As the baby of her family and then someone who’d been in the closet for so long, Marin hadn’t had many opportunities in her life to give advice or be a mentor. It felt good.Reallygood. Hopefully, she’d have more opportunities like this here at NU.
Marin was a big believer in doing things at your own pace, and while she couldn’t regret the long and winding journey that had led her to Vermont, right now, it felt like aneternityto wait two more days until her date with Charlotte.
Marin’s mind stuttered.Laura.Two more days until her date with Laura.
“I have a question for you.” Laura regarded Marin over her nearly empty beer mug, brown eyes sparkling. “A really important one, so answer wisely.”
“Okay.” Marin felt a flutter inside her rib cage, anticipation or dread, she wasn’t sure, because while she liked Laura as a friend, the more time she spent with her, the more Marin couldn’t help feeling like the romantic element was lacking. And ... okay, she was definitely dreading Laura’s question.
“Do you want dessert?” Laura asked dramatically. “And more specifically, do you want to split the brownie sundae with me? Because it’samazinghere, but it’s way too big for one person.”
Marin laughed as the knot of anxiety in her belly loosened. “Yes, I’d like that.”
“Awesome. I think they do a pup cup too.” Laura leaned down to rub Ember where she lay beneath the table, chewing on the Kong toy Marin had brought for her.
“She’s been a very good girl tonight,” Marin agreed. “She deserves a pup cup.”
“Yes, she does. I’ll be right back.” Laura stood, grabbing her purse.
“Oh, but you got dinner too ...”
Laura held up a hand. “You can pay next time.”
“Okay,” Marin acquiesced. Next time. That should make her happy. Thrilled, even. Laura was fun to spend time with and patient with the puppy. Marin had enjoyed dinner. But when it came to kissing ...
Marin could only think about kissing Charlotte, which was ridiculous. Anger rose inside her because she wasfuriouswith herself for ruining this. She had this wonderful woman here with her. Laura was everything she wanted in a partner, except ... she wasn’t Charlotte.
Ugh.
Marin had already waited forty-seven years. She couldn’t waste any more time, sitting home and pining after her straight friend. She had to find a way forward that would let her keep Charlotte as a friend but also have the passion she craved with someone else. Maybe that meant pushing ahead with Laura. She’d enjoyed the kiss on the cheek last weekend, after all.
So Marin smiled eagerly as Laura returned with a large brownie sundae for them to share and the pup cup for Ember. She joked and flirted as she ate. The ice cream was delicious, and Marin’s mood had rebounded by the time they walked outside. Ember whined, tugging Marin toward a nearby snowbank.
“I think she needs to potty. Be right back,” Marin said apologetically before hustling the puppy to the edge of the parking lot to take care of business.
When she returned, she found Laura leaning against the side of Marin’s Outback, a relaxed smile on her face. “I had fun tonight.”
“I did too,” Marin told her.
“Dinner again soon? Or maybe more adventuring? Maybe both? I don’t know about you, but I’m having a really good time.” Laura stepped forward, taking Marin’s hand in hers.
Marin’s body went warm, and her stomach tingled. See? She could feel something for Laura as long as she was careful to keep Charlotte out of her head. She shivered involuntarily as images of Charlotte swamped her mind, making Marin’s heart pound for all the wrong reasons.
For fuck’s sake.
She was hopeless. But also ... hopeful. She’d lived on hope for so long, and now it was time to act. She took a small step toward Laura, who gave her an encouraging smile. Laura rested her hand on Marin’s waist, and that felt so nice, so different from how Andrew’s hand had felt there. Marin leaned forward so their bodies were right up against each other.
This is it.
She was about to have her first kiss with a woman. Her heart was beating out of control, her pulse thudding frantically in her ears. She didn’t realize she’d closed her eyes until she felt the gentle press of Laura’s lips on hers. Marin’s eyes popped open as she took a step back, stumbling over Ember’s leash.Wait ...
Her body flooded with a combination of adrenaline and embarrassment, because she’d stepped backward before Laura could do more than brush her lips against Marin’s. Technically, they’d kissed, and it hadn’t been bad.
Hadn’t been bad?
That was the best thing Marin could say about her first sapphic kiss? She’d been fighting so damn hard to keep Charlotte’s face out of her mind, she’d barely registered anything about Laura’s kiss at all.Fuck.
“That was nice,” Laura said, but she looked vaguely confused, as if she’d realized Marin hadn’t enjoyed it as much as she should have.
