“We are moving forward.” Angelica tensed again, her eyes locked on Hope’s. “We are in a relationship.”
Hope pursed her lips. “That’s not exactly what I meant, and I’m pretty sure you know that.”
Angelica nodded. “I understand.”
“You have twelve weeks, Angel, and then I want to come out to the world. Okay?”
Holding her breath, Angelica waited for the rest of the ultimatum. But it never came. “What if I’m not ready by then?” Angelica whispered.
“I want you to work toward being ready by then. And if you’re not, then we’ll take it from there, but if you work toward it, then at least I’ll know there’s an end to whatever stalemate we’re in. All right?”
“Yeah.” Angelica tilted her head down, not sure she wanted to look into Hope’s eyes. But Hope reached for her cheek, cupping it and then raising her chin upward so their lips could touch. Angelica hummed into the kiss, this time sweet and full of anticipation and hope for what might come. Her eyes fluttered shut, and she threaded her fingers into Hope’s hair, tugging on the short strands that she loved so much.
“Okay?” Hope asked.
“Yeah.”
“Good. And we need to talk more, Angel. I think we allow ourselves to get too distracted by other…things.”
Angelica smirked at that. She knew exactly what Hope was talking about, and yes, she was right. They did need to spendmore time in conversation about what they wanted for their future and more. They were decent at navigating problems as they came up, but they needed to be better at heading them off before they became problems.
“Now, Angel, I love you, but you need to eat.”
Angelica chuckled lightly and grabbed her fork with gusto, stabbing a part of the salmon fillet. “Fine.”
“And look at that. I have you for two more hours all to myself. Whatever shall we do?” Hope curled her arms around Angelica’s waist, stepping up behind her and kissing her neck gingerly. “I can think of many things.”
“I’m sure you can.” Angelica would probably like all of them. Hope wasn’t someone to hold back when it came to sex. But with Eva in the house and the conversation still weighing on her heart, the last thing Angelica wanted to do was to hide out in Hope’s office for a quickie.
Hope kissed her neck again, and Angelica turned her head to capture Hope’s lips. She would do exactly what Hope had asked her to. She’d work toward announcing their relationship by the end of the filming season. If only so that they could finally start to plan for a future.
Chapter
Five
“Hi, I’m Florence Delarosa.”The woman had wide hips, a beautiful smile, and dark hair for days reaching down her back. It wasn’t curly, but rather had a certain amount of weathered fluff to it that instantly drew Hope in.
“I’m Hope.” She took Florence’s extended hand and shook it, flicking her gaze to Angelica. This was a private meeting, just the three of them, and while Angelica had assured her it would be a quick meeting, Hope still had been nervous showing up.
“It’s good to meet you finally. Shall we?” She pointed to the conference table in Angelica’s office, where they’d agreed to meet since it was so much closer for Hope to get there from her house and filming.
Hope sent Angelica a curious look as she slid into the seat next to Florence and then waited to see whatever bomb was going to be dropped on them next. Because that’s exactly what this meeting felt like. Tense. Secretive. And exploding.
“I wanted to meet with just the two of you to get a feel for how you want the show to run for the next three seasons. I know you two had a lot of issues with Josef, and I wanted to be very clear where I stand versus where he stood.”
Hope tensed instantly. Already, this felt different. Josef would never sit down and discuss. He’d order and play tricks, and he’d somehow force them to do whatever he wanted them to do.
“As we dive into filming season four, I’m looking to you two to lead the direction of the show and to create a healthy environment for everyone.”
Hope flicked her gaze to Angelica. Were they being called out on being toxic now? Hope folded her hands in her lap, managing somehow to keep her mouth shut while she listened.
“I know there have been issues with the crew in the past, and I don’t want to go into the next three years with the same issues.”
“I don’t think those problems will be around,” Angelica said, her voice calm just like it always was.
Hope bit her lip and shook her head. “Not with Josef gone.”
“Well, I’m just making sure.” Florence put her hands out to the sides and smiled. “Because I want us to start off on the right foot, where we can all understand each other.”
