𝟎𝟗- 𝐃𝐀𝐍𝐂𝐄

CHAPTER NINE

Dance.

❂

KIERA laughed, taking another sip of the red liquid in her glass as she watched Aria sway her hips to the music.

The pizza was already in the oven. The two women had immediately started on the food the moment they popped open the bottle of wine that Kiera brought over.

They chatted about life updates, Aria obviously holding back a chunk of her stressful components, while placing their personal favorite toppings on their own pizza.

Music was now echoing throughout the apartment. Both women were on their second glasses of wine and they'd loosened up after each sip.

"Come dance with me." Aria giggled, reaching her arms out toward Kiera with a pout.

She wasn't drunk but the alcohol in her system was settling.

"You want me to dance to Fleetwood Mac with you?" Kiera questioned, glancing over to the record player that sat in the living room.

They'd danced plenty of times before, so the only difference this time around was that Aria was now fully aware of Kiera's feelings.

This made the moment more intimate.

Aria nodded with a smile, motioning her best friend closer, "Don't leave me hanging."

Kiera playfully rolled her eyes but still made her way over to Aria, twirling the redhead around once they were closer.

"If the pizza burns, it'll be completely your fault." Kiera joked, following into a similar flow of dance as Aria.

The redhead shrugged, "I'll take the risk."

Her boots were kicked off somewhere so her feet were bare on the wooden floors of her home, portraying her relaxed demeanor significantly.

Kiera couldn't resist admiring Aria in such a state. She'd seen her best friend just as tipsy before but for some reason today felt different to her.

Aria's curls were looser and far more frizzy than earlier due to the amount of times she'd ran her fingers through the strands. Her lips were glossed slightly from the wine and her eyes were getting lower by the minute.

The brunette smiled to herself, watching closely as Aria danced without a care in the world. The two women danced together for a short while, allowing themselves to become lost into the rhythm.

It wasn't unnatural at all.

Not once did Kiera make a move that would catch Aria off guard and that much was very appreciated.

Patience was an unspoken custom in their relationship.

"How long have you liked me?"

They were now settled in barstools, eating slices of their successful pizza while Sade purred from below in a begging manner.

Though, he was more so begging for Aria's affection rather than the food in their hands.

Kiera shook her head, "It hasn't been long." she twisted her puffy lips in between her fingers, "I'd say two months. I only recently started feeling this way."

Aria hummed while finishing the rest of her wine, "You're hot. I've always thought that."

Kiera choked on a pepperoni, blushing in embarrassment when all Aria did was smirk in knowing.

"You think I'm hot?"

"Fuck yeah I do, Ki." Aria laughed, leaning her chin into the palm of her hand, "I just never acted upon it. We met as friends and I sorta just settled it there."

Aria's words were only tainted with the truth.

She'd always found Kiera attractive.

People would be dumb to think otherwise.

However, Aria typically strayed away from serious relationships. Her provocative career wasn't something that just anyone would support— so romance was the last thing on her mind.

"So this isn't just a one-sided thing?" Kiera softly murmured.

Aria blinked slowly, the glasses of red wine catching up to her, "I don't want to rush it. I hope to eventually become more but we were friends first so it'll take adjusting."

Kiera nodded understandingly, "Of course."

That was the last thing Aria remembered before she woke up later on that night.

She wasn't aware that she'd fallen asleep or that Kiera had helped her get settled into bed comfortably before she cleaned up their mess.

Kiera had left Aria's apartment after tidying up her kitchen and placing the Fleetwood Mac vinyl into its respective storage. The brunette offered Sade a few pets of love before locking the door behind herself and heading home.

Due to the unexpected nap, Aria hadn't planned to be so groggy at only five in the evening.

The redhead groaned into her comforter.

At least her stomach was satisfied.

The next few days were going to become increasingly difficult. The arrangement with Memphis begins on Friday, so the redhead only had today and tomorrow to prepare herself.

Kiera's face popped into Aria's mind, interrupting her thoughts of Memphis. She found herself smiling at their afternoon together. If she truly wanted to pursue Kiera, hiding her night job was going to become drastically harder.

Maeve belonged to Memphis while Aria was falling into the arms of Kiera.

Living a double life wasn't fun in the slightest.

❂