Page 13 of Secret Desire
She rushed over to give me a hug. We weren’t really huggers in our family, so it felt a bit awkward.
“Come sit between me and Maeve,” she said. “I saved you a seat.”
That was my future sister-in-law in a nutshell: always thinking about other people.
I nodded to Theo, who introduced me to his husband, and waved down the table to where Grace sat, looking glum. I’d heard from Theo that she and Nicole had a falling out, something about Nicole rejecting her in front of Nicole’s mom and not being out to her parents. I didn’t know the whole story, but I knew it had something to do with them losing out on that big project they’d been bidding on. Theo told me that after the break-up Grace had stayed in bed for several days until my sister and Maeve literally dragged her out of her bed.
Sadie introduced me around to the mostly female-identified group, then we tucked into our dinner, which was served family style. The food was delicious, an assortment of dishes that included pork chops, scalloped potatoes, salad, house made applesauce, and more. Even though it was evident that most of these people had known each other for a while now, I felt welcomed and included, which was nice.
After the meal everyone headed up to the exclusive nightclub on the second floor, taking over the VIP section overlooking the dance floor. Despite the fact that Saturday was the biggest night of the week for the club, my sister and her partners were adamant about reserving space for Found Family Dinner guests.
“So you guys do this every month?” I asked my sister, who was sitting next to me now.
She nodded. “Yeah, we’ve done it for a while now. It started as just the three of us having dinner with Theo, but as we started inviting other friends, we decided to make it a monthly event. We thought it was important to create community, especially for people who don’t have supportive friends and family. Or maybe they do, but they just want to hang out with a bunch of cool chicks. And Theo. He’s probably brought more people to this group than anyone, he’s always picking up strays.”
I knocked my shoulder gently against hers. “You’ve created something amazing here, Ariel. I’m really proud of you.”
Ariel gave me a surprised look, then did something unexpected – she pulled me into a hug. I paused just a second before hugging her back. When we let each other go I saw that Maeve and Sadie were both watching us with tender expressions.
Some song from the eighties came on and Theo jumped up, pulling his much quieter husband by the hand.
“Come on bitches,” he yelled to our group. “Let’s dance!”
We headed down as a group, dancing together for a couple of songs. Eventually a few people headed back upstairs, leaving me, Maeve, Theo and his husband, and Ariel and Sadie still on the dance floor.
“Grace snuck off while we were dancing,” Theo told Ariel and Maeve. “But fear not, I have an idea how to fix this. Her lonely girl moping days are numbered now that I’m on the case.”
Theo’s husband rolled his eyes. “You and your matchmaking.”
“Hush, I have a perfect track record,” Theo shot back.
His eyes bounced between me and Maeve. “And I’m already thinking about my next project.”
Maeve must have seen the look too because she stepped back from the group, saying that she needed to use the restroom. I found her later sitting upstairs on a velvet loveseat in the VIP section. I dropped down next to her, one side of my body pressed against hers from shoulder to knee. Everywhere we touched I felt a hum of electricity.
“I think Theo suspects that there’s something going on with us,” I said quietly.
She turned and gave me an earnest look. “He’s not wrong though, is he?”
“Invite me upstairs,” I urged.
She looked around, but no one was paying attention to us here in the dark corner of the VIP area. I put my hand on her thigh and slowly moved my fingers upward, tracing her soft skin with my fingers until I reached the hem of the dress she was wearing. Shedidn’t stop me, so I slid my fingers higher. When I reached the elastic of her panties, she stood up suddenly.
“Come up in ten minutes,” she whispered. “I’ll text you the code. Make sure no one sees you.”
Ten minutes later I used the code to take the private elevator up to Maeve’s condo. Like my sister’s place, the elevator opened up to a small, narrow lobby that led to the main entrance to the condo. I knocked twice, then keyed in my code and slipped inside.
Maeve was standing on the other side of the door, waiting for me. I looked around, getting a quick impression of an elegant but warm living space, with modern furniture, floor to ceiling windows, and colorful artwork. In the distance I could see the lights of Navy Pier.
“Thanks for inviting me up.”
“I shouldn’t have. This is wrong,” she said softly.
For some reason that made a rush of arousal flood my core. I stalked over, gripped both sides of Maeve’s face, and pulled her in for a kiss.
It was like someone had fired a starter’s pistol. The kiss immediately turned hot. I shoved my tongue into her mouth, and we dueled for control of the kiss. Maeve’s hands moved to my ass, squeezing me firmly, then pulling me closer. But I couldn’t get close enough, not for what I wanted.
“We’re wearing too many clothes,” I panted. “Where’s the bedroom?”
