Page 46 of Strictly Business : A Lesbian Romance

disastrous meeting the day before. She found a space a few blocks away

and wedged her car in. It was a tiny little thing, barely above the status of

being called a beater. Her parents helped her buy it when she got her license

at sixteen. They had a deal that if she helped on the farm, on top of her

regular chores, that they’d pay for it until she could work off the debt. She’d

spent every single minute of her grade ten year working to pay for that car.

It might not look like much to anyone else, but she loved it because it was

hers.

Taylor’s heart leapt straight into her airway when she approached the

brick structure. Christina Hilford— she’d used her last name this time—

called her right after she dropped Chloe off at the bus stop. She was still

walking back to the apartment and had nearly fallen over. The conversation

was so strange that Taylor almost thought she was having one of those

stupid dreams where she went through all the motions of getting herself up

and ready, getting Chloe ready for school and onto the bus. The call was

that surreal.

Taylor’s composure was firmly in place as she pushed open the big

glass door. She was wearing the same outfit as the day before.

Unfortunately, it couldn’t be helped. She didn’t have anything else that was

half decent. She had the wrinkled pages of her proposal tucked in her purse.

She made sure that she didn’t let her eyes dance around or wipe her sweaty

palms on her skirt. She didn’t want to give away how nervous she was, even

though she knew that, bizarrely enough, her idea was a done deal.

“Taylor!” Christina Hilford walked towards her as soon as she entered.

Like the day before, probably like every single day, she was dressed

immaculately. Her black pants, white blouse, and pink blazer looked like

they’d just come straight off a mannequin in some store. They were that

immaculate. Her heels were sky high, and even though Christina was

already tall, she walked with a confidant ease that Taylor envied.

The woman herself was as neatly put together as her clothing. All

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