Over the Moon With You, page 7
“Like that time I showed up asking for a job unannounced?”
Jen rocked her head side to side. “That was no surprise. I knew you wouldn’t last working with Miranda.”
“Everyone knew it except me.” Working with her girlfriend had been a bad idea from the start. When they broke up, things got even worse.
Leo stirred, and at the first plaintive cry, Jen groaned. “Not again.” She glanced at the clock above the doorway. “Paul’s been working nights these last three days. I wanted to give him a break this morning.”
Paul was Jen’s husband and the kind of dad that carried equal parenting weight. They’d both adjusted their schedules so Leo wasn’t in day care, but that meant lots of mornings with parent switches.
When Leo cried again, Paige stood and went over to him. His smile was impossible to resist—then again, she hadn’t been up with him three times in the middle of the night. She scooped him up and kissed his head. Nothing like snuggling a warm, pudgy-cheeked baby.
“Thank you,” Jen murmured. “What were you daydreaming about earlier anyway? You find another farm that’s out of your price range?”
More than once Jen had caught her daydreaming about Zillow properties. This time she’d been daydreaming about Seren. Definite improvement. “I can’t find anything with more than a quarter acre in my price range. At least, nothing close.”
Leo fidgeted in her arms, clearly wanting to get down and crawl. Paige snagged Tigger out of the carrier and bounced him and Leo in her arms. “You know your mama doesn’t think a vet clinic is the place for you to lick the floors.” They’d had the conversation before. Leo didn’t seem to care.
“You could buy something out of your price range and go into massive debt like the rest of us. Who cares about money, anyway?”
“The student loan folks who expect a check from me each month?”
“Exactly.” Jen made a face like she’d sucked on a lemon. “Who wants to be like them?”
Leo chose that moment to fart, loudly, and both Jen and Paige laughed. Which made Leo laugh too.
“So, do we need to talk about rearranging your schedule for this water aerobics moonlighting you’re doing?” Jen asked, turning to wake up her computer.
“Already done. I moved a handful of my afternoon appointments to the lunch hour and I’ll come in early to see the others.”
“Perfect. Have I mentioned that you’re my favorite associate?”
“Seeing as how I’m you’re only associate…”
“Whatever. If I had ten more, you’d still be my favorite and you know it.” Jen glanced at her watch and then Leo. “Mind entertaining him while I run to the breakroom? I’m gonna need a whole pot of coffee to get through today.”
“Go for it.”
Once Jen had gone, Paige settled in at her desk with Leo on her lap. He was easily entertained with pens and she gave him two—one for each hand—before opening her laptop. She scanned over the record she’d been working on before the daydream about asking Seren out on a date. She managed to finish her exam findings on the 4-H lamb that wasn’t thriving from yesterday, handed Leo a calculator when he tired of pens, and then got distracted again wondering what Seren might be doing at the moment. She’d only realized that morning that she had no clue what Seren did for work.
Could she text her and ask? Although Seren had been the one to send the first text, that had only been to forward Leslie’s contact info. Would Seren think it weird if she texted her to chat? She’d resisted yesterday—only because she worried what Seren would think if she messaged her too soon.
She chewed on the inside of her cheek for a moment. She didn’t actually have time to chat, but she started a message before she could talk herself out of it: Thank you for hooking me up with Leslie. I think she’s perfect for me. And she didn’t bring up that development out east even once. No McMansions!
Seren’s response took only a moment but was briefer than Paige had hoped: You’re welcome.
Probably she was busy at work—doing whatever she did. Paige wished she’d asked Seren more about herself. Partly she hadn’t wanted to come across as nosy. Seren was clearly pregnant—the maternity-style bathing suit had been the first clue, but then she’d overheard Seren at the casserole table say that she’d switched to water aerobics for the duration of her pregnancy. And although she was friendly and outgoing, Paige got the sense that she didn’t open up easy.
