Tropical Storm 215
It was dangerous and probably a mistake.
What line? She knew she’d already crossed it the moment she hired Kerry as her assistant. Any other thought was a lie, and though she readily lied to others, she tried not to lie to herself. After she’d awakened that morning, knowing she’d had Kerry in her arms, and wanting nothing more than to repeat the experience, she knew she’d come to a choice. Stop, or go. Cut off their friendship and pull back from Kerry totally, or let things go forward, knowing what was likely to happen. And stopping… Even the thought hurt, stabbing her deeply in places she had no defense against. I don’t want to stop.
So, we’ll just see what happens from here.
“Well,” she addressed the crystal figurine. “I hope she likes what’s in her box.”
Dar curled up on the couch, her head resting against the soft arm where Kerry had slept the previous week, and watched the changing light from the screen and the moonlight that came in the window sparkle and play in the depths of her gift.
KERRY LOCKED THE doors to the Mustang and shouldered her overnight bag, trudging into her apartment with a not very stifled yawn. She turned on the lights and went over to her fish tank, dropped in a few flakes, and waved to the two kissing gouramies and the tiny guppies that blinked up at her. “Hi, guys.” The gouramie blurped, nibbling at the flakes, and she smiled at them. “I’m back. Did you miss me?”
She chuckled and put the cover back on the tank, then set her bag down on the couch and walked over to the small table in the kitchen, where Colleen had tossed her mail. She leafed through it, pulling out the bills and putting them in a small green basket to one side, then sorting through the rest in order of relevance. She lifted up the ubiquitous AOL diskette in its colorful envelope and sighed. “Friends don’t let friends do AOL.” She tossed the envelope toward the trashcan, then went to her answering machine, pushing a button to retrieve the messages.
“Hello, dear, it’s your mother. We’ve started making arrangements for you to come home, everyone is very excited. I think we’ll put you in the west cottage until you and Brian decide for yourselves where you want to settle. He’s thrilled you’re moving back. By the way, honey. I have several engagements coming up I want you to attend with us, so we’ll need to do some shopping when you get home. Those dresses from a few years ago aren’t appropriate now, so you’ll need something new. Oh yes, and your father says it’s perfectly all right for you to get a little job with them up here in the Troy office. He knows several of the managers there, and he’s sure you won’t have a problem getting something nice, something that doesn’t require you to do all this dangerous traveling. Let’s see, what else was there? Oh, well, we’re expecting you for Thanksgiving. The tickets are already on the way, so plan to fly out Wednesday night, and we made arrangements for you to return on Monday. I know 216 Melissa Good you can tell your boss about that and she won’t mind. I have to go, dear, please call me when you get home, since you know how I worry.”
Kerry listened with an expressionless face, then hit the Delete key with a savage stab.
The remaining four messages were: one from Colleen, two from Susan, and a fourth from Ray, wanting her to go out tonight to the Grove. A knock on the door interrupted her thoughts, though, and she turned. “C’mon in.”
The door fairly exploded open, and Colleen came bounding in, dressed in her skating gear and covered with a thin sheen of sweat. “You’re back!”
Kerry held out her arms and looked down at herself. “Looks like it, yep,”
she agreed. “What’s up?”
“Wait, I’ve got a box for you,” Colleen said. “I’ll be right back.”
She bounded out, reminding Kerry vaguely of Tigger. She was left in quiet for a moment, then the redhead stumbled back in, tugging a large cardboard box behind her.
“This came today. I happened to be here when the Oops man showed up.
I signed for it. It’s from Orlando.”
“Slow down, Col.” Kerry laughed as she moved forward to help her friend with the large package. “What on earth is this? I didn’t order…” She fell silent and opened the top of the box, pulling back the flap and exposing something plush and golden. “…anything,” she finished, reaching in and pulling out a huge, smiling stuffed Winnie the Pooh, his arms spread, just waiting for a hug. “Oh.”
Colleen watched her with a puzzled look. “You didn’t order this? It’s cute as hell, Ker…and I know you love Pooh. You’ve got all those damn figurines, and that honey cookie jar in the kitchen.”
Kerry pulled the stuffed bear closer and sniffed, then put it up against her face and breathed in. A slow, delighted smile crossed her face. “Um. No, I didn’t order it. I…” She glanced in the box and saw a little card with a mouse on the front. She picked it up and opened it. “Thanks for a job well done.” It was unsigned, but it didn’t have to be. “It’s from Dar,” she told Colleen, handing her the card. “I did a presentation today and it helped us win the bid.” Colleen’s jaw dropped, and she held the card as though it were a small thermonuclear device. “Holy shit!” she squeaked, looking at Kerry in disbelief. “This is from Popsicle Woman?”
Kerry gently smoothed Pooh’s eyebrows down and smiled back into his smiling face. “Yep.” She picked up the bear and hugged it gently, reveling in the lingering scent of Dar’s perfume that clung to its soft fur.
Colleen watched her for a minute, then put a hand on her friend’s arm, her freckled face suddenly serious. “Kerry?”
“Hmm?” The sea green eyes glanced up in question. “Oh, sorry.” Kerry released the bear, then set him down on the couch. “I love Pooh…and it’s so soft. Did you feel the fur?”
“What’s going on with you?” her friend asked softly.
“With me? Nothing, why?” Kerry asked, but she averted her eyes. “That Tropical Storm 217
was nice of Dar. I’ll have to remember to thank her.” She felt Colleen take her arm and allowed herself to be seated on the couch, next to the bear. “It was an interesting couple of days. We got to see a few of the parks, and I got to see my first bidding war.”
“Uh huh.” Colleen still studied her. “You two spend a lot of time together?”
Kerry knew where this was going, and she sighed inwardly. “Just about every minute, yes.” She finally looked back up at Colleen. “And I had a really good time. We actually got kind of friendly.”
A faint smile edged Colleen’s lips. “Kind of?” She put a hand on Kerry’s arm and rubbed it. “I’m thinking it’s a little more than that, kiddo.”
Kerry felt a deep blush rising and she paused, trying to find words to refute what Colleen was suggesting. She knew there were none, not really, not unless she wanted to lie to her friend. So she shrugged a little at her. “We both had a good time, Colleen. We found out we like…spending time together.
That’s all there is, really. I mean…Jesus, she’s my boss, remember?” She felt a little defensive. “It was just, I don’t know, things kind of clicked between us.
She’s really a lot of fun when she lets all those prickles down, and…and, damn it, I like her.”