Kiss the Girl Read online

  Ashton took a shuddering breath, and that’s when Jessica saw the fresh tears. “She’s been drinking again. She promised she’d lay off the alcohol and it was fine for a few days. She actually stuck with it, but tonight she was upset about her boyfriend not calling or something. I think this guy’s married, Jess, but she doesn’t seem to care. When I got angry about the drinking, she started yelling at me and told me to get out. Locked the door.”

  Though Jessica’s anger rose, she also knew it was important that she not react too strongly, for Ashton’s sake. But seriously, who locks their teenager out of their own home?

  “But what’s really bad is that I have all this bio homework that’s due tomorrow. I was able to grab my bag so I have the worksheets, but the book’s in my room and she’s not answering the door.” The helpless look on her face was too much. The kid wasn’t worried about where she was going to sleep; she was concerned about her grades, which spoke volumes about her character, her ambition.

  Jessica stood up. “Then we get the super to let us in with his key.”

  Ashton paled. “God, no. We can’t do that. Please. It’ll make everything worse, and she’ll never forgive me.”

  “Ashton, it’s not okay that she won’t let you in. Technically, we could call the police and they would force her to—”

  “I shouldn’t have come here.” She set the glass on the coffee table and brushed the tears from her cheeks as she took off for the door. “Thanks for the drink. I gotta go.”

  Damn it all. She chased after her. “Ashton, wait. Hold on a second. Let’s compromise.” God, this was such a delicate situation. She wanted to do what was right for Ashton, but at the same time, she couldn’t lose her trust or she’d never come to her again. And damn it, the girl needed someone in her corner.

  “What compromise?”

  “Stay here tonight. Text your mom and let her know where you are. I’ll help you with your homework. Or Google will. But you have to agree to let me have a conversation with your mother tomorrow.”

  Ashton stared at the wall just past Jessica as she considered her options. “What are you going to say to her?”

  “That I’m worried about you and about her. I think she may need more help than we’re able to give her, though.”

  Ashton nodded, her eyes sad. “I think you may be right.”

  Jessica tossed an arm across her shoulders and offered a squeeze as she walked her back into the apartment. “So, biology?”

  “It’s really hard.”

  “Good thing I’m really smart.”

  *

  It was just after nine when Brooklyn’s phone buzzed. She and Sam were nearing the end of Sleepless in Seattle. It was Romantic Movie Wednesday at their place and her turn to pick the film. She glanced absently down at the new text message. “Remember when you said you were a science whiz? True or false?”

  She stared at the random question from Jessica and typed back a quick reply. “True. You conducting a chemistry experiment over in the Village?”

  “Something like that. Busy?”

  She shot a look at Samantha across from her on the coach and Meg Ryan on the screen.

  “Not overly. Why?”

  “Fifteen-year-old neighbor and her crazy-hard bio homework.”

  “What do you need?”

  “HELP. Cellular osmosis and diffusion. Not going well.”

  She thought it over and considered how much time was left on the film. “Give me thirty minutes.” Who said she couldn’t squeeze in both cinema and science? She was a girl of many hats.

  When Brooklyn arrived at Jessica’s apartment, she found her and a teenager huddled over a series of worksheets like cavemen trying to understand fire. The neighbor, Ashton, was a nice-enough kid who seemed grateful for the help. Jessica looked even more so. Her eyes communicated a silent thank you. But it was clear from the concern on her face that a lot more was going on here.

  She took a seat at the bistro table off the kitchen and surveyed the first worksheet a few moments. “Okay. It’s been awhile, but essentially, we’re just describing how osmosis happens in a series of steps. See?”

  Ashton tossed Jessica a look. “She’s good.”

  “Told you.”

  Brooklyn pointed to the worksheet. “So this arrow is asking about the Law of Mass Action? Do you know what that is?”

  Jessica looked to Ashton, who gave it a shot. “I think it has to do with dynamic equilibrium.”

  Brooklyn smiled, which made Ashton smile. “Smart neighbor you got here, Jess. Yes, let’s run with that idea.”

