Love Trend

September 2007

Life after college got boring fairly quickly. Sure it was nice to finally be on my own, and have a nice car and apartment, but I secretly longed for more. After being with Maryse in Paris, I couldn’t settle for being someone’s fuck buddy, so I dated rarely. The women I dated were usually social climbers who were looking more for accessories rather than girlfriends, or pillow princesses who wanted to get serviced regularly. Eventually, I stopped looking for other women. I just got sick of it. So, I buried myself in work just like I did in college.

I passed the time by shopping. Since I could afford nearly anything I wanted, I bought clothes from boutiques and small shops that specialized in vintage fashions. I liked mixing and matching different fabrics for a personal classic style that I couldn’t always find in modern stores, which seemed to focus on bright and garish fashions that turned me off. I could spend a whole weekend downtown, exploring musty old shops for a perfect pair of Chanel pumps, or Yves Saint Laurent blazers.

One Saturday afternoon, I was in one of my favorite boutiques which specialized in vintage handbags, watches, and jewelry. I was inspecting a tegu skin handbag from the 1960s when I heard someone walk in, alerting the store owner by ringing the bell attached to the door. I looked at the new patron, and was struck by how beautiful she was. Outfitted in Givenchy from her thigh-high metallic boots, to her somber-looking smokey black turtleneck trench, she definitely stood out. Her hair was pulled back into a simple dancer’s bun, exposing her beautiful face. I suspected her skin was the exact color of roasted coffee beans. The ex-patriot French store owner, Francoise, greeted her with cheek kisses, and started showing her new jewelry that arrived the day before. I tried to focus my attention back on the purse I wanted, but my eyes kept on wandering back to the other customer.

She was short statured(even in four inch boots she was still only five foot four), and she filled out her clothes so well, they must have been tailored. She took her time looking at the jewelry, asking to see a Cartier tank watch. My heart sank a little. I had been saving to buy that very same watch, and it stung to see her ask the owner to hold onto it while she explored the rest of the store. Disappointed, I decided to purchase the handbag and leave, so I started walking to the front of the store with it. Suddenly, I felt a soft, confidant hand on my shoulder holding me back.

“Excuse me. I don’t mean to be rude, but I think I might need your help with something.” It was the woman who was about to buy my watch. Up close I could see she was even more beautiful. Her face was delicate, almost doll-like, but there was something about her curvy mouth and cat-like eyes that had me on my gaurd. When we made eye contact, her mouth settled into an easy, knowing smile that was almost predatory. My gaydar went off immediately, but I knew better than to get over excited. I had been burned too many times before, and knew from experience that anyone with her looks was either in a serious relationship, or would never be in a serious relationship. Never anything in-between.

I gave her a small smile, wondering if I could forgive her for taking my watch and interrupting my peaceful lesbian-free day. “That all depends on what you need.” I replied evenly.

“Since you obviously have excellent taste,” she told me, running her hand over the textures of the handbag I was holding, “I wondered if you could help me pick out a ring. I haven’t bought any real jewelry in ages, and Francoise will sell me anything since she knows I’m a regular customer. I need a second opinion from someone else.”

“Hmm. I don’t know if I should. You did buy that watch I’ve been lusting after for over a week and a half.” I mentioned.

“Did I? Then I really was right about you having great taste! Please help me out. I’ll make it up to you…” her eyes lingered on my face. “…Somehow.”

I nodded slightly. I could never refuse a beautiful woman. “Alright then. I’m Morgan by the way.”

She held out her hand to me, which I took and clasped slightly before releasing, making the solid silver bangles on her delicate wrist tinkle. “I’m Eva. It’s nice to meet you.”

We strode over to the jewelry counter, and Eva pointed out the rings she liked. She was looking for a rose gold ring, but couldn’t decide between the one encrusted with white sapphires, or the one with a solitaire cushion-cut ruby. I liked the ruby ring, and told her so. With a nod of approval from the store owner, Eva bought it on the spot, putting it on her finger without bothering to get a box for it. She held it up to the light, letting the light dazzle from it like a crimson sun. “Thank you. I think it’s perfect.”

I smiled at the light the ring was giving off, and then I smiled at her. I wondered for a moment if it was possible to ever be happy with someone like her, someone who shared my sense of style and charm. But the moment quickly passed, and I decided that daydreaming about this woman would only leave me broken-hearted again. “You’re welcome. It was nice meeting you, Eva.”

Her smile wavered for a moment, but she recovered and nodded. “It was nice to meet you too.”

I turned around and went to the back of the store for the purse I wanted. I heard Eva pay for the watch, but I didn't look at her again, trying to focus on the pattern of the unusual pattern of the tegu skin, wondering if it would match the loafers I purchased several weeks before. By the time I went back to the front of the store, Eva was gone. I felt slightly disappointed by that, but shrugged my feelings away and asked to pay for the purse.

“Eva left you something. She said it was payment for all your help.” said Francoise, presenting me with the Cartier tank watch.

I blinked at it, then rushed out of the store. A small red roadster was already pealing off. “Damn.” I said, before going back inside the store. “I can’t accept that watch, Ma’am. I don’t even know her.”

“She left this, along with the watch.” said the store owner, sliding me a hastily torn piece of perfumed powder blue paper towards me. It read: You give up far too easily, but we can work on that. Call me. Her number was at the bottom of the note.

I grinned at that. So she was gay, or at least bisexual. It still remained to be seen if she was single, but I had a feeling she was. “I guess I’m taking that watch after all.”

When I got home, I called Eva on the phone two separate times, but didn’t get a callback. I assumed she had changed her mind about talking to me, and decided to just be thankful for the watch.

Two days passed, and finally, I got a phone call from a number I didn’t recognize. I answered it with trepidation, assuming it was a wrong number. “Hello?”

“Morgan. It’s so good to hear your voice again.”

“Thank you for giving me the watch. It was unnecessary though. I’m sure I would have gotten it away from you one way or another.”

Eva chuckled throatily at that. “Oh really? What makes you think that?”

“It’s just a feeling I have…” We talked for a long time. She was a lawyer for one of the large international law firms in the downtown district, which was a surprise, considering I worked in the downtown district as well, albeit for a different firm. I was also surprised that she had just turned thirty, she looked twenty-three at the very least. She was very fashion conscious, and there was no price too high for her when it came to something she wanted. “Hmm. Does this mean you want to buy me too?” I asked her. I was only half-teasing. Although it was very tempting to pursue Eva, I didn’t want to get involved with a globe-trotting fashionesta.

“That all depends on whether or not you’re the type of woman who can be bought.”

“I’m not. Presents are nice, but you can’t build a relationship on gift-giving.”

“So you’re the kind of woman who likes relationships? That’s refreshing. I thought all women your age were just into hooking up.”

“You’re right about that.” I agreed.

“We should meet for dinner sometime. When would be good for you?”

“Friday. Do you have any place in mind?”

“Yes. A perfect little bistro in Orange Grove. It serves sandwiches and the best French Onion soup in The City.”

I smiled. “Oh really? I’ll just have to find out for myself.”

I spent the rest of the week in anxious anticipation. Katrina came over on Thursday, and I told her to cancel our regular movie night that we shared with our mutual friends Vicki and Donohue. “Why?”

“I’ve got a date with someone.”

“Really? That’s rare for you. What’s she like?”

“She's gorgeous. And smart. And classy. I just hope I can keep up.”

“What does she do?”

“She’s a lawyer at Corgan & Smith, so you know she’s brilliant.”

Katrina raised her eyebrows. “That’s great, Morgan! She totally seems like your type, then.”

I grinned. "She is."

Katrina sighed. "Well, I guess I can stay busy with Donohue and Vicki, but it's just not the same without you."

"Thanks. I'll take a raincheck on movie night. How about next week?"

Katrina beamed. "Deal." She gave me a hug, and left.

I was a mess at work the next day, worried about what I was going to wear, if my makeup was going to look right on me, etc. etc. I finally collected myself with a stern phone call from Don at lunch time.

"Chill out. It's not that serious."

"Right. So says you! She's older, has nice...everything. How am I not going to be intimidated by that?"

"Well you seemed to handle yourself just fine in the store with her." Donohue pointed out.

"That was only because I had no intention of asking her out. I didn't have any reason to be nervous."

"Pfft. Stop being such a pussy."

"Well, Don, considering I'm a lady, I can't exactly help that-"

"You know what I mean, Morgan. I don't think she's the kind of woman who wastes her time. Just show up, smile a lot, nod frequently, and you should be fine."

"Is that your advice for me? Seriously?"

"Actually no. Give her a reason to go out on a second date with you. That's the key to snagging anyone. Duh!"

I chuckled. "Now I just have to find that reason."

"Cut it out, Morgan."

"I've never been in a serious relationship before, Don-"

"So what? Go out tonight and just have fun. "

"Just have fun? What the hell? Donohue, I'm going to be a nervous wreck!"

"Quit whining before I sic Katrina on you, Morgan. Just remember what made her like you in the first place, and go from there."

"But-"

"No excuses. And don't forget to call me after your date with details."

"Sure. Later, Don."

That afternoon, it took me hours to choose an outfit. I finally decided on a navy jacket trimmed in white with brass buttons over a navy pencil skirt, and heels complete with a red, white and blue cashmere scarf. I thought it was dressy enough without overdoing it. I called Eva and asked for directions.

"I'm actually surprised to hear from you. Most women get intimidated." she mused in a velveteen murmur.

"I don't scare easily, Eva. So where is the bistro at?" It was over in the heart of Orange Grove, a few roads away from the overcrowded mall. Driving through Orange Grove on a Friday night was worse than driving through downtown during rush hour. "If traffic isn't too crazy, I'll meet you over there at eight thirty. Is that all right?"

"That sounds wonderful. I'll get a table if I get there first."

"Alright. See you then. Bye."

"Bye, Morgan."

I left immediately, and even then, I was sitting in traffic for an hour to get to a location that was only twenty miles away. "The things I do for women." I muttered to myself as I listened to Chrisette Michele's "Be Ok" on repeat. When I got to the bistro, I was lucky I was only fifteen minutes late. I rushed out of my car and went inside. I spotted Eva immediately. She had a window seat at a very small table towards the front of the restaurant. "Sorry I'm late." I told her, pulling up a chair and draping my scarf over the back of my seat.

"I'll forgive you this time." She said. Her eyes trailed over my outfit. "You do have excellent taste."

"Thank you. So do you." Eva was wearing a bright blue off the shoulder dress over heels. As usual, her makeup was only a highlight to her natural beauty instead of covering it up. I could feel her eyes still watching me as I opened my menu in front of me. Eva eased her hand over to me, tapping her french-tipped fingernail on one particular item. "You really should try the risotto."

"I don't like risotto. I think I'd be safer with a proscuitto and goat cheese salad."

"Hmm." said Eva, moving her hand closer to mine. "What about the smoked tomato soup?"

"Not my cup of tea." I moved my hand even closer to hers, closing my fingers over hers. "But maybe I'll try that French Onion soup you told me about."

Eva smiled widely, carressing my wrist with her thumb. "I'm sure you'll love it."

I smiled back. "I'm sure I will."

The waiter came by to take our orders, but I didn't let go of her hand. Eva had a warmth to her that reminded me of fireplaces and ovens. All of the nervousness I had felt earlier seemed far away. We talked about our jobs to start with. Eva was a litagator for her firm, and I mentioned my job as an accountant. Before I knew it, the waitor had come with our water, and I reluctantly released her hand to take a sip, savoring it's lemony bitterness. "How long have you been out?" Eva asked, balancing her chin on her hands.

"Ever since I could remember liking anyone. Sure there were a few little boys who turned my head back in elementary school, but there wasn't much of a difference between the boys and the girls back then." I joked. "How long have you been out?"

"I had always had feelings for women, but didn't act on them until I was well into college." she sighed. "In college things were a lot less complicated."

I sniffed at that. "Not for me. Everyone is either bisexual or straight in college. No one's brave enough to be gay."

"Hmm. I take it you were the experiment of choice back then." She said before taking a sip of her own water.

"Something like that." I murmered. "So where did you go to college?"

"The University of Miami both for my undergraduate degree, and my juris doctor."

I nodded my head at that. "Nice. I attended Florida State."

"You must be a Florida girl then."

I smiled slightly. "I am. What about you?"

"I'm originally from North Carolina. I got a full scholarship to attend UM, so I picked it over The University Of North Carolina. After that, I worked as a clerk for a firm down in Miami, and I was hired as a litigator for Corgan & Smith four years ago. I've been here in the city ever since."

"Impressive. What did you do to convince them to make you a litigator so early?"

"I argued with everyone at my firm once I got my feet wet. It didn't take them long to realize I was damn good at making a compelling argument. I may have a reputation for being self-righteous bitch, but I do win 95% of my cases. How long have you been with your firm?"

"I've been with Cohen, Stone, and Mitchell since mid-2004. I had my internship through the company, and then they hired me on as a full time accountant about two and a half years ago."

"What's your specialty?"

"Forensic auditing. I usually audit accounts being sued, seized, or frozen by the IRS for tax reasons."

"You've done well for yourself for someone so young. You remind me of myself at your age."

I tilted my head back and covered my forehead with the back of my hand. "You're calling me a baby! I can't take it!"

Eva giggled at me then, high musical laughter in the key of F. "That's not what I meant, and you know it!"

"You must be a singer with a voice like that!" I blurted.

Eva beamed then, looking a little shy. "I actually do perform off and on at a little cafe on the Southside."

"You've gotta tell me your favorite song." I loved music, even though I didn't sing myself.

Eva bit her lip thoughtfully. "That's a hard question to answer. But right now my favorite song is 'We Can Be' my Amel Larrieux."

"I love that song too. You must have her album 'Bravebird'."

"I do. It stays on repeat in my car." We talked about our favorite singers until our meal came, and then we ate quietly. I noticed Eva took her time savoring every last morsel of her coq au vin, or braised chicken in wine, rolling the flavor over her tongue before taking a pleasurable swallow. "Did you like my technique?" asked Eva, delicately patting her lip with a napkin once we were finished.

"I did." I replied.

Eva folded her napkin a few times and placed it by her bowl. "So where do we go from here?"

"I'd love to see you again."

