by Lynn Ames
Arching up and kissing Jay’s eyelids, Kate tasted the salt of her tears.
“I’m so glad, sweetheart. I feel the same way, you know. All these years I’ve been waiting for someone to make me feel anything close to what I felt when I looked up at you during that tennis match. Do you remember?”
Jay smiled wistfully. “Oh yeah, I sure do; you were the most beautiful creature I’d ever seen. You made me late for my editorial meeting because I couldn’t take my eyes off you.”
“And you almost made me forget what I was doing on the court.
Well, I never found anyone who could measure up to that, not even remotely, so I stopped trying a long time ago. I guess I knew that there was only one person who could make me feel that way, and I didn’t think I’d ever see her again.” At the inquiring look Kate added, “That person is 146
The Price of Fame
you, Jamison Parker. I told you last night, you’re the only one for me; there is no doubt in my mind, or my heart.” Softly she added, “I love you, Jay.”
At that the blonde did start crying, her tears spilling onto her lover’s neck and chest. “I love you, too, Kate, more than I ever thought possible.
I’ve been in love with you from the very first, but I never imagined that I’d get the chance to say those words to you out loud, much less hear them from you. I’m at a complete loss here.”
“Well, how about you kiss me and we take a shower together for starters. What time do you need to leave?” Kate hated to ask the question as much as her lover hated to contemplate the idea, but they both knew that Jay had to go back to the city to write; there was no sense even pretending that she could get the work done where she was.
Leaning down, Jay captured the waiting lips below her, losing herself in the kiss for several precious minutes. “It’s 6:05 now, if I catch the 7:25
I can be in the city by 10:30. That should work.”
“In that case, we’d better get going.” Kate vaulted off the bed, pulling her lover with her.
They spent a little while exploring one another’s bodies as they washed each other, both trying hard, with mixed success, to control their wandering hands and mouths long enough to get clean. When they were done, Kate steered Jay over to sit on the edge of the bed with the best of intentions as she began drying her off. Kneeling before the younger woman, carefully drying her breasts, she found the temptation was simply too great; the thought of a day and a half passing before she could see Jay again was making Kate crazy. Blue eyes grew heavy-lidded with arousal as she nestled between her lover’s legs, tasting the sweetness there and quickly bringing the beautiful blonde to a shattering climax and pushing herself to the edge as well.
When she had recovered sufficiently, Jay rose from the bed without a word, taking her lover by the hand and returning them to the shower.
Turning on the spray, she began to touch and taste her partner as she guided them into the stall. Jay positioned the taller woman so that her broad back blocked the spray as she sat on the ledge facing her, pulling her close. The combination of the warm water pulsing on her back and the exquisite pressure building between her legs made Kate’s knees weak; reaching out, she braced her arms against the shower wall. Both women moaned as Jay took her lover in her mouth, driving all thoughts of trains and schedules out of their minds.
Finally, they were clean, dressed, and on the road with less than twenty minutes to make it to the train station. Kate promised Jay that she would have her on that train without fail. “You’d better, Stretch, since it’s all your fault that we’re running late,” the writer joked.
147
Lynn Ames
That earned her an arched eyebrow look. “Oh, right, you had nothing to do with it, Little Miss Innocent.”
“Well, you started it...”
“That’s true, but you sure didn’t have any trouble finishing it, now did you?”
“Are you complaining?”
“Do I look like an idiot to you? Of course I’m not complaining! I’m merely setting the record straight, that’s all.”
Reaching over, Jay took hold of her lover’s hand. “I’m going to miss you, Kate.”
“I know, me too, sweetheart. I’ll pick you up outside the Convention Center tomorrow night after the LCA Show, though, and at least we’ll have tomorrow night.”
“Right.”
“Well, here you go; two minutes to spare, too. Let me get your bag and your briefcase, you just worry about getting to the platform. I’ll be right behind you.”
Jay was moving before the car had even come to a complete stop, reaching the conductor just as he was making the last call. She turned around, searching for her lover. She didn’t have to look far; Kate was standing just behind her.
“Here you go,” she said, handing Jay the bag and briefcase. “Travel safely. I’ll see you tomorrow night.” She didn’t know if the writer understood sign language, but she made the sign for “I love you”
anyway.
Leaning down quickly from the steps, Jay brushed her lips against her lover’s ear, “I love you too,” she said, so quietly that only Kate could hear her. And with that, she was gone.
Standing there for a minute, Kate watched the train pull out of the station before heading back to the illegally parked car and home.
She walked into the kitchen where Fred greeted her enthusiastically, weaving in and out of her legs as he always did. Everything should have felt comfortingly normal, and yet...the place seemed empty and lonely, and she knew why. In just a few short days, one single little blonde whirlwind had transformed Kate’s house from a place to live into a home. God, she missed her already, and she’d barely left. Pathetic.
She scanned the cupboard since they hadn’t had time for breakfast before leaving. Well, they hadn’t had time for food, anyway. Kate smiled evilly, remembering their last bout of lovemaking, her skin flushing just thinking about it. Jay was the most talented, most enticing lover she had ever known. Somehow, her lover just seemed to know what she needed, and when. It was as if their bodies were speaking to each other in their 148
The Price of Fame
own language, rendering words redundant. That had never happened to her before.
