Chapter 27

Sittingbehind her desk at Dominion, Natalia finished making notes for Adriana. She’d only meant to jot down a status on all of her active clients that morning, but it exploded into a thirty-two-page document. At least her notes for Lola regarding her United in PRIDE duties were only twenty pages and mostly bullet points.

Manicured fingers hovering over the phone on her desk, Natalia debated the wisdom of her decision. She’d thought of nothing else over the preceding thirty-six hours. The unknown was a thumb pressed to her windpipe.

Shaking off the doubt, Natalia cemented her choice. She was going to make sure Samantha didn’t cool off. It was nothing more than that. It was a business trip. She had no intention of spending any time with Samantha’s family. If things went well, she wouldn’t see Samantha again after the trip.

She punched in the code for Adriana’s desk and committed. She was going. This was work. Not a lover’s getaway.

Adriana answered the intercom immediately. Her reflexes were always impressive.

“Come into my office,” Natalia said before hanging up.

Seconds later, Adriana was in her doorway holding her iPad, white stylus between her fingers.

“Close the door,” Natalia instructed and pulled on her reading glasses.

Adriana complied and sat across from her, legs crossed and bright blue eyes keen and attentive. Natalia recalled how nervous Adriana used to get when she’d summoned her to her office unexpectedly. Even worse, when she asked her to close the door. But over the years, her confidence had solidified her resolve.

“I’m leaving early today,” Natalia announced. “And I’ll be gone Friday as well.”

Adriana inclined her head, an obvious question etched into her face.

“I have a client meeting out of town,” she said, hearing the defensive edge to her tone and dropping it immediately. “I will be back on Monday.”

“Of course. I hope it goes well,” Adriana said evenly. She didn’t wear any detectable hints of curiosity, even though Natalia knew they were there.

Natalia suppressed her approval. She’d taught Adriana the importance of keeping her expression neutral.

“You know how to reach me if anything comes up.” Natalia handed her the thick folder of notes without explaining that she expected Adriana to act in her place while she was gone.

She’d left Adriana to mind the store before, but she’d always expected her to run any decisions past her. As Adriana flipped through the pages, understanding dawned on her. Her body tensed and then relaxed. When she looked up at Natalia again, her facade was polished, but her eyes gave her away. She was proud. Eager to show Natalia that her confidence was not misplaced.

When Natalia’s chest felt uncomfortably tight, she stood, signaling that the meeting was over. “I don’t want to hear that you let Roxy distract you. My being away does not stop me from knowing everything that’s going on. Don’t disappoint me,” she added for good measure.

“Of course not,” Adriana replied without hesitation. “My focus is here.”

“Good,” she replied flatly, not enough bite in her voice. “If something comes up?—”

“I’ll know if there’s something you need to be informed of,” she replied with confidence, eyes still brimming like she couldn’t wait to sprint to her office on the other side of the space and call her mother.

Not as annoyed by the sentiment in Adriana’s angular features as she expected, Natalia nodded curtly and grabbed her bag. She needed to leave before lunchtime traffic started. Her rush had nothing to do with out-running her own suppressed pride at Adriana’s response.

Two hours later, Natalia was driving to Samantha’s house with two Louis Vuitton suitcases in her trunk. She hadn’t been sure what to pack, and she hadn’t wanted to ask Samantha, so she’d brought a dozen options for a four-night stay.

In April, the weather was usually bright and sunny without being oppressively hot and humid, but a sudden heavy downpour or unexpectedly cool night could show up out of nowhere. She didn’t want to be caught with the wrong clothes.

She wasn’t nervous when she pulled up to Samantha’s narrow driveway, hidden under a massive canopy of trees that hid how closely packed together the houses were in the old section of The Grove. It was kind of nice, she thought, before parking next to Samantha’s Subaru, newly adorned with a hideous black cargo carrier on its roof. Was Samantha trying to make the thing even uglier? Was it like mom jeans for cars?

Natalia was still reaching for her phone to tell Samantha she’d arrived when the front door opened and Samantha appeared. In a muscle t-shirt, joggers, and dark sunglasses, she was too casual to look so good.

As soon as her attention landed on Natalia, her lips eased into a blinding smile. Like they hadn’t just seen each other. Like she’d missed Natalia and had been counting the seconds to be with her again. Clenching her jaw, Natalia refused to smile back and was glad that she was wearing her own dark sunglasses. For a split second, she didn’t trust what her eyes would reveal and decided the damn things would stay on until she arrived home on Monday morning.

Instead of getting into the passenger seat as Natalia expected, Samantha strutted to her driver’s side and waited for Natalia to lower the window.

“I would think you’d be eager to get on the road before rush hour,” Samantha mused, tattoos bright in the sun and smile even brighter.

