Chapter 5
Brooke examined herself in the mirror. From the couch Pearl eyed her with disinterest.
“How do I look?” Brooke asked as if she expected the cat to answer her. The expression on Pearl’s face told her that the cat was utterly annoyed. Pearl spared her one appraising glance before leaping from the couch and exiting the room, clearly unimpressed with what she saw.
“I think I look fantastic,” Brooke whispered under her breath.
Brooke smoothed down her pleated red skirt.
She’d fallen in love with this skirt the moment she’d tried it on.
The skirt was short enough to highlight her legs but long enough that she could sit comfortably in it.
She’d also chosen a crisp white shirt to pair with the skirt.
She checked herself out again. She did look good.
Somewhere in the back of her mind she refused to consider the question of whether or not Drew would find her outfit attractive.
For the last couple days she and Drew had been cordial, bordering on friendly.
Tonight, they’d drive to Spot On the Map, her friend’s bar.
There was a part of her that was undeniably nervous to make the long car ride with Drew.
There was something about the woman that was equal parts frustrating and endearing.
Emotions that Brooke couldn’t quite put a name to swirled inside of her.
Not that she’d ever make a move. Brooke had never been the type to make the first move.
For the most part she’d spent her time shutting down any first moves a woman might make on her.
Sure, she’d gone out on dates, but she’d never made it much past that.
She’d never dated anyone for longer than three months.
Brooke had never seen the point. Her friend Emily called her jaded, and that was probably true.
She couldn’t help it. She’d grown up in a home with two people who had loved each other but had been utterly incompatible.
Her mom and dad had divorced when Brooke was twelve, and Brooke had just never put much stock in love since then.
There was a loud knock on her door. Brooke knew without looking that it would be Drew.
She rolled her eyes; Drew was nothing if not punctual.
Brooke opened the door to find Drew standing in the hallway clad in tight dark jeans, a white t-shirt and a leather jacket.
The sight was enough to send shockwaves through Brooke’s body.
It took Brooke a few moments to recover. Once she regained control of her senses, she realized that Drew was looking at her with amusement. Shit. Had the woman said something to her.
“I’m sorry. What did you say?” Brooke asked. Drew gave a breezy laugh.
“I just said that you look great,” Drew replied.
The woman tried to brush through the compliment, but Brooke was fairly certain she had caught the woman blushing.
There was a sweetness to Drew that Brooke had a hard time overlooking.
Brooke set her heart back in its rightful place, she refused to allow her heart to get ahead of itself.
“You want to take my car or yours?” Brooke asked.
“We can take mine if you’d like,” Drew offered.
Brooke smiled. She was independent in all areas of her life. But when it came to driving, she knew she could be a bit of a passenger princess. Emily had been making fun of her for years.
“That would be great,” Brooke replied smoothly.
Drew stepped aside allowing her to step through the apartment doorway. Brooke stuck her head back inside and found Pearl eyeing her again. The cat didn’t seem to care for her presence, yet, she would absolutely destroy her pillows if she left her alone for too long.
“Hold down the fort, Pearl. And no destroying my pillows.”
Pearl stretched her body out resting a casual paw on Brooke’s favorite pillow. A threat if ever she’d seen one.
“Your cat is beautiful,” Drew smiled.
Even from the door Brooke could hear Pearl purring at the compliment. She rolled her eyes.
“My cat is spoiled and rotten,” Brooke laughed.
She could feel Pearl’s eyes staring a hole in the back of her head.
Brooke closed the door behind her. For now, Pearl could be out of sight, out of mind.
Brooke followed Drew out to her car. The dusty red Corolla looked like it was on its last legs, but Drew had assured her that the car was safe.
Brooke climbed in and was immediately comforted by the warm vanilla scent of Drew’s car freshener.
Brooke was somewhat surprised to find that Drew was a careful driver. She found herself almost completely relaxed from the very first moment.
“How long have you been tattooing?” Brooke asked.
“For a few years.”
“What made you want to get into it?”
“I’ve always loved drawing and painting. I love making art. So what’s better than knowing that someone is going to be walking around, wearing my art on their body.”
Brooke smiled at the answer.
“What made you want to own a bookstore?”
