Fresh Tracks

by Georgia Beers

  Darby also flirted with her mercilessly. Molly knew it was something she should probably put an end to, but if she was going to be honest with herself, she’d have to admit that part of her—a big part of her—was enjoying the green tint of jealousy that Kristin had been sporting.

  That’s right. There are still women who want me, even if you don’t anymore.

  She immediately felt guilty for the thought. The gut-wrenching truth was, plain and simple, she missed Kristin. She missed her so much, it was like a constant, physical ache in her body as well as her mind.

  She shook her head and continued doing slow, easy laps around the garage, willing it to get lighter out so she could take the path through the woods without feeling like she was being swallowed by them. She rounded the back corner of the garage, so lost in her own thoughts that she ran straight into another body. A thick-mittened hand clamped over her mouth and muffled her startled scream, pulling her body close and holding her tightly.

  “Shh. It’s me,” Darby whispered as she chuckled. “You want to wake up the whole house?”

  “Jesus Christ,” Molly hissed when Darby removed her hand. “You scared the living shit out of me.”

  “Sorry. I was sure you must have heard me coming; it’s so quiet out.”

  Molly inhaled deeply, bidding her racing heart to slow down. “No. I didn’t hear a thing. Lost in my own head, I guess.”

  “Well, still. I’m sorry I scared you.” Darby laid a hand on her shoulder and Molly looked up at her. Her dark hair was tousled, but Molly was learning that it always looked that way. She was wearing jeans and Jo’s ski jacket, so Molly suspected she’d dressed in a hurry. Flattery closed in on her as she realized that Darby had probably seen her outside and had quickly donned whatever clothing was available so she could join her in the chill morning air. Molly had wanted to be alone with her ruminations, but Darby’s presence was not unwelcome.

  “Penny for your thoughts,” Darby said as they automatically continued on Molly’s circular path.

  Molly tucked her hand in the crook of Darby’s elbow and tried for a smile, but felt it appear as a grimace instead. “Thanks.”

  “Want to talk about it?”

  “There’s not really a lot to say.”

  “Okay.” Darby nodded and they walked.

  After a few minutes of silence, Molly blurted, “I just don’t know what to do, Darby. I don’t know how I got here and I don’t know how to fix it and I don’t know what to do. You know?”

  Darby frowned. “Kristin obviously doesn’t know what she has.”

  Molly sighed. “Thank you for saying so, but that’s not quite true.”

  “Sure it is. I’ve seen the way she’s treated you while you’ve been here. She’s been on her damn cell half a dozen times even though she knows how you feel about it and she was already two days late.”

  Molly was impressed by Darby’s observations and despite the fact that a small part of her wanted to defend her partner, a larger part welled with indignation. “I hate that damn thing.”

  “Why wouldn’t you? She certainly hasn’t allowed you to forget about it.” Darby’s tone was angry, like she was pissed off on Molly’s behalf.

  “She wasn’t always like this, you know.”

  “Yeah, well, she’s definitely like this now.”

  “I don’t know what happened. I keep wracking my brain to pinpoint the moment when it all went to hell, but I can’t find it.”

  “If I were you, I’d dump her ass.”

  Molly’s eyes snapped to Darby’s. “Don’t you think that’s extreme?”

  “You’re obviously not happy.” Darby shrugged, as if she thought things were incredibly simple.

  “But I was. I’d like to get back there.”

  “Do you think you can?”

  Molly watched their feet, her voice a whisper. “I don’t know.”

  “You deserve better.”

  “Maybe.” Molly said without conviction.

  “You do, Molly.” Darby sounded adamant, firmly insistent. They rounded the back of the garage and started along the far side, away from the view of the house. Darby suddenly swung Molly around and pushed her backward against the wooden shingles. Molly blinked and then focused on Darby’s blue eyes as they bored into hers from only inches away. “You deserve so much better,” Darby whispered before her lips descended onto Molly’s.