“And yet you’re the one standing there,” she replied, refusing to let her racing pulse distort her cadence.

Samantha laughed. “We’re not going in your car. It’s way too uncomfortable for a three-hour drive.”

Natalia didn’t have to look around at her luxury car to know it had to be more conducive to sitting for a long time than Samantha’s Birkenstock on wheels.

“Plus, I bet your little ass trunk is already full. Do you want me to scratch up your lovely white leather seats with my bags?” She cocked her head to the side like she was adorable. Some people were loved way too much as children, and it showed.

“You just want to drive,” Natalia decided.

“Maybe I just want you to relax,” she countered.

Natalia’s gaze cut from Samantha to the monstrosity perched on top of her car. “You certainly do not expect me to put my valuables in that.”

Samantha’s smile only widened. “I promise it’s very secure.”

“Did you learn vehicle mechanics while picking up that PhD?”

“How many times do I have to remind you I’m a woman of many talents?” She leaned into the car, crossing Natalia’s boundary with her sexy cologne. An unsporting war tactic that was followed by an even more unscrupulous darting away toward her car before Natalia could respond.

Natalia sat in the car, debating her next move, while Samantha climbed onto a step ladder and flung the carapace open, revealing her own black luggage inside. It was too much to ask, Natalia decided while getting out of her own car — high heels and wrap dress not nearly as casual as she initially thought.

“Before you double down as you are wont to do,” Natalia said as she strode to Samantha’s freshly washed car and crossed her arms when she stopped at Samantha’s side. “Do you want to know how much I paid for my luggage alone? Not to say anything of all the items inside of them.”

Instead of heeding her warning, Samantha shrugged. “You’re not going to have to send me a demand letter. I promise you and your overpriced goods will arrive in one piece.” She looked down at her, too amused with herself. “Are you going to bring your stuff, or do you expect me to do it because I’m in pants?”

Natalia narrowed her gaze, sure Samantha could feel her ire even if she didn’t see it.

Samantha gave an exaggerated sigh. “Everyone wants to be the top until it’s time to kill spiders, take out the trash, or lug shit.”

Puffed up like a little rooster, Samantha crossed the driveway. When she returned in dramatic fashion, she had a black LV duffle on each shoulder and was pulling two matching suitcases.

“Babe, you know it’s four days, right?” The veins in Samantha’s toned arms strained under the effort. Natalia had to stop herself from imagining how good it would be to run the tip of her tongue along them.

“Babe?” Natalia repeated, the word sounding strange in her mouth. “Jesus. I prefer when you call me Ms. Flores.”

“I bet you do.” Laughing, Samantha pulled the cases up to the car. She hopped onto the stool. “Which one of these contains your femme-dom gear? I want to make sure it makes it to the Keys.”

Caught off guard by the reference to Samantha’s strap-on fantasy, Natalia nearly revealed that she hadn’t thought to bring sex toys to a business trip. Instead, she offered a momentary smirk and replied, “Everything I wear is femme-dom,” she said before leaving Samantha to wrestle her admittedly heavy bags. It was a fair punishment for trying to gain the upper hand.

The moment Natalia opened the passenger door, she recognized her misstep. On her seat, there was a neck pillow. The memory foam was nice to the touch and the velvet cover buttery soft. Natalia recoiled from it, the thoughtfulness of the gesture prickling her skin.

If it had only been the pillow, she might have recovered quickly. Her gaze darted around the pristine interior, inhaling the fresh citrusy car fragrance that mixed with Samantha’s usual cologne.

She forced her attention to the backseat, curiosity winning out over the unease twisting her gut. A picnic basket overflowed with snacks—fresh fruit, trail mix, granola bars, yogurt, cassava chips, and little Ziploc bags of homemade popcorn covered in what looked like pink salt. A small trash bin waited nearby, along with a cooler stocked with various beverages, including her preferred sparkling water.

Natalia stiffened, blindsided by the care evident in every choice. When had Samantha paid such close attention? Catalogued which snacks Natalia enjoyed, which drinks she preferred? The realization cracked Natalia’s ribs, an unwelcome vulnerability seeping into the spaces between.

Struggling to shore up her defenses, Natalia refused to react. She would not be swayed by sentimental gestures, even if Samantha’s thoughtfulness squeezed her lungs, constricting each breath.

When Samantha returned to the car, Natalia saw her chance to escape. “I need my purse,” she announced too loudly, even to her own ears.

“This one?”

When Samantha held up her bag, Natalia realized that her car was gone. Without her notice, Samantha had moved it into her garage.

Not one to be left speechless, Natalia made a sound that she hoped sounded like a huff before getting in the car.