Eva smiled at that. "I'd like that." I got the check(it was the least I could do after the Saturday past), and we stood around outside talking. Eva really wasn't the type to do a lot of talking, but she didn't need to. Her answers were in her eyes, her mouth, even in the way she raised or lowered her hands. She intrigued me, and I couldn't wait to get to know her better. I couldn't wait to get my hands on her either!

"Why don't we go to the beach next weekend?"

"You just want to see me in a bikini." She told me, closing one eye in a delayed wink.

"Well...yeah. I definitely do."

She folded her arms and looked at me intensely. "I'm curious about something. Why aren't you intimidated by me?"

I grinned. "One of my friends gave me some really good advice earlier today."

She cocked her head up at me. "And what was that? Look past my shiny exterior and look deep into my heart?"

"Not exactly." I chuckled at the thought of Donohue giving me some bleeding heart advice like that.

"What's so funny? Tell me what she said!" she said poking me in the arm.

"Once you meet her, I'm sure you'll figure that out for yourself."

"Oh, so I'm already good enough to meet your friends?"

"Maybe. That all depends on our next date." She stepped closer to me, and pulled me into a hug. She had on the most amazing perfume. It smelled like honeysuckle and cloves with black pepper.

"You smell…great." I told her, pulling back. Her smell made me feel dizzy and off-balance. But in a good way.

"Thank you. Maybe one day I'll show you what perfume I'm wearing."

"You can just tell me."

Eva leaned forward to whisper, "I'd rather show you." Then she pulled my chin down to kiss me. Her lips were sweet, soft and pliable. I was out of breath in an instant.

"But not tonight." I blurted after we broke away.

"I wasn't offering you tonight. But I was offering sometime in the near future." She kissed me on the cheek. "Goodnight, Morgan."

"Goodnight." I watched her leave gracefully folding her legs into her car before taking off in her BMW Z4. I smiled to myself and went home. I cut on all the lights, hung my scarf on my hat rack, and sat on my couch...right next to Vicki.

I nearly jumped a mile. "Vicki! What the hell are you doing here?" Although all of my friends had a key to my house in case of an emergency, Vicki had never used it. It was totally unlike her to invite herself over without calling first.

Vicky had been sobbing for sometime. Her eyes were bloodshot and teary, making a startling contrast of pink veins against her dark blue eyes. She was wringing the crap out of one of my tissues. Vicky was a petite woman, who looked years younger than her age of twenty-three. With her freckled cheeks and curly, unstraightened hair, she looked seventeen. "He...he...he..." She gasped.

"What is it?" I put my hands on her shoulders, trying to calm her down.

She closed her eyes, trying to keep herself from hyperventilating. "It's over, Morgan. Tony broke up with me."

"Oh, no. Jeez, I'm sorry-" Vicky immediately hugged me, and I hugged her back. "What happened?"

"Well, Tony wanted to have a talk with me earlier about us moving in together. He said he couldn't do it. He said-" Vicky broke down into uncontrollable sobs.

"I thought you were going to movie night over at Katrina's-"

"I cancelled. She had a date anyway, and Donohue had an emergency late night meeting with a client, so there wouldn't have been a movie night anyway."

"Katrina had a date?"

"Yeah. Some guy she just met."

"Hm. I wonder why she didn't tell me."

"Why do you care? Didn't you have a date tonight...?" I told her all about it, and soon she was smiling again. "Eva sounds great. I can't wait to meet her."

"She's a very interesting woman. I didn't think I'd meet someone like her in a million years."

"What? You thought you went through all the lesbians in the city? There have always been interesting women out here, Morgan. You just gave up on finding them."

"Maybe. Or maybe I just needed to stop putting so much effort into finding Ms. Right."

Vicky folded her arms across her chest. "What makes you think you've found her now?"

"I dunno. She makes me feel really comfortable. I think she really gets me. And that's rare considering I'm so strange." I said with a shrug.

"I wouldn't call you strange. Unique maybe."

I rolled my eyes. "You're biased. You've known me forever."

"That may be, but I never thought you were too unusual."

"Tell me something, Vicky. What was your first impression of me?"

Vicky looked up at my cathedral ceiling and sighed. "Let me think. Well, I thought you were reserved. I actually thought you were older than twenty-one when I first saw you."

"Really?"

"Yep. You come off as really relaxed, really...confidant, I guess I could say. What does Katrina call it? Oh yeah, she says 'you got swag'."

"Swag? Who me?"

Vicky giggled. "Yeah. The best part of it is, you don't have a clue about it."

I stared at her. "You must be high if you think I have swag."

Vicky laughed. "Wow! You really don't see it?"

I rubbed my head nervously. "No. I guess it just comes naturally."

"It makes me wonder why you and Donohue haven't hooked up..."

"What? That would be like me and you hooking up. I wouldn't be able to stop myself from laughing if I so much as blew her a kiss, let alone pinning her down and making out with her."

"Oh! Is that how lesbians do it?" asked Vicky in mock shock.

I playfully popped her with a pillow. "You know what I mean. Me and her have never had much chemistry. Chemistry is something you feel right away, or you don't."

"Or chemistry is something you ignore right away..." she said mysteriously.

"And what's that supposed to mean?"

Vicky giggled. "Nothing." She got her purse which was dangling on the edge of the sofa and put it over her shoulder. "I'm out of here."

"Are you sure you're okay, Vicks?"

"I'll be alright. Talking about everyone else got my mind off of it for a little while. Now I just have to keep Tony off my mind for the rest of the night..." A few tears fell down her cheek, but she brushed them off bravely.

I hugged her and patted her back. "Come on, Vicky. You're in no shape to drive home like that. Have a drink and crash here overnight."

Vicky put her purse down, and gave me a weak smile. "Alright. You talked me into it." We stayed up the whole night talking, and watching B-movies on the Sci-Fi Channel. By five a.m., Vicky was yawning. "Do you mind if I get a few hours of sleep before I hit the road? I'm afraid I'll drive off the road if I leave now. I'm groggy as hell."

"Sure. Go ahead and take my bed. I have to catch up with Donohue anyway."

"Alright. Good morning!" She giggled at her own joke, and went into my bedroom. I called Donohue on the phone, but she didn't pick up. I assumed she had gone out the night before after seeing a client, and was either snuggled up with someone, or was sleeping off half a pack of beer. Maybe both, knowing her. I grabbed a blanket and a pillow and lay back in my recliner. Soon, I had a smile on my face, thinking of Eva, and how good it would feel to be with her. I woke up to Vicky's hands on my shoulders. "Hey. I'm leaving. Thanks for giving me a shoulder to cry on."

I sat up, and put down the footrest of my recliner before reaching my hands up to the ceiling for an energetic stretch. "Yarr…“ I yawned. “No problem. What time is it?"

"After twelve. I'll see you later."

I got up and gave her a hug. "You call me anytime, alright? Even if you just feel like bawling for an hour."

Vicky nodded. "Okay." She left my apartment, and I checked my cellphone for voicemail. Donohue had called, but as usual hadn‘t left a message.

I called up Donohue and filled her in on my date, and Vicky's breakup with Tony. "Tony's a jerk for doing that to Vicky, but she has allowed him to string her along for four years."

"So you're saying it's her fault he hasn't proposed? Some men don't believe in marriage."

"You don't know a lot about men do you?"

"Well, I wouldn't. For obvious reasons." I shot back with an eye roll.

"A man doesn't believe in marrying a woman he isn't head over heels in love with."

"Tony loves Vicky. You know that. Anyone can look at them and tell."

"Right. So he breaks up her with once they start talking about living together?"

"Maybe he's scared. You know how nervous he is about everything."

Donohue sighed. "I hope so. Those two crazy kids are great together."

I chuckled at that. "Kids? Aren't they both older than you?"

"Nope. I'm forty-four years old last time I checked." We both chuckled at that for a moment. "I'm glad to hear your date went so well."

"Yes, and that reminds me, I have to call Eva and set something up for this weekend. I can't wait to see her again!"

"Speaking of dates, did you hear about Katrina's date last night?"

"I did. Vicky mentioned it. I wonder why she told everyone but me..."

"It was Friday afternoon when she told all of us. She assumed you were going to be killing yourself trying to find the perfect outfit for your date, so she didn't want to disturb you."

I frowned slightly. "I wouldn't have minded."

"Don't worry. It was just an oversight. You know she'll call you as soon as she kicks that guy out of her apartment-and speak of the devil, that's her on the other line. I'll let you two catch up, and I'll check up on Vicks in the meantime. Bye."

"Alright. Bye." I pushed the send button on my phone, and heard Katrina humming to herself. "Am I interrupting something, Trina?" I teased.

"No. I just have this song stuck in my head. 'Love Is You' by Chrisette Michele."

"A love song? Have you fallen head over heels for this guy you just met?" I asked in a mocking tone. Katrina never got serious about anyone. I think the longest time she had ever spent with a guy was about a month and a half.

Katrina just laughed it off. "Of course not! The song just popped into my head randomly. That guy I went on a date with was just a distraction. I needed something to do."

"Right. More like you needed someone to screw..."

"Hey! What do you take me for? Some kind of cheap slut?" She asked in outrage.

"Don't ask questions you don't want the answer to."

"You are so mean to me. Why are we friends again?"

"Because you're an awesome person, and I'm an awesome person. Together we're just...awesome."

Katrina giggled hysterically. "Wow!"

"You're welcome. So how did your date go?"

"Oh, same old, same old. He thought I was easy, I wasn't easy, so I had to send him on his way."

"Aww..."

"Well, I didn't have high hopes for him anyway. Like I said, I needed a distraction. How did your date go?"

"It went well. We're actually going out again sometime next weekend."

Katrina paused momentarily. "That's great Morgan! What are you going to do?"

"I dunno. We discussed going to the beach, but nothing's set in stone yet."

"Pfft. You just want to see her in a bikini."

"Hey! That's what she said! I have honorable intentions!"

"Yeah right! So why are you going to the beach anyway? I mean, you usually take your dates to a restaurant, or a movie. And more often than not, your house."

I ignored the little dig at me being easy. "I dunno. I just suggested it randomly. She's a little high maintanence, so I doubt she'll want to go anyway."

"How high maintanace is she?"

"Did I mention she was outfitted in Givenchy from head to toe when I met her? And that she drives a BMW Z4?"

Katrina cleared her throat. "I hope you can keep up."

"Me too. But I've been doing well so far."

"Is she really pretty?"

"She's gorgeous! She's like a petite version of Gabrielle Union, or Garcelle Beauvais. Dark chocolate all the way!"

"Nice." muttered Katrina with a nervous chuckle.

"Yeah. I totally lucked out with her! Katrina, honestly I am psyched! I rarely get the chance to meet a woman who likes fashion, who loves music like I do, and who can get away with buying me a Cartier tank watch-"

"She bought you that five thousand dollar watch you've wanted for forever? How the hell did that happen? I thought you just ate dinner with her?"

"Well, at first she wanted it. And then she asked me for some help picking out a ring, I mentioned I wanted the watch, and she left it with a note to call her with the store owner. This all happened when we met."

"Hmm. Don’t let her sleep with you just for a watch. Even if she did drop a few g's for it."

"I don't think she's like that at all. If she was, I think she would have wanted a piece of me last night. And she didn't."

"You offered?"

"No...at least I didn't offer to give her anything so soon. She felt the same way, so that's a good thing." Katrina was silent for so long, I thought she hung up on me. "Are you still there?"

"Yeah. I was just listening. So...you really like her?"

"Of course I like her! She's great!" Just then, I had an incoming call from Eva. "Wow! It's her! Can I talk to you later, Katrina?"

"Sure. Bye."

"Bye." I pressed send, and connected with Eva.

"Morgan?"

"Yes. Hello, Eva." I replied as calmly as I could even though my heart was playing pattycakes against my ribs.

"I really enjoyed the time we spent together last night." She said softly.

"So did I." I found myself grinning spontaneously. "When can I see you again?"

"I'd still like to go to the beach with you next weekend. How about next Saturday?"

"Perfect. Would you like to get something to eat afterwards? There's a Rita's Ice right on the beach, and there's this excellent seafood place that only serves freshly caught seafood every day. It's a little rough around the edges, but I swear it's the best restaurant on the beaches."

"That sounds good to me. I haven't had the chance to go to the beach since I first moved here."

"Really? Then I'll have to take you to a good one."

"A beach is a beach Morgan." She chuckled mildly.

"Oh my God! You are so not a Floridian! There's American Beach, where you can drive on the beach, and then there's Fernandina Beach, where they have the best sharks teeth you can find, there's Jacksonville Beach which has the clearest water from here to Fort Lauderdale..."

Eva laughed. "Which one is closer?"

"Jacksonville Beach."

"Then that one will be fine, as long as it's near the restaurant you mentioned earlier."

"It is."

"Great. I'll pick you up. Where do you live?"

"In Avondale. I'll give you directions-" Eva cut my words off with a long giggle. "Am I missing something?"

"I live in Avondale too!"

I smiled. "Perfect." It turned out she lived about a mile away. I suggested that we have dinner during the week, but Eva warned me about her crazy work schedule. She admitted she might have to cancel if an important case came up. I decided to leave well enough alone, and we made our plans to go out on Saturday.

I was floating on air the entire week. Even my co-workers knew something was up. "I've never seen you smile since you started here." noted Ronnie, the only other woman in my department. "Are you taking something?"

I frowned slightly. I hadn't even noticed I had been smiling more often. I cleared my throat and quickly went back to wearing a bland expression. As the youngest accountant at my firm, I always tried to come across as professional as possible. Somehow, it was always assumed that because of my age, I didn't know anything, so I tried not to smile, or giggle, or laugh, or do anything else that would draw attention to myself. It was bad enough I had dimples. "No. Nothing like that." I sat back down at my desk, taking a sip of Earl's Grey tea.

Ronnie lingered over the top of my cubicle. "Hm. Are you seeing anyone?"

"Yes. We really get along well."

Ronnie giggled at that. "You get along so well, you're practically beaming! She must be really something to get a smile out of you, Icy."

I shot her a look. "Icy?"

"Oops." Ronnie covered her mouth and fled back to her cubicle.

I frowned, looking back over the account I was analyzing. Nicknames annoyed me. And it annoyed me even more to be the subject of watercooler gossip. But since it was a large firm, with some thirty-odd accountants on my floor alone, I knew it couldn't be helped. A sudden text message from Eva, around lunch time instantly cheered me up.

What are you doing for lunch?

I grinned and hurriedly texted, I usually eat at Harry's Subs down the block. Where are you eating?

