Page 16 of Someone Like You

Casimir

“ H ere’s your order, Mr. Perez,” the florist stated and handed me the large bouquet.

“Thank you, Gayle.”

I accepted the bouquet from her arms and headed out of the tiny shop. Once I secured the flowers in the front seat beside me, I stopped at Soldier’s, picked up my order, and continued my journey.

When I pulled up to the building, I breathed a sigh of relief. I knew that I was taking a risk by doing this, but it was something that I wanted to do. I warned Giselle. So there was no reason that she should be too shocked. I removed the flowers and the food and headed into the building.

I was glad that Imani had left for the day.

I’d found that tidbit out by doing a little unintentional stalking.

I noticed on a few occasions when Bethany and I had been at the office for a later appointment, Imani would normally be gone by five thirty.

On a few other occasions that I had driven by, I would see Giselle’s car outside in the parking lot.

I only knew it was her car because one day, she walked out with Bethany and me, and I had seen her get into it.

One day, I jokingly teased Imani that she kept bankers’ hours. She had responded by saying that she was in the door by eight thirty every morning and out by five thirty. She said she was still in school and had a little boy, so she didn’t have time to play around.

I tucked that away for future reference, hoping that it would work in my favor. I assumed that Giselle kept late hours, because she seemed like the workaholic type. I signed in at the guard’s desk before I headed down the hallway and walked past the receptionist’s desk after entering her office.

I tapped lightly at the door and heard her shuffling around inside. I knew that I would catch her off guard because I was certain she wasn’t expecting any patients this late in the evening.

A week had passed since I had seen Giselle at the ball for mental health professionals. I was able to sneak one more dance in with her that night before her friend, Lloyd, pulled her away. I had hoped that she would leave with me that night, but I had no such luck.

I had been dying to see her again. When she pulled the door open, my hunger only grew more. I could see the hesitation in her eyes.

“Oh, I was wondering who was here this late in the evening.”

“Sorry. Didn’t mean to scare you.”

“I wasn’t really scared. I know that people have to check in at the security desk and pass through the metal detectors, but I wasn’t expecting anyone.”

“I come bearing gifts,” I stated and held the two Soldier’s bags and flowers up for her to see.

She stuck her head out of the door and looked left and right.

“I made sure that I eliminated any witnesses,” I teased.

Giselle smirked at me, tugged my hand to pull me inside, and then closed her door.

“What’s all of this about?”

“This is my way of showing my appreciation for you.”

“Everything that I’ve done, Casimir, was just me doing my job.”

“Maybe, or maybe you genuinely cared, and I felt that, and it impacted my life.”

“I care about all of my patients.”

“Because you have a beautiful heart. Now are you going to let me appreciate you or not?” I asked.

“Well, considering that you brought food from Soldier’s, a girl can’t complain, can she?”

I followed her as she removed a couple of magazines from the coffee table.

“You can set the food here. I’ll be back. Let me go to the break room and grab some paper towels and—”

“No need. I’ve got everything, including this beautiful vase for your flowers,” I remarked and handed the peony and rose bouquet to Giselle.

“They’re so beautiful, and they smell amazing.” She closed her eyes and sniffed them.

“I’ve got forks, spoons, a couple of knives, and napkins.”

“I know something you didn’t remember,” she declared as she set the flowers on a bookshelf underneath a window.

“What’s that?”

“Drinks.”

I opened the second bag and pulled the sweet teas and straws out. I lifted an eyebrow, and she giggled.

“I don’t know why I underestimated you.”

I shrugged and asked, “May we please eat now?”

“Sure.”

We sat down and ate our meal. Giselle told me how her day had gone, and I shared a little of mine. When we finished, Giselle sat back and asked, “Casimir, what are you doing?”

“Trying to show you all the reasons that you need me in your life.”

It was her turn to lift an eyebrow as she asked, “Need you?”

“I told you. You need a shoulder to cry on, someone to tell how your day went, and someone to take care of you when you forget the little things . . . like getting out early enough to grab something to eat.”

“How do you know that I haven’t eaten?”

I pointed to her trashcan and answered, “That Kind bar and water bottle is not a complete meal, ma’am.”

“It has vital nutrients.”

“What else have you eaten all day?”

She turned her head and bit her bottom lip to hide her smile.

