"You deserve to be happy again, Sofia."
"I know that…now. But at the time...I'm sorry. And I'm sorry I ruined our night. Again." She tried to pull away, but Allie was having none of it.
"Not at all. I get it," Allie said, her voice low and soft. "I do. I'm so sorry you had to go through that. It's never fair to lose someone so young and always hard to lose one you love, but I bet she was really happy to have had a love like yours. You made her time on earth amazing."
Sofia couldn't speak, only nodded and allowed her arms the freedom to snake around Allie's waist. She had feared this very conversation, afraid it would scare Allie off or make her feel she had to live up to some standard she might not attain, but no. Here she was, as solid as a rock, an anchor to help Sofia weather the storm, and her heart pounded a little harder at how right Allie's arms felt around her.
Allie placed a tender kiss to Sofia's cheek and whispered, "I'd like the chance to make you that happy again, if you'll let me?"
Her smile was unstoppable despite her red puffy eyes and stuffy nose as Sofia looked down and answered, "I'd really like that, Allie. Thank you for listening and for understanding. You're amazing."
"I am pretty amazing, aren't I," she teased.
"Very."
"Do you want to talk some more?"
Sofia sighed, relieved to have gotten it off of her chest. That had been enough drama for one night. "No. I don't want to look back anymore. I want to move forward." Sofia slowly unraveled herself and wiped her eyes with the back of her hands. Taking one of Allie's hands into her own, she walked backward toward the house. It was endearing how supportive she had been and Allie deserved a reward. Anxious to get their date back on track, she said, "I was hoping I could interest you in dessert." Her cheeky grin doubled with the rise of Allie's brow. "I'll make us banana splits."
"Whipped cream?"
"Of course. With a cherry on top." She winked.
"Lead the way."
"Wait." Sofia pulled her back and into her arms, once again savoring the warmth between them. Her fingers threaded deep into Allie's long, silky hair. "I'm so glad you found me," she whispered before moving in for a gentle kiss. Their lips met slow and soft. Lost in the onslaught of a billion sensations, Sofia finally put a word to how Allie made her feel.
Skydiving.
She had done it when she turned eighteen. The free fall before the chute opened had scared her to death and sent her heart leaping from her chest, but made her feel more alive than she'd ever imagined—every cell in her body had lived on the edge of its seat. That was what Allie did to her and by God, she wanted to jump over and over and over again.
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
With her other clients all set for the weekend, there was no reason to be at the office. That allowed Sofia the chance to really think about the things she needed to do to move forward with Allie. And she definitely wanted to move forward. Allie had been unbelievably patient and understanding about her erratic behavior and for the first time in years, she could truly say she felt whole. Whatever it was about Allie, she had managed to seep through the cracks in Sofia's protective forcefield and quickly dismantled the emotional defenses she had hidden behind for years.
Sofia set the box down in the corner of her closet just as three knocks landed on her front door. "Come in," she yelled out. With a final glance at the memories of a life she once had, she smiled and shut the door. After a quick stop in the bathroom to clean up, she headed to the living room to meet her guest.
Waiting with a cardboard box of pastries in hand was Reyna, who immediately picked up on the change in the apartment. "What's going on, Sofia?" Her wide-eyed gaze roamed from the empty spot on the wall their wedding photo had once occupied, to the barren shelf where Kylar's favorite ball cap had lived—the faded brown Salt Life one she'd always worn at the beach—and then over to the end table, where their first date selfie had sat. The only thing still on display was Kylar's sunrise painting and a collage of old photos on the wall of various friends and family, including one of her and Kylar's fondest memories at the beach.
A smile commanded Sofia's lips. There was just one thing going on, one amazingly fantastic thing—Allie. "Something wonderful," she said, unable to hide the affection swelling inside. The heat of a blush rose from out of nowhere and rushed straight into her cheeks. Slightly embarrassed at her physical reaction, but feeling too good to care, she smiled again, twice as wide. "Thanks for coming, and for bringing those." She took the box and walked to the island.
"No problem. I have to say I'm loving this new smiling thing you've been doing." Reyna claimed the spot across from her.
