“You went on a date?” Ben’s face showed disbelief. “With Olivia?”
Joss had picked Ben up on the way to Olivia’s. She needed to hang large sheets of drywall and wanted to start the upstairs demo; both required an extra pair of hands. Telling him about the date with Olivia was precautionary. If Olivia mentioned it and Joss had said nothing, she’d never live it down. She was now wondering if she would live to regret the decision. “Yes. I do date, you know. I’m not a nun.”
“I only thought you were pretty determined not to like her. Not to mention your prohibition on dating clients.”
Joss sighed. “I wasn’t determined, I just…”
Ben raised a brow.
“I jumped to conclusions. She’s different than I thought when I first met her.”
“So you were wrong.”
“You’re really enjoying this, aren’t you?” Joss had to laugh. She’d given Ben a hard time plenty of times, especially when it came to women. For him to harass her now only seemed fair.
“I am. You know I don’t think it’s a big deal to date a client now and then, especially if they’re hot.”
“You realize that logic makes no sense.”
Ben ignored her. “I’m glad you guys hooked up. Olivia is gorgeous and she’s been making eyes at you for weeks.”
“We didn’t hook up. We had dinner.”
“No sex?” Ben seemed incredulous.
“No. Dude, it was the first date.”
“But you’re not ruling out sex.”
“Why are we discussing this again?”
“Because I’m your brother. I also happen to be the one who discovered Olivia was a lesbian in the first place.”
“And somehow I find those things reasons to discuss this even less.”
Ben shrugged. “You probably have a point. But as much as I give you a hard time, I do only want what’s best for you.”
Joss knew that Ben was sincere. She’d looked out for him when they were little; having three years on him made her feel responsible for her baby brother. By the time they reached high school, however, the feeling was mutual. And while nothing had ever come to blows—well, except that one time with Johnny Mancuso—they’d always had each other’s backs. “I know, man.”
“Are you going to go out again?”
Joss thought about how her date with Olivia ended—the kiss that nearly consumed her and the promise of a second. She was already counting the days until she could kiss Olivia again, and more. “Yeah, I think we are.”
“Well, I think it’s a great idea. Olivia is funny and cool.”
“And she’s a client.”
“Yeah, but if she doesn’t have a problem with that, why should you?”
“Because it’s never a problem until there’s a problem.”
Ben shook his head. “You’re borrowing trouble. You should relax. Besides, it’s been too long since you’ve dated.”
“You make it sound like I’m some sort of hermit.”
“Not at all. I think sometimes you’re so focused on the end game, you lose sight of the play.”
Joss raised a brow. “Are you using sports analogies to discuss my love life?”
“Think about it. You want the wife and kids, the white picket fence, right?”
“I’m not partial to picket fences, but yes.”
“But you’re squeamish when it comes to dating someone new.”
Joss frowned. “Sometimes.”
“You’re never going to get to one if you don’t start with the other.”
It was so annoying when Ben was right, especially about relationships. “I just can’t…Olivia doesn’t strike me as wife material, if you know what I mean.”
“Because she’s a professor?”
“Because she’s really independent. And because she seems used to a certain lifestyle. She probably makes more money than me.”
“Weren’t you just saying you jumped to conclusions about her that were wrong? You’re doing the exact same thing now.”
Joss resisted the urge to grumble. He was right. Again.
“You should give her a chance. You never know where it might lead.”
“Yeah.” Could she do that? Did she want to?
“And you should definitely sleep with her.”
Joss punched him in the arm. “You’re so crass.”
“I just call ’em as I see ’em.”
They pulled into the driveway just as Olivia was coming out the side door. She was wearing a pencil skirt and a crisp white shirt; her hair was pulled into a tidy bun. It made Joss’s mouth water. As she and Ben got out of her truck, Olivia waved.
“Back in professor mode,” she said by way of explanation. “I’m glad you got here before I left.”
Joss remembered the feel of Olivia’s lips against hers, the taste of her. She had to fight the urge to kiss her, right there in front of Ben. “Is everything okay? Do you need something?”
Olivia smiled and glanced away for a second. Was she blushing? “No, I just wanted to see you before I left.”
The comment made Joss blush, probably because Ben was standing right there. The whole thing made her feel like a teenager. “I’m glad we caught you, then.”
Ben made a point of walking to the back of the truck and rustling around. Olivia walked closer to Joss, standing just close enough for Joss to catch a whiff of her perfume. “I only have a meeting and my morning class today, so I’ll be back early afternoon. Will you still be here?”
“I will. We’re going to hang drywall and start demo upstairs.”
“Excellent. I’ll look forward to it.” Olivia leaned in, bringing her lips close to Joss’s ear. “For the record, I really want to kiss you right now.”
Before Joss could respond, Olivia was walking away. “Always a pleasure to see you, Ben. I hope you’re here when I return.”
“Likewise,” Ben said. “I can’t wait to see the progress you’ve made.”
Olivia was almost to her car before Joss found her voice. “Olivia.”
Olivia turned. “Yes?”
“The feeling is mutual.”
She flashed a satisfied smile before getting into her car and driving away.
“What feeling is mutual?” Ben had walked up behind Joss without her realizing it.
Joss turned, annoyed that she’d let him sneak up on her. If she didn’t tell him, he’d likely pester her about it all morning. Too bad. “Wouldn’t you like to know.”
Ben nodded appreciatively. “Knowing you don’t want to tell is enough for me. I know you don’t want to hear this, but she might be a keeper.”
