Free In Anyone Else's Shoes by M. L. Joslyn Page A

kind of way. She reached for it, and with an unsettled, unsure grip, went through the motions. She wasn’t expecting this. Maybe he had accepted the notion of them as nothing more than a business team. Maybe that’s what he actually wanted, she thought.
    Emma needed to reach out beyond a handshake. Even if they were exclusively business now, they’d already crossed some thresholds that could never be erased – at least in her mind. She released her hand from his and moved closer, arms spread wide. If nothing else, she wanted him to know that they could still be more than handshakes and coffee. Their embrace was pleasant and business-like – nothing more.
    ‘You earned this promotion, Emma. I won’t say it again. It had absolutely nothing to do with my … personal feelings for you. OK?’ Jason stepped away, a guarded distance from her, and she saw it, noticed it again. His eyes broke from hers, and without moving his legs he started wandering, his gaze shifting from the floor to a wall, and then back. She wanted to tell him that it was OK, that she wasn’t to be feared – ever. But she could sense the other side of him return – the shy, holding out hope side. A thin smile broke across her face.
    ‘OK.’
    ‘I do care for you very much. You know that, right?’ He looked above her face when he spoke, brushing her hair with his eyes. ‘And I still would like to know you better.’
    Emma didn’t want to let this offer slip. She reached for him with outstretched, yearning hands, and pulled him to her. With arms wrapped around his waist and eyes lost in the lusty stubble of his cheeks, she closed in to nuzzle his neck. She pulled away after a minute to gaze into the glimmering, russet windows of his soul, hoping to glimpse the truth.
    He lowered his head and she lifted hers. Their lips touched softly, carefully testing the waters. They broke apart again and stood silently, breathing each other in, wondering what the other had in mind.
    ‘What if you followed me home?’ Emma asked with narrowed, begging eyes.
    ‘What if?’ Jason replied. His inhibitions seemed to disappear with his question. He was seduced by her – not by a wall, or the floor.
    ‘I think I’d invite you to come up to my room – maybe.’
    ‘I don’t suppose you have any etchings you’d like me to see?’
    ‘Why? Are you a fan of the arts?’
    ‘I like some things … Can I ask you something?’
    ‘Sure.’
    ‘You and Ty.’
    ‘That’s not a question. And Ty’s not my boyfriend, if that’s what you’re wondering.’
    ‘What do you think?’
    ‘I think you’re asking for all cards on the table, mister. Will I get to see your hand as well?’
    ‘I’d be happy to show you my hand, Emma … I’m not so sure you’ll want to see it, though.’
    Emma’s mind stumbled like it had strapped on a pair of four-inch heels. She looked hard into Jason’s expressive, amber eyes, searching for the meaning behind his words. She hadn’t considered that he might have a hand to show, a background to reveal, a life beyond what she had selfishly assigned him in her fantasies. But he did. And she wanted, she needed, to see this hand of his.
    ‘OK – I’ll go first then. Ty’s my roommate – you know that. He used to be my boyfriend, but everything slowly disintegrated. Somehow, I guess because our relationship fell apart little by little instead of with one giant swing of an axe, we were able to remain friends – and roommates. Neither one of us has yet to move on, at least romantically speaking – although, if he could figure out a way to have a sexual affair with his business, I wouldn’t put it past him. I don’t know – I care for Ty a lot, I suppose. We care for each other. But that’s as far as it goes.’
    Emma waited for a response, an exposed hand … a shoe to fall. There was something that he was willing to reveal, and she was ready for it.
    Jason seemed deep in thought. His hands slid from Emma’s