  Ashton pulled up a chair and they got to work. Brooklyn calmly explained concepts, while Ashton helped fill in the blanks. Turned out she was a really bright kid, and likable too. Forty-five minutes later, they were finished, and Brooklyn was pretty confident they’d aced the assignments.

  “Now why can’t my biology teacher just explain it that way? It would save me a lot of time.”

  Brooklyn smiled. “Not as cool as me.”

  Ashton laughed. “Clearly. So you guys are friends?” She glanced from Brooklyn to Jessica.

  “We are,” Jessica answered, meeting Brooklyn’s eyes. They stared at each other a moment as Ashton looked on, picking up on something.

  She grinned. “Ah. Got it.” She stood. “Now that my homework is complete, thanks to you nice people, I’m going to grab a shower. That okay?”

  Jessica nodded. “Of course. You know the way. Feel free to borrow whatever you need from my dresser.”

  Ashton grabbed her backpack. “I got a few things with me. I just might need a toothbrush and something to sleep in, and I’m good.”

  “Medicine cabinet on the right and the third drawer down in my dresser.”

  “Thanks,” she said, this time quite seriously.

  The casual disappeared from Jessica’s face. “Anytime. You know that.”

  Ashton nodded a few times and disappeared down the hall.

  And then they were alone.

  “Everything okay?” Brooklyn asked as Jessica rounded the island.

  “Not exactly. Can I get you a glass of wine? You deserve it after the superwoman turn you did tonight.”

  “Love one. Wanna tell me about it?”

  Jessica poured them a couple of glasses, and they adjourned to the couch where she explained the circumstances she’d come home to.

  “Sounds like you did the right thing. She knows she can trust you now, but you’ve also got license to intervene on her behalf, which you most definitely need to do. It’s one thing when she’s passively drunk in a hallway, and another when she’s raging and throwing her daughter out.”

  “Right. Ashton’s the kind of kid who puts on a brave face. I just want her to know that she doesn’t have to do that with me.”

  Brooklyn could identify. It’s what she’d done her whole life. “I think it’s going to take time. But she sees the good in you. That’s step one.”

  Jessica’s eyes sparked understanding and she interlaced her fingers with Brooklyn’s across the top of the couch. “And what about you? What do you need from me?”

  Brooklyn stared at their hands. And here we go.

  She had a choice. She could face this thing with Jessica here and now, or kill it forever. Brooklyn knew what she wanted, but it wasn’t as easy as simply reaching out and taking it. It never had been. But life was about growing and changing, she reminded herself. With change came improvement. So it was time she changed her bad habits and tried on a little courage.

  She took a deep breath and asked Jessica for what she truly needed. “Time. I think I need us to go slow. And maybe a little bit of the control.”

  “Hence the disappearing act the other day?”

  “Right. I guess you could say I freaked out a little.”

  “Because?”

  She tilted her head as she tried to figure out how to explain. “It was a lot. Jess, I can do casual all day. I have a great reputation for casual. Ask the lesbian population of New Y
ork City.” She attempted a smile, but it didn’t take because the next part was somehow harder to admit. “But here’s the catch, and it always has been. When things turn serious, the way they felt between us the other morning, my defense mechanisms kick in and tell me to get the hell out of there. It’s childish, and probably counterproductive to me ever being emotionally mature, but it’s who I am. I don’t let a lot of people in. I just don’t.”

  And that’s when Jessica got it.

  Brooklyn wasn’t just concerned about their conflicting jobs, which was a big-enough obstacle on its own, but she was also fearful of the emotions that came with a real relationship. And really, if you thought about her life and the revolving door of her early years, it made a lot of sense.

  So she could do what Brooklyn asked.

  In fact, it wasn’t such a bad idea anyway. “You know, if I’m being honest, I like the idea of taking things slow, seeing what this is. I think we agree that ours isn’t the most ideal scenario.”

  “It’s not,” Brooklyn pointed out emphatically. “It’s the opposite of ideal.”

  “Okay. So, let’s not go crazy just yet.”

  Brooklyn took another deep breath and nodded a few extra times. “Okay. No reason to go crazy.”

