Author's Note: Thanks for reading! I read all comments and appreciate feedback.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jo stirred a simmering pot of pasta, the scent of garlic and crushed tomatoes filling up the house. The only sounds were the soft music from the bluetooth speaker, the occasional clink of metal against the pot, and the faint thud-thud-thud of a tail against the laundry door--Celina's mother's dog, Kenny, who they were babysitting, had been exiled there after trying to eat garlic bread. The wooden table by the window was already set. Nothing fancy, Jo told herself.
Celina was pacing somewhere down the hall again. Jo didn't need to see her to picture the way she kept rolling her shoulders like she could shake off the nerves. Celina unsettled was rare but tonight had her coiled up tight.
When Celina first mentioned Dani--the diligent employee who had unexpectedly confessed her crush--Jo had listened carefully and even encouraged her to explore it. The fact that Dani had felt safe enough to ask such a question spoke volumes to Jo. The power imbalance was clear--employee and boss--and Jo knew how easy it could be for things to get complicated. Celina didn't often meet people she clicked with right away, and that made this even more important. Dani's thoughtful question was, in itself, a small but meaningful green flag.
Jo raised an eyebrow, folded her hands, and rested her chin on them at the dinner table. "Well. Why don't you invite her over then?"
Celina went quiet. That's how Jo knew she was nervous. She didn't mind, of course. In fact, Jo liked it. There was something satisfying about watching Celina open up, even if she did it slowly. She could be unpredictable in her attachments, but when she secured them, they deepened like carefully aged wine. And so keeping boundaries clear wasn't just about fairness - it was about protecting a fragile and rare connection.
Jo moved across the kitchen with the ease of someone who cooked often, barefoot in jeans and a black t-shirt, her dark, luscious hair twisted into a loose bun. Celina hovered to the kitchen bench nearby, arms crossed.
"You're pacing," Jo said without looking up.
"I'm not pacing."
"You're absolutely pacing."
Celina scowled and stopped. "I just want things to be fine."
Jo grinned and tossed a handful of parsley into the pasta pot. "You like her."
Celina exhaled. "Yeah."
There was a weight behind the word. Jo felt it settle in her ribs.
"You know, she's probably as nervous as you are," Jo said, giving the spaghetti a stir. "You already knocked her socks off with your... generous rewards for meeting sales targets. Now she's coming over for pasta with the wife."
Celina snorted. "You're not my wife."
"Debatable. You wear my socks."
Celina leaned against the doorframe and rubbed the back of her neck. She wore a long-sleeved white top, with light blue jeans cuffed at the ankle.
"So what happens," Jo asked, "if I like her?"
Celina looked at her. "I hope you do."
"And what if I really, really like her?"
Celina hesitated, then said quietly, "Then we figure it out."
Jo smiled, slow and real. She turned back to the stove. "I like her already. Just so you know."
Celina huffed a breath, almost a laugh, and moved to set the table. Just three mismatched glasses and a bottle of wine.
The doorbell rang.
Jo wiped her hands on a dish towel, heart thudding a little harder than expected.
Time to face the music.
Celina strode off down the hallway while Jo stirred the sauce and reached for the salt. She heard Celina's voice warning the dog, who had likely escaped her laundry exile and was no doubt angling for a spot at the door.
She smiled to herself, and tasted the sauce. She frowned. Needed some basil.
Jo heard the sound of footsteps on floorboards, and glanced over her shoulder in time to see Celina enter the kitchen, followed by Dani.
Jo smiled. "Hey. Welcome to the madhouse."
Dani stepped inside almost hesitantly. Her ash-blonde hair was tucked behind one ear and slightly mussed from the wind. She wore an oversized green knit, soft and textured like grass, paired with dark blue jeans and white sneakers.
Her lips parted slightly, like she'd been holding her breath all the way here. She stood with her hands loose at her sides, caught between offering a handshake and wishing she could disappear into the floor.
Jo's chest tightened with something protective. She wanted to pull Dani close, wrap her in a blanket, and whisper that she was doing just fine.
Jo wiped her hands on a towel and stepped closer to Dani. "I'm Jo. Glad you made it." she said. Then she opened her arms.
Dani hesitated--like she was stepping into the unknown--but then she let herself in.
Jo was taller, and the embrace was firm but not overwhelming. Dani smelled like fresh laundry, and felt light in her arms like she was nervous, and Jo gave her an extra second before pulling back.
"It's really nice to meet you." she said, voice lower now. "Celina's told me a lot."
Dani's mouth twitched into something that might've been a smile. "Hopefully not everything."
