by Radclyffe
“That isn’t where our problem’s been coming from.” Carter indicated a coffee shop. “Want anything?”
“Always good for coffee. I’m buying.”
Reese ordered two coffees to go, thanked the many townspeople who said they were glad to see her back, and handed a cup to Carter as they walked back outside. “So tell me why Rica Grechi looks like she’s ready to take on anyone who comes near you.”
Carter smiled. “She’s being a little overprotective, I guess.”
“Considering someone kicked the hell out of you a few weeks back, that’s probably justified.”
“It’s more than that. The FBI pulled me in a couple days after they confirmed it was Brassi who went up in flames. I guess my quitting right before it happened and the fact that Rica and I are lovers sent everybody’s red flags into the stratosphere.”
“You must have expected it.”
“I did. At least I expected to be questioned.” Carter sipped her coffee. “But the lead FBI agent decided if she sweated me long enough, she’d get what she was after. She invoked the Patriot Act and kept me incommunicado for three days. Finally my ex-partner raised so much hell they let me go.”
“Jesus,” Reese said. “Whether you resigned or not, you’re still one of us.”
Carter shook her head. “No. I’m Rica Grechi’s lover. That makes it a whole new ballgame.”
They walked to the end of the pier at MacMillan Wharf and finished their coffee while the ferry docked and a hundred people piled off for a day of sightseeing and shopping. Carter tilted her head back as the wind blew salt spray through her hair. It felt good to be outside and free.
“Rica didn’t know what had happened to me,” Carter said, “and there was no one she could call. She was scared.” Carter’s jaws clenched as she remembered just how scared Rica had been. “Now that she’s had some time to settle down, she’s mightily pissed.”
“I don’t blame her.” Reese smiled briefly, thinking that Tory would have reacted very much the same way. “I stopped by to see if you were staying in town. I guess you are.”
“I’ve got my place here, but I’ve pretty much been staying at Rica’s. I’ll probably end up opening the law office for real.” Carter eyed Reese speculatively. “But this isn’t just a social call.”
“I also thought I’d let you know that the FBI gave us a call and requested we put you and Rica on our watch list.”
Carter’s stiffened. “Why are you telling me?”
“Because I thought you should know, cop to cop.”
“I’m not a cop anymore.”
“You quit because you had to. Because you had another responsibility, to Rica and to yourself. Doesn’t mean you’re not a cop still.” Reese indicated her watch. “We better head back before your girlfriend comes after me.”
“I appreciate the heads-up, but Rica and I aren’t going to live looking over our shoulders. We don’t have anything to be guilty about.”
“I didn’t figure you did, which is why there aren’t any patrols on either one of you. And that’s why we’re not really having this conversation.”
“Thanks.”
“You know, this is a pretty small town. Quiet, most of the time.” Reese glanced up and down Commercial Street, which was coming to life with early-morning deliveries, tourists out for their runs, and people picking up coffee and pastries from the bakeries and coffee shops. “But things do get exciting from time to time. You ever feel like trying small-town policing, come by the station and we’ll talk.”
“You don’t think that would be a problem, considering Rica’s father?”
Reese shrugged as they turned up the sidewalk to the gallery. “That’s his life, not hers.”
The door opened, and Rica hurried out. She slid her arm around Carter’s waist again. “Everything all right?”
“Fine.” Carter circled Rica’s shoulder and held her close. “Don’t worry, babe.”
“I’m sorry to interrupt your morning, Ms. Grechi,” Reese said. “I’ll try to see that you and Carter aren’t troubled any further. If you are, please call me.”
Rica studied Reese for a long moment, then held out her hand. “Please forgive my temper earlier. And call me Rica.”
“Pleasure to meet you, Rica.” Reese saluted with a finger to the brim of her hat. “You both have a good day now.”
As Reese turned and glimpsed Bri waiting in the cruiser, she felt the last shattered pieces of her world settle into place. This was where she was meant to be; this was her life. She was home.
