It had taken a lot more effort to get me to sleep last night. But Neil's calm baritone won out in the end, lulling me into peaceful repose. I didn't wake until the bright morning sun peeped through my black-out curtains at eight-thirty. Nerves kept me from getting any more rest.

Today I would confront The Fool. 

Even Emily appeared a bit bleary-eyed, wrapped in her robin-egg blue robe. She'd piled her messy blonde curls on top of her head. Little tendrils poked out here and there on the sides.

Only I got to see her bed head.

"How did it work?" asked Emily while sipping some herbal tea. "Remote movie watching?"

"Awesome. We used an extension to synchronize a private viewing," I replied. "It even has its own chat room."

"Nice!"

"Yep, we streamed both Sherlock Holmes movies before Neil read me to sleep."

Emily grinned. "Living the dream."

Armed with a vat o' coffee, I slumped into one of the breakfast stools in front of the kitchen island. "Not today."

"As much as I hate to admit it," said Emily, "Neil's right."

"Hmm?"

"Don't engage with The Leech."

"He makes it impossible," I groaned. "If you ignore Thomas, he keeps prodding and prodding with more and more crap until you can't contain yourself."

"Tell him to keep his prodder to himself!"

I curled my lip. "Then I would be engaging."

"Oh, yeah." She chuckled. "I see what you mean."

After breakfast Emily and I piled loads of plastic crates into a corner so that her friends could help me move. We opted for mostly small ones. That way I could carry them on my own if The Fool had decided to make a fuss and not let her friends enter. 

All afternoon I was on tenterhooks. I began to regret not having moved earlier in the day, but Thomas always slept until noon and wouldn't finish breakfast until around one-thirty. 

Guy was a chronic night owl. Stayed up till three or four in the morning most nights. 

Night owl, hmpf! More like a vampire. 

And they're not cool like the books say.

Finally the time came. Two giant dudes knocked on the front door. One had a jagged scar on his cheek and tattoos down his arms while the other had striking blue eyes and a square jaw. Didn't need to ask how they'd got their monikers. 

Both looked like they could snap me in half like a twig. 

And I was not a dainty lady.

They introduced themselves with their proper names, but I was too busy gaping at their massive figures to take notice. If The Fool screwed around with these guys, he was more foolish than I'd thought.

Whew! Just what I need: a couple of bodyguards.

"Thanks for helping me," I said with a bashful smile.

"No worries," came the gruff reply from Ink.

"Anything for a free lunch," said Jaws. 

We drove from Bournemouth to Poole and the guys parked right outside the front door to our apartment. "Ya sure ya wanna go in alone?" asked Ink.

"No, but he certainly won't let you in," I said in a wary tone.

"Ya got our number on speed dial, right?"

"Yeah..."

"Any sign of trouble," said Ink, "and we'll come up and get ya."

Exhaling a heavy sigh, I nodded. They waited by the front entrance of the apartment complex after handing me some of the plastic crates. 

"You bring out the boxes, and we'll load them in the van," said Jaws.

"If my ex helps but doesn't cause trouble..."

"Hey, lady. We won't cause problems if he doesn't."

"He won't." I pursed my lips. "It isn't his MO."

Jaws gave me a curt nod.

Opening the front door, I ascended the marble staircase to our apartment. No, his apartment. Even then it wouldn't be his for long now that my crazy ass wasn't paying for it.

Thank God we insisted on separate bank accounts.

I knocked. 

Thomas answered. 

He sized me up like I did him. Dressed in the white dress shirt with the starched collar that I used to love on him. Beige chinos. He'd slimmed up, showcasing his angular jaw. Those blue-gray eyes hadn't lost a single hint of their piercing glint. 

When would his new girl realize the rot behind the beauty?

"I see you brought your bulldogs," he sneered in High German. "Please don't tell me you're dating one of them. Or I will lose all my respect for you."

Ha! So you were bluffing at the station. You have no idea who I'm dating.

When I tried to move past him, Thomas blocked the door with both arms. I almost tried ducking underneath but reconsidered. Not a good idea at the top of a staircase. 

"Let me through," I ordered. "You agreed."

"Did I indeed?"

"Have you stooped to playing stupid games?"

Thomas curled his lip and lifted his arm. But he refused to move to the side, forcing me to squeeze past him carrying the plastic crates. Childish! 

"They're not coming in here," he said, following me into my former office. "Your goons."

"Understood."

Thomas leaned against the doorframe, eyeing me as I packed my books and lesson plans. Why was he worried? I'd never taken his bus money from a piggy bank without asking first. Unlike some people.

"You could have warned me," said Thomas in a hurt tone. Probably fake. 

No reply.

"About leaving me for good," he added.

No reply. 

"You won't even look at me."

No shit, Sherlock. 

When Thomas walked up behind me, I stiffened and drew myself straight. He brushed some hair away from my neck, his fingertips trailing along my sensitive skin. 

"It wasn't all bad, was it?" he asked in accented English.

"Yes."

The traitorous word slipped from my lips before I could stop it. 

Thomas chuckled and whispered in my ear, "You always were a terrible liar."

"Sorry I'm not as good as you."

"Don't be cruel."

"We're done."

"Don't say that. We can fix this." He exhaled a warm breath near my neck, running his hand down my arms. "He can't love you like I can. Touch you like I can. Know you like I can."

I shrugged away from his grasp and stared him down. "You don't know anything."

"I know your body very well," he said. "You react to me now like you did on the platform. The way it used to do when I touched you."

"You're crazy."

"You have feelings for me still."

"I don't."

We engaged in a silent staring match. I held his gaze and refused to look away. His determination melted into a pained expression.

"Where is the woman I love?" he asked in a wistful tone.

"She's gone."

"Do you miss our verbal acrobatics? Is that it? No more games." His gaze dipped before piercing me once more. Thomas took a few tentative steps toward me and whispered, "Stay with me."

"No."

"Stay," he breathed, dipping lower. 

"No..."

"Please..."

"I--"

"Stay with me." My breath caught in my throat as his lips hovered over mine. "Please, Victoria. Let me fix it." His eyes shone with unshed tears. "Let me fix it."

In a moment of weakness, my heart twanged. My lips parted. "Thomas..."

Before I knew what was happening, he pressed his lips to mine. 

The moment we touched, it felt wrong. Like he'd taken a shovel and scooped out my heart, leaving a gaping chasm in its place. 

It felt empty. 

I felt empty.

All I could think of was Neil. And my heart shriveled with guilt. 

I shoved him back. 

It must have shocked him, for Thomas stumbled backward with a puzzled expression. Hurt. Pained. Shaking his head in disbelief. 

Perhaps it'd been the first time anyone had told him no.

Long ago I'd thought his soft lips were perfect, so passionate and fiery was his caress. Perhaps he could offer heaven itself to a different woman. But not to me. Never me.

"It's over, Thomas." My whole body trembled with adrenaline. "It's over."

He knelt before me. Literally. "I beg you..."

When I silently refused, he lay prostrate before me like a pauper before his Queen. "I beg you to reconsider. I'll do anything. Please forgive me. Please! Tell me what you want, and it's yours."

I pursed my lips. "The fact that you thought this would move me shows just how ill-suited we are. This was never about ego. Or power. Or even money. But you would never understand."

Thomas gazed up at me, tears streaming silently down his cheeks. Perhaps it was cruel of me to ignore them. I'd seen him cry only twice before. Each time I was the cause. 

But I would not be moved this time. 

After packing my things, I left. And I never saw Thomas again.

___

Word count: 1,339
Total word count: 25,191/40,000