Page 25 of Spicy Sapphic Christmas

“Siena would have made sure the place was checked out,” Piper said, unconcerned as always.

“It never hurts to be careful.” Bunny tried to rein in her frustration, but she’d had to skip her morning run for this breakfast meeting and her patience had already worn thin. “If you’d been careful with Haylee and let me do a check on her it would’ve saved us all a ton of pain.”

“Jesus, Bunny.” Piper stopped walking, her face crumbled and her eyes filled with unshed tears.

“Shit, I’m sorry.” Bunny stopped and turned back to face Piper. “My stupid mouth ran away from me again. You know none of that was your fault. I didn’t mean it that way.”

“It sounded like you did.”

“I’m a jerk. I’m so sorry. You’re my best friend, and seeing you get hurt is kind of a trigger for me.” Bunny’s heart was in her throat as guilt washed through her. She’d already fucked up and it wasn’t even nine in the morning yet.

“No shit.” Piper laughed and ran fingers beneath her eyes checking that no tears had managed to escape.

“Siena should know better than to let me talk to anyone without a run, a workout, and some damn coffee.”

“You should put it on a shirt and sell it at concerts.” Piper laughed, and Bunny’s breath came a little easier. She hated hurting people, but to hurt Piper made her hate herself. She never wanted to hurt her friend.

“That’s actually not a bad idea.” Bunny smiled, not quite up to laughing yet but much further along with Piper at her side.

She hadn’t meant to bring up Haylee, but Piper’s new interest in Jo had brought that unpleasant issue to the forefront of hermind again. And unpleasant was being very generous, especially with the mood she found herself in this morning.

“Bunny, Piper.” Siena stood as the hostess led them toward the table where Siena had been sitting.

“Hey, Siena.” Bunny forced a smile and a quick hug before sliding into a chair across from her.

“Morning.” Piper lingered in their manager’s embrace for a moment longer, and the two exchanged air kisses before returning to their seats, Siena across from Bunny and Piper beside her.

“Do I need to know?” Siena’s voice lowered as she leaned toward the two of them, forearms resting on the white cotton tablecloth. It wasn’t the first time Bunny had noticed Siena’s cleavage. She didn’t leer or linger. She had never been that person, but it had always amazed her how confident Siena seemed in her own skin. Bunny could fake confidence when she hid behind the music and her costume, but to willingly wear tight and revealing clothes when she wasn’t being forced to was a world she didn’t understand. And Piper had tried to get her to on more than one occasion.

“She didn’t get time for her run this morning. So she’s in an extra-pleasant mood,” Piper supplied with a sarcastic lilt and a smile that teased at the line of mocking Bunny. But Bunny supposed she deserved that one, after the whole Haylee comment.

“Oh, I thought I had made this meeting late enough.”

“You did.” Piper chuckled a little. “But Sleeping Beauty over here snoozed the alarm a few too many times, forgetting we were meeting this morning.”

“Ah.” Siena sat back and flipped open the menu. “Self-inflicted then. I refuse to feel bad.”

“Good.” Piper chuckled, and Siena joined in.

“You both suck.” Bunny smiled despite herself. They knew her too well. Nothing would get her out of her mood faster than their light teasing. They both knew where the line was, and neither dared to cross it. The trust in each other reminded Bunny of why they were there.

“Siena, if you want to ask for nude shots, you’re definitely going about it the wrong way. Despite the fancy restaurant, I expect to be seduced for that.” Bunny raised an eyebrow at Siena, making sure that the message was clear.

“Didn’t get that one past you, huh?” Siena closed her menu and placed it on the table in front of her. “Let’s order first, and we can discuss it over coffee.”

Bunny could hold her own with the way things worked, but today certainly pushed her closer to cracking than it should have. She had snoozed the alarm too many times because her frustration during the night had her tossing and turning, even after she had made herself come with memories of Bea’s fingers inside of her—several times.

Karaoke earlier in the week had continually played in her mind, and she had slept like shit every night since. Bea’s flowery perfume filled her senses even when she wasn’t around.

She had enjoyed seeing Jo and Piper flirting and laughing. Piper’s energy had been off the charts since she had met Jo, and it felt so good seeing her best friend happy, not just energized.

But her own enjoyment of the evening had been marred by the strain between her and Bea. She couldn’t blame Bea entirely, the awkwardness had been a two-way street. What made it worse was her own body’s determination to remember the feel of Bea’s fingers inside her, the pressure of her palm against her clit. And no matter how much she had drunk, she couldn’t get the taste of Bea off her lips.

By the time the food arrived, Bunny was on her second cup of coffee and feeling much more like herself. The food smelledamazing, and she relaxed into her chair as she picked up her cutlery.

“I want you to perform over Christmas for me,” Siena said before she put a forkful of omelet into her mouth.

Bunny had always appreciated Siena’s ability to get directly to the point when the work conversation started.

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