Page 14 of Nothing Heals Me Like You Do
“How was last night? Did Sienna stay long at the shelter?” Rochelle asked.
“She and Darrel are already thick as thieves,” Justine said in between bites, gathering her courage. She checked her watch. If they were punctual, Sienna and Alexis would be here soon. “I took her to Min-ji’s after because we were both starving.” She’d found the discarded bag of Korean food on her kitchen floor this morning—Min-ji would be furious if she found out its fate.
“Oh.” Rochelle gave her a look. “And?”
“Things turned a little flirty and then, yeah, we went back to my place.”
“Things turned a little flirty?” Rita’s voice had shot up an octave.
“Did you sleep with her?” Rochelle cut in. “Did you sleep with Sienna Bright?”
“Yes,” Justine admitted.
“Oh my god.” Rita clasped her hands to her mouth as though Justine had just confessed she’d slept with her wife.
“I need to sit down for this.” Rochelle pulled up a chair.
“Shall I get us something stronger than tea?” Rita’s voice was still trembling.
“What happened?” Rochelle tilted her head and looked Justine in the eye. “I mean,how… did it happen?”
Instead of fetching booze, Rita sat next to them.
“We went to dinner. Had a few beers. You know what it’s like with Min-ji. She always acts like I’m such a big deal. Conjured up a special table for us out of nowhere. The food was out of this world. And Sienna is just… really nice and forward about what she wants.”
“Are you saying that she wanted you as a side with Min-ji’s food?” Rochelle asked.
“We just spent the night together, as two consenting adults who knew exactly what they were doing. There’s no need to make a big deal out of it. I just wanted you to know before she got here, because, well… you have that thing.” Justine waved her hand about. “Where you just know stuff about me without me having to say and I didn’t want the afternoon to be more awkward than it has to be.”
“But, Justine,” Rita said. “You slept with the actor who is playing your ex. Did that have something to do with it?”
“Of course not. Sienna’s just… I just had the hots for her.” And she for me, Justine thought, and wasn’t that the strangest thing of all for a movie star?
“You put the moves on her?” Rochelle said.
Justine picked up the rest of her sandwich. “Come to think of it, I think she hit on me. I was just playing, you know? Just having some fun after a long-ass day. But she went for it. And I didn’t say no.”
“Are you honestly claiming that Sienna Bright seduced you?” Rochelle could sound a touch less incredulous. “TheSienna Bright? Bobby Bright’s gorgeous, talented daughter who is, what? Twenty years younger than you?”
“Don’t act so surprised.” Although no longer that hungry, Justine took another bite of her sandwich.
“But I am surprised,” Rochelle said. “I’m baffled, frankly.”
Justine swallowed. “Because she’s young and hot and…” She pulled up one shoulder. “I’m not?”
“That, too.” Rochelle was nothing if not brutally honest, a quality Justine greatly appreciated—and had been the basis of their long friendship after a difficult break-up. “But mostly that it happened. Just like that. You only just met her and… I don’t know. I wasn’t expecting this.”
“Good for you.” Rita seemed to have recovered from the shock. “Now I definitely can’t wait to meet her.”
The bell rang.
Chapter8
Sienna was delighted to meet Rita and most of everyone’s energy seemed to be focused on the introduction of Rochelle’s wife, making Sienna’s greeting of Justine feel furtive and a little weird—like they hadn’t spent the previous night together. It was supposed to be a secret, of course, and Sienna had no problem with that.
In fact, over the course of the morning, she had decided that it would be for the best to move on as quickly as possible. Not to pretend it hadn’t happened—there was no need for that. It had been good fun and unexpectedly thrilling and Justine was interesting to be around, but Sienna didn’t want anything to jeopardize her performance in this movie. And the real work had yet to begin. Besides, she had to focus on Rochelle.
Like the day before, Rochelle took Sienna onto the porch so they could have a face-to-face conversation. Rita sat with them for the first half hour, but then gave them privacy.
