Olivia’s eyes were wide and when she dropped her gaze to Casey’s mouth, Casey didn’t hesitate. She snaked an arm around Olivia’s waist and pulled her closer, her lips seeking Olivia’s. When she felt the soft warmth of them pressed against her own, Casey moaned.
“I’ve missed you too,” she whispered into Olivia’s ear before returning her mouth to Olivia’s. They kissed like people who had missed each other—desperately, searchingly, breathlessly. Casey’s hand in Olivia’s hair and both of Olivia’s hands in the small of Casey’s back, under her shirt, on her skin. And when their tongues touched, Olivia moaned and pushed herself closer to Casey.
“I want more.” Olivia broke their embrace first. “I need more.” The look in her eyes made it clear what she meant.
“So do I. But—” Casey waved a hand around them. She felt exactly the same, but they were sitting on a bench in the early afternoon and the towpath was pretty busy. “I don’t want you arrested for public indecency. And…” Casey had been dreading this part. “There’s probably a lot more to talk about.”
“About you staying in London?” Olivia held her gaze steadily.
Casey frowned. “How did you—”
“David. Via Louise. Of course.” She smiled. “I guess you heard about me leaving the show the same way.”
“Yeah.” Casey nodded. “Our very own news service.”
Olivia’s eyes contained a sparkle that Casey didn’t understand.
“I love London. It’s not perfect, but it’s mine. And apart from you, most of the people I want to be close to are here. It makes no sense to be anywhere else.” She hesitated, not sure after everything that had happened that she had a right to say it. “And with you being in Brooklyn, not LA, Portland doesn’t even have the advantage of being close to you. It’s probably easier to get from London to New York, than New York to Portland.”
“I guess that’s true.” Olivia leaned across and kissed her. Slowly, deeply, sexily. And Casey felt her senses flood with arousal. When Olivia pulled away, it took Casey a moment to come back. “I haven’t bothered to check the distances.”
Casey was confused. Olivia was acting like she wanted them to have something, but she seemed completely unaffected by the fact that they would be an ocean apart in one week’s time. Maybe she had this wrong. Maybe Olivia wasn’t coming back to her.
“I guess you’re happy about having the break. I was surprised. I mean, I know you were sick of the PR stuff and Billie, but you love acting. What will you do for the six months they’ve given you?” Casey was rambling, trying to cover up her confusion. Not wanting Olivia to think she’d been expecting them to pick up where they’d left off—making plans to see each other after they’d left London.
“I’m not really taking a break.” Olivia took Casey’s hands in hers. “Something I begged the ‘news service’ not to tell you until we’d met, because I wasn’t sure you’d still want…” Olivia stumbled over her words. “Want this, want me. After everything. So I begged Louise not to tell David, but of course she did. So I got her to beg David not to tell you, and thankfully, he agreed.”
“Olivia, I have no idea what you’re talking about and it’s driving me crazy.”
“I know. I’m sorry. I always think Lou is the drama queen, but maybe a bit of it has rubbed off on me.”
“Olivia.” Casey made herself sound stern.
“I’m not taking a break and I’m not going to be in Brooklyn, because I got a new job.” Olivia paused to place a tender kiss on Casey’s lips. “A theater job. When I told your friend Kate that I was free to work, she offered me something. Straight away. It was awesome. It doesn’t start for a couple of months, but when it does, it’s in London.”
Casey couldn’t do anything but stare.
Olivia laughed. And the sound of it was delightful to Casey.
“You’re going to be in London?” Casey felt her heart swell.
“I am. For at least six months. And I’m going to need a tour guide. And maybe a bodyguard. And most importantly of all, Casey, I’m going to need a girlfriend. One who makes my heart flutter, my knees weak, and my body feel like it’s feeling right now. Alive, aroused, and horny enough to go and get a room in that fantastic St. Pancras hotel that I only ever saw the outside of, but which I’m sure has vacant rooms and almost certainly a spa.”
Casey grinned. She didn’t know what to celebrate first. She got up and pulled Olivia to her feet. “I love you, Olivia, so fucking much. And I’d be happy to fill the role of girlfriend, especially now that I know it’s a full-time position.” She kissed Olivia, pressing herself as close to her as she could while turning them around in a kind of happiness-induced spin.
