Nora

Olivia pulled a chair out, ushering Nora to sit. As she took her seat, Nora caught that now-familiar scent of sea salt and sage. She breathed in deeply, wanting to commit the luxurious fragrance to memory.

“You look incredible,” Olivia said, her eyes scanning up and down Nora’s body as she took the seat to her left. Her gaze lingered for a fraction longer on the exposed skin of Nora’s thigh. The high slit in her dress revealed even more of her leg now that she was sitting down. 

“Thank you,” Nora said, unable to look Olivia in the eyes as she felt the familiar flush of heat spread into her cheeks. This was becoming something of a pattern when she was with Olivia.

“You look pretty good yourself,” Nora said coyly, feeling her blush deepen as she took in the sight of Olivia in her three piece ivory suit. Each element had been tailored perfectly to her body. From the high-waisted trousers that clung so perfectly to her impeccable backside, to the jacket hanging from her slim but broad shoulders, down to the vest, worn with nothing underneath, showcasing Olivia’s modest but eye-catching cleavage. Olivia Andersen was the real-world embodiment of every one of Nora’s wildest fantasies. 

“I went ahead and ordered us a bottle of wine. I hope you like Cab,” Olivia said with a small smirk as she picked up the bottle and filled two glasses with the Cabernet Sauvignon that likely cost what Nora made in a week.

“That’s perfect, thank you!” She reached out and took the glass Olivia extended toward her. She took a delicate sip, the flavor of the wine coming to life as it hit her taste buds. She let out a quiet hum as she savored it. “This is delicious!”

“I’m glad you like it. It’s one of my favorites.”

Nora observed Olivia swirling her wine around in her glass before bringing the rim to her lips for a taste. 

“Seems like you’re something of a wine connoisseur?” Nora asked, gesturing to the glass in Olivia’s hand.

“Hardly,” Olivia admitted with a small chuckle and a light flush creeping up her neck. “This is decidedly horrible first date etiquette,” Olivia winced and it was the cutest expression Nora had seen her make.  “But I very briefly dated a sommelier a few years ago. She taught me the basics, and now I know just enough to make it seem like I belong in places like this.” 

Nora cocked her head to the side. “You don’t feel like you belong here?” 

Olivia looked away as she seemed to contemplate what she was going to say next. “I’m a foster kid—granted, I’m one of the lucky ones—from a working-class family who essentially lucked into any semblance of success I’ve had. I don’t belong in places like this.” Olivia paused, a smirk quirking the corners of her mouth. “And I’m more than okay with that, by the way,” she added. 

Nora smiled, silently urging Olivia to go on. 

“This is one of my favorite places when I’m trying to impress someone. But I’m way more comfortable with a dollar slice and a Coke.” Olivia let out a self-deprecating laugh as she ran a hand through her hair. 

“Well let’s go then.” Nora said abruptly.

“What?” Olivia chuckled, clearly not expecting Nora to suggest that. “No, I didn’t mean that I didn’t want to be here-”

“I know,” Nora said with a laugh. “And this seems like an amazing place. But if you don’t belong here, then I really don’t belong here.” Nora lowered her voice and whispered quietly, “I have no idea what half of the things on this menu are.” 

Olivia laughed, her clear blue eyes sparkling with amusement. 

“And to be honest,” Nora continued, picking up her wine glass, “You could have poured me a glass straight from the spit bucket and I wouldn’t have known the difference.” 

Olivia’s head fell back as a soft cackle tore through her chest. 

Nora stood from the table and extended her hand to Olivia. “Come on, let’s get out of here.” 

Olivia shook her head in delighted astonishment. “Alright, I’m with you.” She reached up and took Nora’s hand. But instead of rising out of her chair to follow Nora out of the restaurant, she gently pulled her back down into her seat. “But we need to pay for the wine first. You little thief.” 

Olivia hit Nora with a smile that made her really happy she was no longer standing. Her knees went so weak, she’d have hit the deck for sure. 

Nora pinched her lips together in an attempt to not smile too widely. “Okay. That’s fair.”

𝁇

“Two slices of pepperoni, a Coke, and…” Olivia gestured to Nora for her drink order. 

“Dr. Pepper, please!” 

“Twelve fifty,” said the concerningly sweaty man inside the food cart. He had one of the thickest New York accents Nora had heard since moving to the city.

Olivia reached into her pocket for her wallet, but Nora was ready with a twenty already extended in the man’s direction. 

“Excuse me!” Olivia whined with mock offense. “I was the one that asked you out, this is my pizza to pay for.” 

“You got the wine.” Nora shrugged nonchalantly as she put her change back in her wallet. As if the two were even comparable. Nora would have to buy Olivia a thousand slices of pizza to make up for that expensive bottle of wine they shared. “Plus, I kinda hijacked our date, so it’s the least I could do.”

Nora dropped a dollar in the tip jar before they took their food and started walking through Columbus Circle, toward the entrance to Central Park. They stopped at the first empty bench they found and dug into their pizza. 

“Ugh! This is so good!” Nora moaned. “There’s just no way anything on that menu could have been as good as this.”

“I couldn’t agree with you more,” Olivia said, nodding her head.

After a beat, Nora looked over at Olivia, a cheeky grin sprouting across her face. “So you were trying to impress me, huh?”

“What?” Olivia asked, not following.

“You said earlier that that’s the restaurant you take people to when you’re trying to impress them.” 

Olivia looked down at her lap, as if she had been caught. But when she looked back up at Nora, she wore a smile that was somehow intensely cocky but heart-stoppingly sincere at the same time. A smile that made Nora’s stomach do a somersault inside her belly. 

