* * *
Riley woke the next morning to an empty bed. She wasn’t surprised. The couple of times that she had woke through the night, she had heard Lisa tossing and turning.
She threw back the sheets and kicked her legs over the side of the bed, running her fingers through her hair as she sat there naked. Usually their Saturday mornings consisted of a sleep in and chatting in bed. That inevitably led to more playful pursuits and eventually some wildly energetic lovemaking. Not that they didn’t make love throughout the week—very rarely did a day go by that they didn’t—but Saturday mornings were special. It was as if their lovemaking erased all the stresses of the previous week and they were renewed in body, mind and spirit.
But after what Lisa had gone through yesterday, she wasn’t surprised at all that she wasn’t there. Whenever she had a difficult case she had a hard time sleeping as well. Didn’t help that she had nightmares all the time. At least those had been better since meeting Lisa. She wouldn’t be surprised if Lisa had woken early from her own nightmares. The death of a child—all deaths were tragic but children more so. With her job she had to remain objective, distant, detached. But with children it was always harder. What could she say to Lisa? How could she offer words of comfort? From what she had seen in her job, there were no words of comfort.
Finally Riley gathered herself together and slipped on one of Lisa’s old basketball jerseys, leaving her legs bare. She found Lisa in the kitchen, bundled up in her robe, sitting at the table with her head hung low and holding a mug of coffee in both hands. “Hey, there you are.”
Lisa lifted her head revealing deep, dark circles under her eyes. “Hey, good morning.” She offered a wan smile.
Riley had not seen Lisa looking so beaten down and defeated. She scooted a chair up close, throwing her arm around Lisa’s shoulders. “Are you all right, babe?”
Lisa let out a sigh and looked directly at Riley, this time her smile wider. “Yeah, I’m fine. I just didn’t sleep very well last night. With everything that happened yesterday I had a hard time clearing my head, you know?”
Riley simply nodded her head. She knew that all too well. But since she had been sleeping beside Lisa she hadn’t had one nightmare. If only she could somehow provide that same comfort to Lisa now.
Lisa then thumped her coffee mug down on the table and clapped her hands together. “Okay, enough of that. Let’s not let it ruin our weekend. How about we find something fun to do instead?”
She couldn’t find fault with that. Again, Lisa’s unfailing optimism seemed to win out. “You won’t get an argument from me. What do you have in mind?”
Lisa thought for a minute, tapping her finger against her forehead. “Hmmmm, what do you say we go to Inside Moves and do a little rock climbing. There’s nothing like a little physical exertion to help clear the mind.”
Rock climbing? Riley felt her chest tighten. She had never been rock climbing. She dreaded climbing the stairs to her second-floor office. Still, who was she to say no to Lisa? “Sounds good to me.”
An hour later Riley found herself clinging to the side of a wall twenty feet above the floor. Her arms and legs were cramping and the safety harness was steadily cutting off all feeling to some very sensitive areas. Seriously, what was she thinking? People had no business hanging this high off the ground. She glanced to her right at Lisa who seemed to be tackling the wall like a six-foot-tall gibbon. To make matters even worse, this was Lisa’s third pass up the wall compared to her first.
“Come on, babe, you’re doing great.” Lisa slapped her on the butt as she climbed past.
She grumbled as she pulled herself up to the next foothold. What was Lisa trying to do, give her a heart attack? She’d be lucky if she were able to walk for the next week. Whatever happened to good old-fashioned crashing on the couch and vegging out on a Saturday? Anything but this self-inflicted torture. “I’m going to get you for this.”
Lisa let out a wild laugh. “You’re going to have to catch me first.”
Riley muttered under her breath again. At least Lisa seemed to be enjoying it.
Lisa had reached the top yet again and began easing her way back down. She stopped at Riley’s level. “You’ve got this, Riley. Rotate your hips ninety degrees to the wall. Keep your center of balance as close to the walls as possible and use your legs to push yourself up, not your arms.”
