Page 57 of September

“So, how was your night after I left?” Juliet asked.

“Good. I went home pretty much right after, though. Thanks for this,” Gwen said.

“No problem. If you’re over here and you want to make more, there’s a whole setup in the kitchen. Help yourself.”

“Am I not taking her home with me?”

“You are. I just meant if you need to drop her off here for some reason and you’re over here.”

“You’ve given me a ton of coffee already. I think I’m good for a while.” Gwen took a sip. “Damn, this is good, though. What’s in it? It tastes a little different than the stuff you made at my place.”

“Salt.”

Gwen looked up at her in confusion and said, “What?”

“Pinch of salt. It helps make it less bitter, smoother.”

“You really added salt to my coffee?”

“A pinch. You can’t even taste it.”

“I knewsomethingwas different,” Gwen pointed out.

“Yeah, that it tasted good.” Juliet laughed. “Don’t be a baby. Drink your salt coffee.”

Gwen laughed, too, and took another sip.

“It really is good.”

“So, I’ve got a few minutes before I have to go. Anything you need for her this week?”

“Not that I can think of,” she said. “I’m good. Do you have her food in the freezer, though?”

“Yeah, take whatever you need,” Juliet said. “And I got her some new t-r-e-a-t-s, too.” She spelled out the word. “I’ll put those in a bag for you.”

“Then, I’m good. Where are you off to today?”

“Some tiny town in northern Louisiana. I’ve never even heard of it, but Andrew used to cover it, I guess. They’ve got two stores there, and they’re both not doing all that well, so I’m going to retrain the staff.”

“Is that a good thing or a bad thing?”

“A little of both, I suspect. It’ll be easier because they should know the basics, but also harder if I have to correct a bunch. I’ll be there for a few days, and if they don’t get it together after that, people will lose jobs, and I’ll have to go right back there to train the new staff. What have you got going on while I’m away?”

“Me?” she asked and took a sip to stall for a bit. “Nothing. I’m sure I’ll hang out with Elisa and Myra and maybe grab drinks with friends or something, but I don’t have anything planned officially.”

“No hot dates?” Juliet asked.

Gwen met her eyes and said, “No hot dates, but I will have a woman by my side every night.”

Juliet looked confused at first and then disappointed, or, at least, that was how it looked to Gwen.

“Carly, Jules. I meant Carly. She sleeps next to me in my bed, remember?”

“Oh, right,” Juliet said and laughed. “Of course.”

“You?”

“What about me?”