Di Vinci's. Would you like to join me?

I grimaced. Di Vinci's was an expensive restaurant, complete with a maitre d', and suited waiters but I thought I could get by with ordering a salad. Sure. I'll meet you down there.

Great. Just ask for a table under Eva Bernard when you go in. I have a regular table.

I whistled. Apparently everything Eva did was in high style. Clothes and fashion were one thing, but I knew I didn't have the revenue to keep up with an up-and-coming lawyer who didn't want for anything. I wondered if I was getting in over my head, but decided I wasn't going to wimp out. I'm looking forward to lunch with you. See you soon. Eva responded back with a smiley face, and I sighed deeply before going back to work for another hour.

When twelve o'clock rolled around, I was already hitting the elevator, and on my way down. I signed out with front desk security, and pushed through the double doors as quickly as I could. I only had an hour for lunch, and downtown traffic was going to be bumper to bumper, nearly impossible to drive in. I got to my car and drove out of the company parking garage, my heart racing and beating fast against my chest. I hadn't felt that excited and panicked in years. "God, chill out." I said to myself. "It's just lunch. Nothing major." I had to take deep breaths to calm down, but eventually I got myself under control. I handed my keys off to the smartly dressed valet outside of the restaurant and quickly went inside. I strode up to the maitre d' who looked at me suspiciously. "I have a reservation under the name Eva Bernard."

At that, the man's expression changed and lightened. "Follow me please." He showed me to Eva's table, which was towards the back and away from harried waiters going back and forth with trays of food. The maitre d' snapped his fingers, and an empty-handed waiter turned in mid-stride to pull out my chair for me.

"Well, hello again." said Eva. I gulped slightly, wondering how it was possible for her to get more and more attractive everytime I saw her. She had on a gold-colored pantsuit that was smartly tailored.

"Hi." I eeked out. I knew I sounded like a frightened kitten, so I quickly cleared my throat to cover up my nervousness.

"Are you feeling alright?" she asked me with concern.

"I am...dandy." I replied. I shut my eyes quickly, wincing at my awkwardness. I glanced at the menu and nearly swooned. Even the salads were thirty dollars. I quickly chose a salad that had Mediterranean goat cheese and Spanish olives. Eva choose a minestrone soup with fish stock and pesto. The waiter scribbled down our orders, and hurriedly went to the next table.

Eva took a sip of her mineral water. "How has your day been so far?"

"Pretty routine. Nothing but checking accounts. I found out that I have a nickname as well."

Eva raised her eyebrow at that. "A nickname? What do your co-workers call you?"

"Icy." I muttered with a snarl-like lift of my lips.

Eva giggled at that. "Icy?"

I frowned. "I hate nicknames."

Eva looked like she was on to something. "So you have more than one?"

"Unfortunately, yes." I didn't continue.

"You can't leave me in suspense, Morgan. Tell me your other nicknames."

I chuckled nervously. "I'd rather not."

I felt her rub her heel over my loafers. "Am I going to have to drag them out of you?"

I bit my lip, wishing I had opted to wear a skirt instead of a pantsuit. "Maybe. That sounds like fun."

Eva's expression changed from friendly to downright wickedness. I raised my eyebrows. She looked like she wanted to eat me with a spoon. She ran her foot up and down my pantleg, while casually sipping her mineral water. I was trying my best not to cream my pants. "I like having fun. Maybe one day you'll see how much."

I sighed deeply, trying to keep myself from being overstimulated. "I'm looking forward to that." When the waiter came back with our food, Eva slowly put the toe of her shoe firmly between my legs. My eyes opened wide, but of course, I couldn't say anything. Eva ate her soup calmly, while I kept my eyes on her. I tried to keep my composure, but as soon as I raised a bit of salad to my lips, Eva applied more pressure and I dropped my fork.

"Are you alright?" asked Eva with mock concern.

"I-I'm fine." I stuttered. "Excuse me." I tried to stand up, but Eva simply started to massage me with her shoe again.

"Going to the ladies room?" she asked, leaning into me to apply even more pressure.

"Something like that." I told her.

"I'll be along in a minute. I know you have a terrible mess to clean up." She smirked, taking her time removing her shoe from my crotch. I quickly went to the restroom. Thankfully, the wetness in my crotch wasn't really noticeable thanks to the dark navy of my pantsuit, so I just patted myself down with the cloth towels the restaurant supplied for hand drying. As I was about to step out of the restroom, Eva pushed me back inside with her hand, and locked the door behind us. "I'd say we have about five minutes. I hope you don't make another mess between now and then." She said before stepping into me for a long, slow kiss. This time, she wasn't nearly as polite as she had been on our earlier date. She ran her hands up and down the sides of my body, not giving me any room to breath. Eva was voracious, pushing me up against the sink and running her hands from my pussy up to my breasts, gauging my reaction. All too soon, though, I heard a knock on the door. "I guess our time is up then." She said, pressing a kiss into my neck. Eva let me up, and smoothed the wrinkles out of suit, but I knew it wouldn't have done me any good. It was going to be obvious to all of my co-workers that I had been with someone during my break. But when Eva gave me a lingering kiss on the mouth again, I knew it was worth it. "Something to tide you over until Saturday, Morgan. And don't worry about the check. I paid for everything since you didn't get to eat what you really wanted."

"You are going to pay for ambushing me like this." I warned, splashing myself with water.

"Am I? We'll see." With a self-satisfied smirk, she unlocked the door, and left me in the bathroom to catch my breath.

For the rest of the week, I didn't know what to make of Eva's move on me in the restaurant. Had I mis-judged her? Was she just looking for a hookup? I asked Donohue for advice over drinks Wednesday night.

"Well, at least you know she's interested." She told me, sipping her beer. Donohue had changed a lot since college. Gone was the solid black spiked hair, face piercings, and she kept her neck tattoo covered up with makeup...unless she was at a punk dive. Her raven hair was long now, or as long as she allowed it to get, bobbed around her face. She still wore heavy eye makeup, and rocked dark nail polish. She couldn't sell out completely, she said. Her fashion sense hadn't improved at all. That night, she was wearing a long-sleeve shirt under a bomber jacket and skinny jeans over her lanky frame. Way too trendy for my blood.

"Don, please don't joke about this."

Donohue blew a smoke ring in my direction, before stamping out the clove cigarette in an ashtray, her rings making music as she rubbed them together. "She sounds like a big tease to me. Any woman that would invite you out for lunch to possibly humiliate you is not going to give it up. At least not anytime soon."

"Damn it." I said, lowering my head.

"So are you going to see her again?"

"Of course I'm going to see her again. I'm just going to stay away from restaurants with long tablecloths this time."

"Admit it. Being in the bathroom with her was hot." said Donohue conspiratorially.

I took a deep breath. Even thinking about it made my heart race. "Oh, yes."

Donohue just shook her head. "You've got it bad, girl. When Katrina takes a look at you tomorrow, you'll never hear the end of it."

"What are you talking about?"

Donohue poked one of my dimples with her forefinger in a twisting motion. "You're glowing like some bronze statue or something. It's pretty obvious you're happy."

Friday couldn't come soon enough for me. I went over to Katrina's apartment, where Donohue and Vicky were already there, gossiping and giggling about me. "Knock it off, everyone. I wanna see The Fantastic Four." I announced when I arrived. "We can talk after the movie."

"Nope. We're talking now." Said Katrina. "Give me some details about this woman who's trying to seduce you." Katrina looked pretty much the same. Ambiguous skin tone, a pixie nose, big brown eyes, full mouth, and long curly hair that fell in unpredictable curl patterns down her back. She had also thickened up in the right places, but I tried not to check her out. She was, after all, my best friend. And very, very straight. Katrina was the type of woman who could have any man she wanted, and she often did.

I chuckled at her expression. Katrina looked totally confused. "I think she's succeeded."

Katrina shot a glance at Don and Vicky. "You're right. She's glowing like a Catholic icon."

Vicki giggled. "See?"

Katrina studied me, circling me like a bird. "Yeah."

"Oh knock it off, everyone. I haven't even slept with her yet!" I sputtered out.

Katrina sighed and rolled her eyes, getting The Fantastic Four dvd and headed for her DVD player. "But you're going to."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Just don't set yourself up for another broken heart. That's all I'm saying." She looked pissed off as she turned on the DVD player.

"Ew. A lover's quarrel..." Vicky whispered to Donohue. Vicky and Donohue often teased me and Katrina about being a couple, mostly because we were so close. Plus it usually sent Katrina into a mock rage.

Katrina gave them both a look that screamed murder. "That joke is so old." She replied.

I was taken aback by her attitude. Usually Katrina was happy when I was with someone, even though it didn't happen very often. "What's your problem?"

"I'm just a little sick of you throwing yourself at these women and then getting mad when they fuck you and leave you."

My eyes opened wide at that. You could have heard a pin drop at that second. Even Donohue was quiet. "I didn't throw myself at her. She pursued me. And I haven't done that in a long time."

"Mm-hmm. Right." she replied.

"I don't know what your problem is, but call me when you get your head out of your ass." I told her, grabbing my purse and walking out of her apartment.

Katrina ran after me and closed the door behind us. "I just don't want to see you get hurt. You put your heart into everything, and I just don't want to see someone stomp all over it again."

"That's the risk I'm willing to take, Katrina. I can't just stand on the sidelines watching everyone else taking a chance on love. That's life."

Katrina hugged me unexpectedly. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have been a bitch to you."

I smiled, hugging her back. "I know you meant well. You're right. I shouldn't fall in love so easily."

She looked at me, studying my face. "But you already like Eva, don't you? You like her more than a lot."

I nodded honestly. "Yes."

Katrina sighed. "I just don't like this combination. Rich and older. I don't want you getting turned into a kept woman."

I was taken aback by her insight into the situation. "I don't want to be a kept woman either. But that won't happen."

"I hope not."

I looked at Katrina oddly. "What do you know about kept women anyway?"

Katrina looked skywards. "A beautiful younger woman gets involved with a wealthy older person who controls her every move. Whether it's a gay or straight relationship is besides the point."

"That's not going to happen to me. I'm too stubborn."

Donohue opened the door, interrupting our conversation, with her usual devilish expression. "Can you two stop making out so we can watch the movie?"

"Shut up, you!" Katrina roared, chasing her inside. Donohue just ran to her usual spot, the blue cordouroy love seat next to Vicky, laughing hysterically. Katrina pummeled Don with a throw pillow before sitting next to me on her large orange sofa. Trina started up the movie, and I put my feet up in her sofa, and rested my arms and head on the arm of the sofa. Donohue cracked up during the entire movie. Since she wasn't into superheroes, she thought the movie was ridiculous. I was annoyed by her constant talking, since I had always been a fan of the Fantastic Four. Katrina started to pout because they talked through all of Jessica Alba's scenes in the movie.

"The next time you get a superhero movie, let's just see it in the movie theaters together. Alright?" I offered Katrina as Donohue giggled for the thousandth time at The Thing.

"Deal. As long as it has Jessica Alba in it."

"Tsk. Fangirl."

"Geek." said Katrina with a smirk before she chuckled at me.

I rolled my eyes goodnaturedly. "Whatever." After the movie was over, I quickly got to my feet and stretched. "I'm out. I've got a big day tomorrow."

"Well, if you're not in bed with Eva tomorrow night, meet us for drinks." Snickered Donohue.

"Deal." I grabbed my purse and left for my apartment. That night, I could barely sleep. I couldn't stop thinking about Eva. Since it was obvious I wasn't going to get enough sleep, I spent the whole night on my laptop playing mahjong. "God, I haven't had it this bad for a woman since college." I muttered to myself when my alarm went off for six o'clock. When I looked at myself in the mirror, I knew I looked like hell. "Damn. I might as well cancel now. If Eva takes one look at me, she'll forget that I have excellent style and never talk to me again. Or maybe she'll assume I was out all night partying...this can't be good." I called Eva around nine o'clock and told her I was cancelling on her.

"Are you hung over?" She asked.

"No. I just know I don't look or feel well."

"I really wanted to see you today."

"I'm sorry I have to cancel on you like this-"

"I am too. Are you going to be home for the rest of the day...recuperating?"

"Yes. I don't think I'm up for doing anything else."

"Alright then, I hope you feel better."

I found myself staring at my cell phone after Eva's abrupt hang up. "Hm. Looks like I screwed up. Royally." I got dressed in a comfortable tank top, and a pair of pleated shorts, even though I felt like moping around in my pajamas for the rest of the day. At around ten thirty, I was surprised when I heard a knock on the door. I sighed deeply and started walking to the door. "If you must know, Katrina," I said loudly, assuming it was her, "I am not going to the beach with Eva today. And no, I do not want to watch a movie with you as a substitute." I opened the door and was surprised to see Eva standing there, dressed in a sundress.

She crossed her arms over her chest. "Who's Katrina?"

I blinked a couple of times. "How'd you get my address?"

"I've known where you live ever since you told me you live in Avondale. You're the only person who drives a bronze-colored Honda Civic for miles around. And since your parking places are assigned, I naturally assumed you'd be in Apartment 26."

I gulped at her lawyer's logic. "Huh."

"So who's Katrina? Your girlfriend?"

"No. She's my best friend. My very straight, but very accepting best friend."

Eva studied me for a moment as if she was trying to figure out if I was lying or not. "Is she the reason you can't see me today?"

I sighed. "No. I can't see you today because I spent all night thinking about you, and now I look like crap."

Eva reached up to stroke my cheek. "You look tired, but you don't look terrible. Mind if I come in?" My hand gripped the door frame hard.

"I don't think that would be a good idea."

"I don't bite that hard, do I?" she asked teasingly, running her hand over my clenched knuckles.

I shook my head. I knew I had very little self control. Given more time in the Di Vinci's ladies' room, I probably would have fucked Eva. "Now I know this isn't a good idea."

Eva's expression sobered. "Is that the real reason you don't want to see me?"

I sucked my bottom lip into my mouth for a moment. "I don't know what to make of Friday. I haven't done anything like that since college, and the women I did things like that with...well they never seemed to be girlfriend material." I hesitated, looking at Eva to respond. She didn't, so I kept going. "So what do you expect me to think?"

"You've been on my mind all week, and when you joined me for lunch, I couldn't resist the urge to touch you. It's not something I do often, or for everyone I'm with." I studied her for a moment. She seemed sincere, but I admitted to myself I really didn't know her that well. For all I knew, she could be playing games. "I'll never be the type of woman who holds back her feelings of attraction. I'm just not built that way."