Jo laughed. "Just the good stuff."
Behind her, Celina let out a breath that sounded like relief and moved to uncork the wine.
Jo gestured toward the table. "You want to sit? Food's almost ready. Unless you want a house tour first. We've got a haunted room."
Dani let out a shaky laugh, visibly loosening. "Maybe just the pasta first."
"Smart choice," Jo said, smiling wider now.
Jo liked her right away--not for the nervous, blushing moments, but for the spark in her eyes when she finally relaxed.
"So," Dani said, resting her hands on her thighs as she sat down. "How haunted are we talking?"
Jo's lips twitched. "Well. We only noticed the doorframe was slightly diagonal about a year after moving in. I'm pretty good with details, but that one slipped past me."
Celina looked up from the kitchen island. "She means she didn't notice it at all until I pointed it out. And then swore she'd noticed it first."
Dani smiled. "Selective memory is a survival skill."
"We keep saying we're going to paint it," Celina added, uncorking the wine. "But we've been stuck arguing about what color for, what, six months?"
"Seven," Jo said. "And it's because I have taste."
Celina handed her a glass and smirked. "You think beige has personality."
Before Jo could answer, a scruffy terrier mix trotted into the room, tags jingling. He made a beeline for Dani and sat at her feet like he'd been expecting her all night.
"Oh, and that's Kenny," Jo said, gesturing with her wine. "It's not our dog--we're just the baby-sitters. Like cool aunts who drink too much and send him home full of treats."
"It's my mom's," Celina added, setting the bottle of wine down. "She dropped him off before she went overseas."
Dani bent down, scratching gently behind Kenny's ears. "He's got good taste. I'd pick this place too."
"You have no idea," Jo said. "The other day I opened the fridge and found a slice of pizza missing. I blamed Celina. Turned out the dog had figured out how to paw the door open."
Dani's eyes widened. "Wait, he can open the fridge?"
"He's a menace," Celina said fondly.
"A smart menace," Dani murmured, smiling now. "You sure he's not just a roommate with boundary issues?"
Jo laughed. "That's disturbingly accurate." As she turned back to the pasta, she caught Celina watching her. Not possessive. Not worried. Just soft. It made something in Jo's chest ache a little, in a good way.
"So," Jo said, keeping her back to Dani as she stirred the pasta one last time. "Should I be nervous that you're about to steal my girlfriend?"
Dani turned red in half a second. She blinked fast. "What--no! I mean--I--definitely not. I'm not--stealing anyone. I don't even steal staples. I always replace them."
Jo grinned. "Relax. I'm teasing. Food and light roasting are complimentary here."
Dani buried her face in her hands and groaned. "Oh my god."
"She's mean," Celina said, handing Dani a glass of wine. "But don't worry. She does this to everyone."
"It's a service I offer," Jo said, draining the pasta. "Light roast and a home-cooked meal."
Dani peeked up between her fingers. "I'm not stealing anyone," she repeated, still flustered but grinning. "I'm barely figuring myself out. This is like the boss-level side quest."
Yeah, Jo thought, glancing at Dani again as she dished up the food. She liked her.
They settled around the table with bowls of pasta, garlic bread, and the wine flowing easily now. Kenny made one final appearance--nudging the back of Dani's knee with his nose before being firmly redirected by Jo with a piece of crusty bread. "She thinks everyone's her best friend if they have carbs," Jo explained. Dani had stopped checking her posture every five minutes and was even teasing Celina about her taste in podcasts.
Jo let it ride a while--she liked watching the two of them spark--but eventually, she leaned back in her chair, glass in hand, and caught Dani's gaze across the table.
"Before we get too comfortable--I want to clear the air on one thing," she said, not unkindly, but direct.
Dani blinked, shoulders straightening a little as she set her glass down. "Okay."
Jo rested her elbow on the table, fingers brushing her lip thoughtfully. "Celina tells me everything."
There was no judgment in her tone. Jo didn't want her to feel scared--just seen. Dani stilled.
"I know about them. About the performance targets. And the... extra motivation Celina gives--if you know what I mean." Her lips twitched slightly. "And I'm not just okay with it--I encouraged it."
Dani glanced at Celina, who gave her a small, steady nod. Jo saw the way Dani's shoulders tensed again, like someone still bracing for rejection, even after being welcomed.
"I don't like secrets," Jo said gently. "Not in this house. And I figure if you're going to be part of this orbit--even a little bit--you deserve to know the light's on and no one's hiding behind the curtain."
Dani looked down for a beat, then back up. "Thank you," she said quietly. "I--I wasn't sure if it was weird to ask."
