Chapter 2

Olivia

“Knock knock!” Olivia looked up from her laptop to find her best friend and business partner, Whitney Lexington entering her office, a bag of food and two drinks filling both of her hands. 

“Ah, it’s about time!” Olivia exclaimed. “I’m starving! Gimme!” She got up and rounded her desk to meet her friend on the other side of her office, settling in at the small conference table situated in front of the industrial-style floor-to-ceiling windows. 

Olivia watched with a grimace on her face, as Whitney unloaded the bag, setting a salad in front of Olivia and pushing a cup full of a mysteriously thick-looking dark liquid over to her. “Really?” Olivia asked, probably sounding like a petulant child. 

Whitney side-eyed her friend with one eyebrow cocked. “Liv, you cannot eat french fries and burritos for every meal. You’re not in your twenties anymore, you’ll give yourself a heart attack by age fifty.” 

“Fuck you. I would never eat french fries with a burrito. You put the fries inside the burrito. For maximum efficiency,” Olivia replied sarcastically, spearing her straw into the lid of her drink. Taking a tentative sip, she realized it was some kind of berry-flavored smoothie. Alright, this isn’t too bad. Though she would never admit that to Whitney. And that still didn’t stop her from staring longingly out the window at the pizza place across the street, wishing for a greasy slice of pepperoni in place of the pile of greens currently sitting in front of her. 

Whitney rolled her eyes as she poured a yellow-tinged vinaigrette dressing over her salad. 

They spoke about work while they ate, going over their respective schedules for the coming weeks. They had an important meeting with their board of directors this Friday and an even bigger meeting with a wealthy potential investor the following Thursday. The women finished up their salads and smoothies just as the conversation shifted to catching up on their personal lives. 

“So, how’s Theo? You two finally engaged yet?” Olivia asked Whitney, raising her brows high above her wide eyes. Whitney and her boyfriend Theo had been dating for years - since before they even started Lexand. He had asked Olivia for her help in picking out the perfect ring for Whitney nearly a month ago. He swore her to secrecy, which she’d agreed to. So, naturally, she had told her best friend immediately upon leaving the jeweler that he was about to propose. I’m a good friend. I had to make sure she was prepared!

Whitney leaned back in her chair, running a hand through her thick, auburn curls, took in a deep breath, and let it out quickly before answering. “No. Don’t you think I would have told you if he had proposed? Plus, his parents are about to leave to visit family in Nigeria for a month, so I’m sure he’ll wait until they return so they can be there.” Whitney looked out the window, letting down her guard for a split second. Just long enough for Olivia to detect the look of uncertainty that flashed across her large brown doe eyes.

In a moment of genuine sincerity between the long-time friends, Olivia reached over and put her hand on Whitney’s. “Whit, you know, you don’t have to say yes if you’re not ready.”

Whitney’s head snapped back to Olivia as she yanked her hand away. “Why wouldn’t I say yes?” she replied a little too defensively. “I love Theo,” she added, although she wasn’t able to keep eye contact as she said that last part, instead looking past Olivia at the brick wall behind her head.

“Of course you do. That’s obvious,” Olivia said with a reassuring smile. “All I’m saying is that you don’t need to feel obligated to marry him just because you’ve been together for a long time. It just seems like ever since I told you, you’ve been on edge a bit. Like you’re more stressed out about it than happy.” 

Whitney let out another exasperated sigh. “I’m fine. It’s just, knowing that it’s coming at any moment is making me nervous.” She gave her friend a resolute look as she reached back to coil her long hair into a loose bun, securing it at the back of her head. Olivia had known her friend long enough to know that she did this compulsively when she was stressing. “I’m fine.” Olivia couldn’t help but feel like Whitney was trying to convince herself of this more than she was Olivia. 

After a moment, in an uncharacteristically hostile way of deflecting attention back to Olivia, Whitney brought up what she had to have known was the sorest of sore subjects with her long-time friend. “What about your love life, Liv? It sounds like Sophie’s moving back to The States. Have you heard from her yet?”

