Sunday afternoon, Jordan pulled into the parking lot of the coffeehouse where she was meeting her best friend, Alex. She jogged into the retro-styled café and spotted Alex sitting in an overstuffed chair, sipping her overpriced beverage. Jordan waved as she stepped up to the barista and placed her order. After she paid, she walked over to Alex and kissed her chastely on the lips.
“Sorry I’m late, Al.” She dropped into the other chair and brushed her hair back out of her eyes.
Alex raised one eyebrow, a move that Jordan knew from experience accompanied suspicion. “You look like hell, J. What’s wrong?”
Jordan knew she looked like shit. She flushed as she recalled the seduction and sex from the night before. After waking from a short snooze following their last sexual escapade that morning, she’d kissed the woman she’d picked up at the club good-bye and hurried home, so she could take a quick shower to wash the smell of sex off of herself. As she’d pulled her wet hair back into a ponytail, she’d noticed the dark circles under her eyes, evidence of her lack of sleep. On the drive over to meet Alex, she’d had the windows down, and the wind had blown several strands of hair free, which kept falling in her face. For the sake of her sanity, she pulled the rubber band out of her hair and re-tied it.
Jordan sighed and smiled. “Nothing’s wrong. I just had a long night—and an even longer morning.” She thanked the kid who brought her ice-blended mocha.
Alex remained silent, and a few moments went by with them staring at each other, neither saying a thing. Alex looked irritated and was scowling and pursing her lips, clearly waiting for an explanation. Jordan finally laughed. She loved to provoke Alex by making her pry information from her.
“Okay, Alex, relax. I met a girl last night at the club, and she took me back to her hotel. I got a late start today and didn’t have time to get dolled up for you.” She batted her eyes and made Alex laugh.
“You so cannot pull off the eye batting.”
Jordan joined Alex in laughter. “No, I can’t, but I love making you laugh.”
“So, tell me about her.”
Jordan took a sip of her drink and placed the cup on the small glass table that sat between them. “Not much to tell. I met her at the club, we danced a bit, and then we went back to her room and had mind-blowing sex. She was fucking hot.”
“Are you going to see her again?”
“Come on, Alex.” She rolled her eyes. “You know I don’t do repeats.”
Alex sighed. “I know you don’t. But I wish you would at least think about it.”
Jordan loved Alex for her concern. They had become friends their first year in college while being study partners in their U.S. History class. Jordan had crushed on her, but Alex hadn’t felt the same, and they’d eventually become best friends. It had taken some time before she’d realized it, but it had been the right decision for them not to get involved romantically, and Jordan now considered Alex to be more like a sister, someone who would always have her back. Alex was the one person besides her family that Jordan could trust and count on. She knew they would be friends forever.
“Why would I do that?” Jordan asked. This wasn’t the first time they’d had this conversation, and she wished Alex would just let it go already.
“Honey, when are you going to open yourself to the possibility of finding love again? It’s been seven years since you left Kelly.”
Jordan clenched her fists and fought to remain calm. She took a deep breath and tried to rein in her temper. “Kelly left me. The second she decided to fuck that guy, she left me.”
Bile rose in her throat as she thought back to the day she’d walked in on her girlfriend in bed with a man. The heated words they’d exchanged rang in her ears as if they’d been spoken just yesterday. She fought back her tears and tried to regain her composure.
“I’m perfectly happy with how my life is going. I have a great job, a great family, the best friend anyone could ask for, and lots of sex with gorgeous women. What more could I want?”
Alex reached over and placed a hand atop hers. Jordan turned her palm up and entwined their fingers. “J, you have so much to offer, so much love to give. I want you to find love, find a woman who will adore you and give you what you deserve.”
“I love you, Alex, and I love that you care about me, but you don’t have to worry about this.” Jordan released Alex’s hand and leaned back in her chair. “I’m enjoying life. I can do what I want when I want, and I don’t have to answer to anyone but myself. So, please don’t bug me about this anymore. If I change my mind, I’ll let you know. But for now, I’m happy. Besides, it’s not like you’re in some long-term relationship. You get just as many women as I do.”
Alex looked her squarely in the eye. “The difference between you and me is that I’m not averse to having a relationship—I just haven’t met the right woman yet. You, however, have vowed to never allow yourself to become vulnerable again. Not all women are like that bitch, but you won’t even try to spend more than one night with a woman.” Alex brought her hands up in a gesture of surrender. “Whatever. I’ll try not to pester you anymore, but I’m not making any promises.”
Jordan’s heart swelled with affection for her best friend. “Thank you. So, Ms. Taylor, how about you? It’s been a couple of weeks since we had a chance to talk. Broken any hearts recently?”
Alex took a sip of her coffee and grinned mischievously as she set her cup down. “I’ve had a date or two.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes, that’s so. Sexually, we’re very good together, but there’s not much there outside the bedroom. We don’t have a whole lot in common, so I don’t see this going anywhere.”
Jordan feigned shock. “Why, Alex, you compromised this poor woman’s virtue? You’re such a beast.” She started laughing, and Alex joined her.
“Fuck off.”
That made Jordan laugh harder, and soon she had tears rolling down her cheeks. As she wiped the tears away and caught her breath, the most strikingly beautiful woman she had ever seen walked through the door and up to the counter. A new song started playing through the speakers at that very moment, and Jordan found the words to be apropos. She wanted to kiss this stunning woman so hard that it would take her breath away.
From her seat, she had the woman’s profile in view. She appeared to be a few inches shorter than her own six-foot frame, with thick, wavy, dark brown hair that fell to her mid-back. Designer sunglasses were perched on top of her head. She wore a light blue, form-fitting T-shirt and dark blue jeans that sat on her hips.
While the woman waited for her order, she turned to scan the room. Her gaze landed on Jordan, and she gave a small smile. For the first time in a very long while, Jordan’s brain turned to mush, and she couldn’t muster up a thing to say. Ordinarily, she would have walked up to the woman, engaged in a little conversation, and quite possibly left with her. But now, she felt paralyzed—she couldn’t get her body to move or her brain to function. The woman took her drink, walked past them, gave a little nod, and headed back out the door. Jordan watched her go, unable to look away.
“Jordan.”
“What? Why are you yelling?”
“I called your name three times.”
Her face was suddenly very hot. “Oh. Sorry.”
Alex chuckled. “Do you know her?”
“What?” Jordan asked absently.
“Do. You. Know. Her?” Alex asked emphatically.
“No, but I sure wouldn’t mind.”
“She’s gorgeous.”
“Uh-huh.”
Alex slapped her on the arm, making her jump. “Why didn’t you go introduce yourself?”
“Honestly? I couldn’t move. That girl made me stupid. I can’t remember ever having that happen before,” she said, shaking her head.
“Always a first time for everything, huh, J?”