Christmas All Around Us ; The Perfect Time for Love ; Playing for Keeps

by Carla Kincaid

  Rachel watched as Julie mouthed the dialogue along with the actors on screen. Just before the big climax -- the part when the two characters embraced in a kiss -- Rachel noticed Julie leaning forward as if coaxing the lovers into each other's arms. Next was the awkward moment when the two women watched the actors kissing. Rachel didn't know about Julie, but she couldn't help thinking about kissing the woman seated next to her. She turned her head ever so slightly in Julie's direction just as Julie did the same. Their eyes met but neither of them spoke. They just sat there staring at each other as their breath and elevated heart rates fell into sync. Time seemed to stand still until just like in the movie scene their lips began inching closer together.

  It was Julie who leaned in for the kiss first but it didn't matter. It was something they both wanted. A surge like lightning shot through Rachel's body when their lips finally touched. The feeling of Julie's tongue dancing with hers was ecstatic.

  How long had she been waiting for this? How many times had she stopped herself from initiating a kiss just like this one? And now the moment was finally here.

  "Mmm," Rachel moaned as she tasted the sweet mix of chocolate and wine on Julie's tongue. She eased her hands around Julie's waist pulling the woman even closer to her. She could feel Julie's breathing begin to quicken and then with the agility of the dancer she was, Julie threw one leg across Rachel's lap straddling her on the couch.

  Rachel felt everything in her rev like an engine. She could feel the wetness between her legs increase as her hips began to move in time with Julie's. This was the only kind of dancing Rachel did well and Julie made a good partner. Rachel cupped her hands around Julie's butt and squeezed the soft flesh causing Julie to let out a moan.

  The sound encouraged Rachel to continue and she moved one hand to the front of Julie's jeans. She grasped the clasp of the zipper and the sound of the metal teeth unlocking almost drove her mad. Rachel slipped her hand into the woman's jeans and brushed the silky fabric of Julie's panties with her fingertips. She could feel the moisture that was beginning to accumulate on the fabric. She was just about to slip a finger -- or two -- under the elastic band when some part of her brain whispered STOP.

  Rachel wanted to ignore the voice. Why stop, she silently asked the part of her that was trying to kill the mood. Then in a flash, she remembered. It took a lot of effort but Rachel somehow managed to move her hands up to Julie's shoulders and gently push their upper bodies apart.

  "What's wrong?" Julie's eyes were like big question marks. She had no idea why Rachel was interrupting their first intimate moments together.

  "I may be moving to California," Rachel blurted out the words quickly -- and less gently -- than she'd meant to.

  Julie's eyes grew large, and she pulled her body away from Rachel's and then scrambled back to her space on the couch.

  "You... You're moving?" she stuttered as if she didn't quite understand the meaning of the words Rachel was saying.

  "Maybe," Rachel said with a nod. "Possibly." Probably, she thought silently.

  Confusion washed over Julie's face but before either of them could say anything else a tiny voice called out from the hallway.

  "Julie? Julie?" the voice called out again. A moment later Misty appeared in the living room rubbing her eyes with her small fists.

  Julie leaped up from the couch like she was both running toward -- and away from -- something at the same time. She dropped to her knees in front of the little girl. "What's wrong, Sweetheart?" she asked. "Did you have a bad dream?"

  Wordlessly, Misty nodded her head and then threw her arms around Julie's neck.

  "I had a dream that Mommy G. was really sick and couldn't come home for Christmas."

  The anguish in Misty's voice made Rachel want to bolt off the couch and join the little huddle on the floor but when Julie sensed Rachel's movement she turned and looked over her shoulder. Rachel couldn't exactly make out Julie's expression but she knew whatever the woman was thinking it meant Rachel should stay on the couch where she was.

  "I've got this," Julie whispered to Rachel and then turned back to Misty. "Misty, I promise your mommy is going to be just fine. Why don't we give both of your mommies a call and then you can sleep in my room with me tonight?"

  Misty nodded and dropped her head to Julie's shoulder. Julie tightened her arms around the child and -- without even looking back in Rachel's direction -- stood up and carried Misty down the hallway to her room.

  Rachel considered following them but she knew that would be a mistake. Instead, she just dropped her head into her hands.

  Simon -- who had been asleep on his end of the couch -- scooted closer to Rachel and began sniffing at her fingers suddenly aware that while he was slumbering he'd missed a treat. She scratched the dog behind the ears affectionately.

  "I didn't handle that very well, did I?" she asked.

  Simon pressed his cold nose against her face. Usually, the gesture would have grossed Rachel out but at this moment she felt too forlorn to be picky about who showed her kindness.

