Cassidy was out by the pool, getting the beer bucket ready for her and Laura. She knew Erica and Amber would prefer margaritas; she already had the stuff for that sitting out on the outdoor bar. She found herself whistling and had to stop and smile, conscious of her good mood. Laura was coming over. They’d talked. No one was freaking out about the kiss…and what it meant. They’d talked. Everything was good. And part of her wished she wasn’t having company this weekend—more time with Laura. But a part of her was glad she was—she didn’t want to rush things with Laura and if they were alone this weekend, judging by the kisses they’d shared…well, if they were alone, she knew how it would end. She stared off into space, imagining that very thing, imagining Laura in her bed. She closed her eyes for a moment, recognizing the turn her stomach had just taken.
A car honked its horn down at the gate, and she hurried over to the keypad on the back wall, quickly punching in the code to let them in. She was a bit disappointed that Laura hadn’t beaten them over. She wouldn’t have minded a few minutes alone with her. A few minutes to kiss.
She went back inside, through the kitchen and past the informal sitting area to the formal living room, finally to the front entry. She had the door opened before they rang the bell. The smile on her face faltered, however, as she stood face-to-face with Claudia…of all people.
“Well, hello again,” Claudia nearly purred. “I hope you don’t mind me crashing.”
Cassidy was at a loss for words, and she jerked her attention to Erica, raising her eyebrows questioningly.
“We had dinner with Claudia last night,” Erica explained. “I knew you wouldn’t mind if we invited her. Foursomes are so much better than three,” she said with a smile.
“Of course,” she said politely. “It’s no problem.” She opened the door wider. “Come in.”
They each carried an overnight bag, and she led them through the house and into the long hallway where the guestrooms were. She put Erica and Amber in their normal room, then moved down the hallway to open another door. As Claudia brushed by, she smiled seductively at her.
“If you want company upstairs tonight, I do remember the way to your bedroom.”
So that’s how it was going to be, huh? Well, she wouldn’t be rude to her but…
“I don’t think so,” she said with a smile. “There really wasn’t much going on with us anyway, you know.”
“No? I beg to differ. There was a lot going on between the sheets.” She stepped closer to Cassidy. “No lover has ever come close to you.”
Cassidy took a step away from her. “If your sole purpose for coming here this weekend was to get into my bed…it’s a wasted trip, Claudia. I’m sorry.”
“Oh, Cassidy…you’re alone. We all know that you don’t do well alone. I’m just letting you know that I’m available.” She started unbuttoning her blouse. “I bought a new bikini for the weekend. Red. It’s a little bit of nothing but hey, you’ve seen it all already anyway.”
Cassidy turned away when Claudia dropped her blouse on the floor. She closed the door to the bedroom, then went back down the hallway. She could be angry with Erica—in fact, she was angry with her—but it would do no good. Claudia was here now. She couldn’t exactly ask her to leave.
At least she’d picked up an extra steak. She had planned on cooking it for Maggie. She doubted she would want to join them for dinner, but she thought maybe Laura could take her a plate. Speaking of Laura…how was she ever going to explain Claudia being here? Well, she had no time to prepare. Laura was already out by the pool.
She went out onto the patio, smiling as their eyes met. Yeah…she wished they were alone.
“Am I early?”
“No. They just got here. They’re changing.” She walked closer. “There…there is something, though.”
Laura raised her eyebrows. “You’re fidgeting and nervous. What’s wrong?”
“How can you know that?”
“I can read you like a book.” Then she smiled. “I just can’t write a book.”
Cassidy laughed. “You need to give me a copy of your first one. Is it still in print?”
“No. I happen to have like ten or twelve copies, though.” Laura looked her up and down. “Is there a bikini on under that?”
“There is. I see you forgot your cutoff jeans.”
“I didn’t think they were appropriate. Your friends probably don’t even know what cutoff jeans are.” Laura put her hands on her hips. “So what’s wrong?”
Before Cassidy could answer, Laura’s eyes were drawn to the double doors. Cassidy could tell by her expression that she’d seen Claudia. Laura slowly brought her gaze back to Cassidy.
