#CassiNova

by Lori G. Matthews

  Alex peeked into the baking dish that sat on the counter. “What is it?”

  Sam was overwhelmed by the scent of vanilla shampoo and Alex’s signature cologne. She almost forgot to answer the question. “Chicken?”

  They both peered into the dish, studying it closely, heads only inches apart.

  “What happened to it?” Alex asked.

  “I happened to it.”

  “I’ve never seen chicken that color before. Maybe in a cartoon, but never in a baking dish.”

  “It might taste okay.”

  “It’s purple.” Alex took a fork and lifted one of the pieces. She shrieked and dropped the fork, startling Sam, who pulled away from the dish.

  “What?” Sam feared the worst, a bug or a hair in her signature dish.

  Alex’s eyes were comically wide. “I think it moved.”

  Sam laughed and pushed her. “Stop it! You shouldn’t be making fun of me. It’s the first time I’m cooking for you.”

  “Au contraire, we are just friends, and friends are honest with each other. Now, if this were a date, I’d have to choke that shit down.”

  “Aw, you would do that for me?” Sam batted long lashes at Alex, who remained inches away.

  “Yeah, if it meant getting laid.” Alex leaned in closer and glanced down at Sam’s mouth, then back up to her eyes.

  “You are so romantic. No wonder women fall all over you.”

  “I try.” Alex leaned in even closer.

  Things were getting hot, and it wasn’t from the steam of the purple chicken. It was Sam’s turn to gaze down at Alex’s mouth. She shuddered and bit her lip. How would that mouth feel pressed against her fevered skin? Or nibbling on certain sensitive areas? Now was not the time for this line of questioning. She needed to reel herself in.

  “What should we do?” she asked, returning her attention to the chicken.

  “I think…”

  The air sizzled with sexual energy and Sam’s breath hitched. Those emerald eyes screamed that a kiss was imminent. And she would be powerless to stop it.

  “…we should order pizza.”

  The spell was broken, and Sam’s body wilted with disappointment. Immediately she chided herself for it. What was the matter with her? It was too soon for kissing. “No purple chicken?”

  “I don’t think so.”

  Sam sighed. She had hoped to appear competent in the kitchen. Just once. “I told you I couldn’t cook.”

  “Well, next time I’ll cook.”

  After the pizza was delivered, they sat around the table happily munching and chatting. “Much better than purple chicken.” A string of cheese hung between Alex’s mouth and the slice she’d just taken a bite from.

  Sam resisted the urge to twirl a finger around it and searched for a safe topic of conversation. “Did you go to school for writing?”

  “Yes, Arizona State. Go Sun Devils.”

  “Have you written a book?”

  “I have. It’s not published though. It’s book one of a trilogy.”

  “How come it’s not published? How does that work?” Sam reached for another slice, making a mental note to up the cardio tomorrow.

  “The first thing you do is send out query letters and hope someone calls you back. It’s hard though. You need to know someone, or at least have an agent working for you. And, unfortunately, I don’t know anybody, and I don’t have an agent. Minor detail, right?”

  “Can I read it?”

  “Sure, I’ll email you a PDF.”

  They finished eating, and Sam gathered the dishes and put them in the sink.

  Alex stood. “Here, let me do those.”

  “Well aren’t you thoughtful.”

  “Didn’t know that about me, did you?”

  “No, I did not. See?” Sam pointed between them. “We’re getting to know each other.”

  * * *

  Doing the dishes enabled Alex to bolster her wavering willpower. When Sam bit her lip earlier, Alex had almost lost it. It had taken all her steely resolve not to kiss Sam right then and there. And if this were any other woman, they would have skipped pizza altogether and headed to the bedroom. But this was Sam. And there were promises to keep.

  When the dishes were done, Alex wandered into the living room.

  Sam was relaxing at one end of the couch, but the remaining space was covered in throw pillows.

  Alex whistled. “That’s a lot of pillows.”

  “Oh, sorry.” Sam grabbed the pillows in bunches and tossed them on the floor.

  When the coast was clear, Alex sat.

