Kerry hesitated. ”Sure, I mean, I don’t think we have anything planned. I’ll check with Dar when I get to the office.” She didn’t want to refuse outright, since she did like Marie, but she wondered if Dar would want to make an appearance at what was, apparently, old stomping grounds.
Marie stood up. ”Okay, great, maybe we’ll see you then.” She smiled, and held a hand out. ”Great seeing you, Kerry. I’ll give you a call if anything unusual comes back in your tests, but in my considered opinion, just keep doing what you’re doing, okay?”
Kerry also stood, and gripped her hand. ”Thanks, Marie. I’ll be seeing you.”
”Yeah.” The doctor gave her a speculative look. ”I hope so.”
DAR WAS SEATED at her desk, her head propped up on one hand and her mouse in the other. She was clicking through a series of spreadsheets, checking their contents, then flipping back to others in a blur of white with pale blue lines. A soft knock interrupted her, and she leaned back, welcoming it. ”C’mon in.”
Maria pushed the door opened and entered, closing it behind her.
She was carrying several folders, which she put neatly on Dar’s desk.
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”Is the three new companies we bring in, Dar,” the secretary said. ”And Kerrisita just poked her head in, to say she is here now.”
”Oh?” Dar visibly perked up. ”That didn’t take long, guess everything’s okay then.” You never knew with doctors, after all, though Kerry certainly appeared extremely healthy, you just never knew.
”Great. I had a lunch meeting sprung on me that I wanted her to attend.”
As if on cue, a popup appeared on her window.
”Hey, my doctor wants to meet you.”
Dar blinked, and glanced at Maria, then leaned forward and typed back.”Oh really? Everything go okay then?”
”Remember what Maria thought of me? With the trail mix? That’s what my doctor thinks of you.”
Dar smiled. ”C’mon over.” She turned and put her hands on the desk. ”So, we have three new acquisitions, eh?”
”Si,” Maria agreed.
Dar drummed her fingers on the desk. ”Um...so...what did you have planned for the weekend, Maria?”
The secretary gave her a curious look. ”Aye...well...nothing really, just some work in the garden, and my husband is going to paint the bathroom,” she answered, a little puzzled.
”Ah. That sounds nice...um...” Dar glanced up as the inner door opened and Kerry ambled in, her green eyes twinkling as they found her lover’s face. ”We were going to have a little get together on Saturday morning...I'd...um... Dar regarded her pencil, then looked over at Kerry. ”We’d like you to be there.” Kerry put a paper bag down on the desk and smiled at Maria.
Maria folded her hands, and looked from one to the other. ”It is a party?”
Dar looked at Kerry in silent appeal. Kerry rolled her eyes.
”Sort of.” Kerry perched on one corner of the desk. ”My former pastor from Michigan is in Miami for a visit, and he offered to perform a commitment ceremony for us.”
She does that so smoothly. Dar marveled.
”Como?” Maria took a step forward towards them. ”Do you mean to be saying you are getting married?”
Kerry felt the strangeness of the word. ”Um...yes, I think you could say that.” She turned and looked at Dar in question. The woman was chewing the end of her pen so studiously you’d have thought she had a plastic deficiency. ”Right?”
Blue eyes shifted to her face, and then to Maria. ”Uh...yes.” Dar swallowed, having never really expected to be saying that. “We are.”
Maria put her hands on her hips, and gave Dar a very severe look.
”Jefe, that is not nice.”
Dar was startled. ”Wh—”
Could she have read Maria all wrong?
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No.
”What isn’t nice?” Kerry was also regarding the secretary in some puzzlement.
”You cannot just be doing this without warning. To not give me a chance to get a nice present. That is not fair, Dar. I must get a dress, and...”
”Whoa, whoa, no, no. It’s very casual, Maria.” Dar stood up hastily. ”You don’t need to get us anything. We just want you to be there.”
”Right,” Kerry nodded. ”Really, it’s very...we just decided to do this the other day, Maria.”
”Casual?” Maria repeated. ”How you mean, casual, Dar?”
”Um, well, we’re going to take my boat out there.” Dar scratched her jaw. ”And it’s on a little island...before dawn.”
Maria stared at her for a long moment. ”Dios Mio.” She shook her head. ”Dar, you are too much.”
