“Did you expect it to be hard?” Emma questioned with a light laugh to keep it professional but also somewhat casual.
“No, I guess not. You’ve been pretty easy about the whole planning thing.”
“Good,” Emma replied.
“Listen, about Friday night…” Keira leaned forward.
“It’s okay. You don’t have to say anything. I appreciate you trying to help, but I can make friends on my own. I know you may not believe me given how I acted when we first met, but–”
“Emma, stop,” Keira interjected. “I didn’t pity you. I don’t pity you. I asked you to come and hang out with my friends because I thought you’d have a good time and I’d have a good time, and it would be fun. Yes, it might have helped you meet some new people, but it wasn’t because I felt sorry for you. I wanted you to come.” She exhaled deeply. “And Friday, that was my fault. Kellan was getting on my nerves, and I said some things, but it was more about her and me than you. I’m sorry if it made you think I didn’t want you there and I’d only asked you to be nice or something.”
“My other guess was that you’d done it to make sure you got rave reviews on the health fair project,” Emma joked.
“What? No,” Keira rejected emphatically. “That’s not it at all.”
“I was kidding.” Emma continued her smile and offered a little laugh to exemplify the humor.
“Emma, I’m not–”
“Hey, is it true? I’m in charge of the food?” Mason appeared in the doorway.
Emma forced her eyes from Keira to her assistant.
“You’re helping finalize the menu, yes.” Emma laughed at him and stood. “Don’t go crazy and be nice to Katie.”
“She has the food. I’ll be nice to her.” Mason smiled and smacked the side of the doorframe before launching himself back into the direction of his desk and, likely, a waiting caterer.
“Can we start over?” Emma heard Keira ask and she turned back to face her.
“We don’t have to start over,” Emma told her. “Let’s just take it from here. I acted like an asshole. You almost hit me with your car. I’d say we’re even.” She laughed.
Keira laughed too, and Emma liked it.
“You seem different today,” Keira observed. “Lighter, maybe?”
“I woke up and decided to try to be normal again. It’s been a weird few weeks.”
“I am sorry about Friday night, though, and also the car thing.” She lifted one side of her mouth in a shy smile.
Emma smirked on instinct and then immediately pulled it back. Keira seemed to notice the smirk and then the retraction. Her smile got bigger and then faded almost completely in time with it.
“I seem to have a tendency of just fleeing recently. I won’t do that again. And that might actually give you a chance to explain things instead of me leaving you with no opportunity.”
Keira laughed and said, “That actually sounds pretty good. By the way, the last time I was here, I noticed you didn’t have anything in your office. I brought you this. I hope that’s okay.” She moved to lift something off the ground and placed a plant on the table. “It’s bamboo, obviously.” She laughed a little at that, and Emma wondered if it was nervous laughter. “I looked up good plants for offices this weekend. I even checked the meaning. It offers protection and luck, increases mental flexibility and aids in spiritual growth, if you need any of that. It also helps people to develop artistic talents. I don’t know if you have any of those. Oh, and it encourages good health, and it can help you feel less stuck.” She paused and met Emma’s eyes at that last statement. “Anyway, that’s what it said online.” She pushed the small, potted plant across the table. “I thought it could brighten up your office.”
Emma was at a loss for words as she glanced down at the plant and then back to Keira. Her cheeks had reddened slightly. Emma knew she needed to say something.
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome. Oh, and it also helps get rid of hexes.” She pointed at Emma. “Have you been hexed recently?”
Emma laughed hard and gripped the pot with both of her hands.
“Not that I know of, but it’s good that I have this now; just in case. Come on. We can take it to my office.”
She stood and carried the plant. Keira followed without words. When they made it to Emma’s office, Emma stood in front of the desk, looking around.
“Over here.” Keira took the lead. “It would look good on top of this shelf, and it would get the light from the window.”
She motioned to the small bookshelf, and Emma placed the pot on top of it.
“I’m a little behind on the decorating. I meant to find stuff this weekend, but I had work and friends’ lives to catch up on.” She’d talked to Hailey and Charlie as well as Summer and Lena, who had called to say they were going to be making a trip.
“There’s a really cool place a few blocks from where I am. It’s got one of a kind stuff and is somewhat reasonable on pricing. I can get you the info if you want. It’ll be cooler than going to a box store and getting the same old stuff everyone gets.”
Emma watched as Keira eyed the plant, the office itself, and then Emma.
“Or you could go with me. If you have time,” Emma replied.
“I do,” Keira answered almost immediately and then placed her focus back on the plant. “If you need help, that is. I’m not a master decorator or anything.” She paused and looked back at Emma. “You’ve seen my apartment.”
“I did, yeah,” Emma said with a smile.
“Well, I have a roommate, and he’s a straight man. He’s better at decorating than I am.”
“You have a roommate?” Emma asked and leaned back against the front of her desk while Keira stood behind the chairs in front of it.
“I do. He’s one of my best friends, actually. Kevin.” There was something in Keira’s eyes that Emma couldn’t quite comprehend.
“I was thinking about going shopping on Sunday.”
“The day after the health fair?” Keira asked. “You’ll have the energy for that? Because I don’t think I will.”