  Before she had a chance to settle in, Sam kicked off her sandals, leaned back against the arm of the sofa, and put her feet on Alex’s lap.

  She prayed for self-control. While she waited for the prayer to be answered, she grabbed Sam’s foot and began massaging it. Time for some random touching. “Are your feet ticklish?”

  “No.” Sam closed her eyes and moaned. “Oh, that feels good. Forgive me if I start drooling. Foot rubs are heaven.”

  Alex was mesmerized by the look of ecstasy on Sam’s face. She’d like to see that face under different circumstances. When the lip was caught between white teeth again, she had to look away.

  “I have a confession to make.” Sam opened her eyes. “Promise you won’t get mad?”

  “Is this a pinkie swear promise?”

  “No.” She chuckled before taking a deep breath. “Jade and I read your fanfic.”

  Alex stopped rubbing for half a second, then started again. “Okay. When?”

  “When you first posted it.”

  Alex tried to put the timeline together. “That was before we met.”

  “Yeah. Are you mad?”

  “No, why would I be mad? And how did you know it was me?”

  “It was in the comments. Friends of yours kinda called you out by name.”

  “Right. Now I remember.”

  “Anyway, we read it, and we loved it. We even commented.”

  “What was your comment?”

  “I think Jade wrote, ‘dude, that was a fucking awesome sex scene.’”

  “I remember that one.” Alex started on the other foot. “You liked that scene, huh?”

  “Um, it was pretty good.” Sam’s color heightened. “After we read it, we thought it would be fun to track you down.”

  “And you ended up in my parking lot.” Alex grinned. “Explains a lot. You two were acting super weird. Sarah.”

  Sam gently whacked her with a throw pillow. “That was Jade’s idea, not mine!”

  Alex tossed a small fuzzy pillow back. “Okay…Sarah.”

  “Stop it…Hearteyes.”

  Alex threw her head back and laughed. “You got me there.”

  “Where did that come from?”

  “It was a high school nickname. I had a crush on an older girl. My friends said I stared at her with hearteyes.”

  “Have you ever been in love?”

  Alex’s body stiffened at this new line of questioning. “Sure, who hasn’t?”

  “When was the last time?”

  Alex looked away. “A while ago.”

  “Oh, you’re being vague. Did someone break your heart? Is that why you’re such a player? What’s her name? I’ll take care of her,” Sam teased.

  Alex shifted uncomfortably. “Can we talk about something else?”

  Sam’s baby blues filled with sympathy. “Wow, she must have really broken your heart.”

  “It’s no big deal. Everyone gets their heart broken at some time. You must’ve had yours broken.”

  “I did. In college I dated someone, and she cheated on me. It sucked. There hasn’t been anyone serious since.”

  “College? That was a while ago.”

  “When your life is public knowledge, it’s hard to be out and in love. I guess you could say I’ve chosen my career over my personal life.”

  “That’s sad, Sam. You seem like someone who should be in love.”

  “What about you? Wh
y shouldn’t you be in love?”

  “Not my thing, I guess.” Not wishing to elaborate or open old wounds, Alex stopped rubbing Sam’s feet. “Well, I’ve enjoyed our little get-to-know-you session, but I do have to head home.”

  “Damn. Right when we were getting to the good stuff.” Sam swung her feet onto the floor.

  “I know.” Alex stood and put the pillows back. “Oh, I have a favor to ask.”

  “Anything.”

  “My sister and her wife would love to meet you. They wanna invite you to dinner.”

  “Only if they make purple chicken.”

  “I wouldn’t count on that.”

  “I can’t believe you didn’t love my purple chicken.”

  “I did love it. As a garden gnome.”

  “But it was purple.”

  “I told you. There would’ve been strings attached for loving that purple chicken.”

  Sam nodded. “Oh right, the getting laid part.”

  Once again, the air popped with tiny sparks of attraction.

  Alex was thankful it was time to leave. There was only so much self-control to go around, and things were becoming more dangerous by the minute. “So, dinner?”

  “I’d love to.”

  “Great. Maybe next week?”

