Flirting Lessons

Chapter Fourteen

Fourteen

Two weeks later, Taylor groaned as she turned over in Avery’s bed.

“Do we really have to do this today?”

Avery laughed as Taylor nuzzled into her.

“You’re the one who lost the bet, you got us into this mess.”

Taylor threw a leg over Avery’s hip.

“First of all, it was your fault I lost that bet. Luring me into bed with your come-hither eyes, you should be ashamed of yourself. Secondly, I didn’t realize that losing the bet meant not only that I’d have to plan a baby shower but that I’d have to plan it with Sloane and especially that I’d have to go to a Saturday-morning brunch at nine with Sloane and Erica to discuss said baby shower. Every word of that sentence is antithetical to my very being! A meal at nine a.m. isn’t even brunch! That’s just breakfast! I don’t care if it’s on a Saturday.”

Avery opened her mouth, and Taylor put her fingertip on her lips.

“And don’t say, like I know you’re about to, that it’s so early because I have to be at work at ten thirty, I know this, it will not make me feel better. Thank God you’re coming with me, is all I can say.”

Avery moved her hand down the side of Taylor’s body. Taylor closed her eyes and let herself enjoy the feeling of Avery’s skin against hers, Avery’s arms around her, Avery’s hand caressing her. She’d said all of that in a half-joking tone, but she wasn’t joking at all about that last part.

“I mean that, you know,” she said. “I’m really glad you’re coming with me today.”

“I know you are,” Avery said. “Me and my baby shower–related spreadsheets are going to make you look good.”

That’s not what Taylor had meant, but she let it go.

“That, and your sparkling personality, and your ability to elbow me if I start to say something deeply rude to Sloane.”

Avery raised her eyebrows.

“Only if you start to say something deeply rude?”

Taylor sighed.

“Okay, fine, anything rude at all. You’re not going to let me have any fun today, are you?” She kissed Avery once, and then again, longer this time. “How much time do we have?” she said in Avery’s ear.

Avery looked at her watch and kissed her hard.

“Enough. Barely. I know how long you take in the shower.”

“Hey! I can hurry up in the shower if I have to. I can’t believe you’re going to use my good hygiene habits against me.”

Avery giggled as Taylor rolled over on top of her.

Afterward, she kissed Taylor’s neck.

“We need to get up. I want to look nice today. I’m meeting your best friend for the first time, and I don’t want her to think that I just rolled out of bed and to this brunch like I don’t care.”

Taylor kissed her shoulder.

“It’s breakfast. And you always look good.” Wait. Taylor turned so she could see Avery’s face. “Are you nervous about meeting Erica?”

Avery didn’t meet her eyes, in that way that she did when she was stressed.

“Um, sort of. Yeah, I mean…” She sighed and finally looked at Taylor. “Yes, of course I am. I’ve met your other friends, and they were all nice to me, including after they knew we were together, so I assume she will be, too. But she’s your best friend, and that’s different. Plus, I didn’t know I was meeting your other friends in advance that first time. I didn’t have time to get nervous.”

They’d gone back to trivia this past Tuesday night, and the crew there swarmed them like they were the paparazzi and Taylor and Avery were a celebrity couple. She’d stuck to Avery’s side most of the night, not because she was worried that one of her friends would hit on Avery again—she knew they wouldn’t—but because she’d worried that one of her friends would quiz Avery about their relationship. They had that habit.

She hadn’t needed to worry, though—the night had turned into an impromptu birthday party for her, which surprised her a little and touched her a lot. She hadn’t made a big deal about her birthday to Avery, because she didn’t want to stress her out about it, but she’d underestimated Avery, who had managed to sneak a cake for her into the bar. It had been a really fun night.

