Page 48 of Balancing Act (Soulmate #1)

SEVENTEEN

BETH

Beth woke to a series of buzzing sounds coming from her phone on the nightstand.

Blinking her eyes slowly, she adjusted to the gray light of the morning.

A soft tapping caught her attention—the smooth rhythm of freezing rain rattling against the window was a steady backdrop to the warmth cocooning her.

For a moment, she let the bed pull her back toward sleep. Then she remembered.

Jamie.

She closed her eyes as last night flooded back—hot, breathless, perfect. A warm, pleasant ache settled through her. Beth shifted slightly, her body deliciously tender from all the ways she and Jamie had explored each other last night.

Jamie was lying on her stomach, dark curls tumbling across the pillow, still fast asleep.

The sheet had slipped low, barely covering her hips, exposing her back to the pale morning light filtering through the ice coated window.

Beth’s eyes trailed over the intricate patchwork of tattoos that decorated Jamie’s back.

She hadn’t noticed the details of them last night.

Her fingers itched to trace the ink, but she didn’t want to wake Jamie.

She looked so peaceful—the steady rise and fall of her torso calming in a way.

Beth suddenly felt overcome by a sensation she hadn’t felt in years—that rush of affection she had been fighting—it was overwhelming.

It was the feeling of falling in love. Jamie had wanted to take things slow, and here she was, jumping to falling in love after only a few weeks.

It was way too soon for that. But it didn’t make her want it any less.

Her phone buzzed again on the nightstand, breaking the room’s quiet.

Beth rolled over, reaching for it. It was a message from Lily—a series of photos showing a lineup of brightly colored ski jackets laid out.

Beneath the pictures, Lily had written: Help me pick, Mom!

I’m leaning toward the blue, but I’m not sure.

Beth smiled, instantly more awake now. She quickly replied with her top two picks—the deep teal and the bright bubblegum pink—and added, I’m team teal! But you’d look amazing in either.

After hitting send, she lingered on her phone, scrolling back through the recent thread of messages between them—pictures, silly voice memos, and I-love-yous.

She sighed a long, deep breath, as a wave of gratitude washed over her.

Things with Lily had been good lately—better than they had been in years.

They were finally in a good place again, and she couldn’t help but wonder if that had to do in some part to Jamie’s presence in both of their lives.

It hadn’t happened all at once, and it certainly hadn’t been easy, but over the past few months, she and Lily had somehow found their footing with each other again.

Lily had grown up in ways that Beth couldn’t help but admire.

She’d become more independent, more sure of herself, but there was also a softness that hadn’t been there before—a quiet resilience.

And that strength wasn’t just Lily’s. Beth had felt it in herself, too.

She was learning to let go, to trust that their life would play out in the ways it was meant to.

Her phone buzzed again, and Beth glanced at Lily’s reply: Teal it is! Thanks, Mama. Love you.

Those last two words hit her like a gentle balm, soothing the remnants of the ache she’d carried for so long. She typed back her reply and set the phone back on the nightstand, her attention turning to Jamie.

She couldn’t help but wonder how Jamie fit into all of this. Was Jamie even interested in having a relationship with Lily beyond what they already had? Beth added that thought to the list of things making her anxious.

Her fingers brushed against the sheet near Jamie’s hip, and for a moment, she thought about waking her up. But then Jamie stirred, her muscles shifting, her eyes blinking open, sleepy and soft. Beth froze, the questions retreating as she met Jamie’s gaze, letting the moment pass—again.

“Morning,” Jamie murmured, her voice still throaty from sleep, but a slow smile tugged at her lips.

“Morning,” she whispered back.

Jamie stretched, her body arching as she moved, and Beth watched how her muscles flexed beneath the ink.

“Come here.” Jamie reached her arm out, pulling Beth toward her, draping her arm across Beth’s hip, placing a sweet kiss on the tip of her nose.

“Sorry I slept so late,” Jamie said, her tone teasing and low. “Someone kept me up most of the night.”

“You didn’t seem to be complaining last night,” she teased back, her fingers tracing idle patterns down Jamie’s muscled arms.

Beth’s mind was still swirling with the things she wanted to ask, but she didn’t want to ruin this—didn’t want to risk pushing Jamie when things were so good. But still. She had told herself she was done with gray areas regarding relationships.

Jamie propped herself up on her elbow, eyes searching for what Beth wasn’t saying. “You okay? You’ve got that look.”

