"Yeah, just... feeling like an asshole," Domino said.
"What'd you do now?" Billie asked with a smirk.
"She didn't know Zoey collected art," Pia said quickly, giving Billie a Who Knows? look.
Zoey turned at the sound of her name, giving Pia the briefest of eyebrow quirks before turning to Domino.
"Art? You're worried about Zoey's hobbies?" Billie asked, running her hand over Domino's short hair as if she were petting a dog.
"No, I just mean, I've been so self-centered that I didn't even know Zoey cared about art. Meg, what are you hiding?" Domino called out.
"I'm secretly a spy for the Canadian government," Meg said with a straight face, not glancing up from her cards.
"Yeah, that checks out," Domino said, leaning back in her chair.
"Baby, what are you going on about?" Sabrina asked, turning in her chair.
"Some party this is," Domino said, turning to Pia. "I'm so glad you showed up tonight, though. How'd you find out about the show?"
Pia's mouth went dry and she glanced over to Zoey.
Directly behind Zoey, Micah raised her hand. "I invited her," she said.
Zoey's eyes widened and she turned, looking at Micah over her shoulder. "You did?" She asked.
"Yeah, or, well, I guess I invited you through your assistant," Micah said, smiling.
Pia nodded. "Yep, I was in town and Mark reminded me it was happening. Thought I'd stop by to check it out," she said.
She made a mental note to ask Mark about all of the other invitations that hadn't been passed her way.
"Oh, cool," Domino said.
Freya cleared her throat. "I think it's just about my bedtime, though." She turned back to Zoey, taking her hands. "Let's do lunch the next time you're in LA and then I'll give you a tour of the studio."
Zoey lit up, her eyes widening. "I'd love that!" She leaned forward and gave Freya a tight hug.
Pia didn't know whether to be jealous that Zoey was hugging Freya with such intimacy or grateful that Freya had smoothed out an otherwise awkward encounter.
Pia and Freya said the rest of their goodbyes and left. Pia made it a point to not hug Zoey for too long, but even the nearness of Zoey's body made her insides turn to jello.
She really had to work on that heart hardening thing.
They walked out the door and down the hallway, a safe distance between them and the hotel room full of Shrikes women before Freya leaned over to conspiratorially whisper, "She's fantastic."
"You're just saying that because she's a fan girl," Pia said. "One compliment and suddenly you're Team Zoey? Shameless." She laughed, hitting the elevator button.
Her phone dinged and she pulled it out of her pocket.
Zoey: I'm in room 2087 if you haven't left yet.
Pia glanced up at Freya, a mixture of hope and agony.
Freya leaned over, reading the text. "God, you have your font size on the old lady size," she said.
"I'm old," Pia said, shrugging and grinning.
Freya rolled her eyes, then leaned over and hit the up button. The elevator doors opened with a down arrow.
"Guess I'm solo," Freya said.
Pia smirked. "You don't mind?"
"No, I'm Team Zoey," she said, reaching to hit the floor button. "But be safe."
"Text me when you get back to your hotel!" Pia said with a wave as the doors closed in front of her friend.
"I thought for sure Domino was about to say something about us," Pia said, flipping over onto her back. She panted, out of breath from the intense quickie they had begun the moment Zoey got the keycard in the door.
Zoey's chest heaved as she pushed herself up onto her elbows. "Do you really think she knows?"
Pia eyed the way Zoey's breasts looked in the way she was positioned.
Zoey snapped her fingers. "Stop creeping and answer me," she said, laughing.
"No, I don't," Pia said honestly. "But she thinks something is going on with you."
Zoey turned onto her side, resting her head on her palm. "She is not wrong,"
Pia raised an eyebrow. "I think I know what you need," she said pensively.
Zoey reached to lazily run a finger over Pia's chest, down over her stomach. "Oh, do you?"
Pia stood, grabbing a $9 bottle of water out of the mini fridge for herself and tossed another one to Zoey.
Zoey grinned, then twisted the cap off the bottle.
Pia sat on the edge of the bed, trying not to chug the cool water too quickly. She capped the bottle and set it on the floor, then reached for Zoey, pulling the woman to straddle her lap.
They sat chest to chest, Zoey's knees on either side of Pia's hips.
Zoey’s ability to turn Pia into a human with real feelings and emotions was unprecedented. Pia had been having sex with women for nearly ten years without them — women who actually did want relationships, unlike Zoey.
And still, it was Zoey that was making her chest ache and her stomach twist and her cheeks hurt from smiling.
And the sex? Mind-blowing.
With a straight woman? Unheard of.
Even more unheard of? Pia had never been so willing to give up control and surrender to another woman giving her pleasure.
She let her hands trail over Zoey’s smooth back and soft hips, grasping her ass cheeks.
Zoey’s hips circled in Pia’s lap — Pia grinned, thinking about how they had just had an orgasm not ten minutes before and Zoey was already ready for another round.
“Is it always like this?” Zoey moaned, her voice so quiet and so vulnerable.
And Pia stilled her lips wandering exploration of Zoey’s neck and chest.
How was she ever going to harden her heart against this woman?
She was in trouble the moment she had kissed Zoey at midnight. She was entirely defeated by the moment she had led Zoey into the wine cellar and fantasized about pressing her up against the counter, taking her right there while everyone was waiting upstairs.
She kissed Zoey in response, her kisses deep and tenuous and possessive.
As Zoey’s hips began to move against her, she lowered herself back, urging Zoey forward to lie on top of her, Zoey’s legs and arms straddling Pia’s body. Zoey’s breath came in short, audible bursts, as Pia moved her hands to Zoey’s ass again. She kissed and nipped along the soft skin on the underside of her jaw, sliding her lips to Zoey’s ear, pulling the lobe into her mouth. “Climb on top of me, baby,” Pia whispered.
Zoey pulled back slightly, looking Pia in the eye. “Wh-what?” She asked.
Pia used her hips and hands to guide Zoey up her body until she was kneeling over Pia’s waiting mouth.
“Oh, fuck,” Zoey whispered irreverently and Pia saw that she was clutching the headboard before they both floated up and out of their bodies for a few more, blissful hours.
Chapter Nine
Zoey
The green room was filled with flowers, balloons, candy, and cake. "I can't believe the release party is actually here," Billie said, her eyes wide.
The band was finally back in Los Angeles after a month on the road for promotion. The album was finally, finally going to be live in the world.