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If there was one thing Abigail knew, it was that the best thing to do after a breakup was get right back into the dating game, and she was determined to help Stephanie realize that.
(For purely selfless reasons of course, absolutely nothing to do with the look Stephanie had given her sitting on the Bistro couches the day she found out about the breakup or the feelings it stirred up within her that she knew could never be reciprocated.)
And so, she had decided to work a little Merriwick Magic. Meeting Cassie and Martha for brunch had given her the perfect opportunity, and now she was waiting on a couch with a magazine for her plan to come to fruition.
Except it didn’t. Abigail watched in exasperation as the man left and Stephanie went to clear a table, getting up and walking over to her. “What are you doing?”
Stephanie gave her a confused look. “Uh, working?”
Abigail barely refrained from rolling her eyes. “That guy was interested in you.”
“Who? What?” Stephanie spluttered.
“You couldn’t tell by the way he was looking at you?” Exasperation was clear in Abigail’s voice.
Stephanie looked at her strangely. “Uh, he was barely looking at me.”
“So, you’re not going to do anything about it?” Abigail pushed in a last-ditch effort to make her plan work.
“Abigail,” Stephanie’s voice was part affection, part exasperation. “Just because a man speaks to a woman, doesn’t mean he’s flirting with her.”
“Well that’s how it works for me,” Abigail responded to save face.
Stephanie chuckled incredulously. “Sure, it is. Besides, I went the lawyer route the first time Ben and I broke up, I don’t exactly feel like repeating past mistakes.”
“Yeah, lawyers aren’t exactly the epitome of good people,” Abigail muttered, sensing something else was off with her plan. “Okay, forget the lawyer, let’s say you and I grab a drink at the brewery tonight.”
Stephanie perked up. “Sounds good to me. Meet at seven?”
Abigail flashed her a brilliant smile. “Perfect.”
Abigail entered the brewery just after seven, easily spotting Stephanie at a table just past the bar. “Hey, sorry I’m late,” she said as she sat down. “Annoying last-minute customer.” Technically it wasn’t a lie, she did have a last-minute customer, but it was her deliberation on whether to try and set Stephanie up again that had actually made her late.
Stephanie looked up from her phone, face lighting up as Abigail joined her. “No worries, you know I get how that is,” she replied with a giggle. “So,” she gave Abigail a serious look. “Bottle or pitcher?”
The bottle of wine was half empty and while not drunk, Abigail felt lighter as she giggled at something Stephanie had just said. Something caught her eye and she leaned in closer to Stephanie. “I do believe I see my cousin and Sam over there.”
Stephanie followed her gaze. “You sure do. They given up any details about the wedding yet?”
Abigail shook her head. “I’m not sure they’ve discussed anything pertaining to it yet.”
“Well, I’m sure whatever they end up doing will be very romantic.” Stephanie eyed Abigail. “Whatever they decide though, you’ll save me a dance, right?”
Abigail felt her breath hitch. They were friends, they had danced together before, this didn’t mean anything. “You know I will,” she replied, hoping that her face wouldn’t give her thoughts away.
If it did, Stephanie didn’t seem to notice. “Good, I might just have to hog you that evening.”
Abigail raised an eyebrow. “Not that I don’t love dancing with you, but I thought you planned on getting back in the dating game?”
Something that Abigail had never seen before flashed in Stephanie’s eyes, but was gone too quick for her to figure out. “At some point,” she said slowly. “But I’m not sure when that will be and if I know Cassie, the wedding will come sooner than we think.” Abigail hummed in agreement. “What about you?” Stephanie suddenly asked.
Abigail choked on the sip of wine she had just taken. “What about me?” She coughed.
“You ever think about finding someone to actually settle down with instead of just going on a couple dates and then moving on?”
Abigail was suddenly aware of how close Stephanie was, both literally and metaphorically. They had grown closer since Halloween and now, with Stephanie only inches from her, she was more conscious of her feelings than ever. “Sometimes, I’m just not sure it’s in the cards for me,” she admitted.