“This has been the craziest three weeks of my life.” Olivia put her hands on either side of Casey’s face. “And I know things will never be the same again. But that’s a good thing. And it’s all because of you. I love you too, Casey.”
For a few seconds, they just gazed into each other’s eyes. And then Olivia smiled.
“Now, I need you to tour guide me to that hotel before I do things to you out here that will get us both arrested.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Casey took Olivia by the hand and they walked slowly back toward King’s Cross. This time there was no need to rush. The clock had stopped ticking on their love. And everything felt possible.
Epilogue
Olivia tied the string around the pudding bowl, checked that the foil was properly positioned, and then managed to balance it on an upturned plate in a saucepan half full of water. Now she just had to wait five hours—five incredible hours—for it to cook. When Estelle gave her the recipe, she thought she was joking. She couldn’t believe the amount of trouble that was involved. I mean, it was good, but not that good.
She took off her apron and tossed it onto a chair, hoping that Casey would be happy that on their special day she was getting a steak pudding that would hopefully—possibly—be just as good as one of Estelle’s.
The living room was suspiciously quiet, and when Olivia reached it, she could see that Casey and the twins had gone out to the garden. She tried not to worry that each of them was crouched over a plant pot, holding a trowel, with a huge bag of compost, split wide open, sitting between them. She looked at the recently cleaned rug—one of the many ways they’d been getting ready for Louise and Liam’s visit—and then looked back at the soil they were all covered in. What could possibly go wrong?
“Hi.” Olivia stepped outside. “I’m not even going to ask you what you’re doing.”
It was a hot day, and Casey was wearing running shorts and a tank top. Olivia let herself drink in the sight of her, feeling herself flush at the memory of them making love that morning, grateful that the boys had decided to sleep in for once.
“You’re just in time.” Casey gazed up at her with a smile. “We’re going to grow some apple trees.” As she said it, Olivia realized that both Teddy and Nick were holding apples.
“Is that how you grow apple trees? From apples?”
“We’ll find out.” Casey winked.
“Mine’s a red one.” Nick held out his apple. “Teddy’s is green.” Olivia crouched down next to him, stroking his head before leaning over to plant a soft kiss on Teddy’s cheek. He was ignoring her, concentrating on shoveling soil into his pot. Most of it ending up on his feet. She leaned against Casey, letting her arm drape across her legs. The long muscular legs that were on show in the running shorts that she was super happy Casey had decided to wear today.
“I forgot to tell you, but Louise said Liam has finally persuaded her to start running.”
“Wow. Sounds like the kind of crazy thing you do for the person you love.” Casey raised an eyebrow in her direction and smiled.
“Hey, I told you, I can’t run. I’m a ‘watch TV while I’m on the elliptical’ kind of woman. And anyway, I made you
a steak pudding. Five hours and counting. That’s the kind of crazy thing you do for the person you love.” She leaned in and planted a soft kiss on Casey’s lips, deepening it more than she intended to when Casey parted her lips and reached a hand up into her hair. “It’s an anniversary gift. To match the one you very generously gave me this morning.”
Olivia enjoyed seeing how dark Casey’s eyes grew, happy she had the power to make her aroused like that.
“It’s not our anniversary. I told you you can’t count the fact that we went to Estelle’s two years ago today as our anniversary.”
“It’s the day we first met.”
“Yeah, and we spent the day grouching at each other. And anyway, we met the day before. In the sauna. And I’m offended that you don’t remember that because I most definitely do.” Casey looked her up and down and then smiled. Olivia felt the power of her gaze in the pulsing between her legs. “But I’ll take the anniversary gift because I’m happy to have you cook me steak pudding on any day of the year.”
Olivia pressed her lips to Casey’s once more before standing up. “I’m glad you feel that way about the pudding because I’m going to rehearsals in about fifteen minutes and you need to make sure that the water in the saucepan doesn’t boil dry. Otherwise, no steam, and that means no steamed pudding.”
Olivia and Casey both watched as Nick buried a miniature toy soldier in the pot in front of Casey. Laying it down and then covering it carefully with soil.
“What are you doing, buddy?” Casey asked.
“He died in battle this morning, so I’m burying him.”
“Yeah, your pot is for the dead soldiers,” Teddy chipped in. “And our pots are for the apple trees.”
“That sounds like a very good plan.” Casey lifted her eyes to Olivia’s and shrugged before walking with her to the threshold of the living room.
