Page 16 of Minha Dona

“Fine. One drink.”

“That’s what you always say.”

“And it’s always a lie. I know.” Helena smiled. “Let me change first. Text me the details.”

Chapter 6

The bar that Mariana messaged her was somewhere that Helena had been meaning to try since it had opened, occupying the ground and first floor of a renovated townhouse near to Mariana’s apartment. The decor was exposed brick and low lighting, with music that was uber-cool but mercifully not so loud that you couldn’t hold a conversation over it. It was the sort of place you dressed to impress, and Helena had changed into a knee length dress that she hoped was the right blend of effortless and glamorous.

Mariana’s usual posse had colonised a cluster of low sofas near the back. Helena knew all of them well already, of course. They were the sort of good-looking, well-dressed, effortlessly affluent young São Paulo crowd that Helena had grown up around, not too dissimilar from her own friends.

“Helena!” Lucas, Mariana’s sometime on-again-off-again not-boyfriend stood and kissed her on both cheeks. “We never see you anymore. Are you too important for us now?”

“I’ve always been too important for you,” Helena replied with a smile, accepting the gin and tonic that Mariana had already ordered for her. “Some of us have careers.” She glanced at Mariana and gave her a look, getting a shrug back in return… clearly Lucas was on again at that precise moment.

“Ouch.” Lucas clutched his chest. “I have a career.”

“Managing your family’s money is not a career, it’s a hobby.”

The group laughed and Helena settled into the evening, letting the conversation flow around her. She was mid-conversation with Fernanda about a restaurant they’d both tried recently when she felt a hand on her shoulder.

“Room for one more?”

Helena looked up to see Juliana standing behind the sofa, wearing a black dress that Helena hadn’t seen before: short, fitted, with thin straps that showed off her toned shoulders. Her wild curls were loose and she’d done something with her makeup, darker around the eyes, that made her look older, maybe even a little sharper. She looked, Helena thought, shifting in her seat, really good.

“Juliana!” Mariana jumped up and hugged her. “I didn’t think you were coming.”

Helena disguised the grin that came to her face at Mariana’s attempt to keep up the pretence that she hadn’t told Helena about Juliana’s request of her.

“Changed my mind.” Juliana’s eyes found Helena’s over Mariana’s shoulder, and there was something in them, a glint, playful and knowing, that made Helena’s pulse quicken just slightly. “Hi, Helena.”

“Hey.” Helena kept her voice casual, gave nothing away to the group. Just her sister’s friend, joining them for a drink on a Sunday night. Some of them knew about her and Juliana, of course, but she didn’t think all of them did and it wasn’t her place to be the one to tell them.

Juliana settled into the spot next to Helena on the sofa, close enough that their legs touched. That wasn’t unusual, the sofas were low and their group was growing by the hour, but Helena could feel that it was deliberate, the way in which Juliana was angled towards her, the pressure as if she wanted to remind Helena constantly of her presence.

“How was lunch with your parents?” Juliana asked during a lull in the conversation.

“The usual. Good food, my mother asking when I’m going to settle down, my father being wise about everything.”

“Sounds perfect.” Juliana’s hand was resting on her own knee, inches from Helena’s thigh. “I love your family. Your mother tried to feed me for twenty minutes straight last time I was there.”

“That’s how she shows love. If she ever stops trying to feed you, be worried.”

Juliana laughed and the joy in it made Helena smile. This was what Helena liked about her, this easy ability to switch between the intensity of what they’d been doing in private and the relaxed fun in simply enjoying each other’s company.

The evening continued, the group expanding and contracting as people came and went. Helena had a second drink, then a third. Juliana and Mariana were a great double act, the joyful fun mixing with the hurricane and everyone else trying to hang on for dear life.

Through it all, Helena was acutely aware of Juliana’s proximity… the occasional brush of her hand, the way she leaned in to say something that was just for Helena, the looks that lasted a moment or two longer than necessary.

It was around nine when Juliana leaned close, her lips near Helena’s ear, and said quietly, “Come outside with me.”

Helena looked at her. “Why?”

“Because I need some air.” Juliana’s expression was innocent but her eyes told a different story. “And I want you to see something.”

Helena hesitated. They were in public, surrounded by people they knew. Whatever Juliana had in mind, and Helena was fairly sure she had an idea of the shape of what Juliana had in mind, was risky in a way that their private sessions weren’t. Everything so far had been in private, everything.

But the look in Juliana’s eyes was compelling.