  “Sure.”

  Alex gathered her things and they both headed to the front door. She jiggled her truck keys. Was the timing right for a kiss goodbye? Should she execute an ‘on the lips, no tongue’ goodbye kiss? But if she touched those lips, there would be no stopping her tongue. She decided to let Sam call the shots.

  “Uh, so…I guess this is…good night,” Sam said.

  Alex rocked back on her heels. “Yeah. I had a great time. Thanks for the pizza. And the chat.” She waited patiently for Sam to make some sort of move. The silence stretched on for a few awkward seconds. When it became clear no move was forthcoming, Alex hitched a thumb in the air. “I’m gonna hit the road.” She turned to leave.

  “Wait!” Sam said. “I think we’re at the hug stage of our friendship, don’t you? I mean, we just spent a couple of hours together. Surely that’s enough time to warrant a hug.”

  Alex took the truck keys and dramatically tossed them over her shoulder. She pulled Sam into a hug and planted a soft kiss on her cheek, surprising them both. “Good night.”

  Sam’s body sagged against her. In a throaty voice she whispered, “Good night.”

  They separated, and Alex picked up the keys. Before walking out the door, she turned to give one last knee-knocking smile.

  * * *

  Sam waved goodbye from the doorway. That sexy smile would be the death of her. Maybe it was her favorite thing. Better than the ass? Hmm. Too close to call. To make a decision of that magnitude, one needed a more comprehensive body of work. Sam absently touched her cheek where Alex’s lips had landed. She hadn’t been prepared for a kiss, and this one had caused a mountain of movement inside her chest. This wasn’t just about sex anymore. Something else simmered below the surface. Something warm and wonderful bloomed near her heart. Time for a new plan.

  Jade answered on the fourth ring. “Hello?”

  “I had Alex over tonight.” Sam’s voice crackled with excitement.

  “I’m intrigued,” Jade whispered. “But I’m at dinner with my monster-in-law and Calynn, so make it quick.”

  “Okay,” Sam whispered back. “We had dinner and talked for a couple of hours.”

  “Good.”

  “Here’s the thing.”

  “There’s a thing?”

  “I don’t want Alex to be my fuck buddy.”

  “Okay, but I thought you were gonna be friends with bene—”

  “I want her to be my girlfriend.” Sam listened for Jade’s reply, but all that was audible was some sort of commotion. “What’s going on?” she asked, continuing to whisper.

  Jade talked in the background. “Babe, I’m sorry. Carol, let me get that. Here’s my napkin…”

  “What happened?”

  Sam listened as Jade excused herself from the table. The noise in the background grew fainter, and finally Jade came back on the line. “I spit my water out on my future mother-in-law is all.”

  “Oh, that’s not good.”

  “You think?”

  “Why’d you do that?”

  “I don’t know, Sam. Girlfriend? Are you kidding? She’s not lobster material. You said so yourself.”

  “I know what I said. But that’s not how I feel.”

  “When did this happen?”

  “Tonight. She gave me a hug, and it was an epiphany.”

  “Must’ve been some hug. Listen, as your previous attorney of record, I would advise against this decision.”

  “Why?”

  “She told us herself, she’s not into relationships. Alex has three-ways, you have one-ways. It wouldn’t work.”

  Was Jade implying she used the vibrator too much? “Alex said she only had the one three-way and wouldn’t do it again.”

  “Minor detail. Why do you want her to be your girlfriend?”

  “I like her. I really like her. I knew from the first moment I laid eyes on her.”

  “What are you saying, love at first sight? That’s movie shit and you know it.”

  “I can’t stop thinking about her.”

  “It’s a crush. An infatuation.”

  Sam’s voice rose defensively. “I want Alex. I want her bad.”

  “Like sexually? ’Cause a quickie will take care of that.”

  Maybe she wasn’t explaining it well enough. Although, how could she explain something she herself didn’t understand? “No, it’s more than that. I know it’s what I want, okay? Are you going to be a friend and support me or not?”

  “All right. Don’t get your panties in a bunch. What do you wanna do?”

