Page 10 of March

“You are obsessed with your new make-out buddy. I’ll be fine. I can text you when I get home so that you know I’m good. If you don’t hear from me in ten minutes, just call Mel. She’ll come to my place to check on me. Deal?”

“Are you sure?”

“I assumeyou’llbe okay ifIgo? You and Bryce will be headed to your apartment, right? Or, she’ll at least make sure you get home safely?”

“I don’t know. We haven’t talked–”

“I will.”

Sophie looked up and saw that Bryce was back, standing in front of them.

“Oh, hi,” she said.

“Hi,” Bryce said back with a smile.

“You’ll make sure?” Jill asked as she stood.

“It’s really not a problem.”

“And you promise me that you’re a good person? Because this is the South… I know plenty of gun owners that I can send after you if she doesn’t–”

Bryce laughed and said, “I promise.”

“Okay. Sophie?” Jill checked.

“I’m okay here,” she replied.

Jill nodded and said her goodnights as Bryce sat down beside her again.

“So… We’ve been talking for so long that I’m actually really thirsty,” Bryce said. “I’d hate to give up this sofa, but I was thinking we could go downstairs and order some new drinks. Water is fine, if you don’t want another. Maybe we can find a table or just stand against the wall, and if you feel so inclined, we could maybe dance again.”

Sophie nodded to all of those things because she also needed something to drink, and she’d love to dance with Bryce again, hoping Bryce would kiss her neck on that spot as she stroked her stomach with her soft fingertips. She took the hand Bryce held out for her then, and Bryce entwined their fingers before she led the way this time as they made their way through the crowd, down the stairs, and toward the bar.

When they arrived, Sophie told Bryce what she wanted, and Bryce ordered for them. Their drinks ready, Bryce paid and handed Sophie her cup, but there weren’t any available tables in sight, and the place was even more packed than before, so they found a dark corner, and Bryce stood facing her. The bar didn’t even have bottles or glasses anymore, only plastic cups with the bar logo on them, and when Bryce finished her drink within a few minutes, giving her two free hands, those hands found their way to Sophie’s hips again. Sophie finished her own drink and dropped it in the nearby trash can before she wrapped her arms around Bryce’s neck, pulling her in close.

“I don’t understand how, but this feels like it matters,” Bryce shared.

“To me, too.”

“How?” Bryce asked.

“I have no idea. But it feels really good.”

Then, someone bumped Bryce from behind, pushing her against Sophie and Sophie against the wall.

“Jesus! Sorry,” Bryce said.

“Don’t be. You’re closer now. I like you closer.”

“I can be even closer,” Bryce suggested, tilting her head.

“I think I’d like to see that.”

Bryce licked her lips, and Sophie followed suit, trying to give her the signal that this was what she wanted. Then, Bryce leaned in, and the next thing Sophie knew, their lips were connected and moving together. Sophie’s hands were in Bryce’s hair, and she didn’t care if she was messing it up. Bryce’s hands were around her lower back at first, moving around against her skin before they lowered to her stomach and under her shirt, not trying to reach for anything Sophie didn’t give her permission to touch. Sophie moaned into the kiss when Bryce’s tongue moved into her mouth. They both tasted like alcohol, but she could also just taste Bryce, and there was something about the way this woman tasted, the way she kissed, the way she touched that had Sophie making a decision.

“Come home with me,” she said breathlessly when they parted.

“Yes,” Bryce replied before she went back in for another kiss, which Sophie welcomed, feeling Bryce’s thigh move between her own.

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