“Books have always been my safe place. Somewhere I could escape to when life was hard. Now I feel like I get to share that little escape with my customers.”
Drew turned and smiled at her genuinely.
“That’s really lovely.”
They sat in silence for a few moments until Drew cleared her throat.
“Are you seeing anyone? I mean like, do you have a partner?”
Brooke chuckled at the awkwardness of the question and Drew’s delivery.
“No, I’m definitely single. I prefer it that way.”
If she wasn’t mistaken a flash of something like disappointment slid across Drew’s face. The expression was there one moment and gone the next.
“Oh, I saw you with a woman outside of the bookstore and assumed she was your girlfriend,” Drew offered. Brooke considered for a woman then smiled.
“Was she a very pretty brunette?” Brooke asked.
“She was,” Drew smirked.
“That’s Emily. She’s my best friend. We’re actually on our way to her bar right now.”
Drew nodded her head, seeming to take in the information.
“So what makes you prefer being single?”
Had anyone else asked her that Brooke may have bristled. But Drew was clearly just curious. Brooke took a deep sigh.
“I’ve just been in the front row for a lot of relationship disasters. I don’t know that I want to give anyone quite that much power over me and my life.”
Drew seemed to take her words in.
“So you’ve never been in love?” Drew asked.
“I’ve never even had a real relationship,” Brooke laughed.
“And that’s the way you like it? Your life I mean. You truly enjoy being single and have no desire to be in a relationship?”
“Sometimes I think about it. But for the most part I’m happy being single. How about you? Do you have a girlfriend?” Brooke was desperate to change the subject off of herself.
“No, I’m single.”
“Do you prefer being single?”
“Not really. I love being in love.”
Drew and Brooke both laughed.
“Why are you single if you like being in a relationship?”
“I’m taking a dating hiatus while I work on myself.” Drew insisted.
“That sounds healthy.” Brooke felt a knot form deep in her gut. A pang of unexpected and unappreciated sadness. She wasn’t trying to date Drew, so why should it matter if Drew took a hiatus from dating?
Drew pinned her with a suspicious look. Brooke found herself wishing they weren’t stuck in the car for another thirty minutes together.
“What?” Brooke finally quipped.
“Nothing. It’s just that was the most sarcastic way you could have said that.”
“I wasn’t being sarcastic. Dating hiatuses can be beneficial. Obviously, I’ve been taking one too. No judgments.”
“Yeah, but yours isn’t so much a hiatus as it is a failure to start,” Drew said the words without an ounce of judgment, it was clearly meant more as an observation than anything else. So why did the statement hurt so much?
They both sat in silence for several moments.
Brooke appreciated silence. She saw the quiet as an old friend.
She got much of her best work done in the quiet.
Drew seemed to enjoy the quiet much less.
Brooke observed the woman as she shifted nervously in her seat and fiddled with the temperature control knobs.
Brooke couldn’t help the smile that spread across her face. Drew finally broke.
“So have you and Emily known each other long?” Brooke supposed she could make Drew wait longer for her answer but decided to be merciful.
“Yeah, we’ve been friends for years.”
Brooke pointed to the next street, an indication for Drew to turn.
“That’s cool. My friend Tatumn and I are opening the shop together. It can be good to have a close friend around.”
Brooke smiled and glanced out the window.
“Yes, it can.”
Spot on the Map came into view and Brooke watched as Drew visibly calmed.
“What are these get-togethers like?” Drew asked.
“They’re usually pretty chill. It’s just a chance for businesswomen in the area to meet one another.”
Drew nodded her head and smiled. She pulled into a parking spot.
“It’s busy tonight,” Brooke said, noticing how many cars were in the parking lot.
“Fair warning, there will probably be an above average amount of lesbians here tonight,” Brooke chuckled.
“Oh?”
“Yeah. With Em being a lesbian she just knows a lot of other queer women in the business community. So this place is bound to have more than a couple other lesbians.”
“Duly noted. Maybe I’ll find Ms. Right in there,” Drew laughed.
“I thought you were on hiatus?” Brooke accused. She tried to ignore the sting of jealousy that rose inside of her.
“I am. But who am I to stand in the way of true love if it presents itself.”