  Sam smiled, relieved to have Jade’s support. “Well…I’m going to woo her.”

  “What now?”

  “I’m gonna woo her. You know, woo.”

  “I guess I missed the part where we were teleported to nineteenth-century England.”

  Sam huffed. “I’m going to get to know her, and she’ll get to know me, and we’ll see where it leads.”

  “Tell me one thing. Is sex in your future?”

  “If things progress, yes. But I think it’s important to have a foundation of friendship first. The best relationships start as friendships.”

  “Jesus Christ, are you watching The Brady Bunch with Emma?”

  “No.” Sam snickered.

  “Okay I’m getting the death stare from my girl. I gotta go. All I have to say is, I hope Wooing Sam is less of a dork than Fuck-Buddy Sam.”

  “I think she will be.”

  Chapter Ten

  Alex sat in her home office sifting through rejection letters. Numerous times over the past two years, she’d been besieged by self-doubt. Fretting her dream wouldn’t come true. That she wasn’t good enough. These letters fueled her determination and strengthened her resolve.

  Footsteps in the hallway paused at the open door. Lenna did a double take and leaned into the room. “What are you doing here?”

  “Uh, I live here?”

  “It’s Saturday night.”

  “What’s your point?”

  “Isn’t this your prowl night? Your get your groove on night?”

  Without speaking, and never breaking eye contact, Alex closed the door with her foot.

  Their hushed voices carried through the closed door. “It’s Sam. She likes Sam,” Sophia said.

  “Really? You mean for more than a one-night stand?”

  Alex looked to the heavens. “I hear you. Jesus, you’re right there.”

  Lenna cleared her throat. “Have a good one. We’re going to dinner.”

  Sophia whispered, “Ask if she wants us to bring her anything to eat.”

  “You mean like Sam?”

  They both giggled.

  “You’re not funny,” Alex said.

  �
�We’ll be back later,” Lenna said.

  Alex sighed. No work would get done tonight. Sophia was right. She had Sam on the brain. Her phone was on the desk, but she didn’t want to appear too eager. Jesus, when had this happened? If she wanted to text a woman, she did it.

  She tossed the phone onto the chair across the room. “Yogi, this one is driving me nuts. How was that kiss, lucky dog?” He remained quiet, evidently not one to kiss and tell.

  Alex closed her eyes, remembering the look on Sam’s face during the foot massage. Her imagination took off. Sam naked in her arms, biting her lip as Alex’s mouth roamed all over her body. The buzz of the phone interrupted her fantasy. She jumped across the room to grab it.

  Sam had sent a picture of the purple chicken with a stake through it, perched in a flower bed. Like a garden gnome.

  Alex’s mood brightened. She sent off a quick reply. I hope you don’t leave it outside overnight. You’ll have every coyote in the county in your backyard.

  I’ll be right back.

  Alex laughed, picturing Sam running into the backyard to bring the purple chicken inside. Probably in her pajamas. Had she ever met anyone this goofy, sweet, and beautiful? A teeny flicker of warmth seeped into her chest, unsettling her, because it didn’t feel like lust. Sam might be trouble. She needed to be careful.

  Here I am. You were right. He’s been mauled. She sent another picture, of the purple chicken half eaten.

  At least someone enjoyed it.

  Where are you? At the bar cruising for Miss Right? Or should I say Miss Right Now? A wickedly winking emoji followed.

  Maybe. Alex tried for flippant. When there was no reply, her heart skipped a beat. Was Sam disappointed? Or hurt? She quickly snapped a selfie with Yogi and sent it off. Spending time with my main squeeze. Mr. Yogi Bear.

  A smiling emoji came through. Give him a kiss for me.

  Alex breathed a sigh of relief. You should be here doing that yourself.

  I’m hard to get, remember? Don’t want him thinking I’m easy.

  He’s pining for you.

  Just him?

  Alex’s fingers froze. How should she respond? Should she admit that Sam was on her mind constantly? Or that her favorite pastime was daydreaming about taking off Sam’s clothes? Maybe she was overthinking it. She shrugged.