“I pretty much can’t stop thinking about kissing her again,” Jules admitted.
“Have you been attracted to a woman before?” Eve asked.
“Yes, but I had never acted on it.”
“And now?” Josie asked. Pippin hopped down from the couch and dashed over to win her attention back from his brother.
“I’m so confused.” Jules pressed a hand over her eyes. “I mean, how do I know if what I’m feeling is attraction for Sophie or just a reaction to kissing a woman for the first time?”
“Oh, that one’s easy,” Josie told her as Pippin placed his front paws on her chest to rub his head against her chin. “The first time I kissed a girl—granted, this was in high school—I definitely didnotwant to kiss her again. So, I kissed a different girl the next time. Took me a few tries to find someone I wanted a second kiss with.”
“What about this other actress?” Eve asked. “The one you have to kiss on stage. What was that like, for comparison?”
Jules took another sip of her wine. “I didn’t feel anything when I kissed her.”
“Well, that’s your answer,” Josie said, nodding briskly.
Jules glanced from Josie to Eve. “So you’re saying…”
“Whatever you’re feeling is because ofSophie, not her gender,” Eve confirmed. “That doesn’t mean you have to act on it, though. You work together. It could be incredibly awkward if you tried a relationship with her and it didn’t work out.”
“Don’t listen to her,” Josie said, waving a hand dismissively in Eve’s direction. “She’s such a romantic buzzkill. She tried this shit with me too, you know. ‘We can’t do this, Josie. It’s in the contract.’”
“Well, it was,” Eve told her sternly, even as the corners of her mouth quirked. “I could have lost my job.”
“But you didn’t, and look at us now.” She winked at her girlfriend before turning her gaze on Jules. “If you’ve been attracted to women before, but Sophie is the one who inspired you to go for your first kiss, maybe you need to take that momentum and run with it.”
8
On Sunday, Sophie went to Jules’s apartment to run lines with her, Micki, and Amir. They had another fun afternoon, and Sophie was so grateful for the chance to practice her understudy roles with her castmates. When they parted ways that night, they made tentative plans to get together again the following Sunday.
They didn’t really need a third session. By now, they all knew their lines, but they seemed to enjoy the comradery, and since Thanksgiving was later that week, they’d be away from rehearsals for a few days and could probably use a chance to brush up before they returned to the theater on Monday.
Neither Sophie or Jules had mentioned their kiss—or their conversation at Dragonfly. For the most part, things between them had returned to normal as they headed into their third week of rehearsals. Sophie’s crush definitely hadn’t gone away. On the contrary, she was more attracted to Jules than ever, and she was fairly sure Jules felt something for her too.
But for now, Sophie was content with their friendship. Jules needed time to come to terms with her sexuality. She might not ever be ready to take the next step, and that was okay. They both needed to focus on the show anyway.
This was a short week of rehearsals. They finished at lunchtime on Wednesday, and most of the cast—including Sophie—left town that afternoon to visit family for Thanksgiving. She took a quick flight to Syracuse, grateful that her new paycheck meant she didn’t have to fret about the cost.
Four days—and a lot of food—later, she was back in Brooklyn and ready to get back to work onIt’s in Her Kiss. She texted Jules to make sure they were still on to run lines that afternoon before spending the next few hours running errands. She did laundry and bought groceries, and then it was time to go to Jules’s. Sophie had been looking forward to it all weekend, excited for another chance to practice with her castmates.
And to see Jules, of course, although Sophie was doing her best to keep her hormones in check. Still, she spent a few extra minutes in the bathroom styling her hair and touching up her makeup before she headed out, because it never hurt to look nice. She stopped at a deli on the way for a sandwich platter for them to share while they worked. Ten minutes later, she rang the buzzer at Jules’s building. The door unlocked almost immediately, and she walked up to knock on Jules’s door.
She pulled it open with a wide smile. Her hair was down, and Sophie had the irrational urge to run her fingers through it. Would it be as soft as it looked? Jules waved her in. “Amir is apparently fighting a cold and wants to rest his voice. Micki’s flight back to the city was delayed, but she’s hoping to be here in a little while.”
“Oh, bummer.” Sophie walked into the apartment, setting the sandwiches on the table.
“Thanks for bringing that,” Jules said. “Want something to drink? Water? Soda? Wine?”
“Just water for now, thanks.”
“Sure. Did you have a good Thanksgiving?” Jules asked as she walked to the kitchen.
“I did. It was great to see my family for a few days. Did you fly home too?”
Jules shook her head. “My aunt and uncle came up, so I spent Thanksgiving here with them. It was really nice.” She filled two glasses from a pitcher in the fridge and handed one to Sophie. Their fingers brushed, and Sophie’s heart gave a happy dance in her chest.
She turned to leave the kitchen, letting out a little shriek when she found herself face-to-face with Jules’s black cat, who was peeking out at her from one of the cabinets.
