Page 48 of Suncatcher

The chain had tangled up on itself. Driz frowned and fumbled with the snarled links, until Pearl took the necklace, easily undoing the knot.

When she tried to give it back, Driz hid her hands. “No, it is for you.”

Pearl stared at her. “Don’t give this to me. I don’t deserve it.” She seemed almost angry.

“It is not about deserving. It is a gift.”

Pearl looked down at the pendant again, rubbing her thumb over one of the dented points.

“Unless you do not want it,” Driz said when Pearl didn’t say anything.

“No.” Pearl swallowed. “I do, actually.”

Warmth filled Driz’s chest. “Will you wear it?”

Pearl gave her an unreadable look, but she wrapped the ends around her neck, fiddling with the clasp for a moment, before she tucked the pendant beneath the bunch of her scarf.

Driz touched the scarf at her own neck. A gift from Pearl. And now Pearl wore a gift from Driz.

She felt ten feet tall.

She wasn’t ready for Pearl to leave. Driz was about to ask when she would see her again when Pearl stepped forward.

Placing a hand on Driz’s collar, Pearl leaned up on her toes. And she pressed their lips together.

Time stilled, the world shrinking to only Driz’s chest and mouth—the two points where Pearl touched her. Where they were connected.

It only lasted a moment, and before Driz could figure out what was happening and how to respond, Pearl and her lips were gone.

Pearl snagged her abandoned lantern from where she’d left it earlier. “If you’re here in two days, I’ll meet you again.”

15

The Rest of the Story

She’d kissed her.

It was all Pearl could think about since she’d left Driz last night.

She stumbled through her door, dry paint flaking off her hands after finishing the two buildings beside Molly’s. She wasn’t a talented painter even when she could focus with half her brain, but she got the job done. It looked fine from a distance.

She’d kissed her.

She stomped up the stairs, stripping out of her sweaty clothes that clung to her skin, taking a moment to clean up. The sun hung low, approaching the horizon. Driz would be waking soon.

As Pearl ran the washcloth over her face and neck, it caught on the necklace resting against her sternum. Pearl paused and unclasped it so she could study the old-fashioned piece better. The star was made of lightweight tin accented with brass instead of true silver and gold, and the center gem was obviously just cut glass. But then she moved through the low-angle sun streaming in her window and she paused, holding the pendant back up.

Tiny rainbows of light scattered across her room, tugging a smile from her lips. A miniature suncatcher.

Her smile disappeared as she realized Driz would have no idea what this was. She would never have seen it in the sunlight.

The simple charm couldn’t have been worth much. But it was pretty.

Pearl didn’t remember the last time she’d received a gift just because it was pretty. She had nice things, like her favorite blue shirt and her inlaid revolvers. But those were practical, and she’d chosen them for herself. This necklace had no function. And Pearl almost felt pretty herself with it around her neck.

Pearl had lived long enough to know she wasn’t, by any standard of the word. She had attributes women found pleasing, and she had skills. But she wasn’t a beauty, with her missing teeth, and her splotched, damaged skin. And usually, she was at peace with that. So why had she lashed out with cruelty when Driz called her beautiful last night?

Pearl sank down on her bed, fingers still playing with the pendant and mind fixed on Driz. Pearl was attracted to her. It shocked Pearl in one way, but not in another. She’d noted Driz’s physical form beyond her frightening features the first time they’d met, though it hadn’t been more than a thought. After spending time with her, however, and trusting her—