“Yeah, I was,” she admitted without hesitation. “Nora, I’ve been trying to impress you since the moment I walked into that elevator.”

Nora swallowed hard. She hadn’t been expecting that response. She bit her lip to try and hold back the smile that threatened to tear across her face. “Well, lucky for you, I’m very easy to impress,” Nora said before popping the last bite of her pizza crust into her mouth. 

Olivia gave a smooth, low chuckle. “Yeah, I am pretty lucky.” 

Nora didn’t know how to respond to that without sounding like a lovestruck idiot. Thankfully, she didn’t need to respond. Olivia stood and extended her hand to Nora. 

“You done?” she asked, gesturing toward the empty, grease-soaked plate in Nora’s hand. 

“Yeah, thanks!” Nora said as she handed Olivia her trash. 

Once they disposed of their empty plates and soda cans, they took off on a leisurely stroll, moving deeper into the park. Luckily, it was summertime so they still had a few hours of daylight left to wander through the expanse of greenery. Nora took a deep breath of the fresh air. It was surprisingly crisp given that it was the middle of summer. 

“So, how long did you date the sommelier?” It was out of Nora’s mouth before she really thought about what she was asking. And on their first date nonetheless.

Olivia chuckled softly. “You want to hear about my ex?”

Nora laughed nervously in response. “Um, yeah, kind of. Is that weird?” She smiled sheepishly at Olivia.

“Very,” Olivia added with a facetious smile. 

After a beat, she continued. “There’s not really much to tell, honestly. Her name was Isabelle. We went out for maybe three or four months. She was great on paper, but it just didn’t work out. 

“I’m sorry,” was all Nora could think to say. 

“It’s okay.” Olivia hesitated a moment, as if she wasn’t sure if she should continue or not. “I was still pretty fresh out of a really bad breakup. That’s why it didn’t work. I thought I was ready for something new. I thought that was what I needed in order to get over my ex, but it just doesn’t work that way sometimes.” She gave a noncommittal shrug and flashed a smile that would have been utterly adorable had it reached all the way to her eyes. 

Nora felt a pit open in her stomach. Olivia’s tone was light as she spoke, but she was clearly affected by the memories being brought to the surface. She wanted to know more, but she couldn’t pry. Couldn’t cause more of the obvious pain in Olivia’s eyes. 

Nora looked away. Now it was her turn to decide how much about her past to divulge. She looked ahead, focusing on nothing in particular in the distance as she spoke. 

“I think I understand what you mean,” she said quietly. “I…” She took a deep breath to steady herself. “I also went through a really bad breakup a long time ago. A really horrible relationship with an even worse ending. I did a lot of things that I thought would help me get over it, but nothing ever did. Maybe it worked for a little while, but eventually, all the pain would come right back. Sometimes even worse than it was before.” Nora held her breath for a moment, letting it rush out before she continued. “Honestly, it still really affects me even now. So I get it. Sometimes it’s so much harder than you ever realize to get over those things.”

She finally looked over at Olivia and was met with a look so sincere it sparked a rush of warmth in Nora’s chest. Even what little she just shared was far more than she had ever told anyone else aside from Charlie. She didn’t know what had possessed her to say any of it, but she was actually glad she had. Nora wanted Olivia to know that she understood her pain and didn’t judge her for it. And although no other words were exchanged, Nora could feel the same from Olivia. 

Nora wasn’t sure who reached for the other’s hand, but as they walked in comfortable silence, their fingers intertwined with each other. The warmth of Olivia’s palm pressed against hers, sent soothing tingles throughout Nora’s body. 

They spent the rest of their evening hand-in-hand as they strolled casually through the park. They discussed their favorite movies, television shows, and books and even shared some of their favorite childhood memories. 

Nora recounted the first time she saw her father cry when she played the lead role of Cinderella in her fourth grade school musical. He was so proud of her that he could barely speak without tearing up. She thought it was so embarrassing at the time, but in hindsight, she knows she couldn’t have been blessed with a more caring and supportive father. 

Olivia relived the time her volleyball team won the state championship her junior year of high school. She had been voted MVP by her teammates and was made captain of the team the following year. 

They even delved into deeper wounds, each relating to the tribulations of growing up without their mothers. 

Nora shared the sudden and tragic loss of her mother at the hands of a drunk driver when Nora was a teenager. How hard it had been going through her formative years without her mother. Navigating things like getting her first period, dating, picking out her prom dress, all without the one person that was supposed to guide her through those moments. 

Olivia opened up about being taken away from her biological mother when she was only five years old. Her mother had suffered from drug and alcohol addiction and wasn’t able to adequately care for Olivia. Although she was more fortunate than most in similar situations, being put in the care of two selfless and loving foster parents who gave her the best upbringing she could have asked for, she still always felt as though something was missing. 

As the night went on, Nora could feel herself coming out of her shell with Olivia. With each passing moment that they spent together, Nora felt more at ease, less self-conscious. She was quickly and easily falling for Olivia. 

But as much as she wanted to let herself fall. To let herself feel everything that Olivia brought out in her, she knew she needed to be careful. Although she truly felt that Olivia wouldn’t hurt her, she was still cautious. She still wasn’t able to fully let her guard down. 

The last time she fell for someone like this, she felt the same way. She didn’t think he would have ever hurt her. She thought he would make her feel safe and protected. She thought he loved her. Until she realized that what they had wasn’t love. It had never been love. Only manipulation, heartache, and abuse. 

No one ever expects that the people they love will hurt them. Until they do. 

So as badly as Nora wanted to let go, to fully give in and hand her heart over to Olivia, she knew she had to tread lightly. She wasn’t sure she could take another heartbreak like the one she had endured back then. She wasn’t sure she was strong enough to pick herself back up again.