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T here was someone in Asher’s bed, which made no sense because she had broken up with Gavin. She rolled over onto her back, feeling the slight headache she had from drinking too much wine. She covered her face with her hands and remembered now: she and Linden had been hanging out, and there had been wine. Now that she thought about it, though, Linden had only had a few sips when she finished her glass. The rest of the time, she’d just refilled Asher’s glass and had stuck to water, which meant that Asher had drunk almost the whole bottle herself.

“That explains it,” she whispered to herself.

Asher turned her head slowly and removed her hands from her face. Linden was still sleeping next to her. Her short blonde hair was half over Linden’s face and half on the pillow under her head. It looked like a mess, and it had Asher smiling. Linden had asked her if she’d go with her should she decide to chop off her hair. Asher had thought it was all talk because Linden kept saying she was going to do it and then didn’t, but one day, they were at work, and Linden had made the appointment for that afternoon.

She still remembered when Linden had sat down in the chair. Asher had been there to watch the long locks sway on their way down to the floor of the salon, and Linden’s smile had been the widest she’d ever seen it. She’d gone with her and watched Linden’s happiness at something as simple as a haircut. She hadn’t fully understood it then. She’d suspected, yes, but she hadn’t really tied Linden’s haircut to her being a lesbian and wanting a shorter, more butch cut, as Linden had explained to her later. It suited her, though, the new length. Asher had liked her longer hair, but Linden had always pulled it back and rarely wore it down. Now, she seemed freer with this hair.

Asher wondered about her own then. Should she get it cut? She liked her auburn hair, how it flowed into waves when she put effort into it. She usually wore it down for work, but when she was actually at a wedding, she always pulled it back into a tight updo with a clip. That way, it didn’t fall flat with the New Orleans’ humidity, and it stayed out of her way when she put the headset on and was running around. She didn’t want to get a haircut. That was settled.

She watched as Linden shifted a little in her sleep, turning to face her, but her eyes remained closed. Asher smiled at her and wanted to reach out to cup Linden’s cheek, but she couldn’t do that. Linden would wake up and ask what the hell she was doing because while they were close, they didn’t cup one another’s cheek randomly. Just Linden sleeping in her bed was more than enough for Asher with these newly discovered feelings. She’d been wondering about the possibility for a while now. Was she attracted to women, too? Could she kiss another woman? Would she want to have sex with one? Could she see herself going down on a woman?

Those questions had been running through her mind for months, but she hadn’t planned on truly answering them. Before Gavin, there was another short-term relationship and when it had ended, she’d fallen right into one with her now ex-boyfriend. Her possible attraction to women hadn’t mattered because she was in a serious relationship and wouldn’t do anything to jeopardize that. Watching Linden kiss Jill had changed things, though. And it wasn’t just about Linden. It was about Asher. She knew that she was attracted to women now and that she could kiss a woman and have sex with one. She had no idea if she’d be any good at it, but she knew that she wanted it now.

Linden kissing Jill had awoken something in her that she hadn’t expected. Urgency. Asher had felt this urgent need to end things with Gavin, knowing they were going nowhere, and watching that bride seem miserable on what should’ve been the happiest day of her life was the icing on top of the gay wedding cake. Asher needed to act now if she was going to see what else was out there for her, or rather who.

She spent another minute staring at Linden and wondering if she could actually tell her best friend that seeing her kiss Jill had made her want to vomit and that she’d gotten off to her when she arrived home, and it had been one of the best orgasms of her entire life. Deciding against that because she didn’t want to risk their friendship, and Linden was clearly in her finding-many-women-and-having-a-good-time phase, Asher rose without waking her and made her way to the shower.

“Morning,” Linden said later when Asher arrived downstairs and walked into the kitchen.

“I wondered where you were,” she replied.

“Making coffee,” Linden said and held up Asher’s travel mug. “Black with no flavor, just how you like it.”

“Coffee has flavor,” Asher said and chuckled.

“Yes, and it’s bitter. So, us, humans, add things like sugar and cream to it.”

“Well, I like it as is. This is an expensive Kona coffee. I’m not going to pay all that money for it and then make it taste like something else.”

“Fine. Fine. We can argue about this later.”

