by Jae
When Steph slid her hand out from beneath hers, Rae brushed her hand over her thigh several times, more in an attempt to wipe away the memory of Steph’s touch than to remove the powdered sugar.
Luckily, Steph didn’t seem to notice anything. She wolfed down her beignet as if she hadn’t eaten in days. “Ooh. This is so good. Try it.”
Rae picked one up and nibbled on it without much enthusiasm. Afterward, she wouldn’t have been able to describe what it had tasted like. Come on. Don’t make this into something bigger than it is. So what if your roommate is an attractive woman and you’re not entirely dead? It didn’t have to mean a thing.
That little pep talk helped her put it into perspective.
Once they had finished the beignets and the hot chocolate, they walked on to see the last two displays.
The first one was probably Rae’s favorite so far. Discreetly installed fog machines created a mist-filled forest. Blue and green lights filtered through the mist, bathing the tall coastal redwoods, the ginkgo trees, and the ferns in a hazy glow. Nature sound effects drifted over, and tiny spots of light danced around them like fireflies as they wandered through the forest.
“Wow,” Steph murmured, her voice low as if she didn’t want to disturb this peaceful experience. “I think this is my favorite.”
Rae murmured her agreement. Amazing how in tune two people who were so different could be.
Finally, they reached a Japanese garden, where hundreds of red paper lanterns hung in the trees. Their glow reflected off a pond and revealed the contours of a teahouse. Steph led her over an arched bridge across a stream that ran the entire length of the Japanese garden.
From up there, Rae could already see the exit.
Instead of heading back toward the parking lot, Steph pulled her to a halt in the middle of the bridge, probably to gaze into the dark water beneath them.
While Rae couldn’t make out anything, she didn’t mind letting Steph have a look, so she leaned onto the railing to wait.
But Steph wasn’t peering at the gurgling stream. She was facing Rae and gently tugged on her arm. “Rae?”
Slowly, Rae turned until she was looking at Steph. “Yeah?”
Steph moved even closer. “I just…I wanted to say thank you. For all of this.” She waved her hand, indicating the Japanese garden and the light displays beyond. “This might actually be the nicest thing anyone’s ever done for me.” For once, there wasn’t even a hint of joking in her tone.
Before Rae could brush her off with a quick “you’re welcome,” Steph leaned up on her tiptoes and placed a gentle kiss on her cheek, which instantly heated under the touch of her soft lips.
As Steph pulled away, Rae stood in the middle of the bridge and stared at her. Her hand came up as if on its own volition and touched the spot where Steph’s mouth had graced her skin.
Steph smiled, and Rae realized she was probably looking like some inexperienced girl who’d never been kissed before, not even on the cheek. Which of course wasn’t true. She’d been kissed plenty, even if only by one woman.
She tried to put on a scowl, but it was a struggle. Her face seemed to want to take on only one of two expressions: stunned or elated. Or maybe it was pure terror. Rae wasn’t so sure.
“Come on.” Steph slid her arm through Rae’s once more. “It’s getting late. We should head home.”
Yes. Heading home, where things would go back to normal, sounded good. Rae nodded decisively, and they walked toward the car.
CHAPTER 16
Steph woke up as the first rays of the December sun peeked through her window. She stretched contentedly and let out a sound that resembled a low purr. Wow. She hadn’t slept this well in weeks.
Then everything that had happened yesterday came back to her, flooding her mind with a slideshow of images: the worst corporate gig ever, finding out Moose would be moving away, and then that magical evening at Descanso Gardens.
Had that really happened? In the light of day, it felt surreal, like a dream…a dream with a decidedly romantic undertone.
She could still feel Rae’s arm hooked around her own, the softness of her cheek beneath her lips, and her body pressed to hers as she had prevented Rae from falling. Even now, her body buzzed as she remembered that moment and then that loose embrace as they had taken the photo at the gazebo.
She reached for her phone on the bedside table and unlocked the screen. There it was. The photo stunned her now just as much as it had last night—and just as much as the kiss she had spontaneously planted on Rae’s cheek.
