She looked down at the baby-pink bedsheet borrowed from Bella the night before. The sofa was lumpy, but she had slept on worse. Groaning, she stretched her arms out and sat up as metal springs creaked beneath her.

  As she massaged her neck and shoulders, she contemplated the revelations of the previous evening. Bella was gay. Sweet, shy, hopelessly girly Bella. She had assumed otherwise based on stereotypes, but the bookshelves were packed with evidence that she’d been wrong. For someone who hadn’t done well in school, Bella clearly loved to read—at least when the topic was women loving women.

  Guilt nagged at her for not reciprocating Bella’s candor, especially when Bella had been so nervous about telling her. It would have been the perfect moment to squeeze her hand and say, I understand because I’m gay too.

  But something had held her back. She wasn’t afraid of a bad reaction, obviously. She was more afraid of what else Bella might see.

  For one thing, Bella might figure out that her dedication to Alyssa had been more than professional loyalty. That would be humiliating, but she’d live. Her biggest fear was that Bella would sense her emotions in the present. What if she caught a lingering look and realized her new houseguest had feelings for her?

  Nadine hated the idea of making Bella uncomfortable in her own home. She was determined to hide her inconvenient attraction, and the best way to do that was to keep her sexual orientation to herself.

  Footsteps in the hallway interrupted her thoughts. Bella appeared in the living room wearing skintight purple pajama shorts that barely covered her bottom and a thin white T-shirt that said RVA in faded blue letters. Every curve was visible, including her large breasts. Her hair was swept into a messy bun on top of her head, and her face wore the stain of yesterday’s mascara.

  “Good morning.” Bella smiled sleepily. “I made coffee.”

  “Sm—” Her voice was a raspy croak. She cleared her throat. “Smells wonderful.”

  “Did you sleep good? I know that couch isn’t very comfortable.”

  Nadine stopped herself from comparing it to her prison mattress, fearing Bella might take offense. “Yes, I slept well.”

  It was true. Even on the worn-out, creaky sofa, she had slept better than she had in weeks. For once, she had gone to bed without a pressing problem weighing on her. She had a place to stay for the immediate future—as long as she didn’t screw it up.

  Nadine followed Bella into the small kitchen and helped herself to a generous cup of coffee.

  “Sorry, it’s just the grocery-store brand,” Bella said.

  Nadine inhaled the aroma and sipped the hot liquid. It tasted like actual coffee. “After two years in prison, trust me—this is heavenly.”

  Bella chuckled. “Oh my. Your standards are even lower than mine.” She held up a box. “I’m having a Pop-Tart for breakfast. Do you want one?”

  Nadine considered the frosted toaster pastries to be children’s food, but given Bella’s affinity for sugary, processed snacks, she doubted there was anything better in the cabinets. And she was in no position to be picky. “Sounds good.”

  When the toaster sprang up, Bella placed a pastry on a paper towel and handed it to Nadine, then retrieved one for herself. “Do you mind if your bed becomes a table again?”

  “Not at all.” Nadine returned to the couch, folded the bedsheet, and set it aside. Once again, they sat side by side.

  Nadine bit into the Pop-Tart, expecting to taste preservatives and too much sugar, but to her surprise, it was delicious. The light and crispy exterior was filled with warm, gooey fruit, like strawberry pie. “Mmmmph. That’s…hmm. That’s actually good.”

  Bella laughed. “Is this your first Pop-Tart? Like ever? You didn’t eat them growing up?”

  Nadine shrugged. “I think they might have been sold in the Philippines, but other foods were more popular.”

  “Ooh, like what?” Bella took a bite of her own.

  “Well, for breakfast we’d usually have rice and sausage.”

  Bella raised her eyebrows. “Rice for breakfast?”

  “Oh yes. Rice with everything. We had sweet pastries too, but the filing was more likely to be coconut or ube.” Her mouth watered at the memory. It had been years since she’d had a proper Filipino pastry.

  “Ube? What’s that?”

  “It’s a purple yam. We use it in ice cream, cake, all sorts of sweets. They sell it at Asian stores in the city. I should pick some up for you to try.”