Erica hadn’t been there, though. Which, there was no reason Erica should have been there, it’s not like she regularly went to trivia anymore, especially now that she was pregnant and going to bed even earlier than she used to, and it hadn’t been a planned birthday party for her or anything. Still, it was weird that she was only now meeting Avery for the first time. Taylor had barely heard from her in the past few weeks, other than her happy birthday text. She hadn’t even really asked about how things were going with Avery. And things were going great, actually. They saw each other multiple times a week, and it felt good, not suffocating; they had a blast together; and the sex got better every time. But Erica wouldn’t know any of that. The most they’d communicated was to plan this stupid brunch. Breakfast!

“Don’t stress about meeting Erica. She can be kind of judgy about people I date, but I’ve told her only good things about you, not that there’s anything else to tell. But she’s pretty wrapped up in baby stuff right now, so I’m sure it’ll be fine. If Sloane wasn’t going to be there, she might grill you a little if I go to the bathroom or something, but I’m sure she’ll be focused on all the shower stuff today. I wouldn’t worry about it.”

She could tell from Avery’s face that she was even more worried. Great, she’d handled that all wrong. Time to deflect.

“Go get in the shower so we won’t be late.”

Avery looked at her watch and fled to the bathroom.

Even though they were early—well, her version of early—Erica and Sloane were there before them, already at a booth. And, even more irritatingly, they were sitting across from each other, which meant that Taylor didn’t get to sit next to Avery.

Not that she was one of those people who insisted on sitting next to the person she was dating. She’d always made fun of those people when she saw them at restaurants, two people at a table sitting next to instead of across from each other. Did they have to be within touching distance at all times, even for an hour-long meal? Did they really need to snuggle in public that badly? But today was different. She needed to sit next to Avery so she could kick her under the table when Sloane annoyed her, or so Avery could grab her arm to stop her from a smartass comment. Oh well, they’d sit across from each other; they could exchange glances and Avery could kick her under the table if all else failed.

“I hope you already ordered coffee,” Taylor said when she got to the table. She slid in next to Erica, leaving Avery to sit next to Sloane. She almost felt bad about that, but then, Avery would be better at chatting with Sloane than she would be anyway. “Erica, Sloane, this is Avery. Avery, this is Erica, and that’s Sloane.”

Avery smiled at both of them.

“It’s so nice to finally meet both of you, I’ve heard so much about you. Thanks for letting me crash your shower-planning brunch, I can’t wait to help out.”

This is why she needed Avery around. She was so diplomatic.

Taylor was usually good at this stuff, too, but for some reason, Sloane got under her skin.

“It’s nice to finally meet you, too, Avery,” Erica said. “And we did indeed order coffee already, because I know you too well not to.” Taylor rolled her eyes at Erica’s dramatic sigh but gave her a sideways hug. Erica hugged her back and turned to Avery. “I didn’t know how you took your coffee, so I didn’t know what to ask for. Are you a purist like Taylor?”

Now it was Taylor’s turn to sigh dramatically. Avery laughed and shook her head.

“Nope, I take milk in it. Oat milk.” She grinned at Erica. “As I’m sure you can imagine, I’ve heard a lot on this matter.”

“Oh, I don’t have to imagine, I’ve heard it all myself.” Erica and Avery both laughed, and Taylor glared at them.

“Weaklings and traitors, both of you,” she said under her breath. That just made them laugh harder. Good, honestly. She wanted them to bond a little, and what helped two people bond better than making fun of the person they had in common?

The server came over, and they all ordered more quickly than she’d expected. She’d been certain Sloane would ask a long series of questions about how local the eggs were and if the kale was hand massaged or whatever, but she ordered her chia pudding without any delay. Thank goodness, Taylor was already starving, and even though the coffee at this place wasn’t her favorite, the food was great.

“Okay!” Sloane said brightly as soon as the server walked away. “Time to plan for the shower! To start us off, I checked the list of RSVPs before coming here, and so far, we have twenty-one people coming, with ten maybes, and nineteen who haven’t responded.”

