Page 61 of Crashing into Love

“No, you’ve given me, like, six pillows and three blankets, so I think I’m okay,” Selma replied with a kind smile.

“Right. Okay. Well, good night.”

“Night, Drew,” Selma replied.

Drew turned to go back to her living room, where she decided against pulling the sofa out since that was a hassle, and she could easily fall asleep without it turning into a bed with a bar in the middle of it hurting her back.

She lay down and stared up at her ceiling, wondering how she’d gotten here. Selma was beautiful, funny, kind, smart, and talented on a board. They’d had fun at dinner ordering one of those big margaritas and sharing it since neither of them had to drive. Drew hadn’t ever seen Selma drink, and it was clear that the woman didn’t do it very often because she was a lightweight. As a result, it had been a very enjoyable experience for Drew to watch Selma metaphorically let her hair down. They’d talked about boarding, yes, but also Gia, their upbringings and families, and then, Drew had taken care of the check. Since she’d been the soberer of the two of them, she’d also kept an eye on Selma as they walked back, making sure she didn’t fall into the snow or slip on ice that hadn’t yet melted.

It had been an amazing night, and one of her best in recent memory, but she knew that inviting Selma to stay with her for a few days had been a mistake because it was only making her like Selma more, and she couldn’t like Selma more. Even if Selma were into women, Drew had dated another snowboarder twice in her career. Once had been someone not on the national team, and she’d been a half-pipe competitor. That had been a very brief relationship and had been mostly about sex more than actual feelings. The other time had been with Andy. That hadn’t ended well, and she’d been on Drew’s national team. Sure, they were competitors, too, but they were both adults and had handled that part okay. They didn’t also have to deal with being long-distance and from different countries. Drew knew that was pretty common for athletes because they spent more time with other athletes from different countries than they spent at home with people from their own, so dating another boarder from Canada wouldn’t be a big deal, but it would be to Drew who couldn’t even make it work with the woman she lived with. She’d once believed it was smart to date another snowboarder because they’d understand her schedule and dedication to the sport, but she didn’t know that for sure anymore.

When she woke up the following morning, it was to the sound of someone talking. She wasn’t sure where it was coming from until she remembered that Selma was in her bedroom. Drew sat up and checked her phone, which was on the coffee table in front of her, noticing that it was after eight in the morning, which was late for her. She had to pee, but she didn’t want to interrupt Selma’s call, so she got up and started coffee for both of them, setting the two cups on the table and trying not to eavesdrop, but the door was open a crack, so it was hard not to hear everything.

“Grandma said you got an A,” Selma said and paused. “That’s great, baby. Good job.”

Drew smiled because Selma was talking to Gia, who had already been asleep by the time they’d gotten home the previous night, resulting in Selma being slightly upset that she’d missed a chance at a goodnight call with her daughter.

“Okay. I have to go now, but I’m going to call you tonight. Be good for Grandma. I love you.”

Seconds later, the bedroom door opened, and Selma stood there in a pair of dark-gray sweats and a black T-shirt with the brand name of a snowboard company on it.

“Morning,” Selma said.

“Morning,” Drew replied. “I made coffee. I didn’t know what you’d want in it, but there’s milk in the fridge and sugar if you want.”

“Thank you.” Selma walked over to the table.

“Gia?”

“Yeah.”

“She’s good?”

“She’s fine, yeah. I just wanted to check in since I didn’t get to talk to her last night. I realized, though, that you might need to get to the bathroom and probably weren’t going because I was on the phone, so… Sorry about that.”

“I’m okay,” she lied. “You can call her whenever you want, you know? You don’t have to apologize for talking to your daughter, Selma.”

Selma rubbed her hands together and said, “So, I make a mean breakfast. Can I fix us something?”

“Sure. I have things. I didn’t know what you’d like, so I bought eggs, bacon, and stuff. It’s all in the fridge. Mind if I brush my teeth and all that, though?”

“No, go for it. How do you like your eggs?”

Drew cleared her throat. She was used to hearing that question from a woman the following morning after they’d had sex.

“Uh… However. I’m not picky.”

“Okay. I’ll get started, then.”

Drew headed into her room and found her bed unmade, wishing it was because they’d slept in it together, but she also wondered if her sheets and pillow now smelled like Selma.

“Stop that,” she whispered to herself as she washed her face and ran wet hands through her hair to slick it back a bit.

After she finished in the bathroom, she headed out to the main part of the space and found Selma pulling a bowl down from a cabinet, like she’d done that a hundred times. Drew smiled.

“Cheese in your eggs? I was thinking about doing scrambled or an omelet.”

“Whatever you’re having is fine.”

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