“Thugs?”
“Not hardly. They rake in some big bucks. These guys are the business suit variety. They live in the suite.”
Delta jotted down notes next to their names. “Did Miles ever make contact with them?”
“Not that I know of.”
“I’ll run a check on all of them.”
“You won’t find many of the girls. A lot of the names on the sheet are aliases. I don’t know most of their real names.”
Delta nodded. “Put an asterisk by the women servicing any cops.”
“Are you kidding? Most of them on that list.”
Folding the stationery and smelling the lilac perfume, Delta wondered if Megan hadn’t purposely used the scented stationery.
“One more thing.” Delta pulled out the rough sketch of the tat-too/birthmark she was able to outline for Jonesy four days after her initial composite. “Have you ever seen this?”
Megan studied it carefully. “No, I haven’t.”
Delta nodded. The picture had been taken to every tattoo parlor in the city, and a few said it was the trademark of a street gang known as the Bandeleros. They were a motorcycle gang trying to fit into the Hell’s Angels mold and not very successful at it.
“Can we finish now?” Megan asked, interrupting Delta’s thoughts.
“I’m sorry. Sure.”
“Great. Then come on.” Grabbing the check, Megan paid the bill and headed outside. A slight mist was falling and the fog partly blocked the three-quarter moon.
“Let’s walk,” Megan said, threading her arms through Delta’s.
“But it’s raining.”
Megan stopped and jammed her hands on her hips. “Let me get this straight—you face people with guns, knives, and bombs, crazies, weirdos, and nutcases every night of the week, yet you’re afraid of a little rain? Officer Stevens, I must say, I’m disappointed.”
Delta tossed her head back and laughed. “Alright, I’ll go, I’ll go.” Walking along in the neon flashes of the dew-covered city, Delta felt the tension ease away.
“Isn’t this lovely?” Megan stopped at the edge of a small park. It was dark and the squeaking of the swings swaying in the slight breeze sounded through the air. “It’s a beautiful night for a walk.”
Delta released Megan’s arm from hers and took a step back. There was a rumbling in her stomach, a zip of lightning flashing through her veins, that signaled to Delta just what was going on inside her. Suddenly, there was an emotional overload as her circuits sparked and fired slowly at first, from disuse, until they finally managed a bright and warming glow inside her. As Delta turned to look at Megan, she was afraid.
“Megan, why are you here, with me?” Before Delta could stop herself, the words tumbled out of her mouth. And though she was surprised by the question, Megan Osbourne was not.
“I need a clarification of the question first. Are you asking why I’m here with you because you’re a cop and I’m a prostitute, or are you asking why I’m with you because you're a woman who is attracted to me?”
Delta’s only response was a silent, open mouth.
Knowing and seeing the effects of her frankness, Megan’s eyes sparkled. “Delta Stevens, I have been enamored with you since the very first day Miles spoke of you. Every single time we met, I always asked what was going on in your life. I knew when you hurt, when you were happy, when the kittens were sick. And when Miles finally showed me that picture of the two of you he kept in his wallet, I knew I had to meet you. Delta, you sounded like someone that I would love to know. Everything he told me about you, I locked away in some hidden file in my mind. If you were as open-minded as Miles said you were, I knew we could be friends. I’ve been wanting that.”
Delta did not know what to say.
“Say something. Please.”
Somewhere, somehow, Delta found her voice. “You know I have kittens?” Megan flashed her a smile. “I know a whole lot more about you than you’d imagine.” Delta nodded. “So you’re here with me because you’ve been wanting to meet the woman Miles spoke of?”
Megan stepped closer—pinning Delta against the park sign. Delta could see Megan’s breath as it sensuously floated out and twisted away into the night.
I’m here with you now, for the same reason you’re with me; because I’m alone in this world, because I enjoy your company, because I’d really like to get to know you better, and ...” Megan paused for emphasis, “Because I am incredibly attracted to you.”
Walking out of the elevator, Delta approved of the expensive wallpaper with fancy gold trim.
“This is nice,” she said, trying not to sound surprised. What did she know about the private lives of prostitutes, anyway? What did she expect? A hovel?
