by Melissa Good
Cathy took the bottle back and glanced at it, then at her. “Son of a bitch.”
“Ever suck a worm?” Kerry persisted. “They’re not bad with a little lime on them.”
The tall woman took a swallow of her own, then licked the bottle rim, watching Kerry’s reaction. “Mmm. I like that taste.” She moved in closer and ducked her head, her intent obvious.
Uh oh. Kerry lifted a hand and intercepted her. She pushed back slightly as she looked over Cathy’s shoulder, utterly relieved to meet icy blue eyes coming towards her. “Stop.” She raised her voice and put an edge in it. “You don’t want to do that.”
“Sure I do.” Cathy reached for the hand holding her. “C’mere, cute pie. You look good enough to eat.”
“I said, stop.” Kerry straightened her back.
“Little tease.” Cathy grabbed for her, then yelped as her hand was caught and wrenched back and her arm twisted painfully behind her back. “Let me the fuck go!”
“Or?” A low, lazy, almost purr answered her.
“I’m gonna kick your ass.”
“No, you’re not,” Dar answered placidly. “Because we’re not a couple of stupid kids.”
“Let me go!” Cathy twisted savagely, but Dar’s hold bested her and the dark haired woman merely went with the motion, then slammed her into the wall with a clatter of wood.
“Cathy, if I have to call the cops, you’re going to regret it,” Dar told her. “So knock it off.” She swung her around and got between her and Kerry, then released her with a relatively gentle shove in the opposite direction.
Kerry put a hand on her lover’s back, glad of Dar’s calm, reasoned attitude. Her throat still stung from the harsh tequila and she took a deep breath, willing her heart to settle down.
Cathy stumbled forward, then turned, and half fell against the tiers, staring back at Dar with sullen anger. “You think you’re so hot.”
224 Melissa Good Dar sighed. “I’ll give you some free advice. Grow up. As far as I can tell, you haven’t learned a goddamned thing since we left this place the last time.” She turned her head as Barry edged his big body between Cathy’s friends and her.
“Hey hey hey. Nifty party, huh?”
The leather clad group faded away, and after a long, hostile stare, Cathy followed them. Dar waited for them to leave, then let out a held breath. “You okay?”
“Outside of having a graphic reminder of just why I really, really hate bad tequila, yes,” Kerry responded dryly. “I’m fine.” She exhaled.
“Dar, does everyone in your past have a bad attitude, or is it just me?”
She got a brief, guilty look from her lover.
Barry chuckled. “Girl’s got a bug up her butt, always has.” He tilted his head. “’Sides, Dar had herself quite a ’tude in the bad old days.” He nudged Dar’s arm. “C’mon over by us old, balding, fat ex-jocks, and make us feel macho, huh?”
Dar inclined her head, and they walked across the floor towards a group of men and women who were laughing around one of the bars.
They waved hello, as the music changed again and took on an earthier beat.
Next time, Kerry... She accepted a cup of the frothy beer, glad of anything to get the taste of tequila out of her mouth. Next time rent a movie.
Go bowling.
Miniature golf?
Do laundry.
Everyone loosened up and after about thirty minutes, the music took a little break, slowing down and allowing the sweating participants to relax. The lights dimmed as well, and Kerry felt a hand touch her shoulder.
“Join me?” Dar’s eyes were almost violet in the dimness.
“Sure.” Kerry led the way through the crowd, until they found a small clear space, then turned and rested her hands on Dar’s hips as the taller woman’s arms circled her neck. She was briefly aware of a few startled looks in their immediate vicinity and the unmistakable motion as distance was put between them and their nearest neighbors.
Relax, she mentally informed the crowd . If this was contagious, we’d have elected Liberace president. In another forum, she might have felt self-conscious, but here, in this smelly gym, in the dark, all that really mattered was the body now closing gently with hers, leather and skin brushing against her and making everything else fade into insignificance.