"I don't hold back my feelings either. But I express them privately."

Eva smiled at that, a little too quickly. "What exactly are you looking for Morgan? Are you looking for a phone number to call whenever you need a hand to hold?"

"I actually stopped looking because everyone I met seemed to be a lot like you. All action, and no substance." I couldn't believe I said that. I covered my mouth, but it was too late. Eva already looked hurt.

"You think I'm like that?"

"What happened between us at Di Vinci's was way to fast. That was like a year's anniversary present or something like that. Not something you do with someone you barely know."

Eva looked interested. "So what do you think would be appropriate for us right now?"

"Kissing is still in. Just no more dry humping or fondling with high heels."

"Hm. I think I can control myself until you're ready. We won't be going to the beach today, will we?"

"Well, since you're already here, I guess we could still go-"

"Great. I already have my swimsuit on. Do you mind if I come in and wait on you to get ready?"

"Alright." I stepped back to let her in, but Eva pushed me back a little more, locked the door behind her, and proceeded to make love to my mouth for a full minute and a half.

"Are you sure kissing is still in?" She asked innocently against my cheek.

"Yes. Definitely yes." I curved my arms around her neck and leaned in for another kiss before stopping myself. "I better go get dressed." I hurried to my bedroom, and locked myself in, not leaving anything to chance. I put on my swimsuit, an orange-yellow one piece with slits up the sides and stomach, and covered everything up with jean shorts, a casual t-shirt, and some flip flops. When I opened my door, Eva was already standing there. I jumped back, more than a little freaked out.

She looked at my feet and giggled. "You're wearing flip flops! I haven't worn those in years!"

I frowned at her trendy gladiator sandals. "You're going to get sand all under your toes. Good luck with that."

Eva just smiled. "Well, I don't intend to go swimming. I should be fine."

I rolled my eyes. "You really aren't from around here, are you? Sand gets into everything at the beach, whether you want it to or not. Especially if it's a windy day."

"I'll be fine. Are you ready to go?"

"I have to grab some sunscreen, and a beach towel. Do you have any of that?"

"I have more than enough for both of us. Let's just go." She said, taking my hand.

"I'd rather grab my own stuff. You obviously don't know what you're getting in to." I said, releasing her hand to grab my beach bag, which always had two beach towels, a beach umbrella, and sunscreen. "Now we can go."

"I don't know what I'm getting into? Okay, I'll keep that in mind. You are a really uptight person by the way. I suppose you call out of work if you don't have on the right outfit."

"I've only called out of work three times since I started working for my company. And that was only because I had fever."

Eva put her hands around my waist. "Well consider me your supervisor from now on. Your very sexy, very demanding supervisor who wants you to give your all at everything you do. And calling out of work is a no-no from now on. Do you understand me?" Her voice took on a tone that was very threatening, and her hands tightened on me. I was momentarily frightened, so I nodded. Eva's mouth curved into a smile again. "Good. Now let's go." Eva drove us to Jax Beach, and I was silent the entire drive over. Had she been joking about the boss thing? Or could she really be that crazy if she wanted to be? I had no idea, but I had a feeling I was going to find out. Whether that was a good thing or bad thing remained to be seen. My terrified expression must have been pretty obvious, because when we got to the beach, Eva told me so. "Well, I guess now you really are intimidated. I was wondering when that would happen." She sighed and gave me a reassuring kiss, and caressed my chin with her pointer finger. "If you don't think you can handle me, I can always take you back-" I cut her off with a kiss of my own, and made sure it lasted.

I took her hand and slung our beach bags over my shoulder. "Ready to go?" Eva nodded with a happy grin, and we walked on to the beach. It was truely a perfect day for the beach. Not only was it in the mid 80s, but the breeze was light and cool, and the ocean waves were calm. "I'm glad you changed my mind. Today is going to be great."

And it was. We spent a few hours on the beach people watching before we packed everything up and had lunch over at a carribean restaraunt. We listened to the mellow sounds of a reggae cover band over bottles of Red Stripe. "You really like curry." She said, commenting on my curry chicken, curry fish, and curry beef platter.

"Yes. I used to put curry on my eggs for breakfast. The next best thing to curry goat first thing in the morning."

"Your family must be from the islands."

"My Dad was from Jamaica."

"Oh really? What does he do."

"The correct term would be what he did. He was an architect." I said bluntly, hoping she wouldn't press me for any more details.

Eva held my hand. "I take it he passed away."

"Yes." I took my hand away from her. "Can we not talk about this right now?"

Eva sighed. "Fair enough. What does your mother do?"

"She's a nurse. She takes care of the terminally ill. And I really need to get some air." Since the check had already arrived, I dropped a few bills on the table and rushed out, stopping on the side of the building. I breathed deeply, tilted my head up, and wiped my tears. Even after all those years, the pain of losing my father was still fresh in my mind. I hated talking about him. I felt like a kid again, a helpless, small little kid. Eva appeared by my side and rubbed my arm. She didn't say anything. No apologies, no standard 'I'm sorry', or more questions for details. She just stood there and waited.

"There's something I'd like to give you." She offered after several minutes.

"What is it?"

"It's back at my house. Would you mind coming over to get it?"

"I guess." I huffed, looking down at my feet.

Eva tilted my chin up. "I can make you feel...better. Will you let me do that?"

"If it's anything sexual-"

"For once, you're wrong about what's on my mind." She ran her hands over my shoulders. "So do you want to come over or not?"

"Yes."

For once, Eva's smile was warm, and not so predatory. "Good." She drove us over to her place, a two story colonial that was probably over two hundred years old. I followed her up the steps onto her porch, and past the tall white columns that flanked her doorway. When we walked into the door, "That's The Way Love Goes" started playing from an old record system that was wired into a sensor system in the door. Eva's place was amazing. She had ebony wood and red leather upholstered furniture. She even had a fainting couch. "You'll have to come upstairs. All this is just for show." She told me as she changed her record. Soon Anita Baker's "Sweet Love" was soaring through the air.

"You've got a great place here. It's amazing." I said, taking it all in. There was red Japanese-style wallpaper on her walls with real 24k gold accents that tied in with the furniture perfectly. I wondered how she put everything together. Even I didn't have such excellent taste.

"I hired an interior decorator. I can't take any credit for this." She slipped her hand into mine and tilted her head towards her cherrywood stairs. "Come on."

I followed her upstairs to a room that only contained a large cushioned table with white towels on it, and several small candle tables. "Okay. What is this place?" I asked her.

"You don't know? This is a room I set aside for massages. My masseuse comes in every Wednesday and gives me a deep tissue massage."

"I don't know about getting a massage from a complete stranger."

"I'm not a complete stranger." said Eva with a confident grin. "Consider yourself lucky."

"You just never stop, do you? Does everything have to be sexual?"

Eva raised an eyebrow at me. "You really need to calm down." I took a deep breath. "Relax. This is exactly why I want to give you a massage in the first place." She gave me hug. "I'll even leave the room to let you undress, and you can cover up your lower body with the towels, so I don't see anything...interesting." I frowned at her, but Eva just rolled her eyes. "Okay, your back might be very interesting. I wouldn't know." She kissed me on the cheek. "Ten minutes. And you can lock me out so I can't peek. Like you did in your apartment." She said with a wink, as she left the room. I had half a mind to leave right then and there. Eva was like a steamroller. Everything was an eventual yes to her. I found it more than a little disturbing that she was like Katrina in that regard. Still, I decided I was up for the challenge. I undressed, covered up my ass with a towel, and lay down on the table. I didn't have long to wait before Eva came back in, carrying a small clear bottle. Her hair was out of it's usual bun, and I could see it was long and bone-straight. She had on a white terry cloth robe that seemed to weigh down her petite frame. "Are you allergic to nuts? This is pure macadamia nut oil."

"No. I'm not allergic." I said, a bit nervously. Eva ran her hand over my lower back softly. I nearly jumped off the table.

"Relax. See? I'm not peeking…" Her voice sounded like she really was peeking, but I knew she couldn't see anything.

"I'm relaxed. You can go ahead." I heard the distinct sound of heels clicking against the wood floors as she approached the table.

"Good." I heard her rub her palms together.

"Do you mind explaining why you're wearing high heels?"

"Because I'm only five feet, and I have to be tall enough to reach over the table." She ended her sentence with a deliberate spank on my ass. "Oh. Sorry about that."

I raised up from the table slightly. "You're not sorry."

"Okay, I'm not sorry. But you ask too many questions." She walked around to the front of the table and leaned down over me. "What would I have to do to convince you that I only have good intentions for us?" She touched my chin slightly. "Your chin is adorable, by the way. I could see myself waking up to your chin."

That made me laugh. "You could wake up to my chin? That's original."

"It's also the truth." She gave me a soft, gentle kiss. "Now are you gonna let me feel you up or what?"

I squeezed my eyes closed. "My nervousness is suddenly back with a vengeance."

"Too bad." She gave me another kiss before moving behind me again. I felt her smooth her palms over my lower back. "You've got so many knots in your back. I'm going to have to take my time getting them all out." She kneeded a particular part of my side.

"Ow. That hurts."

"Take a deep breath. Otherwise, this isn't going to work." I breathed deeply. "Good. Now relax." She started working on the knot again. "I didn't mean to upset you earlier. You don't talk about your father, do you?"

"No. I try not to."

"When did he die?"

"Nineteen Eighty Eight. He had just finished school. To celebrate, he promised me a new bike. He was even going to get me some Jem and The Holograms stickers, and help me decorate it. But then the accident happened, and I never got my new bike. And my dad never came home again." I took a deep breath, not knowing if I should anything else. Eva's hands never stopped massaging me. I was actually starting to feel a little bit better. "I feel like an idiot, crying over someone who's been dead for so long."

"You're not stupid. He was your dad. You cared about him a lot."

"Yeah. I did." I found myself smiling. "You're really good at this."

"The message, or the interrogation?"

"Ha! Both."

"Good." She didn't ask anything me else after that, and I closed my eyes, letting her do her work.

When I opened my eyes again, the room was filled with lit candles, and a blanket was covering me. Eva was sitting in a chair that she had brought in, one leg crossed over the other, calmly sipping a cup of something hot. "How long was I asleep?"

"Too long. I knew I was good, but I didn't know I was that good. Do you drink tea?"

"Yes. What kind do you have?"

"Chamomile."

I smiled. "I love chamomile."

"I'll have a cup waiting for you downstairs while you get dressed."

"Thank you." I followed her downstairs when I was ready, and joined her at her bar. She handed me a cup of tea with a saucer.

"Do you use sugar or honey?"

I stuck out my tongue. "Neither. I take my tea as is."

Eva furrowed her forehead. "You're strange."

I took a sip of my tea. "I've been called worse."

"Be honest." she started, putting her hands on my knee. "How sexually active have you been?"

I raised my eyebrows and put down my tea cup with a hollow ting. "Very. Just what is your point, Eva?"

"I just want to know what I'm getting into. Whether I'm getting a lamb, or a just a lioness in sheep's clothing." She starting fingerwalking her way up my legs, but I firmly trapped them against my thigh.

"Thank you for the massage, but I'd like to go home now." I told her.

Eva looked off balance. "Is something wrong?"

"I don't think we're compatible Eva. You obviously want something that I'm not comfortable giving you right now, so I think we should end this now." I gently moved her hand off me. "If you don't want to take me home, that's fine. It's close enough for me to walk."

"Just for future reference, Morgan, nymphomaniacs don't give massages. And they don't show concern for someone when they're obviously in a lot of pain." She raised my hands to her lips and kissed them gently. I felt bad suddenly for misjudging her. "Someone must have hurt you a lot. I remember what you told me about college. It must have been really hard for you."

"Life after college hasn't been much easier either."

Eva gave me a small, sad smile. "Having standards is never easy. I have all this, and it's hard enough finding someone with at least half a soul to share it with. I was actually considering getting a cat, even though I'm allergic to fur. Pretty sad, huh?"

"I find that hard to believe. You have a nice home, a great job-"

"And I work long hours. Some women want someone in their lives who can be home with them every night. Sometimes I'm off to Tokyo, or Chicago, or Washington D.C. Women assume I have a girlfriend in every major city. Or, they get-"

"Intimidated. But you can see why some women would be don't you? You're not very sutble."

Eva smiled at that. "Hurricane Eva has always been one of my favorite nicknames."

"You revel in your personality, but it's holding you back from getting you what you want."

Eva just looked at me, and I thought I would melt from the intensity in her eyes. "The only thing I want is to wake up tomorrow morning to you. I want you, Morgan. In my bed, or anywhere else I can get you."

I gulped. "That's exactly what I'm talking about."

Eva tilted her head back and chuckled loudly before reaching over and swatting my knee. "Your shyness makes me giggle. It really does. It's cute."

"I'm not shy. I think the Hurricane Eva nickname fits."

"Hmm." Eva's expression sobered, and she took a few sips of tea. "So where do we go from here?"

"Well, I know where I'm going from here. Home."

Eva pouted. "I don't know about that. It's a little late to be going home, don't you think?"

I looked at the time on her stove clock. It was two thirty in the morning. "No way! When were you going to tell me it was that late?"

"What's your rush? Do you have someone waiting for you?"

"Of course not. I'd just rather be home."

Eva held her hands to her chest. "I'll do my best not to be offended by that. If you insist on going home now, then I won't keep you." I followed her outside, and we shared an uneventful car ride home to my apartment. I couldn't help but feel uneasy. Was I wrong for not putting out? I was attracted to Eva. I could spend hours imagining what it would be like to be with her, to fall asleep holding her, and wake up in the morning to make her tea. But I didn't know if I could handle her. Would I even be able to keep up with her in bed? And often did she want sex? Every day? Twice a day? Eva pulled up next to my apartment. "Do you mind if I use your bathroom?"

"No. Come in with me." I suspected this was a ruse for her to get inside my apartment and try to seduce me again, but I took the bait. I figured if she was going to go psycho on me, she would have done it at her place. Eva went to my guest bathroom for a minutes, and then came out. "Thank you. I just couldn't hold it anymore." Before I could brace myself, she drew me close for a kiss, taking my breath away yet again. I eventually broke away, but I still held her close.

"I just don't know about this Eva…" I told her softly.

