Free More Than Friends by Erin Dutton Page A

build her business when they met that she hadn’t had much time for socializing. Maybe she felt Evelyn’s absence even more because they’d grown close to her together. She and Kendall had been together for two years already when Kendall and Evelyn started working together.
    “Mel, no. It seemed like she needed me more. You—you’re strong.”
    “Maybe not as strong as you think.” Perhaps she should have been more honest in her replies to those texts. Instead, she’d answered with a generic reassurance that she was okay.
    “You always seem to hold everything together. Hell, Kendall would have been lost without you, and, at times, I’m pretty sure I would have, too.”
    “Sure, the little stuff, I can handle. But we’re talking about the end of a seven-year relationship. Do you really think I didn’t fall apart just as much as she did?”
    “I’m sorry, Mel. I know it has to be hard for you, too.”
    “I’m working through it. This is what happens when people split up, right? Their friends take sides.”
    “I’m not taking sides.”
    “But you’re naturally going to be closer to one of us than the other. It’s okay, I understand. You have more in common with Kendall.”
    “Jesus, Mel, she was sleeping in my guest room. What was I supposed to do, invite you over for coffee?”
    She pressed her thumb and forefinger to her forehead, over her eyes. “No. Of course not. I’m sorry.”
    Evelyn sighed. “Don’t be sorry. You’re not wrong, I should have called you.”
    She shook her head. She hadn’t intended this to be a pity party. “It’s in the past. Bygones and all. I don’t know if Kendall and I will ever be able to be friends.”
    “Sure you will, that’s what lesbians do,” Evelyn joked.
    She smiled. “Maybe. But either way, I hope you and I can still be in each other’s lives.” She didn’t know how not to put Evelyn in the middle to some degree, but she couldn’t just concede Evelyn’s friendship. So she said exactly what was in her heart. “I miss you.”
    When she met Evelyn’s eyes, she relaxed a little. Evelyn’s brows drew up over her velvety brown eyes and she realized that no matter what had happened with Kendall, she hadn’t lost her friend.
    The front door of the house banged open and Evelyn’s gaze shifted quickly toward the sound. Paul came out carrying an armload of scraps and headed for the construction dumpster nearby.
    “I should get back to work.” Evelyn handed her a card, her tone professional in case Paul overheard, but her expression held friendly familiarity. “There’s your report number. Wait a day or two for it to be processed, and then you can go down to records and get a copy.”
    “Thanks again.” She followed Evelyn down the drive and paused beside her car.
    Once inside the car, Evelyn rolled down the window. “It was good to see you.”
    “You, too.”
    “Hey, are you busy tomorrow night?”
    “No.”
    “I’m meeting some of the girls out at the bar. You should come with me.”
    “I don’t think so. Kendall and I aren’t ready to hang out yet, even in a group.”
    “Kendall—won’t be there. Don’t you need a night out of the house?”
    Maybe she could use a little distraction. And going with Evelyn could help ease her back into the social scene. She’d have a few drinks and let loose a little, and if she had a few too many, she could trust Evelyn to take care of her.

Chapter Seven
     
    “Wow, it really has been a long time since I’ve been out dancing.”
    Evelyn laughed. A dance mix set a pulsing rhythm for the flashes of strobes and laser lights that cut through the smoky air. “Yeah, it’s not Indigo-Girls-wannabes playing lesbian dive bars anymore.”
    “Shit, I don’t want to do this again.” Melanie looked as if she might bolt.
    “Hey, hey, come on.” She grabbed Melanie’s hand. “You don’t have to frequent the clubs. But for tonight, let’s just go with it.” She spotted Jennifer over by the bar, so