“I do,” Eve agreed, and well…it wasn’t a no.
“Do you live far from here?” she asked.
“The East Village,” Eve answered.
Josie immediately pictured her in one of the sleek, high-rise apartment buildings in that part of town. “What’s that, about a half an hour from here?”
“About that, yes.”
Eve looked at the kittens, currently snuggled against their surrogate mother, fast asleep. “Can you keep them permanently now that you have a full staff?”
Somehow, they hadn’t discussed this yet, although Josie figured they were both assuming that she would. “It’s not ideal, but they’re too big now to sit in a box behind your desk, so yeah, I’ll make it work.”
“Good,” Eve said with a decisive nod, and Josie wondered if it was wishful thinking on her part that she looked vaguely wistful.
“You know you’re welcome to visit them anytime,” she said.
Eve shot her a warning look.
Josie laughed. “You don’t even have to see me if you don’t want to. You know the code to the door. Just text me and let me know you’re stopping by.”
“That’s ridiculous,” Eve said.
“Coming up without seeing me is a little bit ridiculous, yeah, but visiting them isn’t. You’re invested, Eve. Of course you are. You saved their lives and nursed them through their first week.”
Eve looked down at her hands. “I need to go.”
“Okay. Hey…” She tugged at the pink sleeve of Eve’s shirt, drawing her in for a lazy kiss. With a sigh, Eve relaxed, kissing her back. “I really am glad we spent last night together…or this morning…whenever.”
“Me too,” she murmured against Josie’s lips before she pulled back and slid to her feet.
“You can borrow anything you need, clothes, toiletries, whatever,” Josie told her, wrapping her arms around her knees.
“Thank you.” Eve went into the bedroom, closing the door behind her.
Josie sat on the couch, sipping coffee and trying not to imagine what she was doing in there or whether she’d ever get to see Eve in one of her T-shirts again, whether she’d kiss her, hold her, strip her naked. Somehow, she had to believe the answer was yes. Yes to all of it.
Eve might like to think she was unaffected by the power of their connection, but Josie had held her, trembling and begging, as Eve came apart in her arms, and she didn’t think it had been just sex for her either. She came out of Josie’s bedroom a few minutes later, wearing a floor-length black T-shirt dress that was a size too big for her, hair neatly brushed and purse over her shoulder. Naturally, she’d managed to find what was probably the only dress Josie owned.
“I’ll return it the next time I see you,” Eve said.
“Sure.”
She walked to the door but paused there, looking over her shoulder at Josie. “Thanks.”
For what, Josie wasn’t sure, but she smiled anyway, because whatever Eve meant, she was grateful for it. “Any time.”
And with a nod, Eve was gone.
Josie sat there for a few minutes in silence, just absorbing everything that had happened in the last twenty-four hours. Dragonfly’s grand opening. Her night with Eve. It was a lot to process, but it was all good. She refused to entertain the worries nagging at the back of her brain that the bar might be empty tonight without the draw of the cameras, that Dragonfly would still keep her from investing herself in her rescue the way she wanted to, and that Eve might go back to all business now that they’d released the sexual tension between them.
Josie shook her head and picked up her coffee mug. None of that. The new bar was exciting. There would definitely be fewer patrons tonight without the lure of cameras, but Eve had helped her set up a lot of advertising, so people would come. And even if Eve returned them to a strictly business relationship, she’d still be grateful for the night they’d shared.
One thing Josie had learned over the years was that life rarely went in the direction she expected. She finished her coffee and carried the mug to the kitchen. It was almost two, and she had a lot to do before Dragonfly opened for its second day. On that note, she showered, dressed, and went downstairs. She sat in her office and spent some time on social media, adding photos from last night and responding to customer comments.
Before she knew it, Adam was poking his head in the doorway. “Hey, boss.”
She laughed. “Ugh, don’t call me that. It just feels weird.”
