Gerri Hill - Pelican's Landing

Jordan smiled again. “Goodbye, Annie.”

“Bye, Jordan.”

Jordan laid the phone on her desk and leaned back in her chair, staring at the ceiling. She was in way over her head, she knew. She hadn’t realized how far Annie had gotten inside of her. It never occurred to her that their friendship would— could —turn into all this. It had evolved so slowly, so easily, it snuck up on her when she least expected it. Now…now she had no idea what she was going to do about it. At least Annie recognized it too. At least she wasn’t blind to what was going on with them.

Maybe it would be better if she was. Maybe then, Jordan could back away. She let her eyes slip closed. No, she didn’t want to back away. She wanted something that she thought she’d never have.

She sat back up and shook her head. Did she seriously think she could have that with Annie? Annie was carrying her brother’s baby. Annie was…straight, for God’s sake.

She buried her face in her hands.

“God, what am I going to do?”

No. The question was…what was Annie going to do?

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Annie glanced at the clock again. It wasn’t even eleven yet. Jordan had said it would be late before she got in. The day was going to be endless, she knew.

Just like the night had been. She’d made a simple dinner of black bean tacos with rice on the side. And she’d taken her solitary glass of apple cider out on the deck, but that made her miss Jordan even more, so she’d gone back inside to read. That couldn’t hold her attention either, so she’d showered and was in bed before nine. Unfortunately, sleep wouldn’t come and she’d tossed and turned until nearly midnight.

Tossed and turned because thoughts of Jordan were bouncing around in her head. How had this happened? How could she go from not being attracted to anyone to being insanely attracted to another woman ? Was it just her hormones? Surely not. That would be so unfair.

She smiled, wondering why she wasn’t frightened by her feelings. Well, as she’d told Jordan, she was a little scared. But only because it was so foreign to her. The feelings she had when she was near Jordan, when they touched…those were feelings she wanted to embrace, not run from. She wanted to embrace them because she’d never felt them before and she was afraid she’d never feel them again.

She only hoped Jordan didn’t run from it.

She tapped her fingers on the desk, then closed the laptop. She had to get away and kill some time. She would drive herself crazy if she didn’t. Early lunch? Maybe Suzanne had an hour free and could join her. She stopped. Maybe she should call her mother and see if she wanted to have lunch.

“God, what are you thinking?” she murmured.

No. No need to ruin the day. Not when Jordan was coming home. She called Suzanne instead.

Chapter Thirty

The store was full of customers and Jordan was able to slip through it without anyone seeing her. She opened the back door and glanced toward the office. Annie was behind the desk, and she looked up when the door opened. The look of surprise—happy surprise—on Annie’s face made the very early flight worthwhile.

“You’re early!”

Jordan smiled. How could she not? “Yeah. Caught an early flight at dawn. Had a layover in Dallas, though.”

Annie stood but didn’t come any closer. Jordan closed the door and locked it. When her eyes met Annie’s, she was suddenly very afraid.

“Does this mean we’re going to stop pretending nothing is happening between us?”

Jordan tilted her head, watching Annie. “Have we been pretending?”

Annie walked closer to her, and Jordan felt her heart beat nervously. “I think we’re past pretending, don’t you?” Annie took another step toward her. “I think I would really like it if you kissed me.”

Jordan felt her heart jump into her throat. She took a step back. “Here? In the office?” she asked anxiously. Yes, she was definitely in over her head.

Annie smiled at her. “Well, you did lock the door.”

Jordan swallowed with difficulty. She never expected that Annie would be the one to push this along. Of course, she was the one who had locked the door.

Annie’s smile softened. “Don’t be scared of this, Jordan.”

Jordan let out her breath. “I’m terrified,” she admitted.

Annie took another step closer, so close that they were almost touching. “You do remember that I’m the inexperienced one here, right?”

Jordan laughed. A nervous laugh but still a laugh. “Trust me, I have zero experience in this situation, Annie.”

Annie took her hand and Jordan let their fingers entwine. She tightened her grip, the touch calming her nerves a little.

“Let’s just take it…a day at a time,” Annie said. “That’s all we have to do. Take it slow, a day at a time, and see what happens.”

“That simple, huh?”

Annie nodded. “That simple.” She moved closer and this time, their bodies were touching. “But would you please kiss me already?”

Jordan’s resolve broke and she pulled Annie impossibly close. She had no time to think, no time to decide if this was the right thing to do or not. Annie didn’t give her the chance. Their lips met, and Jordan was shocked that she actually felt faint. She held on to Annie, her mouth opening slightly, taking as much as Annie would give. Annie wasn’t shy and when Annie’s tongue brushed hers, Jordan felt a jolt travel through her body. Her hands brought Annie’s hips closer to hers, and Annie moaned in her mouth. Annie’s slightly protruding belly hit Jordan’s, and she realized the intimacy of their embrace. Annie’s fists were grasping Jordan’s shirt as their kiss deepened. She wanted so much more, but not here, not in the office.

She pulled back, both of them gasping for breath.

“My God, Jordan,” Annie whispered between breaths. “Is that what a kiss is supposed to feel like?”

Jordan rested her forehead against Annie’s as they tried to catch their breath. “We really can’t do this here.”

Annie nodded. “I know. Someone could need us.”

Jordan laughed lightly and glanced at the sofa. “That’s not really what I was thinking about.”

Annie laughed too. “Really? Really, Jordan? You’re going to go there?”

They pulled apart completely, both still smiling as they disengaged. Jordan noticed Annie’s flushed face and wondered if hers looked the same.

Annie ran her fingers through her hair. “Okay, so what just happened here?”

“I’m not sure. I think we kissed.”

Annie took a deep breath, then blew it out. “Yeah, that was some kiss.” She cleared her throat. “Well, I’m certainly happy you’re back.”

Jordan smiled, then unlocked the door and opened it. She was glad no one was in the back room. “Yeah, me too.” She shoved her hands in her pockets. “So…you get the ordering done?”

Annie moved behind the desk and sat down. “Yep. All done. No problems.”

“Good.”

Jordan sat on the sofa, trying to relax. So they kissed? That had been inevitable, right? The fact that she wanted to rip Annie’s clothes off and make love to her wasn’t really surprising either. She tapped her foot nervously, searching for a topic of conversation.

“So…lunch with Mom. You didn’t say what all you talked about.”

“Oh…well, we talked about you some,” Annie said.

Jordan raised her eyebrows. “Why?”

Annie shrugged. “I’m not sure how it came up. We talked about when they found out you were gay.”

“Oh, my God. You talked about that ?”

Annie smiled. “You should really talk to your mom about it, Jordan. She said you have never really talked about it at all.”