Jill dabbed a few drops of perfume behind her ears. For the umpteenth time, she ran a hand through her hair. She straightened her blouse, smiled at her reflection in the mirror, looked away, and inspected her appearance again, before finally leaving the house.
She was meeting Amelia at a restaurant called Sixth Sense. It was only a few blocks away so Jill opted to walk.
Being a self-confessed restaurant snob, Amelia had picked the venue for their first official date. A date. Jill could hardly believe it, yet there she was, getting closer to the venue for said date, with every step she took.
Since the evening of the kiss, they had only exchanged a few text messages, but Amelia’s eagerness easily shone through the words on the screen. Or maybe that was just wishful thinking on Jill’s part. Maybe Amelia was just feeling guilty about breaking that glass that cut Jill’s hand. She glanced at the small bandage. In a few days, she would have forgotten all about it. But she would never forget how that tiny shard of glass had gotten lodged into her flesh in the first place.
When she reached the restaurant, Amelia was already there. Jill’s heart did a double-take when she saw her at the table. Amelia’s hair was loose and a little wild. Jill wondered if it was how her hair naturally fell or if Amelia had to spend hours to get it to do that. Either way, it looked silky and magnificent and very inviting for Jill to run her hands through—which she had done the other night and it hadn’t been a disappointing sensation at all.
When she noticed Jill, Amelia sent her the most devastating smile. Jill could pontificate to Vic about seeing Amelia’s strength behind her struggles all she wanted, but, if she was being completely honest, it had been nothing but Amelia’s striking beauty—and her voice—that had done her in from the get-go. Those brown almond-shaped eyes. The tilt of her lips when she grinned. Every line on her face, even the ones that deepened with age, only designed to make her face more appealing.
Amelia rose when Jill reached the table and, while gently pressing a hand to Jill’s arm, kissed her on the cheek. She smelled flowery and sultry at the same time. Jill’s mouth settled into a smile she probably wouldn’t be able to wipe off her face for the rest of the night.
“Great to see you,” Amelia said. “How’s the hand?”
“Absolutely fine. Must have been the excellent first aid skills.”
Amelia gave her what seemed to be an eye roll, but Jill wasn’t sure. “For such a world-class goalkeeper, I can be surprisingly clumsy.”
“I’ve never seen you in action, so I’ll have to take your word for that.”
A server stopped by with menus. Jill took the opportunity to glance around the restaurant. So far, she’d only had eyes for Amelia. Despite the restaurant’s obvious swankiness, with plenty of little details in the decor that warranted further investigation, Jill couldn’t pull her gaze away from Amelia for more than a few seconds. She tried studying the menu next, but she encountered the same issue. When the server came to take their order, she’d just ask him for today’s special.
Amelia had unearthed a pair of reading glasses from her bag. Lips pursed, she managed an admirable job of studying what was on offer.
It was the first time Jill had seen her with a pair of glasses. It gave her a slightly stern, sexy scientist look, which made Jill feel even hotter under the collar than she already was.
“Everything okay?” Amelia glanced at her from over the rim of her glasses.
“I’ve never seen you with glasses on.” For heaven’s sake. Could Jill sound any more like an adolescent on a first date?
“I need them for reading.” Amelia took them off. “Old age isn’t kind to any of us.”
Jill snickered. First of all, because Amelia was only forty-five. And secondly, because, glasses or not, she looked scrumptious all the time. She even looked hot in her soccer kit—as far as Jill had been able to see on the Darlinghurst Darlings’ website, although she had no doubt that Amelia did the kit justice in real life as well.
The server came by again to ask if they wanted to order drinks. He recommended their house cocktail of Champagne and blackberry liqueur and Jill happily went with that. After a few moments of hesitation, so did Amelia.
“If I wanted to see you in action.” Thinking of Amelia in her soccer kit had given Jill a bold idea. “Would that be possible?”
“Depends what action you have in mind.” Amelia’s voice was so sultry, Jill had to take a moment to let the flirty banter wash over her.
“Soccer. What else?”
“Ah, right. I’m glad we’re on the same page. All I talk about is soccer, so…” With a smile, Amelia put the menu to the side. “You can see the Darlinghurst Darlings in action every other Saturday at 10AM at the Darlinghurst sports ground.”
