Page 10 of January (New Orleans #1)

“S o, what kind of martini do you want?” Melinda asked.

“Do I have to get a martini at all?” Kyle asked her back, sitting down across from her.

“Oh, no. Sorry.” She chuckled and tucked the martini menu back between a lit candle and a holder meant for it. “Not a fan?”

“I tried one once. Regular one, I think. I didn’t know how to order, so I just told them, ‘Yes,’ when they asked me questions and said, ‘Gin.’”

Melinda laughed and said, “Once? You’ve only had one martini?”

“Where I’m from, you don’t really drink martinis. Besides, my mom isn’t exactly an alcoholic, but she’s pretty close to it, so drinking wasn’t really something I did regularly until I knew I could handle it.”

“Do you want to go somewhere else? Less swanky?” she offered, worrying she’d brought them to the wrong place.

“No, this is great,” Kyle said, smiling. “Just don’t be surprised if I order a cheap beer.”

“I’ll get one with you, then,” she said.

“You can get whatever you want,” Kyle replied, leaning over the table.

“If I get a martini, will you try it for me? Just to see if you like it when it’s made well.”

“If you want me to, sure,” Kyle said. “I’ve never really understood the whole ‘love of expensive drinks’ thing, but that’s probably more due to the fact that I wasn’t ever able to afford them.”

“Well, this place isn’t bad when it comes to cost. New Orleans has the benefit of a ton of tourists, which means the drinks aren’t exactly cheap everywhere, but they don’t have to be crazy expensive because they sell so many of them.”

“I guess that’s true.”

“So, your mom…” Melinda began but paused to give Kyle the chance to either glare her off the topic or tell her if she didn’t want to talk about it. “Are things okay?”

“Not really,” Kyle shared, and Melinda loved how open this woman appeared to be with her. “She’s been laying a guilt trip on me since I was born. Before I was born, probably; I just don’t remember that. Jolie has a better relationship with her. Not by much, and it comes and goes, but she’s the baby and not the one who got Mom kicked out of the house, so it’s different for her. My mom isn’t going to win any Mom of the Year awards, but she did the best she could, I guess.”

“You mentioned your dad before,” Melinda said.

“Yeah, he’s all right. They split up a long time ago, and we aren’t always the closest. It’s hard. He has the life he always wanted, and that doesn’t really involve his two daughters. My mom didn’t make things easy on him, either, but he helped us pay for college and did what he could when he was able. I think that pisses my mom off more somehow.”

The waiter arrived and placed two napkins on the small round table.

“Can I get a beer? Whatever is local,” Kyle requested. “Light, preferably.”

“I’ve got something you might like. Do you like citrus beers?”

“Yeah.”

“Tap?”

“Sure,” Kyle replied.

“Do you like cucumber?” Melinda asked Kyle.

Kyle nodded.

“Cucumber martini for me,” Melinda told the waiter. “Can you make it extra good for this one here? She’s never had one, and she’s going to try mine.”

He laughed and said, “Will do.”

When the waiter walked off, leaving them alone, her phone buzzed, so she checked the screen. It was Bridgette, asking her what she was up to for the night. Melinda swallowed because while she hadn’t exactly been avoiding her friend, she also hadn’t volunteered the fact that she’d started up a possible friendship with the woman from the pub.

“Just one second,” Melinda said. “Sorry. It’s my friend, Bridgette.”

“No problem,” Kyle replied, looking around the bar.

The pianists were about to start their duel, so they’d timed their trip perfectly. Melinda replied to Bridgette, letting her know that she was out with a friend, hoping that would be enough, but shortly after, Bridgette asked her where she was and if she could join them. She probably should’ve told her that it was a date, but that would’ve been a lie, and she didn’t want to lie to her friend. Melinda told her where they were and glanced up at Kyle, who was still staring off at the pianos on the small stage.

“So, my friend wanted to know if she could join us. Is that okay?”

Kyle turned to her with those green eyes, and for a second, Melinda thought she seemed disappointed.

“I can tell her no,” she added, wondering how she could take back what she’d already typed to Bridgette.

“No, it’s fine,” Kyle replied.

It didn’t feel fine, which gave Melinda hope that she shouldn’t have. If Kyle was disappointed in them having a third wheel in a few minutes, that meant that she might be interested in more than just friendship. The part Melinda had to keep reminding herself about, though, was that Kyle didn’t live here. She’d be leaving after taking care of her grandmother’s stuff, and that would be the end of her vacation friendship with a local woman she’d soon forget all about.

