Chapter 26
Jules had never felt this way about another person before. She’d obviously been infatuated by the women she dated in the past, had almost thought she was in love with her last girlfriend but this? With Frankie? It was so different.
I’ll be at your door in half an hour. I can’t wait to see you.
Was it normal for a simple text message to make your heart go absolutely crazy? Jules didn’t know, because it had never happened before.
She was twenty eight years old but felt like she was dating for the first time in her life and maybe this feeling, this nervous excitement, stemmed from knowing Frankie so well, from a friendship six months in the making.
Was going this slowly the opposite of a lesbian stereotype or did the equal measures of intense sapphic pining cancel it out?
Jules looked at herself in the mirror one last time, admiring her outfit choice. It wasn’t as easy to dress nicely when it was February in Halifax and the weather outside was practically arctic but she’d chosen a light pink blouse and a pair of dark blue jeans that accentuated her legs.
She'd opted to wear her hair pinned half up, half down so it was out of her eyes and with a pair of black leather boots and a camel coloured long wool coat to complete the outfit, she would be as warm as she could be while still looking nice for Frankie,.
Frankie, her date. Frankie, the woman who had walked into her life and cemented a place for herself. Frankie, the woman who made her smile like a lovesick fool, who made her blush with the smallest of compliments. Frankie, her brother’s coach.
That was the one aspect of all of this that Jules hadn’t allowed herself to think about for too long because she didn’t really know what it meant, if anything at all, and until they had to address it? Well, she simply wasn’t going to worry about it.
She applied a little bit of mascara and some pink lip gloss then spritzed herself with her favourite perfume, the expensive stuff she hardly ever used so it would last, and smiled at her reflection.
A knock on her door came thirty minutes later and Frankie was exactly on time, something that didn’t surprise Jules in the slightest.
She ran a hand down her shirt one last time, making sure it met her final standards. This was Frankie, her Frankie, and she had nothing to be nervous about so she took a deep breath and opened the door.
Nerves were the farthest thing she felt when she saw Frankie standing in the hallway with a small bouquet of flowers in her hands, dressed in the same fitted green suit she’d worn behind the bench during a Harbour game.
The same suit Jules had said was her favourite and seeing Frankie in it again now just confirmed what she already knew: it looked damn good.
“Wow, Jules…” Frankie looked her up and down, her bottom lip caught between her teeth, and their eyes met. She smiled, bright and wide. “You look gorgeous.”
But Jules glanced down at her own outfit, and her denim, as good quality as it was, seemed far too formal compared to Frankie’s suit.
She didn’t know what their evening had in store given all Frankie had told her was to be ready at 6:30 but now, taking in the perfectly fitted look of Frankie’s suit, Jules felt like she’d be out of place wherever they were going.
“I should change.”
“What? Why? Your outfit looks great.”
”But look at you.” Jules waved a hand between them. “And look at me.”
“I’m overdressed and I know I’ve worn this for work so maybe it’s weird for me to be wearing it now. I’ve been questioning it since I locked the door behind me but you told me you really liked this suit, and I…well, I wanted to wear something I knew you liked.”
Jules melted at that, the apprehension she’d felt due to her outfit choice quickly forgotten, and she dropped her eyes to the flowers in Frankie’s hand. “Are those for me?”
”Oh, right. Yes.” She held them out for Jules to accept then sheepishly rubbed the back of her neck with her other hand.
“I didn't know what your favourite flowers were so I got you carnations because I know they last longer than other flowers and this way you’ll be able to enjoy them longer. But when they die, I can just get you fresh ones.”
“Thank you, that’s very sweet of you. I love carnations. Come in while I put them in some water?”
They walked into the condo’s kitchen and Jules watched out of the corner of her eye as Frankie stood near the edge of the kitchen island, fiddling with the button on the collar of her suit jacket. She might even be more nervous than Jules was and that was saying a lot.
”These are so beautiful,” Jules said as she trimmed the stems and brought down a vase from her cabinet to put the flowers in.
