Chapter 6
Chapter Six
Kate was lying on her bed, staring at Hannah’s business card.
She’d tried all day to forget about their kiss and the way Hannah had tasted and the soft feel of her hair in Kate’s grip.
She’d already tried to slake her thirst with her favorite toy, but it was no use.
Kate couldn’t stop thinking about Hannah.
Was it because she’d turned her down for a date?
Kate was having a very hard time remembering why she hadn’t said yes to going for a drink.
What could it hurt? They didn’t need to move in together.
It could just be some fun. Didn’t she deserve some fun—even if she had a sneaking suspicion that Hannah was bi and she’d sworn off dating bi women since the day she’d found out Brittany was cheating on her with her old boyfriend, Zack.
To distract herself from thoughts of Hannah’s creamy freckled skin, she checked her email. There was another email from Mrs. Fisher, and the subject line was ‘Urgent.’ Her stomach dropped. Now that she knew it was there, she might as well open it. She gritted her teeth and clicked open.
“Dear Katie,” It began, and Kate rolled her eyes. Mrs. Fisher was the only non-family member she allowed to call her Katie. That was only because Mrs. Fisher had given her a twenty-five percent discount on the rent because she thought Kate looked like a childhood friend.
“I hope you are well! Ever since Mr. Fisher died, I’ve been looking at selling the building and moving down to Florida.”
Kate decided to get up and have a beer while she finished reading this email, which was probably going to tell her to get ready to be homeless and move her business.
Well, it had been fun while it lasted. Her chest tightened.
She put down the phone and went into the kitchen.
She pulled a bottle of IPA out of the refrigerator and twisted off the top.
After a long drink standing at the kitchen counter, Kate walked back to her bedroom and the misery that awaited on her phone.
Kate dropped back down onto her bed and continued reading.
“I’ve got a very nice offer for the building, but before I agree to sell, I want to make you an offer.
I will sell the building to you if you can give me ninety percent of what the Langley Property Company is offering.
If you can come up with twenty-five percent down by December thirty-first, I’m willing to set up a payment plan where you’ll pay me directly instead of a bank. ”
Kate’s heart was beating so fast, her smartwatch beeped to ask if she was working out.
Mrs. Fisher was making her an incredible offer.
This was once-in-a-lifetime type stuff. When she’d gotten laid off from her former job working as a project analyst, she’d gotten a severance package.
Most of it she’d used to open Pupcakes and Clawssaints, but she’d saved the little bit that was left.
Was there any chance that could be enough of a down payment to buy the building?
The wheels started turning in her head. If she owned the building, she’d have the money she currently paid for rent on the store and her apartment.
If she could rent out the empty storefront next to her, that would be additional money for the monthly payment.
Before she got ahead of herself, she needed to know how much Mrs. Fisher was asking.
She took a long drink of her beer, and then she opened the attachment Mrs. Fisher had sent.
For a lady in her late seventies, Mrs. Fisher was surprisingly good at emailing attachments.
Her heart beat even faster. She would need to come up with double what she had in her savings account.
Was there any possibility of her coming up with twenty thousand dollars by the end of December?
It would have to be a hell of a holiday season, and then some.
Excitement took hold of her. She quickly replied to Mrs. Fisher, letting her know she was interested in buying the building.
Now, all she needed to do was figure out how to make that happen.
Maybe she should pay a visit to New Age Stones and Witch Crafts and see what the future held.
A notification popped up on her screen. @MaximTheeMag had liked a post she’d made.
Kate tapped on the notification and her Instagram opened.
Hannah had liked a picture that showed Kate laughing as she held a puppy dressed as a pirate.
So, Hannah was checking out her social media.
Kate’s chest warmed. She had a tiny buzz from the possibility of owning her own place and not having to worry about moving herself or her business and from the beer she’d practically downed all at once.
Before she could talk herself out of it, she grabbed the business card and texted the number on the card.
Kate
Hey, this is Kate. Are you up?
She hit send and held her breath. Kate went back to Instagram and clicked on Hannah’s profile.
Much to her dismay, all the posts were showing various tarot card spreads and one picture taken from behind that showed only the back of Hannah’s head.
This was a no-face account. Where were the pictures of Hannah out with friends, or showing off an outfit of the day, or even a pouty selfie?
Apparently, Hannah/Maxim was a woman of mystery. That only made Kate want her more.
She switched over to her own business Instagram account and scrolled, looking for more pictures from the pet psychic night.
Her regular customers were always great about posting pictures with their pets and tagging her in them, whether they were wearing a collar they’d gotten from her store or a bag of cat treats.
She was coming up empty until she glimpsed a picture of Hannah giving a reading to one of Kate’s most consistent customers, Cathy, and her Scottish terrier, Munchie.
Pinching the picture with her fingers, Kate saw the way Hannah had a little line between her furrowed brows—amazing, perfect brows that probably never needed tweezing.