  "Come on boy," Rachel said grabbing Simon's collar and getting up from the couch. "Let's go get some fresh air."

  Chapter 9

  "I'm just fine, Sweetie! I promise!" Gail said as she smiled into the iPad camera. "And I'm fine too," Claire assured their daughter from the other half of the split-screen."

  Julie watched as Misty's expression seemed to relax.

  "Now, give me and Mommy G. a kiss," Claire instructed.

  Misty puckered her lips and leaned in toward the screen. Her mommies did that same from their end and Julie had to fight to hold back her tears as she witnessed the family's tenderness.

  "Now, let Julie tuck you into bed," Gail encouraged. "And before you know it the three of us will all be together again."

  Gail and Claire blew cyber kisses to their daughter and Misty reached out like she was grabbing each one. By the time the FaceTime call disconnected Misty was back to her normal happy self but Julie felt her emotions swimming around in high gear. She managed to get Misty tucked into bed and within minutes the little girl was fast asleep.

  For a moment, Julie just sat there looking at Misty. She couldn't help but wonder if she'd ever have a child of her own. A sweet little girl or boy who wouldn't be able to sleep until she or he heard the comforting sound of Julie's voice.

  The thought of family made Julie's mind wander to Rachel. Maybe she should go back into the living room and pick up the conversation where it left off? Julie began easing her body off of the bed -- being careful not to wake Misty -- but before her feet hit the floor she heard the sound of the front door closing.

  What in the world was I thinking? Julie asked herself as she flopped down on the overstuffed chair in the corner of the room. A dull pain surged through her body. She wasn't sure how much of the pain was because she was disappointed that Rachel might be moving and how much of the pain was because she was embarrassed that she'd practically thrown herself at a woman who obviously wasn't interested in her. Why else would Rachel choose such a strange time to announce that she was leaving Philadelphia? It was probably the only thing she could think of to stop Julie's advances.

  "How could I have been so stupid?" Julie whispered to Sarah over the phone a few minutes later. "How could I have thought there was something more to what was happening between us than there really was? I mean, it wasn't like she'd ever shown any interest in me before. And according to Linda, Rachel has a very active dating life but she's never even flirted with me."

  "Come on, Julie," Sarah said in a tone meant to comfort her friend. "First of all, you can't take what you heard from Linda seriously. You know that. That woman lives to make a molehill into a mountain. Second, from what you've told me, you and Rachel have shared some really nice moments over the past few days. You shouldn't just throw that away without talking to her."

  Julie shrugged as if her friend could see her through the phone. Maybe Linda was just spreading gossip but Rachel was the one who
announced she was leaving town in the middle of their first intimate moment. Julie replayed the words in her mind.

  "It was like she was so uncomfortable kissing me that all she could think about was trying to put distance between us right then!"

  "Look, Julie," Sarah said. "I admit the timing was a little strange but maybe there's more to the story than you realize. I still think you should talk to her about what happened."

  Julie shuttered when she thought about having to face Rachel but for a moment she considered what her friend was saying. It wasn't like Rachel seemed repulsed by the kiss initially. But why would she announce that she was leaving? Suddenly a thought even worse than Rachel not being interested popped into Julie's mind.

  "What if she was just letting me know that things between us could only last until she left town? Maybe what Linda said was true. Maybe Rachel was just trying to see if I was willing to be a short-term member of her harem!"

  The thought actually made Julie a little mad. If there was one thing she'd realized over the past few days, it was that she really wanted a relationship. Not a fling. An honest committed relationship with the potential for family and Christmas' of her own.

  "So, what are you going to do?" Sarah asked.

  "I'm just going to pretend like it didn't happen," Julie said as she tried to imagine spending the next twenty-four hours with Rachel.

  "You're going to pretend a kiss you've been waiting for two years never happened?" Sarah scoffed. "Right. Let me know how that works out."

  Julie ignored her friend's sarcasm and continued to talk through her plan.

  "I think it's better if we go back to being just friends," Julie said definitively. "That way no one will be disappointed and no one will get hurt."

  "You mean you won't be disappointed and you won't get hurt," Sarah said with a serious tone.

  Julie let the comment sit on the silent airwaves.

  "I think you're missing the point," Sarah continued. "Look at it this way. One, she was honest with you. You have to give her some credit for that. And two, it sounds to me like she's interested in more than a fling. I mean she could have just wooed you to her bed and called it a night. Instead, she let you know what was going on in her life so you could make a choice."

  "But I don't want to choose something with an already established expiration date," Julie complained. "I want a partner to build a life with. I want someone to come home to every night." She gazed over at the sleeping child in her bed and sighed. "I want a family!"

