Page 11 of Stolen Hearts (WaterColor Romance #7)

Quinn could barely contain the excitement she felt.

After a month of mockups and decorating her bar was finally ready to open.

Thanks to Autumn the aesthetic and the vibe were flawless.

Tonight, Lip Smack would have its opening night.

She’d hired a skeleton crew to get her through opening night.

She couldn’t have gotten here without Autumn.

Per Quinn’s promise she’d kept things between them completely professional over the last few weeks. Inside, she’d been counting the days until she could ask Autumn out. She’d decided that tonight was the night. They’d both be in high spirits, watching their hard work come to life.

She looked around the bar and sucked in a breath. There were teakwood tables to go along with the deep green booths. Outside a patio was lit up with fairy lights. Madison walked through the bar’s doors and ran to her. She threw her arms around Quinn drawing her in for a hug.

“I can’t believe this is finally happening,” Madison smiled.

“I can’t believe I was finally able to move out of your house.”

“I think I’m going to miss you. It’s much quieter when I get home now.”

“I can only imagine,” Quinn’s lips quirked upward into a smile.

“How do you like the new place?”

“I love it. But I’m going to miss you, too. So don’t be a stranger.”

“As if you could ever get rid of me.”

There was a faint buzz inside Quinn’s pocket.

She pulled out her phone and saw that she had a few missed messages.

She swiped to open them. Quinn almost dropped the phone when she saw Rory’s name attached to the messages.

She and Rory hadn’t spoken in months, not since they’d broken up.

Rory had moved into the new house with someone new.

Quinn had fled to WaterColor. As if sensing the disruption Madison turned to face her.

“Is everything alright?” Madison asked.

“Uh. Yeah. Everything is fine.”

“Umm let me ask a different question. What is wrong? Because clearly something knocked you out of your good mood.”

“Rory texted me,” Quinn said quietly.

“Rory, like your ex?”

“That’s the one.”

“What the hell does she want?” Madison demanded.

Quinn didn’t much want to reread the messages. Instead, she swiped to open them and handed the phone to Madison. Her friend’s eyes scanned the screen obviously taking the messages in.

Rory: Hey, I saw on Instagram that you’re opening a new bar. That’s exciting.

I miss you. We need to catch up soon.

“What the literal fuck?” Madison asked.

“I don’t know. I’m just as surprised as you are,” Quinn answered.

“Just delete it. There’s no reason to ever invite that woman back into your life again,” Madison scoffed.

Her friend was being supportive, and Quinn loved Madison for it.

A part of her was still curious about what Rory would even have to say.

Madison was ultimately right. What difference did it make what Rory had to say?

There was no erasing their past with a quick text exchange.

Quinn followed Madison’s advice and deleted the messages.

“Out of sight, out of mind,” Quinn attempted to tease. Her words fell flat. Madison wrapped her arm around Quinn again.

“This is a huge day for you. Don’t let a few texts from your ex get you down,” Madison offered.

“Sound advice,” Quinn admitted.

“I only ever give sound advice,” Madison teased.

“I wouldn’t let it go to your head or anything,” Quinn laughed, and Madison swatted her arm.

“You really fucking did it,” Madison said, there was a hint of pride in her voice.

“I had plenty of help.” Quinn met Madison’s eyes and smiled.

“Well, let’s not get emotional.”

Quinn could always count on Madison to douse whatever sentimental fire she tried to start.

“Where is Autumn anyway?” Madison asked.

“She’ll be here after we open.”

“I would have thought she’d come get pictures before opening.”

“She got some last night,” Quinn offered.

In truth, Quinn had almost asked Autumn out last night. They could have come to opening night as dates. But she wanted to give Autumn the chance to enjoy the experience as a professional success instead of a relational one.

“Oh, did she now?”

“Nothing happened,” Quinn insisted.

“I thought you promised to ask her out.”

“I did. And I will. But she worked hard, and I want her to be able to mark this down as a professional success first.”

“You’re a good egg, Quinn,” Madison insisted.

“I hate eggs,” Quinn grimaced.