She moved with the music and Dar moved with her in synch as they took small steps in a lazy circle. Idle light beams from the ceiling drifted over them, dusting Dar’s shoulders in rust and ochre and catching the occasional glint off her eyes, which were fastened on Kerry’s face.
They could have been completely alone, for all the impact the crowd was making on her, and Kerry relaxed into a smile as her thumbs traced the gaps in Dar’s vest, feeling skin and movement and just a little sweat Eye of the Storm 225
from the heat. She moved a little closer as Dar’s thigh brushed hers and put her head down on Dar’s shoulder, listening to the music of her heartbeat.
Dar felt content, something that had escaped her totally in the years she’d spent here, though the experience hadn’t been all bad. She knew she was being stared at, but it really didn’t matter, because she had what she wanted, found what she’d searched for, and the only thing that mattered to her was the look of love in Kerry’s eyes as she gazed upward.
If the rest of them didn’t like it they could just kiss her ass. She half closed her eyes and hummed along with the music, hardly conscious of what the tune even was.
THE MOON HAD risen when they left, and Kerry paused a moment and collected her balance as they walked down the front stairs. Her head buzzed a little and she was glad of the warm arm that slipped around her, steadying her steps. “Thanks.” She returned the grip by tucking an arm snugly around Dar’s waist.
“Thanks for the dance,” Dar replied, with a smile. “Didn’t know you could move like that.”
“Ungh. Give me enough beer, and I can do all sorts of things you’d never imagine I could,” Kerry admitted. “I did warn you about that.” She swallowed against a mildly queasy stomach.
“Mmm.” Dar glanced around the parking lot, which was still quite full. The rest of the evening had been reasonably pleasant, and she’d even gotten a few dances in with Barry and some of the others, ending the reunion on a nice note she hadn’t really expected. “I had fun.”
Kerry smiled and gave her a squeeze.
They walked around the corner of a large Lincoln, and right into the harsh glare of a flashbulb. “Hey.” Dar stopped and threw an arm up, blinking the spots out of her eyes. “What in the hell was that for?”
“Nail on your coffin.” David Ankow got off the car hood he was seated on and advanced his film, then shot a few more. “Photographic evidence, not that I needed any more, but I like to be thorough.”
The shock faded, and Dar sifted through her available options, which weren’t extensive. He’d nailed her, and she was smart enough to realize it.
Question was, did she care? Kerry had fallen mute and kept her mouth prudently shut, but didn’t release her hold on Dar.
“Did you get my good side?” Blue eyes widened and Dar lifted a hand, glancing down at herself. “Though what pictures of me at my high school reunion prove I can’t imagine.”
“It’s against company rules for supervisors to be in relationships with subordinates,” Ankow commented mildly. “Such a tawdry little thing to nail you on.” He cocked his head at Kerry. “So sweet of you to go home and take care of your bedmate, Ms. Stuart. I got excellent shots of you driving that nice little car onto that fancy ferry.” He put the cap on 226 Melissa Good his lens. “And now, I can leave this rancid hell hole and go home, where I have three lawyers drawing up two different suits, with three different counts of negligence, misrepresentation, and dereliction of duty against both of you.” He gave them a satisfied nod. “Damn good day’s work.” He smiled. “Have a great day, you pair of disgusting perverts. It’s going to be a great pleasure for me to see the last of you when this is all over.�
� He turned.
“Mr. Ankow.” Kerry disengaged her arm from her stunned partner and walked over to him.
He put a hand on his hip and waited, a look of smug pleasure on his face.
Kerry stopped and regarded him with concentrated seriousness.
“You’re ugly, you stink, and you have the brains of a sea slug,” she stated. “You can take those pictures and shove them right up your ass.”
Ankow was a little surprised. “You’re drunk.”
“You’re a moron,” Kerry shot right back. “I can always sober up.”
“You little…” Ankow reached for her arm. “I’ll—”
Without warning, Kerry lashed out a fist and caught him right in the nose with all the power she could muster.
“Son of a bitch! Don’t you touch me!” A splatter of blood sprayed in the garish lamplight, and Ankow stumbled backwards.