She sighed. What she felt for Jay went so far beyond physical compatibility, though; it wasn’t just about the sex, although that was a most pleasant development. It was everything about her. It was the way she looked at the world, her sense of humor, her gentle nature and compassion. It was her intelligence and natural curiosity, her beauty and spirit. Kate was sure if she looked hard enough she could probably find something about Jay that she didn’t like or love, but for the life of her, she didn’t know what.
Spending twenty-four hours a day with the woman for nearly four days, she hadn’t felt the least bit boxed in or smothered; for a woman as independent and solitary as Kate, that was extraordinary. “Now what, Fred? Back to the routine, I guess.”
Going upstairs to the bedroom to change into her workout clothes, she found herself standing at the threshold to the guest suite instead, where she closed her eyes and extended her senses, detecting a trace of Jay’s perfume in the air. Stepping into the room, she moved to the bed to pick up her lover’s pillow. God, you’ve got it bad, Katherine, she thought to herself. As she reached for the pillow, a folded piece of white paper fluttered to the floor. After reaching over and picking it up, she opened it to reveal neatly printed handwriting.
Guest Satisfaction Survey, it said in block letters across the top.
Laughing, she said to Fred, who had followed her upstairs, “Well, I did tell her it was a five-star resort and she could rate her stay on the way out.
I ought to be more careful what I say, shouldn’t I buddy?”
She began to read. “Accommodations: Excellent, especially the last night. Service: Outstanding, loved the personal touch (pun intended), and the comic books were great. Facilities: Superb, particularly enjoyed working with the personal trainer and the re
nt-a-beast. The kitchen could stand some...well...use. Activities: Top-notch, do you really want me to go there? Overall Impressions of Resort: Mmm. Need I say more? Would You Recommend This Establishment to Others: Absolutely, but it better not be open to others.”
By the time she had finished reading, Kate was laughing so hard she was in tears. “You are too much, Jamison Parker. What am I going to do with you?” Stopping for a moment to think, she got serious. “The bigger question is: what am I going to do without you for a whole thirty-six hours? Yuck.” As she pondered what was in store for the following night, a wicked smile crossed her face. The wait might be worth it, after all. She made her way down the hall to her room to change into her workout gear.
It was going to be a long, busy, lonely day and a half, and she needed to get started.
149
Lynn Ames
Jay had her notes from the past four days spread out on two service trays in front of her, trying to organize her thoughts in preparation for writing the article as the train carried her home. Professional detachment, that was what she said she had needed. “Well, so much for that,” she chuckled to herself. Then she got serious. How was she going to separate the Kate that she knew from the anchorwoman and journalist that the rest of the world had seen? Was there a difference? Gazing out the window at the Hudson River as it sped by, she smiled as she thought about the last four days. Images of the raven-haired beauty swam before her eyes: her lover lost in rapture, her friend with eyes full of caring and concern, the woman she loved vulnerable and uncertain. And her professional demeanor: resolute, powerful, intelligent, engaged and compassionate.
Oh, yeah, there was definitely a difference.
The writer began reviewing the impressions she had put to paper on Monday, the day she had arrived and had gone with Kate and her crew to interview Joey’s parents and the man whom the anchorwoman had rescued from the rubble. If she were going to be able to maintain any semblance of objectivity, it would be because she focused the article less on her own very personal knowledge, and more on the opinions of people like these and Kate’s co-workers.
Having settled that, Jay began to focus and get lost in her work. She had a lot to do to get the story ready before she got back on a train to return to Albany the next night, but she was determined to have it done before she saw her lover again. She didn’t want anything to detract from the time they could spend together, and for that she needed her mind and her calendar to be clear on Sunday. She sighed. It was going to be a long, busy, lonely day and a half.
It was Saturday night, it was almost time, and Kate was nervous; not for the obvious reason that most people standing where she was right then would have been, but because her conversation earlier in the day with Jay had left her unsettled.
“How do you know you’ll be finished with whatever you’re doing when the show lets out tonight?”
“Don’t worry, I’ll be there, love.”
“How can you be so sure, Kate? Where are you going, anyway?”
“If I told you that, I’d have to kill you, and you know that violence at this hour of the day disrupts my schedule.”
150
The Price of Fame
She had tried to keep her tone light, but Kate knew that her lover had been upset with her for being less than forthcoming about her plans for the evening. She only hoped that Jay would forgive her when she understood why, which, the anchorwoman mused, she would soon enough.
She thought back to her lover’s reaction Thursday to her not being in the house so early in the morning; it was clear to her that Jay was expecting the worst. I guess that’s what happens when that’s what you’ve always gotten, Kate thought to herself. It only strengthened her resolve to make sure that she never gave her lover cause not to trust her. In the end, she knew, only time and consistency would prove to Jay that she needn’t worry anymore, and those were two things Kate hoped they would have forever.
