Real Love

by Jeanne Mccann

  “Honey, please I need to feel your body on mine.” Alicia touched Rhea’s cheek before kissing her.

  With infinite gentleness, Rhea moved her body onto Alicia’s carefully avoiding her leg. The minute she felt Alicia’s skin against her own, a peaceful, warm glow spread throughout her body.

  “Look at me, Rhea,” Alicia demanded, her fingers gliding through Rhea’s long black hair. “Can you feel it? I know you can. This is what we live for. Touching you will help me get through anything. Love me, Rhea, the way only you know how to.”

  Rhea reached down and parted Alicia’s thighs until she was tightly cradled against her center. Her fingers cupped Alicia and found her dripping with welcoming moisture. Rhea groaned as she felt a shudder run through Alicia’s body as well as her own. Rhea used her fingers to spread her own body open and sealed herself against Alicia.

  “Yes, baby,” Alicia’s arms locked around Rhea’s shoulders, their faces inches apart as Rhea rolled her hips hard against Alicia’s, pressing them intimately together.

  “More,” Alicia demanded as her breath caught in her throat, her eyes full of passion.

  Rhea arched up forcing her hips even tighter against Alicia’s body, the muscles in her arms bulging as she levered her body in full strokes against Alicia’s. Alicia gasped once, twice, and then made the long slide into an orgasm that rolled from the center of her body, sending flames of pleasure through every part of her. “Rhea, Rhea…”

  Rhea’s body reacted to her lover’s voice, her arms trembling, and the muscles of her buttocks tight as she felt her own release. She stilled her hips, sealing their bodies together as she descended. The sound that Rhea made as she slumped onto Alicia was one of emotion felt so deeply from her soul that she cried out with joy for their love and pain for what her lover had endured. It was a rebirth for them, a celebration of life and love.

  “Alicia, I…”

  “Shush, I know, just hold me,” Alicia’s voice trembled, her fingers tracing Rhea’s face.

  Rhea threaded her fingers into Alicia’s hair and tucked her face against hers, holding her as tightly as she could. Alicia’s hands reached around Rhea’s hips and locked their bodies together, still connected as one. They fell asleep, never moving but finding reassurance in being together. Alicia slept comfortably, but Rhea woke up two hours later and found her worries had returned.

  She was so scared that she would lose Alicia. She didn’t care what condition the leg was in. She couldn’t lose her. It would kill her—her heart would just wither and die. She edged off Alicia and tucked her to her side while she lay awake trying to deny her fears. Even with an injured leg Alicia could still do her artwork and maybe even ride her horse, and she would be alive.

  Flickering images of Alicia ran through her mind as she remembered watching her struggle to recover from the snakebite. It was Alicia’s will to survive and Mommo’s healing that had saved her. Rhea felt a chill pass through her body as she remembered the radio message that had almost destroyed her.

  “Rhea, get home, Alicia’s snake bit. Over.” Rhea knew it took enormous effort to shake her father, and she had heard the fear in his voice over the radio. “Hurry, over.”

  Ted hadn’t hesitated as he gave orders to the ranch hands that were with them. He and Rhea were moving at a full gallop before either one caught a breath. The ride had been grueling and terrifying as Rhea fought off thoughts of Alicia dying. Not one word passed between her and Ted as they rode over five hours back to the ranch. She threw herself off her horse in front of the

  house, taking the stairs two at a time, bursting into the house to find Sheri in the hallway crying.

  “Where is she?”

  “In the back bedroom. Rhea, she’s bad,” Sheri sobbed.

  Rhea hadn’t stopped as she ran to the bedroom and entered the crowded room. Her eyes saw only one thing, Alicia, as she laid deathly white on the bed. God, please let her live, I’ll promise you anything, please let her live.

  She tightened her hold on her slumbering girlfriend. Thank you God, thank you. Rhea had more than most to be thankful for, but she would give up everything to make sure that Alicia would never be harmed again. Closing her eyes to the hot tears, Rhea’s heart ached with love for the beautiful woman who meant everything to her.

  Fingertips slid against Rhea’s cheeks, wiping the tears from her face. “It’s all right, Rhea. Everything’s going to be fine.”

