Chapter Eighteen
“ S hit-a-brick,” Debs whispered down the phone.
“What the fuck are you phoning me for?” Mica answered.
“She looks fucking phenomenal, Mic.”
“And so I repeat my earlier question. Why are you calling me?”
Debs turned around away from the mirror, leaning back against the counter and taking a deep breath. “I’ve gone to the toilet.”
“To ring me? Are you sixteen?”
“I seem to remember you having an absolute fucking meltdown in my office when you first asked Grace out, so repay the favour and listen to my panic. I haven’t dated in years, and I’m sorry, no offence to James, but I’m not sure I ever felt this… She’s stunning, Mic.”
“Then get off the fucking phone and go back to your date! She’s going to think you’ve done a runner if you stay in the toilet much longer.”
“Okay. Yeah, you’re right. I don’t even know why I called you. You’ve been no fucking help whatsoever.”
“Probably to brag about how hot your date is.”
“Oi! I heard that!” Debs laughed at Grace’s distant retort down the phone, imagining the playful glare Mica would be on the receiving end of right now.
“Nowhere near as hot as you, babe. Goes without saying.”
“Good save,” Debs said. “But I am going to go back now. I’ll speak to you later?”
“Yeah, sure. Hey, Debs…” Mica stopped her before she could hang up. “It is going well, though, yeah?”
“Mic, it’s…” She drifted off, unsure exactly just how to articulate just how wonderful her evening had been so far. She had been worried in the hours running up to meeting Sienna whether the change in dynamic would have a negative impact. She knew that Sienna would be concerned to a degree, and she wondered if knowing that this was more than just two friends meeting for dinner like they had done so many times before would add extra pressure on the two of them. But as always, whenever Debs was in proximity to Sienna, it was as if her instincts had taken over. They’d met at the restaurant, even though Debs had insisted she would pick Sienna up; Sienna insisted back that this way, they could both have a glass of wine with dinner. In hindsight, she was grateful for the change of plans; she wasn’t sure she would have been able to keep her eyes on the road if Sienna had sat in the passenger seat next to her. She wasn’t sure why all of a sudden, she had been hit by Sienna’s beauty; it wasn’t as if she was entirely blind to her attractiveness, but since realising that she wanted more with Sienna, it was as if she had been hit in the face with the true extent of how gorgeous she was.
“Yeah, I think that says it all. Have a great time, Debs. You deserve it.”
She smiled at her best friend’s vote of encouragement, taking one last look at herself in the mirror before making her way back out into the busy restaurant. Her gaze fell on Sienna, sitting at their table, scrolling through her phone as she waited patiently for Debs to return. She honestly wasn’t sure how she’d managed to get through the meal, her eyes always drifting to Sienna and how stunning she was tonight. Even in something a little more casual than that dress on Saturday night, she still stole her breath away.
She slid into her seat opposite Sienna, her smile widening as she looked up at Debs, returning her phone into her handbag, which hung over her chair.
“Sorry, it was just Max checking up on me.”
“No need to apologise. I’ll let you in on a secret: I’ve just been on the phone to Mica.”
“They’re checking in as well?”
“I rang them. And if you ask Mica, it’s only because I wanted to shout about how hot my date was.” Debs smirked, again watching the blush creep up Sienna’s neck. “I mean, they’re not wrong.”
“Why do you do that?”
“Do what?”
“Say things like that. You’ve been saying it a lot since the auction.”
“Because that night at the auction, it finally hit me what I wanted, Sienna. Months of this feeling inside me, of wanting to know you, be near you, talk to you more than I remember ever feeling before. I saw you in that dress, and it was like a lightning bolt had struck. You were breathtaking, and I just wanted to be next to you. It was like this pull, this invisible force that was drawing me to you, and once I’d realised what that was, it was like I couldn’t resist it anymore.”
“Aren’t you worried this is all just… I mean, you’ve never done this before. And, like, ninety-nine percent of the time, I know that this isn’t just some passing idea to you. I can feel it; I really can. But—”
“What’s your biggest concern right now?”
“That I’m going to fall for you and get my heart broken. And not because you’ll do anything, but just because you’ll realise this is all too much of a change for you. I mean, what about the kids?”
“You mean my two children who have known their Zizi is non-binary from the day they told me? Who love their Aunt Grace like she’s been there for all of their lives even though it’s only been a year?”
“Like your son who, up to a few months ago, was still pissed their father had moved out.”
“If that’s what’s really bothering him, then me dating anyone is going to upset him. I wish it wouldn’t, but I also know that if Charlie is going to get angry, he’s going to be angry with whoever I’m with.” Debs leaned over the table, resting her palm up in front of Sienna in a silent invitation. “Sienna, sweetheart, look at me.”
“I promised myself I wasn’t going to do this tonight.”
“Do what?” Debs wiggled her fingers, a silent offer which Sienna took, hastily slipping her hand into Debs’. The contact settled something within Debs, something which reared its head whenever Sienna and she weren’t touching.
“Question everything.”
“Questioning things is fine. Having doubts is fine. Protecting yourself is absolutely more than fine.” She remembered a conversation she had had with Mica, how she pleaded with them to protect their heart when it came to Grace. “But this, what we’re doing now, talking about it and being open with each other… This is what we need to do.”
“You’re right. And I’d apologise, but I get the feeling you’d just tell me to stop.”
Debs grinned. “You’d be right. Now what do you need?”
“I need…a really good cocktail. And for you not to be sitting across from me but next to me.”
“That we can do. How about I settle the bill, and we get out of here?”
“Okay, but the first cocktails on me.” Sienna pulled her hand from Debs’ gentle grasp, standing as she did so. “I’m just going to go to the bathroom. I’ll be back in a minute.”
As Sienna gathered her bag, Debs looked around for a passing server to flag down. She was surprised when she felt warm lips press against her cheek. It sent a rush through her body, her face involuntarily splitting into a bashful smile at the easy and open sign of affection from Sienna. Turning, she captured Sienna’s lips in an action that was so simple and honest; she wondered why it had taken this long for her to realise this was what she wanted. Falling into the kiss, she sighed when Sienna’s tongue teased out and ran across her lips, sparking something deeper and primal within Debs she hadn’t felt for years. Without thought, her hand shot up, grasping at the closest part of Sienna, realising too late it was the supple flesh of Sienna’s thigh, gripping it tightly. Sienna pulled back, Debs’ eyes remaining closed as she tried to calm the wave of arousal thrumming through her body.
“I’ll be right back,” Sienna’s low voice said, and Debs could hear the playful smirk in her voice before she walked away.
Fuck, I really need that cocktail, was all that Debs could think.