“Some of those nineteen are definitely coming,” Taylor said. “They’ll RSVP eventually.”

“I see.” Sloane pressed her lips together, like the concept of not RSVPing immediately was foreign to her. “Next: What does the space look like? I’ve never been to Noble. I thought I’d take over decorations if that’s okay with everyone?”

There was nothing Taylor wanted to do less than deal with baby shower decorations, but she cringed to think about what Sloane’s idea of decorations would be. But before she could object, Avery jumped in.

“Great idea!” Avery flipped open her notebook. “I took the liberty of making a few lists for us, I hope that’s okay?” She looked from Erica to Sloane, and when they both nodded and smiled at her, she went on. “So, we have decorations, food, games, photos, presents, and cleanup. Why don’t we discuss each one a little bit and see who will be in charge of each? But please, let me know if there’s something I forgot to add to the list.”

This must be what Avery was like at work. Clear, organized, and a total boss.

“I’ll take care of food,” Taylor said quickly, before Sloane could take that, too. “And I have a friend who is a photographer, I could see if she’s free to take the photos? She’s great.”

They got through most of Avery’s list even before their food came. Taylor attempted to stay engaged in the conversation about balloons and flowers and decorating onesies. She’d said if she’d lost the bet, she was going to organize this baby shower, and she was going to organize it, damn it.

“As for games,” Avery said, “I think we should discuss those without the guest of honor around, don’t you?” She turned from Taylor to Sloane with a sly smile on her face. “I feel like there should be some surprises for her.”

Erica pouted.

“Hasn’t Taylor told you that I hate surprises?”

Taylor elbowed her.

“I told her, but sorry, you can’t be in control of everything. We’ll discuss the games over text, right, Sloane?”

Sloane smiled and nodded, before she turned to Erica.

“But don’t worry, we won’t make you do anything humiliating.”

“Oh yes, I forgot to say that,” Avery said. “Absolutely no sniffing a poopy diaper or measuring your belly or anything like that. I promise.”

“Sniffing a poopy diaper? Measuring her belly? Excuse me? What the fuck usually happens at baby showers?” The other three just laughed at Taylor’s outrage.

“See, this is why I knew I could trust you to do my shower, despite everything,” Erica said. “Those are some very popular baby shower games.”

“The diaper has a chocolate bar in it, it’s not really poop, but it’s still gross,” Avery said. “And the belly measuring is so people can bet on how big her belly is.”

“Well, we are definitely not doing anything like that, don’t worry,” she said to Erica. “Look, I may not be a baby shower expert, but this I can tell you—there will be no references to poop, and there will be no body-shaming for anything I’m involved with planning.”

Erica threw an arm around Taylor and laid her head on her shoulder.

“I promise, I definitely knew that last thing, and I never thought the first thing would ever occur to you.”

Avery got up, a wide smile still on her face.

“I’m going to run to the bathroom.”

Sloane slid out of her seat.

“I’ll take this opportunity to go, too.”

As soon as they were safely out of earshot, Taylor turned to Erica.

“So?”

She might as well get Erica’s opinion on Avery right away.

“I like her,” Erica said. “I didn’t really expect to. I figured she’d be mooning after you like everyone else.”

“Everyone else doesn’t ‘moon’ after me,” Taylor said.

“But she has her shit together, and she’s also nice, and funny,” Erica said, ignoring Taylor’s interjection. “And she’s clearly into you without worshipping you—which isn’t good for you—and she’s got a good head on her shoulders. She’s almost too together for you, honestly. Don’t get bored with her and break her heart before my shower, that would mess everything up.”

Taylor sat back.

“What? Do you think I’ll break up with her because she’s too grown-up for me?”

Erica’s expression softened.

“No, of course not, I was just joking. How are things going with her, anyway?”

Taylor couldn’t help the smile that came over her face.

