Lesbian Only Petals

by Tammy Compton

  Amanda felt like she had merely winked and it was already Thursday. She hadn’t been working for Tom for an entire week, and she was already trying to convince herself that quitting her job wasn’t worth it. Tom turned out to be worse than unpleasant.

  “Bring me a coffee,” he ordered her nearly every hour. “This one’s cold. Bring a new one,” he would say after she arrived, not even looking her in the face.

  “I’m taking a nap. If anyone asks, I’m in a very important meeting,” he grumbled as soon as he arrived in the middle of the morning. Because of course he always arrived late, and of course Amanda always arrived early and was forced to wait for him.

  “Let’s see, what do we have to do… This is boring, make Williams do it. This is too much work; you do it. This… I don’t understand this; I don’t know, make someone else do it,” he demanded day after day.

  Amanda was under the impression that Tom might have no idea what he was doing at all in his job. Worst was how he delegated his duties; he was selfish and nearly evil. He put specific tasks to people just because he knew they’d struggle with them.

  “I’m not here to make my employees’ lives easier, Miss Young. They’re here, so I don’t have to do my job,” he once told her.

  “Now, where’s my coffee?”

  Coffee. Coffee. Coffee. You’d think that with such an obsession with the beverage Tom would have a professional coffee machine inside his office. That would mean, though, that he’d have to make the coffee himself, even if that only meant pushing a button, or it would mean letting someone in his office – Amanda wasn’t allowed past those big wooden doors that kept Tom isolated from the rest of the world. He sent his orders through the phone, or they went through their routine of him not doing any work, in the small sort of second lobby he had before his office. This all meant that Amanda was forced to go down one floor to the recreational hall of the executives where they had their lunch, enjoyed their free time, anything. Of course, the place was full of the most outstanding coffee machines, so Amanda actually spent most of her day there, complaining to the innocent machines, ranting about her inconsiderate boss.

  “One more coffee. That one was cold. Amanda bring me my coffee. Coffee, coffee, I’m the coffee man, the heartless monarch of my coffee empire,” Amanda whispered.

  She was staring with a frown at the inoffensive machine as the coffee prepared itself. Amanda had her arms crossed in front of her, and she was grumbling, imitating Tom’s annoying voice.

  “I see things are tense in the coffee empire.”

  A voice came from beside Amanda, and she was so startled that she jumped at the noise.

  “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to scare you. I’m just really curious as to what did the coffee do to hurt you,” the woman said.

  She was, undoubtedly, the most stunning woman Amanda had ever seen. She was tall, slender, she was leaning against the counter and wearing that beautiful and expensive-looking suit as it was the most casual thing in the world. As if the unexpected sound of the velvety voice wasn’t enough to render Amanda speechless, when her eyes found the woman’s eyes, there was no going back, there was no way her brain would have been able to come up with words. The woman’s skin was pale and with only minimum makeup, but it wasn’t necessary. The sharp features, the impressive jawline, the neat short dark hair, the perfect eyebrows and of course, the gleaming green eyes, brighter than sapphires and more profound than any forest – Amanda could only stare.

  “I mean, we have done some impressive things here, but I think coffee machines that can hold a conversation are still, you know, not here yet,” the woman laughed, and the sound was captivating. “I’m sorry, I interrupted you, I’m being creepy, I’ll leave…”

  “No! No, it’s okay. It’s fine. I mean, I’m fine. The coffee… the coffee is fine. It’s just, you know, lots of coffee!” Amanda exclaimed

  She cringed at her own awkwardness, the woman laughed, and Amanda blushed, but she couldn’t help but notice it wasn’t a mean laugh, it sounded fond of her. So, Amanda smiled at her.

  “It’s just my boss. He drinks coffee as if his life depends on it,” she explained.

  “Ah,” the woman nodded in understanding. “You’re the poor girl that was sent to work for Tom, right?”

  Amanda could only sigh at that. How come no one warned her?

  “Hey, it’s okay, don’t take anything he does personally. He’s just a spoiled child with a suit, believe me,” the woman whispered and earned a laugh from Amanda. “He has no clue of what he’s doing. I bet you’d do his work better than he does… if you aren’t doing that already.”

