“Oh, I love it.” Gianna had found Megan’s second-favorite subject (as long as she could forget about Joe and Karen), and she started telling her all about the different customers she’d had this week, and how excited some of them had been. She didn’t even slow down until the server returned with another plate piled high.
“I’m really sorry about that,” the server said, sliding the dish in front of Megan. “The chef used the wrong sauce the first time. This one is correct, and the dish is on the house.”
Megan started to say that wasn’t necessary, then held her tongue; she wasn’t the one paying for the meal. Gianna thanked the server and she left.
Megan tried her new dish; it was much better, much more what she’d been expecting. She shoveled some shrimp into her mouth.
“I wasn’t sure if you liked your job,” Gianna said. “You seemed so nervous when I came in yesterday.”
Megan swallowed and tried not to blush. “Uh, I was just afraid my bosses would overhear and realize that I knew you. I might have gotten in trouble for being too friendly with a customer. We’re just supposed to get money out of you.” She was trying to put a lighthearted spin on her nerves, but she didn’t think she was succeeding very well.
Gianna rolled her eyes. “You were the very essence of professionalism. If you got in trouble, I’ll go kick their butts.”
Megan snorted and promptly had to take a big gulp of water to wash the alfredo sauce back down her throat. “Their butts? Oh, right, you’re a kindergarten teacher.” She felt warmed by the threat, even if it was oddly phrased, even if it wasn’t serious. She hoped it wasn’t serious. Kicking Karen’s and Joe’s butts wouldn’t solve a single problem in her life and would probably cause a lot more.
“My tongue does loosen a bit playing derby.”
“Oh, I noticed that.” Megan leered. Gianna snorted into her wine. Oh, good, this time she’d actually managed to get her jokey innuendo to come out right.
She sipped her wine. She hoped it wasn’t going to her head too much. “This really is good,” she said.
“I noticed that. I’ll make a proper wine lover of you yet.”
Megan raised her eyebrows. “If you keep plying me with wine, you may get a different kind of lover.” Her heart was beating hard. She couldn’t believe she was making so much sexual innuendo, especially when she was at least half serious about it. Gianna was gorgeous—she ached to touch her again.
Gianna’s teasing smile came out, the lopsided one she’d used when she was flirting with Megan at the afterparty. “Educational purposes only. I would never take advantage of a lady’s drunken state.”
Megan wasn’t sure whether she was serious or not, and didn’t want to ask, for fear of what the answer would be. Did that mean that, since Gianna had bought wine, she didn’t want to sleep with Megan? Or if she was joking, would that mean she did want to sleep with Megan?
Megan was having a good time, but she wasn’t sure she wanted to go that far yet.
Okay, parts of her were sure. But her mind and heart needed full trust, whatever her body was saying, and she didn’t think she was there yet.
“How are you single?” she managed to ask, even though it wasn’t a very good question.
“You’re just lucky, I guess,” Gianna said with a grin.
“Please,” Megan said, scooping up a forkful of pasta. “Maybe if you were getting laid on a regular basis, you’d have less energy on the track. That would be lucky for me.” She shoved the pasta in her mouth before she could offer to test her hypothesis.
“You wish,” Gianna said, making a brushing-off gesture with her hand. “How do we keep getting back on the subject of roller derby?”
“It’s my favorite topic. And it is how we met.”
“All right, what else do you like to do?”
“What else?” Megan asked, surprised enough by the question that she spoke with her mouth half-full of pasta.
“Yeah. In your free time.” Gianna smirked. “You know—Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays, after work when you’re not practicing roller derby? And don’t say go on dates, because you were way too surprised when I asked you out for this to be a regular occurrence for you.”
Megan swallowed, trying to think of an answer to Gianna’s question. What did she do? It had been dates, for a while—or, more often, staying home in the evenings with Cari. But she didn’t live with Cari anymore, she was safe, and at the moment she couldn’t remember at all what she did with her time on those days off.
