CHAPTER 3
Lacey
“And I love you now even more than I did the first day we met,” Chad said.
“I love you, too,” Whitney replied.
Lacey stared at the giant, bright screen in front of her and chomped on a handful of popcorn.
When the two characters on screen kissed, and the music started to swell, she turned to look at River, her girlfriend of a year and a half, and smiled, expecting River to turn to her and do the same.
River wasn’t watching the movie, though.
She was looking down at her phone and turning off do-not-disturb, probably because the movie was over, but she could’ve at least waited until the credits rolled.
Lacey looked down at the tub of buttery popcorn and found it empty now.
She’d eaten the whole thing by herself. River hadn’t been interested in popcorn or snacks of any kind.
“You know I don’t like candy and stuff,” River had told her as they’d stood in line before the movie.
“You own a candy shop,” she’d argued.
“Old-timey candy. I don’t eat the new stuff. Give me a handmade saltwater taffy any day of the week over something they made on a machine,” River had replied and tucked her hands into her pockets.
They’d bought popcorn and a soda and sat down at a movie that River hadn’t wanted to see.
She wasn’t really into going to the movies to begin with, but she preferred action or horror films to romance or romantic comedies, which was the kind of movie they’d just seen.
It starred Liam Waddington and Cameron Levine as a couple of friends who’d never been able to make it work until they finally realized that they’d been in love the whole time.
Liam Waddington wasn’t Lacey’s cup of tea, but he was attractive enough for a guy, so she understood why the ladies might like him.
Cameron Levine was a different story, though.
She was on her top five list; the list of celebrities she’d technically be allowed to sleep with outside of her relationship with River, should she ever meet Cameron in person and Cameron be interested in that.
Of course, despite her living in Anaheim, which wasn’t all that far from LA, and Cameron living in LA, the odds of them ever meeting were pretty slim.
Not that she’d actually do that. Cameron Levine was beautiful and just her type, but Lacey was committed to River.
On top of that, Cameron was in a long-term relationship with one of the biggest TV and movie stars on the planet, Kennedy Gannon.
They’d been together for over five years, if Lacey remembered her gossip correctly.
There had been that unfortunate incident at some party that Lacey had read about online, yes, but she tried not to pay attention to stories like that since she doubted there was ever much truth to them.
“Good movie, huh?” she asked when the screen went black.
“Yeah, great,” River replied. “You ready?”
“Just need to pee before we go.”
“You drank all the soda. That’s why,” River teased.
“I know. I know.”
They stood and walked out of the row until they hit the stairs. A few minutes later, she left the bathroom and found River sitting on a metal bench on the opposite wall, still looking down at her phone.
“Want to grab some dinner?” Lacey asked.
“You just ate that whole thing of popcorn. You’re still hungry?”
“I skipped lunch. I had a client who changed their treatment plan on me at the last minute, so I went long and didn’t get to eat before I had to go to my next one.”
“Can we just go to your place and order in? I can order something for us now, and it’ll be there by the time we get there.”
“Sure,” she replied, feeling the disappointment hit her harder than she’d expected.
She knew River preferred to watch movies at home instead of the theater and have food delivered in, even though it was usually more expensive than eating at a restaurant or just cooking, and it didn’t normally bother her, but tonight was supposed to be a date night, which they hadn’t had in a long time, since their one-year anniversary over six months ago now.
That was the longest they’d gone without having a night out.
When they’d first met, she and River had gone out at least once a week, if not more than that, depending on how busy or tired they were.
They’d made an effort, despite that business or tiredness in the beginning, but things hadn’t been the same since she’d asked River to move in on their anniversary and River had said no.
“I’m not ready yet, Lace,” River had told her, trying to be nice in her rejection. “It’s not that I don’t love you or don’t want to.”
“Then, what is it?” Lacey had asked.
“I like having my own place right now. I live above the shop, and it’s great. I can wake up, go downstairs, and I’m at work. I have the smell of candy and fudge pretty much always in my nose there, and it’s just nice.”
“And I couldn’t move in there?”
“To my studio above my candy shop? The one you complain about how hot it is whenever we’re there?”
“You have ovens in the shop and other hot things and no AC in your apartment.”
“I have fans, and it works for me. Can’t we just do the back-and-forth thing for a while longer?”
“You’re here at least five nights a week, and I’m there at least one or two.
I thought you’d want some stability, like I do, and we’d have one place together.
I wouldn’t have stuff there that I need here, and you wouldn’t have stuff here that you need there because we’re in the same place.
How would it work? You have a three-year lease on that building, which you just signed last year, so you have two years left. Are you going to move the shop then?”
“No, I’ll re-sign the building lease or do a loan to buy it if I can. It would be expensive as hell, so I would need a major loan, but business is good, and the location is great, being so close to Disney, but off the main drag, so to speak.”
“So, you’re likely to renew it?”
“Yes,” River had replied.
“Does that mean you want to keep living in the apartment forever?”
“Not forever, just for a while,” River had said. “I know you don’t like it, but it works for me.”
“And you don’t want to live with me?”
“I do, just not officially right now. And you just said we spend every night together anyway.”
“I guess you’re right, but, River, I want to live with you. I want us to have a place together and make it our home. I get that you don’t want that now, and I don’t want to rush you, but I know what I want. You know what I want.”
“I know. I’m not saying it’ll be forever, Lace.”
“Okay,” she’d said, and they’d finished the rest of their meal in an awkward silence.
Things had been a bit off between them ever since, and Lacey was hoping a date night would help them get back to normal.
She’d thought dinner and a movie would be fun and simple, and they could go home and make love after.
She’d hoped that she could ask River to move in again and get that yes that she had been searching for, but as River drove them back to Lacey’s apartment, she doubted either of those things would happen.
