It was true that she wanted more inclusivity for herself and her friends in WaterColor. A nice beach bar for lesbians sounded like a dream come true. Clearly, she had bitten off more than she could chew. The most frustrating part had been Quinn herself. The adorable brunette had made Autumn want to scoop her up and take care of her. It hadn’t helped that Quinn had been exactly her type. Shorter than Autumn by about an inch or two with big soulful brown eyes. Cute and quirky had always been what Autumn went for. On top of the physical, Quinn had been so sweet. It was too bad that Quinn was in a total state of disarray herself. She wasn’t sure who this former lover in Vegas was, but the woman had clearly done a number on Quinn. Autumn’s phone rang and she startled when she saw that it was her mother calling.
“Hey, Mom,” Autumn said, tone more uncertain than she’d like.
“Honestly, Autumn, I hope you don’t answer the phone that way for clients,” Moira chided.
“Of course not,” Autumn bristled at the jab.
She could almost picture her mom counting to ten before speaking again.
“I didn’t call to fight, dear. I was just wondering how things were going. How’s the new business coming along?”
Autumn winced. Her Mom could have literally started the conversation any other way. Once again, they were going to talk about business.
“It’s good,” Autumn answered simply.
“Only good?”
“It’s great,” Autumn tried a second time. She wished her mom would ask her about her life outside of her business.
“What kind of things have you been working on?”
Autumn sighed and resigned herself to the conversation in front of her.
“I just signed to start on a beachside bar project.” Autumn felt herself brighten. If her mom wanted to talk business at least she had a fun project on the books.
“Really. That sounds interesting.”
“It is. The owner is going to turn it into a lesbian bar, so it’ll be the first of its kind here.”
“That’s wonderful, honey.”
“I think this could really help establish my name here in WaterColor.”
She could practically feel her mom’s excitement growing.
“Wonderful. Just wonderful.”
“Unfortunately, the bar is in bad shape. I’m basically starting from scratch. But the place has great bones, and I’m confident in my ability to design around the space.”
“That’s my girl. Never be afraid of hard work and never doubt yourself.”
“Thanks, Mom.”
Autumn smiled to herself. Sometimes she didn’t give her mom enough credit for absolutely being her biggest cheerleader.
“When you’re done with this project I’d love to come for a quick visit. You can show me this new bar. Maybe we can even pull your dad away from work.”
“I’d like that,” Autumn smiled. She would enjoy a visit from her mom and dad. They had only been to visit her a handful of times since she’d moved to WaterColor. She and her mom made small talk for several more minutes before hanging up.
Her Mom was coming for a visit, Autumn’s head swam. She had a rundown bar to fix and a mom who wanted that bar to be perfect so she could see it in person.
She needed to clear her mind in the worst way. Autumn sent a quick text to her friend Piper asking if she wanted to fit in a quick workout. Piper’s response was an immediate yes. The two of them had gone halves on a gym membership in town last year. They’d been working out together for years, so the move had felt natural.
Thirty minutes later she was standing by the free weights with Piper. Autumn couldn’t stop sighing loudly, as her body released the tension it was holding.
“Are you going to be, okay?” Piper asked.
Autumn stopped mid bicep curl.