“You do events all the time, don’t you?”
“It’s my calling, but that doesn’t mean they don’t wear me out. What are you doing tonight?” she asked.
“Tonight?”
“Yeah, the rest of the week is going to be pretty busy for me. I have another event Wednesday night. I’ll be finalizing everything for that tomorrow night. Thursday and Friday, I’m dedicated to the health fair. Saturday is the big day. Sunday, I’ll be passed out in my bed for the entire day, binge-watching Netflix while I order in Chinese or something. So tonight would be good for me.”
◆◆◆
Did Keira just say that? She’d been thrown off by Emma’s behavior since she’d walked into the conference room. Emma had been smiling and laughing. She’d been so polite and professional to Katie. She seemed fully recovered from Friday night’s debacle, and Keira liked this side of her. Keira had thought about Friday night a lot over the weekend. She’d stared at their forms she’d hung on her fridge each time she’d pull something out of it. Each time she saw them, she wondered why she’d kept them, and more importantly, why they were still on her fridge and not in the trash. She couldn’t toss them though. And when Kevin asked what they were, she told him the story. He’d nodded at her as he drank his Red Bull and told her it was strange to keep them, but then he went to take a shower, and in typical male fashion, he’d forgotten about the whole conversation.
She hadn’t spoken to Kellan the rest of the weekend, and neither Hillary nor Greene knew what had happened yet. She had no intention of telling them but suspected that Kellan would. Kellan and Hillary had become close friends in the past few months, and Keira knew Hillary was a confidant for Kellan. She knew that Kellan had told Hillary the entire story of their relationship and how it ended. She’d hear from Hillary about it at some point, and likely, Greene would know shortly after. It wasn’t a big deal, but Keira
wondered sometimes if Kellan’s feelings for her were still present. There would be moments at bars where a woman would approach Keira and Kellan, who’d been on the other side of the room, would magically appear and interrupt. Keira normally just shook it off. How likely was it that the woman who’d walked away because of Kellan’s interjection was the one for Keira? With Emma on Friday night though, Keira had a problem with Kellan’s suggestion and the fact that it had obviously hurt Emma in the process.
Keira stood in front of Emma in her office after buying her a plant to help spruce the place up. She was not only offering to go shopping with her, but she was offering to do it tonight because she wanted to see her more. That was all Keira could identify. She didn’t want to leave the office after their meeting. She didn’t want to go about the rest of her day or even the evening and not have a chance to see Emma again.
“I can do tonight,” Emma agreed.
Keira held in her wide smile and just nodded instead.
“I’ve made all the arrangements with Mason.” Katie entered the office.
“Great.” Emma’s attention moved to Katie.
“I’m ready when you are,” Katie added.
“Right.” Keira turned to Katie and then back to Emma. “Can I call you?”
“I’ll be done here around six,” Emma offered, but she hadn’t actually answered the question.
“Okay. I’ll call you before that to plan.”
Keira realized Katie was still waiting. She’d wished for another moment alone with Emma so she could wrap up a conversation with her for once instead of her leaving or someone interrupting them.
“I’ll talk to you then,” Emma said.
“It was nice meeting you,” Katie repeated.
“You too,” Emma replied.
Keira and Katie made their way to the elevators.
“What’s going on with you two?” Katie asked the moment the elevator door had closed.
“I’m sorry?” Keira turned her head.
“You and Emma.”
“Nothing. Why?”
“It just seemed like there was something there, maybe.”
“What do you mean?” Keira asked and turned her whole body to face Katie’s.
“Just that she kept glancing at you, you did the same with her, and you brought her a plant.” She laughed a little. “I’ve been to about a hundred of these meetings with you. I’ve never seen you bring anyone a plant and definitely not a hot chick.”
“You think she’s hot?” Keira’s tone had gone from curious and polite to less polite and curious but in a different way.
“Calm down.” Katie laughed again. “I guess that answers my question.” She gave Keira’s shoulder a light shove. “You do remember that I’m married, right? You’ve met my wife.”
Keira sighed as the elevator doors opened on the first floor and she exited with Katie.
“I have absolutely no idea what’s going on with me,” Keira said.
“You have a little thing for her, don’t you?” Katie teased.
“No,” Keira replied definitively. “I don’t know.” She held the door open for Katie, and they joined the sidewalk pedestrian traffic.
“Come on. You totally have a thing for her.”
“I honestly don’t know. She was kind of bitchy to me the first time we met and a little the second time. Then, we ran into each other on Friday, and there was a misunderstanding. Today was the first time she was just nice, I guess. She did kind of have an excuse for her bitchiness. I don’t blame her for that. I just mean that I don’t really know anything about her other than she’s gay and she just moved from Chicago,” Keira explained.
“Why was she a bitch?”
“It was the anniversary of her father’s death. Oh, and I kind of almost hit her with my car.”
“What? Way to bury the lead there, Keira,” she exclaimed.
“It wasn’t a big deal, but she came for the tasting at my house, which you sent your underlings to so you weren’t there to see us awkwardly talk before the whole thing.”
“I sent Stephanie because that’s her job.” Katie laughed out. “What happened?”
