by Carsen Taite
Morgan spent the wait practicing her response to a range of reactions Tina might have to the news she had arrived in Dallas a week early. Pleasure was off the list, but surprise and dismay ranked high among her predictions. Whatever the reaction, Morgan knew she needed to spend some of the next thirty minutes coming up with a contingency plan, because she wasn’t likely to be staying at the posh Preston Hollow address she was headed to now.
The cab driver arrived and, like most cabbies in Dallas, had a poor grasp of map skills for any neighborhood not in his usual path. He was eager to take her anywhere in the surrounding Greenville area, but professed to know nothing about North Dallas. Morgan managed to pull up some long-forgotten map in her head and guided him through the city toward the residence she had planned to call home.
The tall, imposing house swallowed up the lot it was sitting on and seemed to spill out into the street to consume additional terrain. The neighborhood used to be beautiful, Morgan remembered. Ranch-style houses set back from the street, well-manicured lawns and stately trees once made driving through the Preston Hollow neighborhood seem like touring a cluster of country estates. Now many of the ranch homes were teardowns replaced by McMansions, such as the one Tina had commissioned. These fake palaces made the area, in Morgan’s opinion, seem cheap. I suppose it’s just as well I won’t be staying long, she thought.
Tina was sitting at the kitchen table nursing a steaming cup of coffee. She looked up at the sound of Morgan’s entrance. Morgan read fatigue and the blur of hangover behind the surprise Tina expressed at her arrival.
“Honey! When did you get here? Why didn’t you call and let me know you were coming?”
Morgan recalled stowing her luggage in the guest room closet when she arrived yesterday afternoon. She realized Tina didn’t have any idea she had been in the house the day before.
“Actually, Tina, I got here yesterday. I wrapped things up quicker than I expected and I thought I’d surprise you by coming out early.” Morgan watched the parade of expressions on her lover’s face go from confusion to understanding to reflection. Morgan figured Tina was wondering if she’d left anything incriminating lying around.
Tina’s expression settled on pleasure. “What a wonderful surprise!” She wrinkled her brow. “But wait a minute. If you got here last night, then where in the world have you been?”
“Gee, Tina, I was wondering when you were going to notice my absence. I would have explained, but since you were previously occupied I figured it didn’t matter what I did with my time.”
Tina’s puzzled look was almost convincing. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Is that so? Let me help you remember.” Morgan was tired of the charade they had played out the last few years of their relationship, and the prospect of this confrontation held equal parts disgust and relief.
“I arrived last night in time to hear one of your new friends leave a message on the machine entreating you to join the ‘gang’ at Betty’s for happy hour. Silly me, I thought joining you would be a great opportunity to not only surprise you, but meet all the friends you’ve made while you toiled away the summer getting our new home ready. So I called a cab and went out to join you. Imagine my surprise when I discovered you have been very busy this summer. From what I observed, apparently your interests haven’t been confined to work and nesting.”
Tina mustered a look of righteous indignation. “Morgan, I don’t know what you think you saw, but—”
“Darling, don’t even say it. I am clear about what I saw. You and I haven’t exchanged as much physical passion in the last five years as you exchanged with the hottie on the dance floor last night. I didn’t know you still had it in you.”
Tina sat in silence. Morgan observed her and read her with the familiarity ten years of living together brings. Tina wasn’t going to deny her actions any longer, and it didn’t appear she was going to apologize for them either unless pushed to do so. Morgan no longer had the energy to push her into apologies she clearly didn’t mean. Regrettably, it had taken a move clear across the country to prove what they had known all along. Their relationship was beyond repair. Neither cared enough to heal the hurt between them, and Morgan knew it was time for her to move on, and the sooner she did so, the better off she would be.
“I’m going to go check into the Palomar until I find a place. The movers should be here tomorrow. I doubt I’ll be ready to have them divert what I need, so we’ll have to work out arrangements. I trust you’ll help make this go as smoothly as possible?” Morgan knew Tina was clear about what “this” was. The two had grown emotionally distant over the last few years, but they still had the capacity to read one another’s thoughts and feelings.
“So, this is it for us? We move all the way across the fucking country and after one day you’re leaving me?” The anger in her voice was clear as Tina pushed her to announce her desire.
“Yes, Tina, I’m leaving. We’ve both moved on. I’m sorry I ever agreed to come out here with you. I was stupid enough to think we could make a fresh start, but last night proved nothing has changed between us and it never will. We loved each other once, but we don’t anymore. It’s as simple as that.”
“Fucking lawyers. Everything is black or white, right or wrong. Maybe I got so sick of your logical approach to everything I decided to take a walk on the wild side. Can you blame me?”
“I guess not.” Morgan’s tone was flat. Continuing the argument with Tina would convey she cared and would only prolong her departure. She didn’t care anymore and she wanted out, now. Focusing on her goals, she strode to the guest room and retrieved her luggage. Without another word, she left the house and got into the still waiting cab. An extra twenty allowed the cabbie to overcome his frustration at being asked to head back uptown.
