Olivia paced back and forth in her kitchen. Joss was due to arrive any minute. Her conversation with Ben from the day before played through her mind. To her way of thinking, she had two options. The first option was to ignore the situation entirely, pretend it never happened and keep all of her interactions with Joss to a bare minimum. That wasn’t her style. The other option was to confront it head-on, force Joss to admit she was wrong. It didn’t need to be an argument, but she did need Joss to acknowledge that she’d jumped to conclusions and that those conclusions had been completely wrong.
Then the whole mess would be behind them. With the air cleared, maybe the awkward tension between them would go away. Maybe they could be friends or, even better, enjoy a little casual flirtation. Meeting Joss had reminded Olivia just how much she missed that.
As if on cue, Joss pulled into the driveway. She waited until Joss was about ten feet from the back door before opening it. She offered her most welcoming smile.
“Joss, it’s so nice to see you again.”
Joss returned the smile, but there were nerves behind it. “Good morning, Olivia. It’s nice to see you, too.”
Olivia stepped aside so Joss could enter the kitchen. “It was such a pleasure meeting your brother yesterday.”
Joss looked exceedingly ill at ease. “Yeah, about that. I’m sorry he asked you out. Hitting on clients is not what Bauer and Sons is about.”
Olivia waved her hand. “Oh, that’s no big deal. Ben and I sorted it out and we’re good.”
“Okay, good. I didn’t want you to have the wrong idea.”
Olivia looked Joss in the eyes. “Just like I don’t want you to have the wrong idea.”
Joss winced slightly and looked down. “Yeah. I’m sorry about that, too.”
It wasn’t enough of an answer to satisfy her. “I don’t understand why you would tell your brother I was straight. What made you so sure?”
Joss shrugged, but refused to make eye contact with her. “It wasn’t like that. We didn’t sit around discussing it. I wasn’t sure, but I didn’t get gay vibes from you, and my gaydar is pretty reliable. Combined with the fact that you’re so girly. And Southern.”
Olivia huffed. “There are just as many lesbians down there as there are up here.”
“Of course there are.” The way she said it made Olivia think the idea had never occurred to her.
Olivia sighed. It was one thing to get that kind of reaction from crusty old administrators and straight guys. It was another, and entirely obnoxious, thing to get it from a fellow lesbian. To get it from a hot lesbian she was attracted to, well, that was simply demoralizing. Which was why she was having such a hard time letting it go.
She narrowed her eyes at Joss. “Is that why you don’t like me? You assumed I was straight?”
“No.”
“So there’s a different reason that you don’t like me.”
“Yes. I mean, no.”
Joss looked beyond uncomfortable at this point. As much as she wanted to enjoy watching Joss squirm, her upbringing compelled her to smooth feathers whenever they were ruffled. And she needed to make nice if she wanted the chance to get flirty—or more. She clasped her hands together and offered a smile. “It’s not a test, and I’m not trying to make you feel bad.”
Joss looked far from convinced.
“Really. I get annoyed when I’m read as straight because of how I choose to look or dress. I also get annoyed when people hear my accent and figure I’m some airhead debutante.”
“So you weren’t a debutante?”
It was Olivia’s turn to look away. “I wasn’t an airhead.”
“Shit, I was kidding. You seriously were a debutante? Big dress and a ball just for you?”
Well, hell. This was not how she wanted this conversation to go. “It wasn’t like Gone with the Wind, if that’s what you’re thinking. And don’t change the subject. We’re talking about why you don’t like me.”
“I think those things are one and the same, darling.” The second the words were out of her mouth, Joss looked horrified, as though she couldn’t believe she’d just said that.
Olivia narrowed her eyes. “What is that supposed to mean?”
Joss seemed to regain her composure. “Nothing. I only meant that we don’t have anything in common.”
Olivia felt her pulse start to thud in her head and heat rise to make her entire face flush. “You don’t know anything about me.”
It looked like Joss was going to hurl another insult, but she didn’t. Olivia saw her take a deep breath and clench her jaw. “Look, forget I said anything. We’re going to be working together for at least the next few weeks. Let’s try to keep it professional and things will go a lot more smoothly.”
Olivia looked at the woman about whom she’d already had more than one erotic dream. She was drawn to her awake and in sleep, and couldn’t seem to shake it. She’d meant her question about Joss not liking her as a gentle tease, a way to get Joss to open up. Normally, Olivia was good—really good—at that sort of thing. Instead, she’d opened up a can of worms and started an argument. Or got sucked into an argument. She still wasn’t sure which.
As much as it stung, if that was what Joss really thought of her, it was probably for the best that she know it now. She had no use for women who were judgmental and rude. “That sounds like an excellent idea. I’ll let you get to work.”
Olivia grabbed her purse and left the same way Joss had come in. She got in her car and pulled out of the driveway, refusing to look back. She headed toward town without a concrete destination in mind.
That was not how she’d intended things to go. Why did Joss have to be so contrary about everything? Olivia chided herself for getting pulled into a bickering match. It was the opposite of what she’d been going for. A little part of her brain told Olivia to let it go. But just like ignoring a problem, letting it go wasn’t in her nature either. And there was something about Joss. She was attractive, sure, but it was something more compelling than that. Olivia couldn’t put her finger on it, but it was something she couldn’t—didn’t want to—ignore.
By the time she got into town, she’d come full circle. She was going to have to apologize. Well, she didn’t have to, but if she wanted to figure out this thing with Joss, trying to make up would help. She squared her shoulders. She didn’t hate apologizing, but she certainly didn’t enjoy it, especially when she wasn’t in the wrong.