“We’re not arguing about it now,” Asher replied, taking the mug from her.

Linden shook her head and said, “I’m going to shower at my place. Can you just drop me there? I’ll drive myself into the office.”

“I thought we’d just drive in together.”

Linden looked down at the empty travel mug she usually used for herself and said, “I have a lunch thing, so I have to drive.”

“To lunch?”

“It’s not a big deal, okay?”

“Okay.”

“I texted Jill last night before I came here to see if she wanted to grab lunch. She messaged back after I fell asleep that she’s free today, so I’m going to meet her in the Square, and we’re driving to Mac’s because it’s not in any tourist guide and we have a decent chance of getting a table before we both have to get back to work.”

“Oh,” Asher said and turned away.

“Yeah. It’s not a big deal, Ash. Just testing the waters a little. We’ve not hung out alone, really, so I thought it would be a good idea to get lunch. It’s not truly a date that way, and if it’s awful, we’d know. And if it’s good, we can maybe go for dinner or something.”

“Makes sense,” Asher said as she headed into the living room. “I’m ready to go when you are.”

“Hey, I know you think she’s too young for me,” Linden said, following her. “And maybe she is, but I just want to find out.”

“Because the kiss was that good?”

“It was good, yes.”

“Well, I’m glad for you, then,” she replied and took a drink of the too-hot coffee, burning her tongue slightly.

“It’s just lunch. Nothing to be glad about yet,” Linden said. “Do you want me to bring you something back from Mac’s? I know how much you love their shrimp.”

“No, I have a lunch thing today, too,” she lied, picking her phone up off the table.

“Oh. Okay,” Linden said. “Hey, that thing we were talking about last night…”

“What thing?” she asked as she shoved her phone into her purse.

“You know, that thing where you kind of came out to me.”

“Oh,” Asher said, turning toward her. “What about it?”

“Well, you said you wanted my help.”

“I was drunk.”

“While you were upstairs, I borrowed your phone,” Linden said as she sat down on the sofa. “You can delete it.”

“Delete what, Linden?” Asher stared at her friend.

“The app.”

“What app?”

“The one I’m on. I made you a profile.” Linden smiled wide as a way of softening the blow. “Well, I started it. I didn’t finish it. It just has your name and that cute picture I have of you as your contact photo on my phone. The one with the–”

“You made me a profile on a dating app?” Asher asked, reaching into her purse for the phone she had just tossed in there.

“It’s not live yet. I just filled out a few things. You have to fill out the rest and decide if you want to just browse or accept messages.”

Asher sat down next to Linden on the sofa and said, “What? Browse? It’s not a department store, Linden.”

“I mean, it sort of is. You’re looking at profiles, swiping like you would on a rack at the store, and deciding if you like them.”

“I don’t know them.”

“You’d have their pictures and some details.”

“Like what? Hobbies? Favorite movie?”

“Sometimes, yes. You can write whatever you want in your profile. So, sometimes, it’s hobbies. Other times, it’s what they want.”

“What they want?”

“Like, just sex, casual, looking for a serious relationship, that kind of thing. Here, I’ll show you.” Linden pulled out her own phone, unlocked it, and opened the app. “Mine says that I’m just looking for some fun, and if it turns into something, that’s cool, but not a requirement.”

“Vague,” Asher said as she leaned over Linden to look at her phone. “That’s the picture you chose?”

“Yeah. Why? Is it bad?”

“No, it’s…” Asher stared at a photo she hadn’t seen before.

It was of Linden running a hand through her somewhat messy and still perfect hair with a sultry, but not overly so, glance into the camera. Linden was wearing a white-and-blue short-sleeve flannel shirt, with the top two buttons undone, and she had on a long necklace that disappeared under the shirt, too. Asher hadn’t seen that necklace on her before. She cleared her throat because Linden Washington was hot.

“Good,” she said finally.

Linden laughed a little and said, “Yeah? Good? I get a lot of compliments on this picture.”

“You do?”

“I get at least a few messages a week on this thing, and they almost always mention this picture.” She scrolled. “But you can add more. I have a few others on here, too.”

“I don’t have any good photos of myself.”

“What are you talking about? You have a million. You look amazing in photos, Ash. I’ve got a bunch I can send you if you need any to add here.”

