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“No, which should have been a pretty good sign of what I was getting into, right?”

“Perhaps.” Miranda took a long drink. “Do you still want to find your soulmate by the time you’re thirty?”

“Yes,” Tori answered honestly.

“Then why aren’t you dating?”

Chuckling, Tori followed Miranda to the couch. “Oh, because I haven’t found the right woman yet.”

“Dating doesn’t require finding someone who is right first.”

“True.” Tori was halfway through her drink already. Miranda was brilliant, and navigating the undercurrents of the conversation was hard. “I’ve been on a few dates in the last couple months. Siena just had a breakup. That’s what was happening the other night when she picked up Harley late, when we switched weekends.”

“She was dating someone?”

“Yeah.” Tori looked Miranda over. “Does that surprise you?”

“No. She’s gorgeous. I imagine men and women fall over themselves to get to her.”

Tori’s stomach tightened. Was she even Miranda’s type? Was she reading way too much into this? Miranda might not date younger women, and Tori could be walking into the wrong house. “I met Siena through Aili, actually.”

“Aili?” Miranda furrowed her brow.

“Oh, Aili and I dated for a while way back when. Before I met Siena. But she’s the one who introduced us. Thought we’d be a good match. I don’t think she was wrong, but she wasn’t exactly right either.”

“Do all your exes just become your friends?” Miranda looked utterly appalled.

Tori chortled. “Yeah, I guess they do. I don’t make a very good enemy.”

“I don’t imagine you do. Probably smite your enemies with smiles until they turn back toward you.”

Tori’s jaw dropped. She couldn’t quite find her voice, wanting to say something to that. “Was that a compliment?”

“Take it however you want. It’s odd.”

“It’s not that odd when you have such a sunny disposition.”

“So you say.” Miranda finished her drink. “Want another one?”

“Not if I’m driving home tonight.” Tori set the cup on the glass coffee table. She was already feeling lightheaded and would have to hang out at Miranda’s for another hour at a minimum, probably two, in order for that to wear off enough for her to feel safe driving home.

Miranda stood up and snagged Tori’s glass as she walked back toward the kitchen. Tori stayed put, crossing her legs and resting into the couch. What was she doing there? She never could quite resist the call for help, but something had come between them the night that Siena had shown up. Was it just jealousy? Was Miranda insecure?

When she came back, she set Tori’s glass, refilled, onto the coffee table. Tori eyed it, then she eyed Miranda. What was she saying? Excitement coursed through Tori, filling all the spaces in her stomach, her chest, and her heart. Grinning, Tori grabbed her cup and took a sip to prove to herself and Miranda that she would stay as long as she was welcome.

“Siena thinks I should go out with the woman she just broke up with.”

“Why’s that?” Did Miranda sound breathy?

“She says we’d be a better match.”

“What would make a good match for you?” Miranda toed off her shoes and curled her feet under her. “What do you look for in someone?”

“Oh.” Tori hadn’t really ever put much thought into that. “I always just figured I’d know when I found someone.”

Miranda let out a slight snort. “What attracts you to a woman?”

“I won’t lie and say I’m attracted to every single woman out there, but being single is a strong contender.”