“You had a game this morning?”
Amelia nodded, a beaming smile appearing on her face. “We won. Dawn was on it. She scored twice. Maybe because Sophia was the one who gave her the assists. They’re starting to play really well together.” Her shapely eyebrows inched toward each other as she frowned. “I hope they haven’t been practicing after hours.”
“Even if they have, it’s not necessarily something for you to worry about,” Jill offered.
Amelia stared at her in disbelief. “Of course it is. I don’t want Dawn and Cindy to split up.”
“I see how you would make that leap, and sure, maybe there’s a small possibility of that actually being the result of two women on the same soccer team practicing together, but even if it were, it still wouldn’t be your responsibility. It’s not your job to stop it.”
“Who else is going to talk some sense into Dawn?”
“Dawn. She’s the one responsible for her actions. She’s the one making the decisions. It’s not something you have much control over.”
“Seeing as this is decidedly not a therapy session, could you summarize your conclusion, please? Just so I don’t accidentally misinterpret it.” There was a hint of bite to Amelia’s tone.
Jill was grateful for their cocktails arriving. In daily life, it was hard enough to shake off her therapist mentality, but with a former client, no matter how much she liked her on a personal level, it was even harder.
After the server had taken their food order, she said, “I’m sorry.” She lifted her glass. “I slipped into inadvertent shrink mode there for a second. Professional hazard. I’ll pay more attention to it from now on.” Amelia’s smile helped deflate her worries. “It’s been a while since I’ve been on a date. Shall we start again?”
“Sure.” They tasted their cocktails. “Not bad,” Amelia said.
Jill concurred.
“Now that we’re on the subject of Dawn,” Amelia continued, “the other night, she… well, let’s just say she told me a few harsh truths.”
“She did?” Jill canted her head.
A darkness crossed Amelia’s face. “She said some things I wasn’t expecting. Things that have made me even more nervous about this date than I already was.”
“Why don’t we start by admitting that we’re both nervous then.” Jill drank from her cocktail again. The second sip was even better than the first. “What did Dawn say?”
Amelia twirled her glass between her fingers. “I guess what it came down to…” She heaved a small sigh. “That I’ve always had pretty terrible taste in women, but also that I’m too much of a perfectionist. Both things, according to Dawn, have contributed to my burnout.” Amelia shot her a furtive glance. “Maybe she’s right.”
“You’re not sure?” It was really hard for Jill not to sound like a therapist. If they had been in session, she would follow up a statement like that with a couple of well-aimed questions, but she’d already sounded so therapeutic earlier. She took another sip instead.
“It was more hearing those things from Dawn’s mouth that shocked me. Of course, I know I haven’t had much of a love life. I know I’ve put way too much of my energy into my work without getting enough back for it. But I always had the time. Because I’ve never been in a relationship that felt worthy of coming before my job. One thing has fed into the other. I can see that.”
To hell with it, Jill thought. She was very keen to figure out why Amelia had never invested her time in a long-term relationship and there simply was no viable way to ask that didn’t sound like a therapist. “Do you know why you’ve never had much of a love life?”
“According to Dawn it’s because the women I fall for don’t take me seriously.” Amelia shrugged.
“Did you take them seriously?”
Amelia huffed out some air. “Probably not seriously enough. It’s hard to build something stable when you have to cancel dates all the time because you’re working late. I’ve always seen it as a matter of priorities. I’ve always put work first. And if I did feel… frisky, it was never hard for me to find someone to spend some time with.”
Jill could easily imagine that.
“Not every person on this planet,” Amelia continued, “grows up dreaming of a fairy-tale wedding. I always knew I was different. Not just because I’m gay. I know this is going to sound silly, but… I guess I’ve always been in love with science more.” She made a funny, self-deprecating motion with her eyebrows. “The women I’ve ended up with, they never seemed very interested in science. I know it’s not for everyone, but I like to discuss string theory and quantum physics over dinner. What can I say?” Luckily, she followed up with a smile that said—Jill hoped—no such thing would be required tonight.
“But then you fell out of love with science—or at least with your current work circumstances.”
Amelia nodded. “Cue the burnout, followed by therapy, followed by being on a date with my ex-therapist, followed by… I don’t know yet. How’s that for cause and consequence, though?” She chuckled heartily.
