“Yes,” she said. “It bothers me.”
“Why is that?”
She tumbled into Jenna’s intense gaze. “You know why.”
Danielle’s stomach flipped, and a shiver ran down her spine as she stepped closer and touched Jenna’s cheek. Her heart pounded as she waited for something to happen, for Jenna to pull away from her touch, to wake her up from this dream, but it didn’t happen. Jenna felt stiff, like maybe she wasn’t breathing, but she was still boldly staring into her.
Danielle gave in and closed the remaining distance between them. Their lips met softly at first, but when Jenna wrapped her arms around Danielle and pulled her closer, their bodies touched and a surge of energy awakened. The trembling of nerves fell away, and Danielle deepened the kiss, opening her mouth to Jenna and teasing her with her tongue. Jenna grabbed a handful of Danielle’s shirt and pulled her closer. Danielle’s head was swirling in disbelief this was happening. She could barely think.
“Danielle.” Jenna barely parted their kiss to whisper it. The sound of her name on Jenna’s breathless lips sent another rush through her entire body. “They’re right ins—”
Danielle curled her fists around Jenna’s shirt and gently pushed her until she backed up between the cars, out of view of the bar. She backed Jenna into the side of a large black SUV, then crashed into her with an urgency she’d never felt. Jenna responded to her energy with the same eagerness, and Danielle felt Jenna’s fingers weaving through her hair, her body crushing against her as the heat of her kiss made Danielle dizzy. Danielle let her hands wander Jenna’s body as she pressed her into the SUV, holding her against it at her waist, feeling up her lean abdomen and over her breasts. She felt the rumble of vibrations as she tore a low moan from Jenna’s throat. She was pulsing with need as they lost themselves in each other’s warmth in the cool night.
A drunken yell ripped through the parking lot. “Jenna? Where the fuck did you go?”
Danielle pulled away. She felt disoriented and hazy from the desire, like she’d been ripped from a dream too soon. She saw Jenna gradually come back to the present too. “You better go back,” Danielle said. “They’re looking for you.”
“I—”
“Jenna!” Sasha was too close to escape. Jenna and Danielle jumped away from each other and tried to look natural. Jenna’s eyes stayed on hers another second. They were intense and full of desire and different in the dark in a way that made her breath catch.
“Sash,” Jenna said after a second. “Over here.”
Sasha squinted into the darkness, then clumsily started toward them. “What the hell are you doing creeping around over there?”
“Just chatting,” Jenna said.
“Oh, hey, Danielle,” Sasha said. “Didn’t see you at first.” Sasha looked at each of them a couple of times before suspicion finally took over her face and she stared at Jenna.
“Brianna wasn’t feeling well,” Jenna said. “She didn’t want to make a scene, so she slipped out here.”
“Brianna’s in there taking a belly shot off some chick at the bar,” Sasha said without breaking eye contact.
“Yeah, second wind puke, I guess.”
Danielle studied Jenna curiously, watching her try to smooth it over as if it was a lie even though it had really happened. She was still swimming in Jenna’s touch. She realized she’d never seen Jenna look disarmed before, and she found it inescapably endearing.
“Right,” Sasha said.
“Brianna and I had a little disagreement,” Danielle said. “I wanted some air before going back in. Jenna was nice enough to keep me company.”
“Oh.” Sasha bought into Danielle’s explanation much more readily and turned to face her. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, sure,” Danielle said. “Just stupid roommate stuff.”
“Okay, well, you guys want to head back in?”
“I should actually take off,” Jenna said.
Danielle shot a look at Jenna, struggling to keep her obvious surprise that was verging on alarm at least a little hidden.
“It’s getting late,” Jenna added.
“Seriously?” Sasha asked, checking her watch. “It’s like, midnight. You’re usually an all-nighter.”
“Yeah, I know, but I should get home and check on Callie. She wasn’t thrilled with me for coming out tonight.”
“Come on, Jenna,” Sasha whined. “You haven’t been out in forever. Have some fun. Callie’s a grown-up.”
