“Thank you for talking with me.” Vic appeared as if she was about to step forward and hug her, but then must have thought better of it. She looked out at the parking lot briefly then back to Riley. “I guess there’s no need to meet for coffee in the morning. Unless you’d like to?”
Riley thought about it for a moment, knowing she should say no, but really wanting to say yes. What the hell was wrong with her? She’d never been nervous around a woman before. What was it about Vic that had her feeling this way?
“We could,” she said with a one-armed shrug she hoped looked indifferent. “If you want to, that is.”
“I do.” Vic smiled again and took her keys out of her pocket. “I’ll see you in the morning then?”
“Yeah. Good night.” Riley watched her walk away and sighed. What was she getting herself into?
Chapter Nine
Riley knew when she pulled into the driveway that Megan had waited up for her despite having told her she wouldn’t. She smiled because she’d expected this. Megan knew she’d want to talk about her evening.
“I’m disappointed you’re home so early,” Megan said from her place on the couch when Riley walked in the front door. “I guess things didn’t go well.”
“As a matter of fact, it did go well. We had a nice chat.”
“Really?” Megan looked excited. She sat up straighter and patted the seat next to her. “Tell me all about it.”
Riley sat and leaned her head back against the couch as she sighed. It had gone amazingly well, and honestly, the more she reflected on it, the less she thought Vic might be doing this as some colossal joke. She seemed sincere, but Riley’s mind was still having trouble reconciling the new Vic with the girl she’d gone to school with.
It was close to one in the morning by the time she finished recounting their conversation, and Megan had sat there, totally captivated by it all. Her smile was so big when Riley finished, she couldn’t help but laugh at her.
“Don’t laugh,” Megan said with a playful slap to her biceps. “You know I’m a total romantic. She sounds interested, don’t you think?”
“Why would someone like her be interested in someone like me?”
“The heart wants what the heart wants, Riley.” Megan shrugged. “Don’t fight it. What would it hurt to see where it goes?”
“My heart wants it, but my head’s telling me it’s a bad idea all the way around.”
“Maybe you should shut your brain off just this once. You once told me you thought the two of you were meant to be together.”
Riley snorted and shook her head. “I was sixteen then, for God’s sake. I didn’t know anything about how life works. I’ve grown up since then.”
“So has she.” Megan cocked an eyebrow when Riley looked at her skeptically. “I’m just saying. Maybe she’s finally realized what you knew way back when.”
“You’re so full of shit.”
“Just think about it, all right? Seriously. Let it happen. If it wasn’t meant to be, then you’ll know and you can move on with your boring ass life.”
Riley stared at her as Megan got to her feet and walked to her room, closing the door behind her. She closed her eyes and sighed again. Was it really possible Vic could be interested in her? Her heart sped up at the thought, but her mind was screaming at her to slow down and be cautious. She forced her mind to shut down. At least the part that was trying to throw water on the fire she hadn’t felt in way too long.
* * *
Vic walked into the room she and Vanessa had shared for the first eighteen years of their lives, trying to be quiet so she didn’t wake her. For as big as this damn house was, she’d never understood why they always had to share a room. Even now. Vic would have thought their mother wouldn’t want them in the same room. After all, Vic’s lifestyle could rub off on Vanessa. It surprised Vic their mother had never touched this room in the twenty years since they’d left for college.
She glanced at the desk on her side of the room, and at the locked bottom drawer. What was in that particular drawer would no doubt melt her mother’s brain if she’d ever found it. Vic didn’t still have the key for it, but she knew how easy it was to get it open with a paper clip, so she sat down and picked the lock. Her heart was pounding as she pulled the drawer open and saw her journal sitting there, right where she’d left it.
After sparing a glance over her shoulder to make sure Vanessa was still asleep, she picked it up and opened it to the middle of their senior year, just as the winter break was beginning. She chose that time because it had been when she started to really consider those confusing feelings about Riley Warren.