“Good grief,” Brooke moaned. Drew laughed and Brooke took note of how pleasant the sound was.
Still her heart clenched at the thought of Drew flirting with other women.
Which was ridiculous, she had no ownership over Drew.
Brooke had no right to tell the woman who she could and couldn’t flirt with.
Drew had a wide grin on her face as they walked towards the doors.
Brooke had to smile too. There was something about Drew’s energy that was undeniably magnetic.
Brooke gave Drew a nudge with her shoulders when she paused at the doors.
Drew took in an audible breath and pushed the doors open.
Just like that the woman was ready to meet a room full of new friends.
Drew stuck by Brooke’s side for all of two minutes.
That’s how long it took Robin Strickland to lock eyes on Drew.
Robin had easily flirted with every queer woman in the room at one time or another.
Robin was gorgeous, with long red hair and deep green eyes.
Her looks were downright striking. While many an entrepreneur had failed to open one successful restaurant in Nashville, Robin had managed to open three.
Robin’s success had come from hard work and determination.
Robin’s smile widened as she approached them.
Drew smiled back, unaware of what or who was coming her way.
Robin had a way of drawing people in. She could make a person feel like they were the most important person in the room.
Yet her advances rarely went further than a night of flirting and drinking.
“Brooke, are you going to introduce me to your friend?” Robin cooed. Her voice was thick with sweetness. Brooke forced her face to remain composed.
“Of course. This is Drew. She opened her tattoo shop right next door to my bookstore.”
“Oh, an artist, how exciting,” Robin continued.
One glance at Drew’s face told Brooke that the woman was eating up the interaction. She decided to make a quick exit. Brooke might find Robin insufferable but there was no reason not to let Drew enjoy the moment.
“Do you mind if I pull your new friend away?” Robin asked. She knew this was Robin’s one attempt at making sure that she and Drew weren’t an item. Brooke honestly had to give Robin props for at least checking.
“Not at all. Drew here is a free agent,” Brooke announced. She hated the way those words tasted in her mouth. Still, it was the truth. Drew was single and Brooke wouldn’t stand in the way of her having a good time.
Drew had the good sense to seem somewhat taken aback when Robin took her arm and led her away. Brooke gave a slight chuckle and a half wave. She caught Emily watching her from the bar and walked over.
“Is it a smart idea to send your new friend off with Robin?” Emily laughed.
“I don’t see why it wouldn’t be,” Brooke smirked. She tried her best to deliver a level of non-chalance she definitely didn’t feel.
Emily poured a tiny bit of whiskey into a cup and pushed it towards her.
“I don’t know. Maybe because you like her,” Emily suggested. Brooke almost choked mid swallow on her whiskey. Emily shot her an apologetic smile.
“I don’t like Drew,” Brooke insisted.
“If you say so,” Emily laughed.
“Why do you think I like her?”
“The way you look at her. You do a good job of playing things close to the vest. But I know you and I can tell when you like someone.”
“And how am I looking at her?” Brooke could feel the sarcasm dripping from every single one of her words.
“Like she’s the last bite of food on your deserted island,” Emily countered. Brooke could admit that the retort stung a little.
“Well, the joke is on you. Because I have no idea how I actually feel about Drew. One minute I’m barely tolerating her, the next minute she’s getting under my skin.”
“Doesn’t sound like you’re feeling neutral towards her,” Em smiled.
Emily had her there. Brooke couldn’t accuse her feelings for Drew of being neutral.
“You aren’t wrong there. But what difference does it make? Not neutral isn’t the same as me wanting to go out with Drew.”
Emily stood in silence, suddenly her friend was very interested in cleaning her glassware.
“Look, maybe I’m not neutral. But I don’t want to ask Drew out either. So I have no right to stand in the way of any other connections she might want to make.”
“It’s true. You can’t make any demands. But I do think you should figure out your feelings before they come back around and smack you in the face.”
Emily had always had a way with words. Brooke forced herself to glance out at the crowd and find Drew.
Robin had an arm looped around Drew’s as they stood talking to several other women.
Brooke couldn’t understand why the scene made her heart sink ever so slightly.
She turned away and begged her heart to behave.