“Another time,” Jenna said. “I promise.”
Danielle thought she saw some kind of remorse or apology hidden in Jenna’s fleeting eye contact, but she couldn’t possibly work out what it meant, what she was feeling. Jenna turned and started through the parking lot.
Jenna had woken something inside her, made her do things she’d never even thought about doing, and she couldn’t stop wanting more. She knew if Jenna stayed they’d end up in bed together. They shouldn’t let that happen. It would jeopardize Jenna’s entire career. Her need was relentless, but if Jenna had the strength to run, she had to let her.
“You better be taking a cab,” Sasha called after her.
“Yep!”
Chapter Twelve
Danielle drove to work in silence. Her mind was too busy to handle music, no matter how relaxing. The party felt like it happened years ago, not just days before. From the moment Jenna’s lips left hers she’d thought of nothing else. She couldn’t stop replaying the way Jenna had walked through the parking lot that night, leaving her and Sasha behind.
Danielle knew she hadn’t mistaken Jenna’s desire. She’d felt it in the way Jenna had melted into her arms, pulled her closer, the vibration of her quiet moan. But she’d taken off just minutes later. She ran. Maybe her kiss wasn’t welcome, enjoyable or not. Come to think of it, of course her kiss wasn’t welcome. It could get Jenna fired, and all she’d heard about Jenna from their coworkers was how hard she’d worked to get where she was. It was completely out of line to come on to her. Danielle couldn’t remember a time she’d wanted to kiss someone so badly she’d thrown common sense to the wind.
She would just apologize, say that she shouldn’t have gotten so carried away. It was the only way she could salvage any sort of comfortable working relationship.
Danielle made her way to the locker room, hoping to sneak in and out, but Sasha was sitting on the bench with her head leaned back against the locker. She shot upright when Danielle walked in.
“Good morning,” she said.
“Morning. You okay?”
“Yeah, just tired. Did you have fun at the party?”
“Yes, it was so nice of you to organize it,” Danielle said. “It was fun seeing everyone outside of work. You’re right; everyone’s really different.”
“Especially Jenna, huh?”
Danielle searched her for an underlying meaning, some damning implication, but she looked innocent enough.
“Yeah, I guess.”
“That’s the Jenna we all know and love,” Sasha said. “We’re all still adjusting to supervisor Jenna.”
Danielle wasn’t sure what to say. Jenna seemed friendly, open, and social at work, too. The major difference Danielle saw was the way she looked, which she did have to admit turned her world upside down. “Seems like you pretty much get the best of both worlds,” Danielle said.
“Sort of.” Sasha crinkled her face as she thought it over. “She’s usually a bit more, I don’t know, wild? Just seems like she’s on her best behavior. Can’t remember the last time she left so early. Or so, alone.”
“Oh.” Danielle recoiled from the idea of Jenna hooking up with someone else. She hoped her reaction wasn’t as dramatic on the surface as it felt inside.
“Sorry,” Sasha said. “I shouldn’t even be talking about her like that. You two just seem to be getting close. I figured she wouldn’t mind.”
“I wouldn’t know,” Danielle said. “I do need to see her, though. Training meeting.”
“Right,�
�� Sasha said. “Head on up to her office, I’ll wait for you in the break room. I need a lot more coffee anyway.”
Danielle started toward Jenna’s office, her stomach in knots. She was making too much of the kiss. Jenna hooked up with people all the time and probably hadn’t given it a second thought. She was glad to know before she made even more of a fool out of herself making a big deal out of something trivial.
Jenna’s door was open when Danielle approached. She gently knocked on the doorframe anyway and stuck her head inside. A dazzling smile sprang to Jenna’s face. She was wearing another suit today, looking better than anyone had a right to in an office. Danielle couldn’t believe Jenna’s sexiness had somehow blindsided her at the party. It seemed so obvious now, and Danielle couldn’t un-see Jenna’s bare shoulders in that tank top or the lines of her hips.
