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“Is that another reason you’re thinking of moving to LA?”

“Would cut back on the traveling, too. At least the extra leg between here and there.”

“You’d get home sooner.”

“Have you seen LA traffic? That’s debatable, and I drive here from SeaTac.”

“It took me so long to get to your place yesterday…”

Elle flung another arm around her. “I’m grateful you made it.”

They shared a single kiss before Arianna wiggled off the couch and excused herself to the bathroom. She chose the en suite attached to the primary bedroom instead of the more easily accessible one in the hallway.

She was gone for a while. More than enough time for Elle to tidy up the living room and consider what clothes she wanted to change into that night.

She wasn’t expecting to turn around and see a woman she barely recognized standing in her bedroom doorway.

“Whoa.” Elle dropped the cloth in her hand. She didn’t bother to bend down and pick it off her floor. “I’m almost speechless.”

The young lady gracing the hallway was vaguely familiar as she took a few tepid steps away from the bedroom. I’ve seen those PJs before. White silk that cut off at the thighs and buttoned up the chest. The demure rose pattern circling the collar enhanced the lack of makeup on Arianna’s face – a sight Elle had seen plenty of times after they became more comfortable around one another.

But the hair hanging loose around Arianna’s shoulders was new.

“Do you like it?” Arianna sheepishly asked, her head turning away when Elle flicked on the hallway light to get a better look at her. “I just thought… it was silly to come stay with you for a week after all these months we’ve been dating and… I wasn’t letting you see me like this.”

Elle leaned against the wall, hand extending to the silky curtain of black hair bouncing gingerly against Arianna’s chest. “You’re beautiful.”

Arianna grinned. “I think I look so plain dressed down like this. I’m so used to how I look in my work uniform that I barely know how to exist in front of other people without it. You’re…” She swallowed. “You’re the first person to see me like this in years. Except for my sister. She’s the only one who knows this ‘me.’”

“Which ‘you’ is this?”

“Oh, the lazy, slovenly, very unprofessional Arianna who will never become the Queen of the Skies.”

“That’s silly. Know what I see?”

Arianna was reverently silent.

“I see someone who takes her relaxation seriously. Someone who doesn’t let the opinions of others rule her life.”

“That’s easier to say than to exhibit, trust me.”

Elle brushed back the hair from Arianna’s face. “I’ve yet to see you look like anyone but yourself. But… I’m grateful you felt close enough to me to share this part of you.”

“Really?”

“Of course. Why would I lie about something like that?”

“Hmph. You only told me your real name today.”

“For all I know, that’s why you’re showing me your hair down. Quid pro quo.”

“I didn’t know that was happening!”

Elle lowered her lips to Arianna’s ear. “I could tell you what’s going to happen now that you’re in your pajamas.”

She supposed she didn’t need to finish that thought. Not with Arianna beating her to the bedroom first!

Chapter 23