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15. Fifteen

Fifteen

Harper

“ I s this a suit sort of thing?” Thomas asked as he appeared in the doorway of my bathroom, in only his boxers and a tie. I ran my eyes over his tall, muscular body, the light freckles on his chest and that V running down his hips.

“I don’t know? You tell me,” I replied as I continued to brush my teeth.

“Well, I don’t think so?” he answered my question with another.

“Okay, well wear something casual then. This is a good look, though.” I waved my hand over his current state. “You look like a stripper.”

He slowly started to pull the side of his boxers down and winked at me, sending a surge of blood straight to my face.

“No! We have to get ready. We can’t be late to another event because you decide you want to have sex at the last minute.” I tried deflecting his seduction tactic.

“We’re never late, we are merely precisely on time,” he replied walking closer to me, continuing to pull his boxers off.

“What are you, Gandalf?" I replied, dodging his attempt to get closer to me. “Thomas! Get ready for fucks sake,” I giggled.

“Fine. You are safe this time. Can’t say the same for when we get home though,” he replied as he rummaged through his clothes.

“I look forward to it,” I murmured as he bent over his overnight bag, trying to find a shirt.

Was there anything better than a race car driver’s body?

***

“You look amazing. I am definitely punching,” Thomas said as he pulled me closer to him in the elevator. I had opted for a thigh-length burgundy dress that was off the shoulder. I wore a pair of sparkly strappy heels, had my hair and makeup done, and I was feeling good. Thomas kissed me on the cheek as I hopped into the back of the car, and I took the opportunity to ogle him as he walked around the car to join me. Thomas looked handsome in his outfit, with his leather boots, black chinos, and a dark green linen shirt. His hair was freshly cut, and he had a gleam in his eye, the one that indicated I would be getting lucky tonight.

“Apparently, the party started earlier, and Chris is already half pissed,” Thomas commented as he lowered the window to let some air in. I nodded. Sounded about right. It was a big birthday, after all. I grabbed Thomas’s hand and leant my head against his shoulder.

“I’m looking forward to having some fun tonight,” I murmured, closing my eyes and taking in a breath of the cologne on his neck—a mixture of cranberry, sage, and woodsy scents. Lowering his head to mine, he agreed with a low noise in his throat .

I considered how much had changed in the past few months. Things went from us barely even being friends, to growing closer and then eventually, relying on each other for support and comfort. I was feeling lucky, but also scared of losing this. It felt fleeting, like so many external factors could potentially break us apart. We just had to remain strong.

We arrived in the city outside the rooftop bar. I had heard of Sanctuary before, it was a popular hang-out spot for many of the after-work drink crowds on a Friday night. As we stepped out of the car, Thomas held my arm, and we wandered inside. The décor was so dreamy, with deep green walls, plants, and dark timber floors. There was a sign at the bottom of a large staircase reading ‘Chris’s 50th’, with an arrow pointing upwards.

“Alright, Allenwright, this is us,” Thomas informed me, as he took the first step and pulled me along with him.

The closer we got to the top of the stairs the louder the music got. I smiled imagining everyone from Echidna getting drunk and dancing the night away. I couldn’t wait to join them. Reaching the rooftop, I was rendered speechless by how beautiful the venue was, from the canopy of large trees and plants that covered the space, to the abundance of fairy lights and hanging ornaments. I could just make out the sparkling stars of the clear night sky above.

I squeezed Thomas’s hand. “This is so beautiful.”

He kissed my cheek and lingered near my ear to whisper, “Not as beautiful as you.” His proximity and his sweet words sent shivers through my body.

We both searched the room for Chris, eventually finding him standing near a platform with a microphone towards the centre of the room .

“Jesus, who gave you a microphone?” Thomas directed at Chris before pulling him in for a hug.

Thomas and I settled on a bar stool and table with drinks when Will walked over to greet us.

“Mate, how are you?” he reached his hand out to shake Thomas’s and they hugged briefly. “Harps, good to see you. Heard you were a little sick at the last race meet.” His eyes danced around the room rather than looking directly at me.

