Marcy nodded, unsure of what to say to that. This situation was new to her; she’d never been so into another woman before, and she didn’t really know what it was that she wanted from Zoe. Did she want to be in a relationship? Did she want to commit? Was she ready? All she knew was how she felt in this moment. She loved spending time with Zoe, and when she wasn’t with her, she was always on her mind. “I’m falling for you too,” she said, noting her normally confident front was crumbling. Her voice was unsteady, and she felt shaky and nervous. “I don’t just mean that I’m attracted to you. I think about you all the time.”
Zoe looked like her mind was spinning as she quietly stared at Marcy. Biting her lip, the puzzled frown between her brows grew more prominent. “Okay. Thank you for being so honest, but I still think this is a bad idea. I’m the monogamous type and you’re the opposite. It wouldn’t work; you could never just be with one person.”
“You don’t know that. I’ve never actually tried being in a relationship with someone.”
“Exactly. You’ve never tried, and I don’t want to be your test bunny that helps you figure out whether you like monogamy or not. Experience tells me you like your freedom too much and I don’t like sharing.” Zoe shook her head and gave her a small smile. “I’m sure we’d have a lot of fun, and I won’t deny that I’d love to kiss you again… In fact, there are a lot of things I’d like to do right now, but I can’t because I’m already in too deep. I even dreamt about you the other night.”
“You dreamt about me?” Marcy asked with a cheeky grin, lightening the mood. “Was it a good dream?”
Zoe chuckled. “I’m not going to answer that.”
“Fair enough.” Marcy looked down at Zoe’s hand and took it. Was Zoe right? Was she incapable of being in a relationship? “Can we at least continue to see each other?” she asked. “Everything else aside, I love the friendship that’s developing between us and maybe we could just see where that goes?”
“I think we both know what it would lead to, so we’d need to set boundaries, but yes, I’d like to remain friends,” Zoe said.
“Sure. Boundaries.” Marcy felt a little better now. She was worried she’d messed up, that this would be the last she’d see of Zoe, but if Zoe wanted boundaries, she could do boundaries.
“Thank you.” Zoe took a deep breath before she continued. “It takes two, so these rules apply to me too, of course. Rule number one; strictly no flirting.”
“I can do that,” Marcy said, sincerely hoping she could.
“Number two; we need to be entirely honest with each other. If we’re going to be friends, you need to be able to tell me about your dating life and vice versa.”
Marcy nodded slowly. She felt foolish for not even considering that Zoe might go on the occasional date too, and she didn’t like that idea one bit. Was she jealous now? “I haven’t slept with anyone in a while, actually.” As she said it, she realised her mind had been so consumed by Zoe that she hadn’t felt the need.
“Yeah, right.” Zoe shot her a sarcastic look. “What about that woman you gave your number to after I stormed off at the bar with Lisa?”
“You saw that?”
“Of course I did. It was blatantly obvious.”
Marcy shrugged. “Well, we never met up. I changed my mind.”
Zoe didn’t look convinced, but she let it slide. “Whether you have or haven’t slept with every woman in town doesn’t matter. It would just be nice if we could talk about stuff like that because eventually, it will stop us wanting each other.”
“I’m not sure if that makes sense, but okay.” The only thing Marcy could think of now was Zoe with another woman and it made her feel sick. “Have you slept with someone recently?”
“It’s been a while, but I’m open to the idea,” Zoe admitted. “You’re not the only one with needs.”
“Hmm…” Marcy forced herself not to think about that and changed the subject. “Any more rules?”
“Yes. Number three; no alcohol when we’re together, and number four; no meet-ups after sunset.”
“Now thatdoesmake sense,” Marcy agreed, mulling over what on earth they would do when they saw each other. A walk? Coffee? Lunch? Sports? Was Zoe even into sports? She really didn’t know her that well. Desperately wanting an excuse to see her again sooner rather than later, she blurted out the only thing she could think of. “My mum is organising a charity event for the local dog shelter on Sunday. It’s taking place at the caravan park. There will be soft drinks only, food, a jumble sale and some games for the kids. It starts in the morning, so you can drop by before work. Want to come?”
“Yes, I’d love to,” Zoe said without hesitation.
Marcy’s eyes widened in surprise. “Really?”
“Uh-huh. It sounds fun. Do you need help setting anything up?” Zoe asked. “I can change shifts at work.”
“No, you’ve already done way too much. You helped me out with Tank, and with the move; I should be the one returning favours now.”
“Don’t be silly.” Zoe waved it off. “I’m all for charity and I love dogs. I could sell food to raise more money? I can borrow my mum’s portable cooking station; she cooks regularly at the Chinese community centre when they have gatherings, so she has all the gear.”
“If you want. That’s very sweet of you, my mum will be ecstatic, Marcy said, already looking forward to Sunday. “So… friends?”
Zoe smiled widely and patted her shoulder before she jumped out of the truck. “Friends. I’ll see you on Sunday.”
