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

by Carla Kincaid

  "Okay. Your turn." Julie said breaking the spell they both seemed to be under. She pointed to the bed motioning for Rachel to sit down.

  Rachel looked down at the bed and for a moment she had visions of unwrapping a different kind of present. The one currently standing in front of her all wrapped in red. Not now, she said to herself forcing her attention back to the gift in her hand.

  Rachel sat down on the bed and tore the paper away but she was still just as puzzled by the plain box underneath. She lifted the lid and set it on the bed. When she peeled back the delicate tissue paper covering the box's contents her mouth fell open with surprise. Rachel's mind flashed back to that day she'd first seen the item in front of her. She knew she hadn't said anything about her admiration out loud. Had Julie just been that observant?

  "I thought it might look nice on your desk at work -- wherever you end up," Julie said softly.

  Rachel stared at the hand-carved pen holder she'd seen at Gail's studio the day they'd gone to pick up the table. The first day she and Julie had ever spent any real time together. The first day Rachel realized there was something unavoidably attractive about Julie.

  "Thank you, Julie. This is a perfect gift," Rachel said still trying to sort out her emotions. She was struggling to find the words that could repair the announcement that threatened to drive a wedge between her and this woman who she very much wanted to know better.

  "I'm sorry for the way I behaved," Julie blurted out before Rachel could say anything. "I guess I just got my signals crossed about what was happening -- or rather not happening -- between us. I hope we can go back to being friends," she said softly.

  "Friends?" Rachel asked. The word caught in her throat. "Is that what you want?" Her eyes locked with Julie's.

  Julie blinked and then her mouth twisted to the side as if she was making a hard decision. "Honestly?" she almost whispered.

  "Honestly."

  "No," Julie said letting her eyes fall to the floor. "That's not what I want but I'm also not interested in forcing myself on someone who isn't interested in me."

  Rachel's eyebrows lifted, and she began to shake her head. "Not interested in you? What are you talking about, Julie? Why would you think I wasn't interested in you?"

  Julie's eyes were still turned downward. "Well, when I kissed you you pushed me away and then made that out of the blue announcement about moving. I got the hint. You're not interested."

  Rachel let out a long sigh. Gail had been right. Julie had misinterpreted her reason for telling her she was moving but it wasn't for the reason Gail thought.

  "Julie," Rachel said as she reached over and took Julie by the hand. "The reason I stopped our kiss -- and believe me it wasn't an easy thing to do -- was because I wanted to tell you about my plans to move before anything intimate happened between the two of us. I didn't want to spring that news on you --after."

  "You mean you don't just see me as a friend?" The corners of Julie's mouth inched up as she spoke.

  Julie's growing smile drew Rachel's attention to the woman's lips, and she felt a magnetic pull urging her to move forward. Rachel surrendered to the pull, inching forward until she was close enough to lean in for a kiss. When her lips touched Julie's a feeling of relief washed over her. It was as if she'd been traveling for years and now her long journey was finally over. It was as if she'd made it -- home.

  "I can stop if you want me to," she said when they came up for air.

  Julie's new earrings dangled above her shoulders as she shook her head from side to side. That gesture was all Rachel needed to see. She quickly moved her lips to meet Julie's again and at the same time wrapped her hands around the woman's waist and began easing Julie's body toward the bed. When she couldn't move forward anymore, she put her knee up on the bed and leaned Julie backward -- without breaking their kiss -- until both of them were horizontal.

  As they inched further onto the bed, Rachel could feel the heat from Julie's body matching her own. The two of them began to move together in an unaccompanied dance. Rachel cupped Julie's butt with one hand while the other hand moved up Julie's body until it reached the zipper at the top of Julie's dress. Rachel felt herself smile inside. She was just about to ease the zipper down when a loud trill pierced the air.

  "My phone," Julie said with a little giggle pointing in the direction the noise was coming from.

  Rachel turned her head over her shoulder and glared at the television screen. Flashing at the bottom she saw the words FaceTime Call From Sarah.

  "It's Bluetooth connected to my television," Julie explained. "It's probably Misty calling. I promised her I'd let her see my dress before we left."

  Rachel closed her eyes and dropped her head onto Julie's shoulder. "That kid's got some timing," she said with a laugh as she rolled over onto her back. She watched as Julie sat up and straightened her dress then glanced in the mirror before grabbing the AppleTV remote to answer the call.

  "Hi, Misty!" she said enthusiastically waving to the little girl from the edge of the bed.

  "Hi, Julie!" Misty replied. Her grinning face filled the television screen.