Jeez, Stephanie. Why are you making such a big deal out of it? She had kissed more people than she could count, most of them much more passionately than that. A harmless kiss on the cheek wasn’t a marriage proposal.
Nothing had changed, right? She still wasn’t one for romance or relationships, and Rae wasn’t a woman to play around with for a night or two. It was no longer only about Rae being a club employee. She’d been through so much. What she needed now was a friend, not a romp in the hay, and Steph was determined to be that friend for her, even if Rae might not think she needed anyone.
Friends. She resolutely put the phone away, but the memory of how Rae had looked in the glow of the gazebo’s lights stayed with her, even as she rolled out of bed and got dressed. Okay, she definitely needed some air and some distance from her roommate, who might wake up any second.
She grabbed her purse and headed out for a walk and a coffee, hoping both would help to clear her head.
But she didn’t get very far.
Their landlady—who, as Steph had found out after moving in, lived in the building too—was hauling an armful of grocery bags through the front door.
Steph hurried over to hold the door open for her.
“Thank you, dear,” Mrs. Kleinberg said. “How nice to run into you. I was wondering how you and Rae like the apartment.”
“We love it.”
“Good. I told Harold that we should drop by and make sure everything is all right. I haven’t seen much of you since you moved in.”
“Everything’s wonderful. We just both work unusual hours.” Plus they had avoided running into their landlord and landlady, especially when they left the building together, so they wouldn’t have to put on a show and pretend to be a couple.
“Oh, yes, of course,” Mrs. Kleinberg said. “Well, you’ll have to tell me all about it tomorrow.”
Steph frowned. “Tomorrow?”
“Yes. You’re coming, right?”
Steph felt as if they were speaking two different languages. “Coming? To what?”
Mrs. Kleinberg nodded toward the front door. “Didn’t you see? We put the invitation on the door two weeks ago.”
Oh. That. Steph had seen it when the sheet of paper had first been taped to the door. The Kleinbergs were having a holiday barbecue in the courtyard, and every tenant in the building was invited to join them. Steph hadn’t planned on making an appearance, so she’d forgotten about it. “Yes, of course, I saw it. But as I said, Rae and I both work evenings, even on the weekend, so we won’t be able to make it.”
“Good thing it’s in the afternoon, then. Harold will throw the steaks on the grill around two. I’m looking forward to getting to know the two of you a little better.” Without waiting for a reply, Mrs. Kleinberg unlocked the door to her apartment on the first floor and disappeared inside.
Steph was left standing there, her mouth still open to protest. She snapped it shut. Oh well, how bad could it be? They would hang out with their neighbors for an hour and chat with their landlord and landlady. At least there would be actual steaks, not the tofu burgers and slices of eggplant her parents considered appropriate barbecue food.
She stepped out of the building—and froze. Oh shit. She had forgotten one little thing: with the Kleinbergs around, they would have to pretend to be a loving coupl
e. So much for keeping her distance from Rae until she had gotten a grip on this damn attraction.
Rae closed the top button on her short-sleeved button-up shirt. But she already felt as if a noose was tightening around her neck, so she popped it open again. “Why can’t we just not go and hide out here until the barbecue is over?” she asked Steph through the open bathroom door.
Steph looked up from her attempt to tame her tousled hair. “Because the Kleinbergs will drop by our apartment for a personal visit if we don’t show up. At least if we go to the barbecue, there’ll be a dozen other tenants to distract them. We’ll stay in the background, eat our steaks, and then tell them we have to go to work.”
That sounded good in theory, but Rae had the sinking feeling that it wouldn’t be that easy. “Yeah, but…we’ll have to pretend to be a couple, won’t we?”
Steph put the brush down and stepped out of the bathroom. She had dressed up a little, yet in a pair of tan slacks, a white blouse with three-quarter-length sleeves, sneakers, and a black, slim-fit vest, she still looked entirely herself—and she looked good, Rae had to admit. Somehow, the tomboyish look made her appear even more feminine.
