Beyond Innocence (20 page)

“In my kitchen, by a beautiful woman.”

Enough. Serena whirled around. Ignoring Cory’s innuendo wasn’t working. “What do you mean by that?” She was surprised at the angry tremor in her voice.

“Um, excuse me?” Cory’s voice reflected a tremor of its own, but one of genuine surprise, not anger.

“What am I doing here?”

Cory’s eyes darted around the room as if seeking escape, but when she answered, her voice took on a slight edge. “I’ve obviously done something to make you mad. If you don’t want to be here, you don’t have to be.” She paused and when she spoke again, she softened her tone. “I’d like you to stay. I can’t remember the last time any appliance in this kitchen besides the Keurig and microwave got any action. Not to mention—” Cory stopped midsentence and her face flushed.

Serena didn’t need to ask her to finish. Her instincts told her Cory had been about to make another suggestive remark. And why shouldn’t she? Clearly, they were attracted to each other. Serena had recognized the looks that passed between them, the rising heat beneath her skin when they drew close. She loved the way Cory aroused her, but she resented her inability to control her own reactions. Was Cory torn as well? Did she struggle against her feelings? If her actions this evening were any indication, the answer was no. At least not tonight. Tonight she seemed hell-bent on exploring the minefield between them, risks be damned. Could she meet Cory halfway? Would she?

“I don’t know what I’m doing here.” The words tumbled out before she could censor her thought. She was no longer talking about her physical location. She had no idea how to navigate this situation since it was one she’d avoided her whole life. But here she was again, and this time she wanted to take the next step more than she wanted to protect herself from the pain of the unknown.

Cory walked across the kitchen. She was close, but not too close. Her eyes bored into Serena’s, questioning, compassionate, kind. “I’d like you to stay.”

“I think I want to.”

“That’s a start.”

“I think I want to do a lot of things.”

Cory moved mere inches closer, but already Serena could feel the sparks igniting between them. The heat fueled her forward, pressing her into Cory’s space. Cory leaned forward to close the gap, and she gave in to soft lips and fiery passion. Her first surrender made her wonder why she’d ever fought. Every nerve in her body surged, and she both feared and hoped she would explode.

Eons later, she pulled slightly back. She felt drunk, or at least what she thought drunk felt like. Heady, hazy, she gasped for air.

“Are you okay?” Cory murmured the question. She looked like Serena felt, eyes half shut, her lips puffed in a dreamy smile.

“I’ve never done this before.”

Cory grinned. “Never kissed an attorney? Never been kissed in a kitchen?”

Serena started to answer, but stopped to examine Cory’s expression. She was kidding around, but her eyes were kind. She wanted to trust her. She resolved to trust her. “I’m feeling things for you I’ve never felt before. Never allowed myself to feel. I’m afraid…Well, I’m just afraid of what happens next.”

“Oh.” The one-word response landed between them with a thud. Serena started to turn away, but Cory pulled her back.

“Hey, don’t go.”

Paralyzed, Serena didn’t know what to do. Whether she left Cory’s house or not was of no consequence. After that kiss, she could never go back. The question now was, could she go forward? “I shouldn’t have told you.”

“You surprised me; that’s all. Tell me something.”

“What?” Serena both dreaded and welcomed the conversation. Talking meant they weren’t kissing. Kissing led to confusion. Or did it? When her lips met Cory’s, she’d never felt anything so right.

“Did you enjoy it?”

Enjoy it? Was Cory kidding? Kissing her was rapture. All she could think about was doing it again. “I adored it.”

“May I kiss you again?”

Cory’s question was tentative, sweet. Serena wanted to shout yes, but years of not giving in to want took their toll. “If I say I need to think about it, will you want me to leave?” She saw a flicker of disappointment in Cory’s eyes, but her response was perfect.

“Don’t be silly. You haven’t cooked me dinner yet.”

Serena opened her mouth to say more, but decided instead to lean into the levity Cory had thrown between them. Later. Process your feelings first, and you can talk to her about them later. You can’t think straight, while she’s standing beside you looking completely kissable. She answered by gently pushing Cory back toward the cutting board. “You do your part, and I’ll do mine.” As she watched Cory walk across the kitchen, she knew with every fiber of her being that she already knew what she wanted and no amount of thought was going to change her mind.

