Getting dressed after the shower made her feel refreshed and brought that smile back. When she finally entered the kitchen, Ian beamed with joy, "So much better!". Giselle cleared her throat, "Yeah, it was really warm at Annie's, it felt icky now". Her guilt had been suppressed the moment she saw Ian. Not that she had felt too guilty in the first place. It all had been too exciting and happening too fast for her to ponder about why she wasn't feeling guilty. And she wasn't going to start now.

"Icky?", he frowned for a moment, as if he was debating something in his head, and finally said, "No matter, here's breakfast!". He handed her a plate and she pressed her lips together, took the plate and sighed. Two Tortilla wraps with a fruity filling. "What is it with you and Tortilla wraps...", she asked rhetorically. Ian chuckled.

Despite her urge to see Annie, she resorted to texting her. When she had left that morning, her lover had been fast asleep. Hours later, she had received a text while working.

Annie: "Where did you vanish to? Why didn't you wake me and kiss me goodbye?"

Giselle swiftly turned the display off and smiled at Laureen sheepishly. "Are you kidding me, how come you are getting some booty and I don't!", Laury whined teasingly. The coworker was single, had been for a few years and never quite knew what she was looking for in the first place. "I am not! Ian is being nice to me lately", Giselle lied and tried to add confidence with an innocent smile. "Really, then show me that text!", Laury demanded with both hands on her hips. "I won't, it's none of your business", the brunette responded. Laury threw her hands into the air in defeat while walking away and talking to the ceiling, "Why do you hate me? What did I ever do to you?". Giselle smiled to herself and went back to work.

In the evening, Giselle decided to text Annie after all. Of course she was invited over, again. An invitation she refused politely. Instead she listened to Ian rant on about customers and their ridiculous behaviour. When he was done, she kissed him on the cheek and squeezed his hand, "While today sucked, I'm sure tomorrow is going to be better". He smiled at her and kissed her on the lips. To her, it felt weird and different. For the first time she felt really guilty and took a deep breath to center herself.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Two days after that morning, Annie, Ian and Giselle drove down a two-lane road downtown. Celestine had suggested to reserve a table at The Mariner. A sea food and salad buffet restaurant. Ian had managed to get a table at the window, overlooking a small lake out back. Maybe it was more of a pond. Dozens of ducks and other birds swam on it in the evening sun. He had reserved the table for two, originally. Celestine waited for them outside the entrance and watched two ducks fight over a female. She was a tall woman, about the same height as Ian. The blonde hair in a bun and a wooden stick to hold it, she had a long face, thick lips that matched her darker skin colour and wore silver, expensive earrings and a matching choker. Her fashion choice was modern, with tight black jeans and a casual, burgundy blouse that emphasized her body without revealing anything. She smiled brightly, gave Ian a formal hug and he introduced both women, "This is Giselle, my wife, and that's Annie, she lives next to us".

After all of them shook hands, Giselle noticed that Celestine had gained a bit of weight on the thighs and marked that as win. They hadn't seen each other for years. The personality difference to her own friends was remarkable. Celestine and Giselle had largely different styles of communication, but she guessed that Celestine's style also worked for her.

Annie's hand brushed over Giselle's exactly that moment she was about to celebrate that win. She was tempted to grab the hand, but resisted. "Long time no see, how have you been?", Giselle said through a fake smile. "I've been well, been up north for a while, now I'm back. I actually didn't believe I heard right when Ian called me and asked if he could bring the lot of you", Cel laughed. Her voice sounded audibly nasal. "And why's that?", Giselle asked politely, but Cel just waved off playfully, "Because you hate me, of course? Let's go inside, I'm starving!".

Inside The Mariner, the restaurant was full. Dozens of low volume conversations accumulated into a loud background noise. The furniture and decorations took inspiration from old, wooden ships. Everything smelled of sea food and ocean salt. Along the decorations were blue lights that tinted the ceiling into a dark blue, adding to the underwater, ocean vibe the place was giving off.

When a waiter showed them their table, Ian sat next to Giselle, but across Celestine, who smiled mischievously at the couple while pointing her thumb to her table neighbor, "So who's sleeping with that pretty girl next to me?".