“Hey, do you mind if I crash at my place tonight? I’ve got that big order I need to get started on super early tomorrow morning,” River said when she pulled the car up to her building.
“What about that dinner you ordered for us?”
“I wasn’t really hungry. Can you save mine? Just put it in the fridge, and I’ll eat it tomorrow or something.”
“I guess so.” Lacey shook her head. “You’re not even going to walk me up? It’s a date, River.”
“I can. But is that really necessary? Can I just kiss you goodnight here? This car was pretty romantic not all that long ago, remember?”
She was referring to the sex they’d had in it once, but that was over nine months ago and didn’t really meet the not-all-that-long-ago timeframe, but Lacey didn’t want to argue with her.
“Fine. Good night,” she replied and kissed her on the cheek. “Please drive safe and text me when you get home.”
“You’re mad, aren’t you?”
“Yes, I’m mad, River. First, you didn’t want to go to the movie, and it felt like I basically had to force you to have a date night with me.
You didn’t try to hold my hand or touch me at all during the whole two hours we were sitting there.
Then, you couldn’t get out of the theater fast enough, teased me about eating too much, which was whatever, ordered us dinner in, even though I wanted to go out and have a meal with you at a table where someone brings it to us and we’re not pulling plastic forks out of bags and eating on the couch, and now you don’t even want to do that.
You have a big order to handle? Fine. But you knew that before you pulled up here, and this is the first I’m hearing about it.
So, yeah, I’m mad. And I don’t like being mad at you, so I’m going to go now, but you better text me when you get home so that I know you’re okay. ”
Lacey opened the car door.
“Come on, Lace… I’m sorry. I messed up.”
“Just go home, River. It’s clearly where you want to be anyway.”
Lacey got out of the car and slammed the door. Then, she realized that she’d forgotten her purse inside on the floorboard, so she pulled the door back open and grabbed it.
“This would’ve been much more effective had I not left my purse in your car,” she stated before slamming the door again.
She walked to her building, looked back, and saw River still sitting in her car, staring straight ahead as if trying to figure out what she was supposed to do before she pulled out of the lot and back on the street.
Lacey couldn’t believe her night had ended this way.
She had worn her nicest bra and matching pair of panties, and now, they’d go to waste.
Having nothing better to do now while she waited for the food to get there, she checked her mail in the mailroom and remained downstairs since it was easier to just wait instead of trying to buzz someone up to her apartment.
When her order arrived, she thanked the delivery guy and took the food upstairs.
She wasn’t really hungry anymore, so she shoved all of it in its original containers inside the fridge and sat down on her sofa, waiting for River’s text.
Her girlfriend didn’t live that far away, so within the next five minutes, she should have a message.
If River waited longer, that would say something to Lacey.
When they had ended a date with one of them going home after they’d first gotten together, they couldn’t wait to text the other person that they’d arrived safely because they’d known that it would only be the start of the conversation and they’d end up texting for hours before they would finally go to sleep.
Getting the message ten minutes later, she tried to give her girlfriend the benefit of the doubt. She didn’t think traffic at this hour would’ve been a problem, but maybe River had gotten caught in some, and that was why it had taken her five extra minutes to send the message.
Lacey Keller: I’m glad you’re home safe.
River Ervin: I’m sorry, Lace. I fucked up. I just wanted to say that again. I know how you get when you’re mad, so I know talking now isn’t the best option, but I am sorry.
Lacey Keller: Okay. Good night. Good luck with your order tomorrow.
Thinking that was the best way she could end their conversation, Lacey moved from her messages to social media to scroll for a bit because she wasn’t yet tired and didn’t want to go to bed.
She’d also set out a few toys and some of the lube she liked in the bedroom, thinking they’d be in there using it all tonight, so now, it would all just act as reminders that she wasn’t getting laid after all.
She leaned back against her sofa and thought about the last time they’d had sex.
It had been at least a month ago, maybe longer, and it had been there, not at River’s place. It felt like forever ago.
She scrolled aimlessly for a while and paused when she saw a familiar face on her screen.
It was the woman she’d just seen on the big screen, along with her own girlfriend.
Cameron Levine and Kennedy Gannon both smiled as the video played automatically.
Curious, because she’d never seen them together like this before, Lacey turned the volume up to listen.
“So, we’re partnering with them to help kids around the country who are struggling with cancer. One hundred percent of your donation will go to the organization conducting important research into ending kids’ cancer,” Kennedy said.
“And one lucky winner will get the best double date you have ever been on,” Cameron added.
Kennedy looked over at her and laughed.
“Three-day, two-night double date with us; all expenses covered,” Kennedy said and hooked her thumb back and forth between the two of them.
“All you have to do is donate the minimum to enter the raffle, and if you win, we’ll bring you to the LA beach house we’re renting for the occasion.
We’ll hang out, have a few meals, and even let you in on some Hollywood secrets. ”
“But the most important part is to end childhood cancer, so even if you can’t donate the amount for the double date raffle, any donation will be entered to win our other prizes, including signed photos, video meet, and more.
So, let’s all help out some kids,” Cameron added, offering her gorgeous smile to the camera.
Lacey clicked on the link beneath the video and thought about River.
A double date in an LA beach house sounded amazing.
It was a weekend away, and it could help them reconnect in a way they hadn’t been able to recently.
Having clicked on the raffle entry, she found that it would cost her a thousand dollars to enter something she had no chance of actually winning.
“It’s going to charity,” she told herself. “And maybe I’ll get a signed photo out of it or something.”
As she got her credit card out of her wallet, she thought about how many clients she’d need to book to pay this off, but that didn’t deter her from doing something impulsive for once. She typed in her info and waited for the confirmation that the payment had gone through.