Reece's Faith

by T J Vertigo

  "Faith, we have the rest of our lives for that... I'm not complaining. Trust me. I can't wait until I have the time to take a whole day, just touching you."

  The actress narrowed her eyes at Reece. The tall woman had been saying things like that for a few weeks now, things alluding to them spending a lifetime together. Ever since Reece sounded like she was going to propose to her, Faith had been hearing these things louder and louder every day.

  "Well, what are you waiting for?" Reece was halfway up the stairs by the time Faith stopped thinking and started moving.

  * * *

  The actress hummed her way around the set, causing a few actors to give her the evil eye. She blew them off with a friendly little smile or a cute little wink. It was getting on their nerves.

  John knew what put his friend in such a good mood, despite her exhaustion and stress. He'd had to cover the evidence of her early morning interlude and, to tell the truth, he was feeling pretty good -- simply because she was. It was a relief to finally have some good spirits around him for a change. Everyone had been so busy and so tense lately that he was starting to blemish.

  "Hey, good looking," Faith snuck up behind the make up artist and swatted his butt playfully.

  John regarded his grinning friend with a narrowed eye, "You know, Louise, I have the inside scoop as to why you're so cheery, and what a relief it is to see a happy face, but tell me... was it that good?"

  Faith chuckled and crinkled her nose as she climbed up into her trailer. "It's always that good," she teased with a wiggle of her eyebrow.

  "Does she have any brothers?" he joked.

  "I doubt anyone can be as good as Reece," Faith sat on her bed and looked around. "I'm going to miss this place."

  "Bite your tongue!" John ran over and sat down next to her. "You'll be so happy to be home again, making a life with Spike, maybe having babies..."

  "Oh, no. Not babies. I have two already," Faith giggled.

  "Well, I'm sure you'll be grateful to be able to devote more time to Reece. God, you two were made for each other," the make-up artist laid back and crossed his arms under his head. "I wish I had that."

  Faith leaned on one elbow and looked down at her friend. "You will. It'll happen. Trust me. When you least expect it... bam... it happens."

  "You excited about Cancun?" John changed the subject, not wanting to ruin Faith's good mood.

  "Oh, my god, yes!" the actress climbed on top of John and started tickling him.

  The make-up artist squealed with laughter and retaliated, both of them rolling around in a tickling match.

  "AH! Okay! Uncle... uncle!" Faith gave up first, breathless from laughing.

  John held her hands over her head pinning her to the bed. "Say it! Say John is the king of tickle fights!

  "John is the king! Get off," Faith snickered.

  "You have no idea how many men say that very thing to me," he joked.

  "Oh god... that was fun." Faith rolled over and sat up, adjusting her clothing. "I'm going to miss seeing you every day," she said sadly.

  "Oh please, Louise! Do you really think you'll get rid of me so quickly?"

  "Thank you, John," Faith hugged him and kissed him on the cheek.

  "What was that for?" he blushed.

  "For being my friend, putting up with me at my very worst and making me feel better when I thought nothing could make me smile," Faith said sincerely.

  "God, Faith, you're gonna make this queen cry," he said, already feeling weepy.

  "Okay, now that that's out of the way. I think Reece is going to ask me to marry her."

  "WHAT!?" John leapt up from the bed with his perfectly sculpted eyebrows arched high.

  "Yeah," Faith snickered at his expression. "I'm almost positive."

  "OH... MY... GOD! That is unbelievable! Are you sure?"

  "Ninety percent. Cori and Violet agree with me. Cori has been pressing Reece all week for clues, but she's coming up empty. She does think, though, that Reece has bought the ring," Faith said excitedly.

  "How does she know that?" John grabbed both of Faith's hands and held them tightly, genuinely excited for her.

  "Well, there is this guy that Cori thinks used to be Frankie's jeweler; he came by the club three times already to meet with Reece in her office."

  John started jumping up and down and Faith joined him. "Yay!" they jumped up and down turning around in circles holding hands.

  "How do you think she'll propose?" John stopped hopping around to ask.