Maybe Seren liked someone who was more forward? More direct?
I’m teaching water aerobics for the next two weeks. Figured I should warn people.
Paige tapped on her phone case waiting for a response. Seconds ticked by and Leo bored of the calculator. She handed him the stapler but when he tried to gnaw on it, she exchanged it for her stethoscope. The last thing she wanted was to explain to Jen that she’d let her kid swallow staples—or worse, staple his lip.
Does that mean your mom’s worse?
Paige taped the screen. Not worse but not better. Will you be in class tonight?
She glanced at her phone again and Seren’s text blinked on the screen: Definitely. I’m hooked.
Good. Looking forward to seeing you! Maybe an exclamation point was too much but Paige hit send a moment later. She stared at her phone, wondering if it was the right time to propose a date. If she got turned down, it would make the next two weeks awkward. But if she didn’t ask, Seren might assume she wasn’t interested.
She quickly tapped out: Any chance you’d be up for dinner after? Her heart raced in her chest as she debated whether to hit send.
“Do you think it’s a mistake asking her out now?” she asked Leo, but he was distracted still with the stethoscope. And not yet verbal.
“Asking who out?” Jen stood in the doorway, her coffee in hand and her eyebrows up in her hairline. “Are you crushing on someone and didn’t tell me?”
“No. Sort of?” She shook her head. “Would it be weird to get asked out by your water aerobics instructor?”
Jen laughed. “Now I get why you like water aerobics so much.”
Paige scrunched up her face. “It’d be weird, right?”
“Well…since you’re the teacher for the moment…yeah, probably. Sorry. That’s not the answer you want to hear, is it?”
Leo threw the stethoscope he’d been teething on across the room and lunged for Paige’s phone. When Paige tried to wrest it from his hands, suddenly worrying he’d hit send, Jen intervened.
“Come here, little mister.”
After Jen and Leo left the office to set up his playpen, Paige stared at the text waiting to be sent. Another round of second-guessing and she deleted what she’d typed. As soon as the words disappeared, she heard her mom groaning in her head about how she was never going to get the lesbian wedding she wanted to host.
She didn’t want to get married, but she did want to do everything right with Seren. If that meant biding her time, she could be patient. “But I’m not good at being patient.” That was an understatement. Still, she could wait one week and then ask.
Chapter Eleven
Water aerobics tonight. Seren smiled again as her brain happily reminded her that when she finished kneading this last client’s tense right trapezius, she’d be off her throbbing legs and in warm water dancing around with the spicy seniors. That’s what Rita and her friends affectionately called each other, and Seren agreed that “spicy” was a perfect description.
Although she’d only been taking water aerobics for a little over a week, she felt like she’d known the women for years. They’d dubbed her a “junior spicy” and included her in all of their spicy talk. Which was ear burning to be sure. Leslie had been right—at least with regards to this group of seniors—big breasts were a favorite topic. Along with big other things. Their commentaries in the locker room about the benefits of size had made Seren laugh so hard she snorted more than once.
But what really got her hustling from work straight to Aqua Fitness—and got her out of bed early on the weekend—was the promise of seeing Paige and casually exchanging, “How was your day?”
Paige still hadn’t asked her out, though there was plenty of casual flirting. It felt good. And easy. And while part of her worried about her budding feelings, the rest of her maintained she should simply enjoy the attraction until a decision on dating had to be made. More than once Seren was sure the question was on the tip of her tongue and as much as she wanted it, she still hadn’t decided whether she could say yes. She had, however, practiced what she might say: I’d love to go out with you, but we’ll need to break up by October. The other option was less appealing: I want to, but life’s too complicated right now.
They rarely had many chances to talk alone for more than a moment anyway. Someone was always interrupting when they chatted poolside before or after class, and the number of pet-related questions Paige fielded was staggering. Seren tried not to get annoyed—for Paige’s sake if nothing else—but Paige always seemed happy to help. Whether it was not having an opportunity to ask, or if Paige was waiting for her, Seren couldn’t tell for sure. Maybe waiting was the right thing. Except time was what she didn’t have a lot of.