Olivia’s face fell at the mention of that name. “What’s that supposed to mean? Where did you hear that?”

Whitney sighed, seemingly already regretful for bringing up the name that carried so many different emotions for Olivia. “I had lunch with Dana Kerry yesterday. Apparently they still keep in touch. She mentioned that Sophie and her husband are getting divorced… and she’s moving back.”

“Huh.” Olivia stared out the window, not knowing how to process what she had just heard. 

Sophie.

She was getting divorced.

And she was coming back. 

Olivia hadn’t seen or spoken to Sophie in over two years. The woman she had once loved more than anyone else in the world. The woman that had said ‘yes’ to Olivia the night she proposed during a candlelit dinner five years ago. The woman that had shattered Olivia’s heart six months before their wedding, leaving her blindsided and broken. The same woman that came back into her life two years ago, pulling Olivia back in, just to play the same cruel games and break her heart all over again. 

But Olivia was done with Sophie. She was done pining for a woman that had manipulated and lied to her more times than she could count. She was a different person now. She wouldn’t let Sophie pull her back into her orbit, just to send her crashing back down to earth as soon as she got bored again. 

“I’m sorry, Liv. I shouldn't have brought it up. I don’t know why I did,” Whitney offered apologetically, pulling Olivia out of her own head.

“No, it’s fine. I’m glad you told me.” Olivia ran a clammy hand through her short hair. 

Whitney stared back at her friend with a look that landed somewhere between sympathy and pity.

“I’m over her, Whitney. Honestly. After how things ended the last time…” Olivia trailed off, reliving the painful memory of the last time she had spoken to Sophie. She took in a breath before continuing. “I’m not going back there again. I can’t and I won’t,” she said with resolve. 

“Good. Because you don’t deserve that. No one does,” Whitney replied, placing a supportive hand on Olivia’s shoulder. “Just… be prepared, Liv. I’m sure she’s going to try to reach out sooner or later. She’s a creature of habit, so it’s only a matter of time.”

“Yeah, I’m sure you’re right.” Olivia sighed. “But you don’t need to worry about me. I’ve moved on.”

“Good,” Whitney said, giving Olivia a small smile. “So how are things going with the Indigo Lights account?” she asked, her tone reverting back to her casual lilt as she shifted the heavy conversation back to work.

“Things are going really well so far,” Olivia offered as she straightened up in her seat. “I’m glad you brought it up actually, I wanted to get your opinion on something.” 

Despite being thrown off by the mention of her ex, Olivia’s mind was able to quickly shift focus over to another woman that had recently been on her radar.

“Shoot,” Whitney said.

“You know that girl in graphic design? The one whose phone went off in the meeting this morning? I think her name is Nina maybe?” Olivia did her best to feign ignorance. She knew exactly who Nora was. She had noticed her in the office as soon as she started at Lexand. 

She’ll admit that she had been enamored with the young woman’s appearance from the moment she first saw her. The petite brunette, with her glowing golden skin and long chestnut waves - that Olivia now knew smelled of peach-scented shampoo, thanks to her getting perhaps a little too close to Nora this morning - had flitted through Olivia’s mind once or twice over the last few months she had been under the company’s employ. Okay, more than once or twice, but who’s counting? 

But in her short tenure with the company, Olivia had noticed that, not only was Nora aesthetically pleasing, to say the absolute least, she was also whip-smart and creative as hell. Two things that made her very good at her job, even if she did have some issues with time management from time to time. 

But Olivia hadn’t seriously entertained the thought of being with Nora in any way before today. Being a lifelong lesbian, Olivia considered her gaydar to be top-notch. Nora was quite femme-presenting and didn’t give off any of the obvious signs of being a member of the alphabet mafia, so Olivia just assumed they played for opposing teams. 

But could Olivia have misread her? Their interaction in the elevator this morning was an interesting one for sure. Olivia was positive she had seen Nora scanning her body up and down when she thought Olivia wasn’t looking. And then in the meeting, before the phone incident, Olivia couldn’t keep her eyes off Nora. And the way she blushed the most enticing shade of deep red when Olivia locked eyes with her… There was something there, right? She hadn’t just imagined it? 