  “That would be awesome. I would love to try Filipino food.”

  “I could cook for us sometimes, if that would be helpful. I want to do my share.”

  “You can cook? Oh my Lord, I already love having you here.” Bella beamed at her, and their eyes locked.

  Nadine shifted under Bella’s gaze and looked away. She quickly swallowed the last bite of her Pop-Tart. “Could I use your shower?”

  “Of course. You don’t have to ask.”

  Nadine fished through her duffel for clean clothes and headed to the bathroom. She started to lift her shirt when a frantic voice interrupted.

  “Stop! Stop!” Bella burst into the bathroom. “Oh, crap. I meant to clean all this up.”

  “What?” The bathroom was far from spotless, but there wasn’t much visible clutter.

  “Um, this.” Sheepishly, Bella pulled back the paisley-print shower curtain.

  The bathtub was full of shampoo bottles, hair products, makeup, and accessories. There were so many products, she could barely see the floor of the tub. “Oh my.”

  Bella’s face flamed. “My bathroom counter was a disaster, so before you got here, I threw everything into the tub so it would look clean. I meant to put everything away after you went to sleep, but I forgot. I’m sorry. You must think I’m the biggest slob you ever met.”

  Nadine shook her head. “What I think is that someone needs to call Guinness World Records about the number of hair products you own.”

  “I know.” Bella covered her face with her hands. “I have a problem.” She peeked through her fingers. “Do you regret moving in?”

  “Of course not.” Nadine smiled reassuringly. “Here, let me help you.”

  They piled Bella’s beauty products back onto the counter. “Well, sorry again,” Bella said. “I’ll let you shower.”

  Once Nadine had the bathroom to herself, she stripped off her pajamas and stepped into the tub. The sill at the bottom of the frosted window on the shower wall was packed with assorted bath products, nearly all fruit scented. Nadine sniffed the bottle of Suave Tropical Coconut body wash. It smelled like Bella.

  She lathered her body and moaned with pleasure as she leaned into the scalding spray. Suds spilled down her skin and pooled at her feet as clouds of steam rose around her. It was heaven.

  She imagined Bella in the shower, her long hair slicked down her back. Then she caught herself and banished the vision. Such thoughts would only lead to trouble, and she couldn’t afford trouble right now.

  Instead, she turned her thoughts to a theory she had been thinking about since she had arrived at the apartment. It would explain Bella’s struggles with math, her inability to study an assigned text—though she devoured books in her favorite genre—and the clutter lurking in every corner of her home.

  Bella had obviously tried to tidy the apartment before Nadine arrived, but she clearly tended toward disorganization and distraction. For example, Bella had absently left the Pop-Tart foil wrappers on the counter despite the trash can being two feet away.

  Nadine suspected ADHD. If she was right, she was fairly certain Bella had never been diagnosed. The question was whether to even bring it up. Bella had abandoned the idea of college a long time ago; maybe Nadine should leave it alone.

  Still, even in her current job, Bella struggled. She berated herself when she had to use a calculator, or when her cash drawer failed to match the register.

  The last thing Nadine wanted was to make Bella uncomfortable. But she couldn’t let Bella continue to suffer when she had some insight that might help. She had to say something. She just needed to figure out when and how.

  * * *

  Nadine fished for her car keys in her jacket pocket. “Well, I’ll see you at work.” She nodded at Bella.

  “Wait.” Bella tilted her head. “You don’t want to carpool? We have the exact same shift.”

  “Yes, but someone might see us drive in together. Aren’t you worried people will guess that I’m staying with you?”

  “But you are staying with me.” Bella frowned. “You don’t want anyone to know?”

  “No, it’s not that. I assumed you wouldn’t want people to know. I’m not exactly popular with the management, and I don’t want Grady and Jason to give you any grief.”

  “Oh, they already have.” Bella rolled her eyes. “Grady warned me to keep away from you, but I don’t care. I’m not ashamed that you’re staying with me, and I won’t act like I am.”

  There it was again, the heat in Nadine’s abdomen when Bella stood up for her.