She shook her head and returned her focus to the woman on her table. “How’s that shoulder feel now?”
“Mm. Better.”
She stopped kneading and spread her hands, relaxing the traps as well as the other muscles she’d worked. Her thoughts zipped back to Paige. She’d see her in less than an hour.
“Your hands are unbelievable.”
The woman’s muffled words made her refocus. She was used to compliments and good tips as well, but it was still a pleasure to hear. Especially since her attention had been a little divided this time. “All part of the job.”
“You should definitely keep this job,” the woman murmured.
Thinking of how long she could keep working brought up a whole different set of problems. She tried to contain her sigh. Her savings account wouldn’t last long if she had to go out on maternity leave early. Managing her finances, finding her mom’s will, and selling the house was what she should be focused on. Not what to do about her water aerobics teacher. She glanced at the clock and realized she’d gone five minutes over.
“Oops, looks like I went over our time. That shoulder of yours needed a little extra TLC.”
The woman groggily agreed.
“I’ll give you a minute to dress, and meet you in the lobby.” She wanted to add, “Please don’t fall asleep,” because she really didn’t have time for that but hoped her upbeat tone would convey the message.
As soon as she stepped out of the room, she felt woozy. She went to the small office she shared with the two other therapists and found her purse with that snack she’d promised her stomach earlier. Her morning sickness had improved so much since she’d hit the second trimester that she sometimes forgot she still needed to eat every two hours. She stared down the granola bar she’d brought, more disappointed than usual that she had to swallow yet another dry mass of nuts and chocolate.
“It’s this or nothing,” she grudgingly reminded herself. She’d had no time for a lunch break, and if she took time to pick up dinner, she’d miss water aerobics. Her phone buzzed as she bit into the bar.
Leslie: Just left the Landrys. Holy shit the property is perfect for Paige. And they want to sell.
That’s great!
Leslie: Right? I’m so excited. Think she’ll be at water aerobics?
She should be unless her mom magically got better. Seren didn’t even know the lady, but she hoped that hadn’t happened. Paige had said she’d be teaching for two weeks, and Seren wanted all of that time with her.
Leslie: Am I allowed to place a bet on her asking you out tonight?
Seren bit the edge of her lip. She started typing then deleted, then retyped the original message even if she hated it was true. I still don’t think I should date anyone.
Leslie: Everyone can use a little fling.
A long moment passed and Seren set her phone down. She thought of the Landry ranch and then of Paige possibly buying it. A mess of emotions caught her off guard. Possibilities she was already regretting not going for. It was ridiculous—Paige hadn’t even asked her out. Her phone buzzed with a new text and she quickly picked it back up again.
Leslie: Mr. Landry mentioned he’d heard about your mom and wanted me to pass on condolences. Said his wife was sick and they couldn’t go to the funeral.
I’m glad they knew at least. A weight lifted at the same time as her chest felt tight thinking of the funeral again. She thought then of the Landry ranch that had always seemed like an oasis apart from the rest of the world. I should go see them.
Leslie: They’d appreciate it. A moment later, Leslie texted again: Speaking of shoulds. If Paige asks, I really think you should say yes. What do you have to lose?
Seren didn’t respond. What could she say? That she’d gone back and forth on dating in general, and dating Paige specifically, so many times that she had a new pros/cons list on her fridge? She finished her granola bar and headed out to the lobby. If she wanted to make it on time for class, she had to ignore her stomach’s complaint that one little bar wasn’t enough.
Chapter Twelve
“Our favorite busty blonde has arrived.”
Rita winked at Seren after her too-loud announcement. Fortunately, the only others in the locker room were Helen and Vickie. Paige never changed in the locker room. Seren wondered how she had time to get out of her vet gear and shower. For the night classes, she always arrived with hair still wet and like she was out of breath from running.