“I mean, you saw, she’s great. Maybe it’s because we hung out so much this summer before anything happened between us, so we really got to know each other, maybe it’s because we got used to being so honest with each other, but it’s just really easy and good. It’s definitely more than I can say for my last relationship.”

Erica laughed.

“Definitely more than anyone could say about your last fifteen or so relationships, you mean.” Wow, low fucking blow. But before Taylor could react, Erica changed the subject. “Okay, about the food, I was thinking that since the shower is in the late afternoon…”

“That the food would be afternoon tea kind of food, with little sandwiches and scones? I know. Come on, I haven’t known you this long not to know that. I already called Callie and asked her if she’d come out of her catering retirement just for you, since I know she does that stuff well, and she said yes. But fifteen, that’s not—”

Erica’s face lit up.

“Callie said yes, really? Oh my God, do you remember those scones she made after that one breakup? They were incredible.”

Erica was not going to distract her by talking about those scones, even though yes, Taylor did remember them, and yes, they were amazing.

“She already agreed to make mini versions of them. But—”

“What are you two so excited about?” Sloane slid back into the booth, and Avery followed her.

“The food for the shower. Callie is going to make it all, a whole afternoon tea situation, and we’ve both had her scones before, they’re amazing.”

Fine, she’d let it go for the moment. Erica always had something to say about people Taylor was dating, and she usually laughed it off. She should laugh this off, too. She would just laugh this off, too.

But it wasn’t just that Erica had brought up her past relationships in that snarky way. Or that what she said about Taylor had felt pointed this time. It was also that Erica had barely asked her anything about her and Avery, and then had changed the subject right back to the shower. Like, okay, yes, she was bad at relationships, everyone knew that, it’s not like she thought this thing with Avery would last, but still, she’d been looking forward to talking to Erica about Avery! About how when she thought about her, she had that fluttery, warm feeling in her chest; about when she was on her way to see her, she couldn’t stop smiling; about when she woke up next to her, she didn’t want to leave. About whenever she spent time with her, she discovered something new that she liked about her, whether it was the way she’d carefully picked the enormous spider up out of her sink with the edge of a magazine and deposited it outside, or the way she’d cackled when Taylor had told her the story of the one time she’d tried to ride a motorcycle, or the sharp tone in her voice on the phone when a vendor had tried to overcharge one of her clients.

Taylor grinned when she thought of the satisfied look on Avery’s face when she’d gotten off that phone call. Erica nudged her.

“What are you smiling about?” Erica asked as Avery and Sloane chatted with their server as they paid the check.

“Oh, I was just thinking about the other day. Avery was—”

Erica smiled wider and shook her head.

“Taylor. Keep it PG, my child is listening.”

Seriously?

“It’s not that kind of a story. I wouldn’t even start to tell that kind of a story with her right across the table from me, come on.”

Was this how Erica was going to be forever now? Sure, she’d been kidding, but was she going to cut Taylor off every time she thought something might be about sex because her child was listening? Her child was still months from being born!

Taylor glanced at her phone and stood up.

“As much as I would love to stay longer, duty calls. I have to be at work in twenty minutes.” She nodded at Sloane, and then made herself smile. “We’ll text about details, okay? And let me know if you want to come by the winery so you can see the lay of the land.” She kissed Erica on the top of her head. “See you soon.”

Erica smiled up at her.

“See you soon. Love you.” She turned to Avery, who’d also stood up, and was talking to Sloane. “So nice to finally meet you. See you soon, I hope.”

Avery smiled at her, a very sweet, slightly shy smile.

“I hope so, too. Excited for the shower.”

Taylor slid her hand into Avery’s as soon as they walked out of the restaurant. Taylor liked her job, a lot, but she wished that instead of going to work, she was heading back home with Avery.

“I think she was happy with all those plans—your plans, obviously,” she said to Avery as they walked down the street to their cars. “Thanks for making those lists and stuff. She liked you, FYI. I know that was going to be your next question.”

Avery laughed.

