Read Online This Time Around (Maybe) by Chantal Fernando - Free Book Online Page B

kissing her gently on her lips. Just as she pulls away, Summer walks in, smiling widely as she takes us in. I can almost feel the happiness pouring off her in waves.
    “Re ady to go?” she asks Taiya, who nods. Taiya turns around and offers me a sweet smile before walking out of the kitchen. Summer gives me a thumbs up.
    Such a dork.
    *****
    A timid knock at the door makes me cease my workout. I do another five push-ups and then walk briskly to the door, opening it widely without even bothering to look through the peephole.
    “Long night?” I ask a tired looking Taiya. Her hair is piled on her head, unlike before she left, and her eye makeup a little smeared. She still looks fucking beautiful. I see her eyes roam over my bare chest hungrily, and I wait quietly as she takes her fill.
    “You could say that. We got in a few hours ago and I fell asleep on Summer’s couch,” she says as she finally looks up, wrinkling her nose.
    “Why didn’t you go home?” I ask, considering she lives in the same building.
    “Summer insisted I come over and give her a few dance lessons,” she says, shaking her head. “It’s a long story.”
    I’ll bet it is. I realise we are standing there talking at the door, so I quickly invite her in. She walks in barefoot, carrying those sexy shoes in her hands.
    “Want some water or juice?” I ask her as she walks into the kitchen.
    “Not juice,” she says, her face paling.
    I grin. “Too many screwdrivers last night, huh?”
    “I never want to drink orange juice again,” she says, her tone deadly serious.
    I laugh. “You never want to drink orange juice again? How about never drinking vodka again?”
    She looks at me like I’m crazy. “Let’s not say anything we can’t take back , Ryan,” she says, putting her hands up in a ‘calm down’ motion. I get her a bottle of cold water out of the fridge, open it and hand it to her.
    “Still fucking crazy I see,” I murmur as she gulps the water down. I stare at her delicate neck and throat as she swallows. To me, Taiya is as she’s always been. A perfect mixture of sweet and feisty, and so full of life.
    She puts the bottle down and raises an eyebrow. “You getting old, Ry?”
    “Is that a challenge?” I ask her. “Honestly , I don’t drink much. Working in a bar has put me off.”
    “Me either,” she admits. “Dancing and drinking don’t mix.”
    “Really?” I scoff.
    She laughs, and the sound is music to my ears. “I mean teaching dance classes, being a dancer and wanting to be my best physically, and drinking don’t mix,” she clarifies.
    I give her an obvious once over. “You sure are at your peak.”
    She makes a tsk tsk noise, before her expression clears. “I believe you wanted to talk.”
    “I did. I mean, I do,” I say, the air in the room changing. Gone is the light conversation, and something deeper and darker takes over. I clear my throat. “I think we need to start at the beginning.”
    She tilts her head. “What is there to say? We were high school sweethearts, got married earlier than we should have. You never got to sow your wild oats, so you did it behind my back when we were married,” she says, shrugging like it’s no big deal, but I don’t miss the flash of pain before she’s able to mask it.
    “I never cheated on you , Taiya,” I tell her, being completely honest.
    “ Right,” she scoffs. “You wanted to have your cake and eat it too. What, a nice little wifey at home, and some bitch on the side?” she yells, her cheeks flushing in anger. She stands up. “Do you know what? Fuck, this was a mistake.”
    “This is d éjà vu, isn’t it? You turning your back on me, walking away without giving me even one minute to explain,” I snap, losing my composure, desperate for her to hear me out.
    “Well , as soon as I left, you just proved my theory, didn’t you? Having sex with anyone, proving to me that that’s what you really wanted! The few friends I had in school loved to tell me on