“Seriously?”
“I didn’t know she was coming,” Cassidy whispered. “She’s friends with Erica. Apparently, they thought it would be a good idea, you know, for me…”
Laura nodded. “Erica thinks…what was her name again?”
“Claudia.”
“Right. She thinks Claudia—the very thin, beautiful blonde—is perfect for you.”
“Something like that.”
“So…would you like for me to leave so you can have time with her?”
“God, no! I want—”
“Oh, the pool looks lovely, Cassidy. The flowers are gorgeous.”
Erica, with Amber and Claudia at her heels, descended onto the patio. She felt Laura stiffen beside her, and she plastered a smile on her face, turning to her friends.
“I have Laura to thank for the flowers. She’s my neighbor…and friend,” she added quickly. “Laura, this is Erica, Amber, and Claudia.”
To Laura’s credit, she showed no outward signs that she was miffed in any way. She smiled pleasantly at them.
“Nice to meet you all,” she said. “I hope you don’t mind if I join you.”
Erica’s eyes widened. “Oh. Well…if Cassidy doesn’t mind, I certainly don’t.”
Cassidy laughed. “I invited her, Erica. She’s not crashing the party.”
“Weren’t you telling us one time that your neighbor did your yardwork?” Amber asked. “Is she the one?”
“I am,” Laura answered.
Claudia came up close beside Cassidy, brushing her shoulder. “You do her…yard? What does that entail exactly?”
Cassidy took a step away from her. “She mows the lawn, Claudia. Trims the weeds. Tends to the flowers. That sort of thing.”
Claudia gave a condescending laugh. “Why on earth would you do that?”
Laura remained undaunted as she smiled at Claudia. “It pays well and I’ve got some pretty good perks.” At Claudia’s blank stare, Laura motioned to the pool. “I have permission to use the pool. That way I don’t have to sneak over and…you know, trespass.”
“Sneak over to your neighbor’s property? Trespass? But—”
“How about instead of talking about the pool, we actually get in it?” Cassidy asked, trying to end this vein of conversation. “Shall I make a pitcher of margaritas?”
“Oh, that sounds wonderful,” Claudia said. “Can I help?”
“No, no. I got it.” She looked over at Laura. “Do you mind getting some floats?”
“Happy to.”
Cassidy smiled, relieved to see an amused expression on Laura’s face rather than annoyed. As she added ice to the blender, she glanced over at the pool. Claudia was indeed in a tiny—skimpy—bikini. As thin as she was, it wasn’t at all flattering on her. Claudia’s gaze was on Laura and Cassidy followed it. Laura looked healthy and vibrant, her tan natural, her hair color natural. And despite the situation, she sported a rather easy smile on her face. Claudia, on the other hand, looked anything but healthy—listless and frail. Her hair had been dyed so many times, it appeared dull and lifeless. The smile on her face was forced, and Cassidy imagined she was a bit perturbed by Laura’s presence. As she looked at the two of them she wondered what she’d ever seen in Claudia.
Nothing, really. She was a friend of Erica’s—that’s how they’d met. And like most of the women she went out with, she knew after the first date that there was nothing there. There shouldn’t have been a second date. There certainly shouldn’t have been a fourth and fifth. But at the time, it was easier to continue than to stop. But Claudia was starting to talk long-term, and Cassidy had finally broken things off. Claudia had been hurt; she’d said as much. Not so hurt, though, that she wasn’t willing to come for the weekend uninvited…and offer to share a bed.
“You need some help?”
Cassidy hadn’t even seen Erica come over. She shook her head. “No. Sorry. Lost in thought.”
“I hope you’re not mad about Claudia being here.”
She shrugged. “As long as she realizes that she’s not sleeping in my bed tonight.”
“Well, I figured you were on good enough terms with her since she’d been invited to your pool party.” Erica leaned closer and smiled. “I thought you might even want to give it another try. It would be fun to hang out with you two again.”