Dar exhaled softly. ”It’s all right if you don’t want to, Maria. I know it’s very short notice, and it’s not—”
”Pardon? I do not think so, Dar. I would not miss this for all the how you say, coffee in India,” Maria stated. ”I will get my pair of shorts out, just for you.” She beamed at them, then turned and bustled out, shutting the door behind her.
”Well,” Kerry remarked, turning and giving her lover a smile. Then she walked around and leaned on the desk next to Dar, her blonde hair brushing the edges of the wood surface. ”Hi.”
Dar glanced at the door, then nuzzled her. ”Mm, you smell like café con leche.”
”Oh yeah?” Kerry leaned her way and kissed her lightly. ”Imagine that.”Dar’s eyes gentled. ”Everything okay?” she asked.
”Mm hmm,” Kerry told her. ”Marie tells me I’m very healthy, and that I look great, and that she wants me to bring you to a party down there so they can all meet the infamous Dar Roberts.”
Blue eyes flickered. ”Infamous?”
”Mm, something about a robber, or maybe it was two of them...or six.”Dar dropped her head. ”Ah.” She nodded. ”That. Damn. Are they still telling that old story?” She looked a bit abashed. “Talk about stale news.”
Kerry slipped her arm across Dar’s shoulders. ”Tell you what, partner; I’ve got some meatballs in the crock pot cooking nice and slow.
How about you and me share a big bowl of them and some spaghetti later on, and you tell me that old story, okay?”
Dar smiled quietly at the desktop. ”All right.” She paused, reflectively. ”You know, I remember going out to the beach after that whole thing happened, and watching the sun rise.” She let out a breath.
”It was one of the only times I felt...proud of who I was, and the fact
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that I’d had a positive effect in someone’s life.”
Kerry studied her profile for a moment, then she reached over and gently tilted her chin up, until their eyes met. ”Until now.”
A calm silence fell, as they stared into each other’s eyes, bathed in the warm sunlight pouring into the room, and spilling over them like a golden blanket.
Abruptly the phone buzzed, and broke the spell. ”Dar, I have the Singapore on uno,” Maria’s voice entered the room.
Dar took Kerry’s hand, and kissed it. ”All right, I’ve got it, Maria.”
Kerry stroked her cheek, then straightened, and nodded. ”See you for lunch.” She motioned towards the bag. ”Enjoy.”
”Thanks.” Dar smiled, as she reached for the phone button.
”Yeah?”
”Dar, we’ve got SITA problems again,” the harried voice sounded.
”The overseas net is down in the Far East. Can you help?”
Dar glanced at her assistant. “Actually, you need to talk to our operations Director, Kerry Stuart. I’ll transfer you over. I’m sure she can get your issue resolved.”
“B—”
“Hang on.” Dar cocked her head at Kerry, and lifted her brows.
“Ready?”
Kerry took a breath, and nodded. “If I can’t fix it, can we go there too?” she quipped. “I bet Singapore’s way more interesting than backwoods North Carolina.”
Dar shook her finger at her, but grinned.
“Give me a minute, then transfer it.” Kerry moved to the door, and waved, then disappeared.
TWILIGHT WAS DIMMING her office by the time Kerry looked up from her inbox, glad to have waded out of the worst of it before the end of the day.
The last thing she wanted was to have to catch up over the weekend, especially since they had very important plans tomorrow morning.
She got up and went to the windows, gazing out at the cool, blue sea that stretched the horizon. “I’m getting married,” she said to her dimly seen reflection. “It’s so weird and unreal.”
Shaking her head, she turned and picked up her mug, carrying it with her as she crossed the carpet to her door and opened it up into the hallway. It was quiet on the floor—Friday afternoon after all—and she enjoyed the sense of peacefulness as she went over into the small kitchen.
Footsteps sounded behind her, and she turned, then smiled as Mark entered. “Hey.”
“Hey, poquito boss,” Mark greeted her. “TGIF, huh?”
“TGIF,” Kerry agreed. She glanced around as three of the marketing reps entered, with Eleanor right behind them. “And it’s about that time, ain’t it?” she added, as she took in the frosty looks.
“Thanks for getting those guys in Singapore to play ball.” Mark was stirring sugar into his coffee, or maybe was pouring some coffee into his sugar, given the quantities involved. “That would have sucked if we had to work it all night.”
“Anytime.” Kerry sipped her tea. “They weren’t that bad. I just had to talk them into going outside their boundaries a little.”
“You must be good at that.” Eleanor sniped from the corner.
Kerry smiled. “Thanks. I think I am,” she responded in a mild tone.
