When Sherry’s breath brushed her face, Madison suddenly felt warm all over. “I…I’m fine.” Her voice sounded hoarse to her own ears.

Sherry’s cheeks were slightly flushed. “It seems to be nothing serious.” She swallowed and moved a few inches away.

What the hell was going on here? Madison knew what desire looked like, and for a moment, that’s exactly what had shone in Sherry’s eyes.

Or was that just wishful thinking?

Madison rolled over to her side and slipped under the covers. “You coming?”

For a few seconds, Sherry stared at the floor. Eventually, she lay down and pulled the covers up to her neck. Her hand already halfway to the light switch above the nightstand, she asked, “Can I turn it off?”

“Sure.”

They lay in silence in the dark until Sherry quietly said, “I’m sorry for reacting so emotionally earlier.”

“Why did you? React so strongly, I mean.” Madison faced Sherry even though her eyes hadn’t adapted to the darkness yet to really see her.

“I… Sometimes I have the feeling that you’re taking advantage of this situation.” The anger had left Sherry’s voice, leaving behind only weariness.

She feels as if she’s at your mercy. And wasn’t she? A lump formed in her throat at that thought. “I’m not,” she croaked out. “Taking advantage of you or this situation.” Really, she wasn’t, was she? How often had she kissed Sherry in the past few weeks without it being necessary? “At least not intentionally.” Recalling tonight’s kisses, Madison sat up. “But it was you who kissed me tonight when I was talking to my grandmother.”

Sherry sat up too. “How else was I supposed to shut you up before you could chase away your grandmother for good?” She shook her head. “Convincing your grandmother that we’re a couple is as important to me and Jake as it is to you. Probably even more so.”

She hadn’t been aware of that, but Sherry was right.

“But why did you kiss me instead of trying something else?”

“And what exactly was I supposed to try? Pull you away? Maybe change the topic of conversation?”

Okay, maybe none of that would have stopped her. But now that she thought about it, another question popped into her mind. “What’s it like for you when we kiss?”

“Huh?”

“If I had to kiss a man, I would probably be disgusted by it. Is it…disgusting for you when we kiss?” God, she hated how tiny her voice had become.

Sherry lay back down.

Guess you got your answer. How could she have ever thought Sherry might like kissing her? “Forget it.”

“I’m not disgusted by you or our kisses.”

“But?”

It took a while for Sherry to say, “It’s different if you have to kiss someone for money. Especially if it’s a woman.”

“Different how?”