Riley followed Lisa’s coaching. The difference was amazing. She was able to climb much more easily. Still, all things being equal, she would prefer to have both her feet firmly planted on the ground. She couldn’t think of any good reason someone would voluntarily put themselves through this torture. Well, maybe if there was an astounding archaeological site at the top then she could see it. She smiled to herself at the thought.
“You’re almost there, Riley. Just a little more.” Lisa clapped her hands, hanging in her harness and looking as comfortable as a baby in a papoose.
Riley gritted her teeth. “I can do this. I can do this.” She kept up the mantra, the muscles in her arms and legs screaming. Sweat dripped down the side of her face and off her chin. Finally, with one last thrust, she touched the top.
“Woo hoo.” Lisa let out a cheer. “You made it, Riley. I knew you could do it.”
“That makes one of us.” Riley settled back into her harness, feeling the weight gloriously released from her limbs. Her heartbeat thundered in her ears like a cannon. She gasped for breath.
Together they eased back down to the floor. When Riley’s feet touched down, her shaking legs crumbled. She took one step and flopped down hard on her bottom. “Oh, my legs hate me.” With a wince, she began massaging her thighs.
Lisa sat down on the mat beside her, crossing her legs. “It’ll get better in a minute. Your body just needs a little more experience.”
“Experience my aching butt. I can’t believe you do this for fun.”
“It is fun.” Lisa stretched and spun around to directly face Riley. Her shirt between her breasts was soaked with sweat. Curls of wet auburn hair framed her face.
Even in her exhausted state Riley noticed how sexy Lisa looked. There was just something about the look of a woman working out, sweat beaded on her skin, that she found deeply arousing. And with Lisa, even more so. The feeling in her lower regions was returning with a vengeance and she shifted her weight on the mat. “You have a strange sense of fun, my friend.”
Lisa merely shrugged. “You must admit, there’s nothing better than an excruciating workout to take your mind off things.”
It then dawned on her. This wasn’t about rock climbing or working out or any other thing—this was Lisa’s way of dealing with what happened yesterday. She had attacked the wall with such ferocity. Whereas she liked to throw herself into her work and pour over cold cases in her lab, Lisa threw herself into physical activity. If Lisa felt anything like she did, it had probably worked too. She couldn’t think of anything but the pain in her arms and legs. But as she looked over at Lisa, she saw the sadness in her eyes as she stared far off and she felt a stab of pain shoot through her heart. With all the strength she could muster she leaped to her feet and held her hand out. “Hey, why are we just sitting around? I’ll race you to the top.”
Chapter Eleven
Lisa stepped into Susan and Caroline’s kitchen holding a steaming sweet potato pie, her grandma’s special recipe. Riley followed with a bottle of wine and a bag of chips. “Happy Thanksgiving.” She slipped her pie onto the counter before throwing her arms first around Susan then Caroline, who wore a pumpkin print apron and matching oven mitts on each hand. Besides Christmas, Thanksgiving was Lisa’s favorite time of year, except perhaps State’s first football game of the season. But what really could compete with that?
Caroline hugged Riley, threatening to crumple the chips. “I’m so glad you guys are here.”
“Wouldn’t have missed it.” Riley dropped the bag on the countertop beside Lisa’s pie and handed the bottle of wine to Susan.
&nbs
p; “Wine and chips.” Susan raised her eyebrows. “Way to go all out, Riley.”
“Just be thankful…” Lisa nestled up beside Riley and wrapped her arm around her waist. “Riley was going to bring turkey jerky and pumpkin spiced beer but I wouldn’t let her. I told her we actually like our friends.”
“And for that, we’re eternally grateful.” Caroline emphasized the point with a large wooden serving spoon.
Riley grumbled and rolled her eyes, sending a round of laughter throughout the kitchen.
The next fifteen minutes were a flurry of action as everyone chipped in preparing dinner. Finally they all sat down around the table, the center lined with a steaming bowl of mashed potatoes, basket of buns, boat of gravy and a deep golden-brown turkey.
