My Forever Hero

by Karen Legasy

  “What about links to my account?” Abigail asked. “How many employees have had direct email contact with me?”

  “They all have,” Tyler said.

  “Of course.” Abigail shook her head. “I send out weekly bulletins.” She reached for her purse. “I’m getting tired and should probably head out.”

  Marlee couldn’t let her go before they’d talked, but she had to get rid of Tyler first. She caught his eyes, flashed hers toward the door, and then bulged them when he didn’t seem to be getting the hint. He finally nodded.

  “I’ve got to run.” Tyler grabbed his computer. “See you later.”

  “What was that all about?” Abigail slipped into her sandals right after he’d left.

  “I’m not sure.” Marlee stood in front of the door.

  “I haven’t told Hannah about you yet.” Abigail played with her ponytail. “The timing didn’t seem right and when she was busy tonight, I just let it go. We make a good team, the three of us, and I’m going to hold off on including her for now.”

  “I think that’s a wise decision.” Marlee looked at the beautiful blond mane. “How long have you been letting it grow?”

  “I’ve always had long hair.” Abigail wove her fingers through the tresses. “I’ve thought about cutting it off and keeping a carefree style like yours, but I just never had the courage.”

  “I love your hair. It must feel so soft.”

  Abigail held out her ponytail to Marlee. “You can touch it if you like.”

  Marlee touched the smooth strands, conscious of how close the back of her hand was to the breast that she ached to caress. “It was the first thing I noticed as you raced to save me from the shark. When I clung to you on the water scooter, it felt so reassuring against my cheek. The way it feels, the way it smells like coconut, and the way you’re letting me touch it now are amazing. Like you.”

  Marlee dabbed a kiss on Abigail’s cheek, then another and another as she made her way toward the mouth. Deep, uneven breaths escaped Abigail as her eyes closed and she let go of her ponytail to put a hand on the door. When their lips met, Abigail moaned then shoved back, her eyes avoiding Marlee’s.

  “What are you afraid of?” Marlee stepped back.

  “I don’t want to become a lesbian.” She looked at the floor.

  “You can’t just become a lesbian. You either are one or you aren’t. I thought you, as a geneticist, would know this.”

  “You’re right.” Abigail put an arm through her purse handle. “What I meant to say is I don’t have the gay gene.”

  “How can you be so sure? Have you discovered the gay gene?” Marlee’s voice was getting louder.

  “No, but there’s a body of research studying how certain genes can be turned on or off, depending on the environment. It’s known as epigenetics and when I’m with you…” Abigail looked at her painted toenails. “I’ve never felt like this before and I’m not ready to cut my hair.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” Marlee’s throat was dry. She was hurt by Abigail’s comments and afraid she was going to cry. “You don’t want to look like a dyke, like me with my short hair?”

  “That’s not it.” Abigail kept looking at her feet.

  “Maybe you should just leave for tonight.” Marlee opened the door.

  “Let’s talk tomorrow when we’re not so tired and emotional.” Abigail squeezed Marlee’s arm before heading out.

  Marlee toppled into bed, frustrated and demoralized, but not defeated. Geneticist or not, Marlee was determined to unravel whatever genetic love code necessary for a breakthrough with Abigail.

  Chapter Sixteen

  “I think I’m onto something.” Tyler worked at his computer while Marlee languished on his couch and sipped her breakfast coffee. She had popped over with the intention of talking about her failed attempt at another kiss.

  “You are?” Marlee perked up. “What is it?”

  “The little tracking device I sent Abigail really worked.” Tyler rubbed his hands together. “I was able to scan all activity in her email over the last three years and it seems like Hannah’s taken liberty with her proxy of Abigail’s account. There were two instances where Hannah accessed Abigail’s email to authorize research that had already been denied.”

  “She did? What kind of research?” Marlee hovered at his shoulder.

  “I’m not sure. Something or other to do with genome sequencing, if that means anything to you.”

  “We need to show this to Abigail.” Marlee texted the code word shark they’d agreed to use for new leads and said she was at Tyler’s. Abigail responded immediately, saying she was heading over.