"Let me spend the night, and I'll keep my hands to myself." She said, rubbing the back of my neck, before kissing me again.

"You don't have anything to wear." I pointed out. She just had on some pleated shorts and a tank top.

"It doesn't matter. I meant it when I said I wanted to wake up to your chin this morning." She caressed it with her thumb.

"I don't think you can keep your hands to yourself."

"I've been doing it so far. Just like I said I would. I have been following your little rules, haven't I?"

I wanted to tell her that she was doing one hell of job trying to break them, but she was kissing me again, and all I wanted to do was say yes to her. So I did. "If you want to spend the night, you're welcome to it."

Eva smiled triumphantly. "Good."

"I've got to dressed for bed. Do you think you can wait out here until I'm ready?"

"Of course, Morgan." She seemed a little too pleased at that. I decided she had a sneaky little plan, but was confidant I wouldn't let her have her way. I showered, changed into my silk PJs, and let Eva into my room. Immediately, she started shimmying out of her clothes.

My mouth opened wide with shock. "What are you doing?" I asked. She took off her shorts, revealing a cute, tight ass. Her shirt was the next to go, revealing perfectly round breasts, and a stomach with a slight pooch.

"I don't own any pajamas. I've always preferred to sleep in the nude." She announced casually, slipping between my covers. "These feel nice. What's the thread counts on these sheets?" All I could do was stare at her in my bed, her hair spread out over my pillows. "You're the one that's making this hard, Morgan. This could be so easy." I swallowed hard, and got into bed next her. Eva immediately snuggled up close to me. "In case you're wondering, I already know what you look like naked. And I like what I see, so there's nothing to be nervous about."

"You peeked when I was sleeping?"

Eva chuckled, nestling a kiss inside the opening in my pajama top. "You were lying on my massage table completely naked. Of course I peeked." She ran her hands down to my ass, and gripped it firmly. I gasped, but she just chuckled at me. "I love your ass. I can tell you take really good care of yourself." She proceeded to kiss me again, and I could feel my resolve melting away. "I'm really not so bad, Morgan. You should try me and see." I ran my hands down the middle of her back. Her skin felt even silkier than my pajamas. But something made me stop. I just couldn't continue. "What's wrong?" Eva whispered into my neck. "Don't you want me?"

"Yes. That's the problem. Everyone I want, I can't keep."

"You can keep me, Morgan. You don't have to worry about that." After that, she stopped trying to kiss me, and just pressed my head into her chest. "If this is the only way I can wake up to you, then that's alright for now."

I sighed, and held onto her. "Thank you."

I found myself waking up, still in Eva's arms. When I lifted up my head, She stirred, and raised her arms over her head, making her breasts bounce. "Good morning, Morgan. I was hoping I wasn't dreaming."

"It definitely wasn't a dream." I replied. Eva curled her legs up into a sitting position. I couldn't look anywhere else but at her. "You've got to be the most beautiful woman I've ever seen."

Eva beamed, and then giggled again. "That was a cute thing to say."

"It's also true." I leaned toward her, pulling her back into my arms for a long slow kiss. I moved some of her hair away from her face so I could kiss her ears. I ran my hands down her breasts past her stomach, and started to part her thighs very slowly. Eva just put her arms around my neck and watched me with a satisfied smile. I kissed her as I started stroking her pussy, which was already wet. "You've already been thinking about me. I can tell. Did you think about me all night?" I asked, with a harsh little pinch to her clit.

At that, Eva just gasped. "Yes."

"Good." I stroked little circles over the opening to her pussy until she was writhing in my arms. Then I took my time fingering her until I was exhausted, laying down on my back to catch my breath.

"Now I've got you right where I want you." Said Eva, straddling me. She unbuttoned my pajamas, and stripped off my pajama bottoms. I sat up, and she widened her stance. "You were definitely worth the wait, baby." she murmered into my neck as she started riding me, stroking me with one hand. She kissed me, trailing kisses down my neck. She was so hot. I didn't think it was possible for someone so tiny to give off that much body heat. I slid my hands up to her hips as she moved with me, stoking her fire even more. She made me whimper, beg, and plead for her to finish me off, but Eva took her time working me over. Once she was finished, she crawled next to me and kissed me. I was so exhausted, I just put my arms around her and went back to sleep.


I woke up to the sound of singing, but it wasn't the kind you'd hear on the radio. A high delicate soprano voice with no musical accompaniment. When the voice came closer to my ear and softened to a sweet hum, I knew it was Eva. "If you had sung to me earlier, you probably would have gotten me in bed a lot sooner."

Eva moved her hips closer to mine, so that we were lying breast to breast. "You are such a sexy little tease." She ran a hand between my thighs so she could stroke me intimately. "Do you know what I do to sexy little teases like you?" She started licking and biting my earlobe until she said, "I'm going to keep you in bed all day until you learn your lesson..."

"Sorry. Not today." I said, getting up and stretching.

"W-what do you mean, not today?" stammered Eva in disbelief.

"I have to pick up my dry cleaning right now, and then I wanted to catch a matinee of 'Skinwalkers'."

"You're choosing to pick up your dry cleaning over sleeping with me? I don't fucking believe this!" Eva rubbed her forehead in disbelief. I grinned at her facial expression before drawing her face to mine and kissing her sweetly.

"You really need to relax, baby. You're much too tense..." I allowed my voice to trail off as we reunited for another hard session. When we were done, again, it was the middle of the afternoon on Sunday.

Eva sighed, kissing me reluctantly. "I have to go."

"What about keeping me in bed for the rest of the day to prove your point?" I asked, pulling her onto my lap for a deeper kiss.

"I've got a brief due tomorrow. Which I haven't even started on yet."

"Can't it wait?"

Eva held me close and rubbed my back. "I'm sorry. It can't." She smiled then, rubbing her thumb over my chin, making me laugh.

"What is so amazing about my chin?!" I asked, moving her hand so I could kiss her fingertips.

"I don't know. It's just sexy."

"Sexy?"

"Yes. Extremely sexy."

"Would you mind having dinner with me and my extremely sexy chin tomorrow night?"

"Let's make it Tuesday night. I'm usually exhausted after the first day of trial."

"All the more reason for me to make you dinner tomorrow night. What kind of wine do you like?" I asked, massaging her back.

Eva sighed, getting more comfortable in my arms. "I'll bring the wine if you're cooking."

"Good. Come over at eight."

"I'm usually not out of the office until eight. How about nine?"

"Perfect." Between kissing, hugging, and teasing, it took Eva about thirty minutes just to get to my front door. "Don't forget your pajamas next time." I teased, as I stood at my door.

"Didn't I tell you? I wasn't joking about not wearing any clothes to bed." I nearly choked at that. "That isn't going to be a problem, is it?"

"Uh-hem. No. That's fine."

"I'll see you tomorrow." She said with a wink before leaving me. I spent some time looking after her lustfully before closing the door and going back inside. After bathing and changing my clothes, I suddenly remembered that I was supposed to meet my friends for drinks the night before! I checked my cell phone and realized that it was dead. After plugging it in to my wall charger, I checked my voicemail. Of course, there was one message each from Donohue and Vicky, and three messages from Katrina.

I called Trina first. "It's okay. I get that's she's hot. It's alright." said Katrina when I tried to apologize.

"Well, she is hot, but I think she's a really good person too."

"And you can tell this from what? Three dates?"

"Come on Katrina, you haven't even met her yet." At that, Katrina became deathly silent on the other end. I thought she had hung up on me. "Hello?"

"You want me to meet her?"

"After a few more dates, yes."

"Huh." said Katrina.

"What's 'huh'? What does 'huh' mean?"

"It's just that your relationships never last that long for the three of you to meet your girlfriends, or you never bother bringing them around-"

"Eva's different." I blurted.

"Different? Just because she's a lawyer doesn't mean-"

"She's different. Trust me on that."

"You're getting serious about her pretty fast, don't you think?" said Katrina with an annoyed tone.

"Haven't you heard? When lesbians start a relationship, it's love at first sight, and then a U-Haul on date number three." I started chuckling.

"That isn't funny." said Katrina.

"Why isn't it funny?" Even though Katrina wasn’t gay, she still laughed at my lesbian jokes.

"I've gotta go, someone's trying to call me." And she hung up without another word.

I frowned at my phone and called Vicky. "I hope you talked to Katrina, because she is pissed!" Vicky exclaimed.

"Yeah. I kind of figured that. She pretty much hung up on me."

"She's just worried. You know how she is."

"She shouldn't be. Eva is amazing."

"So...I take it the two of you did the nasty last night."

"It was more like this morning. I should get a medal for holding out for as long as I did. She gave me a massage last night, Vicky! A massage!"

"So she's got a magic fingers in addition to being gorgeous, and well-off?"

"She's also got a voice that's out of this world. I should know. I woke up to it this morning."

"Wow...so do you think she's girlfriend material?"

"Hell yes! Wouldn't you if you were dating a guy like that?" At that, Vicky started to sob quietly. "Oh, geez! I forgot about you and Tony! I'm so sorry!"

"I'll talk to you later, Morgan." She sniffled.

"Okay." She hung up shortly after that. "Wow, one friend is pissed, and I just made another one cry. Now to make Donohue shoot me!" I groaned as I dialed her number. I quickly told her what I'd told everyone else.

"Don't feel too bad, Morgan. Hell, you did say you'd meet us for drinks only if you weren't sleeping with Eva. I figured you would sleep with Eva, so I wasn't holding my breath for your call like Katrina was."

"I still feel like a jerk-"

"Don't. You're never serious about anyone. I'm happy for you. Katrina will be too, once she meets Eva and sees that you're in good hands."

"But why is she so bent out of shape about Eva? I've been with other women before-"

"Trina told me about Maryse." Donohue said bluntly. "She said she never wants to see you like that again." My breath caught in my throat, remembering my first love: a mysterious stud who I had met in Paris during my semester at sea. I never thought I'd fall for a boi, but I had, and I fell fast and hard. But at the end of the trip, I had to leave her behind. I spent the entire cruise ride back crying miserably, with Katrina consoling me. "You can understand why, right?"

"Yes. Of course. I can be such a baby when my relationships fall apart. Of course Katrina doesn't want to listen to my whining. I don't blame her."

"Hell, I'd cry too if I cared enough about someone. That's not the point. It's just that Katrina...cares about you, and it sucks to see you in pain like that. It sucks for all of us."

I sighed. "Speaking of pain, how's Vicky doing?"

"She's kind of up and down. We went out for drinks last night, without you of course, and someone walked into the bar who looked like Tony. She flipped out, Morgan. She spent an hour in the bathroom balling her eyes out. She was a total mess."

"God, that's awful."

"I know. I've got half a mind to kick Tony's ass for breaking up with her like this."

"Ditto. How can you lead someone on for four years?"

"Well, Tony was a pussy anyway. She can do better. I've got half a mind to hook her up with one of my exes just to get her mind off Tony, but you know my tastes."

"Yep. Artsy or musical. She goes for the low-key slacker type."

"Ugh. Don't remind me. But she's a chemist, so there's only so much I can do. Maybe you can hook her up with someone, Morgan."

"Me?"

"Yeah. Isn't there a cute accountant you can hook her up with? I mean accounting has got to be even more boring than chemistry, so there's got to be lots of men to choose from in your department."

"Gee. Thanks." I said with an eyeroll. "I'm the youngest person in my department. I think the youngest guy is at least thirty-five, if not older than that."

"Gah! That's ancient!"

"Tell me about it. But Vicky’s cute, so she’ll have no problem finding someone else. Maybe I should talk to her this weekend.”

“Good deal. I’m too much of a bully, and Katrina’s too pushy when it comes to things like this.”

“Wimp.”

“Yes, I am.”

“I’ll talk to you later, Don. I have to go food shopping because I’m making dinner for Eva tomorrow night.”

“Wow. I’ve never heard you say those words.”

“What words?”

“ ‘I’m making dinner.’ I’ve really got to meet her, Morgan.”

“Maybe in a few more weeks.”

“Alright. Later.”

I picked up the goods to make a decent salad, some steaks, mashed potatoes, kale, and yogurt parfait. Then I got some much needed rest, and went to work as usual.

Of course, my co-workers had to bug me. “Something’s different about you.” noted Ronnie.

“I didn’t do anything special.” I said, while typing away at my report. It irked me that half of the people on my floor took unneccesary breaks to engage me in small talk, or try to get me involved in petty office politics but I endured it as best I could.

“I bet you went on a date with that mystery woman you‘ve been seeing. How did it go?”

I couldn’t help but smile. “Very well.”

“Oh…” she said knowingly. “Are you seeing her again?”

“Tonight.”

Ronnie smiled and nodded to herself. “Good luck.”

“Thanks.” I said with a slight smile.

Eva texted me on my lunch break. I might not make it for dinner.

My heart sank immediately. Why?

I have to meet with a client as soon as I leave court today. I might have to fly out to New York for a few days.

I sighed deeply, trying to ignore my sinking sense of disappointment. Too bad. I was going to make you the best steak you ever had.

Eva replied back with a frowny face. Save it for another dinner with me, okay?

Alright.

Since I wasn’t planning on having dinner with Eva, I invited my friends over to make up for Saturday.

“Damn. That’s some globetrotter you’ve got.” noted Donohue over a glass of Pepsi. “Is she seriously going to New York?”

“I don’t know. I haven’t heard from her since lunch.”

“Ask her to bring back some Godiva chocolates. I love those!” exclaimed Vicky.

“I think it’s a little early in our relationship to be asking her to do continental candy runs.” I pointed out.

Vicky stuck out her tongue. “Ack. You’re no fun.”

Katrina shrugged. “You might as well ask her, Morgan. She seems to be a very giving person.”

“Ha. Funny.” I said. Katrina just winked and sipped her drink. An unexpected knock on the door made me raise an eyebrow. A quick look out of my peephole made me look at my friends in surprise. “It’s Eva.”

“It looks like your relationship is about to go to another level.” said Donohue with her signature devilish grin.

“Oh, God! What am I gonna do? I’m not even dressed up!” I said, starting to panic. Too me, wearing a pair of Old Navy jeans and an FSU t-shirt did not equal acceptable clothing. Unless I was home. It was years before I let me friends see me so dressed down.

“Hasn’t she seen you in your houseclothes? Please.” said Katrina, rolling her eyes. “You act like you need all that stuff to be attractive.” Her eyes seemed to spark as she met my gaze, and then she looked down at her sweet tea. “You really don’t.” she muttered.

