Page 8 of Any Kind of Life
Juliet opened her mouth to respond, but Hannah pointed a finger between Juliet and Paige. “I can see it, though.”
“See what?” Juliet’s brows drew together.
“How you’d be the one punishing Paige. You give off…Domme vibes since you took on that bar.”
Well, that was good to know. It would also teach Juliet not to tease Paige while they were having dinner with friends. “Anyway, back to your…explanation. Caz?”
Caz cleared her throat. “If I was Rachel in the position she’d been in, then I’d be a little embarrassed when it came to seeing you and Paige again. I’d get over it eventually, but yes, I can see what Hannah is saying.”
Paige sat upright, relaxing into the conversation. “I just hope it doesn’t always come between plans. I like Rachel, Andi is just adorable judging by the very brief conversation I’ve had with her, and I really hope we can all be friends and do this sort of thing together soon. Life’s too short, you know?”
“I think that is a very good way of putting it.” Caz pushed her dinner plate away, smiling at Paige. “Now, can we change the subject before someone splits up?”
“Hang on.” Paige turned to Juliet and eyed her. “Nothing ever happened between you and Hannah, right?”
“It wasn’t Hannah. It was Eva. And no, nothing ever happened.”
Paige wrinkled her nose as she eyed Hannah. “Eva? You called yourself Eva?”
“I know. I know.”
Caz leaned in. “I’ll have you know that Eva was very sexy.”
“Eva also didn’t want to be in the line of work she was in,” Juliet said, offering Hannah an understanding smile. “Right?”
“You’re right. But I can’t complain. I found a friend for life when I met you and the woman of my dreams when I met Caz. I’d say it worked out pretty well for me in the end.”
“And you never had an issue with Hannah working for Juliet?” It was time for Paige to grill Caz. “I’m sorry, but I’ve just realised that we’ve never actually spoken about those days.”
“I…didn’t.” Caz hesitated as she spoke those words.
Juliet and Hannah both raised a brow at that. Juliet was very fond of Caz, they were good friends these days, but she found it hard to believe that Caz had never once thought about the ex-escort relationship carrying over into business.
“What? I didn’t.” Caz waved a hand. “Not really. Not deep down.”
“One tiny hiccup,” Hannah explained, clasping her hands under her chin. “We almost broke up because of it, but I think we were far too involved with one another by that point for jealousy to really get in the way.”
Juliet tried to recall any hiccup that had involved her being Hannah’s client. “When was this? I don’t remember you and Caz even being together when I was your client.”
“I… It wasn’t that time. It was once you were my boss.”
Paige drummed her fingertips against the table. “Interesting.”
“Yes, baby. It is interesting.” Juliet mirrored Paige’s position, eyeing both Hannah and Caz. “Well?”
“When we were in London, Caz showed up to surprise me.” Hannah entwined her fingers with Caz’s. “Which, by the way, was one of the sweetest things she could have done for me back then.”
Ah. That time. Juliet had felt the tension in the room as she’d introduced herself to Caz, the tension in the handshake too, but she’d put that down to it simply being the first meeting. “When I was in your room.” Juliet nodded slowly, recalling the conversation she’d had with Hannah before Caz had arrived. A mistake on Juliet’s part and one she was very lucky to not lose a friend over. “I’m sorry. I had no idea it had been an issue for you both.”
Caz laughed. “Oh, it’s fine. We’re all here, aren’t we? We’re all friends, and we’re all in love with the people we should be in love with.”
Juliet lifted her wine glass. “We certainly are. And you know what? I couldn’t ask for a more perfect group of friends.”
Juliet felt Paige palm her knee, and then she leant in and kissed Juliet’s cheek. “Couldn’t have said that better, babe.”
Paige crept up the stairs, smiling when she heard her own music playing from behind Edie’s bedroom door. She had returned home from her friends twenty minutes ago, only saying a brief hello before retreating to her bedroom. She seemed a little strange around Paige lately, so Paige had decided she would check in with Hannah’s daughter.
She knocked on the door, waiting until she was either called inside or Edie opened her door. She didn’t want the kid to feel uncomfortable.