“Happy to see you here tonight,” Helen said, patting Seren’s arm. “I needed something sweet to rest my eyes on.”
“I think that’s Paige’s line.” Rita chortled at her own joke.
“The question, as always, is will our Paige be able to keep her eyes off of the busty blonde long enough to keep her underpants dry?”
That was Vickie. She was as much of a troublemaker as Rita and cackled now when Seren shook her head. “You all are too much.”
“You should see us after a round of gin and tonics.” Rita’s beehive somehow stayed perfectly in place even when she made her boobs do a little shudder dance. She laughed and added, “Don’t tell anyone, but I might have started drinking at five.”
“You didn’t drive here, did you?” Helen tsked.
“Jack dropped me off.” Jack was her husband—Rita talked plenty about his package but Seren didn’t know anything else about the man. “I only had one drink anyway. Enough to get me loose so I’ll have moves like Seren.”
Everyone laughed at this. Including Seren.
Seren hung her purse in the locker and took off her shoes. She was excited about seeing Paige, as usual, but a little nervous with Leslie’s comments running through her mind.
“So. I heard you’re a masseuse.” Rita gave Seren a look like she’d found out some dark little secret.
“I think they liked to be called massage therapists,” Helen corrected.
“True. And yes.” So much for flying under the radar.
“Frances said you fixed her back,” Rita continued. “She said you were magic.”
“Magic, huh?” She didn’t mind the compliment, of course, but the name Frances didn’t ring any bells. And even if she forgot a name, she rarely forgot a face. “I didn’t realize anyone in class was a client of mine.”
“Frances doesn’t like water aerobics.” Rita motioned to her hair and added, “Doesn’t like to get her hairdo wet. She spotted you in the locker room on Sunday and said something to Pam. Who told Gloria.”
“And Gloria told you?” Seren wasn’t surprised at the gossip chain, but a little part of her couldn’t help worrying. She’d mostly simply enjoyed how the other women all shared stories and talked about each other. It hadn’t occurred to her that anything said in water aerobics might get back to her work.
“No, Trudy told me. I think I was the last to find out. Hope our busty blonde wasn’t trying to hide her true identity. When’s the baby due?”
“October.” Seren finished tugging on her swimsuit, wondering if maybe water aerobics had been a mistake from the beginning. Not only all the rollercoaster feelings she’d had with Paige. She’d clearly walked right into the epicenter of the town’s grapevine. The last thing she needed was work finding out about her pregnancy as a rumor. “I haven’t told my work yet.”
“They don’t know you’re pregnant?” Rita’s gaze zipped to Seren’s belly.
“I’m better at hiding it when I’m not wearing a bathing suit.” A maternity bathing suit at that.
Rita pursed her lips. “I wouldn’t hide it too much longer if I were you.”
Seren felt an uneasy wave roll through her. When she lived in New York she’d built up enough clients to work on her own, but moving home, and thinking it’d only be temporary, she’d joined up with two other therapists—a married couple who had purchased a new space and wanted to grow their clientele. That’s exactly what had happened, and quickly. She’d promised to work with them for the year, and telling them she was going to have to cut that short for a maternity leave wasn’t going to go over well. She would still tell them, of course. She was only waiting for the best time to do so. Now she had to hope the rumor mill news wouldn’t reach them first.
Two other women came into the locker room and she gave the excuse of wanting to make room for them as she hurried out. She pushed open the door to the pool—with maybe more force than was needed—and nearly smacked into Paige.
Paige did a quick half spin out of the way, her gaze shooting to the water. On reflex, Seren reached for her. Wrapping her hand around Paige’s muscular forearm, while locking eyes, was not a good plan if she wanted to keep thinking straight. It did, however, make her libido happy. As heat rushed up her neck, she let go and murmured an apology.