  The insinuation was apparent in the air. The woman eyes weren’t judgmental, though, she looked knowing and sure of her words. Amanda smiled at her and barely stuttered out a response.

  “I’m just, you know, I bring him his coffee…” she shrugged, and the woman nodded, accepting the answer. “Which would be easier if he drank coffee like a normal person, you know? I swear the first day I had to write it down like a damn waitress to remember all the things he puts in his coffee. He’s like a teenage hipster.”

  The woman laughed, then, genuinely amused. Her laughed escaped from her gloriously, and it was one of Amanda’s proudest moments, she was also determined to make it happen again.

  “God, you’re funny,” the woman said, shaking her head. “I just take my coffee black.”

  After the woman shrugged at the cup she had been holding all this time, Amanda tilted her head, “Well, I take it just little sweeter than that.”

  “You’re sweet,” the woman complimented her. “Entirely too sweet to be working for Tom. You probably need a break from him already… so, speaking of coffee, what do you say if I invite you for one tomorrow, after work?”

  That was surprising, smooth and remarkably easy. Amanda had never encounter anyone like this woman. Her first instinct was to end up utterly speechless again, after all, she felt her heart about to burst out of her chest. Even in that state, though, Amanda knew she would never forgive herself if she ruined her chance with this woman.

  “Of course, yeah, I’d like that,” she replied.

  “Excellent. I’ll pick you up at your desk.”

  After that, the woman winked at Amanda and started to turn around. In an impressive and impulsive act, Amanda reached out to her and touched her arm.

  “Wait! Um, sorry, I didn’t get your name? My name’s Amanda Young.”

  Seeing Amanda’s cheerful smile and her extended hand, the woman felt her heart fill up at the sight. She stared at Amanda as if she was the prettiest, most precious mystery she could have ever found.

  “Pleased to meet you, my name’s Mallory,” she met Amanda’s hand with a friendly handshake. “Mallory Langdon. See you tomorrow.”

  In an instant, Mallory had walked away from the scene. Amanda had a disbelieving smile on her face; she was about to say “oh! That’s funny! You have the same name as the owners of the company!” Instead, she turned around and found that almost everyone was minding their own business. Although there was one man, of brown skin and a sharp suit, that was comically staring at her wide-eyed. When Amanda met his stare, he nodded, impressed. Yes, of course, she had been talking to Mallory Langdon, the billionaire daughter of the owner of the company and director of the production department. Amanda had a date with that woman.

  Chapter 2

  The next day was a Friday, and Amanda swore she had never felt so much anxiety before. Her brain could focus on one thing and one thing only: Mallory Langdon. Under normal circumstances, meeting Mallory would have left Amanda nearly as shaken as she was. Still, there was more than the ridiculous beauty and spellbinding charm. Mallory was the daughter of the owner of the company, Mallory was a billionaire, she was Amanda’s boss’ sister. It took Amanda a few hours of overthinking, but she finally convinced herself that maybe her interaction with Mallory was genuine and their chemistry wasn’t a dream – they genuinely had a date. Mallory, specifically,
had asked her out on a coffee date. Not like that simply thought wasn’t already distracting enough.

  Surprising herself, Amanda found the strength to survive her day. With her thoughts exclusively focusing on Mallory, she found herself immune to Tom’s usual annoying presence. Considering her boss wasn’t the most hard-working of humans and rarely stayed in his office until the day was over, Amanda was more than ready when Mallory came to pick her up, and what an experience that was.

  Amanda was still sitting at her desk when the door to Mallory’s office opened up. So, Amanda quickly stood up, but she was glad she still could lean on her desk for support, because the sight that greeted her was more than enough to make her knees go weak. Knowing they were going out for a casual coffee, Mallory had foregone the suit jacket and rolled up the sleeves of her crisp white shirt. Her short hair was neatly combed, she carried a slight smirk firmly in place, and her intense eyes were staring right at Amanda the whole way to her desk. Amanda felt absolutely breathless; she couldn’t believe the sight in front of her. Mallory, the most magnificent woman she could imagine, was slowly walking straight towards her, she was crossing the vast lobby with overflowing confidence, and her eyes never left Amanda.