“God, am I that transparent? How embarrassing.”

Taylor shook her head.

“No. I just know you, that’s all.”

Avery squeezed her hand.

“To be fair, I wasn’t going to ask if she liked me, though of course, that’s what I wanted to know. I was going to ask what you two were talking about when Sloane and I went to the bathroom, and then I was going to say, ‘Was it about me?’ but I think I just got my answer.”

“You did, and really, yes, she liked you, a lot. Honestly, I think she’s wondering what a together, accomplished smoke show like you is doing with someone like me.”

Avery stopped at her car and pulled Taylor to a stop along with her.

“You can’t be serious. I’m with you because you’re kind, straightforward, smart, funny, and very, very hot.”

Avery didn’t usually say things like that. She wasn’t a person who gave compliments easily or often, so from her, those felt huge. Taylor raised a hand to Avery’s cheek.

“Um, wow, thank you.” She leaned forward and dropped a kiss on Avery’s lips. “I wish I didn’t have to go to work right now.”

Avery smiled and kissed her back.

“Me, too. You coming over tonight?”

Taylor nodded.

“Just text me when you’re done with work, okay?” She let go of Avery and took a step back. “See you soon.”

Her walk to the car with Avery was so nice that it almost made her forget what Erica had said. Almost.

Avery had a very lazy Sunday morning with Taylor. They woke up and had sex, and then drank coffee and ate some of the leftover baked goods that Taylor had brought back from work the day before, then watched half of a movie, took a nap, and then had sex again. It was easy and relaxing and comfortable. Too comfortable. Avery had to remind herself not to get used to this. That Taylor only did casual, short-term relationships, so this thing between them was a ticking clock, no matter how good it felt.

Taylor leaned over and kissed her upper arm. She had a way of doing that, of kissing Avery on the part of her body closest to her, and Avery liked it so much. It made her feel like Taylor valued every part of her, that every part of her mattered.

“What are your plans for the rest of the day?” Taylor asked. “You don’t have to work?”

Avery shook her head.

“Wild, isn’t it? I had an event every day this week. It’s nice to get an actual weekend day off, for once. I’m meeting Beth at the garden this afternoon, but that’s all.” She was looking forward to going to the garden today, even though she didn’t want to leave this haze of soft pillows and warm cookies and Taylor’s soft, warm body.

“Can I come along?” Taylor asked. “To see your garden, I mean? I won’t stay—I just got a text from my old boss begging me to fill in tonight, and since you’re busy, I’ll do it, but I’d love to come by and see this bed that you keep talking about.”

Avery giggled at the way Taylor said “bed,” but also to cover her surprise. She didn’t realize Taylor would be that interested in her garden. It made sense, she’d talked about it a lot this summer, but she’d always assumed she’d bored Taylor when she did so.

“Sure, of course,” she said. “I’d love to show it to you. And for you to meet Beth.”

Avery had to warn Beth so she didn’t lose her shit. When Taylor was in the shower, Avery texted Beth.

Avery

Taylor might come by to see the garden today, be cool

Beth responded with just a series of exclamation points. Oh no.

But it felt good to walk into the garden with Taylor. To see her marvel that she’d driven by there a million times and had never known that garden was there, to point out the people Avery had told her about for the past couple months, to show her their very own garden bed with the plants in it that they’d raised from tiny little seeds.

And it felt good to introduce her to Beth. Beth was already there when they arrived—Avery was sure she’d rushed to the garden as soon as she’d gotten the text, just so there was no possibility she’d miss her chance to meet Taylor, but she just smiled and looked up from the cherry tomato plant when they got over to the bed.

“And this is Beth,” Avery said. “Beth, this is Taylor.”

Beth came around the garden bed, pulled off her gloves, and shook hands with Taylor.

“Nice to finally meet you,” Beth said. “What do you think of our garden bed?”

