“You did.” Eve nodded weakly. She took a deep breath and blew it out slowly. “Was this?”
“If you let me try it again, I’m sure I can do better.”
Eve whimpered. “I might not survive better.”
“But what a way to go?” Aspen nuzzled her ear.
The fall of Aspen’s breath against her ear made Eve clench, and she groaned as a wave of arousal flooded her panties, making her aware of just how wet their little make-out session had made her. “Something like that,” she agreed. She sighed contentedly when Aspen’s arms tightened around her in response. “I wish we could just skip dinner and stay right here all night.”
Aspen’s expression when she pulled back to look at her suggested she wasn’t opposed to the idea, but she left the ball firmly in Eve’s court as she carefully replied, “I mean, it’s an option.”
“Not a viable one, though,” Eve muttered. Her lips quirked with a small, regretful smile as she used her thumb to rub away remnants of her lipstick from Aspen’s lips. “This, however, is really not your color.”
Aspen’s eyes crinkled as she agreed, “Probably not. It looks wonderful on you, though.”
“Charmer,” Eve teased as she pulled her hand away. Her gaze lingered on Aspen’s to make sure she’d gotten it all, and shook her head as she succumbed to the urge to drop one last quick, fortifying kiss to those perfect lips before regretfully moving out of her arms. “I just need to do a quick touch-up, and then we can go.”
“Okay. Can I ask a question about tonight? Or, well, these next few days, I guess,” Aspen amended as she hovered in the doorway to the bathroom and finished buttoning her shirt.
Though Aspen’s tone was light, Eve’s stomach still sank as she caught Aspen’s eye in the mirror. In the short time that’d passed, Aspen had managed to pull on a blazer that looked as perfectly tailored as her slacks, but she didn’t have the bandwidth to appreciate the view. Had she done something wrong? Was Aspen regretting kissing her? “Um, sure?”
“It’s nothing bad,” Aspen assured her quickly. “I was just curious how you want me to behave. Am I okay to hold your hand? Wrap an arm around your shoulders or waist? Do you usually kiss your partner in front of your parents? Stuff like that.”
The knot of worry in Eve’s gut loosened. “Oh, um…” Her voice trailed off as she dug in her makeup bag for her lipstick. She looked back at Aspen’s beautifully placid face in the mirror as she said, “I guess?” She uncapped the tube and quickly reapplied her lipstick before continuing, “I’ve held hands with a girl in front of them and they were fine, but—”
“Eve,” Aspen interrupted, her voice as gentle as her expression. “I honestly couldn’t care less about their comfort. I care about yours.”
It was clear Aspen meant every word, and Eve’s eyes fluttered as her heart pulled a similar maneuver in her chest. She didn’t have a lot of dating experience but, while this situation wasn’t quite the same, she’d never been with anyone who put her soplainly at the forefront. Everyone else had been more concerned with winning her parents’ favor and connections than they’d been about her.
Eve blinked her eyes open and smiled ruefully at Aspen’s reflection. “Honestly? I don’t know what I’m comfortable with.”
A look of genuine sadness flashed across Aspen’s face as she breathed, “Oh, beautiful girl.”
Eve bit her lip as Aspen shook her head and pushed off the doorframe. She watched, enraptured once again by the powerful sway of Aspen’s hips as she made her way into the bathroom to stand behind her at the vanity. Aspen’s hands were light on her waist as she pressed against her back in that gentle way of hers that made Eve feel protected and safe, and Eve sighed as she melted back into her. “I’m sorry.”
Aspen’s hands rubbed soothing circles over her hips as she said, “You have nothing to be sorry for.” The golden streaks in Aspen’s eyes shone in the bright vanity lights, and she leaned her head against Eve’s as she wrapped her arms around her waist to hold her in a loose embrace. “I’ll follow your lead, okay? Don’t worry about making me uncomfortable; I’ll climb on your lap and kiss you silly at the table if you want me to.” She smiled at Eve’s shocked laughter and kissed her cheek. “What I’m saying is, hold my hand if you need it. Cuddle into my side if it makes you feel better. Kiss me if you want to. I’m here for you, okay? Not them. Not any of them.”
Eve blinked away the tears that stung at the backs of her eyes. “God, why couldn’t we have met under normal circumstances?”
“Who says this isn’t?” Aspen sniggered and changed tack when Eve just responded with an arched brow. “Okay, fine. But fuck it, okay? Normal is for wimps. And you, my dear, sweet, beautiful girl, are anything but.” She pulled back and held out a hand. “Come on. We got this.”
Eve dropped her lipstick back into her makeup bag and nodded as she took Aspen’s hand. Aspen’s easy confidence was an encouraging breeze against her back as they headed to dinner. Her pulse picked up when she heard her parents’ voices as they entered the living room next to the dining room, but when Aspen moved to pull her hand away, she caught it and threaded their fingers firmly together. She wasn’t sure if she’d be brave enough for more, but she was brave enough for this.
And, honestly, she felt stronger with Aspen at her side.
Her parents, as she’d expected, clocked their joined hands immediately, and she didn’t miss the way both of their expressions tensed. By the way Aspen's fingers tightened against hers, she knew she had noticed it, too. But more than that, she was struck by how much older they looked than when she’d last seen them in March. Her father’s formerly salt and pepper hair was now pure white, and while her mother’s bottle-red was unchanged, the lines around her eyes were more pronounced.
“Ah, there you are,” her father declared with a wide, polished politician’s smile. He set the tumbler of whiskey he’d been sipping at onto a modern glass and steel coffee table and pushed to his feet. “Richard said you’d arrived. Did you have a nice trip?”
“Dallas was a disaster, as usual, but it was fine otherwise,” Eve said, her grip on Aspen’s hand tightening as she submitted to her father’s customary half-hug and brusque kiss on the cheek.
“And who do we have here?” her mother asked as she joined them, her steel-gray gaze sharped to a fine point as she openly appraised Aspen, no doubt already searching for a flaw to use against her.
Eve could have laughed. It was a pointless endeavor. Aspen was perfect in every sense of the word.
And to prove it, Aspen offered a smile that was even more polished than her father’s as she held out her hand. “Aspen Collier-West. It’s a pleasure to meet you. Your home is lovely.”
“Thank you.” Interest sparked in Eve’s mother’s eyes as she took Aspen’s hand. “Elizabeth. And, Collier, you say? Any relation to Michael?”
