“Of course. I’m glad you can make it.”
They finished their tea in relative silence. Drew enjoyed the quiet. Her eyes began drifting slowly over to Brooke. She couldn’t help taking the woman in. Brooke’s long blonde hair cascaded down her shoulders. Brooke took a final sip of her tea and her perfectly full lips curved into a smile. Those lips looked like they’d be perfect for kissing. Drew dismissed the thought as soon as it popped into her head. Brooke had only just decided to not hate her, so kissing was probably off the table.
“What kind of work do you do?” Brooke asked, shattering the silence.
When Drew gave her a look of confusion Brooke covered a chuckle with her hand.
“I mean what style of tattoos do you do?” Brooke tried again. Drew laughed.
“I do a lot of decorative fine line. Some color but mostly black and grey. I love exploring new styles though. I enjoy playing around with styles I’m less familiar with.”
Brooke nodded her head and looked around the shop.
“Do you have any tattoos?” Drew asked. She watched the unmistakable blush spread across Brooke’s face.
“I might have one or two. But nothing you’re ever likely to see.”
The blush on Brooke’s face deepened.
“Duley noted,” Drew laughed.
“Do you want a ride?” Brooke asked.
“A ride?”
“Yeah, to the thing at my friend’s brewery. It’s a little outside of Nashville. Plus, we live so close to each other I figured ridesharing would make the most sense.”
“Thanks, Tomes. I’d love a ride.”
She watched as a sweet blush spread across Brooke’s face. Drew gave a half smile.
“We’re back to the nickname I see,” Brooke chuckled.
“Only if you want it.” Drew met Brooke’s eyes and held the contact.
“I guess as far as nicknames are concerned, it isn’t bad.”
“Do I get points for originality?” Drew drawled.
Brooke allowed her eyes to scan Drew up and down. She made no attempt to hide the checkout. Drew felt the slightest tightening low in her stomach.
“Something tells me that you’re nothing if not original,” Brooke smirked and gave Drew a wink. The slight tightening in her stomach intensified.
“That’s me. I’m one of a kind,” Drew laughed. She hoped that Brooke couldn’t see that she’d thrown her off.
“I should get back to the store,” Brooke said, her voice low.
If Drew didn’t know any better, she’d think that Brooke wanted to be asked to stay. Of course that would be ridiculous. They each had a busy day ahead of them. Brooke smiled softly and set the mug back on the counter.
“Thanks for the tea,” Drew managed to say as Brooke turned to go.
“You’re welcome. You know it’s nice to have a neighbor I can drink tea with.”
“Then we’ll have to do it again sometime soon,” Drew offered.
“I would like that.”
With that Brooke opened the door and was gone. She left Drew with knots in her stomach. Drew fought the urge to stare after Brooke. Developing a crush on Brooke now would be insane. The woman had only just stopped hating her. That was a far cry from liking Drew. This had too often been a theme in Drew’s life. Her heart was always the one to lead the charge. So far this had caused her mostly trouble. Especially when it came to women.