God, how she’d wanted to kiss her earlier as they were standing outside the theater. She closed her eyes and let the feelings wash over her. When was the last time she’d ever felt excited about the prospect of seeing someone again? Oh, yeah, it was precisely never.
She moved to the bench in the bay window and began reading, thankful the moon was almost full so she didn’t have to turn a light on. She smiled at the first mention of Riley’s name and ran her fingers over it, remembering.
God, I am so over the way they’re treating Riley Warren and her friends. Nobody deserves to be bullied like that. They’re so cruel! Riley can’t help it if she’s poor and has to wear secondhand clothes to school. And as for her mother being a drunk? So not Riley’s fault. But what I hate the most is when they call her a dyke and a lesbo. I tried to come to her defense yesterday, but then they just started calling me those names. It bothers me that it bothers me, you know? But then I think, what if I am? I know I shouldn’t give a fuck what anyone thinks of me, but I do care what Vanessa thinks. She’s so disgusted by the mere possibility someone in our school might be gay—how would she react if her own twin sister was? So, I can’t be a lesbian. But God, Riley confuses the hell out of me. I see her in the halls, and all I want to do is be near her. I sit next to her in English, and all I can think is how good she looks and smells, and I want to be even closer than our desks allow. My heart races, and my palms sweat, and I can’t stop thinking about her. I think I want to kiss her, but then I realize kissing her would never be enough. Damn it, I can’t wait for graduation, and then I can get out of this shit town and be away from her. Away from the one person I know I’ll never be able to have.
Vic looked up when she heard Vanessa stirring. She looked out the window and up at the sky, willing her to not wake up. She closed her eyes against the disappointment when she heard her speak.
“What are you doing?”
“Reading my old journal.”
“Jesus, it’s…” she paused as she picked up her phone from the bedside table and checked the time, “almost two in the morning.”
“I went to see Riley tonight.” Vic wished she hadn’t spoken the words out loud, because she knew Vanessa would now get up and want to talk.
“She got fat and ugly, didn’t she?” She squeezed Vic’s shoulder before taking a seat across from her in the window.
“You know damn well she didn’t,” Vic said, looking at her. Vanessa told her after the accident Riley looked even better now than she had in high school.
“Yeah, well, I was going into shock when I saw her,” Vanessa said with a chuckle. “Oh, and my legs were on fire at the time, so I don’t really know if I can trust what I saw was real.”
“It was,” Vic assured her, unable to hide her grin. “God, Vanessa, I don’t even know how to describe what I felt in her presence.”
“Well, you probably shouldn’t be too obvious about how you feel in public.”
“Why?” Vic looked at her, surprised. Vanessa had always been her greatest champion. Hell, she’d even made sure Martin was cool with her lesbian twin sister before she agreed to a second date. And now she was marrying him.
“You know how Vera is,” Vanessa said.
“I don’t give a rat’s ass how Vera feels about anything.”
“I know,” Vanessa said, raising her hands in defeat. “And she
feels the same way. I hate it that you never come here with me.”
“I’m here now, because your wedding is such an important day for you. Any other time, I have no desire to subject myself to Vera’s judgmental bullshit.” Vic closed the journal and set it aside. She missed spending the holidays with her father and sister, but the animosity with her mother was too much to bear. That, and her mother made it clear she wasn’t welcome there. She’d graciously made an exception for Vanessa’s wedding. “She still thinks all I need is a good man to show me what I’m missing. You have no idea how much I want to tell her maybe she just needs a good woman to show her what she’s missing.”
“Oh, my God, if you ever do that, make sure I’m in the room.” They both laughed at the absurdity of it all. “I wouldn’t want to miss her reaction for the world.”
“I definitely will.” Vic stifled a yawn and stood. “We should probably go to bed before she comes and yells at us for making too much noise.”
“I think that may have been her favorite thing to do when we were younger.” Vanessa followed suit, and once they were both settled in bed, she spoke again. “Are you going to see Riley again?”
“We’re having coffee tomorrow morning,” Vic said, smiling even though she knew Vanessa wouldn’t be able to see her with the curtains now closed.