  Julie glanced over at Rachel and tilted her head in a wordless request for Rachel to sit up and join her on the call. Rachel closed her eyes and let out a long breath trying to push thoughts of what had just been interrupted out of her mind.

  "Misty, guess who's here with me!" Julie extended her arms as if to present a special guest.

  Rachel stuck out her lip in a pout and then sat up and scooted toward Julie until her image appeared in the camera frame. "Hi Misty!" Rachel said with a wave.

  "Wow! You two look pretty!" Misty said clapping her hands.

  Surprisingly the little girl's approval touched Rachel more than she thought it would. She felt a tug in her heart as she stared at the image of Misty filling the screen. There was a fully decorated Christmas tree in the room behind her and seeing their three images together on the screen with it made Rachel think of the Christmas card she'd imagined in her mind when they were putting the star on the tree at Gail's house. Is this what most people feel during the holidays, she wondered? One warm fuzzy moment after another. If that was the case she could stand more of this in her life. She could stand more of Julie in her life too, she thought as she glanced over at the woman sitting next to her.

  "Misty, why don't you tell Julie and Rachel the good news?" a voice spoke from somewhere off-screen.

  Rachel didn't know Sarah well enough to recognize her disembodied voice but she assumed that was who was speaking since Misty was calling from Sarah's FaceTime account.

  "Guess what?" Misty announced clapping her hands again.

  "What?" Rachel and Julie replied in unison.

  "Mommy C. is coming home tomorrow!" the little girl shouted.

  "That's great!" Julie answered. "Now both of your mommies will be home for Christmas!"

  Misty's enthusiasm bubbled up into one of her little dances and for a moment her body kept disappearing and then reappearing on the screen as she whirled around the room.

  "Hey Misty!" Julie said trying to get the little girl's attention. "We have to go now so we're not late for the gala."

  "Okay, Bye Julie! Bye Rachel!" Misty waved vigorously at the screen and then vanished. Sarah's face appeared in her place.

  "Hey!" she said smiling. "The babysitter is already here and Nat and I will be leaving in a few minutes." She paused and then started to giggle. "See you two whenever you get there."

  "See you soon," Julie said and then ended the call. She shook her head and laughed. "I'm going to hear about this for sure," she said nodding behind them.

  "What, do you think your friend is going to tease you about being caught in bed with your date?" Rachel leaned forward seductively and push Julie back on the bed.

  "No more of that," Julie said wiggling her body from under Rachel's and shaking her finger in a teasing rebuke. "Otherwise we'll never make it to the gala."

  Rachel stuck out her lip in another mo
ck pout.

  "Later, when we get back," Julie whispered teasingly into Rachel's ear. "If you behave yourself." Julie tapped Rachel on the nose and got up from the bed.

  Rachel smiled as she watched Julie smooth her dress over her hips. "Later," she whispered, still enjoying the memory kissing Julie had left behind.

  At that moment Rachel vowed nothing was going to stand in the way of she and Julie coming back to this very spot in a few hours and picking up right where they left off!

  Chapter 11

  Light snow started to fall just as Rachel pulled her car away from Julie's apartment. The little white flakes danced in the air and made everything around them look like a shimmering movie scene. Julie couldn't imagine a more perfect night for the gala -- or a more perfect night for a date.

  She glanced over at Rachel who was focused intently on the road. How did I get here, Julie wondered gleefully? If someone had told her just last week that she'd be attending the Christmas Gala with the beautiful woman sitting in the driver's seat beside her she would have told them they were crazy. But now that both Julie and Rachel were on the same page about wanting to get to know each other better who only knew how things would unfold.

  "Well, don't the two of you look lovely!" Lorraine called out when Julie and Rachel walked into the banquet hall.

  "Hi, Lorraine," Julie replied with a grin partially in response to the compliment and partially because she hadn't stopped smiling since she and Rachel kissed in her apartment.

  "Thank you, again for making sure the table Gail donated got here safely. It's already one of the most popular items in the silent auction. I just wish Gail could be here to see everyone fawning over it," Lorraine said. A bit of sadness had crept into her tone.

  "There's no need to sound so sad, Lorraine," Julie encouraged. "We've been visiting Gail in the hospital every day and she's getting much better. In fact, she's going to be coming home tomorrow," Julie said enthusiastically.

  "Oh, what a relief!" Lorraine said with a dramatic exhale. "And I'm sure the two of you will be looking forward to your lives getting back to normal. Taking care of a five-year-old is a lot of work!"

  With everything that happened tonight, Julie hadn't really had time to focus on the fact that her babysitting duties with Rachel had come to an end. Julie glanced over at Rachel to see how she was reacting to Lorraine's comment but Rachel was making small talk with another Empowerment Now member who'd just arrived.

