it’s the green light that jane’s desperately been waiting for. “i want you to more than touch me,” jane immediately replies.
kate grins. “care to share?”
jane smirks and shifts to hook her foot around kate’s ankle. “let’s finish up out here and i’ll tell you all about it”
kate leans forwards and taps the ash from her cigarette onto the tray in the table. “and what are you feeling, jane?”
jane shrugs and turns the question around on kate. “what’re you feeling?”
“i’m feeling like you want me to touch you.”
“so,” kate breaks the silence. “we’re having a drink, we’re having a cigarette. wasn’t there something else you mentioned?”
despite how eager she actually is, jane decides to play coy and pretend to think. she finally answers, “whatever else we’re feeling.”
jane doesn’t think she’s ever felt like this. like she’s vibrating out of her skin with want. the only thing saving her from feeling like a fool is the sharp, heated look in kate’s eyes that betrays she’s feeling the same way
it leaves jane’s head spinning and causes the heat that’s been pooling low in her belly to slip down further. she traces the line of kate’s neck with her eyes as kate as she sips on tequila. kate’s painfully pretty. and the ability to keep her hands to herself is slowly waning
kate holds there for a beat, ensuring she can take a drag and that her cigarette is properly lit. even after it still takes a bit for her to pull back, waiting until she needs to exhale and twists away from jane to do so.
she keeps her fingers on it to hold it steady as she leans in. jane holds still, heart pounding in her chest at kate’s face inching closer. she watches as kate presses the tip of her unlit cigarette to the cherry of her own, using jane’s lit one to light hers
kate takes the one jane holds out for her, allowing their fingers to brush more than necessary. jane expects kate to use the lighter again, but instead kate’s biting her lip, narrowing her eyes in thought. kate seems to come to a decision and takes the cigarette between her lips
jane does and kate flicks the lighter, illuminating their faces in a soft glow. kate holds the flame to end of jane’s cigarette. keeping it there until jane’s dragging in smoke and there’s a bright, consistent glow at the end of the cigarette.
she takes one of them between her lips. turns to kate and mumbles around it, “got a light?”
kate huffs in amusement and produces a lighter from her pocket. “i do. lucky you.”
but kate doesn’t hand the lighter off to jane. instead she motions for her to lean closer
they both sit down on the lanai couch, much closer than necessary. jane raises her glass and kate responds in kind, both clinking their glasses together before taking a generous sip. jane sets her glass on the low table in front of them to pull two cigarettes out of the pack
jane refocuses on pouring them both two fingers of tequila. she hands a glass off the kate and picks her own up. wordlessly walks to the back sliding door and pushes it open. kate’s right behind her, close enough for jane to feel the warmth radiating off of her
jane twists around and finds a smug look on kate’s face. she shakes the pack and teases, “maybe these need to go on a lower shelf.”
jane rolls her eyes and plucks the pack out of kate’s hand while she quietly laughs
kate must realize that’s what she’s searching for, because suddenly the cheeky amount of space between them is gone. a hand anchors at the small of jane’s back and kate leans over her, reaching up to feel around for the cigarettes. kate hums and lets up
jane finds one of her better bottles of tequila towards the back of her liquor shelf. she just manages to get it down, but doesn’t have the same luck with the pack of cigarettes that’s kept on the same shelf. jane continues to feel around, but it must be just beyond her reach
looking to jane for what the next move is and what she wants. but jane isn’t in the mood to play things safe. she wants to press her luck. to press kate until she either gives jane what she really wants or decides this is all a step too far
jane doesn’t give any instructions, and kate doesn’t ask for them. she follows jane through the house and into the kitchen. just close enough to stay in her space without being in the way. it’s a courtesy, a very kind one. a message that kate’s still following her lead
this time kate doesn’t have to be scolded into taking her shoes off. she toes out of them by the hall bench after following jane inside. going so far as to take both pair of shoes and set them neatly in the cubbies. it’s a simple act, yet it still sparks something in jane
kate pulls into the driveway just behind jane. already out the door and walking up to her suv before jane can even unbuckle. she’s quickly joining kate on the doorstep, snickering to herself when kate rolls her eyes over the front door not being locked
jane tips her face up until it’s dangerously close to kate’s. “or whatever else we’re feeling.”
kate hums in thought and jane doesn’t think she even been looked at so intensely.
“okay.”
she’s feeling braver than she has any right to. without much thought the question, “do you want to come over?” comes tumbling out of jane’s mouth.
kate cocks a brow. “for?”
jane shrugs. “a drink, to talk, another cigarette,” she offers. (+)
they remain like that for a while. side by side, shoulders pressed together, passing the cigarette back and forth until all that’s left is the butt. jane watches kate flick it on the ground and use the toe of her boot to stomp it out (+)
impulsively, jane reaches out and takes the cigarette from kate, ignoring the flutter in her stomach when their fingers brush together.
“me neither.”
jane tries to tamp down her smug smile when kate fixes her eyes on her. gaze tracking jane bringing the cigarette to her lips +
jane crosses her arms over the railing and eyes the cigarette in kate’s hands. “didn’t take you for a smoker,” she comments.
kate snickers and shakes her head. “i know, it’s a filthy habit. one i just can’t seem to break.”
(+)
kate turns her head to continue staring up at the night sky, and jane takes decides to take her silence as an invitation rather than a dismissal. she closes the distance between them and settles into the space next to kate. she stays silent, not entirely sure what to say (+)
jane purposely makes her footsteps heavy on the creaking wooden floor, announcing without words that someone is there. kate looks over her shoulder and narrows her eyes. she spots jane but doesn’t give away any surprise or annoyance at her presence (+)
she moves closer and is almost surprised when she confirms her own suspicion. it’s kate tucked away in the corner, a lit cigarette glowing between her fingers. jane wouldn’t have pegged her as a smoker, but maybe her perception is off. maggie being a perfect example (+)
in the relative dark jane spots a figure at the far end of the patio, leaning against the railing with smoke occasionally escaping in breaths. jane thinks to herself that the figure looks familiar. the slump of the shoulders, the long legs, the blonde hair (+)
i’m imagining a brokenhearted jane staying late at a dive bar after the maggie debacle. she decides she needs some air and slips out onto the back patio. it’s sparsely lit with dim string lights hung from the low, exposed support beams of the roof (+)
it becomes just another part of kate’s new, a new usual. not even thinking about it, she posts an action shot to her story that kai took of her while kate was surfing. lucy likes the story. and hina is never going to let kate hear the end of it