“Uh, you know, the usual,” she said.
“The usual what?”
“Beer. Netflix. On Sundays I’ll usually go grocery shopping, make my lunches for the week. Sometimes I actually clean.”
“You don’t have any hobbies?”
Megan shrugged. “With roller derby, who has the time? What about you?”
Gianna sighed and lifted her wine glass in a mock toast. “You got me. Between roller derby and teaching, there isn’t really time for anything else.”
“You can’t have homework to grade.”
“Rarely, but I have to plan my lessons, keep in touch with parents, do professional development—there’s more to keep up with than you’d expect.”
“I don’t believe you.” Megan glanced down at her plate, wondering if she dared shove more into her face. It was delicious, but she had to stop if she wanted room for dessert. “It’s summer. You told me yourself that school doesn’t start for a couple more weeks. What do you do with your time?”
“Ask pretty girls out on dates.”
Megan rolled her eyes. “Are we getting dessert, or should I eat another bite?”
“Dessert. I’m desperate for their salted caramel pudding. I’m surprised you want to change the subject.” Gianna rested her elbows on the table and her chin on her hands, leaning forward as though interested in what Megan had to say. It was probably just a coincidence that it framed her incredible depth of cleavage so well.
“You don’t want to answer the question.”
“You gave up quickly. It’s not like you.”
Megan crossed her arms. “How do you know what’s like me and what isn’t?”
“You never give up when it comes to roller derby.”
“And I thought you asked me on this date to try to figure out the paradoxes in my personality. I never promised to make it easy for you.”
Gianna laughed a wonderful guffaw, then turned to the server, who had managed to time her appearance perfectly. “Salted caramel pudding and two spoons, please.”
“Of course,” said the server. “Do you want these boxed to go?”
“Yes, please,” Megan said. Gianna nodded, and the server took both dishes.
Gianna pushed the top of the cork down into the wine bottle. “I guess we’ll just have to go on another date, then, so that I can unpack your personality a little bit more.”
“I guess we will,” Megan said, her heart pounding again. She didn’t know if she was doing the right thing. But a second date couldn’t hurt any more than the first one had, could it? And the only thing this date was hurting was the elasticity in her stomach.
“How about a picnic lunch on Sunday? I’ll pick you up and we can sit in the park if the weather’s nice. You can make us sandwiches or something.”
“Do you always take charge like this?”
“When I know what I want, I go for it.” Gianna lowered her head, looking at Megan with intense, dark eyes that seemed to bore into her. “And I want what I see right now.”
Megan’s mouth went dry. She had no idea what to say to that. She liked Gianna’s straightforwardness—she liked the way she took charge. But it made her nervous at the same time. She knew that she should be taking charge of her own destiny, making her own decisions, but it was impossible to resist Gianna.
This was still making her own decisions, though, wasn’t it? She was making a decision to continue dating Gianna. To see where it went.
“I still think th
is is strange,” she said, the words flowing out of her in a rush. “Just sitting together like this. Not trying to compete with each other.”
“How many of your dates have been competitive?”
Megan shook her head, trying to dislodge memories. Cari had never been competitive; she hadn’t needed to. “That’s not what I mean. It’s not because we’re on a date, it’s because we’re on opposite teams.”
“I thought that was what made it fun.”
“Oh, it is.” Megan remembered playing against Gianna on the track, trying to get past her, but instead slamming into her curvy body over and over. She also remembered making out with her after the game. She wasn’t sure which was better.
The server set down the pudding on the table between them, with two spoons beside it. Megan and Gianna both reached for their spoons at the same time. Their fingers touched—and they’d touched before, but the unexpectedness of it, this time, sent electricity arcing up Megan’s fingers to her spine.
Her breath caught in her throat and she jerked her hand back. She wanted that feeling again, but she was afraid of it. And she didn’t understand why she should fear it; she’d touched Gianna plenty of times.
