"This," Piper said leaning forward to kiss her gently.
"I knew what a smooch was," Bailey admitted and Piper chuckled at her.
"Have a seat at the table and I'll get dinner," Piper said with a light slap to Bailey's hip.
"Okay," Bailey said agreeably.
"What kind of dressing do you want with your salad?" Piper asked while getting everything together.
"None, please."
"None?"
"I don't like dressing on my salad."
"I've never met anyone who ate their salad dry," Piper said amused as she set a plate and silverware in front of Bailey who just shrugged her shoulders.
"Did you want to try the wine with dinner or did you want something else with your food?"
"Whatever you're having."
"I'm gonna have a Coke with dinner, is that okay?"
"Coke sucks, do you have a Pepsi?" Bailey said turning around when Piper laughed.
"Gee, why don't you tell me how you really feel?" Piper said chuckling.
"I'm sorry, it just popped out," Bailey said honestly.
"That's okay, I thought it was funny. How about iced tea and I'll buy some Pepsi for next time?"
"That's fine," Bailey said.
She sat quietly for a few more minutes until Piper had everything situated and sat down herself. She had just put a forkful of food in her mouth when Piper started the conversation.
"Can I ask you a question?" Piper asked and Bailey nodded to the affirmative.
"I've noticed that you don't paint your nails or wear makeup, how come?" Piper asked curiously and then added. "Not that you need to, you have a great complexion."
Bailey chewed for a few seconds and swallowed. "I just never thought it necessary, I guess."
"Well, in your case it really isn't, I was just curious on how you come across as so feminine with so little effort."
"I wasn't aware that it took an effort," Bailey said innocently and Piper giggled.
"It's an effort for some more than others," Piper said and then whispered conspiratorially. "Nancy has to bleach the hairs above her lip or she gets a mustache."
"Really?" Bailey asked in amusement, chuckling as she conjured up a mental image of the woman with a mustache.
"Yep, would you let me paint your nails?" Piper asked.
"Sure."
"I rented ‘Planes, Trains, and Automobiles' for after dinner have you seen it?"
"No."
"Great, I think you'll like it. Do you know how to two-step?"
"What's that?"
"It's a dance, I was hoping we could try it."
"I assume you know how?" Bailey asked.
"You don't grow up in New Orleans and not learn to dance," she admonished. "I would love to teach you if ya wanna try?"
"I guess so," she said cautiously. "Can you teach me here?"
"I was thinking about going out to a club," Piper said.
"What kind of a club do you go to?"
"It's a country dance, so we would go somewhere that plays that kind of music and has a dance floor," Piper said and noticed the sour look on Bailey's face.
"A country music place?"
"You don't like country music I take it?" Piper asked amused at her expression.
"No."
"We don't have to go, I thought it might be fun," Piper said trying to keep the disappointment out of her voice.
Bailey looked at Piper carefully and sighed. "Did you want to try this tomorrow night?" she asked wondering why she caved in so quickly.
"Yeah, if you want to," Piper said happily.
"I'll have a lash at it I guess," she said a little grumpily and Piper chuckled.
"Don't sound so enthused, you'll have fun I bet."
"Did you have a place in mind?"
"There's lots of places, did you wanna try a regular club or try to find one in Midtown?"
"What's the difference?"
"A regular club would be a straight club and one in Midtown would be a gay club. Which one would you feel most comfortable going to?"
"Doesn't matter, you choose," Bailey said casually.
"I would've thought you'd choose a gay club over a straight one," Piper said honestly.
"Why?" Bailey asked curiously.
"Because two females dancing with one another in a straight club can gather a lot of attention."
"I don't care what people think," Bailey said dismissively while spearing an olive out of her salad.
"You really don't do you?" Piper asked intrigued.
"Why would I?"
"Because, one can sometimes face difficulty or prejudice being in a relationship with a member of their own sex," Piper said carefully.
"That's not an issue with me, Piper."
"Really, why?" Piper asked with open curiosity.