He wiped the blood onto the back of one hand and looked up at her, his eyes narrowing. Then they slid past Kerry’s shoulder, and he froze for a long moment. “You’ll regret doing that,” he finally said, in a very quiet voice. “Believe me.” Then he turned and walked rapidly away, disappearing between two parked vans and into the darkness beyond.
They were quiet for a moment, then Dar let out a low, whistling breath. “Did that make you feel better?” she asked her lover wryly.
“Ow.” Kerry examined her hand. “I forgot to mention I get feisty when you get me tanked, didn’t I?”
Dar took her hand and rubbed a thumb over the skin. Then she lifted the hand up and kissed it. “I’ll have to remember that.”
Kerry sighed. “We’re seriously screwed, aren’t we?”
Dar made a faint noise.
“They’re going to fire us and sue us for a ton of money, right?”
“Probably,” Dar acknowledged. “Well, me, anyway. You didn’t do anything. The corporate responsibility for the rule falls on the supervisor.” She gazed at Kerry. “And I certainly did know what I was doing.”
“Can they put us in jail?”
“No.” Dar shook her head. “We’re not criminals, just lovers.” Her lips twitched faintly. “Though, I don’t know—he might have you for assault and battery now.”
“Nah. He’d never admit to a cop he let a girl punch him.” Kerry smiled, then leaned against the Lincoln. She felt curiously free, in a strange way. “You know something, Dar?”
“What?”
“I don’t care.”
Eye of the Storm 227
“You don’t?”
“No,” she answered very softly. “If all I have in the world is you, no matter what we do, or where we end up, that’s okay with me.” She rubbed her arm. “Worst comes to worst, we can go on the road and I’ll sell my poems for food, how about that?”
Dar chuckled. “C’mon.” She held a hand out. “You still in the mood for sushi?”
Kerry went willingly, allowing Dar to lead her over to the bike and settling behind her. “It’s a little late for that, but boy, could I ever use some ice cream,” she mumbled into the leather covered back. “A nice big double scoop sundae with lots of fudge.”
“Your wish is my command.” Dar started the engine and revved it.
“Hang on.”
“Don’t worry.” Kerry tightened her grip. “I’m never letting go of you.”
They pulled out into the street, under a crisply starred sky with a peaceful full moon to light the way.
Chapter
Twenty-five
DAR PARKED THE bike near the condo and carefully put the cover they’d been provided with on top of it. Kerry helped her and they both stepped back and regarded the machine. “You think?”
“Oh yeah.” Kerry stifled a yawn, and leaned against her. “C’mon.
Chino heard us.”
They walked up the stairs and Kerry keyed the lock, pulled the door open and released the excited Labrador. “Easy, Chino. Easy.” She knelt and hugged the puppy, then picked her up and followed Dar into the living room.
“Hey, Dar?”
“Hmm?” The taller woman dropped her jacket over the back of the loveseat and unlaced her vest.
“I know you sort of just came into this, but if you had a choice, where would you live?”
Interesting question. Dar loosened the laces and wandered into her room, tugged the leather off and replaced it with a worn heavy cotton Tshirt. She rubbed her arms as she regarded her reflection, then glanced over at the blonde in the doorway. “Honestly? A place that doesn’t exist.”
She chuckled a little. “A nice, rustic cabin on the beach, not too close to everyone else, with a little dock.”
Kerry considered that. “I’m sure there’re places like that.”
“Umm. With ISDN fast access lines and a shopping mall next door?”
The blue eyes twinkled with wry self deprecation. “Not to mention cable TV?”
“Hmm. I get it. Microsoft rustic.”
“Something like that.” Dar shrugged. “A way to mix my preferences with my vocation. I think you have to trade off one for the other.” She looked around. “I don’t need the marble and silk, but I do love the technology. It’s always intrigued me.”
Kerry nodded slowly. “Yeah, me too.” She paused reflectively. “It would be kind of fun to pick a new place out with you, though. I mean…”
An awkward hesitation. “I don’t know what I mean.” She wandered forward and pulled a faded blue T-shirt from Dar’s drawer. “Mind if I borrow this?”