  "Over here you two!" Sarah called out bringing Julie's attention back to the festivities in the room. She was waving from a table several yards away and the look on Sarah's face made it clear to Julie that she was about to get the third degree.

  Julie waved back at her friend and then she and Rachel began moving in that direction -- stopping momentarily at tables along the way to greet other attendees.

  "I snagged this table because it's close to the buffet," Sarah said as soon as they drew close enough to speak in a normal voice.

  Julie noted the catering tables along the wall with chafing dishes lined across them. A few of the silver Sterno warming canisters were lit underneath their trays sending fragrant aromas into the air but they caterer hadn't started serving the food yet.

  "I'm glad the music is loud enough to cover the rumbling sounds my stomach is making," Julie said as she eased into the seat next to her friend. "I hope they let us eat soon."

  "I think they're bringing out the last of the food now," Sarah said with a hopeful sound to her voice. "But until then, we have something more important to discuss." Sarah glanced toward Rachel who was talking to some other guests at the table. "Just friends?" Sarah asked rolling her eyes at Julie. Julie tried to avoid looking directly at Sarah fearful that the woman who knew her so well could read her thoughts.

  "I knew it!" Sarah exclaimed so loudly that Julie had to wave her hand for her friend to lower her voice. "I knew it!" Sarah repeated more softly. "I can see it written all over your face. What happened? Did you get an early Christmas present?" Sarah snorted with laughter.

  Julie glanced over her shoulder before she spoke. Rachel was still talking to Brenda and wasn't focused on Julie and Sarah's conversation.

  "Yes," Julie whispered and touched her hand to her new earrings. "But hopefully these won't be the last gift of the night," Julie said with a giggle.

  Sarah clapped her hands the same way Misty did when she was excited. If it wasn't for her pregnant belly, the woman might have jumped up to do a ballet spin like the little girl too.

  "Well, I'm glad to hear that things are moving in the right direction," she said. "I thought I was going to have to kidnap the two of you and make you wear one t-shirt like I do with the twins when they're being stubborn about working out one of their childish disagreements."

  Julie rolled her eyes at her friend but when Rachel turned in her direction, she couldn't help imagining what it would be like to be trapped together with her in a restrictive garment. The thought made her tingle inside.

  "I'm starving," Rachel said when she noticed Julie staring at her.

  Just then Lorraine stepped up to the microphone near the live band and announced that dinner was ready to be served. She began calling out table numbers and when she got to number three, Julie and her friends hurried over to the catering tables to get their food.

  "That was incredible!" Julie said as she forked her last piece of cake into her mouth.

  Rachel was scraping the bottom of a dessert bowl with a pudding covered spoon. "I'm tempted to go back for seconds but if I did, you might have to wheel me to the car at the end of the night."

  A smile spread across Julie's face. "I know just the thing to work off some of those calories," she said glancing over to the three-piece band stationed on a riser in the far corner of the room. In front of the band, there was a square area cordoned off for dancing but there were only a few couples out on the floor.

  "Come on," Julie said commandingly. "Time for your dance lesson!"

  She watched Rachel's face grow pale.

  'Uh. Now? I thought I'd wait until my dinner settled a little more," Rachel said in uncharacteristically stuttered speech.

  "Now," Julie said standing up in front of Rachel and extending her hand.

  Slowly Rachel reached out, took Julie's hand and allowed Julie to pull her to her feet. "Don't worry," she whispered in Rachel's ear as she stood. "I'll be gentle."

  "You'll be gentle -- because we're in public?" Rachel asked with a low growl. Her usual confidence resurfaced in her tone and made the sexual innuendo crystal clear.

  A surge of heat washed over Julie's body and she knew if she didn't get Rachel on the dance floor and into her arms right then she was liable to do something much more scandalous.

  Once they made it to the dance floor Julie reached around Rachel's waist and placed her hand on the small of Rachel's back. "Just follow my lead," she whispered as she pulled Rachel close.

  The two women moved slowly across the floor. Julie had to resist doing any complicated moves. Part of her was so excited she wanted to spin Rachel around like Maria had done with Julie when they tangoed at the senior center -- but there would be time for that later.

  "You're good at this," Rachel said interrupting Julie's fantasy with an equally pleasant reality. "I never thought I'd be able to follow anyone -- even on the dance floor."

  "All it takes is the right partner," Julie said with confidence.

  Rachel smiled down at her and the two women swayed together until the song changed to something a little more upbeat.

  "Okay. I think I can handle this," Rachel said with a smile. She did a little side to sidestep and wiggled her hips causing Julie to nod approvingly.