Page 122 of Semantics

“It should be official, though, Vi.”

“Stella, for real… Your idea about the partnerships and how you suggested that we change up the deck is probably the main reason Asset invested in us. If you want to help us out on the side, you can do that whenever. I can’t guarantee we’ll take all of your advice, but I’ve learned my lesson now. I’ll at least listen to it.”

“Will you still argue with me?” Stella asked her with that smirk Violet loved.

“Oh, definitely. Then, we’ll go to my room for a break.” Violet winked. “You really want to sit in my work meetings sometimes?”

“I miss being part of things from the beginning. Cerebral is so big now. I still love it, I do, and it’s why I have my position and have a chance to be CRO soon, but I was thinking about how I liked it when we were small. I was thinking that if I invested, we could work out an arrangement that allowed me to participate and, I don’t know, help make some decisions or just be part of the process or something.”

“You can just do that if you want,” Violet said, smiling at her. “Invest your money in some other way.”

“What, my IRA? Boring.”

Violet laughed and replied, “Boring, but practical. You could also just save it.”

“Sure. But for what? An emergency? A trip? A bigger house that I don’t need?”

Violet moved into Stella’s lap, straddling her, and said, “Oh, I don’t know. I hope there aren’t any emergencies, but a trip sounds nice. I’m thinking about a beach, a chair in the sand, a cold drink that’s mostly sugar, and maybe a very nice hotel room close by where we could be naked and together.”

“Speaking of naked…”

Stella ran her hands up Violet’s thighs.

“You really wanted to invest in me? In our company?” Violet asked as she wrapped her arms around Stella’s neck.

“Yes, of course. I know you all haven’t made as much progress as you wanted to, but I’ve seen what you’ve got so far. With more money and a few more people, you’re going to be able to build even better and faster. I believe in it, Violet. I believe in you. I mean, you are the winner of the officially engraved plaque that I also left in the car.”

Violet smiled down at her and said, “How about this? If, for some reason, the money from Asset takes longer to drop into our account, I’ll talk to you about maybe investing enough to get us through the gap.”

“Okay. I can accept that.”

“And maybe you can save that money for a house that has at least two bedrooms.”

“Two?”

“Or three.”

“Why do I need a three-bedroom house, Violet?”

“You might not need one today, but you never know what you’ll need in the future.” Violet reached down for the zipper on her left side and lowered it. “You might find yourself with someone who actually wants to live with you. I mean, I can’t imagine that will ever be me, but maybe someone who would need an office. Maybe you’d want an office for yourself, too. I don’t know. It would have to be someone who’s willing to put up with you.”

She smiled down at Stella before she dropped it, trying to keep up the act.

“As if I could ever put up with you,” Stella teased her back. “You’re unbelievably annoying, like when you correct things like formulas that were actually just typos and do not at all indicate that I don’t understand how to make them to begin with.”

“If you don’t want me to correct your typos, don’t make them,” Violet challenged.

Stella’s hand slipped between her legs then, making Violet gasp.

“And if you don’t want me to touch you here, don’t get so damn wet.”

“Not possible around you,” she replied.

CHAPTER 34

“We were right: arguing is great foreplay,” Violet said, and she was finally naked and on top of Stella, who had her hand between Violet’s legs.

Stella was stroking her as Violet moved her hips, and it was near perfect, but she wanted something more.