Chapter Two
Rays of sunlight poked her in the eye. Parker flinched against the pain like a vampire whose coffin had been unceremoniously invaded during non-working hours. She didn’t want to get up, but she knew she would have to crawl out of bed and shut the blinds if she wanted to get any more sleep. Idly wondering if the sunlight was having the same effect on her overnight guest, Parker glanced across the bed. The pillow was askew and the covers in disarray, circumstantial evidence of the passion of the previous evening. However, the direct evidence was nowhere to be found. Parker opened both eyes wide and searched the room for Morgan. She wasn’t there.
Parker slung her body out of bed and padded, naked, to the bathroom door. It wasn’t locked and she eased it open. No sign of Morgan. She pulled on a pair of boxers and a well-worn T-shirt and trotted down the stairs to the kitchen. The roomy kitchen was silent and unoccupied. Parker decided to put together a pot of coffee to fuel the start of her day. While the java brewed she reflected on the previous evening. She was surprised to find her guest gone and wondered when she made her exit. Parker Casey was usually the one who slunk out in the wee hours, long before morning snuggling became an option. As she sipped her morning dose of caffeine, Parker decided she had met her match. The realization carried a bit of a sting. From the moment she laid eyes on Morgan trapped in the alley, she’d felt attraction, strong attraction, coupled with a vague sense of recognition she couldn’t place. She hadn’t grouped Morgan into the category of usual conquests she met at the bar. Though their interaction had been primarily physical, Morgan came across as more sophisticated and worldly than her usual Friday night bar fare
“Casey, you better have made enough to share!”
Parker started at the yelling from across the room. “For crying out loud, Erin, keep it down. Some of us are still sleeping.”
“I’m sure you wish you were,” Erin replied, moving to fill a large cup with the steamy brew. “No one in this house got any sleep last night. I hope you had a great time.”
“Give me a break, Erin. We weren’t that loud, were we?”
“I’m sure it’s the thin wall between our rooms. Certainly, I’m the only one in the house w
ho could make out actual words.”
Parker blushed. “Geez, Erin, if I’d known you were listening I would have given you some pointers.”
“You are incorrigible. I think you should make me breakfast to help erase the trauma I’ve had to endure.”
“I’d love to, but I actually have a lot to do today. I have an orientation session for third-year mentors and I want to pick up my books before the meeting starts.” Parker searched the cabinets for sustenance as she spoke, trying to find a quick bite to eat.
Erin gave her a puzzled look. “School doesn’t start for almost two weeks. What’s your hurry?”
Parker shrugged. “You know me, I want to get a jump start on the reading. And I volunteered to be a mentor to a one-L.” Parker referred to the slang term for first-year law students. “They all start showing up for their own orientation next week, and I need to be on hand to show my assigned newbie around.”
“When’s your last night at the bar?”
“I have one more weekend shift right before classes start. Then I’ll call it quits until winter break. I hate to leave Irene in the lurch, but I have a lot on my plate this semester and I want to make sure I impress enough of my profs to get into the clinic of my choice in the spring.”
“Irene, huh?” Erin scoffed. “I’m thinking it’s the women you’ll have the most trouble giving up. Like shooting fish in a barrel. Do you think you’ll go through withdrawal?”
Parker threw a bagel across the room, beaning her on the nose. “Work hard, play hard—the Parker Casey way. You would do well to follow my lead.” She grinned at her, grabbed the last remaining bagel, and climbed the stairs to her room to get ready for her day.
The house she shared with her two roommates was large and roomy, though old and drafty. The residence was perfect for the group of students. It was close to campus and provided enough space to give them all the room they needed to accommodate their various schedules. Erin James was the youngest of the group, a graduate student at Richards University, close to completing her master’s degree in sociology. Kelsey James, Erin’s older sister and Parker’s best friend, was in her second year of residency at the hospital associated with the university, and the rest of the group rarely laid eyes on her. Parker was a third-year at the university’s law school. When the school year started, she spent most of her time on campus. Most legal research could be done wherever a wireless connection could be found, but Parker preferred the computer cubbies at the law library to the solitude of working from home.
Excited at the prospect of the start of school, though it wasn’t official for another couple of weeks, Parker hurried through her shower. She dressed in a smooth, worn pair of jeans, Skechers, and a plain navy T-shirt.
Parker slid into her ’68 Mustang fastback and sped the few blocks to the law school. Blazing August heat made it too hot to walk the distance. Truth was, she loved the muscle car she had restored herself and would rather drive it than walk, no matter what the weather. While jockeying for a parking place, she contemplated the ride across town the night before with Morgan occupying the seat beside her. Parker would never have imagined that the reticent woman who sat silently during the ride to her house would have turned into a dominant sex goddess. Her clit throbbed with the memory of Morgan taking total control and she was flustered by what an amazing experience it had been to let someone else direct her in the bedroom. She was used to being in charge, and though she had been in the driver’s seat in the car, it was Morgan who had taken her for a wild ride in the bedroom.
