In The Heat Of Passion - Unfinished, Sophie J Brain [dark academia books to read txt] 📗

Chapter One

31st December 2007, Didcot Oxfordshire

Michelle Williams had always enjoyed New Year’s Eve. It was one of the few days of the year that the whole family got together to celebrate. There was something comforting about family traditions when all around things were changing.

Her brother, Chris, was just entering into his last year of teacher training. He was a bit older than most new teachers but he had decided on his career choice a bit later than most. She on the other hand had just finished her university course in accounting and would soon be starting a job in a local office. So in a lot of ways this New Year’s Eve marked the new phase in each of their lives.

Michelle awoke in the early morning, as was her habit, and walked down to her lounge. She lived alone in Manor Road in Didcot. The house had once belonged to her great grandparents and had been handed down to her from her grandparents when they had decided to move into a smaller place. Chris had been offered the house first but he had declined, preferring to find somewhere that was his own.

Michelle had a quick glass of water then started the journey to her parent’s house, in Brasenose Road, about five minutes away from hers. She wouldn’t usually go over to the house so early but they were throwing a party to celebrate her and Chris’ new job and she had agreed to help with the preparations.

She had just walked into Brasenose Road when she saw her friend Tracy and waved. At twenty one Tracy was a good three years younger than Michelle but the pair had been friends since childhood. Things had been a bit awkward over the last few weeks, however, ever since Chris’ friend Thomas had spent the night with Tracy and had left before morning. Michelle knew that he hadn’t been Tracy’s first partner but she was still so young and it had upset her terribly and Michelle had felt guilty for introducing the two of them.

“How are you doing?” Michelle asked when they were closer to each other.

“I’m fine” Tracy smiled “a little embarrassed by how I reacted but otherwise I’m all right.”

“You shouldn’t be embarrassed” Michelle murmured softly “I cannot believe Thomas did that to you.”

“Thanks” Tracy smiled awkwardly and looked away.

“What are you doing tonight?” Michelle asked “my mum and dad are throwing a party.”

“Is Tom going?”

Michelle nodded “I think so.”

“Then I think I will leave it” Tracy replied “sorry Chelle, I just don’t want to see him.”

“I understand” Michelle murmured.

“We will meet up soon” Tracy promised before waving goodbye and walking past.

Michelle sighed angrily, she hated that things were awkward now because of Thomas. She continued to her parents’ house arriving in under a minute and let herself in.

“Mum, Dad.” She called

Her mother, Miranda, walked out from the kitchen and smiled “you are early, thank you.”

“It’s all right” Michelle smiled “is my brother up yet? I bet you will be glad to get him out of your hair.”

“We like having him here” Miranda replied with a grin “he is in the lounge.”

Miranda nodded and walked into the lounge, her brother Chris, older by than her by eighteen months, stood as she entered. “Chris.”

“Chelle” he grinned as he hugged her “how have you been? Well done on the job.”

“Thanks you too” Michelle murmured as they both sat down. “Is Maisy expected tonight?”

Maisy Hornbeam was Chris’ girlfriend of two years. She was an all right sort of girl but perhaps not to Michelle’s taste. There was nothing really wrong with her just that their personalities didn’t match. The Hornbeams were close friends with Michelle and Chris’ parents so they had known each other for years. Chris seemed happy enough with her though so that was all that mattered.

“I think so” Chris replied “honestly, I don’t know why they bothered throwing this party I only have Maisy and Tom to invite and you just have Tracy really.”

“Tracy isn’t coming” Michelle grunted “because Thomas is. She is still upset over what happened.”

“That was ages ago” Chris said dismissively “in Tom’s defence she should have known what she was getting herself in for. It isn’t like he keeps his ways a secret.”

“How can you defend him?” Michelle asked “Tracy was supposed to be his friend too. How many times have all of us gone together? He could have at least stayed until breakfast.”

There was a knock at the door and Chris looked out the window “oh and here is the Devil himself.”

Michelle stood up defensively as Thomas Robson, Chris’ best friend since their school days walked in. He had dark brown hair that was slightly too long and clear blue eyes. She had seen woman lose themselves in his crystal pools but to her he would always be the immature idiot who ripped her stuffed dog’s head off while playing with it.

“Thomas” she murmured.

“Chelle, it’s good to see you” Tom grinned with a wink as he sat down “Chris, how are you?”

Michelle sat back down and turned to look out the window. She supposed Tom wasn’t too bad really but she still couldn’t believe that he would be so callous to her friend. She knew that they had all seen him pick up women and discard them but she had assumed that he had been honest with them before taking them to bed. She knew differently now she supposed.

“Chelle, how have you been keeping?” Tom asked.

She turned to him “I’m all right, you know except for the fact that my best friend will hardly speak with me.”

“Which friend?” he asked.

