made it through dinner. She wasn't prepared for that yet. "I was in my room."
"No, you weren't. I needed a drink of water and I had to get Aunt Kayla."
"Well, you did the right thing, sweetie. I was probably in the kitchen. I couldn't sleep last night." This was exactly why Tommy's room was sandwiched in between her and Kayla's. It hadn't happened very often, but Kayla was there in case Tommy needed something in the night and Miranda wasn't available. She didn't like lying, especially to her son, but she really had been in the kitchen at some point last night, after she and Drew returned from making deliveries. And, she hadn't been sleeping, so she wasn't exactly telling a lie—just not being truthful about the context of her activities.
"It just so happens, I had a hard time sleeping last night, myself,” Kayla said. “After I put Tommy back to bed, I looked for you, but couldn't find you anywhere." Her eyes drifted between Drew and Miranda, appearing very amused at the situation. "I did hear an awful lot of commotion coming from Drew's room, though."
Miranda's face flushed, and her heart beat frantically as mild panic began to set in. She glanced at Drew, wondering what he was going to do. What he was going to say. She closed her eyes, silently pleading with him.
Miranda kicked him under the table when he started to laugh. When she kicked him a second time, he coughed dramatically and cleared his throat. "Well, Kayla," he said, "I'm sorry if I kept you up. I was, uh, moving furniture."
He reached for her hand under the table, giving it a reassuring squeeze. Their secret was safe, at least for now. Until he turned to her and flashed that dazzling smile and her heart melted all over again. They could both be careful about the words they spoke in front of the others, but she knew that her face and her eyes could not hide what she was feeling right now. And she knew that she would not be able to stop herself from visiting Drew again tonight.