  "I don't have the slightest," Faith frowned. "I wish I didn't know about it. It would be a fabulous surprise." Suddenly, she lit up brightly, "Maybe when we're away on vacation?"

  "Tres cool, baby!" John jumped as the loud buzzer sounded cueing the actors to return to the set.

  "That would be for me." Faith smiled. "How do I look?"

  "Like a movie star."

  "Thanks to you, handsome."

  John blushed and bowed his head, "Not really, Faith. You're beautiful just as you are."

  It was Faith's turn to blush now.

  * * *

  Cori ran to catch up with Reece as she breezed through the club on her way to her office, nearly shouting, "Wait up, Boss!" She tossed her bottle of water into her bag and picked up her pace.

  The tall woman slowed down to a trot and beckoned Cori to follow her with a gesture of her hand. By the time Cori caught up with her, Reece was already sitting in her big chair, feet up on the desk and her laptop open and running.

  "Damn, but you have long legs!" the dancer yelled and closed the door behind her.

  "Okay, spill it. You've been trailing me for the last two weeks. What's the deal?" Reece typed away at her computer, never even looking up at Cori.

  "What are you talking about, Reece? I'm not trailing you," Cori said defensively.

  "Trailing... stalking... it's all the same," Reece chuckled and leaned back to look at her friend.

  "I like being around you?" Cori tried.

  "Nope. Does this new behavior have anything to do with Faith?" Cori looked a bit guilty, so Reece nodded. "Or perhaps..." the tall woman tossed something at the dancer, "...this?"

  Cori looked at the small box in her hand like it was going to bite her.

  "Go on, open it. I need your advice, anyway," Reece smiled smugly, knowing full well Cori had been following her, nearly hounding her on Faith's behalf. She was certain that it had something to do with the ring.

  Cori raised one eyebrow at Reece while still looking at the little box, "Is this what I think it is?"

  "Why don't you open it and find out, Freak," Reece took her feet off the desk and folded her arms across her chest, swaying her chair from side to side. She appeared to be calm, even cocky, but inside she felt like throwing up every two minutes.

  The dancer opened the box and gasped at the ring she found inside. "It's gorgeous! Oh, my god!"

  "Do you think she'll like it? You know these things better than me," the club owner still appeared cool, but the sweat was starting to show on her upper lip.

  Cori glanced up at her friend, back at the ring and then back up again, only then noticing the perspiration and the heavy swallow. "Reece Corbett, you're a nervous wreck!" she rooted around in her bag and stood up, handing her bottle of water to her pale friend.

  "No, I'm not. I'm just hot."

  "Take off your jacket for god's sake." Reece complied easily. "You mean to tell me that I've been watching you like a hawk and haven't noticed this yet? Oh, lord... I'm slipping. Drink that, Reece, before you fall out of that chair."

  Reece downed half the bottle and took a deep breath, "So, you didn't tell me if she'll like it."

  "You just don't have a clue, do you?" she held up a hand at the frown she received. "Faith wouldn't care if it was a pop top. This is going to blow her away!"

  "Thank god," the club owner visibly relaxed.

  "Reece, I'm surprised at you... and a little bit hurt. You know you could have come to me if you were feeling this
nervous. I wouldn't have told Faith anything."

  "Yeah, well..." Reece actually looked scolded.

  "Honestly, don't you feel better now that you shared this with me?" Cori asked as she handed the ring back to the tall woman.

  "Yeah. I don't feel quite as nauseous as I did before. Why does that happen? I mean, we're still going to be just as committed as we were before, why should buying a ring get me so sick?"

  "It's the symbolism of it all. Now you'll have to propose. Did you make any plans for that?"

  "No. I barely had the nerve to look at the ring. I've been trying to play cool all week. I guess I lucked out, in a way, that Faith has been overworked. She doesn't have the slightest idea."

  Cori ignored that comment. Faith certainly did have an idea. "Well, you're going to have to think of something. You will get on one knee won't you?"

  "I don't think you need to worry about that, with the way I've been feeling lately. I'll probably already be there from falling down in a faint."

  Cori chuckled, "I never thought I'd live to see the day. Congratulations, Reece. You deserve this."