  “Before she gets here, do tell me what happened last night,” Tyler said. “Did you get lucky?” He bit into a banana.

  “I wish.” Marlee flopped back on his couch. “She let me play with her hair, but when I tried to kiss her she freaked out and told me she didn’t want to cut it.”

  Tyler laughed. “Does she think she has to go butch if she finds her inner dyke?”

  “I don’t know.” Marlee sighed. “What should I do? I can feel it.”

  “Feel what? Her hair? I don’t blame her for not wanting to cut it because it must have taken forever to grow that long.”

  “I don’t want her to cut it,” Marlee said.

  “Maybe she should cut it to lighten up,” Tyler said. “It’d sure make a nice wig for someone.”

  “I think she wants me. I can feel it in the way she looks at me.”

  “Then maybe you need to be a little more persuasive,” Tyler said. “Why don’t you offer to French braid her hair then finish with a French kiss?”

  “I wish. We should get back to business before she gets here. Why don’t you explain your complicated spreadsheet to me?” Marlee got off the couch and moved to the computer where they discussed Tyler’s data then tried to find out more about genome sequencing while waiting for Abigail.

  Abigail was dressed in running gear and perspiring when Marlee let her in. Tyler sat at his computer and mocked braiding her long ponytail as she wiped her face with a few tissues. Marlee wanted to clobber him, fearing Abigail would see.

  “I parked by the beach and jogged here so my car wouldn’t be in your lot during daylight in case someone recognizes it.”

  “That’s smart,” Tyler said. “Some of the neighbours are quite nosy—especially the one who lives next to me.”

  Marlee swatted at him.

  Abigail smiled. “What wasn’t smart was I forgot my backpack with a change of clothes in the boot of the car. I hope you don’t mind that I’m sweaty.”

  “Of course not,” Marlee said, trying not to laugh as Tyler widened his eyes and ballooned his cheeks behind Abigail. “I can loan you some dry clothes if you’d like to change.”

  “That would be nice, but I can’t wait to see what you’ve found. Maybe later.”

  Tyler walked her through his data capture and pointed to two specific emails reversing decisions Abigail had made relating to gene therapy. One had a subject line of Genetic Sequence Study A-11002 and the other was Genetic Sequence Study A-11003.

  “I remember these two instances.” Abigail peered over Tyler’s shoulder and studied the screen. “Hannah had convinced our management team that changing the genetic composition of normal genes to include harmful ones would help with our research into the prevention of birth defects. She argued that the hereditary properties of these deformities could only be better understood if we engineered the necessary pathogenic properties to create them. I felt the research was too risky so denied it.”

  “Your work is mind boggling to me,” Marlee said, “but I think we have our first suspect in Hannah.”

  “It’s not her.” Abigail shook her head. “She’s just as passionate as I am about our work.”

  “How can you be so sure?” Marlee said. “She violated her proxy of your email at least two times when she reversed your decisions about her research.”

  “Sometimes
her passion gets ahead of her and I’d be willing to bet my life on her innocence.”

  “I wouldn’t bet my life on anyone,” Tyler said.

  “I already bet my life on the two of you,” Abigail said. “If anything happens here to betray my trust, my life could be over.”

  “Are we in any danger right now?” Tyler asked.

  “I don’t think so,” Abigail said. “At least I hope not.”

  “The world is a dangerous place,” Marlee said. “We should always be vigilant.”

  “Let me explain about Hannah,” Abigail said. “Her younger sister was born with a severe cleft lip. Surgery never completely fixed it and her life was miserable with nonstop bullying and teasing. She ended up committing suicide on her sixteenth birthday. Hannah was eighteen at the time and never got over her sister’s death. She has dedicated her life to research around finding ways to eradicate facial abnormalities at birth.”

  “Pretty heavy stuff,” Tyler said. “Where do we go from here if you believe Hannah’s innocent?”

  “Keep doing what you’re doing,” Abigail said. “I’m impressed with what you’ve uncovered so far. Marlee was right to involve you.”

