Erin topped off her wine glass, then handed Amanda the bottle. “So, how’s operation Mel Be Gone? Is she still sniffing around your feet like a puppy?”
Amanda let out a snort of laughter, then coughed to cover it up. “I think the stern talk worked. She hasn’t texted me in over a week.”
Julia took the bottle after Amanda. “Good. I’m still sorry you had to do that, though.”
Jack raised a shoulder. “I don’t know. I’d have taken immense satisfaction in telling her off.”
“Hear, hear.” Erin clinked her glass to his.
Julia shook her head. “It’s satisfying in principle, but it really sucks in the moment.”
She offered Julia a sympathetic smile. She’d had a completely different sort of run-in with her ex a few months prior, but the theme of having to put her foot down was the same. And she was a fellow conflict avoider, so there was that, too. “Thank you.”
Erin sighed. “Fair, fair. Plus you had to give up the benefits. And knowing you, it’s going to take some cosmic shift before you get laid again.”
“Ouch.” Jack leaned over and smacked her arm. “Low blow.”
“I’m saying she’s stubborn. She’s a total catch. That hasn’t changed.”
He lifted both hands. “I rescind. That’s totally true.”
Amanda made a point at glaring at both of them. “I’ll have you know I have a date this week. And we’ve already kissed.”
She had the satisfaction of watching her friends gasp, slap the table, and otherwise flip out. She couldn’t make out what each person said, exactly, but the sentiments were clear. She tucked her tongue in her cheek and waited for the commotion to die down. This was more fun than confessing the whole Mel thing.
“Well?” Jack said, when everyone else had quieted.
“It’s Quinn, my architect.”
“I knew it.” Erin’s voice was full of vindication.
“Wait, wait, wait. What did I miss?” Jack asked.
“She hired a hot architect for the bakery and they’ve been dancing around each other for weeks,” Erin said matter-of-factly. “Who finally made the move? Her or you?”
She closed her eyes for a second, reliving the kiss on the front porch. “She did, but then backed off. So I told her not to.”
Jack made a face. “Not to make a move or not to back off?”
“Not to back off. She was worried because we’re working together.”
A chorus of “oh” surrounded her.
“And maybe that should have given me pause, or maybe it would have a couple of months ago, but I figured what the hell. I’m too cautious most of the time.” If any good came of the Mel fiasco, it was that.
“Hallelujah.” Erin threw both hands in the air.
Amanda smiled ruefully. She’d never been a wild child, but she had let herself grow downright timid through the years, at least when it came to relationships. “I think Mel helped me realize how much I’d been neglecting that part of myself.”
“Are you going to slut it up?” Julia asked.
She laughed. That was how Julia described her approach to dating after her divorce. Before falling head over heels for Taylor. “Let’s not get carried away.”
“Can we go back for a second?” Jack raised his hand. “Why don’t I know anything about Quinn?”
“Because you’ve been eyeballs deep in daddy mode,” Erin said.
Julia reached over and squeezed his arm. “Which we love and respect, by the way.”
Erin’s eyes got big. “Yes. So much love. I didn’t mean it in a bad way, I swear.”
Jack sent her an air kiss. “I know.”
Erin returned the gesture. “Before we dive into Quinnland, can I just say something?” She didn’t wait before continuing. “I’m not giving up my loathing of Mel anytime soon, but I’m willing to give her a couple of points for her role in waking up your inner sex goddess.”
“Yeah.” Jack nodded. “That.”
She didn’t have hard feelings toward Mel at this point. Well, no really hard feelings. And no matter how ill-advised sleeping with her had been, it had reminded her there was more to life than work and parenting and being a responsible adult.
“You’re thinking about being a sex goddess, aren’t you?” Erin lifted her chin. “I can tell.”
She laughed and shook her head. “I’m not sure sex goddess is ever going to be part of my identity, but I’ll embrace the spirit of it. Maybe I can be like Stella and get my groove back.”
“Oh, I like that,” Julia said.
“A very reasonable compromise.” Erin lifted her glass. “To Amanda getting her groove back.”