"Stop it."
"You swear you didn't get laid?"
"No, I didn't." Not that I didn't want to. Sofia broke out in her second blush in as many minutes.
"That's too bad." Reyna threw her a teasing half-smirk and a wink. "But seriously, I was afraid it would be short lived."
Sofia refused to think about the possibility. "Coffee?" She went to the cabinet and pulled down two mugs, already knowing the answer.
"Always." Reyna leaned forward on her elbows. "Just one sugar. I'm trying to cut back." She shrugged when Sofia shot her a look of disbelief and offered no further explanation. "So, what did you want to talk about?"
Handing over a steamy mug, Sofia closed her eyes and savored a sip before settling her attention back on Reyna. "First, let me say, once again, that you were right about so much, but I needed to do things in my own time. No one could speed it up or help me through. My soul had shut itself behind closed doors, determined to ride out the rest of its days in darkness."
"I know and I'm sorry for pushing, but I love you and-"
"It's okay, Rey. I know. Mom, Dad, you...everyone just wanted the best for me and I love you all for it. Thank you for not giving up on me."
"It's what we do for our family, Sof." Reyna gently touched her arm.
"True, but I know from group therapy that some people aren't as lucky." She forced a smile and hid behind her mug. "I never let myself say that final goodbye. I never made peace with losing her. I thought I had, but I never did. I took off the ring, but held her close to my heart on a chain. I set my life on hold, choosing to cherish her and suffer her loss day in and day out, rather than open myself up to new possibilities. I was just as scared of finding a new love as suffering another heartbreak."
"And now?"
"Now?" She inhaled a sharp breath and pulled the chain from under her shirt. "This," she held up the pendant between two fingers, "will always be a reminder of her and the love we had, but I finally realized what I needed to do about the rest of my life and I did it. And Rey," a tired smile fought hard to lighten her solemn expression, "there is a weight off of me I didn't even know I'd been carrying. My body is physically exhausted, but my mind, my heart, feel light…free. I could probably sleep for a week, though," she added with an uneasy chuckle.
Standing from her stool, Reyna circled the island and wrapped her arms around her. "I'm so happy for you."
"Thanks." Sofia returned the hug. Their silent embrace spoke of their years of friendship and shared pain and she welcomed it all.
When they pulled back, Reyna met her eyes with an inquisitive stare and asked, "May I finally know who or what has triggered this revelation?"
"See now…" Sofia wiggled herself free. "That's why I really wanted to talk to you."
"Uh oh."
"What? No uh oh. I just...I needed to talk to you about it."
"Okay...so talk."
"It's Allie."
A brief silence fell between them as Reyna's wheels turned. No recognition flashed.
"Runa's Allie." There it was. Her secret was out. A bout of dizziness struck from her lack of breath. The weight of silence applied crushing pressure to her lungs as long seconds ticked by until Reyna's light brown eyes grew wide and bright as brand-new pennies.
"Allie O'Leary, Allie?"
Sofia nodded. A coy smile struck
without warning.
"Holy shit! Never saw that coming. How? When? How?" She fired off question after question. "She really is smokin', by the way. Reminds me of Princess Kate," she added with a subtle poke to the ribs.
Sofia finally sucked in a breath, then let out a boisterous laugh of relief. "God, she really is. And Kate? Seriously?" She hadn't thought about it, but maybe. "I guess I could see that."
"You didn't break the rule, did you? Wait...are you the reason she and Runa didn't work out?"
"Absolutely not," she said, shaking her head in vehement denial. "I had seen her once before we met Runa though."
"Ohhhhhh, so that's why you freaked out when you saw her picture. You said it only looked like her, but it really was her?"
"Yeah. But we'd never spoken. She didn't even see me."
Reyna thought for a moment, then said, "That was our celebration night. That's why you bolted."
"Mhm."
"How did you meet, then?"
"It started at O'Malley's. They came in after the game. She saw me across the room-"
"But she was with Runa that night."
