Perdie scraped at the edges of the pan, but the eggs weren’t setting. Testily, she increased the heat.
“Jesus Christ, Jo. I’m barely in my thirties. Not everyone wants the same things, and not everyone wants them on the same timeline. All right, who wants to see the dog one more time?” The kids cheered again, and Carter held Bananas up for the screen.
“He’s so cute. Mommy, I want a dog.”
“I’m allergic, we’ve been over this. It would have to live outside, and that wouldn’t be very nice for a doggy, would it?”
“Why couldn’t you live outside instead?” The child’s voice was so innocent, Perdie let out a snort, quickly followed by a stifled yelp when her omelet began smoking, aggressive flames erupting from the pan.
“What’s the noise going on behind you?” Joanne’s voice asked.
“Shit, shit, shit, shit...” She flipped off the burner, then raced to the sink with the pan smoking and sizzling. She could hear Carter’s rushed voice in the background.
“Okay, Merry Christmas, talk to you all soon. Bye. Bye. Love you. Gotta go. Bye.”
The kitchen sink filled with smoke as Perdie sprayed off the singed eggs and pan. Carter appeared besides her, waving away the cloud in front of them. She dropped the pan in the sink, hunched over.
“Pop-Tarts?” she asked.
They were both a little drunk. At least Perdie was, and as far as she could tell Carter was too. She’d never seen him so tipsy. It’d been her idea to mix the Bailey’s in with the instant hot chocolate. A festive concoction. But before long, half the bottle was gone.
They tumbled into her bed together, sitting up on their knees and clumsily stripping off each other’s clothes until they were kissing naked skin. Then he laid her out on her side, grasping her around her waist, like he did when they slept together at night, spooning. His index finger circled her clitoris as he rocked into her from behind, in slow, steady strokes. She grabbed onto his wrist that was holding her in place, and let the slow waves of their concurrent movements take her away.
Not a word spoken between them.
When it was over, they stayed in position, until his breath heated the curved hollow between her neck and shoulder.
“So, your family really loves you huh?” She said it so quietly, it was like she almost didn’t want him to hear. But he stirred, rubbing his face against her hair.
“Don’t let them scare you away.”
She breathed in her courage, craning her neck to the dark ceiling “They kinda freak me out, if I’m honest. But I’ve been thinking...”
“Go on.”
“You wanna be with me, don’t you? In like some kind of...official capacity. You really do?”
Carter’s body stiffened behind her. “That’s accurate.”
She twisted around to face him, their torsos pressed together. She sighed. “Okay. Then...maybe...maybe you’re right. There obviously is something between us. I... I take a little bit longer to work out the pieces to the conclusion than you do. You know? So. What the hell? I think we should tell HR. And then Frank. I can’t be afraid of my own shadow in that office. I do good work, and I deserve good things. I’m done with the games. If they can’t take me openly dating a partner at the firm then they don’t deserve me secretly screwing a partner at the firm.”
“You’re serious?”
“Pretty Boy, I’m so dead serious, right now I’m practically the London Guard.”
He pulled her in, kissing her in a new way. Intense but not just lustful like she was used to. It made a nervous energy of emotion swirl around the pit of her belly. Shivers.
“I want you to know, I won’t let anyone speak a single judgmental word about you, Perdie. If anyone has a problem with us, then they can deal with me.”
She giggled. “Okay, save your toxic masculinity for a football game or something.”
“What I mean is I’ll always have your back.”
She nodded, rubbing her face against his chest. She could feel the thump of his heartbeat, heavy in the dark. “Looks like we have ourselves a deal.”
Carter squeezed her hard. “And we both win.”
In the dark of the night, long after Carter dozed, Perdie crept out of bed, down the stairs, and shuffled over the hardwood in fuzzy panda slippers to the living room couch. Settling in, she cracked open her laptop on the coffee table. She was searching for an email address she hadn’t used in years. When she found the name of the recruiter who’d gotten her foot in the door at Joy and Schulz, she typed an email furiously.
Melissa, long time, no talk. Wondering if you know any firms hiring a high-level associate with litigation skills? You know I do good work. Best, Perdita Stone
She shut her laptop, drumming her nails on the case, her eyes glazed over. Always good to have a plan B.
“Whaddya doin’ up?” Carter’s sleepy voice came from the hallway. She turned her head to see him rubbing his eyes, hair a mess.
He scuffled over, scratching his head. The couch shifted beneath her as he plopped down.
“Couldn’t sleep.”
He laid his head on her lap, settling in, and she let her fingers glide through the soft waves of his hair. “Me neither,” he said. But even as he spoke his voice drifted. She stroked his hair some more, taking him in, before letting her head fall back to the blank ceiling.
Welp. Here goes nothin’.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Because of the winter storms, Lucille and Noah remained in Asheville until after the New Year, leaving Perdie and Carter to their own devices.
P: You and Noah still “just friends” or what?