Taylor’s eyes danced when Beth said that, and they all laughed. But as Avery looked at their garden bed, she wished she’d known in advance that Taylor would come to see it. She could only see the problems with it: the blighted tomato plant, that one squash that wouldn’t thrive no matter what they did, the lettuces that had bolted, the wilted flowers that they hadn’t deadheaded yet, the herbs they’d planted too close together. Taylor would wonder why she’d wasted all this time.

Taylor walked around the bed, and Avery and Beth walked with her. “I had no idea it was this impressive,” she said. “When Avery said ‘garden bed,’ I pictured something the size of, like, one of those half wine barrels. Not all of this. It’s huge. And you guys have so much in here.”

Avery and Beth beamed at each other. It was true, they did have so much in there.

“We have a lot to do today,” Avery said. “So much harvesting, and, Beth, I hate to say it, but I think we might need to just concede defeat on that tomato and pull it.”

Beth nodded.

“I know, I was thinking the same thing, but I didn’t want to say it.”

Taylor smiled at them and put her hand on Avery’s back.

“I’ll leave you to it, then.” She leaned up and kissed Avery softly on the lips, then took a step back. “Talk to you later?”

Avery nodded.

“Yeah. Thanks for coming by. I’m glad you got to see it.”

Taylor grinned at her.

“Me, too.”

When Taylor walked away, Avery turned back to the garden bed, but she could feel Beth’s eyes locked on her.

“Later,” she said.

“Oh, that’s for sure,” Beth said.

Avery put her gloves on and went to work. This time of year, there was so much to do. Weeding, hand-pollinating, harvesting, cleaning up leaves with fungus or black spot, clipping off branches that looked like they were about to break and take the rest of a plant with them. Soon, they had basketfuls of cherry tomatoes, zucchini, cucumbers, jalapenos, and radishes, and there were a bunch more ripening on the vines.

“What are you going to do with all of this?” Beth asked her as they divided up their fruits and vegetables. “I still can’t believe that we managed to grow so much.”

Avery pushed back her hat and looked around at the garden, at their little plot, at the other plots, and all the activity going on. It seemed like everyone in the community garden was here. All day people had been walking by and greeting them, complimenting their successes, and commiserating with their failures. Lots of people had shared their fruits and vegetables with them, so they had even more varieties of tomatoes, and so many zucchini that Avery didn’t know what she was going to do with them all. People really liked to give away their zucchini, she’d discovered, and she felt like she couldn’t say no to any of it. But even that felt good. She was so happy and proud of herself that she was a part of this.

“I know, me, too,” she said. “Even with the stuff we tried that didn’t work, we got so much, it’s amazing. As for what I’m going to make, I guess some sort of zucchini bread with all this zucchini that we somehow have—maybe I’ll figure out how to do that later?” She bit her lip and then smiled at Beth. “I’m trying to teach myself how to become better at baking, and I feel like zucchini bread is a good thing to practice on, right? Since we have so much, I feel like if my first attempt is a failure, I can just try again?”

Beth clapped her hands and stood up.

“Zucchini bread is the perfect thing to make when you have a ton of zucchini and you want to learn how to bake. Plus, I have a great recipe. Come over to my place and we can snack and bake and debrief, which you know I’ve been dying to do for the past two hours.” She stopped and looked at Avery. “That is, unless you have plans with your hottie, in which case I excuse you.”

Avery laughed.

“She’s working tonight, so I’m in.”

Thirty minutes later, Avery pulled up in front of a cute little corner house on a side street, and Beth threw open the door.

“Come in, come in.” Beth ushered her into the house.

There was a big tomato, cucumber, and herb salad on the kitchen table that Beth had made from their garden bounty, and Avery contributed some cheese and prosciutto and bread she’d picked up on the way.

“Okay,” Beth said after she’d sliced up the baguette and deposited it on the cutting board next to the cheese. “ What is going on with you and that impossibly hot woman? I thought you were just sleeping together, but that goodbye kiss was more than sleeping together.” She spread a bunch of cheese on a piece of bread and looked at Avery expectantly.