  The words came out in a passionate rush that even surprised Julie. "I want a partner and a family," Julie repeated more for herself than Sarah. "And I'm not willing to settle for anything that doesn't have the potential to grow into that."

  "Well, then. It sounds like you've made up your mind," Sarah said softly.

  "I guess I have," Julie agreed and then said goodnight to her friend.

  She hung up the phone, slipped under the covers with Misty and tried desperately not to think about the woman down the hall.

  ❤️❤️❤️

  Rachel was hoping the frosty night air would clear her head but all it did was make her cold and irritable. Simon on the other hand, mistakenly thought the nighttime adventure was a chance for him to roam around the neighborhood for an hour. Rachel had to practically drag him back inside the house.

  "Come on, Simon," she pleaded. "I don't have a built-in fur coat like you do and it's cold out here!"

  Finally, her four-legged friend had compassion on her and allowed Rachel to lead him back inside. Once she'd given Simon a little water, Rachel tipped toed down the hallway toward her bedroom. As she passed Julie's door she was tempted to knock but what would she say? It was obvious the woman was upset by her announcement and even though the time they'd been spending together was making Rachel have serious second thoughts about moving to California, it wasn't like that was something she could say now. Julie would just think Rachel was making that up to get her into bed.

  Rachel stared at the closed bedroom door as she walked by. When she got into her room, she stripped off her clothes and headed straight for the shower. She stood under the water and let the warm droplets ease the cold out of her bones.

  Maybe it was for the best, she thought as she stood there so long her skin started to shrivel. Maybe it was best that Misty interrupted their post-kiss conversation. After all, it wouldn't be fair. Rachel didn't have anything to offer Julie except a week of fun before she moved to California. She certainly didn't want to lie and tell Julie otherwise.

  As thoughts of Julie began to warm her from the inside, Rachel turned the water faucet to a colder setting. After putting enough of a chill on her libido, Rachel dried her naked body and slid under the sheets letting the down comforter envelop her. She tried her best not to think about the gorgeous woman who was laying in bed just down the hall.

  As if he sensed her loneliness, Simon got up from his dog palate in the corner and walked over to the bed. He flopped his wet nose on the edge right next to Rachel's head. This is as good as the night is going to get, Rachel thought as she reached out and rubbed Simon's head. At least someone should get the attention they wanted.

  The next morning when Rachel woke up she felt like she'd hardly slept at all. According to her cell phone, it was almost 8:30 am. She pushed back the covers on her bed but quickly pulled them over her again when she felt the chill in the air. This time, before she got up she wrapped the fluffy comforter snuggly around her body. She padded over to the bedroom window and pulled back the curtain. Everything as far as she could see was covered in white.

  "Great," Rachel growled to herself. That was all she needed. Snow.

  Seeing she was awake, Simon decided that this must be the perfect time for a walk. The dog nudged at her feet the way he did when he wanted to go out. Might as well, Rachel thought.

  She could hear Misty and Julie laughing in the kitchen and the faint smell of cinnamon was seeping under her bedroom door. She had no idea what the two of them might be making but there was little doubt in her mind that it was probably something festive. Rachel just shook her head. She wasn't ready to face that right now.

  "I'm going to take Simon out in the yard while I clear the driveway so we can get to our cars," Rachel said as she made a hurried pass through the kitchen. She tussled Misty's hair as she crossed but barely looked at Julie. Better to start her day without that woman's eyes burning a hole in her soul.

  Rachel found a snow shovel in the garage and spent the next forty minutes working off all of her pent up frustration. By the time the sidewalk and the driveway were clear she almost felt human again.

  "Me and Julie made cinnamon pancakes!" Misty announced when Rachel walked back inside. Rachel couldn't help but smile at the little kitchen helper who had blotches of flour on her face and in her hair. The warm, safe feeling she got from the child's greeting gave her the courage to inch her eyes upward and make eye contact with Julie. To her surprise, she was met with an equally pleasant smile.

  "Go wash up and I'll have a batch of pancakes waiting for you when you get back," Julie said without a hint of anger or irritation.

  When Rachel returned to the kitchen a few minutes later, Julie shoveled several hot pancakes onto a plate at the breakfast table.

  "Maple syrup?" she asked.

  Rachel stared up at Julie. "Yes, please," she replied trying to hide the confusion in her voice.

  Rachel was still hunting for a clue to tell her what -- if anything -- Julie was thinking about last night's encounter but she couldn't detect anything unusual in the woman's facial expression or tone of voice.

  "So, how did you sleep last night?" Julie asked as she drizzled the sticky syrup over Rachel's pancakes.

  "Pretty good," Rachel lied. "How about you?"

  "I slept great!" Julie said enthusiastically.