“Thanks-” I started to say before I was interrupted by a louder, more insistent knock on the door. “I better let her in.” I opened the door a crack. “Hey, Eva.”

She inclined her head up towards me and smiled. “My client worked out a solution on his own. Which means I can have dinner with you.”

I stepped out and closed the door behind me. “I didn’t think you were coming, so I invited my friends over.” Eva frowned. “What was I supposed to think? You haven’t texted me since lunch. Of course I thought you weren’t coming.”

“So you’re not going to let me in?”

“I didn’t say that. I just don’t know if you’d like to meet my friends or not.”

Eva took my hands and stared at them. “That all depends on if they’re friends or more than friends.”

I laughed. “Trust me. Not in a million years would I sleep with any of them.”

Eva squeezed my hands and gave me a little smile. “I’ll meet them.”

I kissed her on the cheek. “Great. I’ll introduce you.”

We walked inside, and I pointed to everyone. “Vicky, this is Eva.” Eva offered her hand, but Vicky brushed her hand away.

“You’ve got to do better than that if you’re Morgan’s girlfriend. Give me a hug!” Vicky climbed down and hugged her, then laughed when she realized that they were both same height.

“Uh, don’t you think it’s a little early in the relationship to make that whole girlfriend assumption-” Katrina started to say.

“Pfft. Morgan’s well is dryer than Egypt during a drought. She hasn’t been on a date since that Bria chick last year.” Donohue commented. I covered my eyes in mortification.

“Eva, this is Donohue.” I said, managing to point to her without uncovering my eyes.

Eva went to give her a hug, but Donohue backed away. “Whoa. I’m also a member of the rainbow coalition. It wouldn’t be right if I hugged my friend’s girl. I’d get excited, and then I’d have to explain those warm, wet stains on Morgan’s bar stool.” Don gave Eva her signature I’d-get-you-in-bed-if-I-really-wanted-to look. “Oops. Too late.”

Eva just shook her head and waved. “Nice to meet you.”

“And last but not least, Katrina.”

Eva raised her eyebrow at her, not trying to get closer. “You’re Katrina?”

Katrina gave her a tense smile. “That’s what everyone else seems to think, so they must be right.” she replied with an uncharacteristic dose of sarcasm.

There seemed to be an odd, tense exchange between them that I didn’t understand, but I had the feeling it wasn’t a good sign. Finally, Eva moved towards Katrina as if to make a pre-emptive strike, but Katrina fluidly slid from the bar stool and stood up. The height difference between them was alarming. Katrina was five foot eight, and Eva was five foot one. Neither Katrina or Eva said anything, until Eva’s mouth curved into a seductive smile. “Can I tell you something, Katrina?”

Katrina blinked in surprise. “Yes?”

Eva bent her finger. “I wouldn’t be comfortable if everyone heard this. Do you mind bending down so I can tell you privately?”

“Wait. I don’t think this a good idea-” I started to say, not liking where this standoff was heading.

Katrina rolled her eyes. “It’s all right, Morgan. I’ll play her little game.” Katrina bent down and Eva whispered so low I couldn’t hear what was being said. Whatever it was was so short, no more than a small sentence. With that, Katrina pulled away, took a deep breath, and whispered something back. This mysterious conversation went back and forth until Eva finally pulled away.

“I think…that settles it.” She said, nervously moving a strand of hair behind her ear.

Katrina sighed. “Yes, I think it does. Goodnight, everyone.” Katrina grabbed her purse, and left without her usual hug goodbye. Vicky and Donohue looked at each other.

“Yeah…well…I’m gonna go now. But it was nice to meet you, Eva.” said Vicky, her usually cheery voice wobbled by a healthy dose of fear and confusion. She made a quick exit too.

Donohue just looked at Eva for several seconds before collecting her purse and leaving. “I’ll call you later, Morgan.” She said over her shoulder.

I turned and looked at Eva with the blackest expression I could manage. “My friends were being nice for my sake, so the least I can do is ask: what the fuck was that?”

Eva just leaned against my bar and gave me a mischievous smile. “Nothing. Your friend seems to be a little overprotective.”

“She’s just worried. But you weren’t exactly extending her a peace offering either.”

Eva smiled smugly. “Sometimes it’s better to have an understanding about certain things.”

I stared at her, but all she would do was smile at me. “What kind of understanding would send my best friend running from my apartment?”

Eva sighed. “We just had a female moment. That’s all.”

I stared at her, not believing. “I want to hear that from her myself.” I called Katrina, but she didn’t answer. She did however respond with a text.

"I’m okay, Morgan."

"What was that all about?"

"Nothing major. Me and your girlfriend just had a little chat."

"Girlfriend? Katrina…I don’t know yet."

"It’s okay. I’m alright with it. She cares a lot about you already. I guess I was just trying to make sure her heart was in the right place. I’ll call you later, okay? Oh, and I’ll talk to everyone else too."

"Are you sure you’re okay?"

"Yes, More. :) Now go enjoy the night you really wanted, and stop worrying. Good night."

I sighed, sure there was more to the story than she was telling, but knowing I wouldn’t get anything out of her that night. Okay. But if there's something going on that you're not telling me, I'd really like to know."

I waited for an answer, but Katrina didn’t text back. I tapped my chin with my cell phone, debating what my next move was going to be. I didn’t know if Katrina was lying to give my relationship with Eva a chance, or if she had another reason to lie to me. But I knew the two of them had it out about something. “I don’t like this.” I told Eva seriously.

Eva shrugged as if she didn‘t care. “Do you want me to go?”

I seriously thought about kicking her out. Hypocritical as it was, I didn’t like secrets. Especially when it involved my friends, who might as well have been family. Then again, I didn’t have any evidence, and Eva’s smile was distracting me more and more by the minute. “No. Not really.”

“I don’t expect you to cook for me after all…this, and I don’t have much of an appetite, so I’ll just be getting some sleep.” She came towards me and gave me a kiss that made me pull her towards me. “And by sleep, I do mean sleep.”

“Then…what was that kiss for?” I asked, breathless.

Eva merely raised and dropped her lips in a quick smile. “That was a goodnight kiss.”

I rubbed my hand over my recently barbered haircut. “I don’t want to play any games with you Eva. If you want to go home, then go home.”

“A few nights ago, you were more than willing to have a chaste relationship. Are you saying that the only way you’ll let me sleep over now is if I sleep with you?”

I took a deep breath. “No. I’m not saying that. You can sleep over. I’ll just keep my hands to myself like before. No problem.” I showered, got dressed and got into bed. Eva was already beneath my sheets, her bare back turned towards me. I wanted nothing more than to run a hot line from the top of her neck to the base of her spine with my hand, but I resisted the urge by turning away. I didn’t get much sleep that night. I kept looking over at Eva, wondering if she was going say, move, or do anything. She didn’t.

In the morning, I woke up to her voice again. This time she was singing “1 Thing” by Amerie. I watched her as she silently stood up and walked over to me, still fully undressed, her dark skin shimmering in the broken rays of sunlight that shot through the side of my blinds. “I have to give you credit for having self-control.” She said, placing a chaste kiss on the side of my cheek.

I turned away from her lips as if she had just burned me with them. “Stop it. I don’t know what you’re trying to do, but I’m not biting.”

Eva quickly slid her thigh over mine, balancing her hands on my shoulder. She ran her fingertips over my forehead before leaning down to whisper, “Do you mind if I do all the biting today?” I turned away from her, but she just straddled me, and moved her hands into my pajama top. “I promise I won’t leave any visible marks…” She let her voice trail off as she unbuttoned my top, cupping my breasts. She kissed them before sliding her hands in between my legs. She got me off quickly, leaving me breathless and splayed on my back. She ran her moistened fingers over my stomach before tasting them. “I just couldn’t resist.” She leaned over me, and we kissed for several minutes until my alarm clock went off.

“Damn. I have to get ready for work.”

“Would you like to take a shower first? I’m very thorough with soap.”

I chuckled. “I bet you are. But if I let you have your way with me with bar of Dove, I’ll be late and you know it.”

“Another time then. Can I shower here before I go home? I have to get to work myself.”

“Sure. Go ahead.”

I lay back down on my bed and sighed deeply, wallowing in blissful feelings. Eva didn’t waste any time in the shower. She was done in ten minutes, and when she came out, her skin glistening and steaming, I regretted not taking her up on her offer. After wrapping herself up in my towel, she lingered by my bed, looking at me. “I’m sorry about last night. Me and Katrina have met before, and we don’t exactly like each other.” She took my hand, and held it to her heart. “But I promise I’ll make an attempt to get to know her for your sake.”

“How do you two know each other?”

“I don’t know her, per se. I’ve just seen her in passing…” Eva said, her voice trailing off.

“Then how did the two of you come to the mutual decision that you hated each other?” The answer dawned on me before she could answer. “She’s a court reporter. Of course! She must have recorded at least one of your cases.” Eva nodded quickly. “So, what is it about her that you dislike? Is it something that we can all sit down and talk about?”

Eva shook her head. “No. It’s something that we’ll have to work on. For your sake if nothing else.”

I nodded. “Alright. Well, I’m glad you told me.”

Eva gave me a kiss goodbye, and left. Meanwhile, I got dressed for work, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was off. Did Katrina know who I was dating from the beginning? Is that why she had had such a rotten attitude from the start? I didn’t know what to make of everything. There was something between Eva and Katrina, but I hadn’t the slightest idea what that could be. I was hopeful that it was just a misunderstanding. Maybe Katrina and Eva bumped into each in a hallway, and Katrina had ruined an expensive blouse with a cup of coffee. I hoped it was something as simple as that.

I wandered in a state of confusion for the rest of the day. What had happened to make the two of them hate each other so intensely? It had to be something more than a ruined blouse, or a bruised ego. Try as I might, I couldn’t shake the feeling that the two of them had some kind of history. But that just didn’t make sense. Katrina was outgoing, sure, but she didn’t go out of her way to engage other people in anything other than friendly conversation. Not to mention the fact that she was straight. And I didn’t think Eva would go for Katrina. Sure, Katrina was beautiful, but she seemed like she was too free-spirited and approachable to be Eva’s type.

I called Katrina up at lunch time. “I need to talk to you. Can we meet somewhere for lunch?”

“What is this about?”

“I think you know.”

Katrina sighed and took her time answering. “Alright. Meet me at Chung’s after work. I’ll wait for you towards the front.”

“Fine. I’ll see you then.” My trepidation made my blood run cold as I drove over to Chung’s. What was she going to tell me? As promised, she was in the front of the restaurant by the door, already busily munching away at a large order of pork fried rice. She looked distressed, and preoccupied with eating. Whatever she knew, or was going to tell me was bad. I knew it. She didn’t notice me come in, so I put my hand on her shoulder. “Trina.”

“Mo-morgan!” She mumbled, trying to finish off the food she had just been shoving in her mouth. She brushed away a few stray grains of rice from her mouth with a napkin. Usually she was a clean eater, but whenever she got stressed out, she could pack it in like a steamshovel. “How long have you been there?”

“Not too long.”

“Oh my God! I am so embarrassed!”

“Why? It’s just me.” I said with a slight smile. Even though Katrina’s parents were wealthy, she had some very normal habits. It made me laugh looking back to our senior year of college when I thought she was some snooty chick. She really wasn’t. In a lot of ways she was more down to earth than I was.

Katrina looked away, still upset. “I skipped lunch. Can you tell?” Her voice carried a tremor of hurt I didn’t understand.

“What happened between you and Eva? What’s really going on?”

“Nothing, Morgan. We just had a falling out. I do some contract work on the side, that’s how we met, and things…didn’t end well.”

“Did she do anything to piss you off? Did you do something to her?” Katrina bit her lip in response. I took her hands. “This isn’t about blame. I would honestly like to know the truth. Please. ”

Katrina looked at me, and then turned away. She opened her mouth and closed it several times, trying to build up the courage to tell me what happened. Our attention was distracted by the front door of Chung’s swinging open. It was Eva. She came straight over to my table, arms folded, trying to contain a fury.

“Do you mind telling me what is going on?”

“It’s none of your business.” I replied calmly. “I don’t need your permission to talk to my best friend.”

“Oh, really?”

“Yes, really. I am not a fucking designer dog that you can carry around in your purse. I had a life before you, dammit, and if this little thing we have going on doesn’t work out, I’m going to have a life after it.” I was so angry, I couldn’t even look her in the eye, but when I did, her mouth was wide open in shock. I turned back to Katrina, squeezing her hands before letting them go. “I’m leaving.”

“But I haven’t told you anything yet!” said Katrina.

I shrugged. Sure, I wanted to know what happened between the two of them, but chances were it was just some petty bullshit. And that would piss me off even more. “At this point, I don’t care what happened between the two of you. I just want you both to at least be nice to each other. I care about the both of you, but I am not going to stand for the two of you fighting over me. Sit here, eat together, and work this thing out.”

I walked out of there without a backwards glance. I stopped by Vicky’s apartment, which was on the way to mine. Vicky wasn’t home, but I noticed that there was a box on Vicky’s doorstep from Tony. I smiled, seeing it was a box from a florist. Maybe they would get back together after all. Even though I was a little peeved at Tony for breaking up with Vicky, I knew Vicky still loved him. As long as he didn’t do it again, he was back on my good side. I called Vicky and told her about the package, and then I called up Donohue to tell her about my little chat with Eva and Katrina.

“Thank God you did something. I mean, let’s be honest. You two haven’t even been together a month, and already she’s alienating your friends? Not good.”

“So what do you think of her?”

“Personally, you aren’t on her level.” I let out a woosh of air. “I’m sorry Morgan, but you aren’t. You can keep up with her fashion-wise, but she’s something else! I wouldn’t even classify it as ‘little woman’ syndrome. I don’t think that she’s that bitchy…but the woman gets her way. Always. Get used to saying yes over and over again.” Donohue snickered. “And not just on your back!”

“I’m not too sure about that. She may be really aggressive, but I’ve put her in her place a few times.”

“How long did she stay there?”

“Not long.” I admitted.

“Well, you can’t put baby in a corner without it costing you. Just a warning.” Donohue was silent for a minute. “It’s probably worth it though. I mean, she must be one helluva ride in bed-”

“Goodbye, Donohue.” I said, hanging up. Some things were just too much information. I didn’t hear anything from Katrina or Eva for the rest of the day, and I assumed they were still getting their shit together, so I left well enough alone. The next day, I had a pretty boring day at work-at least until 11:45.

