We shared small talk while the kittens ran around. Vail got their water and litter box set up, along with bowls of dry food.
“We’ve got a little bit of time before it starts, did you want to pregame?”
Vail snorted. “God, I haven’t pregamed in a long, long time.”
Were we too old for pregaming anymore? I didn’t want to think about that, but the closer I got to being thirty, the more I had to accept that I was a grown adult.
“I will take some water, though.” I poured glasses for both of us.
Vail drained hers quickly. “If I want to bail, but I don’t want to make a scene, what’s our code word going to be? Or code signal?” For a second I had to figure out what she was asking me.
“You want a party safe word?” I couldn’t stop myself from blushing.
She nodded. “Yeah. I want a party safe word. How about ‘litter box?’ I’ll say that I need to check on it or something. And if I make a clawing motion at you, then that means I’m leaving.”
I burst out laughing. “That sounds good. Do the motion again?”
She made a claw with her hand.
“Sorry, I didn’t get it, do it again?”
Her eyes narrowed. “Stop it.”
I grinned at her. “Never. Come on, let’s go.”
Vail gave the kittens one last glance and told them to be good and that we’d be back soon. They didn’t appear to be paying attention.
We headed down to the second floor anyway.
* * *
Overlapping voices camefrom inside the apartment as we stood outside and I knocked on the door.
“Shit. We should have brought something,” I said. Where were my manners? I was about to turn around and run back upstairs to grab a bottle of wine or something from my own fridge, but the door flew open and it was too late.
“Hey, we were hoping you’d come by,” Stace said, grinning. She wore a T-shirt from her fire department and cargo pants that barely contained her thighs. As someone in the fitness industry, I knew the effort it took to get a body like that, and she had all my respect. And maybe a little bit of lesbian appreciation of her fine form.
“Thanks for having us,” I said, moving aside so that Vail could also greet the hosts.
Stace called out for Hunter, who came over with a tray of drinks. “Reid decided we needed a drink of the night, so here we are. Don’t ask me what’s in it. I have another tray of mocktails coming.” Hunter looked like if you took an animated princess and just popped her into the real world, but she was quieter and more reserved than you would think, which made her an excellent yoga teacher. Even though we taught at the same gym, I didn’t bump into her that often, but that was on me for avoiding her. She just reminded me too much of the culture I’d come from. That wasn’t her fault, and it was something I did need to get over. We weren’t our parents, after all.
“Perfect,” Vail said, reaching for one of the drinks. I grabbed one too.
“Come on in. We’ve got food and drinks and whatever else you might need.” A fluffy yellow dog bounded over to us, wagging her tail and I leaned down to say hello to their dog, Buck.
He sniffed me all over. “You probably smell the kittens, huh?” I made sure to hold my drink out of my way as he inspected me.
“His job is home security, so he’s got to check everyone who comes in,” Stace said as I stood up.
“Well, he’s good at it.”
Vail leaned down to greet Buck as well, letting him sniff her hands. “Hello, boy.” Her voice was soft.
Stace and Hunter had to greet the next guests, so we moved out of the way and headed toward the food.
“It’s weird seeing the same apartment layout, but different furniture,” I told her, sipping the drink. It was lemony and crisp. Very nice.
Hunter’s place was more mid-century than mine, and you could see Stace’s influence as well. She also had a lot more books. I tended toward ebooks myself, only keeping special editions around. Hunter also had a lot of plants, which really made the space feel special. I should get some more plants.