She stared at him in disbelief “are you really that stupid or are you being obtuse?”

Tom laughed “I didn’t mean to upset your friend and I certainly didn’t mean to upset you.”

“Well maybe if you had stayed until breakfast then there wouldn’t have been any upset” Michelle commented “did you really have to just leave her?”

Tom looked at Michelle with curious eyes. How could she be mad at him? Yes, perhaps he had treated Tracy a bit badly and yes he did regret it but he couldn’t change what had happened and what had Tracy expected? He had told her that it would just be a onetime thing and she had seen him in action before. She knew that he wasn’t looking for anything serious, why on earth should he be punished for that?

“Tracy knew where she stood” he murmured.

“She wasn’t just one of your random girls” Michelle argued “we were a foursome and now you have ruined it. I don’t know if our friendship will ever get back to where it was.” “Tracy will be fine” Chris murmured “she is young and will get over it.”

Tom resisted the urge to chuckle as Michelle glared at Chris. He wished he could feel more sympathetic to Chelle’s argument but in truth she didn’t really have a leg to stand on. Tracy was young and in all honestly she was, as with most young people, fickle as well. In a few months she would have forgotten all about him which is more than he could say for her. Most people saw him as a heartless playboy but the truth was he remembered everyone he slept with. He remembered their age, height, hair colour and even their bloody eye colour. It was an odd and peculiar thing but he couldn’t stop himself from remembering and he had no idea why.

It wasn’t like he had been romantically attached to any of the women he had been with, at least not since he had been in school, nor had he wanted to be. They had just been company for the night. He didn’t want to settle down, at least not yet, and he doubted that he would ever have an interest in it.

He enjoyed women and he enjoyed making love with them, what was so wrong about that? Tracy had known the truth about him when she had decided to take him home. Perhaps he should have waited until morning before leaving but in truth he hadn’t really thought about. It was his habit to leave before they woke up, ever since a nasty experience with someone who hadn’t wanted to say goodbye.

He always told them that he would be gone by morning just as he had told Tracy, hadn’t he? He shook his head, blast it he couldn’t remember, even so she knew enough about him to have pre-empted his move.

He looked at Chelle who was still glaring at him as her chest heaved in anger. Damn, he certainly didn’t want to upset her; they had known each other since childhood for Heaven’s sake.

“Chelle, she will be fine” Tom murmured “I don’t know what to say about it.”

Michelle’s mouth dropped open “I cannot believe you Thomas Robson, you could at least apologise.”

“For what?” he shrugged “acting the way I always act with women? The way Tracy has seen me act on numerous occasions. I didn’t want either of you upset but she knew the score but I went home with her and you know that Chelle.” Chris chuckled from beside him “he has got you there, sis.” Michelle stood up and snapped “I’m getting a drink” before walking out of the room.

Chris turned to him with a soft smile “I’m sorry about her, I think things have been a bit awkward between them but it’s not your fault completely.”

Tom frowned, if Chris was saying that things were bad then they must be worse than he thought. Damn he hadn’t wanted to make things awkward between Tracy and Chelle, if anything that had been the last thing he had wanted. It was true what people said, sex between friends was never a good idea. With a sigh he stood up “I had better try to make things right with her.”

He walked out into the kitchen and found her making a cup of tea; he smiled and grabbed a cup out of the cupboard “mind getting me one.”

“Why not get it yourself?” she snapped.

“Chelle, stop this, please” he replied “I will say sorry to Tracy if it makes you feel better.”

She paused then “thank you.”

Something about her tone irritated him; it had had a hint of smugness to it, almost like she had won an argument. “I still think she is overreacting, she has seen my moves enough times to know what to expect, Chelle.”

“Are you saying she is in the wrong?” Michelle asked carefully.

“I’m saying that she should have known what to expect” Tom answered “especially considering I bloody told her what to expect, I can’t be blamed for her false expectations.”

“She was your friend” Michelle murmured “you should have stayed away from her.”

“Yes, perhaps I should have done” Tom grunted “but I didn’t and what’s done is done. Also why do you assume I did the chasing?”

“Please” Michelle scoffed “of course you did, Tracy is a shy person and besides it’s you.”

“What does that mean?” he asked.

“You chase girls Thomas” she murmured “of course you chased Tracy. Why would she pursue you?”

“Women have pursued me before” Tom shot back “it isn’t completely unknown.” “Whatever the case” Michelle argued “even if it was her that did the chasing, you should have said no, I have to go now excuse me.”

Tom watched her walk out of the room, cup of tea in hand, and sagged against the kitchen counter. What had just happened? Surely Michelle wasn’t seriously mad at him? And why did she think that he was the one who had pursued Tracy? If only she knew the truth about the situation.

Tracy had had a crush on him for months but no one had seen it except him. She had started calling him most days and whenever they had gone out she had sat close to him and flirted.