“Just be careful, okay? I know Vera doesn’t socialize much with the people in town, but I’m sure she has her circle of friends to keep her informed of all the goings on in Wolf Bay.”
“You mean the rumor mill? I’m sure she does.”
“I’m just looking out for you, you know?” Vanessa asked. “No need to have more stress than you already do.”
“I do know, and I appreciate it, Vanessa,” she said quietly. “Now I need to get some sleep before I have to deal with her again in the morning. Good night.”
“Good night, Vic.”
Chapter Ten
“What the hell are you doing still in bed?” Megan asked, successfully waking Riley from a halfway decent dream. She pulled the covers off her and smacked her hard on the ass. “You’re going to be late for your date.”
“Go away,” Riley muttered, reaching for the sheet only to have her hand batted away.
“Are you listening? You, Victoria Thayer, a date?”
“It’s not a date,” Riley said as she turned onto her back and looked up at Megan, who was all showered and ready to leave for work. “And I’m not going.”
“Yes, it is, and yes, you are.” Megan grabbed her by the arm and forced her to sit up. “You’ll thank me someday.”
“Wouldn’t it be just like a Thayer to make plans with me and then stand me up?” Riley asked, her voice a little too whiny to her own ears. “If I don’t go, then it won’t matter when she doesn’t show up.”
“Oh, my God, get your pathetic ass out of bed. You’re worse than a child sometimes. You’re going to go, have coffee and stimulating…conversation…and you’re going to enjoy yourself.”
“I hate you.”
“I know you do, but I love you, so it doesn’t matter.” Megan went to the door but paused to make sure Riley was really going to get up. “And I want to hear all about it when I get home from work tonight.”
“Yes, Mother,” Riley said, rummaging through her drawers for something to wear. She figured since Vic had already seen her in her work uniform, it didn’t much matter what she wore this morning. She had to know Riley wasn’t a fashionista. She glared at Megan as she walked past her on her way to the bathroom. Even though there was a part of her that didn’t want to go to the diner, she was grateful Megan had woken her up. She would hate to be the one standing someone up.
When she was done with her shower, she made a quick phone call before rushing out the door. By her estimation, she’d make it to the Wolf Bay Diner just on time.
As she walked into the diner, Amy, the cashier, gave her a small wave. Riley had gone out with Amy once, but never went on a second one. The problem being Amy was about ten years younger than her. Now, maybe that wasn’t a big deal to some people, but Riley wanted someone closer to her own age.
Like Vic, who was sitting in a booth toward the back and smiling at her.
Riley took a deep breath and began walking toward her, for some reason unable to look away from Vic. Her blond hair was definitely shorter than it had been in high school. It barely touched her shoulders now. Her bright blue eyes were still the thing that pulled Riley in, but her face had changed the most. Vic had been slightly overweight when she was younger, but her face showed the weight loss while her body definitely displayed Vic’s dedication to keeping fit. Riley knew this because of the shorts and tight-fitting T-shirt she wore. When Vic stood to greet her, Riley’s heartbeat kicked up a notch.
“I was worried you wouldn’t actually come today,” Vic said, looking uncharacteristically nervous. At least Riley thought so, because she’d always been so self-assured.
“That’s funny,” Riley said with a slight smile. “I thought maybe you wouldn’t.”
A silence that wasn’t completely uncomfortable settled over them as they did the awkward hugging thing before sitting down and facing each other across the table. Riley smiled at the waitress who came by to take their orders.
“Feel free to eat if you’d like,” Vic told her after ordering just coffee for herself.
“Are you sure?”
“Absolutely.”
“In that case, I’ll have the special,” Riley said to the waitress. “And a coffee, please.”
“You look nice,” Vic said when they were once again alone. Riley looked down at herself, wondering what looked nice about her faded Yankees T-shirt and cargo shorts.
“So do you,” she said, feeling her cheeks grow hot as her eyes landed on Vic’s chest briefly. Vic gave her a knowing smile when she snapped her gaze up.
