"But you've got your own family now, right?"

Jay frowned. "What do you mean?"

"Katherine?" Drew raised an eyebrow as a faint blush crept over Jay's face.

"Right, Katherine." Jay nodded. "Sure. I mean, we've been together eight years. It's just, well, she works so much, I hardly ever see her. The last year, anyway."

Drew nodded, not knowing what to say.

"But yeah, she's my only family, really. And Audrey, she's been my rock. She's always there."

"Your therapist?"

Jay laughed. "Right. My therapy sessions."

Drew met her gaze, holding her eyes captive for a moment. "Well, if you're adding friends to your life, I hope you'll consider me. Because I really enjoy your company."

CHAPTER SEVEN

Jay tossed her keys on the bar, still surprised at the time. Their quick drink had turned into two, along with a plate of nachos they shared. And they'd talked. And talked. She couldn't understand why she enjoyed being around Drew so much. It went past the physical attraction she felt.

"Whoa," she said out loud. Physical attraction? Sure, Drew was cute, charming. But it wasn't like she was attracted to her in that way. Not seriously, anyway. She'd teased with Audrey about it, that was one thing. Just teasing.

Because there was Katherine.

"Right. There's Katherine."

And here it was, eight thirty in the evening and her phone never rang. There was no concerned call from Katherine wondering why they hadn't talked all day. No call to check on her, and no call just to say hello. Jay tilted her head, trying to remember the last time they did talk. Yesterday? No, they'd only exchanged voice mail. Sunday, Jay had a vague memory of Katherine in bed with her but that was all. She'd spent the morning in her office picking through swatches, and had spent the afternoon with Audrey at Barton Springs pool. And Saturday, the day after she'd left the bar early, she'd been in no mood for anyone's company and hadn't even considered complaining to Katherine about their lack of time together. When she got home from the bar Friday night, the house was dark and empty. She'd gone straight to bed. Katherine had come home at two in the morning, had crawled into bed after her shower and had attempted to wake Jay, wanting to make love. Jay had simply rolled away and drifted off to sleep again. When she woke, Katherine was already gone.

So she made her way up the stairs, past their bedroom and into her tiny office. She shut the door behind her as if that could shut out the reality of what her life had become. What she'd told Drew was true. Katherine was her only family. For eight years, there was always just Katherine. Oh, they had a small circle of friends, but no close, close friends. No one she'd consider donating a kidney to or anything. And for Jay, there was Audrey. This last year, she couldn't even fathom what her life would have been like if not for Audrey.

But again, that feeling of not belonging, that nagging feeling that left her stomach tied in knots, that feeling of apprehension, of uneasiness settled over her. She felt nearly disconnected with her world as she moved to her recliner, leaning back and closing her eyes.

Alone. That was all she was.

Alone.


CHAPTER EIGHT

"You know, we've done this a hundred times, Drew. You don't need to supervise," Johnny told her days later as they planted shrubs around the front of the house.

"I'm not supervising. I like doing this sort of thing."

"You hate shrubs."

Drew stood and wiped the sweat from her brow. "Yeah. Shrubs are boring." She grinned. "So I'll let you guys finish and I'll go inside the house—where I hear the AC running—and see if Jay will let me wash up."

"I thought we weren't supposed to ever set foot inside a new house. What happened to that rule?"

"That rule still applies to you, Johnny. But since I make the rules, I can break them."

Johnny laughed. "So I'll guess that if it were, say Frankie Mason from Wilkes and Bonner in that house, you wouldn't be so interested in going inside four or five times a day."

"Jay has a distinct advantage over Frankie Mason, yes. But it's not like you think. She's attached. We're just friends."

"Yeah, just your luck, huh?"

Drew's smile faded. Yeah, just her luck. She and Jay were quickly becoming friends. They were comfortable in each other's presence. Conversation never lacked. And always, that underlying degree of attraction was there, both of them ignoring it as far as Drew could tell. Jay rarely spoke of Katherine. In fact, sometimes Drew wondered if Jay forgot that Katherine existed.