Cassidy put the lid on the blender. “No, Erica. It’s not happening.” She turned the blender on, stopping any further conversation. Mad? No, she wasn’t really mad that Claudia was there. Actually, she wished none of them were there. She wanted to be with Laura. She didn’t want to have to make small talk with them and entertain them…she just wanted to be with Laura. She wanted to play with Laura and tease with Laura and laugh with Laura and be with Laura.
She poured the margarita mix into three glasses, then put the pitcher in the fridge. Erica took two of the glasses.
“Just three?”
“Laura will have beer,” she said, perhaps a bit presumptuously. But she looked over and Laura was already taking two out of the ice bucket and putting them in koozies.
“I didn’t realize you were on such friendly terms with her…your yard girl. Friendly enough that you’d invite her over to mingle with your real friends.”
Real friends? Cassidy shrugged. “She’s nice. I enjoy her company.”
“So you hang out?”
“What’s with all the questions?”
“Well, if I didn’t know better, I’d say you were interested in her.” Erica laughed. “Certainly not your type, though.”
Cassidy didn’t feel the need to discuss Laura with Erica so she didn’t bother with a reply. She walked over to the pool and handed Claudia—who was sitting with Amber under an umbrella—the margarita. Laura was standing out in the sun, looking longingly at the pool. Cassidy went over to her and took one of the beer bottles out of her hand.
“Jump in. I’m right behind you,” she whispered.
“Thanks. I didn’t know what the protocol was.”
“No protocol. Grab a float.”
Laura groaned. “There’s no way I’m going to fight with that damn float in front of your friends,” she whispered.
Cassidy laughed. “Don’t worry about them. I like watching you fight with it.”
“Yes, I know you do. And if any of them laugh at me, I’ll tip them off their floats when they’re least expecting it,” she threatened with a grin.
Cassidy felt quite giddy as she stared at her. “I really want to kiss you,” she whispered.
Laura held her gaze. “Probably not a good idea. Your friend Claudia has been shooting me daggers. She may attack.”
“I’ll help you flip her off the float later.”
Laura smiled into her eyes. “Then I’ll let you kiss me later.”
Laura set her beer bottle at the edge, then jumped into the pool, splashing her with water. Cassidy watched her for a second as she went to retrieve a float, then turned to her friends, finding them all watching Laura as well. Erica turned to her first, her eyebrows raised questioningly. It wasn’t any of their business, she decided, so she felt no need to explain Laura’s presence there. Besides, what would she say? Would she tell them how badly she wanted to kiss her? Being attracted to Laura was one thing…but being insanely attracted to her was something else entirely.
She plastered a smile on her face and moved closer. “You guys getting in the pool or can I get you another margarita?”
“I’m getting in,” Claudia said. “I want to visit with your yard girl a little.” Then she smiled. “She looks like she’s having trouble with the float. Perhaps I’ll help her.”
She turned, seeing Laura struggling to get the float under her. As Claudia made her way over to her, Laura righted herself finally.
“She has a hard time getting it to hold still for her,” Cassidy explained with a laugh. “It’s quite amusing.”
“Just how often does she come over?”
Again, it really wasn’t any of Erica’s business, but she wasn’t going to hide her friendship with Laura.
“She uses the pool during the week whenever she wants. And when I’m here on the weekends, she usually comes over and we share the pool…and dinner.”
“Dinner? Yes, the rumor floating around the group is that you’ve been coming out here alone lately. Even your big party, I don’t recall you stealing someone and whisking them away to your bedroom.” Erica put her drink glass down. “Dry spell or…”
“Dry spell?” Amber asked with a laugh. “I can name six women off the top of my head who would kill to be here with her. Claudia included. I wouldn’t call that a dry spell.”
“There’s not anyone in the so-called group that I’m interested in dating,” she said.
“What about Melissa?”
“Melissa?”
“Melissa Hurst. The blonde. She’s thirty-three, I think.”
Cassidy laughed. “They’re all blond, Erica.”
“True. But—”
Cassidy held up her hand. “No, thanks. I’m fine.” She glanced into the pool, seeing Laura’s brows draw together from something Claudia said. “I think I’ll join them.”