“Here you go,” the bartender said, placing their drinks on top of their napkins.

“Thanks,” Melinda replied at the same time Kyle said the same thing, and they both smiled at each other for a second as the bartender walked away.

Melinda then pushed her martini toward Kyle and nodded to it, so Kyle picked it up and took a sip. Her face after was priceless. Her eyes squinted. Her nose scrunched. And her tongue swiped along her lips.

“So, that’s a no, huh?” Melinda laughed.

“People drink these?” Kyle asked, sliding the drink back across the table.

“Yes. And they’re delicious.”

“I’ll stick to my beer,” Kyle said, taking a drink.

“How do you like that?”

“It’s good,” Kyle said. “Beer’s easy for me, though. I’m not a fan of dark stuff, but if it’s light, I’ll probably like it. This has a hint of orange, I think.”

“It’s not Abita. Have you tried that one yet?”

“Abita? No.”

“It’s local, and they’ve got a ton of flavors. You can buy it in the store cheaper than you’ll get it here.”

“Oh, that’s good to know.”

“It is?”

“I think we might check out of the hotel and stay in our grandma’s house instead while we’re here.”

“The Garden one?”

“No, the smaller one. We’d save a lot of money, and I have stuff I want to go through there, anyway. We found out that we own both of them, though.”

“You do?”

Kyle nodded and said, “Apparently. It’s crazy. I’m thirty years old, and she didn’t so much as send me a birthday card with twenty bucks in it, but she left us two properties and some money, too.”

“Wow. That’s great, though, right?” Melinda asked, leaning forward just as the pianos began their dance.

The music caused Kyle to have to lean forward, too, in order for them to keep talking, and with the table being so small, it meant that they were very close. Kyle stared into Melinda’s brown eyes, and Melinda stared back into Kyle’s green ones.

“It’s confusing,” Kyle told her, and Melinda wasn’t sure what she was talking about at first. “Anyway, I think I’ll want some food and beer in the refrigerator.”

“Oh, right,” Melinda replied. “What are you going to do with the properties?”

“We don’t know yet. We could rent them out, sell them, or keep them, but no matter what we decide, we need to go through everything there first and see what to keep, what to donate, and what to throw out. Such a hard thing to do when you have no idea what all the stuff is or how much it would have meant to her. There’s this glass cabinet thing she has of knickknacks and such, like those little Precious Moments figurines. Did she love each of them like they were her own children? Were they just novelty purchases so that she’d have something on a shelf?”

“They might be worth something. You should check that out before you donate them.”

“But what if I want to donate things to a charity she didn’t support or like? Would that be wrong?”

“Who wouldn’t like a charity?”

“I was thinking about selling things, and any money they made would go to a local LGBTQ+ charity or a shelter or something.”

“You think she’d have a problem with you donating to that cause?” Melinda asked, taking a sip of her cucumber martini?

“I don’t know because I never knew her,” Kyle told her and sighed. “But can we maybe talk about you for a bit? I feel like all we’ve done since we met is talk about me. Tell me more about growing up here or your own family.”

“Oh, wow. Well, that’s a lot. Where do I start?”

“Hey.”

Melinda looked up and saw Bridgette standing next to the table. She’d completely forgotten about the fact that her friend was on her way.

“Oh, hey,” Melinda replied. “Um… Bridgette, this is Kyle. Kyle, this is my friend, Bridgette.”

“Nice to meet you,” Kyle said, nodding.

“Yeah, you too.” Bridgette turned her eyes to Melinda and lifted an eyebrow. “So, where did you two meet?”

“On a tour,” Kyle answered first. “Although, technically, we saw each other at a bar before that, huh?”

“You did, did you?” Bridgette asked.

“Yeah. But the tour was where we really met,” Melinda added. “She and her sister did the food tour, and we got to talking.”

“Now, you’re having drinks?” Bridgette said. “Speaking of, I’ll head to the bar and get one for myself.”

“I’ll join you for a second. Kyle, I’ll be right back.”

“Okay,” Kyle said, returning her attention to the pianos.

“What’s going on, Mel?” Bridgette asked when they arrived at the bar.

“Nothing. She was on the tour, and we talked, and I’ve hung out with her and her sister and–”

“Is she gay?”