“Kate, it’s time,” a disembodied voice said from close by.
“Yes, it is,” she smiled.
An intense thirty-six hours after she had left, Jay was back in the capital. She was tired, and a little grumpy, and just wanted it to be midnight already. Her conversation with Kate earlier in the day had left her a bit out of sorts.
“You couldn’t just give me a little hint?”
“Nope; it’s just something I have to do.”
“Why on earth are you being so secretive? Don’t you trust me?”
“Of course I do, sweetheart, but don’t you trust me?”
“Yes,” Jay had answered softly.
“Okay then. It’s just an obligation I have to fulfill, nothing for you to worry about, I promise. I’ll see you tonight after the show, right?”
“I guess so.”
Now the writer was going to be stuck for the next three-plus hours trying to be cordial to a man who might one day be president of the United States, when all she really wanted to do was to see Kate and be reassured. Well, she was committed now; she might as well make the best of it.
A plainclothes state police officer met Jay at the door to the Convention Center and ushered her inside to the governor’s table, directly in front of the stage. The governor, resplendent in a black tuxedo, stood as she approached. The writer looked positively elegant in a strapless floor-length black gown and matching heels. The dress hugged her slim form and highlighted her creamy skin and well-defined shoulders and arms. Her neck was adorned with a beautiful emerald and 151
Lynn Ames
diamond choker that complemented the emerald teardrops in her ears and the emerald ring on her right hand. Every man within fifty feet sucked in his gut, straightened his bow tie, and stared at the extraordinary beauty.
The governor was no exception. He offered her his hand and politely introduced her to his wife, the lieutenant governor and his wife, and the other members of his administration present around the table.
Just then the lights flickered once in warning. Jay took the seat the governor held for her to his right, less than fifteen feet from the front of the stage. The huge room, which was filled to capacity with every manner of state official and journalist and their guests, went pitch black for a full minute. In the darkness, the orchestra began to play and a beautiful voice pierced the silence with the first notes of a song. The writer recognized the tune as the Carpenters’ We’ve Only Just Begun, but the words had been changed.
And then the curtain rose to reveal the singer. Jay thought she might pass out right on the spot. All thoughts of being tired and grumpy disappeared; in fact, if she had been old enough, she would have sworn she was having a hot flash. There, leaning on a high stool perched in the very center of the stage in three-inch heels and a bright red, sequined, cocktail-length sheath with plunging neckline and spaghetti straps, looking directly at her, was Kate. Her hair was swept up in a French knot, revealing her long, slender neck. Smiling broadly, she arched her eyebrow a fraction, enough for Jay to know it was meant just for her, and winked at the governor as she parodied his penchant for trying to build consensus in a government where no one could agree on anything.
Jay’s mind was reeling. Busy tonight. Her lover had said she was
“busy” that night. The rat fink. When she’d gotten over her initial shock and the guilt she felt for giving her sweetheart a hard time about where she was going to be that evening, Jay allowed herself the luxury of watching Kate and letting the timbre of her voice penetrate directly into her heart. My God, she thought, she’s got an amazing voice. I wonder what other little secrets she’s been keeping? She decided she would grill Kate later. Right then, she just wanted to listen and ogle, which was pretty much what everyone else in the room was doing.
The anchorwoman sang two more numbers during the course of the evening, one to the tune of Carole King’s It’s Too Late regarding the perennially late state budget, and another sending up the governor’s ongoing negotiations with the senate Republicans over the death penalty to the B
eatles’ We Can Work It Out. The crowd ate it up, laughing uproariously at the new lyrics and marveling at Kate’s singing talent.
And, Jay had to admit, the other performers and skits had been very entertaining, too. All in all, the night was a smashing success.
152
The Price of Fame
It was time for the finale. The capitol bureau chief for one of the major New York dailies walked onto the stage from the wings wearing a stodgy pinstriped business suit and singing his own version of the first stanza of You’re the One that I Want, from the musical Grease. He had a rich, deep singing voice and even looked a little like John Travolta. There was a dry ice-induced fog of smoke emanating from the other side of the stage, and then the entire Convention Center rose to its feet as one, whistling and catcalling as Kate emerged out of the fog singing the second half of the duet. She was clad in tight black leather pants over leather boots and a sleeveless ribbed knit black v-neck sweater, her hair cascading freely down her back. Jay’s eyes nearly popped out of her head.
Kate prowled to the middle of the stage where her singing partner was standing. As they continued singing their own hysterical lyrics to the song, she moved right up against him seductively, running her fingers up his chest and ripping off his suit. Jay nearly growled in jealousy at the sight. She reminded herself that it was all part of the show, but boy, could Kate act. Underneath the suit, the newspaper reporter was wearing his own tight black pants and black muscle t-shirt. He ground his body against the blue-eyed siren’s as they danced and sang in perfect harmony.
Jay clenched her teeth, knowing every guy in the place was wishing he were on stage with her lover. Then, just as she was sure she was going to commit homicide, Kate locked eyes with her and gave her a smile that was reserved for her alone. Jay melted and felt her own mouth respond with an answering grin.