  Bella stepped into black flats dotted with rhinestones, then bent over to adjust the heels. “Besides, you need to update your address with the store. They’ll probably make the connection.”

  While Nadine had dutifully informed Michaela of her new address, she hadn’t thought about updating it with the store for a temporary arrangement. She wondered how long Bella expected her to stay. “Okay, let’s carpool. Your car or mine?”

  “Um, can we take yours? Mine is kind of messy.”

  ADHD. But this wasn’t the time. “Of course.”

  As it turned out, no one even noticed when they walked in together because everyone was focused on the new security system. Jason balanced on a ladder, attaching a video camera to the ceiling while Grady, Ashley, and Kenny gawked from below.

  “That’s the wrong wire.” Grady pointed. “You need to use the red one.”

  “Look, I know what I’m—fuck! My finger!” Jason shook out his hand. “You distracted me.”

  Ashley spotted Bella and Nadine. “Y’all, guess what? We’re going to be on TV.”

  Bella glanced at the boxes on the counter. “I can see that. How many cameras are there?”

  “Not enough, if you ask me,” Grady said. “I wanted one for every aisle. But at least we’ll have coverage in the front, back, and middle of the store.”

  Ashley sighed. “No more picking wedgies in the kitchen aisle. Unless it’s an absolute emergency.”

  Nadine blinked. “I’ll be in the stockroom.”

  For once, Grady and Jason were too distracted to comment.

  “See you later, roomie,” Bella said.

  Kenny’s eyebrows shot up, but no one else seemed to realize what Bella had said.

  They would find out soon enough. Nadine hoped Bella didn’t get harassed as punishment for her kindness.

  Chapter 13

  Bella wrapped a strand of hair around her curling iron and held it there until it sizzled, then released the clamp. The loose ringlet bounced like a spring.

  Nadine rapped on the bathroom door. “Are you almost ready? It’s time to go.”

  Bella checked the time on her phone. “Oh, crap.” It was one thing for Bella to be late, but Nadine couldn’t afford even one mistake. Grady and Jason still resented Nadine’s presence, and while they weren’t actively sabotaging her as much as they had at first, they would jump at any excuse to fire her. “Be right there!”

  There was no time to fix her face, so she grabbed her makeup bag and shoved a few products into it. Since Nadine was driving, she could fix her face on the way.

  She emerged from the bathroom to find Nadine standing at the door, her black hair still damp from the shower. Nadine never primped before work, or any other time—although old photographs indicated that she could pull off a glamorous look if she wanted.

  “We have, like, no food,” Bella said on the way to the car. “Maybe we should stop at the store on the way home.”

  “Hmm.” Nadine opened the door and slid into the driver’s seat. “Okay.”

  Bella settled into the passenger seat and flipped open the mirror on the sun visor.

  When the car didn’t immediately start, Bella turned to look at Nadine. “What? Is something wrong?”

  “Nothing’s wrong. I’m just… Would you mind if I cook tonight? I’m out of practice, and I don’t know if I’ll be able to find the right ingredients here. But I’d like to make some Filipino food.”

  Bella wasn’t sure if she liked Filipino food, but it didn’t matter. The idea of Nadine cooking for them brought Bella more pleasure than she cared to admit. “I’d love that. I’ve been in a food rut for, well, my entire adult life. Anything that isn’t from a box sounds amazing.”

  “Good.” Nadine turned her key in the ignition, and the car sputtered to a start.

  Bella exchanged a little smile with her reflection. So far, she and Nadine were doing well as roommates. Nadine might have been thrown when Bella revealed her sexual orientation, but she had recovered quickly—and now she was comfortable enough to cook. It was a good sign.

  Bella squeezed the eyelashes of her right eye with the curler and counted to ten. Then she carefully brushed the wand through her lashes, coating them with a thin layer of mascara. But when the car hit a bump, her hand wobbled, depositing a black gob under her eye.

  “Oops.” Bella tried to wipe it off with her thumb but only smeared it into a thick line. “Crap. I look like a football player.” She’d have to use soap and water at the store.