*

Cory couldn’t remember the last time she’d eaten a home-cooked meal, let alone one that tasted like it had been prepared in a five-star restaurant. She swallowed the last bite of her perfectly prepared filet and tossed her napkin on the table in surrender. “Dinner was amazing. Do you always cook like that?”

Serena laughed. “If I did, I’d be big as a house. I love to cook, but it’s not as much fun when it’s just for me.”

“I survive on takeout. This spread spoiled me rotten.”

“Thanks. I’m addicted to the Food Network. It’s nice to take some of what I’ve learned for a test drive.” Serena started to stack their plates.

“Hold it right there.” Cory pushed her chair back and stood. “I’ll do these dishes later. Come relax on the couch while I put some coffee on.” She started to ask if she wanted another glass of wine, but she noticed Serena had cleaned her plate, but her wine glass remained full. “You don’t like wine, do you?”

Serena glanced at the glass and frowned. “I’m sorry I wasted it.”

“I’m not worried about that. It’s just I should’ve offered you something else. Sorry to be such a lame hostess.”

“Not your fault. I could’ve said something. To tell the truth, I don’t know if I like wine, which is a little embarrassing.”

“Don’t be silly. So you’ve never tried wine before. Not a problem. I can make sure you meet all the right grapes.”

“Well, that’s the embarrassing part. I’ve never tried any alcohol. When all your blood relations are junkies, you learn to be on guard against the possibility it might be in your DNA.”

“That’s nothing to be ashamed of. Actually, it’s pretty damn smart.” She reached for Serena’s hand and led her to the couch, careful to keep a conversational distance away. She sensed the significance of Serena’s revelation and didn’t want to crowd her comfort zone. “You could’ve told me.”

“I guess I should’ve been honest. As I recall, you were a bit distracted while serving the wine.” She offered a subtle smile and let a few beats pass before she added, “And I’m still trying to navigate the distance between you and me.”

“Are our worlds that far apart?”

“Not as far apart as I first thought.”

Cory heard a slight inflection. “I hear a but.”

“Do you feel badly about the man who spent all that time in prison? That one who was just released?”

Damn. The Nelson case was the last thing Cory had expected Serena to bring up, and it was definitely the last thing she wanted to talk about tonight.

Actually, she did want to talk about it, but after weeks of resisting the constant pressure of the press, her peers, and even Melinda, to tell her side of the story, she’d become resigned to letting everyone assume the public facts spoke for themselves. As much as it pained her, she’d made a promise and, contrary to what everyone now thought, she valued her integrity more than she valued other people’s opinions.

Except Serena’s. Her opinion mattered and it mattered a lot. Cory considered her options, but she knew there was no way to tell even part of the story without compromising promised loyalties. “I wish I could talk to you about it, but—”

“But your lawyer probably told you to stay quiet,” Serena interrupted.

“Yes.” Not the entire truth, but it was the easier explanation.

“I just find it hard to believe, based on what I’ve seen, that you would be the kind of person that could sit by while someone went to prison for something they didn’t do.”

If only it were that simple. But guilt and innocence rarely was. As sure as she might ever be that she was prosecuting the right person, she never really knew. She’d made peace with the conundrum long ago. She’d had to or she would’ve gone crazy. Nelson was a bad man. Despite the mistake that put him away, she didn’t lose any sleep over the time he’d spent in prison. How could she expect Serena, whose brother spent his days counting down to death, to understand?

“Then don’t believe it. Instead, believe I’m a good person who does her best to do the right thing.” The minute the words tumbled out, Cory felt lame asking for Serena’s trust with nothing to offer in return.

Serena let out a deep breath. “I want to. I really do. I can see you’re working hard for Eric and you don’t have any reason to. Do you think the judge will grant a hearing on the motion you wrote today?”

Cory held back a flinch as guilt pinched her conscience. Now would be the time to explain to Serena she hadn’t been able to work on Eric’s case when she got back to the office, but she held back. She supposed she could have worked on the motion this evening, after they’d filed the brief on the Young case. But then she would’ve missed this evening. Would Serena think she’d made the right decision?

