Yes! Kiss her!

Moving suddenly, on impulse, Esther cups Annalise's face in her hands and draws her close, kissing her on the mouth. Annalise's lips are soft and warm, and better than Esther could have imagined. Annalise stiffens in surprise for a moment, then returns the kiss, closing her eyes and holding Esther's cheeks.

This goes on for a few seconds, then Esther breaks away with a gasp, stumbling a few steps away from Annalise. "I-I'm so sorry, Lise!" she exclaims, mortified. "I don't know...I don't know what came over me. I'm sorry, I'm sorry..."

Annalise's hand on her shoulder stops her, and she looks back to see this gorgeous, redheaded woman smiling at her. "Don't be," Annalise tells her quietly.

Esther swallows. "No, I...I must. I...it's not right, not proper..."

"Ha. If you knew half of what went on outside of this little town..." Annalise shakes her head disdainfully. "We probably shouldn't discuss this too much more in public. But just know that you have nothing to be ashamed of...neither before God, nor with me." She smiles at Esther again and Esther, tearfully, nods after a moment. "Now...we should go in. We'll talk about this more in future, but if you're gone too long your family may start to question. But I came both to see you and to invite your whole family to the ball my parents are throwing to celebrate my return the night after tomorrow." She leans close and whispers, "We can talk more then!"

After a moment, Esther smiles and nods, still blinking away tears. She clasps Annalise's hands. "Thank you for not hating me, Lise," she whispers.

"Far from it," the other girl returns. "Now, let's go in."

As the two head back toward the house, Esther notices a figure walking down the road at the edge of the field. From here she can't tell who it is, but her heart starts beating quickly. Did this person see them? Did they see...what she did? She's not sure, but it feels dangerous. She almost regrets kissing Annalise...but then, her lips were so very soft.

***

The next two days pass without incident, though for the five sisters most of the time is spent in a whirl of activity, getting ready for the Bellingtons' ball. Finally the night of the event has arrived!