  Rhea opened her eyes and found Alicia staring down at her, her hand stroking her cheek. “I know. It just hurts so much when I think of you in so much pain.”

  “I’m not in pain anymore. I heard your voice when it was the worst. I could hear you talking to me, and I knew I had to get back to you. Your voice kept me focused, baby. I love you.” Alicia soothed her with her words and her touch, as she placed kisses against her eyes, the corner of her mouth, and her chin.

  Rhea felt the touch of her tongue against her lower lip, and she reached up and held Alicia’s head as she kissed her. Tender softness, the taste of Alicia, and the scent of her partner filled her completely. Love so vibrant, full of color and sensation washed through the two women, renewing their pledge to each other. Alicia’s hand traced the breast of her lover, lingering on her nipple as it hardened beneath her fingers. Moving lower, she ran her hand across the firm, flat stomach and met the dark curls that covered Rhea’s nether lips. Placing her fingers in the moisture, she found the tightened bud that had been awakened by her touch.

  “God, I love touching you,” Alicia breathed the words into Rhea’s mouth. Fondling her clitoris between her fingers, she made Rhea groan loudly as she teased her. Alicia’s strong fingers penetrated Rhea, and the satisfaction was too great for Rhea to keep silent.

  A cry emerged from Rhea’s throat as Alicia nuzzled her neck, while her fingers massaged her lower body. Rhea reached down and held Alicia’s hand tightly against her as Alicia stroked her closer to an orgasm.

  “Oh God, oh,” Rhea’s voice trailed off as Alicia vibrated her fingertips against her hardened clitoris and drove her screaming into an orgasm, one that moved through her body in increasing waves.

  “My perfect lover, that’s it, honey. Let go, and let me love you.” Alicia’s voice urged Rhea into another powerful surge of pleasure. “Shush, baby, I have you forever.”

  Rhea turned her face into Alicia’s and sobbed. Her body was weakened by their lovemaking, and “her heart was purged of the fear and pain she had held locked inside. Alicia held her tightly. It was a long time before Rhea finally cried herself to sleep. Alicia watched her even longer, stroking her hair and gazing at her exhausted partner. Alicia knew that Rhea suffered silently, and she was grateful that she was able to help release some of her pent up emotions. Rhea would always be strong for Alicia, but Alicia also knew that Rhea paid dearly for her strength. Alicia would do everything in her power to take care of the beautiful woman with the incredible heart. Alicia dozed, holding Rhea, and the two women drew strength from each other and their love.

  CHAPTER 30

  The surgery was performed that next afternoon, and Alicia’s leg was repaired. Her whole family, including Mommo, waited anxiously in the waiting room. It took over four hours for two doctors to repair the damage done by the snake venom. A plastic surgeon and a vascular surgeon worked wonders. Alicia slept long after the surgery in her private hospital room as Rhea waited anxiously by her side. She had heard the surgeon’s own words that all had gone well and that she would have full function of her leg. Now she needed Alicia to wake up so that she could believe him. She lowered her head in prayer as she sat in a chair next to Alicia’s bed, her hand resting on Alicia’s arm. Everyone else waited in the hall, periodically coming into the room to sit with Rhea.

  She had her eyes closed and tried to be patient, realizing that it took time for Alicia to recover from the anesthesia. She didn’t see the blue eyes of her lover open, nor the look of love cross Alicia’s face, but she heard the quiet words that she uttered.
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  “Hi cowgirl.”

  “Alicia,” Rhea couldn’t speak, she could only stare at her girlfriend, her shaking hands touching her face. “How are you?”

  “I’m a little fuzzy, and I can’t feel a thing in my leg.”

  Rhea knew what she was asking, and she immediately reassured her. “It’s fine, honey. Your leg is going to be as good as new.”

  Alicia’s carefully composed face crumpled, and she began to cry. Rhea stood up and bent over gathering Alicia into her arms and soothed her. “Hush, honey. It’s all over, and as soon as we can we’ll get you back home.”

  “Rhea, I want to leave now. I want to go back to the ranch. Mommo can take care of me.”

  “1 promise you, us soon as the doctors release you, we’ll take you home.”

  “Promise?” Alicia tear stained face made Rhea cry.