I nodded. “Yeah, thanks. Just food poisoning!” I replied as I emptied my glass of champagne.

Thomas picked up our glasses and nodded towards the bar to get refills. As he excused himself, he kissed me quickly and turned towards the bar, leaving Will standing opposite me.

Will seemed a little on edge, I couldn’t quite put my finger on it.

“You doing okay?” I asked him, trying to read his face.

Nodding, he took another step closer to me. “I’m great now that we are alone.”

I was confused. “What do you mean?”

“Well, now that Jackson isn’t here.” He grabbed my waist a little too tightly and pulled me flush against his body. I was blindsided by the action and felt every fibre of my body react in flight. Surely, he wasn’t trying to hit on me in a room full of his co-workers and my boyfriend. I tried to push him away, but his grasp was too strong. He started to lean his head down to mine. I closed my eyes and kept trying to push him away.

Suddenly, he was gone. I opened my eyes and Thomas had him by his shirt, scrunched into a ball with his fist. I couldn’t hear what he was saying at first, but I suspected it wasn’t good. The music stopped and everyone standing around them had taken a wide circle to get out of their way. Chris appeared and separated them.

“I’m fucking out of here. Don’t you fucking touch her ever again!” Thomas said loud enough for the people standing close to hear. Striding past, he collected me by the hip, and we hastily walked towards the top of the stairs. I couldn’t keep up with his pace. My heart was pounding, making my hands sweat. They kept slipping between Thomas’s fingers.

“Thomas, I can’t walk that fast!” I called up at his stern face. His expression softened slightly, and his grip loosened.

“Sorry.” Halfway down the stairs, he stopped and abruptly sat down with his head in his hands. I sat down next to him and put my hand on his shoulder.

“What happened up there?” I asked, noticing his hands were trembling and his breathing was sharp and short.

I placed both of my hands on either side of his face, turned him towards me, and attempted a weak smile. I waited patiently for a response.

“I think Will was on something tonight. He had been acting weird ever since we got here. I was keeping an eye on him, but I didn’t want to ruin Chris’s night. Then I saw him touching you and I saw red. I didn’t punch him, I just wanted to scare him,” his voice broke a little on the last word.

“Are you alright?” he asked, looking me up and down, assessing me from head to toe.

“Yeah, I’m a bit shaken up but I’m okay,” I reassured him. “He was acting weird. I did notice that, too. Has he ever done any sort of drugs before that you know of?”

He shook his head but didn’t speak.

“Let’s go home, okay?” I stood up and offered him my hand. This was not the time or place to unpack what had happened.

***

The cab ride home was mostly silent. I didn’t want to bring up what had happened until we were home and in private. Thomas spent most of the drive scrolling through his phone in silence. I assumed he felt embarrassed about his actions and concerned about me and his teammate.

The next hour went by in a blur as we readied ourselves for bed. I made two cups of tea and placed Thomas’s on his bedside table. He caught me by my hip as he came out of the bathroom. “Thank you,” he murmured.

Settling into bed, I turned to face him. “You know we have to talk about this, right?”

He nodded but didn’t turn to face me. “Yes, I know. Oh, Chris is calling.” He was holding his phone as it rang, and he answered with the speaker. “Mate, you’re on speaker with Harps.” Chris greeted us warmly and explained the situation to us.

Will had taken drugs, which apparently was not a first. Chris was now going to have to suspend his second-best driver. Will was taken straight to the police station for further testing as there were enough people at the party to attest to his behaviour. That seemed a little harsh to me, but because the team had a zero drugs policy, Chris had to make an example out of Will.

“We’re sorry your party was cut short,” I leant over Thomas to say into the phone.

“It’s alright, Harps. I’m sorry you got caught in the middle of that.”

I didn’t mind, but I would be lying if I said I didn’t have a moment of panic. Knowing Thomas was in the room somewhere definitely helped.

We hung up and both exhaled. “Well, that was not the night I was hoping for,” I said, placing my hand on Thomas’s chest.

He nodded. “I know. Let’s get some rest.”

Turning the lights off, I snuggled into his chest and promptly fell asleep.