“Thank you, Dr. Phil. What do you say we get to work?”
Ben held up his tools. “I’m ready, boss.”
They went inside, deciding to get the demo out of the way first. Because the tub was freestanding, they’d be able to get the wall out and reframed before having to disconnect the plumbing. While they worked, Ben’s comment bounced around in Joss’s mind. She pushed it aside, choosing instead to think about when she’d be able to kiss Olivia next.
*
Normally, Olivia didn’t mind assessment committee meetings. She found it satisfying to quantify and measure what students learned in English courses. It provided something tangible to establish the legitimacy of the humanities in a STEM-obsessed climate. She found her mind wandering, however, and more than once had to be pulled back into the conversation.
Class was easier. Something about standing in front of twenty-five students made it impossible to be anything but on. With the first paper due in a couple of weeks, she spent most of the time going over expectations and citation requirements. Since it was a survey course, she had a mix of students, including non-majors and a few freshmen. Being really thorough would hopefully save her some really bad papers or, worse, plagiarism issues. She lingered after to answer a few questions, but decided to head right home instead of going to her office.
When she walked in the kitchen door, she could hear Joss and Ben banging around upstairs. She quickly changed her clothes and gathered up her supplies before heading up to join them. She set down her things and walked through the door of her soon-to-be closet. The far wall was completely gone, allowing her to see into the bathroom where Joss and Ben were working.
“Looks like y’all have been busy.”
Joss and Ben turned in unison. It was kind of adorable. “You’re back,” Ben said.
“I am, and I’m impressed with your progress.”
“Good. Hold on to that feeling because we have an issue.” Joss looked worried.
Olivia frowned. “What kind of issue?”
“When I did the inspection and found copper pipes in the kitchen and basement, I figured the whole house had them. For some reason, however, they used galvanized steel for the upstairs.”
“I take it that’s bad?”
“Not bad, but not ideal.”
Ben jumped in. “It can be hard to tell what shape they’re in without cutting into them.”
Joss continued. “Which means they could last another twenty years or they could go next week.”
Olivia had seen that on a show once. It didn’t seem terrible, but no one had talked about how much it cost to fix. “So you’re suggesting we replace them while the walls are open.”
“It would mean breaking into one wall on the first floor that we hadn’t planned to, but then you really shouldn’t have to worry about plumbing issues for the foreseeable future.”
Olivia crossed her arms. “Makes sense. How much?”
“About two extra days and a couple thousand dollars.”
Olivia felt herself relax. In the grand scheme of things, that seemed like a small price to pay for peace of mind. It was also a lot cheaper than dealing with pipes leaking in the walls. “Let’s do it.”
Joss looked relieved and Ben elbowed her. “See, I told you she would be reasonable.”
Olivia raised a brow at Joss. “Did you think I wouldn’t be?”
“No. I just hate finding things that are going to cost the homeowner more time and money.”
Olivia sighed. Of course Joss would take that kind of thing to heart. It was the sort of thing that made her attraction to Joss so much more than physical. “I appreciate that you told me what you found and gave me the options. I’m sure some people would have covered it back up to avoid dealing with it or done what they wanted and handed me a bill after the fact.”
“Thanks. That makes me feel better.”
“Good. Knowing my pipes aren’t going to burst makes me feel better, so we’re even.”
“What are you up to this afternoon?” Ben asked.
“Well, I’m itching to paint, but I’m going to work on the floors for an hour or two first. I feel like I’m finally in the home stretch. Besides, I want to try out my fancy new knee pads.” She winked at Joss.
Ben shook his head. “I still can’t believe you’re doing all of that yourself.”
“Oh, she has everything under control.” Joss winked back.
Olivia headed to what was going to be her guest room and got to work. It only took about an hour for her to finish the staples that were still there. The knee pads were a godsend. She was going to have to think of a good way to thank Joss for thinking of them and buying them for her. A vision of herself, on her knees in front of Joss, flashed into Olivia’s mind. The arousal was so quick, it left her breathless. Olivia wondered if she was ever going to get that chance. God, she hoped so.
Feeling satisfied with her progress, she decided to switch gears and do some painting. She was so looking forward to covering up the garish pink that was there. She opened up the pack of paint rollers and slid one onto the handle, unwrapped her new brush, set a liner in the paint tray. She looked up to find Joss standing in the doorway.
“You look like quite the pro there.”
Olivia stood. “Unlike pulling up carpet, I actually know how to paint walls.”
“You did just fine with the carpet, especially for a first timer.”
“You’ll have to watch it with all the compliments. They’ll go right to my head.”
Joss rolled her eyes. “Oh, well, then I take it back.”
“Too late.” Olivia popped the lid on a gallon of paint with a screwdriver. She poured some of the creamy yellow paint into the tray liner and stood up. “I now think I’m the diva of DIY.”
Joss shook her head, but smiled. “You’ve got the diva part right. Are you sure you don’t need a hand?”
Olivia picked up her edging brush. “As you so nicely said earlier, I have this completely under control.”
“We’ll be downstairs if you change your mind.”
“Thanks.”
Joss disappeared and Olivia climbed onto her new stepladder. She dipped her brush, then trailed it slowly along the edge where wall met ceiling. She did it a second time, pausing to admire the crisp line. Even with the fancy primer-paint-in-one she’d bought, it was going to take a couple of coats. But still. It looked good. And, more importantly, it was hers.