"Yes, she was. I'd never break the rule, even though she had set my entire world on pause when our eyes met." A free and easy smile accompanied her silence before she continued, "Anyway, I quickly disappeared out the door. But then, the night of the concert when you'd texted me that they were through, I had been walking the beach and she was there. We nearly bumped into one another and I just…I couldn't walk away. Like, physically couldn't walk away." The memory of that powerful first meeting stretched her smile to the ends of her face.
"Allie ripped the door I'd been hiding behind off its hinges and shined a light inside of me. I can't even explain it, Rey, but just a walk with her on the beach did so many things to me. Then, the kiss...oh, that kiss sent me into a tail spin." Even now, goosebumps raced across her skin.
"A kiss? Oh boy, so many things make sense about your behavior now."
"Sorry I didn't tell you. The whole thing just kind of sent me reeling."
"No kidding. Wow. So, um…" Reyna glanced down at her hands as she said, "I have something to tell you too."
"Oh?"
"Yeah, uh, I've got a date with Runa tomorrow night." Her head rose slowly following the admission. Sofia burst out laughing and Reyna took a quick leap toward the defensive. "What's so funny? She's amazing."
She waved off the dirty looks shooting daggers her way. "No, no, I know. She really is." Sofia snorted. "It's this whole situation. We try to help Runa get Allie and instead Allie falls for me and Runa for you."
A grin curled Rey's lips upward as she started to laugh as well. "It may not have worked out how she planned, but Runa got herself a girl."
"She's got herself an awesome girl."
Reyna grinned. "I just hope it works out. When I'm with her, it's like...I don't know...nothing else matters and I feel so damned lucky to have her in my life."
"I know what you mean."
"So, what do we do now?"
Sofia sucked in a deep breath and after a heavy sigh she said, "Well, we need to talk to Runa. I don't want there to be any secrets, that's just bad news. But I can't disclose anything to Allie because of our client confidentiality clause. So, first we talk to her and lay the cards on the table. We can't have either of them thinking this was all some ploy to take care of our own needs. If Runa is fine with telling Allie about hiring us, then I say we try to do it all together."
"Good plan. I'll call her and see if she can meet us later."
"Perfect." Breathing easier when Reyna didn't bring up the dreaded "what if" scenario, she finally indulged in a bite of the flaky chocolate pastry. Her eyes rolled back as the bittersweet flavor hit her tongue. "So fucking good," she mumbled, her mouth full of food.
"Sofia!" Reyna bumped her shoulder and chuckled. "Nice to have you back. You better save me some of those."
"If you're lucky," Sofia teased and hoarded the box in her arms.
Fumbling through her purse, Rey found her phone and dialed Runa. "Runa, hi." Rey's smile lit up the room and she spun back toward the kitchen as she spoke. "No, I can't wait for our date either." She fiddled with the coffee maker and then caught Sofia staring at her with a smug grin. She turned away.
"Yeah, six-thirty sounds fine." She laughed like a smitten teenager and ran a hand through her hair, twirling the end around her finger. "Casual dress. Great. Oh wait, is it possible you could swing by the office later tonight?" She turned back to Sofia and gave a thumbs up. "Great, thanks. See you then."
As soon as she hung up, Sofia had to tease her. Fair play, after all. "Aww. You do have it bad for her, don't you?" Reyna hid her face in her hands and nodded. Her dark complexion still splotchy with heat from whatever Runa had spoken into her ear. Sofia smiled at the reaction—a new one for her best friend. "It's adorable, Rey. I've never seen you like this."
"I know, right? It's crazy. But I'm crazy about her, so I guess it fits."
"It's a good thing. I promise you that." They shared a smile. Sofia handed her a pastry. "All right, what time is she coming?"
"Probably about five-thirty, although it depends on traffic and if her last session runs long."
"That's fine. You got any plans today? I was thinking of heading to a movie."
"We haven't done that in ages. I'm in."
Sofia smiled. "This feels good."
"It really does. Who knew one woman would change our lives so drastically?"
It was true. Runa coming into their lives had been a blessing in disguise for all four of them. Sofia just hoped the reveal wouldn't tear them apart.