Beth swallowed, her fingers stilling against the sheet. That look. Of course Jamie would notice—she always did. There was no hiding anything from her.

For a brief moment, Beth considered telling her everything. The urge to blurt it out, to ask Jamie if they could define what they were, nearly overtook her. But then she saw the quiet contentment in Jamie’s eyes, and she couldn’t bring herself to disrupt it.

“I was thinking about you and me,” Beth finally said, a small smile tugging at her lips as she shifted the conversation away. “And how much I love this.”

Jamie’s lips curved into a smirk, clearly picking up on the pivot but not pushing it. “Yeah?” she asked, her voice teasing as she leaned in closer, her breath warm against Beth’s skin. “Anything specific?”

Beth let out a soft laugh, grateful for the change in direction. “Many, many specific things come to mind,” she murmured, her fingers brushing lightly over Jamie, tracing the lines of one of her tattoos.

Jamie’s smirk deepened, her eyes darkening slightly as her fingers grazed over Beth’s waist, pulling her closer. “Care to elaborate?”

Her body was already responding to the promise in Jamie’s voice. But before she could say anything, Beth caught sight of the window behind Jamie, the sound of freezing rain still rattling against the glass reminding her.

“The storm came earlier than expected. I don’t think you’re going anywhere just yet,” Beth said, in between soft kisses as she pushed Jamie’s soft curls away from her face.

Jamie’s eyes sparkled with playful mischief. “Was that your plan all along? Tire me out so you could trap me in this cozy little cocoon?”

Beth cupped Jamie’s cheek as she looked into her eyes. “Maybe. Why? Is it working?”

“You tell me,” Jamie hummed, her lips grazing the corner of Beth’s mouth.

After what felt like hours wrapped up in a tangle of sheets, they finally made it to the shower together.

Warm water cascaded over them as Beth lathered soap across Jamie’s slick skin, savoring how their bodies fit perfectly between suds and stolen kisses.

They lingered under the warm spray of water, hands freely exploring and mapping the landscape of the other’s body.

She wanted as much of Jamie as she could have right now, because after Jamie left, she wasn’t sure when she’d get her like this again.

Stepping out of the shower, Beth grabbed two towels and handed one to Jamie as she let her eyes linger, drinking her in.

She watched as water droplets traced the curves of Jamie’s defined musculature, rolling down in mesmerizing paths before disappearing as Jamie dried herself.

The sight was captivating, each movement so natural yet effortlessly sensual. Beth could hardly breathe.

When her gaze finally lifted, she met Jamie’s eyes, that familiar cocky grin tugging at Jamie’s lips—the same grin that had caught her attention that very first night they met.

Her body hummed with the feeling of being with Jamie.

“I can’t believe I get to call you my girl—” The words escaped before Beth could stop them.

Shit! SHIT!

That was not what she had meant to say at all. Almost letting the word girlfriend slip unprompted like that? She hadn’t meant to say it, hadn’t meant to push. Shit.

Jamie’s grin widened, teasing. “Your what?”

“Fine,” Beth muttered, hanging her towel on the hook more forcefully than intended. She turned back toward Jamie, trying to ignore the panicked thudding in her chest. “I was going to say girlfriend.” Her voice wavered. “But I realize we haven’t had that conversation yet.”

The silence that followed felt suffocating.

God, this was not how she wanted to have this conversation.

Why couldn’t she just keep her thoughts inside her head?

Her stomach twisted as she waited for a response, each second dragging out.

She was preparing herself for the worst. For Jamie to end things right here and now.

When Jamie didn’t say anything immediately, Beth’s chest tightened even more. Her mind spun with a thousand scenarios, none of them good. She braved another glance at Jamie, who had been watching her the whole time.

“Do you want to have that conversation?” Jamie asked calmly.

Beth searched the reflection of her eyes in the mirror, trying to decipher the correct answer.

Honestly, yes. She did want to have that conversation.

But she didn’t want to push Jamie, especially after she’d expressed a desire to take things slowly.

But she wished she knew what Jamie meant by slowly.

Jamie stepped behind Beth, slipping her arms around her middle and pulling Beth back against her as she stood on her tiptoes to rest her chin on her shoulder. She leaned back into her touch, sinking into the safety of Jamie’s arms.

“Okay,” she said slowly, turning so she was looking at Jamie rather than her reflection. “I’d like to have that conversation. How about over coffee? I’ll put a pot on?”