“I think so. We haven’t talked labels. She’s into women, though. I know that much.”

“So, is this a date?”

“What? No. She came on another tour while her sister hung out with some friends, and she asked if I wanted to have a drink.”

“Mel, that’s a date. You invited me on your date.”

“She doesn’t even know that I’m gay, Bridge.”

“She doesn’t?”

“It hasn’t come up. She hasn’t asked.”

Bridgette sighed and rubbed her face.

“What?” Melinda asked, worried that she’d screwed up.

“It’s fine. I have no right to be mad at you about this. It’s not like she and I even said a word to each other. Hell, she didn’t even look up when I walked past. But, apparently, she did when you walked by.”

“She saw me, yeah.”

“And you didn’t mention it to me?”

“No.”

“Because you were trying to spare my feelings?”

“We’re just having a drink, Bridge. ”

“You looked pretty close when I walked in.”

“The music just got loud. We were trying to hear each other,” Melinda offered.

“I should go,” Bridgette replied.

“What? Why? You just got here.”

“Because there’s something happening at that table. I could see that much. I could tell right when I walked in.”

“Would you stop?” she replied, laughing a little. “She’s a tourist, Bridgette. I’m not a one-night stand kind of gal, and she’s leaving, so we’re just two new friends having a drink. Now, we’re three new friends having a drink, okay?”

“She’s hot, huh?” Bridgette noted.

Melinda nodded and said, “Yes, she’s gorgeous.”

“And you’ve been hanging out?”

“A few times, yes. There’s more to it than that, but she’s here for some family stuff, too.”

“It’s fine. I’m sorry. I was just a little surprised when I saw the two of you there. No one’s done anything wrong here, though. I was a wuss and didn’t talk to her. You, apparently, weren’t, and you got at least a friend out of it, so that’s good,” Bridgette said.

“Come back to the table, and let’s have a drink together. Maybe Kyle is into one-night stands. You and she can…” Melinda couldn’t finish that sentence because the thought of Bridgette and Kyle having sex made her stomach rumble and her heart pound.

Her face must have shown as much because Bridgette laughed wildly, red hair kind of swaying as she did.

“Yeah, you’re definitely not into her or anything.”

Bridgette ordered a drink while Melinda stood there and turned toward Kyle, who was still watching the pianos and drinking her beer. She just met this woman, but there was something about Kyle that had Melinda smiling just staring at her. Then, Kyle looked down at the table and her phone, so Melinda worried that she’d need to go soon, and now that Bridgette was here, they wouldn’t get any more time alone together. When Kyle looked up from her phone, she found Melinda’s eyes and smiled warmly at her. Melinda smiled back, enjoying these few seconds of their connected gazes.

“Hey, Jolie texted and asked if I’d go to the casino with her,” Kyle said when they both arrived back at the table. “Are you interested in finishing this round and walking over?”

Melinda looked at Bridgette and then back at Kyle.

“I’m not much of a gambler.”

“Me neither. But I’m thinking about watching her lose her own money,” Kyle said. “That could be fun.” When Melinda sat back down across from her as Bridgette pulled over a chair, Kyle asked, “Is it a stupid tourist thing to do, so you don’t want to go?”

“No, we go sometimes,” Bridgette said. “But Melinda is a chicken, so she sticks to penny slots mostly.”

“As if I have a ton of money to be gambling away.”

“Do you want to watch my sister lose her money at the tables?” Kyle asked.

Melinda laughed and replied, “Sure. Sounds like fun. Bridge?”

“Yeah, I’m in. I’m exhausted, though, so I might not last long.”

“Me neither,” Kyle said. “Honestly, I kind of want to go there just to make sure I can get her back to the hotel safe later.”

“Is she not being careful?” Bridgette asked.

“No, she is, but she’s made new friends that I don’t know, and I’m the older sister, so even though she’s an adult, it will always be my job to protect her.”

“That’s sweet,” Melinda noted. “I wish I had an older sister who would’ve protected me .”

There was a moment where they just looked at each other again, and Melinda thought that those moments seemed to be happening a lot tonight. In fact, she wasn’t sure Kyle had given Bridgette so much as a short glance or two since she’d arrived because she’d been giving Melinda all of her attention. And maybe that wasn’t very polite, but Melinda didn’t care. She loved being the one Kyle looked at like that.