“Since when do you ask?” Dar kidded her, then was quiet for a Eye of the Storm 229
minute. “I wouldn’t mind picking a place out with you either.” They regarded each other. “Let’s see what happens with this whole thing.
Maybe we won’t have a choice.” She circled her finger in the air, then unfastened Kerry’s top as the blonde woman turned around.
“Are you worried about it?”
Dar eased past her and headed for the back door, with Chino dancing beside her. “Worried?” She opened the door for the puppy and watched her scamper out into the dark garden. “No. I know I’m employ-able, Kerry, and that’s the bottom line.” She glanced up. “Even if I end up getting a quarter of my salary, it’s still livable, but,” she shrugged, “I feel like I’ve put so much into the company, after all this time, it hurts a little to have to face this.”
Kerry rubbed her arms, warming them in the chill of the air conditioning, and glad of Dar’s shirt. “It doesn’t make sense, though, Dar,” she mused. “Why now? You’ve never had a problem with the board before, and you’ve got a solid history with the company. What’s Ankow’s agenda, I wonder?”
Puzzled, Dar waited for Chino to come back in and shut the door, then walked into the kitchen and started fiddling with the coffee maker.
“I thought we knew it. He wants to take control, to oust Alastair. This is going to be damn embarrassing for him, since any disclosure of records will show he processed the overrides on our personnel records.”
“No.” Kerry shook her head, retrieved the coffee container, and handed it to her. “He knew something was up between us before he started all this. There’s something more going on, Dar, and I can’t help but notice the timing on this is awfully convenient.” She moved closer and leaned on the counter, watching Dar’s thoughtful face. “Something he said tonight, about us. I know he has a bad attitude about immigrants, because he made snide comments in the lunchroom.”
“So he’s prejudiced.” She shrugged. “He’s in the majority, Ker. You saw the looks we were getting tonight. We’re just lucky in that most of the people close to us have accepted our relationship.”
“I just have a feeling there’s something more to it,” Kerry objected stubbornly. “Because you know as well as I do, that lawsuit of his is bullshit, Dar. In the entire time you’ve been at an executive level at ILS, they’ve shown a healthy profit. The only thing proving we’re involved with each other gets him is grounds for termination.”
“And it makes everyone who supported us, Alastair, Duks, Mari, look bad.”
“True.”
“So, it gives him the leverage to put his own people in, if it all goes his way.”
“Yes, it does.” Dar poured two cups of coffee and added cream and sugar, then handed one to Kerry and guided her out into the living room.
“Why?” Kerry sat down on the couch and put her feet up on the table, crossing them at the ankles. “Why this company? Why does he give 230 Melissa Good a damn? I don’t get it.”
Dar settled back and took a sip of her coffee, thinking. Chino scrambled up on the couch and curled up next to her, putting her muzzle on Dar’s thigh. “His scan came up pretty clean,” she mused. “He was in the Army for eight years, discharged as a captain, nothing out of the ordinary in his records. Family lives in Oregon. Father’s a lumber magnate, pretty well off. He went to school in Washington, got a degree, went to law school. Came out and worked for the father as a corporate lawyer.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah. No criminal background, good credit, Mark couldn’t find a thing on him, except that he’d been an Eagle Scout, something Mark found really funny, for some reason.”
“Hmm.” Kerry exhaled. “That doesn’t help. What does he want from us? Or from ILS?”
Dar sat absolutely still for a long moment, then she put her cup down and turned towards Kerry. “Data.”
“Huh?”
“Data. It’s what we do, Kerry. We carry more data for more companies and governments than any other company in the world.”
“Well, sure, I know but—”
“Eighty percent of the interbank transfers. Military signal processing. The corporate network.” Dar rubbed her temple. “I never thought of it this way, but if you wanted to get information on anyone and anything, we’re the kind of company that could do it, easily.”
“But that data doesn’t belong to us, Dar.”