Page 126 of Fly with Me

“What is it?” Olive peered into the green tissue paper.

Stella gave her a wry smile and held the bag out to her. Olive deftly pulled the tissue paper out to find a vintage airline bag. It was leather and utterly gorgeous. A good balance of kitsch and class. If Olive had a Pinterest board of her aesthetic choices, this bag would have fit perfectly.

“Wow,” Olive breathed.

“Open it.”

“Okay…”

Inside was a teddy bear, a stress ball, and a pack of Swedish Fish. A humor book about worst-case scenarios. A folded-up neck pillow that smelled like lilacs and vanilla. An eye mask. And a cookie that looked like it was from a trendy bakery.

“It’s a survival kit for your next flight.”

“I can’t eat the cookie until I get on another flight?”

“Well… the cookie might be for the ride to the airport. Though I didn’t really think this through because it will probably be stale by the time I convince you to get on a plane. But—”

“Why is it for the ride to the airport?” Olive raised her eyebrows.

“It’s an edible.” She stifled a smile and covered her face with her hands.

“Stella Soriano bought me weed?”

“In a manner of speaking. It’s illegal to take cannabis on a plane. But there’s this bakery I like in Colorado—they actually sell gluten-free… um… stuff. I thought I would just tell you about it, but then I figured I should bring you back a sample. Maybe it would incentivize you to want to visit yourself.”

“How did you get it back here without bringing it on a plane?”

Stella pursed her lips.

Olive gave her a mocking scandalized look. “You broke the law to bring me a cookie?”

Stella’s expression became comically earnest. “A cookie that might help you feel better about getting on a plane.”

Olive pushed the bag out of her lap and then pulled herself into Stella’s. “Thank you.” She rested her head in the crook of her neck.

“To be clear, I support you even if you never get on another plane, but after what you said before, I thought I could show you how excited I am at the idea of flying with you somewhere. You deserve to see Italy. You deserve to see everywhere you want to see. And, also I’ve loved spending time with you. That’s not entirely related. I’m not saying you have to fly with me if you’re going to fly, but it’s true.” She let loose a breath as if she’d unexpectedly run out of words.

“Me too.”

Olive could tell her now. The feeling had been creeping in for weeks. Like the flicker of a firefly on a summer night. Every text. Every call. Every night spent together. Tiny lights in the darkness, and now the whole world seemed brighter. Olive wanted to tell her she thought she was in love with her and didn’t understand why Stella kept her at arm’s length. Did Stella know she was doing all the things that a perfect girlfriend would do?

But.

Olive didn’t want to destroy the memory of tonight with rejection. She wanted to have a few more days of feeling like she felt now… almost giddy? She’d have to say something after the last event on Saturday, but for now, couldn’t she enjoy this a little while longer? If Olive brought it up, it would be another example of being too critical and dramatic, just like Lindsay always said. Olive wanted to enjoy the simplicity of the moment, and most of her could. But…

That tiny, grating voice in the back of her brain told Olive everything was going to go to hell soon. Everything with her always did.

Murphy’s Law.

Stella touched Olive’s jaw and tilted her head, and the tenderness broke Olive free from that negative voice stealing her attention. Reverence bloomed on Stella’s face. Her lips worked Olive’s slowly at first. Tiny brushes. She held Olive’s bottom lip with her teeth for a moment, bringing her deeper into the paradise that was kissing Stella. Stella tasted like champagne and smelled like cake, and everything about her was everything Olive wanted.

Stella knit her fingers through Olive’s and then stood. Wordlessly Olive followed her to the bedroom. There was no urgency tonight. Olive started a record on the turntable as she entered, the scratch of the needle coming before the quiet melody.

Stella’s arms reached around Olive. Stella’s palms pressed into her stomach, then lifted Olive’s cotton shirt away. Her right hand slid beneath the lace of Olive’s bra while the left dipped beneath Olive’s waistband. They stood like this for several moments, pausing to savor all of it. Olive melted into Stella’s warm touch, and something started to simmer between her thighs.

Turning, Olive stroked the top button of Stella’s shirt. She took her time, kissing every new inch of skin revealed as her fingers flicked each button open. Stella undid Olive’s pants and pushed them down, dropping to her knees to give a very chaste kiss to a very unchaste part of her.

Clothes came off more quickly now, until all that was left was Stella’s sheer purple bra with her brown nipples peaked beneath it as if begging for Olive’s attention. Olive slid the straps down Stella’s arms, sweeping her fingernails over the perfect curve of Stella’s collarbone. Soft. She was so soft.