Chapter 10

10

K risten woke to golden sunlight filtering through sheer curtains, bathing the room in a warm glow. She stretched, relishing the cozy ache in her muscles and the lingering scent of Cin on the couch pillow beside her.

The rest of the couch, aside from her and the pillow, was empty. The fire was out. The sheet was cold.

Kristen sat up, blinking in confusion. “Cin?”

No answer. The house was silent.

A knot formed in Kristen’s stomach as her eyes searched the room. Cin’s clothes were gone.

Oh God. Had Cin left already? Just slipped out after their night together like it was nothing?

Kristen’s chest tightened. She’d thought—she’d really thought there was something more between them. A connection. The way Cin had looked at her, touched her...it had felt real.

But maybe she’d only seen what she wanted to see.

Was it all meaningless to Cin? A fleeting moment of passion, nothing more? She knew Cin was a lesbian, comfortable in her identity, while Kristen—Kristen didn’t even know what she was. She had never been into women before, had never even thought about it. But she was into Cin. In fact, her heart and head were filled with nothing but thoughts of her.

Yet doubt crept in. Maybe she had just been a fling for Cin, someone to play with for a night before moving on. That fear gnawed at her, hollow and cold, but she struggled to believe it. The way Cin had touched her, held her, made her feel safe and protected—it didn’t feel like something fleeting. Cin had always listened to her, cared about her in a way no one else had. The thought of being reduced to just an experiment in Cin’s life didn’t make sense.

But Cin wasn’t here. There was no warmth beside her, no comforting voice to reassure her. No chance to ask what last night had meant, or if it had meant anything at all. Kristen pulled the covers closer around her, feeling the weight of the uncertainty settle in. All she could do was replay the night over and over in her mind, wondering if Cin had felt the same connection—or if she had already moved on.

She dragged a hand through her hair, eyes stinging. Idiot. She was such an idiot.

After a moment, she forced herself to take a deep breath. She needed to pull herself together and go. Clearly, she wasn’t wanted here. The absence of the home's owner was loud and clear.

Kristen stood on shaky legs and spotted her clothes, not strewn haphazardly as she had left them, but neatly laid out on the chair where Cin had gone down on her. For a moment, a flicker of warmth filled her chest—Cin had thought of her, had made sure she had everything ready. It was such a small, thoughtful gesture, and it made Kristen feel cared for, if only for a brief second.

Then the warmth dissolved, replaced by a sharp pang of realization. Maybe it wasn’t thoughtfulness. Maybe it was efficiency. A sign that Cin wanted her gone. That last night had been enough. The neatly folded clothes were a dismissal, as if Cin had prepared everything so Kristen could slip out easily, without a word.

Kristen’s heart tightened as she dressed quickly, each motion deliberate, avoiding the sight of the rumpled sheets. They hadn't even made it into Cin's bedroom.

When she was ready, she hesitated in the doorway, staring at the spot where they’d lay kissing for endless, breathless moments the night before. Then she headed for the front door, when a flash of color caught her eye.

There, on the side table by the couch, was a note. Folded in half, her name written on the front in Cin's looping cursive.

Kristen stared at it, heart pounding. She shouldn't read it. She should just go.

But her feet were already moving toward the note as if of their own accord. She unfolded it with trembling fingers.

The note read:

K,

I didn't want you to wake up alone. I just popped out for a coffee date I made after getting a hit on a dating app. Make yourself at home—stay as long as you like. No rush.

~C

Kristen read the note again. Then again. No matter how many times she read the note, the words wouldn't change to become clearer.

She hadn't been one of those girls in high school who had dissected a note down to the punctuation marks. That was because she didn't get any notes. Not from guys or girls.

This one made no sense. It said stay as long as you like … but she was on a date. It said no rush while making certain to note that the date was a date and not a business meeting.

What did it mean? Kristen had no idea.

One thing she did know was that she had fallen for Cin. But it didn't look like Cin had fallen for her. That much she could tell. If someone wanted to date two people at once, then their heart was not in it.

Last night had been passionate, intense. But in the harsh light of day, it seemed impossible that Cin could want her for more than a fling. Why would someone like Cin choose her when she could have anyone?