About the Author
Radclyffe is a retired surgeon and full-time author-publisher with over twenty-five lesbian novels and anthologies in print, including the 2005 Lambda Literary Award winners Erotic Interludes 2: Stolen Moments ed. with Stacia Seaman and Distant Shores, Silent Thunder, a romance. She has selections in multiple anthologies including Call of the Dark, The Perfect Valentine, Wild Nights, Best Lesbian Erotica 2006, After Midnight, Caught Looking: Erotic Tales of Voyeurs and Exhibitionists, First-Timers, Ultimate Undies: Erotic Stories About Lingerie and Underwear, and Naughty Spanking Stories 2. She is the recipient of the 2003 and 2004 Alice B. Readers? award for her body of work and is also the president of Bold Strokes Books, a lesbian publishing company.
Her forthcoming works include Erotic Interludes 4: Extreme Passions ed. with Stacia Seaman (October 2006), and the romance When Dreams Tremble (January 2007).
Look for information about these works at www.boldstrokesbooks.com.
Books Available From Bold Strokes Books
Fresh Tracks by Georgia Beers. Seven women, seven days. A lot can happen when old friends, lovers, and a new girl in town get together in the mountains. (1-933110-63-5)
Empress and the Acolyte by Jane Fletcher. Jemeryl and Tevi fight to protect the very fabric of their world…time. Lyremouth Chronicles Book Three (1-933110-60-0)
First Instinct by JLee Meyer. When high-stakes security fraud leads to murder, one woman flees for her life while another risks her heart to protect her. (1-933110-59-7)
Erotic Interludes 4: Extreme Passions. Thirty of today‘s hottest erotica writers set the pages aflame with love, lust, and steamy liaisons. (1-933110-58-9)
Storms of Change by Radclyffe. In the continuing saga of the Provincetown Tales, duty and love are at odds as Reese and Tory face their greatest challenge. (1-933110-57-0)
Unexpected Ties by Gina L. Dartt. With death before dessert, Kate Shannon and Nikki Harris are swept up in another tale of danger and romance. (1-933110-56-2)
Sleep of Reason by Rose Beecham. Nothing is at it seems when Detective Jude Devine finds herself caught up in a small-town soap opera. And her rocky relationship with forensic pathologist Dr. Mercy Westmoreland just got a lot harder. (1-933110-53-8)
Passion‘s Bright Fury by Radclyffe. When a trauma surgeon and a filmmaker become reluctant allies on the battleground between life and death, passion strikes without warning. (1-933110-54-6)
Broken Wings by L-J Baker. When Rye Woods, a fairy, meets the beautiful dryad Flora Withe, her libido, as squashed and hidden as her wings, reawakens along with her heart. (1-933110-55-4)
Combust the Sun by Andrews & Austin. A Richfield and Rivers mystery set in L.A. Murder among the stars. (1-933110-52-X)
Of Drag Kings and the Wheel of Fate by Susan Smith. A blind date in a drag club leads to an unlikely romance. (1-933110-51-1)
Tristaine Rises by Cate Culpepper. Brenna, Jesstin, and the Amazons of Tristaine face their greatest challenge for survival. (1-933110-50-3)
Too Close to Touch by Georgia Beers. Kylie O‘Brien believes in true love and is willing to wait for it. It doesn‘t matter one damn bit that Gretchen, her new and off-limits boss, has a voice as rich and smooth as melted chocolate. It absolutely doesn‘t... (1-933110-47-3)
100th Generation by Justine Saracen. Ancient curses, modern-day villains, and a most intriguing woman who keeps appearing when least expected lead archeologist Valerie Foret on the adventure
of her life. (1-933110-48-1)
Battle for Tristaine by Cate Culpepper. While Brenna struggles to find her place in the clan and the love between her and Jess grows, Tristaine is threatened with destruction. Second in the Tristaine series. (1-933110-49-X)
The Traitor and the Chalice by Jane Fletcher. Without allies to help them, Tevi and Jemeryl will have to risk all in the race to uncover the traitor and retrieve the chalice. The Lyremouth Chronicles Book Two. (1-933110-43-0)
Promising Hearts by Radclyffe. Dr. Vance Phelps lost everything in the War Between the States and arrives in New Hope, Montana, with no hope of happiness and no desire for anything except forgetting–until she meets Mae, a frontier madam. (1-933110-44-9)