  Molly was taken so off-guard that she was momentarily caught up in the moment and made no attempt to stop what was happening as her eyes drifted closed. Darby’s mouth was soft and warm. And talented, was a thought that zipped through her brain as Darby slipped her tongue easily between Molly’s willingly parting lips. The solid contact of Darby’s tongue ring surprised her, but not in a bad way, and she felt herself sinking into the sensation. Molly couldn’t recall the last time Kristin had kissed her like this, so thoroughly, with such intensity, every part of her communicating that there was so much more to come. Molly’s body responded instantly, a flood of heat rushing to the juncture between her thighs as Darby pressed more firmly into her. So good, she thought absently. It feels so good…

  Darby must have dropped her mittens to the ground because the next thing Molly felt was the cool skin of strong, bare hands on her face, then long fingers burrowing into her hair. “I’d treat you like a queen,” Darby murmured, pulling her lips from Molly’s only long enough and far enough to speak. “You deserve to be treated like a queen. Don’t you know that?” She covered Molly’s mouth again without allowing her any time to respond.

  The kiss was deeper this time, Darby exploring every possible inch of Molly’s mouth with great skill. When she pushed her jean-clad thigh against and then between Molly’s, Molly gasped—partly in surprise and mostly in pleasure, vaguely noticing that her own thighs separated without any instruction from her brain. Darby applied the smallest pressure and a jolt of desire shot through to Molly’s core, forcing a gasp up from her lungs.

  Feeling the very last vestiges of her control slipping from her grasp like the string to a helium balloon swept up by a strong wind, Molly managed to plant one hand on Darby’s chest and push feebly. Turning her head to the side—a task that proved to be more difficult than expected—she hissed, “Wait. Darby, wait.”

  Darby’s hands were strong, cupping Molly’s chin firmly and turning her head back around. “It’s okay,” she said. “It’s okay.” She kissed Molly again, and again Molly’s conscience warred with her desire. After several more long seconds, she tried again.

  “Darby,” she uttered, wrenching her lips from the younger ones keeping her so occupied. “Just…wait. Stop. Please?” She was horrified to hear her own voice crack and mentally warned herself not to cry. “Please stop?”

  Darby blinked several times as if waking from a dream. She smoothed a thumb over Molly’s eyebrow, her cheekbone, her swollen bottom lip. “What’s wrong?”

  Molly gave a halfhearted swipe at Darby’s hand, frightened by the dangerously primal pang it sent through her. “I can’t do this.”

  “Why not?” Darby looked honestly confused.

  “Why not?” Molly repeated with surprise. “Because I’m with somebody.”

  “Yeah, somebody who doesn’t even notice you half the time.”

  Molly looked down at her feet, buried in snow. Despite the season, her body felt hot. She knew her cheeks were flaming and she was truly uncertain whether it was because of the kissing or the guilt that came with it. “Look, I know we don’t have the best relationship right now, but—”

  “You have no relationship,” Darby interrupted, her eyes flashing. “Can’t you see that? Any stranger looking in on this week would be very surprised to learn you and Kristin are together.”

  “I know.” Molly rubbed at her forehead. “But we are together and I…” She was startled by the certainty in her voice. “I still love her.” Darby snorted and Molly smacked her arm. “Hey,” she snapped angrily. “You’re entitled to your opinion, but as my friend, I
expect you to show me at least a little bit of respect.”

  Darby’s eyes dropped. “You’re right. I’m sorry. It’s just—”

  “No. Don’t.” Molly held up her hand as Darby leaned forward ever so slightly, worried that she couldn’t take it if Darby started to say any more of all the right things. Her body still thrummed with desire and she didn’t know how long her defenses would last under another assault. Her expression softened. “Look. I like you, Darby. I like you a lot. But the bottom line is that I’m not ready to throw in the towel on my relationship yet and I’m not the kind of girl who can have an affair.” She grinned wryly, trying to lighten the moment. “I’m Catholic. The guilt would eat me alive.”

  Darby leered at her for a moment, her face saying she’d like to eat Molly alive. Molly waited, hoping she’d gotten through. Finally, Darby nodded her assent. “Okay. I’m not bowing out gracefully, but I’ll step aside. For now.”

  “That’s all I ask.”

