Roz tilted her head, as if she was trying to think of what else we could do.
An idea struck me. That seemed harmless enough. “Perhaps if you said something funny?—”
“If?” Roz interjected, an expression of fake hurt in her face. “Don’t you mean when?”
“Haha,” I replied, rolling my eyes.
Roz wagged her finger. “Definitely don’t roll your eyes at me. That doesn’t scream ‘I love my girlfriend.’”
“Well, I don’t know, some couples like teasing each other. Maybe that’s us.” I arched an eyebrow. “Anyway, what I was saying is that if you said something funny, I could put my hand on your shoulder, look adoringly at you and laugh, like this.”
I reached out and patted Roz’s shoulder, letting out a forced laugh. Roz grimaced.
“Sorry. That wasn’t great, was it?” I pressed my lips together.
Roz snorted. “It reminded me of my grandpa slapping me on the back when I was a kid.”
“Grandpa is definitely not what I was going for.” I brushed a piece of egg off my jeans.
“Okay, let’s try that again,” I said. “But it would help if you said something funny for real.”
“Hmmm, the stakes are high. You want me to say something a-moo-sing?” Roz said, her lips twitching.
“Oh my god,” I groaned. “As your friend, I need to tell you…. That was terrible.” I laughed again, and this time I rubbed my hand more gently on Roz’s back. It felt warm and strong and suddenly, I had the urge to run my hand lower, to wrap my arm around her waist.
Roz held my gaze. “That’s good, except for the fake laugh. But I’m sure whatever I say will be so hilarious you won’t need to fake it.”
I laughed for real this time.
“There you go.” Roz leaned back, arms folded in triumph.
The space around me grew cold. “What else?”
She bit her lip, eyes skating over me. “Sometimes your hair sort of falls down beside your face. Would it be too much if I leaned over and tucked it behind your ear?”
A warm glow lit in my belly. “That would be sweet.”
She leaned over and brushed a strand of hair out of my face. It was such a small gesture, but her fingers skimmed my cheek and then my ear, sending a shiver down my spine. Our eyes locked.Shit. What would it feel like if she bit down on my lobe?Olivia, get a hold of yourself. Friends didn’t have these thoughts. It had only been fifteen minutes since we’d agreed to be friends, and I was already failing miserably at it.
Roz pulled back as if I’d given her an electric shock. “Of course, given the circumstances, with Fred being a potential business partner, he wouldn’t expect us to be all over each other in front of him.”
“That’s true.” I couldn’t blink, my eyes still locked on hers.
“If we were standing…” Roz continued, rising to her feet.
My breath hitched.Standing like we had against the restroom wall at Pryde, her body pressing against mine. My eyes flickered to her lips.Stop it, Olivia. Don’t look there.But…
Roz held a hand out to me. “Would you be okay with a kiss on the cheek or if I wrapped my arm around you?”
“Yes.” My throat thickened as she pulled me to my feet, my legs wobbly. “Do you… Do you want to practice that?”
“It’s probably a good idea.” Roz’s blue eyes shone, her breath quickening.
My pulse raced as we each took a step forward, drawing close.It’s all the caffeine I just swallowed.
A cough pierced the silence. “Good morning.”
Roz and I jerked apart.