  “And I think your decision to not involve Hannah at this point is the right one,” Marlee said.

  “She’s going to find out about you soon enough,” Abigail said. “I thought we could work from my place this weekend. Hannah comes over every day to use the pool. It’ll be good for the two of you to meet her. She’s a lovely person.”

  “What are you going to tell her about us?” Marlee asked, anxious to assess Hannah for herself and giddy at the prospect of going to Abigail’s.

  “I’ll say I hired the two of you to do some maintenance around the yard. It might give you a chance to chat with her. Josh will be there too, so I’ll keep him occupied while she’s at the pool.”

  “Won’t he tell her about me?” Marlee asked.

  “No, I’ve asked him not to say anything to anyone about our episode out on the water, especially with the shark.”

  “The shark?” Tyler looked at Marlee. “You didn’t say anything about a shark. What really happened to your board?”

  “It was nothing really,” Abigail said. “We saw a shark out on the water and watched it for a while. I could use a fresh shirt now, if the offer’s still open.”

  Marlee couldn’t wait to get Abigail out of there and into her unit. She chose her newest clean T-shirt and left Abigail alone in her bedroom to change. She wanted to help her undress, to seduce her right then and there, but she knew it would be inappropriate. Abigail was obviously struggling with her feelings and Marlee knew it was a bad idea to push her into something she wasn’t ready for. Maybe would never be ready for.

  When Abigail emerged from the bedroom in Marlee’s shirt, a few wrinkles around her eyes highlighted her weariness as she sat down.

  “I’m exhausted and need a little rest before heading back to my car,” she said. “I hope you don’t mind if I park myself on your couch for a bit.”

  “Of course not.” Marlee sat beside her. “I can’t imagine how tired you must be with the stuff going on at your company and everything else with me.”

  “I’m sorry,” Abigail said. “I know I said we’d talk today, but I just can’t right now. Can we just sit here and enjoy each other’s company for a bit?”

  “Sure we can.” Marlee leaned closer, but didn’t touch. “I like that you enjoy being with me. You can relax on my couch for as long as you want and we don’t even have to say a word.”

  Abigail smiled, but kept her eyes away from Marlee. “Thanks. No pressure to do anything sounds nice about now.”

  “Let me fix us something to eat while you rest. I’ll whip up a garden salad and have some leftover pasta. How does that sound?”

  “Perfect.” Abigail leaned back and closed her eyes. “Let’s go to my place after we eat for a glass of wine, okay? You can stay the night, if you’d like. I’ll get you set up in your own room so we don’t have to worry about driving anywhere or sleeping arrangements.”

  Marlee could hardly contain her excitement as she prepared the food and thought about spending the night at Abigail’s. She sent Tyler a message to let him know what was happening and that she didn’t want to be disturbed. He wished her good luck.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Marlee expected Abigail’s house to be big, but hadn’t anticipated the elegant mansion hidden behind the security gates. It was atop a hill and had a modern façade of terra-cotta stucco and solar panels on the tiled roof. The two-story home sprawled over a private park, had lots of windows, a big balcony that wrapped around the front and an underground garage with enough room for at least four cars.

  “Wow, what a place.” Marlee felt small in the passenger seat as Abigail parked behind a closing door.

  “This is certainly a lot more living space than I need, but I love that it’s private and fairly new. I’ll give you a tour once we get inside.”

  “Did you have it built?” Marlee followed Abigail through the massive mudroom and up a few stairs into a large open entryway. The air was fresh with a faint aroma of eucalyptus.

  “No. I bought it off a couple whose marriage didn’t last much longer than the construction phase.” Abigail flipped on more lights to brighten the high ceilings and circular oak staircase that led to the second story. “It was perfect for me because I wanted a new house, but couldn’t be bothered with the headaches of having one built.”

  “It’s gorgeous.” Marlee was in awe and touched that Abigail didn’t seem to mind visiting her one-bedroom rental unit off a busy street.