“Come on in,” Jenna said. Danielle stepped inside and paused at the door, undecided about whether or not to close it. She glanced at Jenna and saw her waiting with curiosity to see what she would do. Finally, she pulled the door closed and sat in the chair across the desk. She thought she saw Jenna smile ever so slightly, but maybe she imagined it.
“How have you been?” Jenna asked.
“Great.”
Jenna let an unsettled silence pass as she seemed to ponder the short response. Eventually, she grabbed Danielle’s file and opened it.
“I think you’re progressing very well. I don’t have much to go over.”
“Okay.”
“Sasha says you’re picking everything up quickly, that she hasn’t had to tell you anything more than once. How are you feeling with the report software?”
“Fine,” Danielle said. “Maybe another time or two and I think I’ll have it.”
“Great,” Jenna said. “Do you have any questions? Concerns?”
“No.” She didn’t mean to be short. Jenna hadn’t done anything wrong, but it was the only way she knew to convey that she understood what happened between them was an unnecessary risk for Jenna, and that she didn’t expect anything from her.
“Okay, then,” Jenna said slowly.
Danielle headed for the door.
“Danielle,” Jenna said. She turned around. “About the other night.”
“Forget it,” Danielle said. “I’m sorry I kissed you. I won’t tell anyone.”
“Oh,” Jenna said. “Sure, if that’s what you want.”
“I don’t drink often,” Danielle said. “I know I kind of threw myself at you. It was inappropriate of me.”
“I don’t recall complaining.”
Danielle managed a detached smile, but it wouldn’t touch the stone in her chest. “I know how much this job means to you,” Danielle said. “I would never say anything that would jeopardize that for you. I promise I won’t do it again.” Danielle could get in trouble too, but it wasn’t even worth mentioning compared to what Jenna could face as her superior.
Jenna studied her for a long time. Danielle felt her skin tingling under Jenna’s gaze, and she hoped Jenna would refute her logic. As the warmth in her eyes turned to fire she was sure she would, but then Jenna took a breath.
“That’s probably for the best,” she said. “For both of us.”
“Right.” Danielle nodded. “Well, I’ll see you around.” Danielle bolted out the door before Jenna could say anything else.
Chapter Thirteen
Something about Sasha’s invitation to lunch felt more forceful than usual. Jenna could sense there was something on her mind even though she hadn’t said so. Ever since her promotion, Jenna wanted to spend most of her spare time alone, but she knew she should fight the urge. She didn’t want to lose touch with her friends, and Sasha was already starting to feel further away somehow. They’d agreed to meet at their old favorite lunch spot, Bubba’s BBQ. When Jenna walked in, Sasha lit up and stood to hug her.
“I’m so glad you came!” Sasha said.
“You think it’s too early for a drink?”
“Hell no,” Sasha said. “Let’s get our day drink on.”
Jenna smiled and slipped into the cracked leather booth, then ordered a Long Island.
“That bad, huh?”
“No.” Jenna laughed. “Everything’s fine. I’ve just been a little busy. Stressed.”
“Tell me about it,” Sasha said. “Fuck that job. Come back to caseworking.”
“Trust me, I’ve thought about it. Just growing pains, though, don’t you think? I’ll get used to it.”
“Of course,” Sasha said. “I was kidding. I’ll kick your ass if you come back. It’ll get easier.”
“I know. I just miss you guys.”
“We’re still here,” Sasha said. “Nothing has to change.”
“Thanks.”
Their drinks came and Sasha stared off into hers while she stirred it. Eventually, she looked up again, a serious expression on her face.
“Friday night was fun,” she said.
“Yeah.”
“Extra fun for you?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well, I’m no expert, but it looked like I stumbled on something between you and Danielle.”
Jenna concentrated on keeping her face neutral. She’d never had a reason to hide anything from Sasha before. She’d always trusted her completely, but something inside her was whispering to lie now.
“I could tell you thought that,” Jenna said. “You were kind of glaring at us. You have a thing for Danielle or something?”
