Page 76 of September

“It would. But they’ve always been against it.”

“Why?”

“Because Jordana was against it.”

“But Jordana is gone.”

“Yeah, I guess she is,” Juliet said as they moved up another spot in line. “She wanted the travel.”

“Well, she was boning that dude, right?”

“And Andrew, too,” Juliet added with a nod. “A whole lot of boning.”

“Who knows? Maybe she had other dudes, too.”

“God… She could have, right?” Juliet said. “If she had two that we know of, why not another? She traveled almost every week of the month, covering a lot of stores. She could have had a guy in each one.”

“She’d have to really love sex, then,” Gwen said. “With guys.” She shook her head. “Gross.”

Juliet laughed and ran a hand through Gwen’s hair.

“Yeah, gross.”

“Sex with women is way better,” Gwen added.

“I would have to agree with that statement,” Juliet replied before she leaned in and kissed her sweetly. “Will you stay over tonight?”

“But where will you sleep if Carly is in the bed next to me?”

Juliet laughed and said, “I think she’ll just have to move over and make room for me in there.”

“Then, I would love to,” Gwen replied. “But if I wake up and my face is getting licked again, Iwillassume it’s you this time.”

“I plan on licking something else,” Juliet stated.

A throat cleared then, and they both turned. They hadn’t realized that they were next in line, so the woman behind the counter was now glaring at them.

“Two orders of beignets and two coffees, please,” Gwen said before turning back to Juliet. “And we’ll talk aboutthatlater.”

???

Juliet put the key in the lock and went to turn the knob, but Gwen squeezed her other hand, which she was holding, before she could, making Juliet look over at her, wondering what was wrong.

“So, it’s later,” Gwen said.

“Yes, it is,” she replied with a chuckle before she turned the knob and pushed open the door. “And I have to take this one for a walk.”

“No, I just went for a walk. I’m fine. Ready to lie down, actually,” Gwen joked.

Juliet laughed and said, “Hi, baby.” She knelt down by the excited Carly and reached for her leash. “Come walk her with me?”

“Of course,” Gwen replied with a smile before she took the leash from Juliet and took Juliet’s hand into her free one. “You’re still worried about her when you’re gone, aren’t you?”

Juliet checked that she locked the door properly, as she always did, and walked down the hall with Gwen and Carly.

The scene was a good one. They were holding hands. Her dog was walking ahead of them, ready to get outside and sniff everything in sight. All they really needed was to add a baby stroller and a house instead of an apartment, and this was Juliet’s dream life.

“Yes, I’m worried. Will she even know who I am when I come back?”