Page 10 of Life After

As they left the bar, Jen lay a hand against the small of Suzanne’s back. A smile twitched at the corners of Suzanne’s mouth, the idea of life moving forward quite pleasant this evening. Suzanne couldn’t say she would always feel that way, so confident and prepared, but she had a feeling Jen was going to make it very easy to enjoy herself as she looked to a different future.

“So, which way? I don’t really have my bearings around this area.” Jen stopped them on the pavement and turned to Suzanne. “And in case I forget to say it later, thank you for the perfect night.” Jen leaned in to kiss Suzanne’s cheek, but Suzanne turned her head and captured her lips. Jen didn’t pull away. Instead, her hand settled on Suzanne’s hip as she smiled against her mouth. When they did break apart, Jen’s beautiful eyes were a little darker than they had been before. “You’ve just turned perfect into exceptional.”

Suzanne reached out a hand and wiped her red lipstick from below Jen’s bottom lip. They studied one another, quite clearly a connection between them, and then Suzanne drew her hand back. “Come on. Let’s get out of here.”

Chapter 4

Jen embracedthe warmth of Suzanne’s house as she stepped over the threshold, appreciative of the amazing night she’d had. When she’d walked out of prison, Jen had no idea where her life would go, but this? Sitting in a beautiful woman’s home? No, no way. This hadn’t been anything close to her expectations whatsoever. Honestly, she was waiting for it to crash and burn before this night ended.

“Tea or coffee?”

Jen slid her boots off and turned to Suzanne. “Tea, please.”

She followed her into the kitchen—even more impressed than she had been when she’d arrived this afternoon—and rested against the huge counter along the back wall. Suzanne’s husband had certainly had taste. Though if Jen was being honest, every home looked incredible after the concrete cell she’d spent thirteen months confined to.

“So, do you only deliver for certain companies?” Suzanne glanced over her shoulder as she prepared their drinks.

“It depends on which courier the company chooses to use. Sometimes, it’s the same parcels for the same people; sometimes, it’s a new area altogether.”

“Do you enjoy it?”

Jen didn’t, but she couldn’t tell Suzanne why she was even working as a courier just yet. It would only ruin this night, and Jen really wanted to leave here tonight feeling positive about the future. It wouldn’t last, she would have to be honest eventually, but for now…she really needed this. Everything in her life had felt so hopeless since her release, and this was the first time she had felt remotely good about herself or…anythingfor that matter. “Yeah, I guess. It’s a job, and that’s the way I choose to look at it.”

“Fair enough.”

“So, you’re an interior designer.”

Suzanne turned with two cups and motioned towards the living room. Jen followed, briefly checking out her arse. “I am. Freelance.”

“Why freelance? Do you prefer the freedom and setting your own hours?” Jen quite fancied something similar in the future. So many people lived to work these days, but Jen… She wanted to grab life. Live it to the fullest. If this went further with Suzanne, she hoped she could be in a similar position one day.

“When John died, I decided to step away from working full time. I love what I do, but it wasn’t the same without him. So, freelance is where I decided to head. It’s…less intense, shall we say?”

“Can I ask what happened to your husband?” Jen didn’t want to push, but if they were going to have at least another date, she didn’t suppose it hurt to ask. “You can tell me to mind my own business, of course.”

Suzanne lowered herself to the couch, offering Jen the seat beside her. “John…liked a drink. He wasn’t an alcoholic, but he didn’t know when to stop at the end of a night out.” Suzanne lowered her eyes. “He’d been on a day out with friends to one of the horse racing meets down the road. I was at my brother’s when he got home. He called me to say he was going to take a shower, have something to eat, and sober himself up before I got home. He knew I didn’t enjoy seeing him drunk.”

Jen nodded slowly. “I see.”

“I came home to find him dead at the bottom of the stairs.”

Jen hadn’t known what to expect, but it wasn’t that. “Oh, God. I’m so sorry.”

“He’d fallen down them and broken his neck,” Suzanne explained, her voice void of any emotion. “I wondered if things would have been different had I been here, but they said he would have died instantly. That’s the only comfort I take from any of it. That he didn’t lie there suffering.”

“Fuck, Suzanne. That’s… I don’t know what to say.”

“You see why I can take or leave alcohol?”

Yeah, Jen could absolutely understand why Suzanne wasn’t fond of the stuff. It just ruined lives. Jen was all too familiar with that. It had ruined her own at one time. God, she hoped she could recover from her mistakes so she could do everything right the second time around. “Yeah.”

“It’s taken me a few years to come to terms with everything, but I am in an entirely different place now. You know, in case you wondered if I still struggled.”

“I think it’s only normal for grief to hit us unexpectedly. I don’t believe there is any timescale for coming to terms with something so dreadful. I’m also not scared of emotions.” Jen sipped her tea and smiled back at Suzanne. “We all handle things differently. I’m almost certain you probably handled your husband’s death far better than I handled my best friend’s.”

“There was a reason I felt a pull towards you, and I have to wonder if it’s because we’ve had similar experiences. I wouldn’teverflirt with someone on my doorstep, but I found myself doing it without realising. Then I found that I couldn’t stop because, in my mind, you enjoyed it just as much.” Suzanne palmed Jen’s thigh, sincerity in her eyes. “I could be entirely wrong, but I don’t think that I am.”

“Oh, you’re absolutely right. I did enjoy it. You’re gorgeous.” Jen smiled, lowering her hand to Suzanne’s. “And as for the similarities in grief, I feel the same way now that I know about your husband.”

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