Chapter Fifteen

Alice ran down the path on her lawn to the mailbox to open it. She looked inside for the fifth time that day and closed it shut in disappointment when she discovered that there was no letter from Keanu inside. She sighed, returning to the home and slumping down on the couch.

"Alice,'' Mike said as he was passing by. He stood behind the couch, looking down at her. "Why do you keep checking the mailbox? What mail are you waiting for?"

"Oh, it's just a pen pal letter," she said, resting her head on the couch and looking up at him. She pouted.

"That's still going on? Who is your pen pal?"

She lifted her head and swallowed hard. Then she turned around on the couch to face her father. "Umm… it's just. Uhh… "

"Well?"

There was no way she could tell him that she was exchanging letters with his best friend and her boyfriend's father! She'd rather die than let that happen.

"It's just some girl in my department," she said to Mike. "She's nice." A pang of guilt struck her as the lie came out.

"Oh, good for you then," he said. "Are you going out later?"

"No, why?"

"Keanu is coming over and we might want to watch a live tournament. Can we use the television since you're still not done with that show you can't get enough of?"

"Oh, sure," she said. "I don't mind. You guys go ahead."

"Okay then," Mike said, walking away.

She sank down on her seat, deep in thought about how Keanu was coming over. He had failed to write her the next letter and she wasn't sure if it had gotten lost in the mail or if he willingly chose not to continue with the letters. Had she said something wrong? The last time she left the conversation, she was chiding him for not telling her about the girl he was dating recently and maybe that irked him somewhat since she was interfering with his personal life. Were they not close enough for that? She thought they were.

Pouting, she let the repetitive thoughts run through her mind. She thought of ways to confront him about the situation. When she pictured that, her nerves gave out and she begged herself not to do something so stupid, but she wasn't sure if she would be able to hold back when he was right next to her.

"Alice."

Her head snapped behind her. Keanu was standing behind the couch, his head lowered to her and eyes staring into her with an unreadable expression. She stared at him as he put one hand on the head of the couch.

"Oh hey, Keanu, you're here!" Mike said, walking to the couch and sitting down. "Come sit down. I'll put the match on."

Keanu rounded the couch and she slid to the extreme left of the couch to let him sit in the middle, with her father on the extreme right.

"Can't wait," Mike said as he put the channel on.

The players moved on the screen and Alice stared at her knees because she wasn't too familiar with tennis. Keanu was chatting with her father and his hand was resting on his lap. Even though she tried to force her eyes to stay away from him, they scoured the entire length of his arm.

It was tanned, and thickly muscled. They looked rough and there were veins snaking from the back of his hands down to his forearms in angry, strong lines. She pried her eyes away, only for them to rest on his arm again.

Keanu lifted his arm every now and then to gesture at the players on the screen as he talked about their techniques and the situation of the match. As he did so, the muscles on his arms flexed and she felt the pit of her stomach twisting and turning as her throat dried out.

She closed her eyes tightly before they flew open again. She rested her eyes on the house plant that sat in the corner of the room, but she was paying attention to Keanu from the side of her vision.

Why hadn't she noticed him before?

His voice was a deep growl, and she felt as if every word that left his mouth grazed the insides of her thighs, coaxing the tension from her body in hot whispers. Her legs tensed up as her attention reached his hair, which was brushed in such a way that screamed effortless.

And god, she felt as if every breath she took was acid to her lungs! He smelt of musk, driftwood and light citrus. It wasn't perfume, and smelled more like aftershave or something like that. His jaw was freshly shaven and as he spoke, the strong lines of it clenched and unclenched. As he moved his arm up and down, a distinct scent of muted smoke invaded her nostrils and she had to hold her breath for a moment to calm her nerves down. Keanu was someone who liked to mess with his car as well.

He had masculine hobbies, and had masculine views on everything. He smelled like a man, and moved in a manly manner. He was the purest, most unadulterated form of maleness ever. Everything about him screamed of virile potency, and she had no idea how all that escaped her notice for so many years.

As she considered this, she noticed Keanu turning to face her from watching the front and her head snapped to the television, as if she had been caught red-handed. She was sure her cheeks were bright red, and she willed the heat from her body to leave.

"Yes?" Keanu asked.

She stared at him, her expression tense. What was she going to say?