Chapter Twenty
Matty had kissed her hand. She had kissed her hand, looked her body over like it was the best view she’d ever seen, and for a fraction of a second, they were pressed together, faces so close it was dizzying.
Damn.
Reese was buzzing so much from the last thirty minutes. She was nervous to meet other people, but it wasn’t dampening down the fluttering in her chest or stopping the sneaking glances at her date.
And her outfit. Matty was hot in her blue jeans and T-shirt.
The joggers had yet to leave her mind. But the clothing she wore now was absolutely delicious.
The only thing that would make them better would be taking them off her.
Which was a whole other thing that surprised her.
Their bonding over the last few weeks had been so natural-feeling, and it was building a fire in her belly she hadn’t felt in ages.
She didn’t have a clue as to when she had sex last. At least three years ago, if not longer.
Her libido was coming back with a gusto.
The party didn’t take long to become energized. The atmosphere was almost as electric as whatever was building between her and Matty.
When they entered the crowd, her heart flipped when Matty gently grabbed her hand to lead her through. It was rough from physical work.
The garden was gorgeous. There was such a romantic setting, especially with the string lights surrounding the area and the setting sun.
“I want you to meet someone,” Matty called over her shoulder.
When they came to a stop, she knew instantly who it was. The man had the same graying brown hair and brown eyes as Kerrie, and judging by his long legs from his seated position, this had to be Kerrie’s twin.
Matty dropped her hand only to replace it on her lower back as she motioned to Reese with the other. “Kenny, this is Reese. Reese, this is Kenny.”
It took a moment for him to register, then a smile graced his sweet face. “Hi, Reese.”
“Hi, Kenny, it’s nice to meet you.” She returned the smile.
“You have the silver car.”
“I do. You’re Matty’s friend that she has dinner with every month.”
“Yeah, we’re going to the China buffet next time. She makes my plate.”
“All-you-can-eat crab legs. Yum,” declared Matty, rubbing her belly.
“Do you like crab legs, Kenny?” asked Reese.
He frowned. “No. I get steak where they cook it.”
“The hibachi part. They’ll cook him up a steak. He doesn’t like seafood that’s not fried catfish.”
“I can’t blame you, Kenny. I love a good fried catfish.”
“Me too. With ta-tarter sauce.” His eyes brightened.
“Excuse me, everyone,” a voice hollered over the crowd. The light instrumental music lowered.
All heads turned to see Kerrie and Bette.
They wore coordinating colors. Reese could tell why Kerrie got dreamy-eyed when talking about her.
She was gorgeous with blonde hair in a long bob and a curvy figure dressed in a white fitted dress and emerald green high heels, and a chunky matching bracelet.
Kerrie was matching with a crisp white button-up shirt and dress slacks the same color as the high heels. They were adorable.
Kerrie cleared her throat while she stood with her arm around Bette’s waist. “We’d like to thank everyone for coming tonight. It means a lot to have so many people celebrate with us. We invite y’all to eat, relax, and enjoy the dance floor. Thank you all!”
A round of applause sounded, and people began to line up for food.
“Kenny, do you want me to fix you a plate?” Matty asked.
“Yeah.”
“Are you hungry?” she asked Reese.
“Yes, I haven’t eaten since lunch.”
“Me either. We’ll be right back, Kenny. Save our spots, okay?”
“Okay.”
The food table was so festive. And hilarious.
Reese looked sideways at it before tugging on Matty’s sleeve. Matty leaned her head back, and once again, their faces were close. “Is that...is that a taco bar at a lesbian engagement party?”
Matty snorted, her lips turning up in a wide grin. “Shit, I didn’t notice it. I bet they didn’t even think about it.”
They gathered their plates and began assembling tacos while sneaking smirks at each other. It felt good to be outside of work and their houses. There was something about being out in public together that made their maybe-dating feel more official.
And they were about midway through the table. Kerrie came up to them. “Hey, Matty, do you need me to take over Kenny’s plate? He said that you were making him one.”
Matty shook her head as she dolloped some refried beans onto a plate and then onto another as she was making her own at the same time. “No, this is your night. Don’t worry about Kenny.”
Kerrie clapped her on the shoulder. “Thank you. I love that he has so many people who want to take care of him. Mabel was going to come today and sit with him, but she started not feeling well.”
“It’s not a problem. Go have fun.”
“Thanks again, and thank you both for coming. It’s good to see you outside of The Church, Reese.”