“Nothing specific. We just sampled the food and talked. I found out she was gay because she mentioned an ex-girlfriend. I invited her to After Dark and she said she’d think about it, but she didn’t end up coming, and I was disappointed.”
“Because you wanted her to go?”
“I thought it was just to help her meet new people. Hill and Greene were going to be there. I thought maybe Emma could like them.”
“No, you didn’t.” Katie’s laughter continued.
“Okay, no I didn’t. I did, of course, but I also just wanted to see her outside of a work situation.”
“Because you think she’s hot?”
“She is, isn’t she?” Keira’s voice had gone up an octave, and she looked at Katie as they walked. “I don’t know what it is. Those eyes or that hair that just kind of flows, or maybe it’s the skin. It’s just a little pale but not too pale so she looks sick. That’s weird though, isn’t it?”
Katie just kept on laughing as they made their way toward Keira’s car.
“It’s not weird. There’s something about her that you haven’t yet defined, but she’s interesting to you. You want to know more. It’s how I felt about Chloe when I first met her. There was just something about her. I’m still not 100% sure what it was, but I kind of like it that way. We’ve been together for nine years now, and it still gets me sometimes.”
“What do you mean?” Keira asked as she opened the driver’s side door.
“Just that I know the obvious things I love about her, but sometimes, I’ll just look at her and wonder how it all works. Like, what was it about her that drew me in? What was it about me that did the same for her? We’d both dated other women before, and the relationships hadn’t worked out. What makes this one different? There’s something there connecting us, but it’s like neither of us wants to ruin the mystery or reveal the magic,” Katie explained.
Keira thought about that for a minute before she slid the key into the ignition. What was it about Emma that so interested her? Did she really want to know?
“That’s kind of sweet. I want that. I’ve never had that,” Keira said.
“Maybe you do right now,” Katie suggested.
CHAPTER 8
It was 5:45, and Emma had yet to hear from Keira. She stared at the clock on her computer again, and it was still 5:45. Almost everyone on the floor had gone home for the night. Emma continued to be one of the few remaining in the office daily, but that had been less and less about trying to show the boss her amazing work ethic and more and more about the actual work involved in the job. After all the meetings, she had to do the work that often came out of them. She knew she’d get the hang of it sooner rather than later. She also knew that on most nights she didn’t have any other plans. There was nothing wrong with taking care of work before heading home and then doing a little more work there if it meant she wouldn’t have to do it the next day. Tonight, however, she had plans, and she hadn’t been able to cement them because of Katie’s interruption. All Keira had said was that she’d call her before six to plan. For all Emma knew, Keira had gotten busy with her own work and had forgotten all about their plan to go shopping for stuff to decorate Emma’s office.
Emma still hadn’t figured out why she cared that much about it. Keira was a busy person and had a business to run on top of actually having friends in this city that undoubtedly took up some of her time. If she had to cancel or changed her mind, Emma wouldn’t care that much. That was what she told herself at least when she powered down her laptop at six and started packing up her bag to leave.
“Hey, a few of us are going for drinks.” Joanna stood in her doorway. “You interested?” Joanna had been a welcoming colleague, and Emma smiled at her as she stood there holding her hands in prayer form. “If you don’t go, I have to sit there and watch Mason make googly eyes at Maggi
e the whole time by myself.”
“Who?” Emma laughed.
“She’s from parks and rec. They’re on the third floor. He stops by there practically every day to bring her coffee. They’re not officially dating, so they’re in that adorable and annoying phase where they’re super into each other but they’re afraid the other one isn’t. So they’re mostly annoying.”
Emma continued her laughter without responding to the question at hand. She was about to but was interrupted by her phone ringing.
“Hold that thought.” She pulled it out of the bag she’d just placed it in and smiled at the screen.
“Hot date?” Joanna interrupted her thoughts.
“What? No. It’s a friend of mine.” She wondered if that was true. Were they friends now? Were they still two people working together on a project for the city? “We made plans to go shopping tonight.”
“You don’t strike me as much of a shopper.” Joanna took a few steps into the office. “Come on. I’ll beg if I have to. It’s going to be Mason and Maggie – they’re probably already there, and then Frank from IT with his girlfriend, plus Marco and me. It’ll be this weird thing with two couples and then two singles unless you’re there to throw off the balance.”
“Sorry, Jo,” Emma replied. “Is there anyone else that could go?”
“I could skulk around the floor and see who’s left. Thanks for nothing.” She squinted at her, but then winked and smiled before leaving the office.
“Hi,” Emma said quickly into her phone. She’d been afraid she’d miss the call with Joanna dawdling in her office. “I was just heading out.”
“Sorry, I was going to call earlier, but I thought about it and I didn’t want to interrupt your work. I decided to call right at six instead. I hope that’s okay.”
“Yeah. That’s fine. Good. Cool,” Emma rambled into her phone and then smacked her forehead at how ridiculous she sounded.
“What was that?”
Emma’s eyes got big. Keira must have heard the sound of her palm hitting her forehead.
“Just closing my laptop. I’m heading downstairs now. Should I meet you somewhere?” she asked.
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