Kerry thought about that. “Oh.” She made a wry face. “I had no idea we…hmm.” She considered. “I didn’t realize we were that obvious.”
“Obviously.” Colleen patted her on the knee. “And it may not be so apparent to people who don’t know you that well, but remember, lassie, we’ve been friends for a few years now.”
“Mmm.” Kerry rested her chin on her fists again. “It makes me feel good to be with her; I guess it shows.”
The redhead laughed softly. “You could say that. But if you guys are trying to keep it quiet, you’d better not hang around each other at work a lot.”
“Well, we don’t,” Kerry mused. “I saw her all of once today.” She exhaled. “We’re both pretty busy. Maybe it was worse that night because we were kinda…um, I mean…we didn’t…” She stopped and gathered her thoughts. “Afterward we went out to Crandon and walked on the beach, and, um, we kinda…I guess we admitted that we were attracted to each other,” she finished awkwardly. “So now it’s not so, um…”
“Freaky,” Colleen supplied understandingly.
“Yeah, exactly. We both understand what’s going on, and it’s not so frustrating, so I’m sure it’s not as readily noticeable.”
Colleen grinned knowingly. “Did you guys kiss out there? On the beach?”
Kerry felt the blush heat her face, but she nodded. “Yeah,” she admitted shyly. “It was…it wasn’t what I was expecting.” She relived the moment. “We were just out there, talking about stuff—the Bermuda Triangle and dinner…and—I don’t know, it was like there was stuff going on underneath it all. I asked her if I could ask a personal question. I have no idea what I was going to ask but she kind of just stood up and kissed me, and said ‘does that answer the question?’ ” She grinned at Colleen’s rapt face. “And it did. It was…very strange, but really nice.”
“That’s really romantic, Ker.” Colleen sighed. “She seems like a really deep person.”
The blonde head nodded. “She is, yeah, she is. There’s all kinds of stuff going on in there. I think that’s what makes her so interesting.” She paused.
“At least to me.”
Colleen nodded a little. “ Did she stay over all night last night?” She asked delicately, or not so delicately.
Kerry remained silent for a moment. “Yes,” she finally admitted softly.
282 Melissa Good A small quiet descended. “You all right with that?” the redhead asked hesitantly. “I know…I mean, we talked about how you felt… Oh, you know what I mean.”
She knew. “I wasn’t…I mean, I didn’t really know what to expect, Col. I was a little nervous, I’ll tell you that, and freaked out, and a dozen other things, but, I…” She stopped to breathe. “It’s okay.”
Colleen’s brow creased in concern. “She’s not pushing you into any of this, is she? Kerry, listen, don’t feel like you’re being pressured to do something you’re not comfortable with.”
Kerry blushed a deep red, and scratched at her jaw. “Um, actually, I was the one who started it,” she muttered sheepishly as she gave Colleen a little shrug. “I’m all right with it, really.”
The redhead patted her arm. “Good for you.” She smiled. “So, when are you guys moving in together?”
Kerry’s jaw dropped. “What?” She burst out laughing. “Jesus Christ, Col, it’s not like that. It’s a physical thing. We’re just…it’s not that serious.” She paused thoughtfully. “Yet.”
“Uh…huh. Okay.” Colleen bit off a smile and gave her a nod. “When are you guys seeing each other again, then?”
“Tomorrow night. After the gym,” Kerry explained. “I told you I signed up for those classes. If I’m going to keep on hanging out with her, Rollerblading isn’t going to cut it.” She cocked her head. “You guys have a program for that gym, too. Why don’t you come along?” she inquired. “I signed up for that beginner self-defense class, it should be fun. I could use some moral support.”
“Okay, I could do that,” Colleen mused. “It’s right down the street from our office, too. And besides, I’d better if I want to be able to see you other than waving hello in the mornings,” she teased gently. “Anyway, c’mon, let’s get rolling. It’s muggier than a hot sauna outside. Sooner we finish, the sooner I can take a shower.”
“I’ll vote for that.” Kerry looked up and grinned. “Know what I wish this place had? A hot tub.”
“Hot tub?” Colleen put her hands on her hips. “Well, hoity hoi hoi. Let me guess—does Dar have a hot tub, by any chance?” Kerry nodded with a rakish smirk. Her friend laughed. “I guess this is another good reason for you to tell your parents to kiss your ass when you go home for Turkey Day, huh?”
Kerry finished velcroing herself into the skates and stood up, balancing expertly. “I had a lot of good reasons before that, but, yeah.” She finally allowed a frankly happy grin to take over her face. “This kinda puts the nail in it, so to speak. I just hope I can find a way to do it without getting kicked out of the family.” Firmly putting aside worries about her parents, she shook her head and plodded over to the door, pushing it open. “Let’s go.”
DAR WAS GLAD to get out of the damp wind and into the cool, quiet peace of the condo. The cocktail party had been outdoors at Viscaya, and she was glad the less than perfect weather had given her a good excuse to get out of there early and escape the throngs of alternately fawning and sniping sales managers clustering around.
Tropical Storm 283
Eleanor had been particularly cutting, oozing up to her and telling her what a lovely young person Kerry was, and how she was going to do her best to steal her away and save her from having to suffer where she was. “She’s destined for bigger things than being your peon, Dar.” Then the woman had smiled at her.
Dar tossed her jacket down on the couch and kicked off her shoes.
“Wonder if you knew how close you were to being thrown into Biscayne Bay, Eleanor?” she remarked wryly to the air. “Toss, sploosh, whoops. Sorry, Mariana, I know that creates a mountain of paperwork.”
The cool tile felt good against her tired feet, and she paused a moment, flexing her toes before she wandered into the bedroom. She slid out of her skirt, hose, and silk blouse and into her baseball shirt and shorts with a feeling of utter relief, enjoying the feel of the soft cotton against her skin.
Humming lightly, she wandered into the kitchen and pulled open her refrigerator, peering at its vast emptiness with a pensive expression. “I’m gonna get teased tomorrow if I don’t put some stuff in here,” she muttered to herself, startled when a soft knock sounded at the door.
For a moment, her heart bounded, considering the possibility it might be Kerry, then she realized there was no way for the blonde woman to get on the island without them notifying her first. She felt curiously disappointed as she crossed the floor and peered through the small window in the door. “Evening, Clemente.” She opened it and allowed the short, round, always perspiring manager of resident services to enter.
“Good evening, good evening, Ms. Roberts. I’m sorry it’s so late, but I saw you pull in.” The man wiped his brow with a handkerchief. “The floor waxing people will be here on the island tomorrow, and you said to let you know the next time so you can have the tiles done in here.”
“Oh, sure.” Dar glanced around. “That would be fine. And, hey, listen, Clemente. Can I get your people to do something for me?”
“Surely. What can we do?”