“What?” Sasha shot back in her chair in surprise. “What the hell gave you that idea?”
“I don’t know, you were really upset about her possibly getting in trouble over the body thing. Then you seemed sort of upset when you thought you saw something happen between us.”
“When I thought I saw something happen between you?”
“At the bar.”
“In between the cars.” Sasha raised an eyebrow. “Where no one could see you.”
“Brianna really was sick. She was out there puking when I came outside. I’m sure being out of sight was the idea when they walked over there.”
“Wow, something totally happened,” Sasha said.
“Where did you get that out of what I just said?”
“From the part where you won’t deny it.”
“Nothing happened,” Jenna snapped, annoyed Sasha was forcing her into the outright lie she didn’t want to tell.
Sasha stared at her for a long moment before she finally took a breath. “It’s just because I care about you,” she finally said. “You’re Danielle’s supervisor. They’ll crucify you if they find out.”
“There’s nothing to find out.”
“They’d demote you for sure, maybe even fire you.”
“I know.”
“It’s exactly the kind of shit they were afraid of when you applied, remember? You would have had the job the first time if it wasn’t for your relationship with everyone. If that bothered them, just imagine sex.”
“Sash, I said I know.”
“It’s just not worth it. Danielle is great, but—”
“You done?”
“Yeah.” Sasha sighed. “Don’t be mad at me. I’m just trying to look out for you.”
Jenna slowly shook her head. “You never answered my question, either. Do you have a thing for her? Is that what this is about?”
“Please.” Sasha snorted. “I mean she’s gorgeous and everything, and very sweet, but we have zero chemistry. There’s no ulterior motive, Jenna. I wouldn’t do that. I’m just worried about you. I don’t want you to do something you’ll regret.”
Jenna took a long sip of her drink. She knew Sasha wasn’t buying it, and she was right, of course. It was a bad idea. She hadn’t expected the kiss, but she hadn’t been able to stop, either. That didn’t matter now. Danielle understood. She’d been quick to blame the alcohol and sweep it under the rug, so quick it stung a little. But that was insane; she should be thrilled with Danielle’s reaction. It was going t
o save her ass.
Chapter Fourteen
Danielle couldn’t understand why she was so exhausted at the end of every day. The hours were reasonable, the work enjoyable, her coworkers friendly, yet by the time she made it to her apartment every day, she had nothing left. Her view upon opening the door was, as usual, Brianna sprawled on the couch with a drink hanging loosely from intoxicated fingers. Brianna twisted her head awkwardly to see Danielle come inside, then sprang to life.
“Hey!” She walked over and pulled Danielle into a hug. Danielle endured the sloppy embrace. She recognized the signs that Brianna was too drunk to avoid. “How was work?”
“It was fine,” Danielle said. Work was awful. She knew Jenna would want to forget about the kiss, but hearing her say so out loud left the echo of it swirling through her. It was torture trying to hide the visceral reaction she had every time Jenna passed her in the hall, and being trained by Jenna’s best friend just seemed like a cosmic joke to top it all off.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing,” Danielle said.
“Bullshit,” Brianna said. She stood and ping-ponged off the walls into the kitchen and poured a drink. She downed it, then poured another before she moved back to the couch. “Brianna loves drama,” she said. “Let’s hear it. You’re embarrassed you got drunk the other night, huh? And you had to face everyone today and you feel all cruddy about it?”
“A little,” Danielle said, though her embarrassment was more specific than that.
“Trust me, you behaved normally,” Brianna said. “You have nothing to be embarrassed about.”
Kissing Jenna in the parking lot had definitely not been normal behavior, not for her, but she couldn’t tell Brianna that. She’d never tested the way Brianna might react to her interest in another woman, but if she was going to do so, now certainly wasn’t the time, when Brianna was already several drinks in. Instead, she just said, “Thanks.”
“Sure.” Brianna shrugged. “So why didn’t you tell me your coworkers look like models?”
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