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
"Say what now?" Runa's eyes splayed open wide at the bombshell revelation. Though the reaction had not been unexpected, the pair of piercing blue sapphires sent Sofia scrambling.
Reyna piped up for her and repeated, "Allie and Sofia went on a date."
"Yeah, I heard that, but I...how? When?"
"The night of the concert," Sofia said, finally finding her voice, though it was weak and unsteady. "I was walking along the beach. We nearly bumped into one another from not paying attention."
"The night I had texted Rey we were through," Runa said, her voice low and her look full of contemplation.
"Yes. It was just a huge coincidence that we ran into one another. Our connection, though…" Sofia dazed off as she thought about Allie. "It was instantaneous and I couldn't ignore it."
"And you'd never met Allie before then?"
Those intimidating eyes never wavered from Sofia and the arched brow of disbelief nearly had her doubting herself, but she met the stare head on and answered, "No, never. Although I had seen her in a bar one time, but we didn't meet. Never spoke. Besides, I have a rule, we both do." Sofia glanced at Rey, then back to Runa, meeting her eyes once again. "We never put our needs before our client's."
Blue globes narrowed to thin slits. A long pause filled the room. Runa sat still, her expression slack in the mists of deep thought. Her lips parted and her mouth fell open, but still no words escaped, until her eyes bolted wide again and she blurted, "Wait a minute…you're the woman she was talking about." Her finger pointed squarely at Sofia, but the aggressive gesture held no anger.
"Huh?" Reyna and Sofia asked in unison.
All signs of suspicion gone, Runa was now lit with an odd excitement as she explained, "When I saw her the other day, we got to talking. She said she'd seen a woman across a crowded room and just like that, she was done for."
"No shit?" Reyna looked from Runa to Sofia.
Sofia's pounding heart surged with excitement at the announcement, but she hid her smile with a cough and a sip of water. The information swam circles in her head. She had sunk Runa's chances without even knowing it. Shame and guilt rose. An apology spouted forth. "Runa, I promise never meant for-"
"Relax, Sofia. If Allie fell head over heels for you from across a room after I've been trying for all these years, then it just confirms we w
ere never meant to be. Besides, letting go of that dream opened my eyes to what had been right in front of me." She leaned closer to Rey. "Not that I didn't notice how amazing you were before that, I just had blinders on. That sounds bad, I'm sorry," Runa said, her blue eyes awash with regret.
"I get it, Ru."
"Ru?" Sofia quirked a brow.
Reyna smiled a shy smile. Runa hadn't even flinched at the nickname. Her eyes remained fixed solely on Reyna as she said, "I really do think you're amazing."
"So then," Sofia quickly interrupted their moment. "Are you okay with telling Allie about our arrangement? Because, since you two are friends, I don't want it to be a secret we all have to keep. I really like her and don't want to mess it up."
A heavy sigh fell from Runa's lips, then a pained grimace contorted her face before she nodded. "Wow. Oh boy. Okay." She rolled her neck, filling the silence with a series of tiny cracks and pops. A deep breath flowed in and held as she asked, "Should we meet here? Or…somewhere else, like a double date?" She let the breath out, her posture following, leaving her slumped in her spot.
Sofia felt every bit of the anxiety coming off Runa. She'd been dealing with the very same feelings tying her body in knots since the moment she'd met Allie, to the point it was exhausting. "Maybe a double date or just meet casually somewhere. I don't want her to feel trapped by dragging her here."
"True. Um, Friday night there's a Latin American festival at the beach. Music, dancing, great food. How about that?"
"Perfect." A touch of relief coursed through Sofia's veins, even as dread churned in her gut. "Thank you, Runa."
She nodded and leaned forward, setting her elbows on her knees, then buried her face in her hands. "I never planned to tell anyone about this." Hiding away for another moment, she added, "But it's the right thing to do." She looked up. Lines of agony creased her flawless face. "I appreciate you handling everything so professionally and I really thank you for all your help. Both of you."
Sofia smiled, happy to have a plan in place. "That's what we're here for."
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