Carly‘s Sound by Ali Vali. Poppy Valente and Julia Johnson form a bond of friendship that lays the foundation for something more, until Poppy‘s past comes back to haunt her–literally. A poignant romance about love and renewal. (1-933110-45-7)
Unexpected Sparks by Gina L. Dartt. Falling in love is challenging enough without adding murder to the mix. Kate Shannon‘s growing feelings for much younger Nikki Harris are complicated enough without the mystery of a fatal fire that Kate can‘t ignore. (1-933110-46-5)
Whitewater Rendezvous by Kim Baldwin. Two women on a wilderness kayak adventure–Chaz Herrick, a laid-back outdoorswoman, and Megan Maxwell, a workaholic news executive–discover that true love may be nothing at all like they imagined. (1-933110-38-4)
Erotic Interludes 3: Lessons in Love ed. by Radclyffe and Stacia Seaman. Sign on for a class in love…the best lesbian erotica writers take us to —school.“ (1-9331100-39-2)
Punk Like Me by JD Glass. Twenty-one-year-old Nina writes lyrics and plays guitar in the rock band Adam‘s Rib, and she doesn‘t always play by the rules. And oh yeah–she has a way with the girls. (1-933110-40-6 )
Coffee Sonata by Gun Brooke. Four women whose lives unexpectedly intersect in a small town by the sea share one thing in common–they all have secrets. (1-933110-41-4)
The Clinic: Tristaine Book One by Cate Culpepper. Brenna, a prison medic, finds herself deeply conflicted by her growing feelings for her patient, Jesstin, a wild and rebellious warrior reputed to be descended from ancient Amazons. (1-933110-42-2)
Forever Found by JLee Meyer. Can time, tragedy, and shattered trust destroy a love that seemed destined? When chance reunites two childhood friends separated by tragedy, the past resurfaces to determine the shape of their future. (1-933110-37-6)
Sword of the Guardian by Merry Shannon. Princess Shasta‘s bold new bodyguard has a secret that could change both of their lives. He is actually a she. A passionate romance filled with courtly intrigue, chivalry, and devotion. (1-933110-36-8)
Wild Abandon by Ronica Black. From their first tumultuous meeting, Dr. Chandler Brogan and Officer Sarah Monroe are drawn together by their common obsessions–sex, speed, and danger. (1-933110-35-X)
Turn Back Time by Radclyffe. Pearce Rifkin and Wynter Thompson have nothing in common but a shared passion for surgery. They clash at every opportunity, especially when matters of the heart are suddenly at stake. (1-933110-34-1)
Chance by Grace Lennox. At twenty-six, Chance Delaney decides her life isn‘t working so she swaps it for a different one. What follows is the sexy, funny, touching story of two women who, in fi nding themselves, also find one another. (1-933110-31-7)
The Exile and the Sorcerer by Jane Fletcher. First in the Lyremouth Chronicles. Tevi, wounded and adrift, arrives in the courtyard of a shy young sorcerer. Together they face monsters, magic, and the challenge of loving despite their differences. (1-933110-32-5)
A Matter of Trust by Radclyffe. JT Sloan is a cybersleuth who doesn‘t like attachments. Michael Lassiter is leaving her husband, and she needs Sloan‘s expertise to safeguard her company. It should just be business– but it turns into much more. (1-933110-33-3)
Sweet Creek by Lee Lynch. A celebration of the enduring nature of love, friendship, and community in the quirky, heart-warming lesbian community of Waterfall Falls. (1-933110-29-5)
The Devil Inside by Ali Vali. Derby Cain Casey, head of a New Orleans crime organization, runs the family business with guts and grit, and no one crosses her. No one, that is, until Emma Verde claims her heart and turns her world upside down. (1-933110-30-9)
Grave Silence by Rose Beecham. Detective Jude Devine‘s investigation of a series of ritual murders is complicated by her torrid affair with the golden girl of Southwestern forensic pathology, Dr. Mercy Westmoreland. (1-933110-25-2)
Honor Reclaimed by Radclyffe. In the aftermath of 9/11, Secret Service Agent Cameron Roberts and Blair Powell close ranks with a trusted few to find the would-be assassins who nearly claimed Blair‘s life. (1-93311018-X)
Honor Bound by Radclyffe. Secret Service Agent Cameron Roberts and Blair Powell face political intrigue, a clandestine threat to Blair‘s safety, and the seemingly irreconcilable personal differences that force them ever farther apart. (1-933110-20-1)