Glasses clinked and a moment of quiet followed. Seconds ticked by. Julia had a wistful smile and Erin a satisfied smirk. She glanced at Jack, who regarded her with impatience. “Now can someone please fill me in on Quinn?”
Amanda laughed. She had a motley group of friends, but she loved them. “Well, she’s my architect.”
She spent the rest of dinner fielding questions about how much time they’d spent together, why she’d been keeping it to herself, and how many dates it would take before they slept together. After clearing the dishes, she showed off her new chairs and explained how they came to be in her garage. By the time she cut slices of chocolate tart, she couldn’t help but wonder if Quinn’s ears were ringing. And although she wasn’t sure whether she really wanted to know the answer, she wondered if Quinn had spent half as much time thinking and talking about her.
* * *
Quinn slept in, leaving her just enough time to do laundry and go for a paddle before Sunday afternoon dinner at her sister’s. Well, paddle and a shower. Showing up in outdoor gear opened the door to her sisters teasing her about being that sort of lesbian. When she rolled into Alana’s just after one, she was the last to arrive, but she looked more than presentable.
She let herself in without bothering to knock and headed straight for the kitchen. Kiera and Alana sat at the table with cups of coffee. “Greetings, siblings. Happy Sunday.”
“The prodigal sister returns,” Kiera said.
Quinn rolled her eyes. “I saw you like three days ago.”
Kiera made a pouting face. “I figured you were avoiding me.”
“I don’t need to now that you aren’t trying to set me up at every turn.”
Kiera sniffed and Alana snickered.
Quinn shrugged. “Where is everyone?”
“Gary and Xinxin are out back with Grace. Jacob and Adam are in the basement.”
With their parents on vacation in Greece, that was the whole clan.
“You look like you’re considering your options. Too good to hang with your sisters these days?”
She laughed, knowing the jab didn’t have any malice. Honestly, one of her favorite things about her family was that it didn’t fall into the husbands club and wives club so many extended families did. Sure, it had as much to do with the fact that two of the three of them were queer and one had married someone from another country, but still. “Maybe I’m trying to figure out who will harass me the least.”
Kiera let out a sarcastic “ha, ha,” but Alana laughed for real.
“Hang with us. I promise I won’t let Kiera be mean.”
“I’m not mean.” Kiera’s tone was defiant.
She helped herself to a cup of coffee. “You’re not. Just nosy. And maybe bossy.”
Kiera scowled. “Am not.”
Quinn slung an arm around her shoulders before joining them at the table. “Are too.”
“It’s a good thing I love you,” Kiera said.
“And I you.”
“Aw.” Alana tipped her head to the side. “I love it when you two have a moment.”
She was teasing but also not. She’d spent a solid two decades playing the peacekeeper between Quinn and Kiera. Not that they fought constantly, but the combination of being only a year apart and having completely opposite personalities had made for some serious bickering. They were mostly past that now. Mostly.
Kiera made a show of batting her eyelashes. “Since we love each other so much, do you want to be my plus-one at a Girl Scout fundraiser Thursday? Xinxin has a work thing.”
“I can’t. I have a date.”
Kiera’s shoulders dropped and she made a face. “If you don’t want to, just say so. You don’t need to lie.”
“Kiera.” Alana gave her a stern look.
“What? She gave me the lecture about fixing her up last week. She doesn’t get to play the no more dates card, then pretend she has one.”
“Maybe she’s not pretending,” Alana said.
Quinn folded her arms. “Yeah, maybe I’m not pretending.”
Kiera raised a brow, completely incredulous. Alana looked from her to Quinn and wrinkled her nose. “Are you pretending?”
“I am not.” It came out a little smug, but it wasn’t like her sisters would take it personally.
“Well?” It was Kiera’s turn to fold her arms.
“Well what?” Playing dumb was one of Kiera’s top pet peeves and absolutely the reason she did it.
“What are we talking about?” Adam and Jacob filed into the kitchen and made a beeline for the refrigerator.
“Aunt Quinn’s love life.”
Jacob made a face. “Y’all talk about that stuff?”
“Not when I can help it.” Quinn rolled her eyes. “What are you guys up to?”
