Her body reacted uncertainly, not used to the motion and she leaned back the other way out of pure instinct. For a second, it was riding the line, the tire skidding against the wet pavement for an eternity before the traction caught again and she brought the motorcycle back under control.
"Jesus." Kerry felt her heart pounding in her chest, as she slowed down, ready to make the turn into their driveway. To her surprise, Dar was out in the yard heading for the road, and she jumped the fence as Kerry pulled to a stop in the soft gravel. "Hey."
"Hey." Dar joined her, laying a hand on Kerry's arm. "What's up? You okay?"
"Yeah. Almost laid the bike down." Kerry admitted. "Let's get it in the shed. I had a very unpleasant encounter with your friend from the filming people at the market."
Dar blinked. "My friend?"
"The reporter?" Kerry got off the bike and started pushing it toward the shed.
"How'd she find you down here?" Dar helped, getting her hands between Kerry's. "What the hell did she want?" Her voice sharpened.
Kerry got the door to the shed open, and they pushed the motorcycle inside. She pulled the door closed, just as the sound of tires on the road sounded loud in their ears. They both stood together and listened as the car slowed down outside, then, after a long and still moment, drove on past. "Son of a bitch."
Dar's jaw tightened. "They get you on camera?" She asked, as Kerry moved to take the bags from the back of the bike.
"Yeah." Kerry turned, letting her sunglasses slide down a little and peeking at Dar over them. "Don't worry, though. There's no way anyone's going to believe Roger Stuart's kid with a tattoo on her chest is riding a bike down in the sticks. I'll just say someone was impersonating me."
Dar's lips tensed, then relaxed into a faint grin.
"What are we going to do if she shows up here?" Kerry went on, with a grimace. "It won't take much, Dar. We're in the local phone book. All she has to do is look and she'll have the address."
"Not to mention my car's outside." Dar remarked dryly. "Let's worry about it when it happens. Did she say what angle she was after?"
"Oh yeah." Kerry picked up the parcel, and nudged Dar toward the door. "ILS snooty sloths snuggle while minions slave away." She sighed. "And I joked about it, but I think I just sunk my image big time."
"Hell with 'em." Dar led her back toward the cabin. "If they show up here, I'll just toss them in the salt. Besides, we are working." She peeked inside a bag. "Mm...strawberries."
Kerry allowed herself to be distracted as they walked over to the cabin, and slipped inside. She had a distinct feeling, though, that the reporter wasn't going to give up that easily, or be dissuaded by even Dar's rejection.
Not to mention what it all would look like to anyone viewing the film.
Kerry sighed. Muskrats.
THEY WERE BOTH surprised when the rest of the afternoon proved peaceful and reporter-less. Kerry retreated into the kitchen to make dinner, while Dar huddled with her laptop, obsessing over the results of her program.
"Hey, with this filming stuff," Kerry positioned the snapper filets on the broiling pan, dusting them with her jealously guarded mixture of spices, "don't they have to get our approval to show any of it? I mean, it's not a news program, right?"
Dar stretched, lifting her arms over her head and popping her shoulder joints. "Good question," she said. "I should probably send a note to legal and ask, huh?"
"Might be a good idea." Kerry put a final swipe of herbed oil on the fish and prepared to put them in the broiler. She glanced up as Dar entered the kitchen, circling around her and settling her arms around Kerry's waist and observing as she put dinner up.
"Mm." Kerry leaned back a little, savoring the solid warmth of her partner's body. She felt Dar rest her chin on the top of her head and they simply stood together for a bit in silence, swaying lightly to some far off music only their souls could hear.
"Keeeeerrrrry." Dar warbled, in a high tone that mimicked her gopher's. "I lloooooooovvveee you."
Kerry felt like she was going to dissolve into a puddle of blond goo. Slowly, she turned within the circle of Dar's arms and looked up at her. "Can I tell you something?"
"Could I stop you?" Dar leaned forward a little to rub noses with her.
Kerry tilted her head and they kissed, as her arms slid up and clasped around Dar's neck. She caught Dar's lower lip between her teeth and then released her with a soft chuckle. "Well, Paladar, as a matter of fact, yes, you could." She drawled softly. "Just like that, in fact."
Dar chuckled along with her, lifting a hand up to brush Kerry's cheek. "You're so easy to distract sometimes."
Kerry leaned into the touch, pressing her body against her partner's. "Depends on the distraction." She smiled. "But what I was going to say before I was so pleasantly led off course was..." Her eyes gentled and warmed. "You're the best part of my life."
"I am?" A charmed look appeared on the Dar's face. "Even better than ice cream?"
"Much better."
"Aw." Dar hugged her, tucking Kerry's head against her shoulder and giving her a healthy squeeze. "Likewise, sweetheart."
Kerry closed her eyes, and exhaled, welcoming the sweet affection in Dar's tone. After all the chaos of work and the aggravation of meeting the reporter, she wanted this.
Needed it. She slid her arms around Dar's waist and returned the hug, and then ran her hands along her partner's spine giving her a light massage. "I looooooooovvve you too." She warbled softly. "My little gopher."
Dar snickered.
They walked into the living room with their arms wrapped around each other, and got halfway across it before they heard a knock on the door. After sharing a dour look, Dar removed her hold and dusted her hands together. "I'll go take care of this. Stay here."
Kerry debated briefly, and then uncharacteristically obeyed, flopping down on the couch and extending her legs along its length as she watched Dar stalk toward the back door.
She didn't envy the reporter, if that was who it was. Dar could, and often was, rude and nasty when she felt the need to be and being on the receiving end of that was really no fun. Not that Kerry herself knew that from personal knowledge, even when she and her beloved partner disagreed, Dar never went past blunt with her.
In fact, Kerry knew she herself had been by far the nastier of the two of them when they'd first met. She wiggled her toes reflectively, her ears cocked as Dar opened the door.
"Yes?" Dar peered out into the late afternoon sunshine, her body blocking the door open just to her shoulder width.
"Well, hello there, Ms. Roberts. Remember me?" The reporter smiled at her.
"Yes." Dar responded. "Anything else you need? No?" She started to close the door.
"Wait...wait...I really need to talk to you." The woman put her hand out to keep the door from shutting. "Please?"
Dar stared steadily at her. "I'm not on the clock." She let her eyes drift past the woman, but the camera and its operator were nowhere in sight. After a moment, she focused back on the intruder.
"Well, no, but I'm here, and you're here, so..." The reporter persisted. "It'll only take a minute, really."
It all sounded so reasonable. Unfortunately, Dar wasn't feeling very reasonable at the moment. "No." She stated. "I don't appreciate people who invade my private life. So I'd get my hand off the door if I were you, unless you want a broken wrist out of this."
The woman took a step back. "Now, I don't really think we're invading..."
"Did I give you my address here?" Dar asked pointedly.