Page 3 of She’ll Steal Your Heart
“It was just the two of us.” Lauren kept her gaze straight ahead as she walked. “Our mom died when I was fifteen and Craig was ten, and neither of us knew our dad.”
Mia’s life hadn’t been all sunshine and rainbows, but she’d never buried anyone in her immediate family, and she was older than Lauren, who was entirely too young to have experienced so much loss, especially a younger sibling. “Does that mean you’re back in Brooklyn to stay?”
Lauren gave her a small smile. “I sure hope so, but it will depend on how things play out next week. In the meantime, our fan weekend should be just the distraction I need.”
“Thank goodness for that.” Mia had been a little bit hesitant about this weekend, afraid she wouldn’t fit in. She wouldn’t exactly classify herself as a “fangirl,” and she was at least ten years older than the rest of the women in their group, who all seemed to be in their twenties, but she was short on friends since the divorce.
She and Kristin had met in law school, and their social circles consisted almost entirely of fellow lawyers, so when Mia walked away from the law—and her wife—their friends had had to take sides, and unfortunately for Mia, most of them had chosen Kristin. The few times she’d gotten together with them since the divorce had been awkward.
Apparently, Mia’s friends had had more in common with her career than with her as a person. So here she was, about to spend the weekend with a group of online friends who’d been her lifeline this year. Hopefully it would be fun, a new direction for her life.
She and Lauren approached the front of the building where their Airbnb was located. Mia stepped forward to enter the code Ashleigh had given them, and then she motioned Lauren ahead of her into the entrance hall.
“Looks like we’re on the third floor,” Lauren said, leading the way up the stairs. “Have you met anyone else from the group before?”
“No,” Mia said. “You?”
Lauren shook her head. “I feel like I’ve been chatting with you all online forever. I can’t wait to meet everyone.”
“See who looks like their photos?” Mia quipped as they turned the corner at the landing and kept climbing toward the third floor.
Lauren looked over her shoulder with a smile. “I think I’ve seen enough selfies of everyone to have a pretty good idea, but it’s still different meeting someone in person. Like, your voice is different than I was expecting…a little deeper. Isn’t it funny how we’ve chatted for years and never knew the sound of each other’s voice?”
“It is, and I’ve heard that before about my voice,” Mia said. “I’m told it made me more intimidating in the courtroom.”
“I bet you were pretty badass in court.” Lauren stopped in front of the door to apartment 3B and knocked. There was no response. “Ash and Fatima must still be at the grocery store.”
“Probably,” Mia agreed.
Lauren entered the code for the door and let them inside. The studio apartment looked much as it had on the Airbnb listing, with dark-paneled walls, a full-sized bed in back, and a small galley kitchen. Lauren dropped her bags against the wall and wandered the space, hands in the pockets of her jeans.
Mia sat on the couch. “You’re from Brooklyn, right?”
“Born and raised,” Lauren confirmed.
“Well, I’m glad you’re back. Why did you move to Rhode Island last year?”
Lauren flinched. “Long story.”
“We’ve got time.” Mia gestured to the empty apartment.
Lauren shook her head, her expression pinched. She almost looked…frightened. Or was it wary? “A story for another day.”
“Sure.” Mia sat back, startled by Lauren’s response.
An uncomfortable silence spread between them. Before Mia could decide what to say, the door to the apartment swung open. Ashleigh stepped inside, followed by Fatima, both of them weighed down with brown paper shopping bags.
“Lauren!” Ashleigh put down her bags and wrapped Lauren in a hug that lifted her feet right off the floor. Once she’d released her, she turned toward Mia, hesitating just long enough to make Mia self-conscious again that she was too old, tooseriousfor this crowd, before pulling her into a hug as well. “Mia, it’s great to see you.”
“You too, Ashleigh.”
Fatima joined in for more hugs, and then Mia and Lauren helped them put away the groceries, which included a variety of alcoholic and nonalcoholic drink options for celebrating the newIn Her Defenseseason. They’d barely gotten the bags unpacked before there was a knock at the door and Sarah and Quinn entered the room.
Sarah was a tall Black woman, her natural hair pulled back from her face with a red band that matched the color of the font on her Clairantha T-shirt. Quinn had fair skin, and her light brown hair was buzzed on one side, falling to her chin on the other. Together, they made a striking couple.
Sometimes, it was hard for Mia to wrap her mind around the fact that she was single again, after having been with Kristin for eighteen years. Mia had thought she was partnered for life. She and Kristin had worked for the same law firm, both so dedicated to their jobs that they rarely made time to watch television or go out after work…even for a date.
Mia had suffered constant migraines from the stress. She and Kristin fought incessantly. Mia had beenmiserable. Then she’d landed in the ER with a bleeding ulcer, where a harried doctor had told her she was working herself into an early grave.