“Yes, at least as long as the Kleinbergs are watching.” Steph’s gaze flickered up to Rae’s eyes. “Will that really be so horrible for you?”
Horrible? That wasn’t the word Rae would have used. She wasn’t a fan of PDAs, but that wasn’t what had her worried. She was supposed to let her attraction to Steph die down, not throw gasoline on the fire.
“Wow. I didn’t know it was that bad for you,” Steph said when Rae didn’t answer. Her voice sounded as if she was speaking around a lump in her throat. “Maybe we should just forget about it. I mean, it’s not like the Kleinbergs can kick us out, even if they find out we’re not a couple.”
“No,” Rae heard herself say before she had consciously made up her mind. She couldn’t let Steph think that pretending to be her girlfriend would be such a horrible experience for her that she’d rather risk the Kleinbergs showing up on their doorstep unannounced. “They might not be able to kick us out, but if they find out we lied to them, it’ll make for one hell of an awkward living situation. Forget what I said, okay? I can do this. We can do this.”
Steph hesitated. The hurt expression lingered on her face. “Are you sure?”
“Affirmative,” Rae said. “I’d be honored to be your date for the barbecue. Well, your fake date.”
A hint of a smile curled Steph’s lips. “Then maybe you should scrub that bit of toothpaste or whatever it is off your face.”
Rae walked past Steph to take a look at her face in the mirror above the bathroom sink. Their bodies brushed, and a whiff of Steph’s perfume drifted over. Mmm. She glared at herself in the mirror. What are you? A perfume junkie? Cut out that bullshit. She ran a corner of her towel beneath ice-cold water to clean her face—and maybe cool off a little. “Better?” she asked when she turned back around.
Steph’s gaze slowly trailed up and down her body, making Rae’s skin heat. “Yes. You look great.”
“Um, thanks.” Rae smoothed her hands down the outer seam of her black pants and closed the top button on the blue-and-black-checkered shirt again. “Okay, let’s go.” Before I change my mind.
Even though they were on time, loud chatter already echoed through the courtyard when they arrived. Long tables and benches had been set up, and about twenty people were laughing, talking, and apparently having a great time. Dozens of bowls and platters covered every available space on a separate food table. The scent of freshly baked rolls and the smoky aroma of steaks sizzling on the grill hung in the air.
Rae’s mouth watered.
“Hey, Steph,” one of their neighbors—a guy in a Dodgers T-shirt—called. His gaze went to Rae. “And, um…”
“Hi, Keith.” Steph wrapped her arm around Rae’s hips, pulled her close, and looked lovingly up at her. “Rae.”
While Rae had seen most of her neighbors in passing a time or two, she had never stopped to make conversation or to introduce herself, so she didn’t know any of them by name. Steph obviously did.
Keith looked back and forth between them. “Oh, so you two are together? I thought you were just roommates.”
Shit. Rae’s gaze darted to the grill, where Mr. Kleinberg was flipping the steaks. “Why would you think that? I mean, the Kleinbergs don’t even rent to roommates.”
“They don’t?” Keith shrugged. “Probably because of those assholes who kept blasting metalcore at three a.m.”
“Well,” Steph said, “we don’t like metalcore, and we’re definitely not just roommates. We were merely trying to be discreet. You never know how people will react to two women who love each other. Right, sweetie?” She slid her other arm around Rae too and pulled her even closer until they were pressed together from thigh to shoulder.
With Steph so close and her breasts nestled beneath her own, Rae’s ability to come up with a brilliant reply was rapidly dwindling. “Um, right.”
Keith chuckled. “Oh, you didn’t have to worry about that in our building.” He pointed at something to Rae’s left.
When she turned her head, she caught sight of Mrs. Kleinberg, who was entering the courtyard with a huge bowl. She was wearing a Love is Love is Love T-shirt and looked so proud of it as if she were modeling the newest fashion collection of a famous designer.
“Their son is gay,” Keith added. “And so are half of the tenants, myself included. The Kleinbergs always pick the LGBT applicants, if there are any. So don’t hold back on our account. Unless you rip each other’s clothes off and go at it in the middle of the courtyard, no one will bat an eye.”