“Morgan?” I looked up from my cubicle to see Ronnie, with a bright smile on her face. I shot her a confused look. “There’s someone here for you.”

I lifted my eyebrows, becoming more than a little disturbed. “What do they want?”

“I don’t really know…” She said, but she giggled like she did. I got up out of my cubicle and walked over to the floor security station, where Eva was waiting. She had her hands on the security guard’s desk, talking to him in a soft, even tone, as she leaned over the desk. Her cleavage, small though it was, was nearly spilling out of her red minidress, cinched at the waist with a red belt. Frankie was sifting in his seat, probably trying his best not to get an erection.

“It’s okay, Frankie. She’s here for me.” I told him, walking past his station.

“For you, Icy? I mean Morgan.” He said, coughing loudly. I rolled my eyes.

Eva smiled at me. “Hi.”

“Hi.” I said. “I don’t know what to make of you coming here like this.”

“This is me coming here to apologize.”

I folded my arms, unconvinced. “Apologize for what?”

“Being a pushy, manipulative woman. And not treating your other relationships with respect.” Eva took a deep breath as if that was a hard thing for her to say. I admired her cleavage as it rose and fell. “Would you…accept my apology by letting me buy lunch for us? Anywhere you want.”

I gave her a slight smile. “No.” Eva’s expression looked startled, and I grinned. “I’ll accept your apology by cooking dinner for us tonight, like I wanted to do before.”

Eva nodded, and her eyes gained back some of her usual magnetic energy. “That’s something I can look forward to.” I went towards her and gave her a hug and kiss on the cheek.

“I’ll see you later, Morgan.” She said, as we parted, giving me an undercover spank on the ass before she let me go. She only giggled at my shocked expression as she turned and walked away.

Frankie looked at me. “How in God’s name did you land that?” he asked.

I shrugged and walked back to my cubicle. I decided to take lunch at my desk, which was a mistake in hindsight. My male coworkers, namely the office perverts Dan and Richard, kept asking me about Eva. I stayed pretty close-lipped about our relationship. It was bad enough they were probably going be to jerking off later to the thought of her and me. I didn’t want to add fuel to the fire. After work, I stopped by the store for some last minute essentials, and started cooking dinner.

Eva came by with flowers and wine at around eight thirty. “These are for me?” I asked.

“Of course. Here.” She said, giving them to me. It was a bouquet of eighteen freshly cut red roses with little sprigs of white baby’s breath. “My second apology of the day.”

“Thank you. I don’t know what to say. I’ve never gotten flowers before.” I took them from her and inhaled deeply.

“I’m glad you like them.”

“I’ll find a container to put these in. Are you ready to eat?”

Eva was silent for a moment, admiring my body. “You could say that.”

“That will definitely come later.” I said with a kiss.

So, we settled into a routine for the next few months. We’d take turns cooking dinner, or eating out, and we’d take turns sleeping over. I loved being with her, waking up to her arms around me, her voice, and her smells, which were always a mixture of Versace and musk or Chanel no. 5 with rosewater. I went to sleep thinking about her, and I woke up thinking about her. If she wasn’t with me, I’d wish she was. When Eva went out of town on business, she was never gone more than a day. She always said it was because she had to hurry back to me.

Eva started taking me out to cocktail parties and charity events. I'd be on her arm most of the night, being introduced to this or that attorney, or big wig politician, or business owner. Although I could hold my own fashion-wise, I definitely felt out of place. For the most part, I was usually the youngest person at those events, and whoever wanted to engage me in conversation was either condescending, or boorish. After the first few parties, I didn't really want to go, but Eva convinced me she needed me for eye candy, so I went to make her happy. Eventually, I settled into a regular group of reluctant spouses and dates who were there for the same reason I was: to look good while the breadwinner did some social networking. I developed a special appreciation for good scotch with those older men and women at open bars, counting down the minutes until I could go home.

On my birthday, she gave me a custom-made silk-lined fedora hat. I was starting to get into fedoras, so it was a welcome surprise. She also rented a limo, and took me down to West Palm Beach for some heavy-duty shopping. I kept my purchases under a thousand dollars. After all, I didn't want to be a kept woman. Eva didn't seem to mind, though. In fact, she snuck in a few purchases for me that I didn't expect: A Tiffany lamp, a small oriental rug, and a set of crystal fluted glasses.

Unfortunately, due to a client's emergency she wasn't in town for the big thanksgiving blowout at my Aunt Sandie's house, but I did take her around to meet my immediate family members. My brother was his usual shady self, eyeing her like a piece of steak. My mother was polite to her, but there was a sadness in her eyes that I didn't understand until she pulled me aside and asked me about my friends, namely Katrina. I shrugged off my mother's reaction. Of course, my mother had always liked Katrina, ever since she spent the winter break with us in our senior year of college. They had really bonded over cooking, which was a specialty of Katrina's, and of course, talking shit about me. I briefly told my mother Trina was just fine, but she still didn't seem to be happy, so I cut the visit short. After all, I felt she didn't have the right to judge who I wanted to date. She had lost the right to be a concerned parent to me many moons before.

Without meaning to, I saw my friends less and less. Vicky and Tony got back together, Donohue as usual was spreading herself all over town, and somewhere along the way, Katrina got a serious boyfriend. I didn’t see too much of Katrina and her new beau, since I was usually with Eva, but the few times I saw them, I could tell he was head over heels for her. He looked at her with a soft, dreamy expression at all times. Katrina seemed less than pleased about that for some reason, but I figured she was just putting on an act. I guessed since she was such a gorgeous women, she was making sure that he wasn’t going to break her heart.

One cold January night, Eva came up with an idea for a sit down dinner at Spaulding’s with all my friends and their significant others. “What’s going on?” I asked, a little shocked. Eva never went out of her way to get my friends together. They were always polite to her, but ever since they met her, they’d never been more than that.

“Nothing’s going on, baby.” She said, rubbing my arms. “I just know how you haven’t been out with your friends as much as you used to, and I want to get to know everyone a little better.”

I had gotten to know my girlfriend pretty well over the past several months, so I knew when she was plotting something. “Eva. What are you planning?”

“Something good.” Was all she would tell me, and with a kiss, that was pretty much it.

I called everyone up, and we agreed to meet us at Spaulding’s for a formal meal. Vicky and Tony were dressed to impress in a matching white dress and white suit; Donohue put her hair up for once and wore a bright yellow mini-dress, which seemed to clash with her date’s more formal floor-length gown; Katrina wore her usual A-line type dress, and her boyfriend Kendall wore a pinstripe-gray suit. Of course, me and Eva were dressed to the nines in vintage Gucci and Versace, in tasteful crème and scarlet.

After giving everyone a warm hug, we all sat down to eat. Donohue’s date seemed nervous and out of place. She also seemed to be a little young. I wondered if Donohue had kidnapped her from Jacksonville University just for the occasion. I decided not to ask how old she was, just in case she wasn’t legal. As usual, Vicky and Tony were on cloud nine, with Vicky talking a mile a minute, and Tony just looking happy and sheepish. Kendall kept on talking in Katrina’s ear. I couldn’t tell what he was saying, but whatever it was made Katrina uncomfortable. She kept looking away from him, and sometimes she glanced at me and rolled her eyes as if she wanted dinner to be over with as soon as possible. I agreed with her. Although I liked looking my best, dinner at a formal restaurant wasn’t really my thing. Maybe it was a lack of self-esteem considering I could afford my meal there, but Spaulding’s had an ambience of rich people who only ate caviar because it’s expensive. I would have felt better just having dinner at a friend’s house, but Eva put everything together for everyone, so I just kept my mouth shut about being uncomfortable.

As usual, Eva was her touchy-feely self, rubbing my hand, or arm, but she didn’t get too out of hand. I enjoyed the attention. Five years before, I couldn’t even imagine someone would want to have public displays of affection with me, and openly kiss me and public, and there I was with a gorgeous woman, who was doing exactly that. “So what is all this about?” I murmurred against Eva’s cheek, once desert was on it’s way. Our hands were clenched together.

“Well, I guess I might as well tell you now. I’ve been offered a job in Chicago!” She said with excitement.

I blinked, totally shocked. “Chicago?”

“Yes! Isn’t that great? I mean Jacksonville is…okay for what it is, but if we really want to go places, Chicago is a good place to start. Just think about it, baby. We can get a nice condo downtown. And there will be lot more going on in Chicago. You’ll love it. I know you will.” She patted my hand as if everything was already settled.

Before I could say anything else, Kendall was standing up. “I have an important announcement to make of my own.” I was taken aback. Katrina looked confused until he looked at her and pulled a ring from his pocket, going down on one knee.

“Oh my God.” said me and Katrina at the same time. We just looked at each other, our faces identical masks of shock.

“Katrina, will you make me even more happy by becoming my wife?” asked Kendall, opening up the ring box to expose a brilliant cut diamond that was way bigger than average.

You could have heard a pin drop at that moment. Katrina looked at me first, then the ring, then at Kendall’s expectant face. “Well…” she said, swallowing hard. “Yes.” Kendall got up and kissed her hard, everyone else at the table applauded, but I just sat there. How had this happened? Why had I allowed this to happen? It didn’t occur to me to be happy for Katrina until she came over to me. “Hey. No congratulations?” she teased weakly.

I hugged her tight. “I was just caught off guard. Congratulations.” But there wasn’t a happy bone in my body. Honestly, I felt like someone just sucker punched me.

Katrina looked at me briefly, but didn’t look me in the eyes like she usually did. “It’ll set in eventually. But then again, maybe it won’t. You’ll be off to Chicago soon anyway.” She sounded hurt.

“Well, not right away. I’m sure we’ll be able to stay here long enough to see you get married.” said Eva, with a happy grin.

At that, Katrina’s face visibly paled. But she recovered quickly. “I’m sorry you guys. I’m really not feeling well all of a sudden. I think I ate too many of those mussels. Kendall, would you mind taking me home?”

“Sure, sweetheart.” He said, kissing her before putting an arm around her protectively. He tossed a hundred on the table without a second thought, and quickly rushed Katrina out of the restaurant.

Donohue snickered under her breath. “There’s no way Katrina’s sick. She just wanted to get laid.” She chuckled, but not before giving me a meaningful look. I frowned, but I didn’t say anything.

“Hmm.” said Vicky. “She didn’t seem to be very excited about being proposed to.” She exchanged a glance with Donohue, which made Donohue thoughtfully take a sip of her martini.

“Maybe she was just surprised. Otherwise she wouldn‘t have said yes.” Donohue’s date interjected.

“Of course she was. And Katrina will probably start planning her wedding first thing in the morning.” said Eva.

“I don’t want desert.” I don’t know where the words were come from, I just said them. I felt myself get up and walk outside. I wanted to find Katrina and ask her why she told him yes. Why she accepted his proposal when she obviously didn’t mean it. When she wasn’t in love with him. What had I missed in the past couple of months that would make her want to get married? I stood there, out in the cold, peering through the murky night until I realized that she was already gone. It was already too late to talk to her. I felt the start of tears in my eyes until I felt Eva’s arms around my waist.

“Hey baby.” She murmured against my back, bringing her hands around to my stomach. “What are you doing out here in the cold? It’s freezing out here.”

I touched her hands lightly. “I’m okay.”

“I thought you’d be happy. We’ll be moving up in our career’s, Katrina will be getting married to a man who loves her. Everything’s working out for everyone.”

I didn’t feel that way at all, and I felt guilty for not being happy. Eva was successful because she was always looking for the next big challenge, the next big chance to prove herself. Why shouldn’t I follow her example and try to get a better-paying job as well? Maybe then I could afford to keep up with her shopping sprees, and treat her more often. I knew it wasn’t easy having a relationship with someone who made less money than she did. And I couldn’t be mad at Katrina for wanting to be happy. She was such a great person. She deserved to be married, and have kids and a big house in the suburbs if that’s what she really wanted.

“You’re right. I just need to get my head around everything.” I told her.

“Of course, baby. Take your time. I was thinking we could take a couple of days off from work and look at some places in Chicago. And you could look at firms. With your experience, I know there will be several who would love to hire you.”

I managed to smile. “That sounds good.”

And it did. But from the moment we landed in Chicago, nothing turned out right. We got there in one of the coldest winters on record, and we spent the first day just looking for decent coats. Then we came upon the realization that while Chicago was ethnically diverse, every ethnicity had it’s own side of town. Considering my kaleidoscope of friends back in Jacksonville, that made me vastly uncomfortable. Eva seemed to be deadset on living downtown, but I wasn’t really impressed. I wanted someplace quieter. On the bright side, all the firms I checked out seemed to like me. But that was the only positive thing about our trip.

“We’ll come back in another week and try again.” Eva insisted, on our plane ride back, as she sipped champagne in business class.

“Eva. Why did you take the job in Chicago without at least telling me you were considering it? I’m not even sure Chicago is the place for me. It’s the opposite of what I’m used to.”

“I just thought you would jump at the chance to leave Jacksonville. Baby, it isn’t even known outside of the region. You’re already working at the biggest firm in the city, but there are bigger firms in Chicago. You said it yourself.” She sighed, looking hurt. “I was hoping that if you wouldn’t do it for me, you would at least do it for your career. I want you to enjoy all the things I do, baby. With me.”

I felt guilty about not wanting to go. So the next week, I went back to Chicago. And I was nearly robbed. And a car jumped a curb and nearly ran me over. Not to mention the record snowfall that prevented my returning flight to Jacksonville that caused a twenty-four hour layover. “I’m not going back.” I announced, once I was in my warm, massaging chair in business class.

“I know this weekend has been rough. All that stuff that happened was really unfortunate-”

“I almost died. Twice. And all you can say is that was unfortunate?”

Eva sighed. “Chicago isn’t all bad.”

“But the parts that I’ve seen of it are cold, ethnically sheltered, and violent. If you can find me a good part, I’d love to find it.”

“Just give me some time. I’m due to start in another month. Please baby. This will work out.”

“Alright. I’ll give this one more chance. But I am not going if I don’t find a place I’m comfortable.”