She stopped at the grocery store. She didn’t need anything, but she wasn’t going to go back empty-handed and make it obvious she’d stomped out in a huff just to do it. Olivia wandered the produce department, letting the colors and smells distract her. It wouldn’t be too long before she’d have a kitchen where she could cook to her heart’s content.
Since that wasn’t the case yet, Olivia picked up fresh salad ingredients and local blueberries. Feeling self-indulgent, she passed by the cheese counter and picked up a wedge of brie. An older man in the bakery department was putting out fresh baguettes, so she grabbed one of those as well. Feeling calmer, she paid for her things and headed home.
Olivia walked back into the house and found Joss removing trim from the doorway that separated the kitchen and dining room. She watched as Joss pried each piece off individually then added them to a neat pile in the corner. Watching her work was hot, more so than she’d imagined.
Joss must have sensed that she was being watched, because she turned. “I know it looks tedious, but the wood is original. Even if we don’t need it elsewhere in the house, it has value.”
Olivia picked up on a defensive edge in Joss’s voice. She decided to use it as an opportunity to be conciliatory. “I completely agree. I appreciate that you’re taking so much care. If you don’t use it, I’ll invent a project to give it a purpose.”
“It would be perfect if you ever wanted to turn some bookshelves into built-ins.”
Olivia couldn’t tell if Joss was throwing her a bone or if she simply couldn’t resist imagining a project. In either case, it was the right thing to say. “Oh, my God. Yes. That would be amazing.”
“I’d be happy to add it to the project if you’d like.” Could that be Joss attempting to make nice, too?
Olivia offered her a smile. “Seriously? I’ve got so many books that have been languishing in boxes. I can’t squeeze any more into my office.”
“I’ll sketch out a couple of options and bring them to you later this week.”
“Thank you.”
“No problem.”
Joss started to turn away. Olivia took a deep breath. “Joss, I’m sorry I got testy with you earlier.”
Joss looked down, as though her hammer was the most fascinating thing she’d ever seen. “You don’t need to apologize.”
Olivia realized she’d fisted her hands on her hips and forced herself to drop them to her sides. “I do. I get irritated when I’m read as straight, especially by…” She glanced away, then back and Joss. “Well, you know.”
Joss merely raised an eyebrow.
Olivia plowed on. “I’m just saying that was one thing. And then the whole debutante thing on top, it really set me off.”
Joss went from looking dubious to downright uncomfortable. “Okay, well, I’m sorry I pushed your buttons.”
“Thank you. I have a lot of ambivalence about certain parts of my upbringing. I became a professor, moved here, to escape a lot of that. I guess I’m still sensitive about it.” She hadn’t planned on baring her soul, but it sort of came out.
“Okay.” Joss nodded, but still seemed uneasy.
“I just really don’t want there to be any tension between us. We’re going to be crossing paths a lot over the next few weeks.”
“I agree.”
“Truce?”
“Truce.”
Olivia stuck out her hand and Joss shook it. Olivia smiled again. It was a step in the right direction. “I’m so glad. I’ll let you get back to work. I’m going to go change and get back to the never-ending wallpaper.”
Joss watched Olivia disappear into the sitting room she’d claimed as her bedroom. She shook her head, not entirely sure what had just happened. Whatever it was, she hoped it would help the project go more smoothly. She put in her ear buds, cranked some classic rock, and got back to work.
An hour later, Joss had finished removing the trim and baseboards. She’d also removed outlets and capped the wiring in the walls slated to come down. She contemplated leaving without saying anything, but doing so after Olivia’s overture seemed rude. She put her tools away and went in search.
“Olivia?”
“In here.” The sound came from the small half-bath off the formal sitting room.
Joss followed it and found Olivia ankle-deep in torn-up wallpaper. She’d changed from the skirt she’d been wearing and was in an Emory T-shirt and a pair of athletic shorts. Her hair was pulled into a messy bun and there were bits of wallpaper stuck in it. For some inexplicable reason, Joss found that look even sexier than when Olivia was all dressed up. Joss shook her head at the absurdity of it. “I just wanted to let you know that I was leaving.”
“Thanks, and thank you for all your hard work today.”
Joss shrugged. “That’s what you’re paying me for.”
“I know, but I’m still thankful for the work—both the quality and the quantity.”
The compliment caught her off guard. “Okay. You’re welcome then. Ben and I will both be here tomorrow to start demo. I’ll warn you now that it’s going to be loud and dusty.”
“Thanks for that, but I’ll be here. I’ll stay out of your way, though. My goal is to get all the upstairs carpet done before the semester starts.”
Joss couldn’t tell if she was relieved or perturbed that Olivia would be around. “We’ll be here around eight.”
Olivia flashed a smile. “I’ll have plenty of coffee.”
“Great. Good luck in here.” Joss gestured to the small space.
“Thanks, I think I’m going to need it.”
Joss backed out of the room and headed to the kitchen. She made sure all her things were neatly tucked away, then let herself out. The afternoon was gorgeous, so she rolled down the windows of her truck and turned on the radio.
As she drove, Joss replayed the conversation with Olivia in her mind. It certainly wasn’t what she’d expected after their tense interaction that morning. Still, the idea of letting her guard down made Joss uneasy. The fact that Olivia was a lesbian only added to that feeling. It created a mix of things that didn’t go together in Joss’s mind. It made things complicated, and Joss was the kind of woman who preferred things simple and straightforward.