Bailey rolled a mouthful of spaghetti up on her fork and considered. "As far as I'm concerned, it's you that I'm attracted to and your gender really doesn't come into play," she said honestly. "Categorizing myself as straight or gay would be a waste of time. I want to be with a person, not a specific gender. That person is you and I really could care less what people think, but I do care what you think and to me that's all that matters."
"I think that's one of the more enlightened viewpoints I've listened to on the subject," Piper said. "A little naïve, perhaps," she added carefully. "A great many people would disagree with you."
"Perhaps," Bailey shrugged.
Piper watched in amusement as Bailey picked through her salad for the things she liked.
"Miss Cameron, I believe you're the most extraordinary person I've ever met," she stated seriously. "And I'm very glad that you've chosen me to spend your time with."
Bailey's eyes came up from her salad and she glanced at Piper suspiciously. "I'm glad you think so and I feel the same way, but can we tell jokes or something now? I've been pretty pleased with myself that I've not stuttered my way through the evening so far."
Piper laughed. "Okay, I know an Irish joke, wanna hear it?"
"Sure."
"Why did God invent liquor?" Piper asked.
Bailey shrugged her shoulders.
"So the Irish wouldn't rule the world."
"Funny," Bailey said tonelessly.
"Tough room," Piper said with a smile. "You wanna try that wine now?" she asked noticing that Bailey had cleaned her plate and ate most of her salad.
"Okay," Bailey said agreeably.
Piper got up to collect their plates and padded to the kitchen. "Do you want me to make popcorn later?" she asked as she deposited the plates in the sink and retrieved the wine from the refrigerator.
"Sure."
Piper brought the bottle of wine and two glasses back to the table. "Are you done with your salad?"
"Yes, dinner was good, thank you," Bailey said.
"Anytime, and you're welcome," Piper said happily, collecting the rest of the plates.
"Pour us a drink and I'll be back in a sec," she said dumping the rest of the dishes in the sink and disappearing down the hallway.
She reappeared about a minute later and sat several bottles of nail polish and accessories on the table before Bailey. She seated herself and scooted her chair forward until she had the correct angle and beamed a smile.
"Ya ready?" she asked cheerily.
"I guess so," Bailey said warily and Piper chuckled.
"It'll be fun, what color would you like?"
"You choose," she said and watched with a smile as Piper scrunched up her face to consider the matter.
"I think a crimson or a pearl would look best, you agree?"
"Sure," Bailey said noncommittally.
"Try not to be such a stick in the mud," Piper chided. "I'll go with pearl unless you have any objection?"
"I've no objection, Miss Tate," Bailey said gravely and was rewarded with a condescending look that made her chuckle.
"Lemme see a hand," Piper said with a sigh and Bailey dutifully placed her left hand on the tab
le.
Piper took the offered hand and studied it. "You file your nails so short, how come?"
"It's practical," Bailey explained.
"Hmmm," Piper grunted in response as she bent to her task.
Bailey sipped her wine and watched Piper with a mixture of fascination and amusement. She noted that Piper chewed on her lower lip when she concentrated, a habit she found enormously appealing for reasons she couldn't quite explain. By the time Piper started on the other hand she was beginning to feel a little disturbed with herself, her stomach would occasionally jolt her with a flip flop and no matter how hard she tried she couldn't keep from looking at the woman. She studied Piper closely; committing to memory the woman's every feature. Suddenly, the reality of her situation struck her and she felt herself involuntarily shiver.
"Are you cold? I could turn the heat up a little if you like," Piper said having felt the sudden tremor.
"No, I'm fine," Bailey said uncomfortably and Piper stared at her for a second before going back to work.