Whitney narrowed her eyes as she looked back at her friend. “Yeah… Nora. What about her?” Whitney asked skeptically. Olivia should have known that she couldn’t get anything past her best friend. 

Olivia, unwilling to let down her facade, ignored Whitney’s suspicious response to her question and stuck to her pretense. “I was just wondering,” she said with an impressively casual shrug of her shoulders. “She does good work. I’ve been thinking about bringing her on to the Indigo account. I think she’d be a good fit.” 

Indigo Lights was one of Lexand’s newest clients. They were a small, local cannabis distributor that was looking to expand their reach across the entire state, meaning online campaigns and possible billboard and magazine ads. Nora was young and talented, a little quirky even. She would fit right in with the eclectic start-up.

“That’s all? You just think she’d be good for the new campaign? No other reason you brought her up?”

“What do you mean?” Olivia asked. Her simulated nonchalance began to falter as she broke eye contact with Whitney, instead choosing to focus on her short, manicured nails. 

“Nothing…” Whitney replied, a mischievous smile blooming across her face. “I’m sure this has nothing at all to do with the fact that I saw you talking to her in the hallway this morning… grinning like a smitten idiot.” 

Olivia rolled her eyes. “I was not grinning. And I certainly am not smitten,” she said as her chest and neck succumbed to the pink flush creeping its way across her skin. “Yes, she’s cute, I won’t deny that, but I do have some self-control, thank you.” 

“Okay.” Whitney raised her hands in surrender, although she clearly didn’t buy for a second that Olivia wasn’t crushing on the young graphic artist. “I agree, I think she’d do a great job with Indigo.” After a moment, Whitney added, “...Just be careful, Liv.”

“There’s nothing to be careful of.” Liar!

“I trust you,” Whitney said in all sincerity. She looked down at her phone, noticing the time. “Oh, I’ve got to go! I have a meeting with accounting in ten.” She rose from her seat, gathering the trash leftover from their lunch. 

“See you later!” Whitney called over her shoulder as she sauntered out the door. 

“Bye!” Olivia said back as she hopped up from the table, making her way back to her desk. 

Olivia lowered herself into her chair and opened her laptop. She hesitated, her fingers hovering over the keys for a few seconds as she contemplated her next move. She let out a sigh as she started typing and, almost immediately, Nora Bennet’s company profile popped up on her screen. 

There she was, her security photo surprisingly stunning. I didn’t think it was possible for anyone to actually look good in these pictures. Nora’s face filled Olivia’s laptop screen. Her megawatt smile and bright brown eyes tied a knot around Olivia’s stomach. She felt the corners of her mouth curl up into an involuntary smile as she reached over to the intercom on her desk, calling for her assistant.

“Yes, Ms. Andersen?” 

Olivia rolled her eyes slightly at her executive assistant, Andrew. No matter how many times she insisted he call her by her first name, he always reverted back to the more formal ‘Ms. Andersen.’ She hated when people called her that. “Andrew, will you please ask Nora Bennet to come to my office for a moment?”

“Of course, Ms. Andersen. Right away.” 

A few minutes later a knock rapped on Olivia’s office door. Andrew poked his sandy blond head in. “Ms. Andersen? Ms. Bennet is here to see you.” 

“Thank you, Andrew,” Olivia said. “Please send her in.”

Olivia stood from her desk chair as Nora entered her office. She couldn’t help but let her gaze fall to Nora’s perfectly toned and tanned legs, the bottoms of soft, shapely thighs poking out from the hem of her light pink skirt. Olivia forced her focus up to Nora’s face, giving her a warm smile, as she gestured for her to take a seat in the chair opposite her desk. 

“Hello again, Nora. I hope your day has gotten better since this morning,” Olivia said with a slight smirk as she sat back down behind her desk.