But it didn't matter. Drew knew her limitations as far as Jay was concerned. Friends. Nothing more. And that was enough. Although Jay never said, she suspected Jay craved Drew's friendship as much as Drew did Jay's. She couldn't explain it. It was just there. From the moment they met, from the moment Jay ran into her truck and Drew had looked in her eyes, it was there.

So that's why Drew now bounded up the steps, pausing to remove her dirty boots before going inside.

"You don't think it's too dark?" Jay turned in a circle, looking at the walls, then back at Connie. "Too much red?"

"It's the latest thing."

"How can you possibly enjoy a meal with all this red?"

"People use their formal dining rooms maybe three times a year," Connie stated. "And a nice table and chairs with red velvet cushions would match nicely."

"Well, I hate it."

"Me too."

Jay turned, surprised to find Drew standing there watching them. She smiled. "Hey, you. You hate it, huh?"

"A little on the red side."

"It's supposed to be," Connie said.

"In fact, it's so red, it might be the deciding factor in not buying the house."

Jay nodded. "I agree." She turned to Connie. "We've got to tone it down some. How about a light burgundy?"

"Beige trim?"

"We could do a beige trim with just a hint of burgundy to match. Right?"

"The last time we tried just a hint of something, remember what happened?"

Jay laughed and glanced at Drew. "We ended up with puke green. It was disgusting. No matter what we did, the walls were still puke green." Jay walked by Connie, lightly squeezing her shoulder. "Give it a try, okay?" She took Drew's arm and led her out of the room. "She's the creative sort," she whispered when they were out of earshot. She let her hand slip off Drew's arm, silently cursing her need of physical touch. Instead, she folded her hands under her arms, watching Drew. "What's up?"

Drew ducked her head, a slight flush marring her features. "Nothing. Just wanted to cool off."

"I see. Taking advantage of the AC? And as boss you can do that." She glanced at Drew's feet. "And you were kind enough to take off your boots."

Drew followed her gaze to her dirty socks. "I don't suppose these are much cleaner," she said as she wiggled her toes.

"You want to wash up?"

"You read my mind?"

"You're filthy."

"It's part of my charm."

"That it is," Jay said before she could stop herself. She met Drew's eyes quickly, then looked away. She pointed down the hall. "Use the spare bathroom. I have towels in there already." She watched as Drew walked—sauntered—away from her. "Just ignore the paint stains," she called after her. She spun around, clenching her fists together, hating, absolutely hating her attraction to Drew. They could be good friends. Really, they could be.

Couldn't they?

Would it be like it was with Audrey? Could she tell Drew anything and expect nothing but support from her? Could she sleep over at her house when Katherine was away and stay up talking half the night?

She rolled her eyes. Right.

No, she wasn't stupid. Neither was Drew. And if she wasn't careful—if they both weren't careful—they would end up totally screwing up their budding friendship.

"Hey."

Jay spun around again, finding Drew watching her. She fell into her eyes, not even trying to stop herself. She simply couldn't help it. No woman should have eyes that color. "Hunter green," she murmured.

Drew frowned. "Huh?"

"Your eyes," Jay said quietly. "I love your eyes."

Drew nodded. "I kinda like yours too."

Jay swallowed with difficulty, finally turning away, her back to Drew. "I should get back to it, I suppose."

"Yeah, me too."

Drew moved closer. Jay could feel her. She stopped breathing.

"I won't be around tomorrow, Jay."

Jay turned, eyebrows raised.

"Got another yard to start on."

Jay nodded. "Okay."

"Want to maybe go to Rhonda's afterward?"

Jay looked away. She should decline, she knew she should. Just say no. But like any drug addict, she couldn't. "Okay."

Drew tilted her head. "Or maybe Katherine will be waiting on you?"

Jay's quick laugh was bitter, but she couldn't stop it. "No, Katherine will definitely not be waiting on me."

"When are you ever going to tell me about that?"

"Tell you what?"

"About Katherine. You seem to have a lot of free time." She moved closer. "If I were Katherine, I would be home every day at five, just to be with you. But something keeps her away."

Oh God, did Drew not have any idea what her presence did to her? "Katherine's trying to make partner. She works like a thousand hours a week. We hardly see each other," Jay said. Actually, that was a stretch. They hardly spoke these days.