Stephanie clasped Abigail’s hand. “Hey, I’m sure you’ll find someone, maybe they’re even closer than you think.”
“Maybe so,” Abigail said quietly, picking up her glass again. Stephanie had no idea how right she was.
Abigail had gotten home first and was in the kitchen doing the dishes when Cassie came in. “So, how was your date with Sam?” She asked, drying her hands on a towel.
“It was good,” Cassie replied simply, putting her purse down.
That was it? “What did you guys talk about?” Abigail pressed, trying to get more detail.
Cassie raised an eyebrow. “Um, date things?”
Abigail tried again, “so, nothing special?”
Cassie just shook her hear. “No, we had a really nice time just being together.”
Abigail resisted the urge to roll her eyes at the boringness of it all. “Well if that’s all you want out of life,” she stated.
Cassie gave her a reprimanding look. “Sometimes that’s all you need.” A somewhat sly smile crossed her face. “Enough about that though, I must say you and Stephanie looked quite cozy tonight.”
Abigail froze for a second before quickly regaining composure. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” She moved to continue with the dishes to make it clear that this wasn’t a conversation she was about to have.
“Whatever you say,” Cassie said mysteriously. “Just know that things aren’t always the way you perceive them.” She left the kitchen, leaving Abigail alone with the dishes and her thoughts.
Thankfully, Cassie had seemed to have dropped the topic of Abigail and Stephanie’s relationship since their conversation in the kitchen, something Abigail couldn’t help but feel somewhat relieved by as the two enjoyed their weekly lunch together at the Bistro a couple of days later.
Abigail had been mildly teasing Cassie about Sam over cheesecake when Stephanie approached their table. “If you ladies need anything else, Jennifer will take care of you, I’ve got to run some errands.”
Cassie gave her a curious look. “Errands? In the middle of the workday?”
“Yeah, one of the kitchen staff dropped a flat of eggs so I’m off to replace them,” Stephanie grimaced. She turned to Abigail. “We still on for tonight?”
“Of course,” Abigail smiled at Stephanie, not missing the look Cassie shot them.
“Good,” Stephanie smiled back. “I’ll see you later.” She headed off.
Abigail turned on Cassie. “What?”
“Plans again tonight? Since when do you two hang out this often?” Cassie questioned, a look on her face that Abigail could only describe as mischievous.
“Uh, since she and Ben broke up?” Abigail gave Cassie a strange look, hoping that she would drop it. “Why does it matter?”
“It doesn’t, I just think you should take time to consider all possibilities before you brush them off is all.” Cassie gave her a knowing look. “Oftentimes the impossible is actually the probable.”
Abigail gave Cassie another look. “No offense, Cassie, but sometimes you really don’t know what you’re talking about.”
Cassie just smile secretively in response. “Whatever you say.”
Abigail looked down, picking at her long-forgotten cheesecake, stomach clenching as she absorbed Cassie’s words. Was she really that obvious?
Abigail swallowed her nerves as she arrived at the brewery that evening. Cassie was more observant than most, she reasoned with herself, there’s no way Stephanie had figured anything out, she could relax and enjoy a nice evening with her friend.
Stephanie smiled brightly as Abigail sat down. “Hey you,” she greeted her. “I ordered us a couple of beers for first round, that okay?”
“Yeah, that sounds great,” Abigail smiled somewhat distractedly, brushing her hair out of her face before picking up her glass.
Stephanie gave her a sympathetic look. “Long day?”
“Something like that,” Abigail took a sip of her beer. “How was your day?”
“Better now.” Stephanie gave Abigail a soft smile.
The two settled into easy conversation for a while, enjoying their drinks and the music playing in the background.
“Dance with me,” Stephanie said suddenly.
Abigail choked on her drink. “What?” She spluttered.
“Dance with me,” Stephanie repeated, standing and grabbing Abigail’s arm, dragging her up with her and towards the dance floor. Still caught somewhat off guard, Abigail was slightly stiff at first until Stephanie nudged her, saying, “come on, just let loose,” smile wide on her face.