Jill laughed with her. From the corner of her eye, she noticed the server bringing over their starters. That was the big difference between a dinner date and a therapy session—natural breaks. The chance to start the conversation again and go into a completely new direction. There was no preferred outcome as a goal for tonight—at least not when it came to Amelia’s mental health, because she was no longer her client. To think Jill had wanted to keep her on as long as possible. However, letting her go, although highly embarrassing at the time, had led to this.
“Hm, this is so good.” Amelia closed her eyes as she tasted her dish. “I’m so glad we came here. I’ve been wanting to try it out for ages but I guess I was waiting for a special occasion.”
“I’m very pleased to be your special occasion.” While the food was excellent, being in Amelia’s company overwhelmed any other sensation.
Amelia gave a slight shake of the head. “I can’t believe we’re talking about me again. Over to you, Jill. How was your week?”
“Rather interesting.” She held up her hand. “I cut myself on some glass.”
“How did you manage that?” Amelia’s smile turned to high beam.
“It was an accident—I hope. Come to think of it, I should check with the other party involved.”
“I can only hope it hasn’t rendered you incapable of performing certain tasks.” Amelia emitted a low chuckle.
Another hot flash coursed through Jill. She felt it flare up her cheeks. She was blushing like a teen in heat. Great. It didn’t matter because the reason for her skin’s betrayal of her desires was Amelia’s flirting. “My job isn’t very hands-on,” Jill said.
“Have you…”—Amelia’s fork stopped halfway between her plate and her delicious mouth—“dated anyone since you broke up with Rasmus?”
“No.” Jill paused. “I felt like some time on my own was required after such a long relationship.”
Amelia nodded as though she understood. “Not even a booty call?”
Jill nearly spat out the forkful of rice she’d just put into her mouth.
“I don’t think that’s what the kids call it these days,” Amelia said matter-of-factly. “But I don’t bother trying to keep up with the lingo of my younger teammates.” Her lips spread into a smile now.
Jill had regained her composure. “No, not even a booty call,” she confirmed. Something Amelia had said earlier had stuck in her mind. “You?”
“Me what?” Amelia asked, as though she wasn’t the one who had instigated their shift in conversation.
But if Jill had one super-advanced skill, it was to direct a question right back at the person sitting across from her with zero qualms, even on a date. “You said earlier that you never have trouble finding someone ‘to spend time with’. That was your way of referring to a booty call, I assume.”
Amelia put her fork down and regarded Jill intently, but she didn’t say anything.
“What?” Jill asked because the prolonged silence was making her feel a touch uncomfortable.
“Another reason as to why I like you so much just hit me.”
Warmth spread through Jill’s chest. She waited for Amelia to continue.
“You’re the opposite of coy,” Amelia said. “You’re not afraid to ask a difficult or potentially embarrassing question.”
Part of the job, Jill thought, but didn’t think it opportune to mention under the circumstances. “Thank you,” she said. “Was that the perfect example of an embarrassing question?”
Amelia chuckled. “You’re also very good at replying to a question with another question.”
Jill shrugged, although she was feeling anything but nonchalant. “Speaking of… Are you going to answer my previous question at all?”
Amelia huffed out some air. “I haven’t really been in the mood for any booty calls lately.”
Jill nodded. It was inevitable that the conversation would always come back to Amelia’s burnout. “Does that imply that if you had been, all you would have to do is pick up your phone and call someone?”
“Wow. You’ve really been out of the game for a long time. Call someone?” She shook her head. “That’s very last century.” Amelia’s eyes sparkled. She obviously found a lot of glee in needling Jill.
Jill didn’t mind one bit. It was amazing to witness Amelia come alive like that. And while Jill had, indeed, been out of the game for a long time, she was still very much aware that, in a situation like this, teasing equaled flirting.
“Okay.” Jill drank some water—her head was swimming already, and not just from that house cocktail. “Let’s reset, shall we.”
Amelia smiled gently. “Let’s take it as agreed that neither one of us has been very active for a while.” She lifted her glass. “To abstinence.”
“There’s a first.” Jill clinked her glass against Amelia’s, although not having had any sex for such a long time was the last thing she wanted to toast to while looking into Amelia’s deep-brown eyes.