“Thank you.” Vic opened her mouth like she was going to say something else, but then shook her head and looked away.
“What?”
“It’s nothing.”
“Bullshit. What were you going to say?”
“I was just going to ask if you were working tonight.” Vic glanced at her quickly, but it was long enough for Riley to see the hint of attraction in her very expressive blue eyes.
For just a second Riley considered lying, but what good would it do? Vic could end up stopping by the theater to see her again if she thought she was going to be there.
“Actually, I’m off tonight,” she said just as the waitress brought their coffees. She watched as Vic added half a sugar packet to hers. “Why?”
“Well, I was hoping maybe you’d consider having dinner with me.”
“Are you asking me on a date?” Riley somehow managed not to laugh at the absurdity of it, but then noticed the look of vulnerability on Vic’s face. “Wait, really? You’re asking me on a date?”
“You’re making me second-guess myself here,” Vic said with a chuckle as she waved a hand and leaned back. “Forget I asked.”
“Hey,” Riley said as she reached across the table and covered Vic’s hand with her own. When she didn’t pull away, Riley met her eyes, wondering where this surge of confidence was coming from. “I would love to have dinner with you.”
“You would?” Vic sounded like she didn’t believe her.
“Maybe not in this town though?” Riley said with a slight shrug. “A lot of the people we went to school with still live here, and you might be uncomfortable running into them while you’re with me.”
“I told you last night I don’t really care what people think about me,” Vic said, turning her hand over to squeeze Riley’s gently. “I meant it, Riley. I’d be proud to have people see the two of us together.”
“Okay, wow,” Riley said, mostly because she wasn’t sure what else to say. This couldn’t really be happening, could it? Maybe she was having the best dream ever, and if that was the case, she never wanted to wake up. “Have you come out to any of them?”
“I
haven’t seen any of them since high school ended. None of them ever came out as straight to me, so why should I feel the need to come out to them?” Vic reluctantly let go of Riley’s hand when the waitress came with her order. She chuckled at the sheer abundance of food now sitting on the table in front of Riley. “Maybe you won’t even be hungry by the time dinner rolls around though.”
“I tend to eat a lot when I’m nervous.” Riley spread butter over her plate of pancakes before pouring way more syrup over them than Vic had ever seen anyone use.
“Do I make you nervous?” she asked, amused.
“God, yes,” Riley said quietly. She hesitated before shoving a forkful of scrambled eggs into her mouth. “Help yourself if you want anything.”
Vic just shook her head as she watched her, a smile on her lips. Riley still had the prettiest hazel eyes Vic had ever seen. She allowed herself to get lost in them as Riley continued to eat. After a few moments, she reached over and snagged a slice of bacon. Riley grabbed her wrist with surprising quickness as she shook her head.
“Anything but the bacon,” she said with a mischievous glint in her eye.
“Is that so?” Vic held her gaze as she seized the bacon in her other hand and took a bite.
“You’ll pay for that, Thayer,” Riley said as she let go of her wrist.
“I’ll hold you to that, Warren,” Vic replied with a wink. She was enjoying this easygoing banter with Riley. She was also enjoying the way the blush creeped up Riley’s neck and into her face when she winked at her. Her eyes settled on Riley’s mouth and she found herself wondering what it would be like to kiss her. She hoped she’d find out after dinner.
“So, I put in a call to my film distributor,” Riley said when she’d finally finished eating. She’d left a couple of bites of pancake on the plate, but everything else was gone. “I can get Fifty Shades of Grey for a week from Saturday. That was when you wanted it, right?”
“Oh, my God, that’s awesome,” Vic said. She made herself sound happier about the news than she really was. Vanessa really did love the movie, but Vic had no desire to sit around with the bitches they’d gone to school with watching a movie many considered to be soft porn. Not exactly her idea of fun. But it wasn’t like there was an abundance of venues for a bachelorette party in Wolf Bay. She didn’t think a party in the local dive bar would be acceptable to either Vanessa or their mother. “What changed your mind?”
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