“Not talking about our love lives, that’s for sure.” Adam pulled out two cheese sticks and handed one to his brother. “When’s dinner?”
Alana shook her head. “Half an hour.”
“Cool.” Adam plopped himself on one of the stools at the island.
Jacob devoured his cheese stick in two bites. After throwing the wrapper in the trash, he lifted his chin in Quinn’s direction. “So? Hot date?”
For some reason, having her nephews join the conversation made her more comfortable rather than less. Maybe because their presence would keep things PG. Which was ironic since they were probably the most sexually active ones in the room. “As a matter of fact, yes.”
“All right.” Kiera shot her a look of exasperation. “Who is she?”
“Her name is Amanda and she’s a client.”
“She’s a client?” Kiera’s voice pitched high.
Quinn flinched involuntarily. She’d made a stink about professional boundaries a few months prior when Kiera had tried to get her to ask one of her clients out. “This is different.”
“How so?” Alana posed the question before Kiera could say anything else, her tone upbeat and curious.
“We’ve spent time together, become friends. I sort of kissed her by accident.”
Kiera shook her head. “Only you.”
“I did it without thinking.”
Alana shrugged. “I think it’s cute you got caught up in the moment. And I’m proud of you for going for it.”
It might expose her to merciless teasing, but she loved her sisters and they’d been her confidantes and her champions through the sad saga of her divorce. “Going for it might be a bit generous. I mean, full disclosure, I apologized.”
Kiera burst into laughter. Alana bit her lip, but only for a second before she joined in.
“Do chicks like that?” Jacob asked.
She’d forgotten they were part of the conversation. “Um, I think they appreciate sincerity.”
“And you were sincerely sorry?” Poor Jacob seemed confused.
“Well, we’d spent the day together as friends, so I think it was unexpected. And I was worried I’d crossed a line.”
Alana pointed at both boys. “That’s a good lesson. You should only kiss a girl if you’re sure she wants you to.”
“But Aunt Quinn just said—”
Quinn lifted a hand. “That’s why I apologized.”
“And then what happened?” Adam, for some reason, seemed fascinated by the whole thing.
She closed her eyes for a second. “She asked if I wanted to kiss her.”
“What did you say?” Adam asked.
Quinn shrugged. “I told her the truth.”
“And?”
She hadn’t paused for dramatic effect, but that’s sort of what it felt like. “And then she kissed me.”
“Wow.” Adam nodded slowly. The level of his interest made her wonder if perhaps he was nursing a crush and strategizing what to do with it.
“I’m not sure it’s the smoothest move.” And she was probably the last person who should be giving dating advice at this point.
Kiera raised a shoulder. “Hapless and charming seems to work for you when you want it to.”
She shook her head. “How do you manage to tease and compliment me at the same time?”
Kiera smirked. “It’s a gift.”
The back door opened and Grace came tearing in. Xinxin and Gary followed. The timer on the stove beeped and Alana got up to pull the ham and scalloped potatoes from the oven. In the bustle of getting hands washed and the table set, her pending date faded into the background. Which was fine by her. But when they all sat down at the table, Kiera snagged the seat next to her and leaned in. Quinn braced herself for, well, something.
“I’m happy for you, and I hope it works out.”
“But?”
“But nothing.”
Quinn regarded her with suspicion. “No, really. What’s the catch? The fact that you’re not the one who set me up?”
Kiera let out an exasperated sigh. “Stop. I’m not a jerk. No catch.”
“I wasn’t accusing you of being a jerk. I mostly appreciate that you don’t let me off the hook.”
“Aw, that’s like the nicest thing you’ve ever said to me.”
It was her turn to say, “Stop.”
“Okay, fine. You’ve said nicer things. But I mean it. I’m happy you’re interested in someone. And I’m glad you’re doing it on your terms.”
And this was why she loved her family. They could be the biggest pains known to man, but when push came to shove, they had her best interests at heart. And maybe even more importantly, they had her back. “Thanks.”
“But don’t think for one second you’re going to keep the details to yourself.”
Quinn laughed. “Noted.”