“You too. It seems really weird to see you outside of it.”
Once their plates were filled, they went back to the table to eat. Kenny was thankful for the plate but asked twice that there was nothing on it that was spicy, which Matty assured him there wasn’t.
Halfway through eating, a familiar face popped by.
“Hey, Reese, hey, Matty.”
Tyler smiled down at them. Another person who she felt weird seeing outside of work.
“Hey, Tyler, you want to join us?”
He shook his head. “No, I’m not staying. I just wanted to make an appearance and congratulate Kerrie and Bette. Nobody wants to hang out with the boss outside of work. Hey, Kenny, you’re looking good.”
Kenny nodded, focused on his tacos. He only managed a yep, then resumed chewing.
Reese smiled at him.
Tyler didn’t stick around. People buzzed around, coming by often to say hi to Kenny and some to Matty. She wondered how many of them were in recovery and if that was how they had met.
“I’m going to refill my drink. Does anyone else want some?”
Both Reese and Kenny handed off their cups to her. She had finished eating, so she leaned back to survey the area. There were lots of people up chatting or sitting down eating. The night was just a little brisk, but not bad, and with all of the bodies around, it was actually kind of pleasant.
A woman slid into the seat next to her. Her blonde hair reminded Reese of someone, but she wasn’t quite sure who until the woman held out her hand to shake and introduced herself.
“Hi, I’m Zoe, Bette’s daughter. You must be Reese.”
Reese shook her hand. “I am. It’s nice to meet you.”
“So, if you don’t mind me getting a little personal, how is the date going with Matty? She was so nervous when I saw her earlier.”
Reese flushed. She liked the idea of Matty being nervous about their date. “It’s actually going really well, I think. This is the first time we’ve been out like publicly.”
“I’m so glad to hear that. Matty has done so much for other people. I love that she is finally doing something for herself. She seems to light up whenever she talks about you.”
“She does?” That sent her belly into doing backflips.
Zoe nodded. “Yep. Doesn’t she, Kenny?”
Both of them turned to look at the older man who was finishing up the last of his food. Reese noticed he was a slow eater.
“Yeah, she does. She talks about Reese a lot.”
Before she could reply, Matty was back, a look of horror on her face when they all turned to her.
“Please tell me you weren’t all just talking about me.”
“Well—” Zoe started but was interrupted by Kenny.
“You talk about Reese a lot.”
The shade of red Matty’s face turned matched the smear of salsa left on Reese’s plate. It was hilarious and enthralling all at the same time.
“Did you shave your legs?” Zoe asked with a raised brow.
Matty sputtered. “Th—that’s, damn it, Zoe. My legs are my business.”
Zoe nudged Reese. “That’s a yes.”
“We’re not talking about my legs.”
Feeling emboldened, Reese smirked, folding her arms. “What if I wanted to talk about your legs?”
Reese didn’t know skin could turn that shade of nearly purple without someone holding their breath. Matty’s eyes met her own, and Reese could tell she was trying to muster up some courage. She dragged her tongue over her bottom lip before answering. “I’d rather talk about yours.”
It was Reese’s turn to blush.
Zoe let out a breath. “Oh wow, the tension is rising.”
Reese and Matty let out nervous laughs. It seemed they both forgot about their audience.
Zoe stuck around for a while, chatting up Reese mostly, then went on to mingle some more.
The dance floor was beginning to fill. For some reason, it surprised her that people were so willing to dance when there wasn’t a drop of alcohol in them.
Parties normally had liquid courage to get the tentative folks to loosen their inhibitions.
But this was a safe space for those in recovery or who had long-term sobriety under their belts, like Kerrie.
She swayed in her chair lightly as they watched the people on the dance floor. The air was heavy with music, laughter, and the electricity of celebration.
At the next song change, Matty stood, holding out her hand. A soft melody began to play.
“Dance with me.”
Reese’s eyes widened. She wasn’t the best dancer. “I don’t know...”
“Come on, it’s a slow one. We just have to move back and forth.”
Tentatively, she took the offered hand, allowing Matty to pull her to her feet, then to the dance floor. The tune playing above was romantic and filled with the smooth voices of Chrissie Hynde and k.d. lang singing “Me and Mrs. Jones.”
Despite not having danced with anyone since probably prom, she didn’t have any issues taking position. One hand settled on Matty’s shoulder, and the other into her warm, strong hand. Matty’s other hand went to her waist; the weight of it was both grounding and tantalizing.