Kit pocketed the remote and looked up as Vinnie approached in his car. She blinked fast, clearing the water from her eyes as Vinnie braked near her. She faked a smile for her boss’s husband and met him at the open driver’s side window. “Hey, Vin.”
“Tish still inside?” he asked, nodding toward the shop’s door. “She’s not answering her texts.”
“Yeah, she’s finishing up.” Kit waved in that direction. “I flipped the sign, but I was walking a customer to her car. She needed help with her bags.” She didn’t care if Vinnie bought the lie or not. “You can park and go on in. I’m right behind you.”
“Actually, I need to run a quick errand for Uncle Dom first. Can you let her know I’ll be a few minutes late? And tellher to check her dang phone once in a while.” He spoke with a fondness for his wife that stirred envy in Kit’s heart. Even when they aggravated each other, Tish and Vinnie had a loving relationship.
“Sure.”
Kit watched Vinnie drive away, then crossed the street back into the store. The aroma of cocoa and sugar assaulted her senses, but she missed the lightened atmosphere of Sid’s presence. She feared, with her unwillingness to broadcast her true self, she fucked up a good thing.
Sighing, she started for the kitchen to break down the stations. Duty first. Once she finished, she hoped Sid would talk to her.
Chapter Six
Sid dashed from her bathroom to the front door, disappointed to see only the distorted view of the hallway through the peephole. She swore she’d heard a knock.
Padding closer to her futon, she spied her phone lying face up amid her discarded laundry, the darkened screen taunting her.
“Buzz, damn you.”Text me, call me, do something.Had Kit resolved to give her time, or had she given up completely? Two hours had passed since she left the shop, and seeing as how Sid had never experienced a relationship bordering on serious, she didn’t know the protocol for post-fight contact. Should they hash it out at work tomorrow morning in between customers? Stab at their phones all night, trading obscene emoji until one of them broke down and called for a truce?
Whatever the procedure, Kit had to call first. She cast down the glove when she drove away. Kit had to pick it up. She liked Kit very much, and knew Kit returned her feelings. All the same, she wanted to be won back.
Back at her closet, Sid tightened the yellow bath towel fastened at her chest and thumbed through her outfits. She’d gone through the cycle of her favorite shirt and skirt combinations this past week, but for her first night at the Den in a while she wanted to look nice. She didn’t intend to pick up anybody, but she hoped to make a point with her appearance tonight that she, unlike Kit, was comfortable in her skin, anywhere.
She selected the black shirt emblazoned with two triangles, pink on the left breast and blue on the right, and the multi-striped skirt designed to look like the bisexual pride flag. Black leggings and high-tops speckled with colored triangles completed the ensemble, and she dressed in silence whilelistening for the phone. Anybody running into her at the Den, or even on the elevator ride to her car, would know the score with her.
She couldn’t rid her mind of thoughts of Kit.Am I asking too much of her?She respected that people chose to live privately, and it wasn’t like she wanted Kit to choreograph a flash mob to declare her love. Sid wanted a dinner out. A walk to BuzzKill during lunch break to get coffee, arms linked and standing close to each other. Simple signs of affection. If anybody paid notice, whatever.
More than once she feared she enabled Kit’s hermit mentality, with the sex toys and the dirty texts teasing Kit about things she hoped to try in bed, body parts she loved to lick and suck. Had she come on too strong? She and Kit set limits, so she believed. If Kit ever asked to stop play, Sid would.
She grabbed her phone and looked up their last exchange:
Would love to just kiss u for an hour, non-stop.
Mmm, no arguments there.
Tish left out a bag of van frosting, want 2 draw swirls all over and lick u clean.
Starting where?
She re-read the list of body parts she sent to Kit and smiled. Yeah, it made sense that Kit would prefer to stay in after reading this. She realized, too, she hadn’t apologized for pushing the thong vibe on her. Pride kept her from reaching out first. Damn it.
Maybe she ought to text Annalise and send her regrets, or ghost her. Annalise struck her as the type to rebound quickly. If Karaoke Night packed the Den, there was a chance she wouldn’t be missed.
The phone shook in her hand, and Sid’s initial hope faded on seeing Roman’s smiling mug. She took a deep breath before answering.
“I suppose you want to borrow money now that I’m a big time chocolatier.”
“The real money’s in cattle. I’ll buy and sell you on the market,” Roman teased back.
“Chocolate dipped beef jerky? Hey, people like it on bacon.”
“Blech. Don’t quit your day job, okay How’s it going?”
Small talk about their jobs, the weather, and holiday plans carried them for several minutes. Sid appreciated the respite from her romantic woes, however brief. The mention of Roman’s girlfriend triggered a pang in her heart, especially since his voice softened as he spoke of her.
Rhonda held no ambitions beyond living the pioneer life, popping out babies, and homeschooling them while Dear Husband paid the bills. Good for her, and good for Roman on finding a compatible match. She thought she had one, too. Rare for both siblings to have happy relationships at the same time, and under other circumstances she could brag about it.