“What pictures do you have of me?” she asked.

“We spend almost all day every day together unless one or both of us is in a relationship. I have thousands of pictures of you, and you look good in all of them.”

“I do not.” Asher blushed and turned to try to hide it from Linden.

“Yes, you do,” Linden argued. “And, lucky me, you’re single again, so we’ll get to take more together, too. If you want, we can do a whole photo shoot. I’ve got my old camera. I can bring it over here. The lighting is better in your apartment anyway, and you can try on a few outfits. Maybe something casual and something not-so-casual. We could check the pictures and add the ones you like.”

“We are not doing a photo shoot for a dating app,” she said through her laughter.

“Why not? I did. It took me about twenty tries to get my main photo. I had to angle it just right with the mirror and the phone.”

“You’re ridiculous.” Asher laughed some more.

“Just look. Here,” Linden said, holding out her phone to Asher again. “She’s pretty.”

Asher looked down at the photo of a brunette with a pixie cut and a nice smile.

“Not the best picture since it looks a little like a passport photo with that background, but she’s pretty, yeah?”

“She is, yes,” Asher said.

“This is weird.” Linden laughed a little.

“What is?”

“Checking out women with you.”

“Oh,” Asher said. “Yeah, I guess it is, huh?”

“Do you already know what your type might be? Like, you know, the lesbian stereotypes. Any of those stand out to you? It’ll help narrow down your search.”

“Like they actually put that stuff in their profile,” she said.

“They do, actually,” Linden replied. “I read a profile a few days ago that said they were looking for a bottom and that tops need not apply. I laughed, but I didn’t message her.”

“Oh, my God. Really?” Asher laughed. “Wait. Are you a…”

“Top? Mostly, yeah. I switch it up, though.”

“So, I would need to know what I’d like first to meet a woman?”

“Not really, no. Just look out for stuff like that. Like, if you know you’re into more feminine-looking women and not someone like Bryce or me, you can flip past their profiles.”

“Right,” she said as she took in Linden’s look. “And if I think I might want that?”

Linden looked up from the profile she was staring at and met Asher’s eyes.

“Then, you don’t scroll past them. But she, for example, has a dog named Jake and seems a little obsessed with him. You’re allergic.”

Linden held up her phone for her, and Asher looked at the photos of a brunette with a black lab who was wearing an adorable bow tie in one of the pictures.

“I hate that I’m allergic, though. He’s so cute.”

“And you’d need an EpiPen and about a dozen Claritin just to go to her house.”

Asher nodded and said, “So, I just flip through profiles, and if I want to talk to someone, I just message them?”

“Yes. They can read it and accept it. Kind of like on any social app, really. Then, you’re in, and you can chat for as long or as little as you want. It’s up to you if you want to meet them or not, and you can block people if you have to.”

“Have you had to?”

“I messaged with someone for about a week and didn’t want to meet up. She got kind of aggressive and sent me some nudes, so I blocked her.”

“She sent you naked pictures of herself?” Asher asked.

“Yes. It’s a thing, Ash. People do that.”

“Do you ?”

“No, but I get them every so often, and it’s… helpful.”

“Helpful? To see them naked?”

“Obviously. If I’m looking to sleep with them.”

“Linden…” Asher shoved at her shoulder playfully.

“What? I don’t ask for them. They just send them.”

“Are you some sort of lesbian pied piper or something?”

“No. I’ve just had a run of good luck since I came out.”

“Right,” Asher said as she unlocked her own phone. “So, if I want to try this… And I’m not committing to anything here, but if I wanted to at least create my profile, will you help me?”

“Of course,” Linden replied. “Pull it up, and we can figure out your blurb.”

“Blurb? I have to have a blurb?”

“Yes. And it should be something like, ‘Sexy thirty-something, seeking someone who likes to talk about Kona coffee with nothing in it, day planners and color-coded Post-it notes, and who doesn’t have dogs that might kill me.’”

Asher wanted to laugh, but Linden had just called her sexy , so her breath was caught somewhere inside her, and she couldn’t get it out at the moment.

“It’s a good thing you’re not allergic to cats. Lesbians tend to love cats.”