Steph grinned. “Good to know.”
“Right,” Rae said again and then wanted to slap herself. God, she sounded ridiculous. If the guys from work could see her now, getting all flustered just because a woman was holding her close. This had to stop—right now. She had to take control. But how?
There was no time for strategizing, so she did the first thing that came to mind: she leaned down and kissed Steph.
She had aimed for a short, borderline platonic peck to the corner of Steph’s mouth, just a little gesture to confirm their status as a couple in love, but Steph turned her head to say something to Keith at the wrong—or maybe the right—moment, and their lips met.
No way back now. If she wanted this to look convincing, Rae couldn’t very well flinch back. Not that she wanted to.
At the first touch of Steph’s lips against her own, all thoughts ceased and sensation took over. Steph’s mouth was warm and gentle and soft. God, so soft.
A startled gasp vibrated against Rae’s lips, and Steph’s hands flexed on her hips, then let go.
Just when Rae wanted to back off and whisper an apology, Steph reached up, threaded her fingers through the short hair at the base of Rae’s neck, and kissed her back.
Rae’s pulse jolted into a wild rhythm. The tender caress of Steph’s lips over her own made her body tingle all the way down to her toes. She pressed more tightly against Steph, trying to soak up the feel of her.
Steph swayed toward her, not an inch of space between them now. Her lips parted on another gasp.
Rae was about to deepen the kiss when someone cleared their throat next to them.
It was as if a tub full of icy water had been poured over their heads. Rae jolted out of the haze of desire. She tore her lips away, breaking the kiss.
Steph stumbled back half a step and pressed her hand to her lips. Her pupils were so wide that only thin, gray rings remained of her irises as she stared at Rae.
Oh God. What had she done? Her attempt to take control had backfired completely. Instead of gaining control, she’d lost it completely—along with her sanity.
Keith grinned at them and said something, but the drumming of Rae’s heart drowned out his words.
A touch to her elbow startled her.
When she turned, Mrs. Kleinberg stood in front of her, an amused grin on her face. “I’m so glad you could join us…and that you obviously feel right at home in our building.”
This time, not even Rae could deny that she was blushing to the roots of her hair. “Um, thanks for the invitation. Do you, uh, need a hand with anything?”
“No, thank you, dear. All done. I think we’re ready to eat, so why don’t you come with me and pick out two steaks for you and Stephanie?” Without waiting for a reply, Mrs. Kleinberg slid her arm through Rae’s and drew her toward the grill.
The tiny hairs on the back of Rae’s neck, which had seemed to vibrate with pleasure just a minute ago, now stood on end with discomfort. Like most right-handed people, Mrs. Kleinberg had used her dominant hand to hold on to Rae, which put her on Rae’s left side. After her arm-in-arm stroll through Descanso Gardens with Steph two days ago, Rae had thought that maybe she was getting over that feeling of alarm every time someone entered her personal space from the left, but apparently, that had been a one-time thing.
Or a Steph thing, a not very helpful voice in the back of her mind supplied.
She ignored it and tried her best to focus on Mrs. Kleinberg’s chatter about salads, salsa, and all the other food she had prepared for the barbecue.
None of it sounded good to Rae right now. Her stomach felt as if a pterodactyl had taken flight in it. That wasn’t still from the kiss, was it? She decided to blame it on Mrs. Kleinberg’s uncomfortable grip on her left arm.
“Hey.” A warm hand slid between Mrs. Kleinberg’s fingers and the bare skin of Rae’s arm, neatly separating them.
Rae didn’t need to turn her head to see who it was. The heat that touch set off told her enough.
Steph nudged in between them and put one arm around each of them. “I don’t mean to interrupt, but…um…could I have a piece of halloumi instead of a steak?”
“Oh, are you a vegetarian?” Mrs. Kleinberg asked.
“No. I go through phases, and when I saw the halloumi, my stomach decided that today’s a cheese day, so if it’s not too much to ask…”