Samantha plopped into the driver’s seat next to her after putting her bag in the back and hit the device on her visor to close the garage. “The tree can attract some lovely birds and less lovely poop,” she explained, but Natalia didn’t trust herself to respond. Didn’t know how she felt about anything happening around her. To her. Inside of her.

Before Natalia could brace herself, music poured from the speakers. A familiar 80s rock anthem blasted through the car. Tightening her grip on the neck pillow in her lap, Natalia cursed.

“Must you deafen us both?” Natalia snapped.

“Rules of the road.” Samantha said with a shrug as she backed out of her driveway. “You have to have a playlist. Just like you can’t drive with the cabin light on or you’ll get arrested and sentenced to federal prison.”

After singing the chorus to Def Leppard’s Pour Some Sugar On Me with enviable gusto, Samantha mercifully turned down the music.

“I was sixteen in ’89 when my uncle Tito took me to see them in concert. I’ve never been sure whether he knew there would be that many topless gals sitting on dude’s shoulders,” she laughed, “but I have my suspicions.”

“Did he know you were…”

“Gay as the day is long?” Samantha joked and pulled onto US-1, the road that would take them to the southernmost point of the country. “Oh, yeah. I came out at thirteen, but everyone knew before that.” She cleared her throat and put on a professorial tone. “I presented with the classic tomboy traits, you see. Action figures instead of dolls. Pants over dresses. An intense crush on Janet Jackson because I was, in fact, nasty.”

Natalia didn’t get distracted by their mutual celebrity crush. “And your family was just … fine with that?”

“My mom definitely expected to have a little princess,” she admitted, like it didn’t hurt. “But after the third Easter, where I refused to wear a dress, she sewed me a white linen suit because there was no way she was taking me to church in jeans.” She smiled. “Problem solved.”

Peeking into old memories she’d buried inaccessibly deep, Natalia allowed herself to think of her mother. She couldn’t imagine a world where her parents had accepted her like that. She recalled the time her father found her Indigo Girls cassette tape and made a show of torching it on the grill. As if who she was at her core could be suffocated with lighter fluid and a match.

“Your family sounds… remarkable,” Natalia said around the knot in her throat.

“I suppose I’ll keep them.” Samantha glanced at Natalia before turning her attention back to the road that narrowed into a single lane.

Soon they’d be traveling over narrow strips of land connecting all the tiny islands to each other until reaching Key West. Unease roiled Natalia’s stomach as the miles ticked by. She had no frame of reference for this immersion into domesticity. Her own familial relationships were fractured beyond repair, shards she’d long ago abandoned. Families were perplexing entities, their dynamics inscrutable to outsiders. And she was undoubtedly an outsider, no matter Samantha’s promises of normalcy.

“What’s your family like?”

Samantha’s question landed like a horse kick to the chin. Natalia should have expected it, but she’d been too busy ruminating. Damn it.

“I don’t know. We don’t speak.” Her tone made it clear the subject was not open for discussion.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” she said softly.

When she pulled her right hand off the steering wheel, Natalia had the panic-inducing fear that Samantha would slip her hand over hers. As if reading Natalia’s mind, she dropped it into her own lap instead.

“I’m not,” Natalia said with confidence. “People are not entitled to share your life because you have some of the same DNA. We share 99% of our genes with chimps, but no one expects me to go to their house for Christmas.”

Samantha chuckled, but it was a beat too late and followed by her eyes crinkling. At least she allowed the silence after Natalia’s joke to settle.

It was long after they’d left the city behind and they were cruising over Seven Mile Bridge with nothing but clear blue water under a perfectly sunny sky when Annie Lennox’s voice boomed about the rain.

As if compelled, Samantha belted along, singing to Natalia during the chorus as if that would make her sing along. Natalia envied her easy joy, even as she recoiled from its intensity.

Samantha slid her sunglasses up, eyes dazzling topaz in the direct light. “Now this was my first ever concert.” She caught her eye, meeting her gaze with a brilliant smile. The open affection in her expression breached Natalia’s battered defenses. “Who was your first?”

This was dangerous, allowing herself to be drawn into Samantha’s world. Natalia’s instincts screamed to retreat, to rebuild her barricades and shut this weekend down.

But an unfamiliar yearning hummed beneath her ribs, drowning out the warnings. She silenced the doubts, shoving them into a distant corner of her mind.

Just this once, she told herself. She would indulge this glimpse of ordinary family life, a curiosity she could never satisfy with her own kin. After the weekend ended, so too would this dalliance with Samantha.

Natalia repeated the assurances like a mantra. They fortified her resolve for the days ahead. She had no intention of being swayed by Samantha’s charms, no matter the efforts made to ensnare her.

Putting on the neck pillow, Natalia leaned back. With her eyes closed, she replied, “Madonna.”