Innocent Hearts by Radclyffe. In a wild and unforgiving land, two women learn about love, passion, and the wonders of the heart. (1-933110-21-X)
The Temple at Landfall by Jane Fletcher. An imprinter, one of Celaeno‘s most revered servants of the Goddess, is also a prisoner to the faith–until a Ranger frees her by claiming her heart. The Celaeno series. (1-933110-27-9)
Protector of the Realm: Supreme Constellations Book One by Gun Brooke. A space adventure filled with suspense and a daring intergalactic romance featuring Commodore Rae Jacelon and the stunning, but decidedly lethal, Kellen O‘Dal. (1-933110-26-0)
Force of Nature by Kim Baldwin. From tornados to forest fires, the forces of nature conspire to bring Gable McCoy and Erin Richards close to danger, and closer to each other. (1-933110-23-6)
In Too Deep by Ronica Black. Undercover homicide cop Erin McKenzie tracks a femme fatale who just might be a real killer…with love and danger hot on her heels. (1-933110-17-1)
Stolen Moments: Erotic Interludes 2 by Stacia Seaman and Radclyffe, eds. Love on the run, in the office, in the shadows…Fast, furious, and almost too hot to handle. (1-933110-16-3)
Course of Action by Gun Brooke. Actress Carolyn Black desperately wants the starring role in an upcoming film produced by Annelie Peterson. Just how far will she go for the dream part of a lifetime? (1-933110-22-8)
Rangers at Roadsend by Jane Fletcher. Sergeant Chip Coppelli has learned to spot trouble coming, and that is exactly what she sees in her new recruit, Katryn Nagata. The Celaeno series. (1-933110-28-7)
Justice Served by Radclyffe. Lieutenant Rebecca Frye and her lover, Dr. Catherine Rawlings, embark on a deadly game of hideand-seek with an underworld kingpin who traffics in human souls. (1-933110-15-5)
Distant Shores, Silent Thunder by Radclyffe. Dr. Tory King–along with the women who love her–is forced to examine the boundaries of love, friendship, and the ties that transcend time. (1-933110-08-2)
Hunter‘s Pursuit by Kim Baldwin. A raging blizzard, a mountain hideaway, and a killer-for-hire set a scene for disaster–or desire–when Katarzyna Demetrious rescues a beautiful stranger. (1-933110-09-0)
The Walls of Westernfort by Jane Fletcher. All Temple Guard Natasha Ionadis wants is to serve the Goddess–until she falls in love with one of the rebels she is sworn to destroy. The Celaeno series. (1-933110-24-4)
Change Of Pace: Erotic Interludes by Radclyffe. Twenty-five hot-wired encounters guaranteed to spark more than just your imagination. Erotica as you‘ve always dreamed of it. (1-933110-07-4)
Honor Guards by Radclyffe. In a wild flight for their lives, the president‘s daughter and those who are sworn to protect her wage a desperate struggle for survival. (1-933110-01-5)
Fated Love by Radclyffe. Amidst the chaos and drama of a busy emergency room, two women must contend not only with the fragile nature of life, but also with the irresistible forces of fate. (1-933110-05-8)
Justice in the Shadows by Radclyffe. In a shadow world of secrets and lies, Detective Sergeant Re
becca Frye and her lover, Dr. Catherine Rawlings, join forces in the elusive search for justice. (1-933110-03-1)
shadowland by Radclyffe. In a world on the far edge of desire, two women are drawn together by power, passion, and dark pleasures. An erotic romance. (1-933110-11-2)
Love‘s Masquerade by Radclyffe. Plunged into the indistinguishable realms of fiction, fantasy, and hidden desires, Auden Frost is forced to question all she believes about the nature of love. (1-933110-14-7)
Love & Honor by Radclyffe. The president‘s daughter and her lover are faced with difficult choices as they battle a tangled web of Washington intrigue for...love and honor. (1-933110-10-4)
Beyond the Breakwater by Radclyffe. One Provincetown summer, three women learn the true meaning of love, friendship, and family. (1-933110-06-6)
Tomorrow‘s Promise by Radclyffe. One timeless summer, two very different women discover the power of passion to heal and the promise of hope that only love can bestow. (1-933110-12-0)
Love‘s Tender Warriors by Radclyffe. Two women who have accepted loneliness as a way of life learn that love is worth fighting for and a battle they cannot afford to lose. (1-933110-02-3)