Bailey debated with herself furiously. If she continued to pursue a relationship with Piper, the truth would eventually have to surface and that scared her more than she thought possible. Watching Piper happily paint her nails it had occurred to her that she not only wanted a life for herself, but she wanted Piper to be a part of it. She couldn't nail down any of her emotions with certainty, but it hurt more than she thought possible to consider any alternative that didn't include her. She studied her covertly and wondered if she should just walk away now before Piper hated her or even worse, was afraid of her. She winced inwardly at the thought of seeing either of those emotions directed at her from the little redhead. Could she walk away? The answer came quickly and brought another question with it. No, she couldn't walk away, but could she bear it when Piper left? That was the question she had no idea how to answer. Never in her adult life had she felt so vulnerable and she knew that, in a very short time, she had allowed Piper to have a control over her that she couldn't mount an adequate defense against.
"What do you think?" Piper asked.
"About what?" Bailey asked distractedly emerging from her thoughts.
"About your nails, goofy," Piper said rolling her eyes. "Aren't they pretty?"
Bailey looked at her hands. "Yes, I'm sure I'll have thousands of new admirers by this time tomorrow," she speculated and grinned when Piper narrowed her eyes.
"That very well may be true, but I hope that I'm the only one you'll be admiring," Piper said quietly.
"I dunno, Nancy's kinda cute," Bailey said mischievously and laughed at the resulting scowl.
"Very funny," Piper said dryly.
"Indeed," Bailey chuckled and swallowed nervously when Piper rose from her chair and, without warning, threw a leg over her lap to straddle her. Clamping down on the instinctual reaction to throw the weight from her, she felt herself shake slightly when Piper reached to gently free the hair from her ponytail. Her back arched in pleasure from the sensation of Piper's hands in her hair and she felt herself surrender to the attention.
"You have beautiful hair," Piper whispered in her ear and smiled at the shiver she felt underneath her.
"Uh…" Bailey managed before her mouth was covered by Piper's.
Piper tenderly chewed on Bailey's lower lip, marveling at how soft and thick the hair cascading through her hands felt. She smiled when she felt Bailey's hands find a grip on her waist and she greedily intensified her exploration of the lips and mouth under her own. She had a brilliant flash of desire accompanied by the sobering knowledge that she wanted the woman on whose lap she sat, more than she ever wanted anything in her life. The clarity of that awareness brought a very gradual halt to her attentions and she leisurely broke contact to the point of placing feather light kisses around Bailey's mouth.
Bailey cleared her throat. "Uhm… you can paint my nails anytime."
Piper snickered softly and leaned forward to snuggle against her. "I think I'm in big trouble," she whispered into the ebony tresses.
"Me too," Bailey said over Piper's shoulder, closing her eyes when she felt Piper squeeze her tightly.
--------
Zack studied Russell carefully, spending several minutes in close observation to assure himself that the man was indeed asleep. Once satisfied, he took a tube of superglue from his shirt pocket and liberally coated one side of a nickel, taking great pains to hold the coin by the edges so as not to get any on his fingers. Earlier, he had discovered the tube of glue quite by accident as he rummaged through the trunk for something to keep him occupied, since the object of their surveillance was apparently planning on spending the evening within the confines of house down the street. He had found the glue, brand new and unopened, in some of the gear they carried around and a plan for revenge had formed immediately.
Taking a deep breath and holding it, he leaned over stealthily and as gently as he could, placed the nickel on the end of Russell's nose. Pleased with the outcome, with one finger he applied a minute amount of pressure on the coin to cement it in place. He took a moment to expel his breath and to pleasurably observe the results of his labors before he returned to his side of the vehicle, giving free reign to the shit-eating grin that would not be denied.
He was terribly tempted to stir his partner awake so he could further enjoy his revenge, but stifled the urge to give the glue time to solidly affix itself to the skin of Russell's nose. He knew he would catch hell from Mike later, but it didn't phase him. He believed that if he was going to be forced to wear the deformity that was his current hairstyle, Russell should have an accompanying defect to display just as proudly. Irrationally delighted, he made himself comfortable and waited patiently for Russell to awake.
IV
Ah, now I don't hardly know her,
But I think I can love her.