Parker finally found a space to park and walked to the library. She strode across campus with all the confidence her status as a third-year accorded her. Thinking ahead to the mentor orientation, she recalled the first time she set foot on the law school grounds. All her worldly confidence drained away. It had taken her three tries to even find the law school among the numerous buildings on campus. She was so concerned she wouldn’t be able to locate it among the maze of buildings for the first day of classes, she drove by a couple of times a day in the week preceding the start of the first semester. She had spent over a decade building another career when she made the decision to return to school and get her law degree. Lacking no confidence in the outside world, she’d found all her brashness faded at the prospect of starting over in the academic world, a world filled with younger, presumably brighter, students who, having come straight out of undergraduate school, were still well acquainted with how the system worked.
Within a few weeks, Parker was in the swing of things. She quickly learned all first-year law students were pretty much in the same boat and the boat was adrift on a sea filled with lots of work and little time for anything other than school. The students divided into study groups based on their affinity for each other and how they preferred to study. Parker had a history of excelling at every new venture, and her studies were no different. Her personality and good looks were magnetic, causing other students to gravitate to her. The members of Parker’s study group were the top students in her class.
Parker walked into the library and shivered from the chill of the refrigerated air. She was thankful she had chosen jeans and shoes over her preferred summer uniform of shorts and sandals. She walked directly to the largest of the private study rooms. Dr. Yolanda Ramirez, the dean, was chatting with a couple of the other third-year students who volunteered to be mentors. Dr. Ramirez glanced her way, giving her a big smile. Parker reciprocated with one of her own. She gave full credit to Dr. Ramirez for supporting her application to law school. The dean had given her valuable pointers to make sure her application made its way safely through the arduous admission process. When the dean asked her to be part of this venture, she could hardly refuse.
Dr. Ramirez greeted Parker. “I’m so glad you could make it. I think it’s important to have someone on this team who has more life perspective than the average third-year student.” She punctuated her gratitude with a hug.
“How could I refuse?” Parker replied. She had grown accustomed to the faculty placing extra trust in her because, at thirty-four, she was older than the average law student. As the dean rounded up the rest of the gathering group and rustled them to their seats, Parker greeted some of her classmates she’d missed over the summer. Several had worked as summer associates with the numerous large firms in downtown Dallas. The pay was amazing, and a summer associate could easily live the rest of the year off what they made during the summer months. Each firm spent significant amounts of capital trying to wine and dine their summer associates while getting to know them. The goal of this summer ritual was to allow the firm to decide if these students, usually the top of their class, would make a good fit with the firm’s culture and, if so, to convince the prospects there was no place better than their firm to start their legal career.
Parker found the whole process of summer associates absurd. Her conclusion wasn’t based on jealousy. At the top of her class, she had been sought after each of the prior summers by virtually every firm in Dallas, but she didn’t understand why she should waste a summer being a social butterfly when she could do meaningful work. She was willing to concede that a decade spent in law enforcement likely colored her perspective, despite the disastrous ending to her chosen career. At least the hefty settlement provided her with enough cash to allow her to do the legal job of her choice without concern for money, which was a good thing since working as an intern at the nearby Tarrant County Public Defender’s Office didn’t pay a dime. The work did, however, seal her resolve to become a criminal defense attorney and provided her with course credit along the way.
Dr. Ramirez began by explaining when the first-years would arrive and what their schedule would be like the first couple of weeks. Funny, Parker reflected, after two full years of this stuff, we have to be reminded what it’s like to start. Dr. Ramirez then asked the volunteers to be present at a social she was hosting to welcome the new students to the school. Parker glanced at her Treo and noted the social was the same night she
was scheduled to work her last night at the bar. A twinge of regret that she would miss the social was rapidly replaced by a flash of glistening skin and luscious curves as she recalled how her last bar shift had ended.
*
As the valet brought her car around, Morgan performed mental calculations in an attempt to figure out how much it would cost to stay at the Palomar for the rest of her natural life. The specifics of the mathematics failed her, but she was able to cipher enough to know she couldn’t afford the luxury. Morgan had money, but not enough to burn. Years of handling high-profile cases with high-dollar retainers, combined with a savvy business sense, meant Morgan had generous savings. Managed carefully, she could live a very long time on the interest from her investments alone, but Morgan liked a little luxury now and then. As a consequence, she would keep working. Today was the first day of her new job.
Morgan had spent the last ten years with Tina Middleton, software engineer. Tina was a hot commodity in the high-tech industry and when investors approached her about a start-up in Dallas, she had jumped at the opportunity. She had spent the last six months persuading Morgan to let her follow her dream, which of course meant Morgan was supposed to drop her life and come along for the ride. Morgan finally decided maybe the change of scenery would do their relationship some good and they both planned to start over in Big D.