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“She’s always going on about how pretty you are. The woman still can’t believe she bagged someone with abs. In LA! So silly.”
Paige instinctively touched her stomach. “It’s a lot of work keeping this thing flat enough so clients hire me.”
“You think I don’t know the trial of staying slim in Hollywood? Ha!”
They were both distracted by Loren vehemently denying something Jocie said about her. While Loren took a vote from Rhea and Roxy about whether it was true, Paige returned to cleaning up her counter before she completely ran out of energy and passed out.
“Things good with you and Rhea?”
Paige was startled by that question. “Of course. Why wouldn’t they be?” She rethought that. “Is she saying something to you guys?”
“No. Simply consider me… observant.” Jeanette sipped her wine. “You guys have been married a long while. Straight out of college, right?”
“Yeah. Why?”
Jeanette shrugged. “Roxanne and I have been together a long time, too. It’s tough being monogamous in this town.Sodedicated to one person.”
“I swear to God, Jean, I’m so tired that if you’re trying to swing with us, you’ve gotta be blunter. Also, the answer is no.”
Jeanette was not put off by Paige’s confusion. “Not at all, hon. Love you guys, but not like that. I’m only saying that I know what kind of pressure this town puts on couples. It’s good to see people doing well. Gives other lesbos like Roxy and I hope.”
“Sounds likeyouguys are the ones on the rocks.”
“It could have gone that way a few years ago.” Jeanette pulled her wallet out of her dress pocket and searched for something inside. “We had a bit of a ‘come to Jesus’ moment when I was considering going back to modeling. We decided to do couples counseling before things got worse. Best idea ever.” Jeanette slid a business card across the counter. “Dr. Seville is a dream.”
Paige didn’t question why someone she only knew through her wife was suggesting couple’s counseling.In this town, people are always suggesting doctors and giving unsolicited advice about major life decisions.Everything was about superficial upgrades and lateral raises. Every time Paige accomplished a new level in her personal life or career, she was instantly reminded by those around her that she could be doingeven better.No wonder she was exhausted.
“Babe!” Roxy called from the table. “Come over here and tell Rhea about that photographer who thought you were his ex-girlfriend’s sister!”
Jeanette was happy to oblige. First, she patted Paige’s arm with a wink.
Paige should not have been surprised that the fervor of having people over put her wife in a certain mood after everyone was gone and most of the mess was cleaned up.
You’ve got to be kidding me.Paige had finally put on her pajamas and climbed into bed, yet there was Rhea, wrapping an arm around her and attempting to fondle her wife’s breasts. A kiss on Paige’s neck only sealed matters.
“Not tonight.” Paige felt like such a stereotype saying that.Like a tired “wife bad” comic come to life. That’s me.Her eyelids were so heavy that she almost forgot how to sound cautiously playful when she turned Rhea down. “Sorry.”
Rhea moved her hand to her wife’s side. “Sure thing. You get some sleep.”
“You too…”
The words were barely off Paige’s lips when she finally succumbed to what she had sought for so long. Yet she was still well aware of Rhea lying behind her, staring at the ceiling with her hands wrapped behind her head. What was Rhea thinking? Paige couldn’t ask because she was dead to the world.
Chapter 4
WhenPaigefinallyhada day off that Sunday, she remained scarce. Rhea watched her wife eat a light breakfast before going for a run down to the store, where she picked up a few odds and ends for the fridge – and a few caffeinated beverages for herself. Rhea kept to her office, where she went over the updated release schedule her publisher sent her while playing ‘90s New Age music from her corner speaker. Every time Enya crooned about Orinoco Flows and how Only Time knew a damn thing, Rhea thought back to her childhood, when sitting on the beaches of Malibu and listening to music like this in her Discman headphones made sense in a chaotic world.
Paige had gone out to the backyard by the time Rhea went out to the kitchen for a snack. When pulling carrots and hummus out of the fridge, Rhea caught sight of her wife sitting on the edge of the pool in nothing but shorts and a tank top, her bare feet soaking in the cool water while she stared into the depths of her own imagination.
It was a time-stopping sight. Rhea knew her wife was beautiful, but sometimes she was caught off guard by the sunshine on golden hair and the natural tan Paige had acquired after a lifetime in Southern California. The woman had grown up in Anaheim, next to the world-renowned enchantment of Disneyland, and Rhea swore it showed.
As Paige continued to swirl her feet in the pool, Rhea sat at the dining table with her snack. She stared at her phone screen, carrots dipping into hummus while her elbow slid against the table and brought her attention to a business card left on the far end.
It was for someone named Dr. Seville, a couple’s therapist in Malibu.
Rhea kept her questions to herself until the end of her snack. In the meantime, she looked up Dr. Seville on her phone and was immediately taken to the website of the woman’s practice.
“Here at Reconnections, we focus not only on the couple as a whole but on the individuals who make romance a wonderful experience,”began the doctor’s spiel.“I firmly believe that any couple can make it work if they are willing to compromise and see eye to eye. That said, I also believe my patients when they say it’s time to move on from one another, and I offer services in divorce counseling as well.”