  "Thanks, but don't congratulate me just yet. I still have to ask her. Jesus, what if she says no?" The tall woman looked sick again. "Oh god, I think I'm going to throw up."

  "Deep breaths, hon," Cori was at Reece's side pushing her head between her knees. The club owner allowed her to do this with no protest at all. Cori became even more worried. "When's the last time you ate anything?"

  "I don't know," was the muffled response.

  "Well, you just stay here. I'm gonna get you something to eat, big guy," the dancer took one more look at her perspiring, nauseous friend and had to smile. The bigger they are...

  * * *

  Faith wandered around her trailer to make sure she had everything. Packing up all her stuff made her sad, but it wasn't a loss type of sadness, it was more like when she left the family house in the Hamptons after summer was over. She sat on the bed and looked around the place again, smiling at the dent in wall next to the bed, knowing that it was Reece's boot that caused it... and why. She remembered that particular moment with a big grin on her face. There would be plenty of time for making more dents, now that this was over. Her agent, Brad, had already called her last month with offers to do other projects. Although Faith wasn't up to anything else, right at the moment, the need for exposure was there and she wasn't sure turning the opportunity down was a good idea. If she wanted to be an actress, she needed that kind of publicity. She was already booked on three talk shows to promote her movie and, while Reece seemed genuinely proud, Faith knew Reece wasn't that thrilled with all of the running around. Next week she'd have to fly to Los Angeles and Reece was more than happy to come with her, but Faith really missed having time to spend just doing nothing with Reece and she knew the tall woman missed it just as much. Then again, we have the rest of our lives, don't we?

  The actress had been thinking about her future a lot lately, what with Reece on the verge of proposing and all. She knew that for a fact now, after Cori left a message on her cell phone that consisted of the dancer singing 'I know something you don't know' repeatedly until the machine had cut her off. Faith figured she could live with this kind of life... every so often. If she were lucky enough to be asked to do a movie again, she'd jump at the chance, as long as it was all right with Reece. She had to consider that now, not that she didn't before, but now they would be partners -- in every sense of the word. Reece's feelings always played a big part in her life and she knew the club owner too well now for Reece to lie and say it's okay when it wasn't. Faith wasn't sure Reece would go for having Faith off on a movie set in some odd country for months at a time, but she knew that if she wanted it, Reece would never say a bad word about it.

  John knocked on the door, breaking Faith from her thoughts; she smiled just knowing he was going to make her laugh, "Come on in."

  "Hiya!" the make up artist came into the trailer with a large red feather boa wrapped around his neck. "Could you believe wardrobe was going to just throw this treasure away?"

  Faith laughed as he twirled the ends of the boa and flounced around the trailer, "A shame I tell you. They don't know a good thing when they see it."

  "Honestly, Louise," he huffed in agreement and tossed one end of the scarf around his already abundantly feathered neck. "Ya got everything?"

  "Looks that way," Faith took a last look around the trailer. "Come on, feather boy, we got a wrap party to go to."

  John put his hand on the doorknob just as somebody knocked. He gave Faith a raised eyebrow and she returned the gesture. She wasn't expecting anyone. "Come in?"

  The door opened and Faith broke into a big toothy smile. "Baby!" she gushed and threw herself at her tall lover.

  "I'll just let myself out," John snickered as Faith wrapped all of her appendages around Reece. He closed the door behind him and smiled. Gotta love her, she has perfect timing.

  "What are you doing here? Let me look at you... you look fantastic, oh my god!" Faith rambled.

  "You didn't think I'd let you leave this place, on your last day, all by yourself?" Reece asked.

  "You are, by far, the most wonderful girlfriend anyone could ever have," the actress buried her face in Reece's chest and hugged her fiercely, a little surprised by how hard the tall woman's heart was beating. Her whole head was moving with the force.

  Reece chuckled, "Thanks, I'll put the word out."

  "Don't you dare! I'm quite happy with you." Faith eyed Reece's outfit with a raised eyebrow, "Hmmm, you look mighty fine tonight, Ms. Corbett. Maybe I should put a word out."

