Eden took the phone, her hand visibly shaking. “Thank you. The hoodie’s yours, you know.”
“I think of it as yours now. Keep it. I’ve got too many.”
Eden took it and turned, walking farther into her suite to place it on the sofa.
“We need to talk about that kiss,” Anna blurted before she lost her nerve.
Eden froze with her back to Anna. “Can we ... not? At least, not right now? It’s almost time to get ready for the show, and I ...” She huffed a shaky breath, and wow, Anna had never seen her anywhere near this rattled, not even after her awful parents stormed her dressing room on opening night.
“I think we have to, at least a little bit.” Anna gentled her tone. “I couldn’t bear it if things got awkward between us, and I don’t think either of us planned that kiss. Please, let’s not let it ruin anything. You’re too important to me.”
Eden spun to face her then, her eyes shimmering with fresh tears. “I couldn’t either. You’re ... this might sound pathetic because we haven’t known each other that long, but I think you’re my best friend.”
Anna felt like her chest had been inflated with helium, like she might float up through the ceiling of this fancy penthouse suite and drift away. “That could only be pathetic ifI’mpathetic, and I think I’m pretty awesome, so ...”
It had the desired effect. Eden smiled. “We both know you’re the opposite of pathetic. You’ve kept me on my toes since we met, and I mean that in the best possible way.”
“So we’re both awesome,” Anna said. “Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, do you want to talk about the kiss?”
Tears splashed over Eden’s cheeks. Her bottom lip trembled, and it was all Anna could do not to pull her into her arms. An hour ago, it’s exactly what she would have done, but after that kiss ... well, Anna was trying desperately to get them back onto solid ground.
She wanted to fling herself into Eden’s arms and kiss her again, kiss her until those tears were gone and Eden was moaning beneath her as Anna showed her exactly how wonderful it was to be with a woman. But none of that was going to happen, at least, not today.
“I know we have to talk about it.” Eden’s voice was barely more than a whisper. “But can it wait? I’m just ...” She shoved both hands into her hair, pushing it back from her face. “My head’s a mess right now, and I need to focus on the show.”
“Yeah, that’s fine, as long as you’re okay,” Anna told her. “I just need to know that before I leave. Are you okay, Eden?”
“Honestly? No,” Eden said, and the haunted look in her eyes corroborated her words. “I’m not okay. I don’t think I’ve been okay for a long time.”
“Wow.” Anna blinked at her, desperate to know what that meant. Had Eden realized she wasn’t straight after all? Or had she already known when she told Anna she was? Had she said it to keep Anna at a distance? Or was this just an experiment that had confirmed for Eden that shewasstraight? So many questions, and this was obviously not the time to ask them.
Still, Anna remembered the urgent way Eden had kissed her, the way her body had pressed against Anna’s as if she couldn’t get enough, that little whimper she’d made, as if she were every bit as turned on as Anna had been. Surely that meant ...
“I need some time to sort myself out,” Eden said. “But we’re okay, you and I. Our friendship. I mean, we are, right?” Her voice rose at the end, doubt creeping in, and her vulnerability broke Anna’s heart.
“Of course we are.” Anna stepped forward and flung her arms around Eden, relieved when Eden squeezed her back, clinging to Annaas if she needed this hug as badly as Anna did. “And if you want to talk anything through, I’m here. I can’t promise to be a totally impartial ear, because I was involved in that kiss, too, but I’m here for you, anything you need, and no judgment, no matter what you’re feeling.”
“Thank you,” Eden whispered, her breath gusting warm against Anna’s neck. “I appreciate that.”
Anna gave her another squeeze and then released her, because her body was overheating the longer she stayed in Eden’s arms, memories of that kiss flooding her senses. And no matter how much she’d enjoyed it, she couldn’t do it again, at least not until Eden had sorted out whatever she needed to sort.
Because Anna’s crush was so much more than that now. Real feelings were involved. She could fall for Eden so easily, if she hadn’t already. Eden had the power to break her heart the way no one had since Camille. Eden could have her kicked off this tour if things between them went south. Eden had the power to destroy her, even if right now, she was the one who looked destroyed, staring at Anna out of eyes brimming with a mixture of affection and panic.
They’d destroy each other if they weren’t careful.
Anna took a step toward the door, suddenly as eager to escape as Eden had been earlier. Where would they go from here? Could they really stay friends after that kiss? Anna couldn’t imagine watching TV in bed with her ever again without reliving their kiss, and yet she couldn’t really imagine dating her either. She’d filed Eden in her brain as straight and off limits, and now she was at a loss. “I’m just going to ...”
Eden nodded. “See you in a little while for the show.”
“Yep.” Anna’s voice was too high pitched. Could Eden see her spiraling emotions? “So ... bye.”
“Bye.”
Anna managed to walk to the door when her feet were itching to run. This time, it was her turn to flee.
Eden wished she weren’t such a creature of habit, but here she was. It would cause too many questions from her team if she deviated from her usual preshow routine, so a mere hour after the kiss that rocked her world, she sat beside Paris in the car bound for the arena while Anna rode in the seat behind her. They were both trying to act like nothing was wrong, like they hadn’t just shared the world’s most unexpected kiss in the middle of a Thursday afternoon.
At the arena, Eden was ushered to the stage for her sound check. She felt like she was on autopilot, going through the motions as she stared blankly into the empty arena. Afterward, she headed to her dressing room for a light dinner. Tonight, Paris had gotten her a protein-packed salad, loaded with eggs and chicken to fuel her through the show. Her stomach was so tight, she could barely eat, but she knew she’d regret it later if she didn’t force at least some of it down.