Kerry lifted her hand off Dar’s shoulder and traced the planes of her face with careful fingers. Blue eyes followed her motion, 202 Melissa Good then lifted and seemed to reach out to capture her, drawing her inward and downward until her body was pressed against Dar’s and she replaced her fingers with her lips.
“Mm.” Dar closed her eyes as she smiled, her hands coming to rest on Kerry’s sides and teasingly tickled up and down them.
She felt Kerry’s ribs expand outward under her cotton shirt as she took a deeper breath and continued her motion, enjoying the familiar contours under her touch.
She knew every inch of Kerry’s body—all its planes, all its quirky irregularities. She loved the softness of her skin, and the slowly building strength she had felt grow under it to cover the sturdy bones that had seemed so very close to the surface when they’d first met.
“You know what I was voted most likely to?” Kerry whispered. “In high school?”
Dar almost lost the question when Kerry’s lips descended on hers and their bodies pressed tighter against one another. “Bet it wasn’t that,” she rumbled softly, as they paused to breathe. “Run for president?” She took in a breath filled with Kerry’s scent and reveled in it.
Kerry chuckled, shaking her head slightly as she deferred answering for another kiss. She felt Dar’s hand slip under her shirt, warm against her skin as fingers traced slow circles across her ribcage. “Nothing.”
“Eh?” Dar eased Kerry’s shirt up and gently cupped her breast.
“Nothing,” Kerry repeated and inhaled sharply as her body reacted to Dar’s touch. “Said I’d never leave home.” She kissed Dar. “Never go anywhere.” Her voice broke slightly on the last word. “Never—”
“Never experience this?” Dar ducked her head and nibbled Kerry’s nipple, then cupped her hand around Kerry’s neck and passionately returned the kiss.
A soft groan trickled through Kerry’s throat, dusting her own lips with warm breath. “Mm…yeah.” Kerry lifted her head, her eyes half closed, nose-to-nose with Dar. She looked into the passion-darkened blue orbs beneath her. “I never thought I would either.”
“Feel this?” Dar teasingly slid her hand down Kerry’s body.
Kerry’s expression unexpectedly gentled. She kissed the spot right above Dar’s heart. “No, this. To be loved for myself.” She kissed the spot again, then shifted back up as Dar lifted her hand and laid it on Kerry’s cheek.
“Neither did I.” Dar raised her head and they kissed again.
Kerry’s arms relaxed as she eased forward and slipped one bare Thicker Than Water 203
thigh between Dar’s. “I think we both lucked out.”
Kerry hugged her, sparing a moment of passion for one of joy.
Dar hugged her back, finding peace in her choices and accepting them. Then Kerry slipped her hand down and under the waistband of Dar’s cotton shorts, and all nobler thoughts evaporated.
She grabbed the front of Kerry’s shirt between her teeth and yanked, letting out a growl as Kerry ducked out of the fabric and got under Dar’s half shirt, finding a tastier target beneath it.
“Hell with leather.” Dar gasped. “Let’s just go in our god damned socks.”
“Hehehe.”
IT WAS DARK and not quite dawn when Dar woke up. The condo was quiet, and she could hear the soft patter of rain against the window not far over her head.
It was Monday. Now that the weekend was over, she had to face the reality of the week, and the private knowledge that today might, in fact, be her last one at ILS. She’d already decided not to tell anyone; in fact, she hadn’t even talked about it with Kerry.
She would just go up to Houston on Tuesday, and then the announcement would come out and that would be that.
So today she would spend cleaning up loose ends, taking solace from the knowledge that at least she was leaving the company in a good position, though losing the Navy contract would be a definite blow. It would work out, though, she was sure. The company could take the hit.
Dar’s thoughts drifted a bit, coming around to her still sleeping partner. She could see dark circles under Kerry’s eyes and that led to her one real worry about the whole deal. She could leave, and it would hurt her, but she was afraid it would hurt Kerry worse, to have to take over everything now, after what she’d just been through.
Or maybe…Dar exhaled. Maybe Kerry would just chuck it all too. Maybe she should, rather than risk a health Dar was beginning to suspect was more at risk than she was willing to admit.
Troubled, she stared at the ceiling, in the rare position of being out of control of her own destiny and not liking the feeling at all. Instead of being soothing, now the incessant patter of the rain made her edgy, half of her wanting the day to start and half of her dreading it.
Her entire body started when the cell went off near her head.
She jerked to one side and reached for it, hissing at the sharp pain in her shoulder. “Shit.”
Kerry woke, her head moving and her eyes blinking dazedly.
204 Melissa Good
“Huh?”
“Phone.” Dar grabbed it and opened it, rattled and off-balance. “What?” Her heart was thundering, adrenaline pumping through her from the ominously early call. Trouble?
“Uh…Dar?”
Alastair. Dar’s throat went dry. “Oh. Sorry.” She glanced at the clock. “Good morning.”
“Ah, yes, well, thanks.” Alastair cleared his throat. “Listen, sorry to call you so early.”
Dar felt her heart settle into her guts. “It’s earlier where you are.” She was aware of Kerry’s eyes on her in the dimness, and of the light touch now on her belly, wordless comfort as Kerry seemed to sense her distress. “What’s up?”
“Well, I guess you military types are all early risers. I just heard from Washington,” Alastair said.
Dar didn’t say anything, but she felt her heart rate speed up even more.
“Fact of the matter is, Dar, I didn’t think the general was going to buy into us.”
“Yeah, well…” Dar heard the husky note in her voice.
“But he did,” Alastair said. “I thought he’d ask for ten acres of corroboration, but you know what, Dar? He said your word was good enough.”
Dar was a little surprised to feel the sting of tears in her eyes.
“Did he really?”
“Yes, lady, he did,” Alastair replied. “Never heard a man sound so relieved, I’ll tell you that. Anyway, I just wanted to let you know. And, by the way, he wants to make the announcement to the press at the base down there. You’ll be available?”
It was all too sudden. “Uh…yeah. I guess. When?”
“Friday.”
It was still too much. “You’ll be there?”
“Sure, I can be. Dar, are you all right?”
Dar felt more confused than all right. Everything had unexpectedly turned over again, and she needed time to sort it all out.
“Want to come to my birthday party? It’s this weekend.”
The long period of silence at least gave her time to right her mental balance, while her boss was thoroughly knocked off his.
She glanced down at Kerry, who had nestled back down with her head on Dar’s shoulder and was merely waiting, her fingers tracing an absent pattern on Dar’s belly. The important fact surfaced.
At least Kerry would be all right now.
“Uh, sure, Dar. I’d love to,” Alastair finally said, in a direly bewildered, but reasonably appreciative tone. “Should I bring flowers?”
Thicker Than Water 205
“Nah. A bathing suit.”
“B…Hey, how about I call you back later, huh? After breakfast?”