The door opened and Lisa looked just as frazzled as Ashley expected. She looked beautiful—all navy capris and a navy and white striped tank—but her eyes were wide and alert, like she was expecting some blunt object to strike out of nowhere and take her out at the knees. It wasn’t an expression Ashley enjoyed seeing on the face of this woman who meant more to her than she cared to examine right now. What she wanted most was to take her away, to swoop her out of the path of any possible pain, physical or otherwise, to run away with her, far, far away so she’d never be hurt by anything or anyone ever again.
But, since this was reality, she simply smiled and said, “You look great.”
“Thanks,” Lisa responded absently as she flitted around her first floor like a very busy person. “Okay. Blinds: drawn. Lights: good. Did I feed the cats? I think I did.” She moved quickly from the living room into the kitchen and inspected the cat’s bowls.
“Lisa,” Ashley said.
“Yes. I fed the cats. Keeler? Did I feed him?”
“Lisa.”
“Did I feed you, pal?” Lisa looked down at Keeler, who looked from his mistress to Ashley and back again, his eyes speaking volumes.
“Lisa.” This time, Ashley used a stern voice.
Lisa blinked and turned to her.
“You’re stalling, babe.”
Lisa nodded. “I am. I know.” She covered her eyes with a hand and stood in the middle of the kitchen. Just stood there.
Ashley approached and gently pulled her hand away. “Hey. It’s okay. It’s all going to be okay. I promise you.”
“You can’t promise me that,” Lisa said, her voice barely a whisper, her eyes wounded and terrified.
“I can. You know why? Because I’m sure of it. I know it.” She squeezed Lisa’s hand in her own.
They stood quietly, just being in each other’s presence, and Ashley waited. Lisa needed time to work up to this. Ashley wasn’t going to push her too hard, but she wasn’t going to let her bail either. It was too important. Lisa stared at the floor for long moments before lifting her gaze to Ashley.
“Okay?” Ashley asked.
“Okay,” Lisa said with a tiny nod.
No more words were spoken as they locked up the house and got into Ashley’s car. They drove for a few moments before Ashley said, “So. I have some news.”
Lisa turned to her and everything about her expression told Ashley she was grateful for the change in subject. “Tell me.”
“I applied for a management position opening in the fall.”
Lisa blinked at her. “There’s another one?”
Ashley nodded. “One of the managers got a job at a different bakery. It was unexpected and it’s happening really fast.” She took a deep breath. “I hesitated…”
“But you applied.”
“I did.” Ashley had surprised even herself. Even though Beth Carter’s little speech to her a while back had resurfaced in her mind, Ashley had still been uncertain. But she’d been feeling so different lately, so much surer of herself. She’d found a confidence she’d never had before. “I blame you,” she said to Lisa and smiled.
Lisa laid a warm hand on Ashley’s thigh. “I don’t understand why, but you know what? I will take that blame and I will happily dance around with it. That blame is mine. I own it.”
“You do.” Ashley laughed. “So, I don’t know if I’ll get it. I don’t even know if they’ll interview me. But if they do…” She swallowed hard, a sudden lump of nerves sitting solidly in her throat at the thought of it. “Would you help me prepare?”
“Absolutely. I rock at interviews.”
“Yeah?”
“Totally. We got this. Don’t you worry.”
Siri picked that moment to instruct Ashley to make a left and in another minute, they were pulling up in front of Aunt Joyce’s adorable little bungalow. Ashley slid the car into Park and turned off the ignition.
They both sat in silence.
Ashley was pretty sure she could hear Lisa’s heart pounding in her chest, a terrified staccato of dread and worry, and she reached over to close her hand over Lisa’s. “It’s all going to be okay. Remember? I’m going to be right there with you, every second.”
Lisa turned to her then, her beautiful green eyes clouded, but wide. “At the very least, this is going to get uncomfortable. I don’t know why you’d want to be here for that.”
“I know exactly why. Because I love you.” Ashley hadn’t planned to spill those beans, not yet, not here and now, but they came tumbling out before she could catch them, so she left them to hover in the air between them.
Lisa blinked at her, and a small smile tugged up one corner of her mouth. “I love you, too,” she whispered.
“Well, good. I’m glad we got that settled.” Ashley tried to keep the grin from spreading too wide, tried to keep from stealing the focus of what Lisa was about to do, but she couldn’t help but feel like she could fly right about now. Lisa loved her. Yeah, she was pretty sure she could fly. She allowed herself a beat to just absorb that for a minute, to soak in that delicious warmth. Then she squeezed Lisa’s hand and said, “You ready?”
With a clear of her throat and a determined nod, Lisa pulled the door handle and got out. Ashley followed and went around the car to stand next to her. She held out her hand and Lisa took it.
“Let’s do this,” she said as her Aunt Joyce opened the front door, a big, happy smile on her face, and threw out her arms to welcome her niece.
“Come in, come in,” she said, hugging Lisa tightly, then ushering her inside. “And you must be Ashley,” she said as she turned to face her.
“I am. We met at the beach party.”
“We did. Ashley the Ambush Kisser.”
Ashley’s eyes flew open wide at the moniker and she looked to Lisa, who still held Ashley’s hand but was looking toward the living room, then back to Aunt Joyce, who had a mischievous expression on her face and a twinkle in her eye. “Um…” Ashley felt her face heat up and couldn’t think of a single thing to say.
Instead of continuing the teasing, though, Aunt Joyce did something else entirely. She laid her hand across Ashley’s cheek in a gentle, tender display of kindness, and Ashley had no problem reading the expression on her face: gratitude. They shared a moment, Ashley and Aunt Joyce, a moment in which they both understood the depth of their love for Lisa. Ashley smiled back at the older woman and gave her a small nod of understanding. When she turned her gaze to Lisa, she, too, was smiling, albeit nervously.
“You ready?” Ashley asked her softly.
“I’m ready.” Lisa turned and led them into the living room where her mother waited.
THE END
By Georgia Beers
Novels
Finding Home
Mine
Fresh Tracks
Too Close to Touch
Thy Neighbor’s Wife
Turning the Page
Starting From Scratch
96 Hours
Slices of Life
Snow Globe
Olive Oil and White Bread
Zero Visibility
A Little Bit of Spice
Rescued Heart
Anthologies
Outsiders
www.georgiabeers.com
Rescued Heart Page 23