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“I’m sure you’ve seen it all at this point,” Lara said as she took two glasses down from one of the cabinets.
“Is that in reference to my age?” Charlotte asked, propping her chin up on her hand as her eyes landed on the hint of skin that was revealed as Lara stood on her toes, her back to Charlotte.
Lara’s eyes narrowed as she placed the two glasses on the counter. “That didn’t take long,” she said with a smirk. “And no, that wasn’t in reference to your age. I was referring to your vast experience in this business.”
“Over the span of three decades. The same amount of time that you’ve been on this planet.” Charlotte had no idea why she was blurting out all her insecurities before they’d even had dinner, but if anything was going to happen between them, she had to let Lara know that she wasn’t as easygoing about their age difference as she seemed to be.
Lara came around the counter to stand beside Charlotte, grabbing a hold of her hips to gently spin her around to face her. Charlotte swallowed as she watched Lara’s hands rest on either of Charlotte’s thighs, easing them apart to make enough room for her to step in between them.
“Charlotte,” Lara said with a tilt of her head as she studied her, her fingers lifting to push a few strands of Charlotte’s hair behind her ear, a wave of goosebumps breaking out across her arms at that simple touch.
“Lara,” Charlotte said, mimicking her semi-serious tone, her heart thudding in her chest.
“I’m getting the feeling that you’re concerned about my age.” Lara’s eyes danced over Charlotte, moving from her hair to her eyes then down to her lips before lifting to meet her eyes once again. “Don’t be,” she murmured, dipping her head as she slid her hand behind Charlotte’s neck and up into her hair, guiding their lips together in a heart-stopping kiss.
Charlotte sighed into the kiss, opening her lips up to Lara, their tongues moving in an already familiar dance as her hands clutched Lara’s waist.
Charlotte wanted to drop her hands to Lara’s ass, to pull her even closer, to slowly rock her hips back against Lara’s thigh, but she couldn’t give in that easily.
Lara broke the kiss before Charlotte could wrestle anymore with her desires, leaving her sitting there on the bar stool, her breathing ragged, as Lara sauntered back towards the stove, continuing to prepare their dinner as if nothing had happened.
Charlotte took a deep breath, her head spinning as she turned back to face her, and Lara was placing two glasses of water on the counter, sliding one towards Charlotte.
Charlotte eyed Lara, completely thrown by that confident display. “I thought we were just having dinner. No pressure.”
“Hm. As did I, but you didn’t waste any time bringing up our age difference, so I didn’t waste any more letting you think that we don’t have any chemistry, because we do. And the only pressure was my thigh against your–”
Charlotte held up her hand. “I am aware that there’s something here, but that doesn’t mean that we would actually work. In the real world.”
Lara nodded, her lips pressed together, as if she wanted to say more, but she was stopping herself. “Why don’t we eat? I’m sure we’ll be talking about this again later.”
Charlotte agreed, feeling slightly guilty, a heaviness in her chest, but they couldn’t just fall into bed together, could they? She’d never been that reckless in her life before. But then again, she hadn’t been out. She might be nineteen years older than Lara, but if Charlotte stopped to think about it, Lara probably had so much more experience with women. Not just in bed. In life. Relationships. Charlotte had yet to have anything last more than a few weeks.
She followed Lara outside where she had the glass table set, the sun setting over the outdoor area that Charlotte remembered from the last time she was here, at Kerri’s place. The water in the curved pool was almost flat with rock features surrounding one edge of it. The waterfall that flowed down to it, through those rocks, created the few ripples in the water, the bubbling sounds calming. Lara tapped her phone, turning on a few outdoor lights along with the lights under the water.
“Cheers,” Lara said after she’d poured them each a glass of wine.
“Cheers,” Charlotte echoed, doing her best to stay in the moment and not let her mind drift off into what this was or where this night might be headed.
11
Lara turned on the dishwasher and took the bottle of wine out of the fridge to refill their glasses, bringing it out back to where she’d suggested they get comfortable on the outdoor sofa.
“Thanks,” Charlotte said as Lara topped up her glass. “Where did you learn to cook like that? It was honestly better than a lot of meals I’ve had out at Italian restaurants.”
“My ex was Italian and a chef.” Lara left the nearly empty bottle on the coffee table in front of them, crossing one leg over the other as she angled her body towards Charlotte, silently congratulating herself for managing to impress Charlotte with her cooking. “And on top of that, I still go to the same fish market she used to go to for the restaurant. Best shrimp in L.A. hands down.”
Charlotte arched an eyebrow as she took a sip of wine. She cleared her throat. “Would it be awfully nosey to ask how old she was?”
Lara smiled as she laughed softly. “Nosey? No. Predictable? Absolutely.”
Charlotte bit her lip as she nodded. “I am boring like that.”
“I don’t think you’re boring, but to answer your question. She was fourteen years older than me. I’d just turned thirty when we started going out. It didn’t last too long, but we both worked long hours and while I thought we were good together…” She shrugged. “We just couldn’t find the time to actually see each other. I wasn’t heartbroken or anything.”
“Who broke it off? If you don’t mind me asking.”
“No. Not at all. I did.” Lara took a drink. “So, it turns out that I am capable of being realistic.”