Following Megan to the second door on the right, Delta leaned over and smelled the sweetness of Megan’s hair. There was a honey scent that was tangible in its sweetness.
Megan opened the door and turned on the light, displaying a living room decorated in mint and peach. “It’s small, but it’s home.”
Carefully surveying the room, Delta eyed the antique brass lamps and three Nagel prints hanging on one creamcolored wall. The living room was immaculate and smelled new.
“Very nice,” she said, slipping her arms out of her jacket.
“Thank you. I may not work in the best joint in town, but I do live in one.”
“It’s cozy.” Sitting next to Megan on an “L” shaped couch, Delta grinned. “It feels like you.”
Megan leaned over toward Delta, grinning. “Oh? And what do I feel like?”
Delta drew in a quick breath. Her inner circuitry seemed to fire. “Like an incredible woman. Like someone I want to get to know.”
Still leaning in, Megan’s blouse blossomed to show an abundant cleavage. “You’re awfully sweet.”
“It’s just that the room reminds me of your eyes. They take you in and make you feel at home.”
Megan leaned back and crossed her long legs. “You can believe me when I tell you that they don’t do that with everybody.”
Delta could feel a blush coming on. Or maybe, it was Megan. Whichever it was, a warmth started from her face and spread down her legs. “I’m not sure I should be here, you know.”
Megan’s hand reached for Delta’s. “Because I’m a prostitute, or because there’s someone else?”
Delta stood up quickly and jammed her hands in her pockets. Megan’s bluntness tore at the loose thread of her security. “There’s no one else. It’s just that, lately, I’ve found myself questioning everything that touches my life.”
“And have I done that?”
Delta turned, hands still in her pockets. “Oh, yes.”
Joining Delta at the fireplace, Megan slowly reached her hand up to touch Delta’s face. “Are you sorry?”
Cocking her head, Delta looked up into Megan’s face. She was so close, she could smell the wintergreen of Megan’s breath. “No, I’m not sorry.Two weeks ago, I would have allowed my career to keep me from experiencing something wonderful with you, but not any longer. I guess, when someone close to you dies, you begin to realize how little time we have on this planet.”
Megan nodded. “I’ve thought about that myself.”
Taking her hands from her pockets, Delta took Megan’s and pulled her so close their bodies were touching.
“All I’ve been doing lately is thinking. I think about that night, I think about Miles’s kids, I think about what my life will be like without him, and . . . I think about the feelings banging around in my heart for you. I don’t want to think anymore, Megan. I just want to feel.”
Wrapping her arms around Delta, Megan held her tightly and stroked her wavy brown locks. For long moments, no words passed between them as Delta’s grip slowly tightened around Megan’s waist. The heat from their bodies seemed to be the only thing that penetrated the cold stone walls Delta erected the moment Miles died. As they stood entwined, Delta felt her body go limp in Megan’s embrace. It felt so good to be held.
At last, it was Megan who spoke. And when she spoke, her voice carried the softness of background music. “That’s it. Don’t fight your feelings, just go with it.”
Saying nothing, Delta buried her face deeper into Megan’s neck.
“I know what you need,” Megan whispered, kissing Delta’s temple. “Will you trust me?”
Delta nodded. Megan’s lips against her forehead warmed her more. “I’ll try.”
“Come with me.” Taking Delta’s hand, Megan led her into a rose-colored bedroom with a large queen-size waterbed grandly occupying the center. Megan reached out and stroked Delta’s cheek with the back of her hand. Her sapphire gems practically glowing in the dim light.
Delta took Megan’s hand off her face and kissed the palm. It was softer than she could imagine.
“First things first,” Megan said, slowly pulling her hand away from Delta’s mouth. “Stay here. I’ll be right back.” Megan left the room, and Delta looked around at the dusty rose comforter inviting her.
In an instant, Megan returned with a strange-shaped bottle she set on the nightstand. Then she laid her hands on Delta’s shoulders. “I’m going to work those golf balls out of your shoulders once and for all. Do you mind?”
Delta shook her head. All she could feel was Megan’s soft breath and the stroke of her hands.
