11
Ilona
Falling asleep in Larz’s arms was a dream, but waking up alone was a punch in the gut.
I didn’t know how we could spend such an intimate night together just for her to leave without a word.
After she fucked me into oblivion on the kitchen counter, Larz sat me on her lap in front of the fireplace and fed me spoonfuls of soup until I couldn’t eat anymore. We cuddled and talked in front of the flames until I faded into a deep sleep, only to wake up upstairs in bed. Alone.
My eyes stung as I swung my feet over the edge, forcing myself up for the day. As I reached for my water bottle on the nightstand, a sticky note attached to the side caught my eye.
Good morning, Little Stinger.
You’re so precious when you sleep. I didn’t want to invite myself over, but I did steal a kiss before I left. Meet me at the edge of the forest at noon.
-Larz
Relief washed over me. I sighed, laughing at myself as I fell back on the bed. She didn’t just leave me like I was nothing. She wanted to see me again. I scrambled to find my phone and check the time.
“Fucking 10 am already?!” I hadn’t slept in that long since I was a teenager.
Noticing a missed notification, I checked my unread messages. It was strange for me to get any kind of alerts besides alarms and bill reminders. My heart skipped a beat, my stomach twisting in a million knots as I read who the message was from. Maureen.
I hadn’t spoken to my mother since right before I packed up and ran away to Cutwood.
I had blocked every single person’s number from my old life, besides her.
Every time I thought I had built up the courage to do it, my finger would hover over the button for what felt like hours, but I could never follow through.
Some part of me still grasped onto the possibility that things would change, that she might actually change her ways and accept me one day.
Although she had treated me terribly most of my life, she was still my mother and I hated the treacherous hope I still had that I would one day earn her love.
I stared at the rectangular box stretched across my screen with her name in bold letters.
It would be so easy just to click it and read what she had to say, but hesitation gripped me by the throat.
There was no casual or subtle with my mother.
Everything she said was calculated. Whatever was in this message, good or bad, may have the power to derail my whole life and the progress I’d made rebuilding it.
Larz’s bright orange note was still stuck to my index finger, demanding my attention back from the past. I read it over again, a smile ghosting my lips through the pain, guilt and shame that came with just reading my mother’s name.
I tossed my phone aside, message left unread and all thoughts of Maureen fading, and imagined Larz saying the sweet words to my face.
She wanted to meet at the edge of the forest. Bev’s warning rang in my head, the story I’d read in Cutwood’s history playing like a movie in my mind. I liked to think I wasn’t scared, but I could admit I was a bit nervous.
After last night, it was clear that there was something different about Larz. Her eyes didn’t just seem black, they were black. All of it. She was able to shift them in the blink of an eye. I was so turned on that it didn’t faze me, but I started to wonder what else I’d find out about her.
The nerves didn’t outweigh the curiosity, though.
However different Larz may be, I’d never felt so connected to someone.
I’d never felt so cared for. Or fucked so well.
So I showered, threw on the cutest, comfy outfit I could and headed to Roasterz to grab our identical order and meet my mystery woman at the edge of the forest.
~
I almost completely forgot about Stellan’s existence until she was piercing daggers through me with her stare as I walked in the door. Whatever interest she may have had in me before seemed to have fizzled and disappeared.
“Good morning,” I tried to put on my most cheerful voice. With the way she was glaring at me, I didn’t want to risk gulping down spit with my coffee.
“What can I get for you?” Her tone was flat as she finally ripped her gaze away.
“Two black coffees, please.”
She scoffed, snatching two paper cups from the counter, “Going on a date with that fucking freak again?”
I just looked at her, cocking a brow. She meant to offend me, but it just didn’t land. I decided to ignore it. Being rejected was hard, so she would get a pass from me. This time.
“Throw in a few blueberry muffins, too, please.”
Her pale skin went beet red. “I’m serious, Ilona. You don’t know what she is. I don’t think she’s good for you.”
“What would be good for me right now is two black coffees and two blueberry muffins, please. Thank you.” I was getting really tired of everyone trying to tell me what and who was best for me or what I should and shouldn’t do.
“Don’t say I didn’t wa-”
I was pulling out my wallet to pay when Stellan froze mid-sentence, her gaze locked just over my shoulder. The air in the small cafe went thick, darkening with the sudden silence around me. I gazed behind my shoulder to see Larz stalking through the door.
She strode right up to me, hugging me from behind and pulling me close to her chest. Without acknowledging Stellan, she tugged my chin up, locking me into a deep kiss. I almost forgot where we were as I leaned in, groaning as her tongue danced over mine.
Stellan cleared her throat, “$10.50.”
I reached for my wallet again, only to be stopped by Larz’s tight grip around my wrist. Before I could protest, she pulled my hand to her lips, pressing light kisses over each of my knuckles.
“Great minds think alike, baby.” She released me and shoved a twenty on the counter. “But this one’s on me. Keep the change.”
My stomach fluttered. Nobody had ever cared for me as she had in the last few days. Normally, I would have protested, but melting into sync with her was as natural as breathing. Like it was always meant to be.
When I looked up, Larz and Stellan were locked in a death glare.
Stellan gripped the counter so hard, her knuckles went white, while Larz’s chest heaved against my back.
The hostility hung heavy in the air, so thick I almost couldn’t breathe.
I tried to lean my body harder into Larz and push her back a few feet, but she stood solid as an oak.
If I didn’t get her out of there soon, I feared they’d rip each other's heads clean off.
“Two black coffees.” A barista slid our order across the counter, eyeing our group with concern. “Everything alright, Stell?”
“Fine,” Stellan finally broke the gaze, shifting toward me before walking away, “be careful, Ilona.”
“I got my girl’s safety covered, don’t worry.” Larz winked in her direction as she grabbed our order and guided me out the door.
Out in the cool, morning air, the mood shifted. Larz let her shoulders drop, her face softened, and her voice smoothed out again. It was brighter out than it had been since I’d arrived in Cutwood, it was like the weather changed with her mood, welcoming us into a beautiful day.
“Up for a hike?” It was amazing how she let the whole encounter roll off her back like nothing.
“Yeah, sure. But,” I hesitated, “what was that all about? Do you guys know each other?”
She shrugged, avoiding my gaze as she took a long, deep sip of her coffee. “I don’t know. People aren’t always exactly warm and fuzzy with me.” Her eyes shifted to me, a smirk tugging the corner of her lip, “probably just jealousy, though. I got the prettiest girl in town on my arm.”
She snaked an arm around my waist, pulling me in and guiding me towards the forest. “Don’t worry, you’re always going to be safe with me.”