José entered, whistling under his breath and rubbing his hands together. “It is Friday. This weekend, I am looking forward to it.” He glanced at Kerry, and to her surprise, he gave her a nod. “Better than that crazy place we were at, no?”
“Absolutely,” Kerry agreed without hesitation.
“You got that right.” Mark chimed in. “Man that was skanky.”
“What the hell are you so cheerful about?” Eleanor asked José. “I thought you were screaming about your budget cuts a half hour ago.”
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José went to the espresso machine and started making himself a cafecito with quick, expert gestures. “That was last hour,” he said. “I have figured it out, and we are good,” he added. “Not so hard after all.
I just stopped the new desks, and got rid of some extra, and so it’s done.”
Eleanor rolled her eyes. “Give me a break,” she said. “What extra, you told them not to print the sales reports twice?”
José looked around at her. “I got rid of Fabracini,” he said. “Piece of garbage he turned out, yes? Lied on his resumé. I called that Fortune 500 Company where he said he did so much and they kicked his ass out after a week.”
Kerry blinked.
Mark blinked.
“No kidding!” Eleanor’s finely crafted eyebrows almost hiked up to meet her exquisite hairline. “So you fired him?”
José turned, picking up his cup. “Si,” he said. “Of course! You cannot keep someone after you find out something like that. Terrible.”
He shook his head. “Just think if one of our competitors found out, and said to the papers.”
“Well.” The Marketing VP shook her head. “Can’t really say I’ll miss him.” She glanced past José. “And I know you won’t,” she said to Kerry. “You lucked out there. I’d have pressed charges no matter what Dar did.”
Kerry took a swallow of her tea, and pondered her response.
“Eleanor!” José snorted. “Don’t be such an asshole,” he told his colleague. “All we do is fight. Leave it.”
Eleanor stared at him. “What?”
“Leave it!” José told her. “What does it get any of us? A headache!
Just shut up and go home and get screwed and leave it.” He put his cup down and walked out, shaking his head.
A stunned silence fell over the kitchen. Then Kerry pushed off from the counter and started for her office. “Sounds like a good plan to me.”
She dropped the words into the awkwardness. “Mark, see you tomorrow morning.”
Mark scurried to follow her. “You got it, boss.”
Kerry turned, just at the door. “And Eleanor?” She gave the woman a direct look. “I treat people with the same respect they treat me with.
Do you really want to keep on like this?”
The Marketing VP held up a hand. “Truce,” she agreed readily.
“It’s too late and I’m too tired,” she said. “Let’s start fresh on Monday.”
“Have a good weekend.” Kerry smiled, then left, with Mark at her heels.Eleanor sighed. “What the hell,” she said. “How long can it last, anyway?” She sipped her coffee and relaxed.
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IT WAS COOL out on the patio. Dar stood, leaning against the stone wall, her elbows resting on it’s top as she gazed out over the water. The salty wind blew her hair back, and she caught a whiff of wood smoke, from the barbeque they were having down at the beach club.If she turned her head, she knew she’d see Kerry sprawled in the loveseat, busy with her ancient pen and a piece of parchment, writing something she refused to let Dar see. ”Tomorrow’s soon enough,” she’d told her lover, huddling over it.
Tomorrow
. Dar looked down and regarded her hands quietly, absently fingering the golden band around her finger. She wasn’t nervous, exactly. After all, it was just a few words spoken by someone she didn’t even know. She would have preferred that it were just the three of them, but she couldn’t grudge Kerry’s wish to have people there.
Grumpy old antisocial beach bum.
She chastised herself, semi humorously.
C’mon, it’s not that big a step, and it’s only Duks, Mari,
Maria, and Colleen. Get over it.
Her page to her father had gone unanswered, and though part of her was concerned at that, another part was secretly relieved, and that was warring with the big slice battling off disappointment.
Well, they’d take pictures. He’d like that. Dar sighed, and straightened. The Jacuzzi caught her eye, and she decided a nice warm soak was a good idea. A thought occurred to her.
Bet Kerry would like
that too.
Another thought.
We have fresh raspberries and whipped
cream.
Brightening, Dar went back inside.
KERRY PUT THE last touches on her poem, then untangled herself from a snoozing Chino and trotted upstairs to put the parchment carefully away. Then she examined the white, casual outfit she’d picked out for the morning, cutoff denim shorts, and the soft white shirt that tied across her ribcage, exposing her belly.