Page 32 of The Holiday

And to get a few things sorted with the woman Natasha had become attracted to those past few months.

“So… you’re… maybe asexual…” Eve considered those words with a glass of sparkling water in her hand. After offering Natasha more alcohol from the stash in the guest room – and being rebuffed, again – she changed tactics with something bubbly but non-alcoholic. Natasha wouldn’t say no to hydration, but she insisted on them both having (most of) their wits about them. Currently, they sat on a pile of linens and pillows in front of the gas fireplace that offered a soft orange glow to the somewhat dark room. Natasha was warm enough to take off her sweater. Eve was halfway to getting naked, and her guest had to put the kibosh on that… for now. “Well, don’t I feel silly?”

Natasha had to choose her words carefully.Too many people misunderstand me.Natasha sometimes blamed herself. After all, how she described her sexuality was something she always intended to be private – something to help her make sense of the world and her romantic destiny. There were times when she even wondered if she might be aromantic, but after watching many of her female friends find love (sometimes at the flip of a dime) she realized that she merely wanted somethingmore.Something deep. Something real enough on the outset that even if she jumped into bed with someone, it wasn’t without big cause.

“You shouldn’t feel silly,” Natasha said, remaining supine on her pile of comforters as she sipped her glass of unflavored fizzy water. “It’s not like I share this with everyone. I’ve just decided to share with you why I’m not always in the mood to respond to yourvery overtflirtations, Ms. Evelyn.”

“Oh, God, don’t call me Evelyn. That’s what my mother named me. Eve is the name I carved for myself.”

“Duly noted.”

“Well… I’m glad you told me, though. I wouldn’t want to bother you. Unless you were interested and it was a flirty game we played. I will say, I greatly enjoyed my anticipation of seeing you when I…”

Natasha had to interrupt her. Now. “Who said I didn’t enjoy the anticipation as well? You know libido isn’t a super-defined thing, right?”

“I admit it’s not something I’m personally familiar with.”

“Nor am I in a hurry to get to it most of the time. If I were to be in a relationship again, let alone one where I have sex, I imagine it to be a long courtship, you know? Not only to ensure we’re both happy but because that’s how I like it. Too often I jumped into things because I thought I had to or I couldn’t let an opportunity pass me by. Turned out I like a lot of build-up.With someone I could see myself spending some quality time with.” She attempted to lean closer to Eve, who had physically distanced herself since Natasha’s confession. “I’m not a one-night stand type woman, Ms. Warner. So, if that’s all you want from me, I shall thank you for the conversation and see myself back to my room.”

Eve considered all of this while Natasha felt quite chuffed that she had established such a powerful boundary. It was one thing for a beautiful heiress like Eve to flirt with her for the past few months, but that was all they could be should Eve have no true intentions for Etta Coleman’s receptionist.I’m sure there are plenty of other women who enjoy her company. Like that.Let them have Eve if all the spoiled woman wanted was…

“All right.” Eve interrupted Natasha’s thoughts without missing another beat. “I shall inform you of my intentions. Because I think you’ll find that my relentless attraction to you is quite genuine. Perhaps I didn’t see certain parts of your identity coming, but do you think it bothers me? Certainly not.”

“Nor am I someone to conquer, mind you.”

“Of course not! Conquer you… what kind of woman do you takemefor?”

“My apologies.”

Eve sighed, hand touching her chest. In the glow of the firelight, Natasha found her even more beautiful. She also found Eve’s words to be quite promising, though she needed to hear more before she made up her mind.

Natasha wasn't a total novice when it came to relationships, after all. She had a few friends she occasionally spent the night with before realizing she wasn’t meant for that life – and those encounters were wonderful but never intimate. As Eve so succinctly put it, it took a long time for her to be okay with having sex with someone she wanted to care about. That's why Natasha liked the build-up to these things because she genuinelyenjoyed being with people. But she wanted something more than friends with benefits, and that was where it got hard. She didn't know how to tell someone"Hey, let's make this romantic",especially if they didn't share the same lower libido or interest in a relationship. So, she did what she could to make do with what she had. She had fun with her friends, but she was always waiting for something else.

“I can’t promise you the sun and the moon,” Eve said, her profile striking the air as she tilted back her head and leaned into the cushions before the fireplace, “but I promise you my honesty. I think you’ll find that while I enjoy casual relationships as well, deep down, I’m not much different from my sister. We’re both hopeless romantics dreaming of ‘the one.’ Well, Helen’s found hers. At least she’s way older than me. Makes me feel like I still have time.”

“Do you mean that?” Natasha cautiously asked. “You’d like something long-term?”

“Well, compatibility is very important in these things,” Eve explained. “For the right woman, I can wait. I can enjoy quality over quantity. It’s about the romantic connection first and foremost. Intimacy is more than the feverish sex everyone around us instantly jumps into. I like a good cuddle, you know.”

Natasha couldn’t help but grin. “Me too.”

“I’d invite you to cuddle with me, but I don’t want to give you the wrong impression.”

“What wrong impression would that be?”

“Why, that I am only using it as a ruse to feel you up and kiss you.”

Natasha sat up straight, turning her gaze toward Eve. Her voice was even but firm.

She said, "I wouldn't object to the first part."

Eve was taken aback. "And what would you say about the second?"

"If you were to kiss me," Natasha admitted, "I would not object to that, either."

The way Eve looked at her now – her eyes bright and hopeful – gave Natasha a thrill like she hadn't felt in a long time. She set her glass down and leaned closer to Eve, who reached over and put her glass aside. For a moment, they merely stared at each other in the firelight. Natasha couldn't believe she was doing this. She hadn't been in a position like this for quite some time. But she did nothing to stop the inevitable when Eve's hand reached up and touched her cheek, her fingers moving down to stroke her neck.

Eve leaned forward until they were so close, Natasha could feel the other woman's breath on her lips.

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