  “Are you ready?” Mallory had the decency to ask, as if her alluring spectacle hadn’t completely crushed Amanda’s mind.

  “Not at all. But let’s go.”

  Amanda’s reply earned her one more joyful laugh from Mallory, and one more piercing arrow from Cupid through her heart.

  Of course, Mallory had a limousine waiting for her outside of the building. Of course, she had a couple of big and intimidating bodyguards following her every move. The world was aware that she, as well as her entire family, was a billionaire. Mallory, however, wasn’t exactly a celebrity. Even with the couple of bodyguards, she managed to easily walk around the street and enter a quaint little place for a cup of coffee with the beautiful woman she found herself so obsessed with.

  “After you,” Mallory said, attempting chivalry by opening the door for Amanda.

  She was not expecting the door to be stuck somehow and Amanda to have to reach out and actually open the door for both of them.

  “Don’t get out of your office often, do you, miss billionaire?” Amanda teased her.

  “Hey, you didn’t have to bring that up first chance you got. I’m sorry I’m – Excuse me!” Mallory almost knocked over a waiter on their way to a table. “I’m naturally clumsy,” she explained.

  Mallory looked flushed and relieved when she finally sat down. Equally, Amanda copied and exaggerated that relief, “Thank God, finding out that you are not entirely perfect kind of evens out our situation.”

  Mallory looked at her amusedly.

  “If you’re really that clumsy then our next date should be something like ice skating.”

  For a second there Mallory looked absolutely mortified, and Amanda started laughing, until, in an instant, Mallory recovered her innate confidence and said, “Planning our next date already, Miss Young?”

  “No, I, uh, should I go for our coffees?”

  “There’s no need, miss, that’s why I’m here for,” the waiter had arrived, “may I take your order?”

  Both women finally relaxed on their chairs, and when they got their drinks, they were already deep into a friendly conversation that revealed some of their lives. Mallory laughed along to any and every anecdote Amanda shared of her bad-tempered cat. In exchange, Amanda attempted and failed at keeping her laughs at bay at Mallory’s hilarious childhood stories about her annoying older brother.

  “He’s always been a loser; I can guarantee you that,” Mallory said and then sipped her coffee, “I kissed a girl before he did. I was thirteen, he’s ten years older than me and had never been in a date.”

  Mallory chuckled at her story, and Amanda was staring at her in the most adoringly way. She could easily picture it all, young Mallory, overconfident and magical in a way that made girls realize maybe they didn’t want to just kiss boys.

  “What about you?” Mallory asked her and made her snap from her Mallory-induced trance, “When did you first kiss a girl?”

  “Why do you assume I like women?”

  “Well, I’m sure I’ve been pretty obvious about my more-than-friendly intentions, and you’ve happily complied this far so, when did it happen?”

  Mallory’s boldness swept Amanda off her feet again and again, but she found the courage to answer, “I was nineteen.”

  After taking a sip of her coffee and noticing Mallory’s skeptical stare, Amanda explained herself.

  “Look, not all of us look like that!” Amanda exclaimed, and the spontaneous compliment made Mallory choke a little, “I was timid, a little overweight and to this day I’m still so socially awkward.”

  “I think you are a princess,” Mallory stated, “and if I had met you earlier, I wouldn’t have wasted a second in getting you into… this cozy coffee shop.”

  It was safe to say Amanda was speechless; she didn’t even feel like she could breathe. Mallory was good with words, and that was an understatement. All Amanda wanted to do was get lost in the hypnotizing depth of Mallory’s green eyes.

  Chapter 3

  Monday arrived almost unexpectedly for Amanda. She spent half of the weekend overthinking reasons why a relationship with Mallory would never work. She had nearly convinced herself except for one detail. She had spent the other half of the weekend talking to Mallory on the phone and in result finding out a million reason why it should work. The problem, Amanda realized, was that somehow those reasons overlapped each other. For example, Mallory was the most beautiful woman on earth, probably. So that was a reason to go after her, don’t lose her chance, and do anything to be hers. Simultaneously, that also meant she was entirely out of reach for Amanda; she just didn’t deserve it, she couldn’t compete with the rest of the world to win Mallory’s heart. It became an epic battle between Amanda the hopeless romantic and Amanda the embodiment of insecurities and self-doubt.

