“You did?” Jade all but whispered through the lump that was clearly taking up space in her throat.
“Yeah, I did. She was great, and when I showed her the photos I have on my phone of you and of us, she agreed that you’re hot and that we make a great couple,” April let her grin shine. The wave of relief that crashed over her nearly knocked her to the floor.
Jade’s mouth twitched as her eyes blinked rapidly to fight the tears threatening to spill.
“I’ll never pressure, you know that. But, for this one,” Jade swallowed, April’s heart swelled in her chest knowing which two words were about to come out of Jade’s mouth, “thank you.”
They pulled each other back in for a kiss. One of relief for both of them at acknowledging their relationship to a little more of their worlds. Which to each other, meant absolutelyeverything.
The kiss was slow and soft at first, reassuring. April melted into Jade as she always did, feeling safe and loved at her partner’s touch. It didn’t take long for the kiss to deepen and become more passionate. Hands slid into hair, grabbing the back of necks to pull their lips even closer together.
A few moments later, April pulled back slightly. Her hands were on either side of Jade’s head, and as she spoke, it was barely above a whisper.
“Jade?”
“Yeah babe?” Jade replied.
April slowly dropped her hands down from the back of Jade’s head, down her neck, onto her shoulders, before holding onto the two sides of Jade’s shirt collar with the top button always undone.
“Can...” April bit her bottom lip and squeezed her eyes closed, trying to settle the nerves in her stomach and her racing heart that was currently pounding in her ears. She tried to speak a few more times, but no words made it past her lips.
“Take your time, it’s ok”, Jade reassured her.
April took a breath, pulling back a little more to look Jade in the eye, while her hands stayed frozen in place against Jade’s chest, gripping on to her shirt.
“Can I spend the night with you tonight?” There, she did it. She finally got the words out that she’d been wanting to ask ever since Jade came into her hotel room to help with her shoulder injury all those weeks ago. And every late-night hotel room visit ever since.
“Are you sure?” Jade asked, her gaze boring into April. Because of course Jade was checking in with her partner before they took this next major step in their relationship. She really was that gentle of a human.
April’s hands slid down Jade’s shirt and unbuttoned the next button. “I’m sure,” she said as she pulled Jade in for another passionate kiss, feeling Jade’s arms slide around her back to pull their bodies closer together.
Chapter 32
Jade
Jade could admit that before April, she really hadn’t thought very much about the impact of sleeping with any of the women in her past. Sure, connections were made strong enough for lust to take over and a fun night to be had by both involved, but she never really thought about how the other woman was feeling after the fact. She’d barely stopped before to think about her own feelings each time.
With April though? Well, Jade couldn’t helpbutthink about what she must have been feeling after the night before. She knew she certainly was taking a greater pause to think about her own feelings than she ever had in her life.
She had spent the past twenty minutes sitting at her kitchen island, staring out the window since April had left. Last night was perfect.
She had been several women’s ‘first’ in the past, but without that strong emotional connection, she’d assumed the role of guide and teacher. No big deal. Whatever they needed to either realize they were, or weren’t, into women.
Last night?Wow. That was something else entirely. Jade knew that everything she and April had from that first night at the bar was a first. What April didn’t realize was that last night was as big of a first for Jade as it was for April. It was the first time Jade had slept with a woman she had such a deep emotional connection with. That made everything feel so much...more.
The kisses felt more like promises of what was to come. The touches were more tender yet sure than she’d ever experienced. The looks between them spoke more to one another than any words possibly could have.
As they’d fallen asleep, Jade knew more than ever: April was it for her.
Later that afternoon, Jade had arranged a video call with Emily. It had been a few months since they had last managed to match schedules. They were forever missing calls and replying to texts hours after receiving responses. Jade had alotto catch her best friend up on.
Emily answered on the third ring, then proceeded to drop her phone, grumble about doing so, then hung up as she was finally saying “hello”. Jade laughed.
The call connected properly on the second attempt, and a sheepish Emily smiled at her friend.
“Sorry about that, I thought I had sat it in the stand properly...apparently not.” Emily blushed and Jade laughed.
“That’s ok, it happens to the best of us. How have you been?” Jade asked with a warm smile to her oldest friend.