“I think we have a good chance at a hearing. I promise you I’ll fight hard for him. And you’re wrong. I do have good reasons to work hard for him. I need you to trust me.” She hoped Serena wouldn’t ask her to list the reasons since they started and ended with the magnetic pull she felt between them.

“I’m starting to.”

Cory heard her own hope reflected in Serena’s simple words. She took a chance. “Have you had enough time to think?”

“About?”

Cory leaned in close. If she expected Serena to take a risk, she had to be willing to take one first. As she drew closer, she heard Serena take a deep breath, but she wasn’t to be deterred. Serena’s eyes dilated and she exhaled. Cory brushed her lips past Serena’s cheek and whispered soft and heavy in her ear. “Another kiss?”

Serena answered by placing a hand on her cheek and she drew Cory closer. Their lips met and Cory had her answer. The kiss in the kitchen had been perfection, everything a first kiss should be. But this embrace was packed with portent. Deeper, stronger, their entire bodies were engaged. Cory took her lead from Serena and reached out to pull her closer. Passion drove her. She wanted more, more closeness, more heat, more than she’d ever wanted before. Serena’s thirsty lips signaled she wanted the same. For the first time she could ever recall, no thoughts, only feelings crowded her conscious and she surrendered to the siren call.

So deep was her surrender, she didn’t hear the doorbell at first, but Serena pulled back from the embrace, the spell broken.

“Do you think you should get that?”

Still in Serena’s arms, thinking didn’t factor into Cory’s world view. “What?”

“The doorbell,” Serena whispered in her ear. “Someone’s at the door, and I don’t think they’re giving up easily.” She smiled. “How about you answer the door? I’ll wait right here.”

Cory pulled back from Serena’s embrace, reluctant to break the connection they’d finally forged. “Promise?”

“I promise.” Serena nudged her off the couch. “Hurry back.”

Cory blew a kiss through the air and trudged to the door. The clock in the hall showed it was close to nine o’clock. When she was a prosecutor she was used to late night calls. Detectives sometimes wanted her input before waking up a judge to sign a search warrant or requested her presence at an impromptu interrogation, but even those events were rare. Her neighbors only knocked when their kids accidentally threw their ball over the fence, and it was too late for backyard games on a school night.

She peered through the peephole.
Damn.
Julie stood on the porch, tapping her foot, finger poised to ring the bell again. Judging by her wrinkled suit, she’d come straight from the office. Julie liked to have sex after a long day at work. She claimed it was the only way for her to settle her nerves. Of all the possibilities Cory had considered when she heard the doorbell, Julie dropping in for a booty call hadn’t merited a fraction of her attention. She jerked the door open before Julie could press the bell again.

“Hey, baby, what took you so long?” She held a hand against the doorway, but she couldn’t hide the sway of the rest of her body. Waves of pungent whisky breath hit Cory in the face. As if the situation couldn’t get any worse.

“What are you doing here? Do you know what time it is? Did you drive like this?” What started as a whisper quickly became a growl. She glanced over her shoulder, hoping Serena couldn’t hear their exchange.

“I came to see you. It’s late. And, yes, I drove, but I probably shouldn’t have.” Julie giggled as she delivered the last line, a sure sign she was drunk. “Aren’t you going to invite me in?”

Cory glanced over her shoulder. Her plan to quickly and quietly get rid of Julie was fizzling as fast as she’d made it. She couldn’t send her packing. What if she got in an accident on the way home or got pulled over? Her DA badge could only work so many miracles, and it didn’t have the power to save lives. She’d have to call her a cab. “You’re drunk and it’s late. I’ll call you a cab.” She paused to consider what to do next. She didn’t trust Julie to wait outside without trying to take off, but she didn’t trust a drunk Julie to not embarrass her in front of Serena. Before she could decide what lesser evil to choose, Julie pushed past her.

“You have some wine open? I’d love a glass. The stuff they pour at The Shack is rank. I had to drink bourbon instead.” She draped an arm over Cory’s shoulder and nestled her face against Cory’s neck. “I’m glad you’re home. I’ve missed you.”

“I’m calling you a cab.”

“I don’t need a cab. I need some of this.” Julie made it clear exactly what “this” was by snaking her hand under her shirt. Cory backed away, but Julie wasn’t so easily deterred. “What’s wrong? We had a great day today and I want to celebrate. With you.”