“I spoke to the social worker by the way. She said no problem on taking them on a trip to the seaside. They even offered some money to help pay for it. It’s what they do when kids are still in the foster system. I said no, of course. I know how stretched those budgets are.” She frowned. “She also said that now that we’re only a couple of weeks away from the six-month point, she’ll send in the adoption paperwork and start the ball rolling on that. I just hope they can see past the fact that we’re both kind of self-employed.”
Olivia could hear the tension in her voice. She knew how much Casey wanted the adoption to work. She felt the same way. They’d talked about children from the outset, but taking on the twins had been unexpected. Something Mercy had engineered that had worked out well for everyone. But being without them would be heart-wrenching.
“They will.” Olivia pulled Casey into another hug. “They know the boys deserve a stable home with lots of love, and that’s exactly what we can offer them. You have driving as well as a well-paying job, and I have a ton of savings and a growing theater career. We’re a dream team.” She kissed Casey’s forehead. “Don’t worry so much.”
Casey broke the hug and held Olivia out at arm’s length. “The seaside trip is as much for us as them. They’ve never seen the sea and I want them to. But that weekend is also our real anniversary, the anniversary of the time we stayed in Brighton without meaning to. When I first realized I had completely fallen in love with you and didn’t want to live my life without you.” Casey’s voice was quiet but certain. She had gotten better at expressing her feelings. And Olivia felt her heart swell with the love she felt for her. “I even managed to get a room at the same hotel. It’s a family room. So I guess we might end up spending the night a little differently this time.” She pulled a face. “Parenting is its own reward.”
“You are wonderful.” Olivia kissed Casey again before reluctantly stepping away from her.
“Have a good rehearsal.”
“I will.”
“And don’t forget to get those tickets for me, Liam, and Lou for Saturday. Mom has already agreed to watch the boys, so you’ll have three of your biggest fans cheering wildly for you. I am planning to bring flowers to throw on stage.”
“I hope you’re joking. That was the kind of thing my dad used to do.”
“At least I’m not throwing panties,” Casey teased her. “I think you’ve forgotten how to enjoy the attention of your fans.”
“That’s not true. Twice this week, when we left the theater, there were people waiting for me to sign programs at the stage door.”
“Doesn’t that often happen?” Casey looked at her with confusion.
“Yeah, it did in the beginning, but it was mostly people who remembered me from The West Side. This week, I had people who had just seen the show and thought it was great and decided to wait to get their program signed. Not people who already knew me as Susie. One of them didn’t even realize I was American.” Olivia couldn’t keep the pride from her voice.
“Baby.” Casey came to her, taking her hands. “I’m so proud of you.” The look she gave her was so full of love that Olivia couldn’t help the tears that pricked the back of her eyes.
“Sometimes I can’t believe this is my life.” Olivia leaned into Casey, resting her head on Casey’s chest, enjoying the feel of Casey’s arms wrapped tight around her body. “Living in London, back on stage, mommy to that pair of beautiful soil-spreading monsters.” She lifted her head from Casey’s chest and looked up at her. “And being loved by you—like I dreamed I might be—every day for the rest of my life.”
“I love you too.” When Casey bent her head to kiss her, Olivia closed her eyes, letting her senses get flooded with everything that Casey’s kisses had always made her feel—alive, safe, loved, and impossibly aroused.
Olivia finally pulled herself away.
“Maybe after you’ve vacuumed up all that dirt,” she pointed at the soil Casey had tracked into the house, “you can vacuum the boys before you let them back inside.” She blew Casey a kiss and headed for the hall to grab her bag and coat. She wasn’t going to be late because the little theater that had given her the chance to get back on the stage—the Ovalhouse—was a ten-minute walk from their Kennington house. She smiled to herself as she opened the front door. She’d found Casey in London. She’d found herself in London. And now she wouldn’t swap this life for anything.
THE END
About the Author
MA Binfield is stranded on that little island off the coast of France known as the United Kingdom. It’s a magical place, with endless mugs of tea and lots of the kind of weather that makes you stay home to read and write. A passionate public servant, with a perennially bad back, MA is tall and hopelessly romantic. She is fond of the ocean and boiled eggs, and loves writing about women loving women. This is MA’s third novel.
https://www.boldstrokesbooks.com/authors/ma-binfield-306
[email protected]
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