  “You can leave your bag on the bench and I’ll give you a tour before showing you upstairs to your room.”

  Abigail led her into a large bright kitchen with lots of shiny white cupboards, an expansive dark granite countertop, stainless steel appliances, and an oversized island with ample space for eating. Marlee felt privileged to be with Abigail in any locale, let alone a gorgeous mansion. She could hardly contain her fairy-tale notion of being swept off her feet by this beautiful blond princess who had saved her life.

  “How do you ever keep all of this so clean?” Marlee ran a hand across the pristine countertop, caressing it with her fingertips.

  “Well, for one, I’m hardly here. I also have cleaning staff that takes care of things for me.”

  “Do you like cooking?” Marlee imagined a chef’s delight of pots and pans stowed away in the cupboards.

  “Not really, but Hannah loves to cook. She’s made some fabulous meals here.”

  Marlee didn’t want to hear about Hannah’s skills in the kitchen. “Shall we continue?”

  Abigail moved on to the dining room, where a glass banquet table large enough to seat twelve graced the room. A prominent centerpiece of white and red roses, eucalyptus leaves, orange kangaroo paws and mixed greenery, presumably from the gardens on the grounds, highlighted it.

  “These are beautiful.” Marlee leaned into the table to smell the roses.

  Abigail smiled as she bent over the arrangement. “They are and I should take more time to stop and smell them too.”

  “I’d get lost in a place this big.” Marlee gawked at the high ceilings in the glassed-in great room at the back of the house. Their words echoed in the immensity of the room.

  “I thought so too, but it’s really my work that I tend to get lost in.”

  An in-ground pool off the living space featured an expansive play area near the front and a lap lane that extended along the back for longer swims. Triple patio doors separated the two spaces and highlighted a breathtaking view of the ocean beyond the pool. The inside air smelt fresh with no lingering dampness from the glistening water nearby. The saltwater pool, with its sizable patio deck area to the left, was fully visible from everywhere in the room. Marlee felt the urge to strip off her clothes and dive in, pulling Abigail along with her.

  “This place is like a sanctuary where I can escape my work and spe
nd time with Josh.” Abigail brushed up against Marlee to sit on the white-cushioned wicker couch. “I love parking myself here and watching Josh in the pool.”

  “Don’t you swim with him?” Marlee sat beside Abigail, their knees almost touching.

  “Of course I do, but he likes to stay in the water a lot longer than I can tolerate, especially since I do laps every morning and have already had my fill.” She lowered her head, focusing on her knees. “I’ve missed him over the last few weeks while he’s been staying with his father. I promised to pick him up early tomorrow morning so we can spend the day together.”

  Marlee was disappointed at the prospect of Abigail being up and gone first thing in the morning, but she was glad it was to see Josh. “Shall we keep moving?”

  The second level consisted of six bedrooms, two of which had en suite baths, a huge linen closet, and one main bathroom adorned with a colossal whirlpool tub and grey tiled marble flooring. The master bedroom was bigger than Marlee’s entire apartment. A tickle flickered inside Marlee’s stomach as she tried to keep her eyes off Abigail’s fluffy bed with its inviting duvet that made it look like a cloud of paradise. Marlee trembled as she imagined their naked bodies intertwined in the sheets.

  “I can’t believe you came to my little apartment when you have such a beautiful house.” They were now looking at Abigail’s large en suite bath with its own whirlpool tub big enough for four.

  “I love your place,” Abigail said. “Lately it’s felt more like home to me than all of this.”

  “Really?” Marlee’s breath caught.

  “Yes. It reminds me of my childhood home with its simple existence. This is more of a house than a home to me.”

  “Why don’t you show me my room?” Marlee had to get herself out of there before her legs gave out.

  “There’s a private bath for you as well.” Abigail led them down the hall to the other side of the house.

  “This is nice.” Marlee placed her backpack on the floor and fondled the fluffy duvet of woven aquamarine linen on the bed, then wandered around the room. “My own walk-in closet too. I should have brought something to put on a hanger because it’s pretty empty.”