Page 79 of A Little Light

“I’m just glad you want me here.” Andi wrapped Rachel up against her, stroking her fingernails down the back of her neck. “My place, compared to the size of this, is huge.”

“Why did you pick something so big?” Rachel asked, moaning lightly when Andi gently scratched her nails against her scalp. “Oh, God. That feels amazing.”

Andi smiled into a kiss, then pulled back. “Honestly, I just wanted to find somewhere. I’d talked myself out of selling this place so many times that when my new house came onto the market, I just put an offer in and went for it.”

“But you don’t feel connected to it, do you? Because it wasn’t what you really wanted, it’s just a place to go back to when you finish work.”

Wow. Rachel was one hundred percent right. “At the moment, yes. But it’ll become home. It has to. I refuse to move again.”

“Do you…feel connected to this place?”

Andi narrowed her eyes, trying to get a read on what Rachel was thinking. She could be honest; she knew that. “I think I’ll always feel connected to it in some way. Whether you’re here or not, I did spend a lot of years here.” Andi hoped that this would become a familiar place to her again one day, with new memories being made. “But most of all, I feel connected to you…and that’s what matters. Here or at my place, that connection doesn’t change.”

Rachel wrapped her arm around Andi’s waist and nuzzled into her chest. “Good. That’s what I care about.”

“Did you…want to talk about Juliet?”

Rachel pulled back, an uncertain look in her eyes. “Not unless you needed to?”

“I don’t need to talk about her. But did you want to go for a drink at her bar sometime?” Andi wasn’t insecure. She also wasn’t the kind of person who would avoid situations based on the past. Juliet was involved, Rachel was involved, so why not potentially find a new group of friends?

“You want to go to a members-only exclusive bar?”

Andi feigned offence. “Are you saying I’m not members-only exclusive material?”

“Oh, God. No. That’s not what I was saying at all. But I don’t want anything to come between us, and I fear that going there may have that effect.”

“Why? Unless you’re still in love with Juliet, I don’t see that happening.”

Rachel rolled onto her back, staring up at the ceiling. “Since I met you, I’ve come to realise that I’m not sure I ever did love Juliet. I was attracted to her, she was the first person in a long time to make me feel like maybe something could go somewhere, but in love? No. I don’t think I was. Perhaps I was wishing for that, hoping she would see me as something more, but the way things ended was the right outcome. For us both.”

“There didn’t appear to be any kind of atmosphere earlier when you bumped into her.”

“No, I know. I saw her and Paige a while back when I was out in the city. We sort of cleared the air then. I guess it’s just me worrying about nothing.”

“Let’s go there. Show them that we’re all adults. It might be nice to have different friends as a couple. Given the last week or so with my friends, I’d rather you were in a space you felt wanted.” Andi stroked her fingertips beneath Rachel’s hoodie, her skin warm to the touch. “Sally is coming around to the idea, but having more friends never hurts.”

“I guess it would be nice to see Hannah again.”

“Hannah?”

“Hannah was…Eva at the agency. She fell in love with her client, Caz. They’re adorable together. It was Hannah who put Juliet in touch with me. She used to be Juliet’s escort, too.”

Andi wasn’t sure she could get her head around all of that this evening. It had been a long day, and she was still recovering from Christmas three days ago. “Right. That’s a lot to take in.”

“Basically, Juliet and Paige are together…and Hannah and Caz are together. That’s really all you need to know.”

“Right. Okay. Well, I say we go there and have a drink one evening. I’ve never been to a members-only bar before.”

“The place is great. Juliet and Paige fit right in there. I’m just not sure of the reception I’ll receive from Paige. I wasn’t exactly her number one fan back when she joined the bar.” Rachel chewed her lip, not meeting Andi’s gaze. “I was…a little bit out of control back then. When you think you’re in love with someone, and another woman comes into the picture, it can make you a not very nice person, shall we say?”

“I get it. I can’t say I wouldn’t be the same if the shoe was on the other foot.”

Rachel laughed. “You don’t have it in you to be a bitch, babe. And that’s exactly what I was to Paige. A complete bitch.”

“Then maybe it’s time to make amends once and for all.” Andi wanted them to have a separate group of friends. If she was going to begin a new life, one with Rachel by her side, then she really wanted to expand her circle. “What do you say?”

Rachel sat up on her elbows, evidently mulling over the idea. Then she nodded slowly. “You know, I think you’re right. Juliet mentioned that she was expanding and turning it into a safe space for the ladies. We can go there, and if it doesn’t work out, at least we can say we tried.”

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