Juliet sunk back in her seat, sighing. “I’m jealous that she has the potential to see you naked.”
“O-oh.” Hannah swallowed, and then she cleared her throat. She’d never been attracted to Juliet. Yes, she was beautiful, but she’d never felt that way towards her.
“Oh, come on. You’re absolutely gorgeous, Hannah. Forgive me for finding you attractive. Why do you think I invited you back to my apartment the last time I booked you?”
Hannah smiled weakly. “To chat?”
Juliet laughed from deep within her belly, settling Hannah a little. “No. I had no plans to chat. But I’d much prefer you as my employee than anything else. I think you’re going to be invaluable to me.”
“Thank you. I appreciate that. I still can’t believe you gave me a job.”
“When we were sitting together that day, I saw in your eyes that you didn’t want to be there. And I know it was nothing to do with me, so I wasn’t offended. Then you said you’d worked in law before, and I knew it was meant to be. I think this is going to be a very good working relationship, Hannah. I’m looking forward to it.”
Hannah lifted her wine glass, clinking it to Juliet’s. “Me too.”
“So, this client turned almost potential girlfriend. What are you going to do?”
“I think I’ll sleep on it and maybe contact her at the weekend. I’m not really in a position to see her before then anyway with work and having my daughter home. Once she’s gone to her dad’s at the weekend, I’ll call Caz. She may not have my number, but I have hers. And I know where she lives if all else fails.”
Juliet groaned. “God, why isn’t there a woman out there desperately wanting to seek me out?”
“There is. You just have to wait for her.”
Juliet bulged her eyes as she puffed out her cheeks. “Well, I fear I’ll be waiting a very long time.”
“No, I don’t think so. And now that you have me as your wingwoman, I’ll help you find someone.”
“I’d like to think it’s possible, but my hours demand far too much of my attention.Iwouldn’t date me, so that says a lot.”
“Give it time. You never know when the woman of your dreams will fall into your lap.”
“Never mind me. My love life is hopeless. We need to figure out how to get you back in with this woman you’re infatuated with.”
“Oh, it’s not infatuation. I’m not sure what it is, but it’s far more than that.”
Juliet’s brows rose. “Really?”
“Yeah. But it’s going to be a slow process if it ever happens. There’s a lot to work through.”
Juliet tipped her wine glass towards Hannah. “I admire that. Not many people would willingly take on a woman with a lot of baggage. But you…you’re a rarity.”
“I just believe that everyone deserves a chance to be happy. We could be gone tomorrow. We deserve love while we can grab it.”
“Cheers to that!”
Chapter14
The silenceof the room didn’t do much to settle Caroline’s thoughts. She had been pacing for the last twenty minutes, Hannah the only thing on her mind as the week wore on. Right now, she was at a point of craving Hannah. Her voice, her gentle smile, her incredible hands. She hated feeling like this, out of control, but Caroline could barely refrain from calling her. That was clear this afternoon when she stole Hannah’s number from the system at schoolagain. She’d thought about showing up at Hannah’s home, but she couldn’t deal with rejection face-to-face, and she also didn’t want to disturb Edie if she was home.
Caroline pressed her back against the kitchen counter, staring at her phone in her hand. She had a message on the screen from the woman she’d cancelled her date with on Monday, but Caroline didn’t want to open it. That date would have been dreadful in every way because it wasn’t with Hannah.
She swiped it from the screen, deleting it. Caroline couldn’t deal with Grace tonight. It was Hannah her focus needed to be on. Because she had to get this right. Caroline was going to call Hannah. To tell her how she was feeling and what she wanted. And if it meant there was any hope of something more with her, Caroline would do everything she could to show Hannah she was genuinely interested. Monday lunchtime had been a disaster, but Caroline felt as though she was in a better place as the end of the school week came around. And with Brenda’s support, it had only reminded her that shecoulddo whatever she pleased.
With a shaking hand, Caroline exhaled a deep breath and punched in Hannah’s number. It started to ring, sending Caroline’s heart rate through the roof.
“Hello?”
Caroline cleared her throat. “Hi, it’s Caz.”