Olivia watched as Nora’s face flushed red, causing her smirk to grow slightly. “Yes, it’s definitely getting better,” Nora said with a shy chuckle. 

“Glad to hear it.” Olivia leaned back in her chair, crossing her legs and draping each wrist over their respective armrests. “Hopefully I can make it even better,” Olivia said, not realizing how inadvertently seductively she had said that until the words were already out of her mouth. Nora stared back at her with wide eyes, her lips falling open slightly. Shit! 

Doing her best to ignore the awkwardness, Olivia sat up straight in her chair, adopting a more rigid pose, as she continued quickly, “I called you in here because I have an exciting opportunity to offer you. As you know, we’ve recently taken on Indigo Lights as a client. They’re looking to expand their business, so we’ll be putting together a whole new marketing campaign, including updated logos, advertising materials, packaging... the works. I’d like to bring you on to the project as the lead graphic designer. I think you would be a great addition to the team.” 

Nora beamed up at Olivia, a wide, pearly white smile sending tingles through Olivia’s chest. “Really? Thank you so much!” However, Nora’s obvious excitement was short-lived.

Olivia watched, confused as Nora’s smile faded slightly and her eyebrows knit together. “Is something wrong? We can find someone else if you’re not interested-”

“No!” Nora cut her off. “Um… I’m just…” Nora sighed and looked at Olivia with wide brown eyes that now shone pure amber in the rays of the afternoon sun. “You’re not just giving me this job because you feel sorry for me, are you? For what happened this morning?” she asked with a self-deprecating laugh. 

“No,” Olivia replied firmly. “Not at all. I’m giving you this job because I think you’re the best person for it. You’re creative and smart and I’m excited to see what you’ll bring to the table.” Olivia couldn’t stop her lips from curling into a small smile. 

“Okay. Thank you,” Nora replied so earnestly that Olivia couldn’t tell if Nora was simply being humble or if she even believed Olivia’s words at all. 

“You’re welcome.” Olivia waited a beat before adding, “And I mean that, Nora. You’re really talented. I’m looking forward to getting to work with you.” 

Olivia delighted in the intense flush that overtook Nora’s cheeks. “Thanks. I’m really looking forward to working with you too, Olivia,” Nora replied, a sweet smile spreading across her cheeks. 

The air around the two women suddenly felt charged. Olivia’s eyes drifted to Nora’s full, soft lips. Images of Olivia kissing those lips filled her brain, conjuring thoughts of a different set of lips that Olivia longed to devour. This is so inappropriate!

Suddenly, Oliva rose from her chair and rounded her desk, standing right in front of Nora. Nora looked up at her, her eyes widening intensely.

“Great! I’m pretty booked up this week, but I’ll have Andrew set up a meeting for next week. We’ll get the whole team together and meet with the clients to go over the details,” Olivia said as she stretched out her palm to shake Nora’s hand.

Nora seemed startled for a moment before popping out of her seat. She reached out, placing her hand into Olivia’s, giving it a firm squeeze. “Sounds good! Thanks again,” Nora said, giving Olivia one last glance before turning to leave. 

As Nora walked toward the door, Olivia couldn’t keep her eyes off the younger woman’s backside, her hips swaying slightly with each step, practically begging Olivia to take a peek. As soon as the door closed behind Nora, Olivia leaned back on her desk. Her hand pushed through her blond locks as she let out an exasperated sigh. 

“God, I’m fucked!” she whispered to herself.

Chapter 3

Nora

“...And I swear, there was this, like… energy happening between us. I don’t know how else to explain it.” Nora lay, sprawled out on her bed, phone in hand as she recounted the events of her strange day to her cousin Charlotte over a video call. “But then she just shook my hand and that was that.” Nora sighed heavily as she contemplated. “I probably just imagined all of it. There’s no way she could be interested in me.”

“Why wouldn’t she be interested in you? You said she was gay, right?” Charlotte asked with her thick southern drawl.

Nora rolled her eyes dramatically. “Charlie! Just because she’s a lesbian, doesn’t mean she’s automatically attracted to every woman she encounters.” 

