“You had that before…?”
“Before I drunkenly told you my sob story and embarrassingly confessed that my husband — sorry, ex-husband — had approvedyouas my ‘get-out-of-jail-free’ card?” She threw her head back and laughed again. “Yes. You’re notthatcharming.”
I opened my mouth to speak again, but a voice interrupted me, one I would havepaidnever to hear again. “Oh, Ansey,” she stood in front of my table, a fake pout on her face. “Your table issobare.”
Giulia Michaels.
An ex.
I grunted my response with a shrug, arms crossing over mychest. “You were never this… far away from the central hub when we were together, dear.”
We’d only dated for a year, and my tablehadseemed closer to the commotion while we were dating…
Correlation and causation and shit, right?
“It must be lonely down here. Just you and your… enthusiastic handler.” She nodded towards Juniper with an almost pitying stare. Then, in her worst stage whisper, “You know, you can fire them for being unprofessional, right?”
“She’s not my handler?—”
“I’m not his handler—” We spoke in tandem, and when I turned, she was grinning again.
Thestupidestidea popped into my head.
Surely she’d…
“We’ve been dating for about three months now, Junie and I,” I said as I slung my arm over her shoulder.
Stupid. Stupid. Stupid.
A little bit of shame rose in me as she flinched under my sudden touch, but was quickly replaced with a warm feeling in my stomach as she melted against my side.
Her fingers came up to my face, curling in my sad excuse of a beard. “Oh… is she talking about this?” She looked down at her shirt with a wide grin. “It’s my‘Cosmic Leather Reckoning’shirt. Rare print. eBay classic. I couldn’t help but wear it today.” She giggled again, practicallycrooning.“It drives Ansecrazy.”
I tried to keep my mouth shut as she justrattled offinformation about my merchandise.
From decades ago.
“He wassocute in the second movie, right, Jenny?” She was asking Giulia, but her eyes never left me.
“I just remembered — I have a panel.” The other woman was thrown off, unable to dig her claws into my skin this time. “Good luck with… that.” She turned to leave without another word, but…
I knew better.
“Don’t move,” I whispered, certain that Giulia would still be watching. “I’m so sorry for this,” I breathed.Before consulting my better judgement, I brushed a lock of her wild curls off of her forehead. And beforeshehad time to question, to decline or debate, I pressed my lips to hers.
Soft.
Warm.
Juniper gasped a little under my sudden movements, but her hand stayed on my cheek, the other curling into the button-up I was wearing.
I cupped her neck, dragging my thumb along her jawbone, surprisingly delighted to find tiny pricks of gooseflesh left behind where my touch had been.
Our lips moved together like they already knew the song and dance, like our mouths had spent ageslearningfor this very moment. It took all of my willpower to pull away from her. To break apart from whatmightbe one of the best kisses I’ve had in a very long time.
Stop that, Barlowe.
“Sorry,” I whispered, leaning my forehead against hers, hand still against her neck. “Sorry.”