  "Oh? What word would that be?" Reece teased as she led Faith over to the bed making her sit.

  "Taken."

  "Oh, don't you worry, I have a feeling everyone knows who I belong to," Reece swallowed a bit too hard.

  Faith noticed the little action, but let it pass as one of the many weird things Reece had been doing these last few days. "I'm not too sure about that, baby... especially with how hot you look now with your short hair and that fierce new body of yours... that gorgeous tattoo peeking out from under your sleeve... and that fine ass you covered in all that sexy leather..."

  "Okay! I get the point." Reece fidgeted as she stood between Faith's legs, "I guess there's only one way to make it perfectly clear then, isn't there?"

  "Oh yeah? What's that, sexy, huh?" Faith giggled expecting to be on the receiving end of a large hickey.

  Reece suddenly dropped down to one knee and produced a ring. "This," the club owner croaked out.

  "Oh, god... Reece?" Faith's eyes grew comically wide as she stared at her kneeling lover.

  "Marry me?" Reece asked, a fat drop of sweat trailing down the side of her face.

  Faith stared at the ring a few second before taking it away from Reece's shaking hand and closing her fingers around it. "Oh, my god... of course!" the actress threw herself at Reece so hard the two of them wound up on the floor.

  Reece took a huge breath and blew it out noisily causing Faith to pull back from her assault of kisses to look at her, "You were nervous? Of course! That explains everything! Oh, baby... how long did you have this planned?"

  "Not too long. Here," she held out her hand, still laying on the floor with Faith on top of her, "gimme the ring, I want to do this right."

  Faith gave her the ring and then wiped her forearm across the tall woman's sweaty brow, " I can't believe you were so worried. Did you really think I'd say no?"

  Reece slipped the ring on Faith's ring finger and smiled at it. "I dunno," she shrugged. "I was just nervous."

  "I wouldn't think you'd be afraid of a little ring," Faith teased and then kissed her fiancee with as much love as she was feeling.

  Reece grinned somewhat dreamily after the kiss. "Faith, I've walked into arenas where I wasn't sure if I would make it out alive and this, by far, was the most frightening thing I ever did," the tall woman chuckled nervously. "I swear."

  "Well, you have not
hing to worry about now, baby. I'd love to be your wife," Faith smiled, as happy as she'd ever been in her life.

  "I'd love to lay here all night and celebrate, but you, my dear, have a party to go to," Reece leaned up on her elbows and kissed Faith on the nose.

  "And ring to show off," the actress lifted her hand and stared at the ring with tears in her eyes. "I love you so much, Reece."

  "You better, you're stuck with me now."

  * * *

  The second they walked in the door, Faith made a beeline for the phone, quickly dialing Cori's number.

  The dancer took a look at the caller ID and knew what to expect once she picked up the phone.

  "AAAAAAAAHHHHHH!"

  "AAAAAAHHHHH!"

  Violet heard the phone ring and Cori scream so she picked up the other phone. "AAAAAAAHHHH!"

  The three women screamed in each other's ears for quite some time while Reece stood and stared at Faith with barely contained laughter.

  "OH, MY GOD! CORI!" Faith hopped up and down and showed the phone her ring.

  "I KNOW! AAAAHHHH!"

  "Congratulations, honey!" Violet calmed down enough to mention.

  "Yeah!" Cori agreed. "How does it look on your finger?"

  "Perfect! You gotta see this! It's gorgeous!" Faith gushed, holding out her hand. "Omigod! I gotta call my mom!"

  Reece did laugh now. She'd never seen Faith so excited before and it thrilled her to no end.

  "I am so happy for you, Faith! You have no idea! These were the most frustrating forty-eight hours of my life!" Violet admitted.

  "Honestly, I thought I was going to burst!" Cori nodded as she spoke.

  "You knew? You knew she was going to do it today? At the trailer?" Faith turned to Reece and the tall woman shrugged guiltily.

  "Yeah, well, I knew, but it was her idea about the trailer. Said something about you guys admitting how much you meant to each other in there... the stupid thing having some meaning. I personally thought maybe a carriage ride through central park," Cori grumbled thinking her idea was perfect.