Facing Delta, Megan slowly undid the buttons on Delta’s shirt and gently slid it off her shoulders. In another smooth motion, Megan undid Delta’s bra and removed it as well. Pulling Delta to her, Megan bent down and lightly kissed Delta’s neck before facing her.
“Tell me to stop if I make you uncomfortable.”
Delta nodded. She felt as if she was going to burst.
Tracing Delta’s eyebrows with her finger, Megan stepped closer and Delta again felt her breath on her face.
It was an even sweeter aroma than the perfume. A rod of heat from Megan’s kiss zipped through her body, landing in the deepest part of her stomach. She had forgotten how it felt to want another woman.
Taking Delta’s face in her hands, Megan brought it to hers and softly laid her lips on Delta’s. Standing half a foot apart, they tenderly kissed, and Megan slowly moved them closer to the bed.
Closing her eyes and allowing Megan to lead, their lips gently moved over each other’s as if they had always known how to kiss each other. Their lips were a perfect fit even as Delta opened her mouth wider to accept Megan’s soft tongue. Sliding her hands around Megan’s waist, Delta started to pull her closer, but Megan stood firm.
“Not yet,” Megan whispered. Patting the bed, Megan motioned for Delta to lie on her stomach. In one swift motion, Megan had Delta’s pants off, leaving Delta in just her black underwear.
Laying her face on a pillow that smelled like Megan, Delta’s eyes suddenly felt very heavy. The warmth of the waterbed and the fluffy down comforter enveloped her in an instant, and the warmth she felt moments ago transformed into something else. Wrapping her arms around the pillow, Delta drew it to her face and inhaled its sweetness.
“Okay sweety,” Megan said, picking up the bottle of lotion. “You just lay there and let me work those knots out of your back. Don’t talk, don’t think about anything except my hands on your body.” Megan’s voice was soft and low, almost unrecognizable, and there was a soothing quality that flowed through Delta’s veins like a drug, forcing her heavy eyelids to close.
As Megan’s fingers slowly pressed and swirled, manipulating Delta’s skin and muscles, Delta could feel the tension and coils unwind. In a few minutes, Delta’s head sunk deeper into the down pillow. Clouds and stars floated across her consciousness as she drifted between sleep and awareness. Somewhere in the dream landscape of her being, she could hear a low, husky voice speaking calmly and evenly to her as magic feathers brushed across her shoulders and back, warming every inch of skin on her body. Far away, the voice was telling her that she’d be okay, that she wasn’t alone, and that she didn’t have to fight this battle by herself.
As the last grasp of reality slipped quietly away, Delta felt small, tender kisses on her neck and back and thought she heard Megan say something about later. The next instant, sleep consumed her.
The room was veiled in semi-darkness when Delta cracked open one eye and gazed about. Remembering that she was not in her own bed, Delta opened both eyes. Under her left arm Delta found Megan curled up in the crook, breathing evenly and quietly. She was facing Delta and was laying with her knees pulled up to her chest. In her sleep, she was even more breathtaking; her skin was a soft, creamy apricot color, and she could easily pass for nineteen or twenty. As her blonde hair lay scattered about the pillow, Delta leaned over and gently rubbed her face in its silkiness.
Slowly moving her right hand to Megan’s face, Delta lightly brushed the hair away from her face and kissed her forehead. Her hair smelled of lilac, and Delta remembered the smell of the pillow in the early morning hours and the softness of Megan’s hands as they gently kneaded her back. She vaguely remembered feeling the bed shift and wave when Megan slipped into bed next to her some hours ago. Leaning over, Delta dropped tiny kisses on Megan’s cheeks, nose, and chin. As she did, Megan scooted closer and reached up with one slender finger and touched it to her own lips. When she removed her finger, Delta bent over and delicately laid her lips on top of Megan’s awaiting mouth. Locked in a tender, morning-warm kiss, Delta pulled Megan to her, feeling her own body temperature escalate as their bodies met. Without taking her lips off Megan’s, Delta slipped her hands up and down Megan’s back, feeling the soft silk from her rose nightgown.