Gianna picked up one of the spoons and offered it, handle-first, to Megan. “Here, babe, you should try it first. I’ve had it before.”
Megan took the spoon nervously, making sure her fingers didn’t touch Gianna’s this time. Gianna seemed to be watching her as she dipped the spoon into the pudding in its glass cup.
As she brought the spoon to her mouth, she could see that Gianna was definitely watching her. Her cheeks warmed, and she tried to eat her bite of pudding off the spoon in a normal way, not putting any sexual spin on it. She wasn’t sure if she succeeded, from the way Gianna’s eyes brightened.
The moment the pudding hit her tongue, though, she forgot that Gianna was watching her at all, sighing inadvertently with pleasure. It was delicious, hitting the perfect spot between the bite of the salt and the cloy of the sugar. There was some weight to it, some texture, but mostly it slid down her throat with no resistance at all.
She eagerly attacked the cup again, scooping up a bigger spoonful this time. “This is delicious,” she said. “You’d better get some before I eat it all.”
Gianna laughed and picked up the other spoon. “I told you to leave room for dessert.”
“You may have to roll me out of here, but I have room. I’m just glad I didn’t wear jeans today.”
“Mine are stretchy,” Gianna said with a wink. “They have to be, to make it over my ass.”
“It’s worth the trouble,” Megan said, then stuffed her mouth with pudding again.
“There’s the derby girl I met las week,” Gianna said, pointing at her with the spoon. “Maybe it’s just my ass that inspires all the sass.”
Megan shook her head, keeping her mouth shut even though the pudding was mostly gone. This food didn’t last long enough.
The server came with their boxes and the check, which Gianna paid without looking at it. Megan tried not to raise her eyebrows at that. Presumably, Gianna came here a lot, so she already had a sense of what the prices were like. But—
“Don’t you want to at least check that my entrée was free, like they said?” she blurted.
Gianna’s eyebrows lifted a fraction, making her nose look long and Roman. “Why? I trust them to tell me the truth.”
“I just thought… you’d want to make sure. You come here a lot, though, don’t you? You seem to know people.”
Gianna smirked. “It’s a family thing. My dad’s cousin is the owner. I doubt he’s here today, but my parents would probably have told him I was coming.”
“Oh.” Megan looked around the restaurant, curious now. Gianna was related to someone who owned something this fancy? “You have connections, huh?”
“Dusty isn’t related, if that’s what you’re thinking. I just go to the shop a lot. They have good books for my classroom, and for me to take a break from kindergarten stuff.”
“Oh, that’s what I figured. This place just seems really fancy. Does your family have money?”
“They’re well-off, mostly. Not super rich. My parents spoil me a little.” Gianna shrugged broadly. “A place like this runs pretty tightly, but my dad’s cousin owns three or four restaurants, I think. You’re not accusing me of mob connections, are you?”
Megan grinned. “Please. If you had that, you could just threaten your way into winning every derby game.”
“That would take all the fun out of it.” When Gianna’s card came back, she pocketed it and stood up, stretching her arms over her head. Megan decided that staring at the curves and ripples of her body was not rude—Gianna had asked her out, after all.
Gianna finished her stretch, grinned at Megan, and held out her hand. “Ready to get out of here?”
It was getting late. Megan scraped the last tiny bit of caramel pudding out of the cup and let Gianna help her up. Her hand was warm and firm, and she was strong, pulling Megan up without much help—not a surprise.
They took their food and headed toward the entrance. The sky outside was dark. The maître d’ and Gianna nodded to each other as they left.
Gianna took in a deep breath of the warm summer air. “Only a couple more weeks of relaxation like this. Then the school year starts again.”
“You can always do stuff on a Friday night, can’t you?” Megan asked.
“Yes, but I can’t relax as much. I always think about the prep I could be doing. Oh, well.” She threw Megan a teasing grin. “Only thirty-seven more years and I’m eligible for a nice, cushy pension.”