“Fine. Then you’re a good waffle,” Madison laughed.

“Much better,” Quinn shot her friend a wink.

In two hours, Quinn stood dressed to impress by the doors. Madison gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. Quinn had opted for professional attire. Her dark hair was tied back in a top knot. She wore a dark navy suit with gold highlights and navy pants.

“You look very dashing by the way,” Madison complimented.

“Thanks. This opening is important, but also…” Quinn allowed her words to hang in the air between them.

“Autumn,” Madison said, filling in Quinn’s blank.

“Yeah, Autumn.”

The doors opened and a dozen lesbians stepped through the door.

Quinn was careful to greet them all. She directed everyone to the bar where her servers stood ready to take drink and food orders.

Quinn had come up with cocktails herself.

Working in multiple Vegas bars had come with an upside.

She’d tried giving the drinks clever names, though Madison had rolled her eyes at the Short King Spritz.

Quinn searched the faces of everyone who entered, waiting for the moment that she saw Autumn.

She had expected Autumn to be one of the first to arrive, now she found herself plagued with doubts.

Perhaps now that Autumn considered the project complete, she didn’t see a reason to come.

Maybe Quinn was rustier at reading cues from women than she’d realized.

Autumn might not be interested in being asked out at all.

The thought swirled in her brain. As she felt her panic beginning to mount, she looked into the next crowd of ladies at the door and saw that it was Autumn’s group of friends.

Mel waved to her excitedly, and standing behind her was Autumn.

Quinn lost all ability to move. Time stood still and so did Quinn.

Autumn wore a silky golden dress. They matched; Quinn took note.

Nothing had prepared her for the sight of Autumn in a dress like that one.

There was a tightening low in her belly and a pull towards Autumn.

Autumn didn’t wave, she merely gave Quinn a wide smile. Mel came through the doors and threw her arms around Quinn. The move was jarring but fortunately brought Quinn back to her senses.

“This place is amazing!” Mel beamed.

“Thank you. And please tell the staff to put your first drink on me. That goes for all of you,” Quinn smiled. She watched as Autumn’s friends paraded past, eager for their free drinks. She was grateful when Autumn stayed behind.

“Very generous,” Autumn chuckled.

“Selfishly, I was hoping to get you alone,” Quinn admitted boldly. Autumn’s face went a deep red, and she knew that her words had hit their mark.

Quinn took in the sight of Autumn up close.

The way the golden dress clung to her and highlighted her long blonde hair.

Her skin was a deep brown, she’d clearly spent some time in the sun.

When Quinn’s eyes made their way back up, she found Autumn watching her.

Autumn’s blue eyes seemed to hold a certain level of amusement.

“See something you like?” Autumn asked.

The words took Quinn off guard. This was perhaps the first time Autumn had openly flirted with her. Quinn was already a big fan.

“So far I like everything I see,” Quinn grinned. She made no attempt to hide the fact that she was checking Autumn out.

Autumn let her eyes skim down Quinn’s body and back up again.

Quinn felt exposed and excited all at the same time.

She could ask Autumn to bring a drink up to her new apartment.

Quinn could flirt Autumn into her bed. That’s what she had done with Rory.

Autumn was different, this was the kind of connection that Quinn wanted to savor.

“Are you going to stand there? Or are you going to ask me out? You have a promise to keep,” Autumn laughed. Quinn stared at Autumn slack-jawed. Once she regained herself, she found her words once again.

“Autumn, will you go out on a date with me?”

“When?” Autumn asked.

“Tomorrow?”

“So soon?”

Quinn took a tiny step forward, her shoes bumping against Autumn’s heels.

“It’s still not soon enough,” Quinn managed to whisper. Autumn sent her a feral look, her blue eyes suddenly wild. Quinn knew Autumn was feeling the pull as much as she was.

“Tomorrow it is. Text me the details. I’m going to go find my friends and allow you to enjoy your night,” Autumn patted Quinn’s arm as she walked away.

Quinn dared to allow herself one glance at Autumn’s ass, then forced herself to turn back to the task at hand.

Tonight, really was turning into her night.