  “I promise. There are a few people who would like to see you. They’ve been waiting for several hours.” Rhea smiled at her before standing up and going to the door. Ted and Sheri crowded through the doorway, followed by Sophia and August. Bringing up the rear was Mommo.

  Sheri bent over and hugged Alicia tightly, and then Ted placed a kiss on her cheek. “Good to see you, sister,” he said as he patted her arm.

  “Hi guys, it’s good to see you.”

  “Hey, lassie, it’s about time you woke up. You almost gave this old guy a heart attack.” August’s voice was gruff but his eyes were glassy with tears.

  “Alicia, we’re so glad the surgery went well. I expect to see you out with your horses in no time.” Sophia smiled and squeezed her tightly before kissing her.

  Mommo bent to embrace her, and her rapid native speech was lost to everyone but Alicia. Alicia wept silently and allowed Mommo to comfort her. Rhea stood at the foot of the bed and watched. There was something special that linked Alicia to Mommo. Sophia slid her hand into her daughter’s and squeezed it, and August threw his arm around her shoulders. There wasn’t a dry eye in the room.

  Two hours later Alicia was in too much pain to be company to anyone, and the nurse increased her pain medication. All but Mommo and Rhea returned to the hotel for the night. Ted and Sheri were going to go back to the ranch with Sophia. August planned to bring Alicia, Rhea, and Mommo back at the end of the week. It had been a long day for everyone, and in the end all had gone well.

  “Mommo, what is it that makes Alicia so special to you?” Rhea asked in the stillness of the hospital room as she watched Mommo washing Alicia’s sleeping face clean of tears.

  “She is a woman of power that I understand and respect.”

  “What do you mean power?”

  “She has the ability to make people around her grow in strength and wisdom by her love for them. She brings out the best in everyone around her because she taps into their hearts. But, daughter of my heart, she is no more special than you are. When you were younger and you got involved with Leann, I knew she would break your young heart, but do you remember what I told you?”

  “You said it was meant to be, because the woman that would match me was still looking for me.” Rhea remembered how Mommo had comforted her as

  she grieved from a broken heart and a splintered family. “Did you know it was Alicia?”

  “Not until you brought her home. It is the matching of hearts and souls that gives Alicia her power and you yours.”

  “I don’t have any power.” Rhea looked at Mommo in disbelief.

  “How do you think you brought Alicia back from near death?”

  “You did that with your healing, and Alicia didn’t want to die.”

  “Rhea, your strength is in your love for Alicia and your family. You keep people safe and protected with your love. You can do anything you put your mind to, daughter.”

  Rhea’s eyes filled with tears as she listened to the very wise woman. “I love you, Mommo.”

  “As I love you, daughter of my heart.”

  The two women sat in the dark, guarding their loved one as she slept through the night undisturbed.

  CHAPTER 31

  “Rhea, where’s Alicia?” August asked as he paced the hall inside his home. It’s time for the ceremony to begin.”

  “Relax, Dad. She and Mommo are upstairs finishing her hair. They’ll be here in a minute.” Rhea was amused at her father’s nervousness, and Sophia shook her head at her husband. You would think the ceremony was his he fretted so much. He had been like that for almost a month as he stormed around the ranch like a whirlwind arranging Rhea and Alicia’s commitment ceremony.

  It had taken Alicia over three months of hard work and physical therapy to gain back the strength in her leg and heal from her surgery. And then August had gone to work planning their wedding, much to the delight of his daughter and her lover. It couldn’t happen soon enough for them. Rhea saw her dad stop pacing as he gazed up the stairs at Alicia and Mommo walking slowly down them. Alicia still had a pronounced limp, especially when she was extremely tired. But considering what she had endured, he was enormously proud of her. She had worked diligently to learn to walk again. She was able to walk to her lover during the ceremony without help of any kind.

  Rhea stepped up to the bottom of the stairs, her eyes focused on Alicia as she walked down. “You look beautiful.”

  Alicia’s eyes sparkled as she looked at Rhea. “So do you, cowgirl. Are you ready to marry me?”

  Rhea couldn’t help but grin as she shook her head yes. “Wild horses couldn’t keep me from you.”

  “Let’s go then,” August requested impatiently. Sophia turned to him and placed a hand on his chest, her wise eyes looking up at him. “Relax, Grandpa.”