Just as she was losing hope, a text popped up.
Hannah
Yep.
Well, shoot, what was she supposed to say to that? Kate typed, “is the offer still on the table?” then she backspaced, realizing that sounded like they were at a business meeting.
Kate
Wanna come over? Have a drink?
Kate watched as the three dots pulsed on her phone.
Then they stopped. She frowned. Had she screwed up?
It was only eight-thirty, so it wasn’t too late to text.
And Kate hadn’t typed come over so I can ravage you with my tongue, even though that would be the best possible outcome for the evening. Damn, I hope I didn’t scare her off.
Hannah
Depends, where do you live?
Kate
Oh, geez, I never mentioned it? I live above my shop.
Hannah
You live super close (winky face emoji).
Kate kicked her feet on the bed in excitement.
Kate
(blushing face emoji)
Hannah
Should I bring anything?
Kate
Just your sweet face.
Hannah
OK, see you soon.
Kate hopped up, made the bed, and fluffed the pillows—if the night took them to her bedroom, she wanted to make a good impression.
She opened a drawer and pulled out a sandalwood room spray and gave the room a quick spray.
Then she took the empty beer bottle off her nightstand and walked into the kitchen to put it in her small recycling bin.
She had no idea how much time she had before Hannah arrived.
Kate looked down at her faded pajama bottoms and her tank top that had bleach stains on it.
Hopefully she had time to change. She rushed back to her bedroom and rummaged through her drawers.
She pulled out a black tank top and a pair of black shorts and put them on.
Kate checked her hair in the mirror and used her fingers to fix it.
Once she was satisfied with that, she picked up her phone to check for a text from Hannah, saying she was here.
Nothing yet. Butterflies were multiplying in her stomach as the seconds passed.
She took a deep breath and blew it out. Then she remembered.
Mouthwash! She swished and spit just as her phone pinged. Hannah was here.
Kate practically ran to her front door. She slid her feet into a pair of slippers, threw on a flannel jacket, and rushed downstairs.
The floodlights from the building backlit Hannah, making her look like an angel sent from heaven just for Kate.
Her lush red hair was swept up, leaving only a few curling tendrils around her face.
Her cheeks were flushed. Kate’s core throbbed as she watched Hannah’s pink tongue peek out and lick her bottom lip.
Unable to wait until they got upstairs, Kate flipped down the doorstopper with her foot and closed the distance to Hannah.
She put her hands on Hannah’s face and took Hannah’s bottom lip in her mouth.
Hannah responded, placing her hands on Kate’s hips and pulling her tight.
Kate loved the soft feel of Hannah’s breasts against her.
The weather was calling for flurries, and she was in shorts, but she was on fire for this woman. Kate pulled back.
“Thanks for coming over.” She held Hannah’s hand in hers and led her into the building.
“I was surprised to hear from you,” Hannah said breathlessly as they rushed up the stairs.
Kate barked out a laugh, “Honestly, I was surprised I texted you.” Kate opened the door to her apartment, and they walked in.
“Well, here we are,” Hannah said, and she toed off her shoes.
“Mm-hmm,” Kate said as she allowed her eyes to devour Hannah.
“I can’t believe you don’t have a pet. I was sure that you were a dog person.” Hannah glanced around the room.
Kate’s stomach twisted. She’d been about to pounce on her, and now Hannah wanted to talk about Kate’s lack of companionship?
“I don’t think it’s that strange. It gives me more time to focus on the shop and help other people with all their pet needs.
If I had a dog right now, it would divide my focus. ”
“Even a cat?”
Kate nodded. “Yes, even a gerbil would be too much for me right now.”
“Sounds like you don’t have time for anything.”
Kate’s throat tightened. She didn’t want to talk about her ex and how much she missed her little pooch.
Oreo had been the best dog she’d ever had.
He would sit by the door with his leash in his mouth, waiting for her anytime she put on her shoes.
He knew when she was sad, and he’d push his head under her hand, demanding pats.
Months after the breakup, she still found herself thinking about going over to their house and stealing Oreo back.
But she didn’t want to find out if she could survive the prison system or the bad publicity that would result.
That’s why she didn’t have a dog. She wasn’t ready to make space to have her heart broken again.
And that was the same reason she was only interested in a super causal relationship revolving around sex with Hannah.
She took Hannah’s hand in hers and began rubbing Hannah’s palm with her thumb. “Come on now, don’t be silly.” Her pulse sped up, and this time it was frustration with herself instead of anticipation. Maybe this had been a mistake. She was sure her emotions were visible on her face.
Hannah laughed awkwardly. “I’m sorry, I don’t know what I’m doing.” The little furrowing of her brows Kate recognized from the Instagram post returned to Hannah’s face, and Kate’s insides melted.
“No worries,” Kate leaned in and kissed Hannah softly and slowly, gently turning the kiss into something more.