Avery blushed and laughed.

“We’re mostly just sleeping together. I mean, I guess it’s sort of more than that, but not really—Taylor doesn’t do serious relationships, I’ve known that forever, so I guess it’s just casually dating. Which is fine, I didn’t want anything serious either, especially since—”

Beth brushed that off.

“Yes, yes, now that we’re done with all the disclaimers, tell me the good stuff.”

Avery laughed. And then she let herself smile.

“I don’t even know what to say—things are just so easy with her. That’s probably because it’s not serious, so I’m not spending time worrying about the future or stressed about everything. Though, I mean, I am kind of stressed about how long this can last, partly because it feels too good to be true, but mostly because it’s Taylor, so I know it can’t last very long. But other than that, it’s great. We spend a ton of time together—we take turns now surprising each other for dates, which is fun, but sometimes she’ll just come over after work, or I’ll bring takeout to her place or whatever, and we’ll just hang out, and it’s just so…” She couldn’t think of the right word to describe it. “It’s…I don’t know, I haven’t had a relationship like it. Like, I’m excited whenever I see her, and I have a great time with her, but also being around her doesn’t stress me out? I’m weirdly proud of myself; part of the point of the flirting lessons in the first place was to learn how to do casual, no-stress relationships, and I did it, and it feels great.” She made a face. “Sorry, that was probably too much information about my relationship baggage, but I’m so used to being quietly tense around the person I’m dating that it feels amazing to me that I don’t feel that way, like, at all.”

Beth spooned some salad onto her plate.

“First, we’ve been bonded by soil, okay? There is no such thing as too much information. Second, I am so glad you’re finally dating someone who you can relax and be yourself around, that’s huge. But third…” She waggled her eyebrows at Avery. “Now that we’ve established that there’s no such thing as too much information…”

Avery laughed at the look on Beth’s face. Then she gave in. She’d been dying to talk to someone about this.

“Beth. The sex is so good. Just… so good. I didn’t know sex could be this good! I mean, I guess I knew that it could be for some people—I read romance novels and everything—but I thought some of it was hyperbole, you know? But it’s that good with Taylor. I know you know this, but God, having sex with a woman is fucking incredible. Have women who have sex with women been walking around in the world on this cloud of incredible sex forever and I just didn’t know? It’s like there was another world that I didn’t even know existed!”

Beth started laughing midway through Avery’s speech and didn’t stop.

“Absolutely yes, there has been another world going on of women walking around being totally satisfied by their sex lives. You just confirmed something to me that I’ve always suspected about straight people: this is why they’re so uptight—the sex is so bad!”

Avery couldn’t stop giggling.

“I don’t think all straight people have bad sex—maybe it was just me?”

Beth shook her head.

“It absolutely was not just you. I promise. But I also promise that not all women are as good as your hottie Taylor apparently is.”

Good Lord, she was giggling far too much lately, but she couldn’t stop herself.

“She is really hot, isn’t she?” Avery thought about Taylor this morning, that look in her eyes as she’d turned toward Avery in bed. “Do I think it’s so good because the sex I’ve had before was so mediocre that anything seems good to me?” And then she shook her head. “No, this is Taylor we’re talking about. I guess this is the advantage of having my first real sexual experience with a woman be with someone who has a lot of experience. But…” She bit her lip. “I hope it’s as good for her as it is for me. It probably isn’t, right? See, this is the problem with your first real sex with a woman being with one who has a whole lot of experience.” She shook her head. “Sorry, sorry, you wanted the fun stuff, not my insecurities, you don’t need to answer that.” She stood up. “Are we ready to make zucchini bread?”

Beth stood up, too.

“Sure, but you’re not getting away with that. Have you talked to her about this?” Beth handed her the basket of vegetables. “Wash and dry the zucchini while you answer that question.”