  Her request made August relax, as he grinned back at her. One month earlier Sheri had delivered a healthy baby boy, Theodore August Cameron, and Grandpa couldn’t have been prouder. The new family was waiting with the rest of the guests for the ceremony to begin.

  “Mommo, come on. Let’s get this show on the road.” Alicia laughed with delight. “Don’t be late, cowgirl.”

  Rhea laughed with her as she watched Mommo and Alicia move slowly down the front stairs of the house and cross a short distance to a rose arbor that August had put up especially for the ceremony. Mommo and Alicia stood in front of the minister and turned to wait for Rhea and her parents. Sophia and August each took one of her arms and walked with Rhea until she stood next to Alicia. Both women were wearing long dresses, and they stood gazing at each other in quiet elegance, their hands clasped together.

  The ceremony was short and sweet. Alicia and Rhea pledged to love each other for the rest of their lives. Mommo, Sophia, and August were by their sides in front of God and a crowd of over two hundred well-wishers. August and Sheri cried at the conclusion of the ceremony; Sophia and Mommo watched proudly. Ted wiped happy tears away as he held his sleeping son in his arms. It was truly a magical moment.

  The party following the ceremony was a rollicking good time. The food was plentiful and the dancing fast and furious. Rhea and Alicia started the dancing off with a slow two-step, much to Rhea’s surprise and everyone’s pleasure. Alicia had been practicing with Ted for weeks in order to do it without faltering, as the steps put pressure on her healing leg.

  “I love you, Rhea,” Alicia whispered when she saw the emotion in Rhea’s eyes as she stared down at her while they danced.

  “I love you, honey. I will always treasure this memory.”

  And Rhea meant it. She knew how hard it had been for Alicia to recover after her surgery. Like everything Alicia did, she worked at it without complaint. It had taken months of painful therapy to regain the strength in and use of her leg. Not once had Alicia thought of giving up, even when cramps had her doubled over in pain. Rhea was so proud of her.

  Two hours later both women were seated at a table, holding hands and enjoying watching the dancers as the hour grew late. Leann and another woman appeared next to Alicia and Rhea. “Can we join you?”

  “Of course you can.”

  To ever
yone’s surprise, Leann had come over to the ranch a week after Alicia returned from surgery and volunteered to help with the horses. She and Alicia

  had gradually become friends, and it was Leann as well as Rhea that had cheered Alicia on with her therapy. It was Alicia who introduced Leann to her gay physical therapist. Much to everyone’s astonishment, Leann had fallen madly in love with the older woman, who brooked no nonsense from her, but loved her dearly.

  “You both look beautiful,” Stevie commented as she and Leann sat down across from them.

  “Thanks, Stevie, you both look pretty nice yourselves.” Leann blushed and Stevie just grinned. Stevie had moved in with Leann after Alicia’s physical therapy ended. She currently worked as a nurse’s aid traveling around the country but never too far away from her partner, Leann.

  “It was a beautiful ceremony,” Leann remarked, smiling at the happy couple.

  “When are you going to have one of your own?” Alicia teased as she squeezed Rhea’s hand.

  “We’ve been talking about it,” Stevie admitted, flashing a mischievous grin at her girlfriend. Rhea and Alicia looked at each other with amusement. It was startling, the transformation of Leann. She’d become soft, loving, and downright likeable. Alicia chalked it up to love, and Rhea, ever the skeptic, said it was just good sex. Whatever the reason, Leann had settled down and become the rancher her father had always wanted.

  “Aunt Rhea and Aunt Alicia, could you please hold your nephew while I dance with his mother?” Ever the proud parent, Ted handed his sleeping son to Rhea and gathered his wife in his arms, hustling her off to the dance floor. Rhea tucked the sleeping infant against her shoulder and felt Alicia snuggle up against the other side of her body, her arm inching around her waist.

  Alicia and Rhea loved little Theo and watched him for Sheri and Ted whenever the new parents needed an evening to themselves. That is, as long as Grandma and Grandpa weren’t around.

  It was late before the celebration wound down and Alicia and Rhea started back to the ranch house. Alicia had tired, her limp now pronounced as she and Rhea entered their home and slowly climbed the stairs. They held hands all the way up to the bedroom. Alone at last, they turned to each other and shared a kiss.