“Precisely,” I replied. “You need someone who will think about all the things that you don’t.”

“I can take care of myself, Casimir.”

“But isn’t it nice to have someone who will take care of you when you forget to?”

“And what about you?”

“That’s where I’m hoping you’ll fit in,” I replied and winked at her.

“I walked right into that one, didn’t I?”

“You did. You see this thing that we’re doing?” I asked, pointing a finger back and forth between us.

She nodded. “What about it?”

“Don’t you miss this?”

“This what?”

“Back and forth that we’re doing. Someone to have an idle conversation with at the end of a night. Someone you can relax and unwind with.”

“Is that what you think I’m doing?”

“That’s exactly what you’ve been doing.”

Giselle dropped her head back against the couch. “I don’t want to do this,” she whined.

“Why not?”

“You make everything so difficult and complicated in my life. I need smooth and easy, Casimir. Not turbulent and stormy waters. My anxiety cannot take that.”

“Self-diagnosed?”

“Very. But you’re not Dr. Perez, and I’m not a patient in need of therapy. Off of me.”

I smirked at her reference and replied, “Girl, when I’m on you, trust me, you’ll know. And when I get on you, there won’t be any backing down.”

“Why do you do this?”

“Do you remember when I told you that I was thirty-eight and I’ve seen a lot? I wasted so much time on a marriage that was not meant to be. I’m not wasting another minute on securing the woman of my dreams at my side.”

“But what if I’m not? What if I’m not all that you think I am?”

“And what if you are? What if I miss out on the opportunity to make my dreams come true? I’d rather waste time finding out that we’re not perfect for each other than spend a lifetime of regret because I didn’t make you mine.”

Giselle blew out a breath and dropped her head in her hands. I leaned over and massaged her shoulders. I felt her relaxing underneath my touch, and when she caught herself moaning at the contact, she jerked away from me.

I turned her head around so that she could face me.

“I might not be anything you need.”

“And you could be everything that I’ve hoped for. Let me ask you something.”

“Go ahead.”

“If I met you in some other fashion, and I was never your patient, and this attraction between us still existed, would you run the risk of getting to know me?”

“I don’t know. Maybe. I’d like to think so.”

“Then don’t let the fear of losing your license be your obstacle. We can overcome this together if you trust me.”

Giselle searched my eyes for a while, and I wondered if she was trying to determine if she could trust me or not. I reached out and drew a line down the slope of her nose before it dipped off into the middle of her lips. I pushed them in, and she sucked my finger into her mouth.

My eyes narrowed at the contact and the heat that emanated between us. I wondered if Giselle remembered what I had told her at the ball.

“You’re playing with fire, Giselle.”

She promptly released my finger from inside of her mouth. I slowly dragged it down her lip, tugging it open as I went before I gripped her chin and pulled on it.

I leaned closer, and desire grew within me as she leaned closer to me. I held her chin between my index finger and thumb.

There was no rushing the moment as I licked along her bottom lip and then sucked on her top one. I pressed my lips against hers and indulged in the plush, satiny feel of her glossed lips against mine.

Slowly, her eyes closed, and Giselle lifted a hand to the back of my neck. The pressure was so subtle, but I felt her pull me closer. I gave in to her urgency and angled my head as I turned the moment of feeling each other out into a kiss.

When her lips parted, her tongue darted out briefly.

That little peek was all I needed to entwine mine with hers.

I savored the spiciness of her tongue as we wrestled for dominance.

Giselle’s hunger knew no limitations as she pressed deeper into the kiss, moaning and seeking what else I had to offer.

I cupped her face, and she grabbed my hand and pulled it away.

We didn’t break the kiss. She dragged my hand down and placed it at her heart.

My hand grew hot from the feeling and pressure of lying between her breasts.

My dick ached in my pants and urged me to move a little more to the left so that I could feel the soft tissue.

But I refused to move faster than she allowed me.

And as if she came back to her senses, she dipped her head and broke the kiss.

We said nothing as she panted softly. Her heartbeat hammered against her chest walls.

I kept my hand in place for a while and found comfort in knowing that I made her feel this way, that her heart was beating emphatically for me.

Giselle’s eyes opened, and though our foreheads rested against each other, she didn’t look at me. I caressed her face.

“Are you okay?” I asked.

She pulled back from the kiss and asked, “What do you want from me?”

“Everything.”