Page 14 of Wicked Desire (Sapphic Billionaire Club #2)

Grace

“ I t’s submitted!”

Nicole threw up her arms triumphantly as the computer beeped.

I rushed around to her side of the desk, watching with her as a receipt with a control number popped up, our proof that the city had received our application for the Grant Park College project.

It had been a mammoth undertaking, with almost every person at both of our firms, as well as a good chunk of our AGM employees, pitching in to help.

I pulled her out of her chair and gave her a tight hug.

“I can’t believe we got everything done,” I said. “I just hope we didn’t miss anything.”

To complete the application we’d had to submit more than three hundred documents, everything from environmental reviews to architectural permits to parking plans.

“We double and triple checked everything,” Nicole said. “It’s complete. We did a good job, I’m sure of it.”

She made a little shimmy dance move that caused her full breasts to bounce in the most distracting way.

“We need to celebrate,” I said. “How about dinner?”

Nicole grimaced. “I promised my mother I’d come over for dinner. I hope there’s not some guy there she’s trying to fix me up with again. It’s always super awkward when she does that.”

She stepped away and started packing up her laptop and supplies into her bag.

“Why do your parents keep introducing you to men?” I asked. “Do they think you’re going to change your mind about being a lesbian or something?”

I’d been meaning to ask her about this for a while now.

“It’s possible that they don’t know I’m gay,” she said to her chest.

Her voice was so quiet I thought I’d misheard her.

“Are you telling me that you’re not out to your parents?” I asked incredulously.

“Not really,” she mumbled.

I slid my fingers under her jaw to lift her head. When she finally met my eyes, I could see a combination of nervousness and embarrassment.

“What’s going on, Nicole?” I asked sternly.

She shrugged again. “It never came up.”

“You’re thirty-five years old!” I reminded her. “Being a lesbian never came up?”

“I was waiting for the right moment to tell them.”

“The right moment might have been one of the times your mother tried to fix you up with a man,” I said in exasperation. “Unless you’re thinking that you might be bi after all?”

She shuddered. “Nope, definitely not bisexual.”

“Then what are you waiting for?”

This was super strange. When I was young I knew several people who hesitated to come out, and I’d seen some people come out in midlife, but I’d never seen a grown adult who’d been keeping their sexuality a secret for so long. Unless…

“Are your parents fundamental Christians or something?” I asked. “I thought you guys were Jewish.”

“No, we are Jewish,” she confirmed. “It’s allowed in my faith if that’s what you’re asking. I just… well, I think my parents won’t be happy about it and I never wanted to get into a whole thing with them.”

“A whole thing?”

She shrugged again.

“I can’t believe how much you allow your parents to run your life,” I said.

The more I got to know her, it was increasingly clear that Nicole had turned her obedient daughter act into an art form.

Her eyes narrowed in irritation. “I don’t do that.”

“You work for your parents…,” I started.

“So do you.”

“But you’re not even doing what you want to,” I reminded her. “You want to be an architect.

When she didn’t respond I added, “You told me your mother picked out your house, and it’s next door to them.”

“So?”

“So you don’t think it’s weird that you live next to your parents, work with your parents, and they don’t know anything about the real you?” I asked, getting annoyed on her behalf. “They’re running your life like you’re a teenager instead of a grown woman.”

“Look, I don’t want to fight about my parents,” she responded. “We have stuff to celebrate tonight, so how about I go do this stupid dinner and then I’ll come over with some champagne? We can spend the night at your house.”

“Why can’t we spend the night at your house?” I couldn’t resist pushing her.

“You know why, Grace. Don’t push me on this. I’ll tell them eventually.”

“When? The day they come to your wedding and see that there are two brides?”

Nicole rolled her eyes, then reached out a hand to pull my head down to her level, pressing her lips against mine.

“I’ll see you tonight, okay?”

***

The next month passed quickly. With the application behind us, both Nicole and I were able to focus on the rest of our jobs. A lot of work had piled up during the time we’d been working almost exclusively on the Grant Park College project, so things didn’t really slow down. At least for me.

Nicole had become a regular fixture at my place, spending several nights a week there, enough that her parents had noticed her absence.