  Into The Woods

  Jo sipped her coffee and looked expressively at her niece as Darby came in through the front door. She was disheveled, wearing Jo’s coat, and her face was flushed. Jo poked the inside of her cheek with her tongue, reasonably sure of the cause of Darby’s redness. No, it wasn’t the cold. Jo had heard some quiet rustling earlier; Molly’s boots and coat were missing from the rack. Part of her wanted to take her niece by the scruff of her neck and shake her, but she knew that was the wrong approach. Still, something was going to have to be said. Soon.

  “Hey, Aunt Jo.” Darby rubbed her hands together in front of the newly stoked fire and carefully avoided eye contact.

  “Morning.” After a beat, Jo asked, “You see Molly out there?”

  Darby’s head snapped up. “Um, yeah. Yeah, I think I did. She’s walking around the garage.” She shot her aunt a conspiratorial expression as she lowered her voice. “Trying to clear her head, I’m sure.” Then she looked to the ceiling, indicating that the cause of Molly’s troubles was on the second floor.

  “Be careful, Darby,” Jo said, a note of warning layering the simple words.

  Before Darby could respond, Sophie came down the stairs, rubbing at her eyes as greetings were exchanged.

  “A little early for you, isn’t it?” Jo kidded as she poured her guest a cup of much-needed coffee.

  “That damn dog decided licking my face was a good thing to do at the crack of fucking dawn.” Sophie gratefully took the mug from Jo, sipping immediately despite the fact that it was too hot. She patted at her head, trying with little success to tame the wild hair that stuck out in all directions.

  “He’s a friendly little thing, that’s for sure.”

  Surprising, given the way he was probably treated, Sophie thought as she recalled the bitter man from the store. Darby asked if Laura would be taking the dog home with her, but Sophie remained quiet.

  “It’s kind of looking that way,” Jo responded. “Laura’s a responsible girl, though. I’m sure she’ll continue to make calls.”

  Responsible. Sophie barely managed to hide her snort. Responsible for destroying a life, maybe. Even as she mentally vilified Laura, she recalled the sight of her several minutes ago, lying on her side in bed. After licking Sophie awake, the terrier had curled into a ball against Laura’s midsection as if protecting her. His big brown eyes blinked at Sophie, innocent and sweet, and she wanted to strangle him when she realized how early it was. Laura’s straight blond hair was lightly tousled, her creamy complexion apparent even in the very first hints of dawn, her face relaxed. As Sophie had stared from her own bed, she’d felt a tingling, a small quiver of excitement that she hadn’t felt in ages.

  It had scared the hell out of her.

  No way, she’d thought with determination. Not this one. She’d practically jumped out of bed. All she knew was that she had to get out of that room.

  Now she stood in the kitchen against the counter, sipped her scalding hot coffee, and tried to act nonchalant—like she hadn’t just fried the roof of her mouth and like she wasn’t entertaining sexual fantasies about a woman she should, for all intents and purposes, despise. She hated the confusion that welled within her.

  The front door opened and Molly came in, stomping the snow off her boots. Jo noticed that she made a point not to look at Darby.

  “I’m going to grab a shower,” Molly said, hanging up her coat and brushing the fresh snowflakes from her hair.

  “What do you feel like for breakfast?” Amy asked

  “Whatever you decide is fine with me.” Molly gave a small smile and headed up the stairs.

  Darby couldn’t stop herself from staring after her. She tried to ignore the fact that she could feel Aunt Jo’s eyes burning a hole into the back of her skull.

  No sooner had the water for the shower kicked on than Kristin came down the stairs, looking bleary-eyed and exhausted. The sweats she sported didn’t look worn to coziness; they just looked ratty. Amy noticed the dark circles under her usually bright blue eyes with concern. She was so worried about her friends and she hated that they were having problems now, at her house, when they were all supposed to be happy and celebrating the holidays.

  “Coffee?” Jo asked Kristin.

  “God, yes,” came the hoarse-voiced response. Kristin passed Darby without looking at her and entered the kitchen to stand in front of the coffeepot and watch as it brewed, willing it to work faster.