Avery stared down at the sink. Why had she even brought this up?

“We did, a little bit, at the beginning. I mean, the first time.” It felt scary to be this vulnerable with someone else, but she’d already started. “I told her I was nervous, and she was really great about it. And since then, she’s said some complimentary things about, um, how much she’s enjoying herself, so it’s not that she makes me feel bad, to be clear! I always feel good when I’m with her. It’s when I’m not with her that I wonder what she’s doing with me.” She picked up a kitchen towel and carefully dried the zucchini. “Oh God, I was going to stop, and I just kept talking, what is wrong with me?”

Beth took the zucchini from her.

“You’re having normal human emotions, that’s what’s not wrong with you.” Beth sent two zucchini through the food processor, and they came out in a perfectly grated pile.

“I guess, but this isn’t even a real relationship. I like her, I really like having sex with her, I’m having a great time, but it’s all very relaxed. I think that’s why I’m not stressed around her, because I know it can’t go anywhere, so I’m not constantly worrying about what’s going to happen or if I’m being a good enough girlfriend or whatever.”

Beth dumped the shredded zucchini in a colander, then handed two loaf pans to Avery.

“Grease these. Okay, so…easier said than done, I know, but maybe you could talk to her about it? Do you think she’ll tell you the truth?”

“Yes,” Avery said immediately. She scooped up some butter and started on the first loaf pan. “She’s always honest with me.” She finished greasing one pan and started on the other. “Maybe that’s the problem, that I know she’ll be honest with me, so I don’t want to bring it up because I’m afraid of what she’s going to say?”

Beth measured out flour and salt and baking powder and didn’t say anything.

“Fine!” Avery said. “I know what you’re thinking, I’ll talk to her! Are you happy?”

“Very,” Beth said.

Avery set the loaf pans down. She was ready to change the subject.

“What are you and Greta going to wear for your wedding, do you two know yet?”

Beth handed her a carton of eggs.

“Crack four of these into this bowl. Greta and I just call it ‘the party,’ so we won’t slip and call it a wedding around someone else. But yeah, we know what we’re wearing.” She smiled down at the bowl of flour. “We went shopping together, actually. I know that’s not how you’re ‘supposed’ to do it, but we’ve done a lot of things you’re not ‘supposed’ to do, and it’s worked out great for us, so what’s one more thing? It was a really special day for both of us, I’m so glad we did it that way.”

Avery was so happy for Beth. And she was suddenly sad that she wasn’t invited to Beth’s wedding. Ugh, why did she feel like that? She and Beth had been friends for only a couple months, it was a small wedding, and she’d never even met Greta. Why should she be invited?

“That’s so great,” she said. “I’m glad that planning for the…party has been a happy time for both of you. Especially since so often I see people having the opposite experience.”

That look on Beth’s face when she thought of Greta, and their wedding, that look of total happiness and peace and love and security…she wanted that. Not now, not yet. But someday.

Beth took the bowl of eggs from her and measured sugar into it.

“Now for my favorite part, beating sugar into these eggs. And thank you, again, for suggesting the surprise wedding. I don’t think either of us would have had the idea on our own, and if we’d had either a big regular wedding or a quick courthouse one, we both would have been so unhappy—one of us because it wasn’t what we wanted and we’d hate every minute of it, and the other because our partner would clearly be so miserable. So, truly, thank you so much for talking to me about all of that when you’d literally just met me, and thank you for coming up with the ideal solution for both of us.”

Avery felt the ridiculous urge to cry. Maybe because she was so happy for Beth, maybe because she wished she could see the surprise wedding herself, maybe because that kind of happiness felt so far away for her.

“Well, you’re welcome. I’m glad I could help.”

Beth smiled at her.

“Now, let’s get this zucchini bread into the oven and sample some of the fruits of our labor, no pun intended.”

Avery groaned, and Beth cackled.