Megan thought of her own puny 401(k) match and grinned back. “Maybe I should marry you. That gets me the pension even if you die, doesn’t it?”
“Please. You think you’d be able to get away with that?” Gianna elbowed Megan lightly in the side, then started walking back toward the car.
“I could make it look like an accident.” Megan could keep up with Gianna easily—her legs were practically twice as long. “Especially if you keep playing derby. Oops, I accidentally kicked you into a wall.”
“You couldn’t kill me that way. I’m resilient. You see this?” Gianna slapped her chest. “Protective padding.”
Megan stared at Gianna’s chest even more blatantly than she had been before. “Is that what it’s for? Could’ve fooled me.”
“It helps with getting pretty girls to go out on dates with me, too.” Gianna unlocked the car, and Megan slid into the passenger seat, holding her still-warm leftovers in her lap.
Talking with Gianna was easier when she didn’t think so hard. She just riffed off whatever Gianna was saying, even if she didn’t mean it, and she hoped Gianna didn’t, either.
Of course, now that she’d noticed that, she was tongue-tied again. Gianna started the car, and they sat in silence as she maneuvered back into traffic. The lights of the city were coming on as the day darkened.
“I hope that awkward silence doesn’t mean I did anything wrong,” Gianna finally said.
Megan swallowed. “Nope. Sorry, it’s just me. I’m awkward.”
“You don’t seem awkward to me.”
Megan shook her head, though she didn’t know if Gianna could see her movement very well. “I know what I’m doing when it comes to derby. The rest of the time? I’m just flailing about. Besides, I contain multitudes, remember?”
Gianna laughed. “Sure, Walt. Speaking of which, where am I taking you?”
“Uh, definitely not over the bridge. Right direction, though. I live in Northern Liberties.”
“Oh, okay. Let me know where to turn when we’re getting close.” Gianna accelerated, changing lanes, but had to put the brakes on almost immediately at a red light.
“Wow, you’re a lot less convenient than an Uber. They always know where they’re taking me.”
Gianna snorted. “But they don’t feed you. You don’t have your own car?”
“Never felt the nee
d. The bus gets me to work and the El gets me to derby. Other people’s cars get me a lot of places, too. Also, I’m paying off my student loans a lot faster without a car payment on top of it.”
“Damn, smartypants. I wish I was as smart as you.”
Megan laughed a little. “I work at a trampoline park and you’re a teacher. I think you’re a lot smarter than me.”
“Maybe I am. My loans are getting forgiven, as long as I stick with this school. The car loan, though, no way.”
“Well, as long as you’re not racking up credit-card debt, I think we’re both doing pretty well.”
“Derby broke me of my shopping habit. Now I only buy what I need, because I get my kicks on skates instead.”
“Me, too!” Megan was oddly surprised—had she and Gianna really had the same addiction, shopping to suppress other needs? She just hoped they didn’t have the same ex-girlfriend, which could get really awkward. “I used to buy a new dress or three every month, but now I can’t believe how full my closet is.”
“PMS shopping?”
“Uh, yeah.” That was an oversimplification—and it hadn’t been Megan’s cycle that had driven her to shop. But she didn’t want to get into her history with Gianna. Not now, maybe not ever. She was having fun, but that wasn’t the same thing as spilling all her secrets.
Luckily, she was able to change the subject by giving Gianna directions to her apartment. Soon they were pulling up in front of it. The lights were on bright on the first floor; the dancers were having another party. “Nice house,” Gianna commented.
“Thanks. I just have the second floor.” Megan bit her tongue before explaining that she lived alone. She didn’t want Gianna to take that as an invitation to come inside.
Of course, if Gianna was the one to suggest it, she didn’t think she could say no. But right now, she was not ready to be the one to make the first move.
Gianna did put the car in park and unbuckle her seatbelt, but what she said was, “Let me grab your books for you.”
Crash Into You Page 5