  At least, with her head so preoccupied, Amanda hadn’t spent much time worrying about her awful boss. It was only when she arrived at the office early on Monday morning that she was cruelly reminded of the coldness of Tom Langdon. Tom, who woke up craving a very special coffee from his favorite coffee shop in the world and some pastries of the same place that apparently couldn’t be found anywhere else. These items also were impossible to get delivered at the office, which meant Amanda had to go out and get them – go out under the wild, wild storm that broke through the sky that morning.

  That’s how Amanda found herself talking to herself again, while standing under a bus stop, doing her best at avoiding the cold raindrops that leaked from the small roof. She was wrapped up in her coat, she was wearing a big frown, and she was carrying Tom’s delivery.

  “Warm coffee. It’s the perfect day for warm coffee. Oh, Amanda fetch me my favorite coffee. I’m your boss, and I don’t drink coffee like a normal person. I need people to suffer for my coffee. Nothing like coffee and pain in the morning…”

  A loud honk stopped Amanda mid-sentence.

  “Hey! What are you doing there? Get in here!”

  Mallory. That was none other than Mallory Langdon driving a stylish black sports car, shouting at Amanda through the rolled down window in a mixture of amusement and real worry.

  “I – can’t! I’ll ruin your car!”

  “I’ll buy another one! Get in!” Mallory laughed.

  Who could have fought with that argument? Amanda ran straight towards the car, and she almost felt pain for the raindrops she splashed everywhere, but as soon as she felt the heating of the vehicle she sighed in relief. Plus, when she looked at her side and Mallory was there smiling affectionately at her, she felt in heaven.

  “Thank you so much! God bless your car and its warmth,” she said.

  “Not a problem, darling,” Mallory replied with a quick wink at Amanda as she continued to drive. “Anyway, what were you doing out in the rain? G
oing late for work?”

  “Not really. Tom was in the mood for coffee and pastries from his favorite store in the world and nowhere else.”

  “What? Don’t tell me he sent you out in the rain to get him a stupid coffee?”

  Mallory sounded genuinely upset at that; she had been driving confidently and relaxed, but then her knuckles tightened slightly on the wheel. Amanda noticed a big black car going behind them, of course, Mallory could drive her own car, but she was still a billionaire worth protecting with a group of bodyguards.

  “It’s not a big deal, it’s just – he’s a coffee freak,” Amanda laughed to lighten the mood, but Mallory didn’t seem content yet.

  “Don’t compromise your dignity or your happiness for this job. It’s not that important.”

  “But it kind of is, though, for me. It is kind of a big deal, this job.”

  “Well, if he oversteps his boundaries, if he ever goes too far and makes you feel bad, you come to me, okay?”

  Amanda’s heart warmed at the concern she could feel coming from Mallory’s words. Simultaneously, though, her heart sped up at the firm tone which Mallory used. She’d never be able to deny anything to that woman, Amanda figured out.

  “Sure thing, boss,” she replied, playfully.

  “I’m not your direct boss,” Mallory told her, finally a smile was back in those beautiful lips. “Not unless I inherit the company.”

  “What would you do then?”

  “I was thinking of asking a beautiful woman out on a date. But I figured I could do that right now.” Mallory looked beside her and was pleased to find Amanda purposely blushing; she took that as a yes. “Tomorrow after work?”

  Chapter 4

  For the next month or so, Amanda felt like she was part of a dream. At times, she genuinely started to think she might have been dreaming – that was the Mallory effect, she called it. It was the little things, mostly, good morning texts and late-night phone calls. It was the thrill of maybe crossing paths during the day or riding the elevator together and especially enjoying their beaks together. Amanda quickly realized that Mallory, unlike her oh still so annoying brother, actually went to the office to get some work done.