- T. James
Nancy awoke to the signals her bladder was urgently sending her and quickly padded down the hallway for the bathroom. She emerged a few minutes later and paused at the end of the hall when she noticed the two forms asleep on the couch. She took note of the empty bottle of wine and the half-eaten bowl of popcorn and smiled to herself. Bailey had her legs curled up under her and had an arm around Piper's shoulders who was fast asleep in her lap. Despite her misgivings, she grudgingly had to admit to herself that they made a cute couple. Her musings ended abruptly when Bailey raised her head and turned eyes in her direction.
"I'm sorry, I didn't know you guys were still out here," Nancy said quietly.
"It's okay," Bailey said around a yawn. "I should probably go."
"She seems to have you trapped," Nancy said with a look at Piper. "Don't worry she sleeps like the dead, you can move her."
"Where's her room?" Bailey asked disentangling herself from the sleeping body.
"Down the hall, second door on the right," Nancy said as Bailey stood up and stretched.
"What time does she usually set her clock for?"
"Six," Nancy answered and watched curiously as Bailey leaned down and very gently lifted Piper off the couch and into her arms.
"I'll put her to bed and be off, if that's alright?"
Nancy just nodded as she watched Bailey navigate around the furniture and proceed down the hallway. She shook her head a little bit in confusion, Bailey wasn't a large person or obviously muscular but she had lifted and carried Piper as though she were as light as a kitten. There was just something about the woman that set off her warning bells. It was clear that she was more than she seemed and she wondered if Piper really knew what she was getting involved in. She knew that she couldn't express her concerns to Piper again until she had more to go on, she was already very protective and another attempt at conversation on the subject would probably turn ugly. With a sigh, she ambled to the fridge and popped open a Coke, deciding that she would just wait and see how things turned out.
Bailey gave the half open door to Piper's bedroom a gentle kick and smiled upon entering. There was crap everywhere
, the bed was a crumpled mass of sheets and clothes were strewn about the room haphazardly. She gently lay her burden on the bed and after the small annoyance of straightening a crumpled sheet, she pulled it over Piper to tuck her in. She made a slow circle of the room in curiosity, lingering for several moments over the numerous family photographs that covered the surface of Piper's dresser. Noting wistfully that Piper had handsome and close knit family, she sighed and took a seat on the edge of the bed.
She had surprised herself earlier by actually falling asleep. As soon as the movie started Piper had wasted no time in snuggling up close to her and after a few handfuls of popcorn and a glass of wine, she had fallen asleep in her lap. She had watched the sleeping face in fascination for a long time before she managed to drift off herself, sleeping soundly until the opening of Nancy's door had awoken her. She looked down at Piper, who hadn't stirred in the slightest, and tenderly brushed the hair out of her face. Marveling at how many changes had taken place within herself in just the last few days. Fifteen years of violence and finally she had found, in the form a diminutive redhead, something worth waking up for. It was a revelation that both scared and delighted her and she experienced an overwhelming sense of protectiveness for the soundly sleeping woman.
Suddenly remembering that Nancy was awake and probably wondering what she was doing she stood up and set the alarm on the clock next to the bed. She turned to go but hesitated, leaning quickly over Piper and brushing her lips over her cheek.
"I'll see you later," she whispered and Piper stirred slightly.
"Okay, I love you," Piper sleepily mumbled.
Bailey's eyes widened and she straightened stiffly in shock. She stood without breathing for a long moment in an attempt to compose herself and analyze the tightening in her chest. With an audible expulsion of breath, she decided that an escape was in order and quietly fled the room. She stopped at the sofa to put on her sneakers, glad that Nancy was nowhere in sight. She donned her jacket and locked the front door on her way out, swiftly going for her cigarettes as soon as the door closed behind her. She inhaled deeply as she dazedly made her way to the car and mechanically opened the door. She sat down behind the wheel, rolled down the window, and stared unseeingly through the windshield until the forgotten cigarette began to heat her fingers. She flipped the butt out the window and, completely on autopilot, she backed the car out of the driveway and drove off down the street.
Stories by Kiera Dellacroix Page 18