She’d apparently told them that she was dating someone, but that it was new and she didn’t want to talk about it, which both irritated me and hurt my feelings.

Irritated because she was still acting like a naughty teenager instead of telling her parents the truth, and hurt because it felt like she was too ashamed to introduce me to her parents.

We hadn’t put a label on what we were doing, but as far as I was concerned, she was my girlfriend. I was head over heels in love with her and while I assumed that Nicole and I were on the same page, something was keeping me from discussing our relationship with her.

Other than our lack of talking, everything was going great.

Without any work issues between us, we were getting along well.

We got together once or twice during the week, making dinner, watching movies, reading, or just working together on opposite sides of the dining room table.

On Fridays she came over with a bag right after work and didn’t leave until Monday morning.

When we weren’t being domestic or making love we hung out with my friends.

It was impossible to hide our relationship for very long with how often my besties and I were in and out of each other’s houses, but that was okay.

I was proud of Nicole and happy to include her when we did stuff with my friends.

Ariel and Maeve loved her, and both Theo and Sadie gave us their seal of approval as well. We were heading down a good road, and I grew cautiously optimistic that I’d finally have the happily ever after I’d always secretly wanted.

Until I got the email that changed everything.

I was in my office at Sanderson Real Estate Services when I saw a message come through from the city. Heart pounding, I clicked on the email.

Dear Applicant,

Thank you for your interest in the Grant Park College project.

We received many good proposals and while yours was impressive, the selection committee has determined that other applications are more in line with our vision for the site.

Therefore we are sorry to inform you that you will not be moving onto the next stage.

We appreciate the time you spent completing a proposal and hope that you will consider applying for future projects with the City of Chicago.

I stared at the screen until the words blurred.

We were rejected? I knew our application was a long shot with all the competition from the large national development companies, but I thought a collaborative application from local companies led by a team of women would make us more competitive. Apparently I’d thought wrong.

I picked up the phone to call Nicole, then decided I should break the news to her in person.

She was going to be as disappointed as I was.

Remembering that she was working at home today, I decided that I’d head over there after I told my parents.

Might as well rip off that bandage as soon as I could.

My mother was in my father’s office when I knocked on the door.

“What’s wrong?” my mother asked right away.

I must have looked as devastated as I felt.

“We received an email from the city about Grant Park College,” I said, my voice wooden. “We didn’t make the first cut. They’re moving forward with other applicants.”

My father’s face turned red with anger. He slammed his fist on the wood of his desk but didn’t speak. My mother gave me a pinched look, full of disappointment.

“We should have known this was too big of a job for you, Grace,” she said, her voice sharp with accusation.

I recoiled. They were blaming this on me?

“We’ve been very patient with you about whatever it is you do at your little company,” Mom continued, “but I see now that we should have put our foot down sooner and insisted that you focus here like you need to. Like we’re paying you to do.”

“Little company? AGM is a much bigger and more profitable company than Sanderson,” I protested, not adding that my salary from AGM was significantly more than the salary they paid me here.

“I should have known you’d half ass this project, especially since you didn’t want to do it the first place,” my father said.

“I didn’t half ass anything,” I replied hotly. “Nicole and I worked hard on this proposal, and everyone involved did their best. You know we were competing against firms that are ten times the size of ours and have endless resources.”

“You messed up, just admit it. You lost what would have been the largest project we ever had,” my mother yelled. “You’re such a disappointment Grace. We never should have trusted you.”

“I told you she’d let us down,” Dad grumbled, his eyes on his desk like he couldn’t even bear to look at me.

I looked between them in shock and anger, and then something inside me snapped.

“That’s it. I quit.”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” my mother said. “You’re too old to have a tantrum.”

“I’m quitting,” I repeated.

“You can’t quit,” my father shouted angrily. “This is your family business.”

“Not anymore it isn’t,” I yelled back. “AGM is my family business. Have someone pack up my desk and send it to my house. I’m done here. And I’m done with you.”

“Don’t come crawling back here,” my mother called after me. “If you quit now, you’re out for good.”

“That’s the best news I heard all day,” I snapped as I stormed out of my father’s office. “Good luck finding someone to replace me.”