  Jessica touched her cheek. “You drive me a little crazy, but in a good way.”

  Brooklyn grinned playfully. “So…I’m in charge? Of the pace?”

  Jessica’s stomach flip-flopped at how cute she looked when she said it. She laughed, shook her head, and studied the ceiling, wondering what she was getting herself into here. “Sure. For whatever time you need, you can be in charge.”

  “Super dangerous of you. Walk me to the door?”

  Her spirits dropped. “You have to leave? But I like you here.”

  “Unfortunately, I do. I work tomorrow, you see.” She led the way to the door and Jessica followed. “But I plan to see you soon, either in cut-throat competition for clients or, you know, to do a little of this, which is important.” Brooklyn stepped in and kissed her softly. And she felt the tingles ripple through her as she kissed Brooklyn back. She was learning to expect them, the tingles, but that didn’t seem to detract from their overall effect, which was shockingly dominant. Her arms, her legs, and more warmed in the most wondrous way when Brooklyn was close to her like this.

  Brooklyn took a step back, and they stared at each other for one powerful moment. They’d kissed before. Passionately. With a kind of abandon. But this kiss had been different. Slower. Less hurried. It felt like a promise of things to come, and the understanding of that hung in the air between them in a kind of glow.

  This was real.

  And that’s when it occurred to Jessica in specifics. They would have time in the future for more kisses in doorways and coffee in coffee shops and stolen smiles across lobbies, if she played her cards right. And she wanted to.

  “’Night, Jess.” Brooklyn said in a soft voice that communicated she was looking forward to those things too.

  “Yeah.” She smiled. “’Night.”

  *

  Karina Coleman stared at Jessica blankly from the doorstep of her apartment, blinking several times to, no doubt, clear her head. “I’m sorry. What do you want to talk about?” she asked in annoyance.

  Jessica’s normally glamorous neighbor was anything but this morning. Her bleached-blond hair hung in limp sections, and her typically perfect makeup was smudged in dark rings under her eyes. Hangovers had a way of stripping the glitz right out of a person, and in Karina’s case it wasn’t pretty.

  “Ashton, actually.”

  Karina glanced behind her, pulling her kimono tighter around her body as if trying to connect the dots. “I think she’s in her room.”

  “She’s not, actually. She’s at school now, wearing jeans from yesterday, a shirt I let her borrow, and lunch money that I gave her because you kicked her out of the apartment last night.”

  Karina took a minute with that. “I didn’t do that. I wouldn’t have kicked her out. That’s insane. Don’t say things like that to me about my own daughter.”

  “But you did. You were drinking last night, Karina. Which is why you’re hungover now. Ashton stayed at my place and left for school not too long ago. I’m here because I’m concerned for her well-being. She’s too young to be on her own. She needs a responsible adult looking out for her.”

  “Ashton’s a smart girl. She does just fine. I think I know my daughter.”

  “Then you know how scared she was last night, not just for herself, but for you. She’s a kid, and this is too much for her to deal with on her own.”

  “So you’re here to what? Threaten me? Try to take my daughter?”

  “Absolutely not. You’re her mother. Helping Ashton means helping you.”

  Karina’s expression seemed to soften at that, point taken. “It’s just been a rough week, you know? You’ve never had a rough week?”

  “Oh, yes. I definitely have. But I’m wondering if it’s more than that because weeks have come and gone. Months even, and things only seem to be getting more serious. I made some calls and got the number of a great alcohol counselor. It could make a big difference. For you and for Ashton.” She handed her the slip of paper.

  Karina scratched her head absently and stared at the number. “Maybe.” A pause. “She really stayed with you last night?

  Jessica nodded.

  “I’ll think it over, okay? But I’m not like some alcoholic.” She looked back into her apartment in confusion. “Thanks for letting her stay with you. It won’t be a problem in the future.” She went to shut the door, but Jessica stopped it abruptly with her hand.

  “Before I go, I need you to understand that I’ll do whatever I have to do in order to make sure Ashton is safe and all right.”