  Nadine glanced at her, then returned her attention to the road. “You put a lot of effort into your hair and makeup.”

  She thinks it’s a waste of time. Nadine probably thought makeup was only worth wearing to an important job, like being a lawyer or an advisor to a presidential nominee.

  “I know I don’t have to wear makeup to work. It’s just…” Bella tried to think of how to explain it. “It makes me feel better. Like, I’m stuck in this tiny town, dealing with Grady and Jason’s degrading bullshit all day long. But at least I look pretty.”

  Bella cringed as she heard her own words. Nadine probably thought she was shallow and vain in addition to being a chronic underachiever. “Ugh. I know I’m pathetic.”

  “You’re not pathetic.” Nadine’s voice had a hard edge. “I’d certainly never describe you that way, and if anyone else ever does, I want you to send them to me.”

  “Thanks.” Bella parted her lips and swabbed on tinted lip gloss.

  “And you always look nice,” Nadine added softly.

  Bella watched in the mirror as crimson flushed into her cheeks. Nadine’s opinion mattered to her a great deal. She knew Nadine appreciated her sharing her home, but Bella wasn’t sure what Nadine thought of her aside from that. How could she possibly measure up against the super-educated lawyers and politicians from Nadine’s former life?

  She didn’t want Nadine to think she was some ignorant small-town fuckup. But she couldn’t kid herself. Nadine never would have spent time with Bella before she went to prison. If Nadine could trade her friendship with Bella for her old life, she’d do it in a second.

  But now, at least, she had two compliments to get her through the day. Not pathetic. Looks nice. She would hold those words close to her chest while she waited for work to be over.

  * * *

  Bella took a break from stocking and arranging merchandise to scroll through her Instagram feed. Nothing new since she’d last checked about two minutes ago.

  God, I’m so bored.

  Bella had been working on the floor for almost two hours. It felt more like ten. Few tasks were more boring than picking up after customers and organizing shelves, dealing with the same piles of cheap merchandise day after day. No wonder she never bothered to clean her apartment.

  Her phone buzzed as a notification banner appeared. It was a text from Raelyn. Drinks tonight? Maybe a late dinner?? A row of booze and food emojis followed.

  Bella’s thumbs hovered over her phone’s keyboard. If things were different, she would invite Raelyn to join them for dinner, but Raelyn’s opinion of Nadine hadn’t changed. Mixing her two friends was a bad idea. She responded: Sorry I have plans. Maybe later this week?

  Raelyn wrote back, Oooh, plans??? Who is she?

  Bella groaned. If she evaded the question, Raelyn would only push harder. Not a date. Nadine is cooking for us.

  Bella chewed her lip, watching bubbles appear, disappear, and reappear before the response finally came. How nice of her. Another time.

  Like a true Southern woman, Raelyn knew how to wrap disapproval in a neat little package with a bow on top. But Nadine wasn’t the monster Raelyn imagined. Yes, Nadine had done something bad in the past, but she could also be kind.

  Besides, it wasn’t as if Alyssa Jackson would magically become president if Bella refused to eat Nadine’s cooking.

  She shoved a stack of shower curtains onto the shelf. I’m not doing anything wrong.

  * * *

  Bella arrived at the time clock the second her shift ended. As she punched out, Nadine appeared behind her.

  “Long-ass day.” Bella slung her purse over her shoulder.

  “Aren’t they all?” Nadine’s polo was dusty, and her face, like Bella’s, was shiny with sweat and grime. “Let’s get out of here.”

  Outside, they walked next door to the Food Lion.

  “I hope Todd isn’t working tonight,” Bella said as they approached the entrance.

  Nadine stopped. “I didn’t even think of that. Do you want to go somewhere else?”

  “No, it’s okay. He’s the one who assaulted me. I shouldn’t have to go somewhere else. Besides, he won’t mess with me when there are witnesses.”

  “Certainly not while I’m around, if he likes his limbs intact.”

  Pleasure flooded Bella’s chest. Nadine had become protective of her in more ways than one, and she liked it.