Susan stood up, glass of wine in her right hand, and cleared her throat. “Before we dig in, I just wanted to share a couple of things that I’m especially thankful for this year. First off, my loving and infinitely patient partner”—she nodded her head to Caroline—“without you, life wouldn’t be nearly as interesting.”
Caroline smiled brightly. She mouthed a silent “thank you.”
Susan raised her glass. “And to my friends here today, I am immensely grateful, for the more you eat, the less I have to eat later.”
Everyone laughed as Susan sat back down. Caroline shook her head. “Leave it to my partner to turn something sweet into something funny. But I love her and wouldn’t have her any other way. Thank you Lisa and Riley for joining us. Times like these are always better shared with friends.”
“Here, here.” Lisa lifted her wine glass high. Caroline’s words couldn’t be truer. Since Jessie had died she had chosen to spend the holidays alone. This, and especially Riley, was a wonderful change. “I don’t know what to really say other than thank you to each of you. After losing Jessie I never thought I could be thankful for anything again. But she wouldn’t have wanted that and I know she’d be thankful to each and every one of you for the kindness and love you have shown me…” Her voice broke and she swallowed hard. “And I’m thankful too.”
Caroline leaped from her chair and pulled her into a long fierce hug. When she pulled back, Caroline’s eyes reflected the mistiness she felt in her own. Under the table, she felt Riley’s hand lightly pat her on the leg and she closed her hand over the top, giving it a squeeze.
Riley now sat up straight. “I’m not really sure what to say either, so I’ll keep this short and sweet.”
“Wow, that must be a first.” Susan barked out a laugh. “No footnotes?”
“Yeah, yeah.” Riley waved Susan off, smiling good-naturedly. “To Susan and Caroline, thanks for being great friends. And to Lisa, thanks for showing me there’s more to life than my work.”
Lisa could barely believe what she was hearing. She had been thinking along the lines of Susan, that Riley would come up with the cultural significance of the holiday or some historical fact surrounding the celebration, but no, like she’d said, she had summed it up short and sweet. Life was about living it to its fullest and sharing it with good friends. She pulled Riley tightly into a strong embrace and nuzzled her lips to her ear. “You’re the best, Riley.”
Riley pulled back, utterly surprised. Why had Lisa said that? You’re the best, Riley. If anything, Lisa deserved the credit. Like she had said, if it weren’t for her she’d be elbow-deep in her work at the moment.
Susan slapped both her hands down on the table. “Okay, enough of the mushy stuff. I’m starving, let’s eat”
A new peal of laughter rolled around the table. Caroline toasted her wine glass. “All right, everyone dig in.” With that, a flurry of arms began passing everything around as serving forks, spoons, ladles all clinked, clanked, scraped and loaded the plates high. The conversation rose above the din. Although there were only four of them it seemed as if at least eight separate conversations were going at the same time. Lisa smiled widely as she surveyed the table. This was what Thanksgiving was all about.
* * *
Riley relaxed in the kitchen with Susan as a loud cheer erupted from the living room. Lisa and Caroline were watching a football game on TV—the Detroit Packers versus the Green Bay Lions or some such. “Sounds like they’re really getting into the game.”
“Yeah.” Susan let out her bark-like laugh. “Caroline eats, breathes and sleeps football. If she could, I swear she’d wear her lucky football jersey all season.”
“Lisa’s the same, obsessed.”
“Like you’ve got a lot to talk about, Riley. You’re the queen of obsession.” Susan clapped her on the back. “I still can’t believe Lisa got you to go to a football game. I would have paid money to see that.”
Riley shot her a wry smile. She was used to this good-natured ribbing from Susan. “It’s not just that. Lisa’s been introducing me to all sorts of things.”
“Well, I for one think it’s great. How long have I been saying that you need to get out and do more? You can’t just sit in that lab of yours all the time. And speaking of which, what was that about Lisa showing you there is more to life than your work? Damn, Riley, I almost fell out of my seat. I never thought I’d hear those words come out of your mouth.”