“Shut up. That’s not what I meant,” Charlotte said with a sigh. “I just meant, why would you think that she couldn’t possibly be attracted to you? You’re cute! She could do a lot worse… she could also do so much better, but…” Charlotte trailed off as she broke out into a smile, her freshly dyed, baby pink curls bouncing up and down as she laughed on Nora’s phone screen.  

Nora threw her head back with a groan. “But she could though! That’s the point. She’s literally the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen in my life,” Nora whined into her phone. “Plus she’s like, a bazillionaire. What the hell could she possibly want with someone like me?”

“Eleanora Bennet! Respectfully, you need to shut the fuck up! I know you hate hearing this, but you are beautiful, and funny, and you’re the smartest person I know.” Charlotte's tone shifted to become more serious. “You’re one of the only people we grew up with that’s actually gotten out of this bumfuck town. You always talked about it and then you actually did it. That’s huge, sugar!” 

Charlotte could be such a stereotypical Southern Belle sometimes. She loved using terms of endearment like ‘babe,’ ‘sugar,’ or ‘pumpkin.’ Nora always acted like she hated it, but, secretly, she loved it. A fact she would never admit to her cousin, who always felt the need to mother Nora for some reason. Although, at twenty-six, Charlotte was two years younger than Nora. But that was a lie though. Nora knew exactly why Charlotte felt the need to coddle her. 

“I know you had a few bumps along the way,” Charlotte continued. “But look at where you are now. You’re thriving. And, honestly, I couldn’t be more proud of you. So don’t say that you don’t have anything to offer, because we both know that’s not true.” Charlotte’s face softened as she pointed her finger directly at her phone camera. “ And I find it personally insulting when you say such disparaging things about yourself. I will not sit by and let you say those things about my best friend.”

Nora couldn’t help but smile as she waved her cousin off. “Whatever.” 

“So, in the meantime, until your hot boss realizes she’s in love with you, why don’t you try out some dating apps? Get your mind off her. I’m sure you’ll have much better luck finding a nice girl in a big city like that than down south.”

Nora couldn’t help but roll her eyes again. If her cousin wasn’t coddling her, she was trying to set her up with someone. Nora thought that might have changed when she finally told Charlotte she was interested in women, but no. It barely even slowed her down. Every time Nora went home to visit, Charlotte would have a list of girls to set her up with. 

But wasn’t Nora just thinking about how she needed to put herself out there again? How she wanted to find someone special?

 That may be true, but it’s so much easier said than done. The idea of dating apps, meeting up with strangers who were likely lying on their profiles anyway? She knew that was really the only way to meet people anymore, but God, did that sound awful.

But before Nora had a chance to say anything on the subject, Charlotte spoke again, her face and voice taking on a more somber tone. “Seriously Nora, you’re up there in the city all by yourself…” Charlotte took in a deep breath, seemingly contemplating her next words. “I worry about you sometimes. I can’t help it, I just… I don’t want you to isolate yourself. I remember what happened that last time you were alone like this-”

“This is nothing like that!” Nora interrupted, suddenly on edge, the hairs raising on the back of her neck while her free hand curled into a fist. “You know that Charlie! Things were so different back then. I don’t know why you’re even bringing it up!” Nora roared defensively. 

Charlotte was the only person in the world that knew what Nora had gone through. She was the one that Nora had called the night that things took a turn for the worse. The one that dropped everything and came to Nora’s aid, even when Nora didn’t deserve her help.

Charlotte let the silence hang in the air for a moment before replying. “You’re right, hon. I’m sorry. I just… I love you. And I don’t want you to let the things that happened to you in the past get in the way of you living your life. To get in the way of you being happy.”

Nora took a deep breath to calm herself. “I know,” she said, her blood cooling. “I don’t want that either. It’s just hard, you know?” Nora could feel her throat growing tight and the burn of tears pricking the backs of her eyes. 

