Page 94

Those words weren’t real.

“What?”

“I mean it. We don’t have to get married right away. Actually, I’d prefer that.” Elle’s arm snaked around Arianna’s shoulders, bringing her closer to that determined tone. “A nice, long engagement for us to sort everything out. But I want the world to know that I’m serious about you. I’m not going anywhere. I’ll fight for you, to have whatever you want. I know people in the industry. People who owe me favors outside of Royal Asia. They’ll have to hire you with your impeccable skills. I know people in Delta. I know people in United, American, you name it. They won’t care that you’re engaged to me if I tell them not to care. They’ll be thanking me, anyway. Because you’re the best.”

“Back up,” Arianna softly said in Mandarin. “You want to get married?”

“We’ll do it the right way. Meeting your mother, meeting my parents, a lovely debacle for us to stress out over in a couple of years. In the meantime, we’ll move in together. Preferably in Los Angeles, but I’ll relocate here if you need. I don’t need to stay in Seattle. There’s nothing for me there anymore.” She held Arianna closer, their lips almost touching. “I want to be wherever you are. Even if it’s on the ground, or thirty thousand feet in the air.”

Arianna was too shocked to answer. “Isn’t it a bit soon?”

“We’ve been together for the better part of a year.”

“I know, it’s just… I never thought something like this would happen to me.”

“Why not?”

Arianna shook her head against her girlfriend’s shoulder. “Because things like this don’t happen to me.”

“You have earned everything you’ve worked for. And you worked for my love without even realizing it. That’s how amazing you are.”

Arianna flung her arms around Elle, holding back a cheer of sheer joy. “Can I be Mrs. Sparrow?” she cheekily asked.

“You can be whatever the fuck you want.”

“I want to be yours.”

So she was.

Elle had gone to her hotel room in Lion Orchard to make calls on Arianna’s behalf. The woman in question tidied up her flat and tried to not get too wrapped up in the possibility of getting married – and all that entailed.

Her sister would be elated. Their mother? Perhaps not so much, but there was nothing Pearl could do to stop her daughter from coming out to the world as a tongzhi married to another woman. The money would soothe the burns, anyway. After a while. Might take years, but… Elle understood enough about Chinese culture to know what to expect from an irate mother-in-law, and how to placate her over a few years.

All of that was so far away, though.

She was in the midst of more thoughts when her doorbell buzzed. Arianna didn’t think twice about answering, assuming it was her sister getting off work early like she did some Tuesdays. I asked her to stop by so I could tell her all of this in person. It was Arianna’s hope for the three of them to have dinner later if Elle was up for it.

Yet that was not Kaylinn on the other side of the door. Nor was it a single person.

It was two women. Very familiar women.

“Miss Song.” Esther Tan bowed deeper than she usually did to Arianna, who was her subordinate. On the contrary, Charmaine merely nodded a few times, as if her coming by Arianna’s flat was a common occurrence. “Please forgive our intrusion. I got your address from Mrs. See. We wanted to visit you.”

“Ah…” Arianna was too caught off guard by their arrival that she entered autopilot. “Please, come in. I was about to make some tea. Or would you prefer coffee?”

She was glad that she had not only cleaned up but that Elle wasn’t around. Yet it wasn’t until she put water in the electric kettle that she realized why her colleagues were staring at her.

“Miss Song,” Charmaine said, standing behind her. “Your hair is down…”

Arianna slowly turned, head held high as she said, “Because I’m at home.”

Charmaine grinned. “Your hair is so pretty!”

Flustered, Arianna grabbed her canister of fresh tea leaves and three cups. “I’m sorry my place is so small and messy,” she said to deflect from her appearance of casual hair, no makeup, and a T-shirt and shorts. At least I’m wearing a bra! Likewise, her colleagues were in what was probably “going out” casual for them both. Esther wore a sundress with a white button-up sweater and Charmaine was youthful in a scoop-neck blouse and a pair of shorts that hardly covered her bottom. Suddenly, Arianna realized what was truly off about this visit. “Isn’t it Tuesday? Shouldn’t you two be in Los Angeles?”

Both colleagues sat at the small table, barely leaving room for their hostess. “We didn’t go to Los Angeles,” Esther explained. “We went on leave as well. In protest.”

“What?”