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New York Times

A Work Friendship Evolves Into Love

When Lauren Nicole Noblitt began working as a hostess at Finka Table & Tap, a West Miami, Fla., restaurant owned by the chef Eileen Frances Andrade, she had never dated a woman. She identified as straight, although she admitted to being more attracted to women. She said she first saw her new boss sitting at the bar in October 2017 and was blown away. 'I couldn't believe Eileen was the owner because she looked super cool,' she said. Ms. Andrade, who came out in 2009, didn't look at Ms. Noblitt romantically because she was an employee. 'We really liked each other, but always socialized with other people and never acted on anything,' Ms. Andrade, 36, said. She is also the chef-owner of Amelia's 1931, a classic Latin restaurant with Asian influences in West Miami. Their solid friendship continued for about a year even after Ms. Noblitt, 27, switched to working as a hostess and server at Amelia's 1931. But things changed between them at Ms. Noblitt's 21st birthday party in September 2018. 'I ended up spending the night with Eileen,' Ms. Noblitt said. The next morning, the women were 'hung over' and craved a hearty meal. They felt bold enough to dine out publicly, feasting on tacos at Antojitos, a Mexican restaurant in Miami. 'Our hopes of keeping this attraction low-key until we were ready to share were thwarted when a co-worker walked in and busted us,' Ms. Andrade said. Ms. Noblitt had been attracted to Ms. Andrade for months, but wasn't quite ready to act on it. 'I was very Christian and wanted to marry a man, have a white picket fence, and a typical American marriage,' Ms. Noblitt said. 'But I accepted being gay after my slow romantic progression with Eileen.' Want all of The Times? Subscribe.