“Yeah, yeah.” She clinked her glass against my bottle.
I caught her eye; she was beautiful. I licked my lips slowly, noting how Andie’s gaze dropped to my lips, her lips slightly parted. A blush crept up to stain her creamy cheeks. We could hear the gathered crowd outside, all counting down to the New Year.
“Happy New Year.” Andie beamed.
“Happy New Year, Andie.”
Without thinking, I pressed my lips to her soft ones. For a few moments, she returned the kiss, letting me open her lips with my tongue and slide it inside to tangle with hers. Her one hand rested on my chest, bunching up the material of my top, the other on the back of my neck, pulling me in closer and I deepened the kiss. Suddenly she pulled back and looked at me with her eyes wide.
“Shit, fuck, I’m sorry.” I ran my hand up the back of my neck. What the fuck was I thinking? Andie stared at me, her mouth opening and closing. “Andie, say something?” I rubbed my hands up and down my thighs.
“I, uh…” Her hand shot to her mouth, her fingers resting lightly on her lips. My embarrassment was only saved by one of her security guards calling out for her attention.
“I’m sorry, Morgan. I shouldn’t have, I mean…fuck.” She shook her head and placed it in her hands.
“Wait, Andie—” I reached out to her, but she was already pulling away.
I liked her, but she made me so fucking nervous. She was stunning, and I was… well, me. I had nothing to offer her. But kissing her was so good.
“Boss, they’re asking for you.” One of her security team approached the table.
It was like she was a celebrity, though she was, in a way. Chants of her name echoed from outside, her patrons wanting her to join in their celebrations. She didn’t look back at me as she left the room to go outside.
Shit, I fucked that up. I laid my head in my hands and rubbed at my face. I waited for her to return so I could explain it was just a New Year’s kiss, and I had taken it too far.
“Hey, time to go. Andie has more work. She’s called a car for us,” my mother said, pulling her wrap over her shoulders.
The following day, my father asked me to go to Andie’s to pick up her plans for the house. I was looking forward to seeing her, but I hoped things wouldn’t be awkward between us; I didn’t want to lose her friendship.
I knocked on her front door, shoving my hands in my jean’s pockets to stop them from shaking. She opened the door, looking stunning dressed in white joggers and a black loose-fitting t-shirt. Her dark hair was plaited to one side, and she had no makeup on. That was the Andie I was used to. Not the label-wearing, full makeup, power woman she was at the club.
“Oh, Morgan, hey.” Her face turned bright red, and she looked everywhere but at me.
“Dad sent me. Said something about plans you had for this place?”
“Yeah, of course, come in,” she murmured and stepped back so I was able to walk past her.
The hallway was light, with cream tiles on the floor and cream walls. A cabinet stood behind the door in a cherry wood, and there were several brightly coloured paintings on the wall. I took a deep breath—it smelled like her, fruity and pretty. A scent I was used to and quickly becoming addicted to.
She closed the door behind us and gave me a small smile. “Follow me.”
I followed her down the corridor to the living area, which was all white, including the tiled flooring. “This place is amazing.”
I looked around. Black and white prints broke up the starkness of the white walls. At the back of the living room, behind the L-shaped sofa, were floor-to-ceiling sliding doors and windows I could see the pool area through. The house was more of an elongated bungalow. When she hired us, she told me her and her brother had bought two bungalows and knocked them into one. Over time, they added extensions until they were happy with it. They each had their own side of the house but had an internal door to access each other’s spaces.
“Thanks, not much personality in here, though. It’s all bloody white. I’ll be getting your mum to come down and give every room a makeover soon.” She gathered the paperwork from the white gloss coffee table and handed them to me. “I think everything is there.”
Again, she wouldn’t meet my eyes. “Andie, can you look at me?” I asked softly.
“Can we just leave it a few days?” She shook her head and looked at the floor, one arm wrapped around herself and holding her other arm.
“Why? It’s just me,” I replied softly and nudged her with my hip.
“Because I’m embarrassed and more than a little shocked, that’s why. Look, can we just leave it be and I’ll see you soon?” Her eyes met mine for just a second, but I saw their glassiness. Her whole face was flushed red.
I put the papers down on the matching white gloss sideboard to my left. “Hey, come on. It was just a drunken kiss on New Year’s Eve. Everyone kisses at midnight, right?”
“Yeah, right.” She nodded but didn’t sound like she believed it.
