Cheyenne's chatter about the new hire was too much information for Cameron to know or really care about. According to her, the new hire's name was Jasmine. Some friends called her Jas, but Cheyenne wasn't one of those friends. She was 21, freshly graduated from college with a degree in Women's Studies. What a useless degree, Cameron thought to herself, a bitter attempt to soothe the sting of her own college dropout status.
Jasmine was, according to Cheyenne, a beautiful person with a heart of gold, the kind that every person aspired to be. She was warm, kind, and had an effortless way of making people feel safe. It was the kind of presence Cameron could never replicate. She wasn't sure why Cheyenne felt the need to tell her all of this. Was she under the impression that Cameron had any influence in Jasmine's employment? Or was she just that excited about having her friend work with her? Cameron didn't get it. But that was just Cheyenne—an oversharer, the exact opposite of Cameron. How nice would it be to be naturally expressive, to feel things so intensely and share them without hesitation?
She felt an ugly twist of envy.
Cheyenne kept going, listing Jasmine's favorite snacks, how she once fostered a cat with anxiety, how she decorated her dorm with fairy lights and dried lavender. Cameron tuned most of it out, fixating instead on the dull ache forming between her temples.
Her thoughts and Cheyenne's excited ramblings were interrupted by the shrill ring of her phone.
She stepped out to answer it, relieved for an excuse to escape the conversation. It was a company she had recently applied to, asking to set up an interview. A small weight lifted from her chest. At least now she didn't have to worry about being broke and unemployed in the transition between jobs. The thought of calling up her parents—the ones she had avoided for months—and begging for money made her stomach turn. At least she wouldn't have to sink that low. Not yet.
By the time she returned to the office, the mask was back in place. She smoothed down her blouse, plastered a cheeky smile on her face, and made her way to her desk, ready to fake her way through the rest of the workday. But as she approached, she noticed an unfamiliar figure standing over it, chatting with the very Cheyenne that had been in her ear moments ago.
The woman turned to her, sensing her presence. And for the first time, Cameron laid eyes on Jasmine.
Jasmine was shorter than her, maybe 5'4", with a soft, curvy frame that carried an effortless femininity. She had long, brunette waves that cascaded down her shoulders, the front strands framing her face in a shade of blonde. Her olive-toned skin contrasted against the dark hues of her alternative style—black painted nails, a fitted lace top, silver rings that caught the office lights when she moved her hands. Her hazel eyes held something gentle, something inviting, something Cameron couldn't quite place.
Cameron had spent years perfecting the art of not reacting. Of keeping her emotions locked beneath layers of detachment. But at that moment, something cracked. It was the kind of instant attraction that made her stomach tighten, made her breath hitch just slightly before she could control it.
Jasmine smiled, warm and open. "You must be Cameron."
Cameron blinked, recovering quickly, slipping into the role she knew best. Charismatic. Casual. Unaffected. "That's me. And you must be the legendary Jasmine I've heard so much about."
Jasmine let out a small laugh, and it was the kind that felt like sunlight—soft and easy. "I don't know about legendary, but I guess that's me."
Cheyenne beamed between them. "I told you she was great, right?"
Cameron barely heard her. She was too busy taking in every detail—the way Jasmine tucked some loose strands of hair behind her ear, the faint scent of vanilla and something floral, the effortless way she existed in this space. Cameron had met a lot of women. Slept with a lot of women. None of them had ever made her pause like this.
It was unsettling. And intoxicating.
She didn't know it yet, but Jasmine was about to change everything.