“Challenge accepted,” Abigail grinned, taking the lead.
What neither of them had noticed, was the presence of Sam and Cassie on the other end of the floor.
“What’s going on with those two?” Sam asked, watching as Abigail dipped a laughing Stephanie, smiling brightly.
Cassie followed his gaze, watching the pair for a second. “I’m sure whatever it is will be made clear soon,” she said in her mysterious, knowing way.
“Thank you for indulging me,” Stephanie said to Abigail as they made their way back to their table a while later.
“Of course,” Abigail shot her a smile. “It was fun.” She watched as Stephanie’s expression became more somber. “Hey, what’s going on?”
“Can I ask you something?” Stephanie seemed somewhat nervous. Abigail just nodded. “What’s going on with us?”
Abigail’s stomach dropped. “In what way do you mean that?”
“I mean if that one of us were male, I don’t think either of us would hesitate to call this a date. You know; drinks, dancing, being in close proximity.” As if to prove her point, Stephanie moved her hand the less than an inch it took to be able to intertwine it with Abigail’s.
Suddenly the brewery felt much too crowded, far too public. “Why don’t we take this elsewhere?” Abigail suggested, already opening her purse and tossing a couple bills on the table.
Stephanie looked at Abigail uncertain, but followed suit, rising and putting her jacket on. She followed her out the door and down the street. They walked in silence for a moment before Stephanie realized where they were heading. “Why the gardens?” She asked as they wandered through the greenery.
“They’re very quiet at night,” Abigail explained. “And yet still so beautiful.” She ran her index finger over the edge of a rose petal.
“Abigail, what I said, I,” Stephanie started before getting cut off by Abigail.
“Why is it that you asked that?” Abigail didn’t look up from the rose as she spoke.
“I, uh, I guess it’s just that these last couple weeks have felt,” Stephanie paused, looking for the right word. “Different.”
Abigail finally turned to look at Stephanie. “I guess they have.” Abigail bit her lip. “Do you find that a bad thing?”
“No,” Stephanie shook her head. “In fact, I’ve found it rather nice.”
Abigail felt her breath catch in her throat. She moved closer to Stephanie. “So, how do you want things to be from here on?”
“Depends,” Stephanie answered after a moment of pondering. “How do you feel about all this?”
Abigail’s instinct remained protecting her heart. “What are you offering?”
“That doesn’t answer my question,” Stephanie pointed out, refraining from rolling her eyes.
“You avoided my question first,” Abigail calmly threw back.
Stephanie chuckled humourlessly, “I guess I did.” She sighed. “I suppose I should explain myself.”
“That’s usually a good place to start.” Abigail motioned towards a bench and the pair sat down.
“If I’m being honest,” Stephanie started. “Things with Ben fizzled out long before we actually broke up. When I said I was fine a few days ago I really did mean it, I was never heartbroken over losing Ben, I was just mourning the future that wasn’t to be.”
“A stable relationship, marriage, maybe even a family,” Abigail realized.
Stephanie nodded. “You know how much I’ve always wanted that,” she smiled wanly.
“There’s something else bothering you,” Abigail sensed.
Stephanie sighed once more. “I told Martha that I redid the Bistro as a way of distracting myself from the breakup, that’s only half the truth.”
“Then what’s the full truth?” Abigail asked softly, ignoring the pang in her heart.
“That I was also trying to distract myself from newfound feelings, ones that I thought would never be returned.” Stephanie’s voice was hardly more than a whisper.
“You know it’s funny,” it was Abigail’s turn to chuckle humourlessly as she absorbed Stephanie’s words. “I told a friend recently that the best thing to do to get over a breakup is to get right back up on the horse. I do believe that, but I admittedly had other reasons for saying that.”
“Other reasons?” Stephanie echoed.
“It’s easier to ignore one’s feelings if the object of them isn’t obtainable,” Abigail explained.
