“Girl, why are you treating this like it’s a life or death decision?” She’d told Kendra about Cherry’s invitation when she’d first arrived. She’d also told her last night about the previous day’s kissing. Honestly, you’d have thought she told Kendra she’d won the lottery, the way she cheered and celebrated. “I’ve been there. It’s not fancy. Just a bar. With drinks. You go, you have a drink. You see your girl. If you’re not having fun—which I doubt will be the case, but if you’re not—you leave. Easy peasy.”
“Lemon squeezie,” Ellis added with a soft smile, recalling what she and Michaela used to say as kids.
“Exactly.”
Ellis looked at Kendra, this woman who’d become one of her very dearest friends in the world. She looked at Michaela, her unseeing blue eyes staring up at the ceiling, and felt the decision being made, almost as if it was out of her hands. “All right. I’ll go.”
Kendra clapped her hands together once. “Fantastic.” She tipped her head to one side. “I’m proud of you. I know that wasn’t easy. Or peasy. Or lemon squeezie. At least not for you.”
“It disturbs me how you know me so well,” Ellis said with a grin. But the truth was, she was relieved to have the decision made. It was just a bar. Just a drink. Nothing fancy. Nothing pressing. It would just be fun. A nice break from—
“I swear I can hear the wheels in your brain turning,” Kendra interrupted. “Go. Now.”
“But—”
“Go.” Kendra laughed even as she grabbed Ellis by the shoulders and steered her out the door. “Have a great time, and tell us all about it tomorrow.” With that, she gave her a final nudge out the doorway of Michaela’s room.
Ellis turned back, held her arms out to the sides, and wrinkled her nose. “Do I look okay?” She wore jeans and a lightweight yellow sweater. Black booties. Her hair was down. “I could go home and change…”
“You look fabulous, sweetheart.” Kendra reached out, fluffed the ends of Ellis’s hair. “I mean that. Her eyes are gonna light up when she sees you.”
“You think?”
“I know.”
“Thanks, Kendra.” She gave her a big hug, inhaling her spicy scent, then let her go.
“I expect a full report tomorrow.”
“Yes, ma’am.” She turned and headed for the parking lot, and as she walked, she felt a smile blossoming on her face like the sun peeking out from behind a cloud. She was going to see Cherry now. No, it wasn’t technically a date, but that didn’t matter. She was going to see her, and that’s all she wanted.
v
Coasters wasn’t fancy at all, but it had great lighting. It was one of the places Cherry liked to take photos the most because everything had this cool shimmer to it, bathed in an ethereal blue light. Shea had spotted a friend immediately and bopped over to say hi, so Cherry set her vodka tonic on the bar next to an art-deco-inspired napkin holder, blurred the background on her phone, and took a couple cool shots for future posting, the yellow from the lemon wedge adding a nice pop of color.
“Are you one of those people who documents every single thing they eat or drink?” The voice was unexpectedly close and sent an unexpectedly sexy shiver up her spine.
Cherry turned to meet sparkling blue eyes, made even more shimmery by the bar’s lighting. “I mean, how else am I to remember what I ate or drank?” They smiled at each other, and the seconds seemed to slow—tick, tick, tick—before Ellis’s face softened and she spoke.
“Hi, you.”
“Hi yourself,” Cherry said back, and something about Ellis’s presence, her proximity, seemed to calm the world around her. Everything just…relaxed. Which was weird and also impossible, right? How could one person show up and settle everything so easily? Yeah, she was making it up. Had to be. “Want a drink?”
Ellis nodded and scanned the bar, and Cherry watched her make eye contact with Adam, who smiled and scooted over to them.
“Adam, this is Ellis. Ellis, this is Adam, one of my roommates.”
They shook hands and Adam asked what he could get her.
“A rum and Coke?”
“You got it.”
“On my tab, Ad,” Cherry said, and he nodded without looking back as he grabbed the Bacardi off the shelf. Ellis opened her mouth, likely to protest, but Cherry stopped her with a hand on her arm. “I invited you. I buy.”
“Oh, is that how it works?”
“That’s how it works, yes.” And more eye contact. Deliciously direct and sexy eye contact. She gave herself a mental shake and turnedto put both forearms on the bar. “And how is my boyfriend, Nugget?” she asked as she took a sip of her drink.