  The group was fairly quiet, it being earlier than most of them normally awoke. The time, along with the obvious tension that filled the air between Darby and Kristin, kept everybody looking innocently into their own cups.

  “Snow’s coming down pretty good,” Jo muttered as she gazed out the window at the big, fluffy flakes falling from the sky. The silence continued, broken only by the occasional clang of a pan as Amy got the bacon sizzling on the stove.

  Soon, the clicking of canine nails on the hardwood steps could be heard and Laura and the dog joined the bunch, the terrier wagging his tail furiously and greeting everybody individually. The atmosphere perked up immediately as the women cooed and scratched him. Sophie leaned against the frame of the front door and tried hard not to roll her eyes at the display. Instead, her gaze was drawn upward to the dog’s adopted mother. Laura looked absolutely edible in her striped pajama pants and royal blue hooded sweatshirt. Her hair was in a ponytail and the sleep hadn’t quite retreated from her sparkling blue eyes. As she smiled at the terrier, her dimples deepened, sending a pang through Sophie’s lower body.

  God damn it, she thought, annoyed by her body’s betrayal.

  The dog scooted her way next, standing on his hind legs and scratching at Sophie’s thigh until she gave in and reached down to pet him. Then he jumped at the door to go out. Sophie simply opened it without thinking.

  “No!” Laura cried as the terrier shot out the front door and into the snow, bounding through the yard and toward the woods like an escaped prisoner. She turned pained and angry eyes on Sophie. “What…why? Why would you do that?”

  “I…I…” Sophie stuttered as she watched Laura step into the nearest boots and grab a coat off a hook. She shot one more hurt look at Sophie before plunging out into the icy morning, calling, “Here, boy!”

  When Sophie looked back, the rest of the group was getting up and quickly dressing in outerwear. Jo and Amy both looked at her pointedly.

  “I didn’t…it was…” Nobody seemed to be listening. She sighed and began putting her own stuff on.

  “You stay here,” Jo said to Amy. “We’ve got it. You take care of breakfast, okay?”

  Amy nodded and gave Jo a kiss. “It’ll break Laura’s heart if you don’t find him,” she said softly. Her worry about Kristin and Molly was one thing, but the tension between Sophie and Laura had been completely unexpected and Amy wasn’t quite sure what to do with it.

  “We’ll find him,” Jo reassured her. “Don’t worry.”

  They all tromped out the front door. “Looks like Laura went that way, followi
ng his tracks,” Jo said, pointing to the path in the back yard. Laura’s footprints were obvious in the snow, but wouldn’t be for long if it kept coming down as thickly as it was. They could hear her voice in the distance, calling for the dog. “Hopefully, he’ll stay on the path, so we’ll go this way and head him off.” She indicated the other end of the path near the garage. Jo looked at Sophie and pointed in the direction Laura had run. “You go that way.”

  Sophie nodded guiltily. She knew she needed to apologize to Laura, and that’s exactly what Jo was telling her to do. She turned and jogged off toward the fading sound of Laura’s voice, irritated with both the situation and herself. “It was a goddamn accident,” she muttered to nobody as she followed Laura’s footprints. But even she wondered if that was the honest truth. Was it an accident or did something in her subconscious think it would be a good way to hurt the cheater? She groaned, knowing if she came up with that explanation so quickly, there was a good possibility it was exactly what had happened.

  “Son of a bitch,” she hissed, her breath dissipating in a puff of air as she noticed Laura up ahead.

  Laura looked over her shoulder at Sophie’s approach and her blue eyes were icy. “Leave me alone.” She kept walking.

  “I came to help find him.”

  “Don’t you think you’ve helped enough?”

  Sophie dropped her arms against her sides. Okay, she deserved that. “Look, I’m sorry. It was an accident.”

  Laura shot her another look, and her face had I don’t believe you written all over it. She turned her back on Sophie and kept moving, making smooching sounds with her lips and calling “here, boy” as she diligently followed the meandering dog tracks through the snow. The flakes had gotten thicker, and even in the trees, they seemed to be falling at a very rapid rate. It wouldn’t be long before the tracks were obscured completely.