  They locked eyes for several uncomfortable moments. Finally, Karina nodded and the door closed.

  Jessica stared, not knowing how successful the conversation had been, but it was a step in the right direction.

  *

  “Lucky Rabbit’s Candy?” Mallory asked.

  Hunter swiveled her laptop to face the table. “New logo and a full-page ad that will hit Time Out New York next month. I’m also working with them on a web redesign for their product page. We meet again Tuesday.”

  “Love it. Great use of color on the lower half,” Samantha murmured as she studied the ad layout on the screen.

  It was their weekly company meeting. Amidst coffee and blueberry muffins from Lulu’s downstairs, the four sat around the conference table catching one another up on the state of their clients.

  As always, Mallory kept them moving. “Evolution Boutique?”

  Brooklyn consulted her notes. “Uh, we started their Internet push last week. We supervised a series of online giveaways that went well, and I think Sam is tracking the results.”

  Samantha took the reins. “They did okay. The numbers from the push that actually culminated in sales, however, were a little lower than we’d hoped. I think it’s going to be a process, and the client is aware of that and onboard for the long game.”

  “Perfect. It’s a step in the right direction.” Mallory tic-tacked away on her laptop, taking down all the updates from the meeting. Later that afternoon, as she did every week, she’d send them each a full report in copious detail via e-mail. She turned to Brooklyn. “What about Foster? I was going over the product descriptions for the new summer drinks. Are you thinking outdoors for the TV spot? Fun-in-the-sun kind of thing?”

  “If we have to,” Brooklyn said. “It’s kind of obvious, but I think it might be what Foster wants. In my opinion, it would be smarter of us to give Foster what they don’t know they want.”

  Mallory nodded, clearly in thought. “We can assume The Lennox Group is going to go with something youthful. A beach party, some sort of luau. They’re not that hard to predict.”

  “Right. So what if we pivot on that and capture summer, but do it with a twist of elegance? Hear me out.” She s
tudied their faces. Hunter seemed intrigued. Samantha and Mallory looked at her with guarded interest. “I’m thinking an outdoor wedding. Simple. Beautiful. Maybe a gazebo. The toast is heartfelt, the couple’s in love. They raise their drinks, but instead of champagne, it’s Foster’s Pear Pinot Grigio. People are dancing under the stars. It’s every girl’s fantasy, the picturesque wedding. And who are these drinks geared to? Women.”

  Mallory sat back, smiling. “You’re saying we should summer-romance it.”

  “It fits,” Sam pointed out. “These drinks are light, simple. They’re happy drinks. People in love are happy.”

  “I, for one, vote yes,” Hunter said, closing her laptop. “I never would have come up with it, but I love it.”

  “Let’s just hope Foster does,” Brooklyn said. “I’ll get more details from them this week and then you, me, and your computer?”

  Hunter nodded. “It’s a date.”

  “Anything else?” Mallory asked. They’d come to the end of the detailed agenda she’d passed out.

  “That’s all I got,” Hunter said.

  “Me too,” Samantha said. Everyone began to pack up, intent on heading back to their individual projects. They had clients to call, meetings to make.

  Brooklyn knew it was now or never. She stood. “Um. Before we all disperse, I’d like to take Friday as a personal day, if that’s all right with everyone.”

  Mallory glanced up and seemed to check the calendar in her brain. “I don’t think we have anything major on Friday. We’re good.”

  Samantha scrunched up her forehead. “You just need a down day? Are you burning the candle at both ends?”

  “Actually, no. I was thinking about visiting Connecticut this weekend. Meeting Cynthia.”

  Silence.

  Brooklyn looked from one of them to the other. “It’s not like someone died. You can say something.”

  Mallory smiled, came around the table, and pulled her into a hug. “I’m happy for you. This is a big step.”

  “Major.” Samantha smiled. “Are you sure?”

  “Yeah.” Brooklyn nodded. “I’ve been thinking about it a lot. About her. And I’d like the chance to meet her. I called her this morning, and this weekend is apparently a good one for her and her family. She’s actually really excited, which is, you know, maybe a good sign.”