“Oh,” was all Stephanie could say. The pair fell into silence.
“The stars really are beautiful tonight,” Abigail murmured what felt like an eternity later, looking up. “You know my mother used to tell me about how each and every one of them told a story.”
Stephanie followed her gaze up to the sky. “I think that sounds wonderful.” She looked to Abigail. “Maybe you could tell me one?”
Abigail thought about it for a few seconds before pointing up at the sky. “See that brighter star right up there?” Stephanie nodded. “It tells the story of two women, friends who both felt something more, but were too scared to tell the other because they thought their feelings wouldn’t be returned.”
“How does the story end?” Stephanie breathed, butterflies suddenly taking up residence in her stomach.
“They find themselves alone in a beautiful garden where both of their feelings are revealed, and then,” Abigail paused.
“And then?” Stephanie prompted.
Abigail smiled softly. “And then, as all good stories end, a kiss.”
The butterflies swarmed. “A kiss?” Stephanie’s voice raised in pitch.
Abigail met Stephanie’s eyes with her own, a look in them Stephanie had never seen before. “A kiss,” she repeated before leaning in and bringing their lips together.
Stephanie responded immediately, moving her lips with Abigail’s, allowing her entry when she sought permission with her tongue. Finally, air became an issue and Stephanie pulled back, breathlessly resting her forehead against Abigail’s. “So, you’ll stop trying to set me up then?” She asked wryly once she’d caught her breath.
Abigail laughed, “seems there was never any point.”
“Not really, no,” Stephanie laughed along with Abigail. “So, what happens now?”
“Well, if you’re amendable, I walk you home, leave you with a goodnight kiss, and then tomorrow I take you on a proper date.” Abigail tucked a lock of stray hair behind Stephanie’s ear as she spoke.
“I think I like the sound of that.” Stephanie smiled lovingly at Abigail, leaning in for another kiss, stars twinkling above them.
A familiar feeling came over Abigail as she worked on a display the next morning. “Hello Stephanie.” She turned to greet the woman in question.
“Oh hey,” Stephanie smiled. “Do you have any chrysanthemums? I’m going to put them on the tables at the Bistro.”
“Ooh, that’ll make the place look bright and romantic.” Abigail rested a hand on Stephanie’s arm as they moved towards the counter.
“Ah well, I guess I’m just in a bright and romantic mood,” Stephanie shrugged lightly, squeezing Abigail’s wrist.
“They’re in the back.” Abigail returned the squeeze to Stephanie’s arm before making her way around the counter.
“Hurry back,” Stephanie said, unable to stop the lovesick grin on her face.
Abigail returned a moment later, bouquet in hand. “And there’s plenty more where that came from if you need anymore.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.” Stephanie accepted the bouquet. “How much do I owe you?”
“Hmm, well that particular bouquet is part of the girlfriend discount,” Abigail responded, trademark secretive grin on her face.
Stephanie raised an eyebrow. “Girlfriend discount?”
Abigail nodded. “All those flowers will cost you is a kiss.”
Stephanie giggled, “well, I think I can do that.” She leaned across the counter to kiss Abigail soundly. “And don’t forget the tip.” She gave Abigail another quick peck.
“Oh yes, that’s the most important part,” Abigail agreed with mock gravity.
“We still on for tonight?” Stephanie asked with another giggle.
“I’ll pick you up at seven,” Abigail confirmed.
“Perfect.” Stephanie picked up the bouquet. “Until then, thank you for these.” She smelled the flowers appreciatively, turning to leave.
“What? No kiss goodbye?” Abigail said teasingly.
Stephanie turned back to look at Abigail. “Let’s see how tonight goes, maybe there’ll be an extra special goodnight kiss for you after.” She winked at a somewhat stunned Abigail before making her way out of the shop.
Abigail shook her head fondly as she watched Stephanie cross the road back to the Bistro. For all that she was a Merriwick, Stephanie seemed to never run out of ways to surprise her.
Something they both hoped would stay that way.