The third trip to Chicago didn’t fare much better. Again, it was even colder than before. And we got into an argument over neighborhoods. Everything she wanted was an upscale, super expensive condo. I wanted a house. It was bad enough you had to go to a park to see trees, I at least wanted a yard. To top it all off, some evangelical Christian berated us in a restaurant for kissing. Our waiter apologized, and the angry man got put outside, but the damage was done.

“I’m not going back.” I said on the flight back. “No way. No how.”

“Chicago will grow on you after a while-”

“Chicago doesn’t like me! Every time I go, there has been an attack on my life, or the way I live my life.”

Eva looked at me. “So what are you saying? Are you saying you aren’t going to move to Chicago with me?”

“I care about you so much, Eva. But I cannot move. I can’t do it. Not right now.”

“I can’t believe you’re being so selfish! I’m doing this for us! So we can enjoy better things!”

I shook my head. “Is that all you care about? Better things? I was happy just having you. Just being with someone who understands me.”

“I thought I understood you. Now I wonder.” she put on her sunglasses, and that was the end of the conversation.

After I got home, I became really depressed. “How can I stay here if Eva’s going to be in Chicago? But how can I live in Chicago and be miserable?”

I talked to Vicky about it. “You should do what makes you feel happy. And think about things for the long term. What if you move up to Chicago and you’re totally miserable, and you can’t come back to your old job?”

“And what if I lose Eva if I don’t go?”

“I don’t know, Mo-Mo. I don’t know why she’s making this move all of a sudden anyway. Why is there such a rush for her to go to Chicago?”

“She says she wants what’s best for our careers. It’s a major city, with a lot going on.”

“But what do you want Morgan? Where do you want to end up?”

“I honestly like it here. I like having you, Donohue, and Trina as my close friends. All my family is within an hour’s drive from here. How can I just pick up and leave everyone?” I’ve never been the most expressive person but I actually started to cry a little.

“Jesus, Morgan. I didn’t know you felt that way. You always seem to be so…I don‘t know. You. Like you don‘t need anything extra.”

“I do. I know I don’t tell you guys I love you…well, ever, but I do.”

“Aww….if I was over there, I’d give you a big hug.”

I smiled. “I know you would.”

Vicky got real quiet for a while. “Aren’t you going to ask about Katrina’s wedding plans?”

I swallowed hard. I had tried to distract myself with the trips to Chicago, and I hadn’t even talked to Katrina since her engagement. For her part, she hadn’t tried to contact me either. “What’s going on?”

“She’s dragging her feet on everything. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say she doesn’t want to get married. Why wouldn’t she want to get married after accepting Kendall’s ring?”

I paused. “I don’t know. I haven’t talked to her lately.”

“Why’s that? You two are acting really funny. You finally get a steady girlfriend who wants to move you to some swanky place in Chicago, and you get cold feet. Katrina has a gorgeous guy who would do anything for her, and she gets cold feet. But the two of you aren’t speaking to each other. Hmm. That sounds like extreme fuckery to me.”

“I’ve just been busy-”

“Bullshit. You have a functioning cell phone. You can text. You have a Blackberry, so you can even email from it. And you’ve called Donohue and me every single time you’ve almost been offed or assaulted in Chicago. Let’s face it, Morgan. Me and Donohue have always been second banana to you and Katrina. You two are complete opposites, but you’re still besties. What happened to change all that?”

I sighed. “I don’t know.”

“Yeah. You do know. And if you don’t address this, it’s going to end up biting you in the ass. I’ve pretty much told Katrina the same thing. But it seems like she’s not listening to anything anyone has to say.” I almost came clean and told Vicky everything. That I didn’t want to see Katrina get married. That for some strange, twisted reason, I didn’t want her to have a bright happy future without me. It made me physically ill to see her interacting with Kendall. I disliked him. He seemed nice, he seemed like he cared for Katrina a lot. But I couldn’t stand him. “Morgan?” Vicky asked when I didn’t say anything. “Are you going to talk to her?”

“I don’t know anything about what she’s going through. I’m never going to get married. Maybe it would be best if you helped her through this.”

“Dammit, Morgan! She needs your help! Straight or gay, you’re her best friend! What are you going to do? Are you just going to let her make the biggest mistake of her life once she finally gets around to it?” Her voice took on a pleading tone. “For Godsakes. Morgan, she’s having dinner with his parents tomorrow night. Tomorrow night. Are you just going to let her marry the guy if she really doesn‘t want to?”

“It’s her decision, Vicky. She’s got to do whatever it takes to be happy. To have a future.”

“But she doesn’t love him. She doesn’t even want him to kiss her in public. What the hell kind of future can she have in a relationship like that? Morgan, please. I’m asking you as a friend for another friend. Talk to her. Fix…whatever it is you guys need to fix.”

I sighed. “Alright. I’ll call her.”

Vicky’s voice cheered. “Yay! Thank you so much, Morgan. This will all work out. I promise it will.”

“I hope so.”

I called Katrina, but she didn’t answer her phone. I thought that was odd. Katrina usually answered within three rings. Then again, I hadn’t called her in ages. I called a few more times, but she still didn’t answer, or call back. I didn’t know how I felt about that. I had been avoiding her, and now she was avoiding me. Eva came by the next day after work, and in an attempt to smooth over our argument on the plane, decided to take me out to dinner. I really wasn’t in the mood to eat out, but Eva eventually convinced me to go to a steakhouse renowned for it’s Kobe beef.

“I got you something, baby.” She said, as I was cutting up a particularly juicy porterhouse steak.

“Really?” I figured it was a gift from Chicago. In an effort to show me how great the city was, she had started making little presents of Chicago area accessories. I wasn’t really all that impressed with what she had given me so far, but since it was a gift from her, I generally kept my mouth shut.

“I should have done this a long time ago, so you would know how serious I am about us.” She reached into her purse and pulled out a ring. An eighteen karat ring with a solid band of diamond all around the outside. It was simple, tasteful, and elegant. That ring was so me. “I promise you, there is no other ring like it on the face of the earth!” It looked beautiful. I picked it up, and the engraving on the inside made me tremble. I love you, Morgan. I dropped the ring. It rolled off of my seat clear to the other side of the restaurant. I went after it, and stopped when it rolled right onto the shoe of someone who was waiting outside of the lady’s room. “Katrina?”

Katrina gasped and turned around. “Morgan?” She turned around, and we shared a warm, long hug. I found myself sighing into her chest. How long had it been since I felt comfortable with anyone. I didn't realize how frazzled my nerves were until Katrina held me. Held onto me like she hadn't seen me in years. “What are you doing here?”

At that, my shoulders slumped. “I’m having dinner. What about you?”

“The same as you.”

“I called you. You didn’t call back. You always call me back, Trina.”

She folded her arms defensively. “Well, you didn’t call to tell me about things in Chicago.”

“I figured…you wouldn’t want to know.”

“Why would you think that, Morgan?”

“Just a feeling.”

“For the same reason you haven’t asked me how my wedding plans are going?” she said, holding her breath.

“Yes.” And that was that. She knew I was making a mistake, the same way I knew she was.

“Morgan? Have you found the ring yet?” called Eva from somewhere in the restaurant.

“Ring?”

“Eva-” I closed my eyes, not wanting to tell Katrina. “-just gave me a ring a few seconds ago.” I picked it up from the side of her shoe.

Katrina took on a weary, sad, expression. “Well…is it everything you wanted?”

“No. What about your ring? Is it everything you wanted?” Katrina shed a few tears spontaneously.

“I wanted a ring from someone I could love back. But I think that’s impossible for me right now.” I gave her the silk handkerchief I had in the breast pocket of my suit. “I can’t take this. It came with your suit. I can remember when you bought it.”

“You think I care about that? If you use anything else, you’ll smudge that pretty mascara you have on.”

Katrina managed to smile at that, and dried her eyes. “Thank you. You’ve always made me feel better about being such a mess.”

“You’ve never been a mess to me, Trina.”

“Morgan?” I heard Eva call.

“I should go and return this ring. It’s beautiful. It’s the most gorgeous ring I’ve ever seen. But it’s not really for me.”

Katrina held her hand out and studying her ring. “Same here. I love the big fat rock in the middle. But I can’t stand the band.” We shared weak smiles at our jokes, and then I went back to find Eva.

“Eva-”

“Hey, baby. Did you find the ring?”

“Yes. But-”

“Well let me show you my ring. I had it made to match yours. It is fabulous!”

When she turned to go back to the table, I took her hand. “Eva. I’m paying for dinner. And then we’re going back to my apartment.”

“Oh, so you want to celebrate? I like the way you think, baby!” When we left the restaurant, I could feel a pit deep inside my stomach. It grew with every mention of Eva’s plans for us in Chicago. What kind of fashions we would be wearing for spring. What boutiques we’d be able to shop at. What kind of LGBT community events we could start sponsoring for clout in the community. It seemed like she had everything mapped out for us. And she hadn’t felt the need to consult me about anything at all. Not even to ask my opinion.

“Eva. We need to talk.” I told her, as soon as she walked in.

“Well, talk quick baby. You know I don’t like waiting for you.” She said, beginning to take off her earrings. If she intended to sleep with me, her clothes were usually off by the time she walked past my kitchen into my bedroom.

I held up a hand to stop her. “Keep your clothes on, Eva.”

“Why? You want to hike up my dress and take it from me like you’ve done so many times before?” she asked with a kiss. I turned away. “What’s wrong?”

“Sit down, and I’ll tell you.” We sat down at my table. I suddenly wished I had a glass of grape juice. My throat suddenly seemed dry. “I don’t know if you’ve been hearing anything I’ve told you in the past few days. I’m not going to Chicago.”

“Morgan. You’re just a little scared. I know this is very sudden, and it caught you by surprise. But give this some time. You’ll find some little homey hangout spots if you’re there long enough.”

“I’m not scared. I just don’t want to go.”

“So what you’re really saying is you don’t want to move to Chicago with me?”

“What? The only reason I entertained the idea of moving halfway across the country was to be with you.”

“So what’s stopping you? I’m going to be in Chicago. Shouldn’t that be enough for you?”

“I have to feel comfortable in a city. You just can’t expect me to get my shit together in a month’s time, leave all my friends and family behind me, leave my life as I know it behind me to follow you anytime you feel the notion to pick up and move somewhere new. Where’s it gonna be after Chicago, Eva? New York? L.A.?” I was aware that I was starting to yell, and lowered my voice. “I cannot do this. Not right now.”

“So that’s why you can’t wear my ring? You don’t want to move with me, and now you don’t want to be with me either?”

“What does the ring mean to you, Eva? That I’m just along for the ride?”

“Don’t be ridiculous. I love you, which means I want you to have what I have: the best of everything. Period. That ring is a challenge for you to rise to the occasion, to grow in your career, to grow in your relationship with me, and you’re refusing to do that. You’re resting on your laurels here, Morgan. Are you really satisfied making eighty thousand a year here, when you could be making one hundred and ten thousand dollars a year in Chicago? Come on, baby. Don’t do this. Don’t make this a hard transition.”

“You are the one who made this hard when you sprang this on me. You didn’t even tell me you were looking to go to Chicago-”

“I wasn’t.” She went over to me and hugged me. “I won a case against another firm, and they wanted to hire me. What was I supposed to do? Just let a great opportunity slip through my fingers? I was thinking about us when I said yes. I was thinking about my Morgan rising to her full potential right alongside me. I couldn’t say no to that.”

“Eva. I can’t. I can’t do this.”

“Yes, you can. I’m getting a condo downtown, just like we discussed. You can come up a few times a month for right now, and we’ll look for a weekend house. Someplace you feel at home.”

“Eva. No. I am not visiting you. I am not getting better acquainted with the finer aspects of the great city of Chicago. I am done with that place.”

“So where does that leave us?”

“I don’t know, Eva. The choice has apparently always been yours. You decided to take the job. Now you can decide to keep it and go to Chicago, or stay here and rest on your laurels a little longer with me.” I couldn’t look at her anymore. I was drained. I just wanted to go to sleep.

Eva kissed me on the cheek. “You’ll change your mind.” She said, stroking my head.

I brushed her fingers away. “Not this time.” She started to take her clothes off, but I calmly picked her up from my lap. “Go home, Eva.”

“What? I thought I could sleep over.”

I shook my head. “Not tonight.”

Her lips curled into a snarl. “Fine. But this doesn’t look good for us, Morgan. You throw my ring back in my face, and now you’re kicking me out. Well, at least I know how you really feel about me.” She slammed the door as she left, make my ears ring.

I slept the whole night and well into the next morning. I probably would have slept longer if my phone hadn’t rang. “Hello?” I said as I answered it with my eyes closed.

“Morgan. I’m sorry if I woke you up.”

“No, that’s okay. How did dinner go with you and Kendall’s parents?”

“Everything went well until I told them I couldn’t marry their son.”

“Did you wait until after dinner?”

Katrina laughed. “Of course I did! I was at a steakhouse! Do you think I was going to say anything until I ate my prime rib? And it was delicious, by the way.”

I couldn’t help but laugh, even under the circumstances. It was a relief to hear Katrina was back to her familiar happy self. “So what happened?”

“Well, that’s the sad thing. They just looked shocked and disappointed. They may very well leave hate mail on my voicemail today, but I’d be surprised if they do.”

“Why did you say yes in the first place?”

“I guess I wanted someone. In place of who I really wanted.”

“Oh.” I didn’t know what to make of that. I had never known Katrina not to have any guy she wanted. “Why can’t you have him?”

Katrina found that hysterically funny. She must have laughed for a full thirty seconds before calming down. “Someday soon you‘ll find out. So how did Eva react when you gave her back her ring?”

“She was pissed. And she’s not taking no for an answer when it comes to the Chicago move. If she keeps on, she’s going to be one cold, single lesbian up there by herself.”

“There’s nothing wrong with that. Then you can move on to someone who’s more sane.”

“Eva is just really driven to get what she wants. People like that make the world go round. But personally, I can’t deal with being expected to drop everything just because someone thinks it will be a good business decision for me. I could have gone to a bigger city after I graduated. I didn’t want to then, and I still don’t want to now.”

“You’re stubborn as hell, More. I guess I didn’t realize how stubborn until a second ago. So, who do you think is going to win this tug of war between you and Eva?”

“I don’t think there’s going to be a winner here. I just don’t think this is going to end well, Trina.”

I could hear Katrina’s familiar hopeful smile over the phone. “You’d be surprised, More. Every cloud has a silver lining.”