Riley took a long sip of her wine. How was she to answer that? For so long her work had been her entire life—that was who she was. But since meeting Lisa she found herself realizing there may be a life beyond that, even for her. “I don’t know, Susan. Just a few months ago, if you’d asked me, I’d have told you, no way. My job was my life and my life was my job. But now…” She shrugged her shoulders.
“Now?”
Riley took a deep breath. “Now… I’d have to say that’s not the case. I find myself thinking of Lisa throughout the day, wondering what she’s up to—is she having a good day? Then I’ll hear something and the first person I think of that I want to share it with is her. Honestly I don’t know what to make of it.”
Susan laughed again, this time much softer. “Geez, Riley, if I’d have to guess I’d say you’re falling for her. It’s not as if that’s a bad thing, you know.” Susan threw an arm around Riley’s shoulders. “We all need things in our life, people in our life, besides work. I should know. I was just like you—work, work, work. That’s all I did. And then I met that sexy little thing in there cheering at that football game and things changed. My work was still important, yes, but it wasn’t the only thing that was important.”
“Since I’ve met Lisa, I’d have to say things sure have changed.” She let out a chuckle. That was an understatement. “Things just haven’t changed, they’ve completely transformed.”
“See, I told you there’s more to life than dead people.” Susan emphasized the point with a quick jab of her finger to Riley’s chest.
“I know, I hate to admit it but you were right.” Riley let out a long, drawn-out sigh. “I just worry…”
“What’s there to worry about?”
Riley could feel the heat rising in her cheeks. What wasn’t there to worry about? “Hell, I don’t know, Susan. Everything, I guess. I worry I’m going to screw something up. I worry that someday I’ll just wake up and Lisa will be gone.”
“We all worry about that sometimes, Riley. I think it’s only normal in the beginning of a relationship.”
She paced back and forth through the kitchen. “You’re probably right but Lisa’s so full of life and you’ve seen what I deal with on a day-to-day basis. Why wouldn’t Lisa up and take off some day?”
“Whoa.” Susan’s eyes flew wide. “Where’s all this coming from? Has Lisa said something?”
“Well, no, not really.” Riley paced faster. “But I’ve seen how she is. She’s really sensitive. Like just a couple weeks ago when that little girl at her school died. She tried to hide it but I could see how it sent her into a deep depression most of the weekend and through the next week.”
“Same thing happened to Caroline when she heard about it. It was a tragedy for everyone. That’s probably just the teacher in both of
them. They get really attached to their kids.”
Riley stopped, stomped her foot and threw her hands up in the air. Susan just wasn’t getting it. How could she explain it? “I saw how she reacted when she found out about that little girl. I don’t mean to downplay what had happened but that was a disease. She died with friends and family around. And it still affected Lisa so deeply. How do you think she would react to the more grisly aspects of my job?”
“Lisa knows what you do, right?”
Riley bit her lip and winced.
Susan’s mouth dropped open. “You haven’t told her?”
“Not exactly. She knows I’m an anthropologist, that’s about all.”
Susan stared at her, looking utterly dumbfounded. “I can’t believe it, Riley. That’s usually the first thing you tell people. How many women that we fix you up with have you chased off by throwing out the most gory and disturbing details of your job? It’s as if you want them to go.”
Susan had her there. She had certainly sent her fair share of blind dates screaming from the room. But Lisa was different. Maybe that was because she hadn’t discussed her work with her.
Susan stepped up to her and clasped her face in her hands, staring her directly in the eye. “Look, Riley, if it bothers you that much, why don’t you talk to Lisa about it? Tell her what you do and your concerns. I’m sure she will be fine with it. Believe me, she’s tougher than you think. It’s either that or I guess you can continue to keep it a secret, but how far has that gotten you?”
Maybe Susan was right. Maybe she should do what Susan suggested. Then again, did she dare risk it?
* * *
Lisa jumped up from the couch and let out another cheer, pumping her fist into the air. The Detroit Lions had just intercepted the ball with less than two minutes left in the fourth. Since they were ahead by a touchdown, unless they totally screwed it up, they should win. But with the Lions, anything was possible.
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