Even though Charlotte knew most of the details of what had happened all those years ago, Nora had never told her the true extent of her disintegration. The real reason for the shame she still felt to this day. That was something Nora had decided to keep to herself. Something she had to carry on her own. 

“Sometimes, I feel like I don’t deserve… love?... happiness?” Nora explained, a hot tear blazing a trail down her cheek. “I know that’s not true.” Nora shrugged - a gesture of defeat - as she let more tears fall. “But knowing something and actually believing it are two very different things. I’m just not sure that I could ever trust someone again. Not after what he put me through…”

“That makes sense,” Charlotte offered comfortingly. “I can’t imagine how scary that must be. And I don’t want you to feel like I’m pushing you to do something you’re not ready for. No one can make that decision but you. And whatever you decide to do, I’m gonna support you no matter what, babe.”

“I know. I appreciate that Char.” Nora hesitated. “And I have been kind of thinking about putting myself out there lately anyway. So maybe I just need to do it. Rip the band-aid off, I guess.”

“Yes!” Charlotte agreed emphatically, her tone shifting, and the tension of the last few minutes fading away. Charlotte had an amazing way of turning people’s moods around at the drop of a hat. Nora was grateful for that quality of hers right now. “And I’m not saying you need to get married or anything. But it might be fun to go on a few dates, see what happens. We’ll have you buried in pussy in no time!”

“Jesus Christ, Charlotte! Please do not ever say that again,” Nora said while making a fake gagging sound. 

And just like that, the two women fell into fits of giggles; Nora’s tears of sadness turning into tears of laughter.

Just then, Nora’s cat, Tony, jumped onto the bed, climbing up onto her stomach. He pawed at her, whining for his dinner, his fluffy gray tail blocking the view of her phone screen. 

“Hi buddy! Are you hungry?” Nora asked in the baby voice she reserved exclusively for her favorite living creature in the entire world. “Just in time, because you’re Aunt Charlie was saying some very very gross things to your mama.”

Nora couldn’t see the screen behind Tony, but she heard Charlotte blow a juicy raspberry into the phone. Nora let out a deep belly laugh at the sound. 

“Alright, I’m gonna go. Thanks for the pep talk Char, but my boy’s gotta eat!” Nora scratched Tony’s favorite spot underneath his chin. “You’re practically skin and bones, aren’t you, my sweet boy?” she said as Tony purred like a jet engine. 

“Hah!” Charlotte balked into the phone after that last comment. “Skin and bones my ass! Can you even breathe under that whale?” Charlotte gasped on the other end of the phone. “See? I told you you’d be buried in pussy!”

“He’s just fluffy!” Nora cried defensively, ignoring that last part. “Don’t you dare body shame my son, you hag! I’m hanging up on you now! I love you,” Nora added before tapping the red button to end the call, effectively cutting off Charlotte’s hysterical laughter on the other end of the line. 

Nora picked up Tony, placing him gently on the ground before jumping off the bed. She made her way over to the kitchenette portion of her small studio, Tony close at her heels, nearly tripping her up with every step. 

She opened the cabinet and pulled out a small blue bowl shaped like a fish and two cans of cat food. Holding one can in each hand, she bent at the waist and presented them both to Tony as she did for him every night. 

“Okay buddy, what are we having tonight, huh? Chicken or salmon?” 

She held the cans out for him. He inevitably just chose whichever can was closest to him every time, but Nora still liked the idea of giving him the option. I get to choose what I have for dinner every night. Why shouldn’t he get a say in his? 

He sniffed the can in her right hand. “Salmon it is!” she announced. “Good choice, dude!” 

Nora dished up the cat food and set the bowl down on the floor. 

With Tony chomping away at his dinner, Nora meandered back to her bed, flopping herself down on the mattress. Reaching across the bed, she picked up her phone off the nightstand. She opened up the app store and found a popular dating app. She hesitated, her finger hovering over the little arrow-shaped download button. Letting out a pent-up breath, she tapped the small icon, downloading the app to her phone. 

“Here we go,” Nora said to herself.