She placed the flowers in the centre of the island beside a floral scented candle and smiled at it. She’d never been much of a fresh flowers type of girl, but maybe that was changing. It was nice to have a live reminder of Frankie when she wasn't in the room.
“So.” She turned her attention back to Frankie who offered her a small, adorable smile. “Where are we headed tonight?”
“It’s a surprise and it wouldn’t be as fun if I ruined it, would it?”
Finding a bit more of her usual confidence, Frankie rounded the island and slid her hands onto Jules' waist. Their eyes met and Jules had to force back a groan because Frankie’s deep green eyes had a look in them again, one that said she wanted to devour her, and God, it made her feel so many things all at once.
“Before we go anywhere…can I kiss you?”
“Frankie," Jules said, her breath hitching. "You don’t need my permission.”
And she didn’t, she really didn’t. Jules thought she might actually give herself over to Frankie completely right here in the kitchen, abandoning their evening plans all together because of the way Frankie was admiring her.
“Of course I do. What kind of person doesn’t ask for consent first?”
“Fine, in that case, you have my permission. And from now on, I give you permission to never ask and to just…do it. When you want to, if you want to.”
“Jules, believe me…” Frankie’s voice dropped an octave and her eyes fell to Jules' mouth. “I always want to.”
They both leaned in until their noses were almost touching and Jules could feel Frankie’s breath on their skin, could breathe in her scent, and they stayed like that for a moment, just being close.
Finally, Frankie grinned as she dipped her head, moving in to make it look like she was ready to kiss Jules, chasing her lips before pulling back and breathing out the tiniest laugh.
“Not…not fair.” Jules whined and raised her arms, sliding them up and around Frankie’s neck. “You’re such a tease.”
“Baby, if you think this is me teasing you,” Frankie whispered against her lips, “then I can’t wait to get you in bed.”
And then Frankie kissed her, deep and hard, their bodies pressing fully against each other.
Jules felt it everywhere, from the tips of her fingers all the way down to her toes and she couldn’t believe this is what it felt like for people when they found the right person. The desire was all consuming.
She’d have to reapply her lipgloss before they left but that was a very, very small price to pay.
It took them twenty minutes to finally make it out of the building and into Frankie’s SUV. Jules still had no idea where they were going but after a short drive through the downtown core, Frankie paid for parking in a public parking lot and rounded the car to open the passenger side door for Jules.
They walked hand in hand up the street, stopping in front of a tall, historical building that had been turned into a community events and art space. A sign outside said “Canadian Women in Sport Gala” and Jules looked at Frankie, her brows knit in confusion, excitement quietly brewing.
She’d mentioned the event once or twice over the previous few weeks, noting in excitement who some of the attendees were apparently going to be. Olympic medalists and sporting veterans, icons in the country that everyone knew, and Jules had wanted to attend just for the chance to meet some of them.
The money raised from ticket sales was going towards supporting women and girls in sports throughout Atlantic Canada but the tickets were, however, sold out by the time Jules had heard about the gala.
“Frankie, how did you…”
Frankie gave her hand a squeeze and shrugged. “My job has a few perks.”
They walked up the steps to the entrance and Frankie gave her name at the door. Moments later, they were welcomed inside and they dropped their jackets off at a large coat check.
As they entered the main event space, Jules took in the grandeur of it all.
She also took in the people surrounding them and felt especially underdressed.
Many of the other attendees were dressed in outfits more akin to Frankie’s chosen attire and Jules, as far as she could tell, was one of the few people who were wearing a pair of jeans.
Her cheeks flamed in embarrassment as she looked down at her legs.
“I really wish you would’ve let me change.”
“Hey, stop that.” Frankie stepped in front of her and dipped her head to meet her gaze. “You look better than every single person in this room, okay?”
Jules swallowed and nodded. Her lips quirked and Frankie linked their fingers together again, leading them across the room towards the bar.
“I’ll have a white wine and she’ll have…?” Frankie looked at Jules expectantly, eyebrows raised.
“Vodka cranberry please,” Jules told the bartender.
They turned around to lean back against the bar and Jules admired the scene before them. It only took her a few seconds before she noticed a string of athletes she’d spent years admiring scattered around the room.