Ronnie jerked upright, her eyes looking very much like those of a deer blinded by headlights.

“Um, n-no…” She swallowed, her throat suddenly dry. “Why do you ask?”


“I just wondered.” Rose now hesitated, the question not seeming like such a good idea anymore.

“It’s just…well, you like it so much. I would hope someone did this for you before.”


“Chris and I…” Ronnie searched for the right words. “We weren’t…” It was a tossup between which was drier, her lips or her throat. “We weren’t physically close. There wasn’t much cuddling.” She sat up completely and shifted until she was facing Rose. “I thought it was true love then.” A scornful laugh revealed the old pain. “Now I know better.” She lowered her head and looked at her hands. Rose remained silent, sensing Ronnie struggling with some inner demon. Finally the tall woman chose the easy way out. “At least the sex was good.”


“You know I hate Chris for hurting you like that.” She reached out and put her fingers under the strong chin, forcing the blue eyes to meet hers. “And I don’t hate many people in this world.”


Ronnie took the hand away from her chin and held it within her own. “Funny.” She looked down at their hands, her thumb idly brushing across the smaller woman’s knuckles. “I feel the same way about people that hurt you.” She paused for a moment, fear threatening to keep the words trapped inside. “You are very special to me, Rose.” Her head raised and for several long seconds they stared at each other.


Rose wasn’t sure if she was excited or afraid as her heart began beating double-time. Her lips parted slightly in subconscious invitation. She was just about to move forward when she saw the radiant blue eyes flicker and look away.


“I think that’s enough serious talk for tonight,” Ronnie said, reluctantly releasing the hold on the young woman’s hand. The magical spell was broken and both felt a keen sense of disappointment. Another lost opportunity…another chance not taken.


Rose was still thinking about that moment long after they had settled down for the night. She turned her face to look at the sleeping woman beside her.Careful not to disturb her companion, she propped herself on her right elbow and tucked her hair behind her ear. Hesitantly she lowered her lips to Ronnie’s cheek, planting the softest of kisses there. Her eyes adjusted to the dark, Rose saw as much as felt the small smile come to the sleeping face. “I love you,” she whispered before lying back on her pillows. Intertwining her fingers with those resting on her belly, the young woman closed her eyes.


“Love you too,” Ronnie mumbled sleepily, unconsciously snuggling closer. The voice startled Rose for a minute before she realized her friend was still sleeping. She turned her cheek to rest against the dark head and soon fell asleep herself.



* * *

Ronnie opened the TV Guide and began to read off the options. “‘A Walk in the Clouds’ is on. We saw that one already. ‘Sabrina’, that’s boring.” She turned the page. “Let’s see what’s on pay per view.” A gentle tug on her wrist forced her to shift the guide so Rose could look on with her.


“There’s that new Jim Carrey movie,” the young woman offered.


“I hate Jim Carrey. Look, Bruce Willis blows up another building.”


“I hate action movies. Let’s watch a romantic one.”


“Why a romance and not a comedy?”


“Well, it is Valentine’s Day, silly.”


“If two people are really in love they don’t need a day to celebrate it.”


“Veronica Cartwright, you are such a cynic. Give me that.” Rose took the TV Guide and began thumbing through the pages. “You know we could play a game or something if you would rather. I see you’re two levels higher than me on ‘Rescuer of the Maiden’.” She laughed at the sheepish grin on the older woman’s face. “What do you do, play when I’m asleep?”


“It’s addictive. Come on, find something for us to watch.”


Fifteen minutes later the television still offered no suitable programs to watch. “There are what, a hundred, hundred and fifty channels on this and we can’t find a thing to watch?”


“That’s because you don’t want to watch any love stories and I don’t want to watch any of those shoot-em-up blow-em-up movies,” Rose replied.


“So much for television.” Ronnie pressed the off button and tossed the remote onto the coffee table. “This is a thrilling Valentine’s Day.”


“If you’re bored then let’s do something different.”


“Like what?”


“We could play a game or do each others nails or something.” Rose was also at a loss for what to do. Although she had never believed it could happen, she was actually quite bored at the moment. In two months time they had managed to watch every movie Ronnie owned and played every game in the house several times. There really was not much else to do except… “Talk.”


“Hmm?”


“Let’s make some hot chocolate, sit back, and talk. You know, one of our infamous girl chats.” Rose’s eyes held a twinkle of mischief.


“And what exactly would be the topic of conversation tonight? I am not doing ‘relive your most embarrassing moments’ again.”


“Oh come on, you learned some pretty embarrassing things about me too,” the young woman chided.


“Well, that’s true,” Ronnie conceded. “And you do turn the cutest shade of red. Okay, I’m game but let’s go out in the kitchen and make dinner while we’re talking.”


Fifteen minutes later Rose was sitting at the kitchen table cutting onions while Ronnie was standing at the island slicing mushrooms. “Answer me something,” the young woman queried while wiping at the endless stream of tears, “Why am I the one who always ends up cutting up the onion?”


“Oh, I can’t stand them, makes me cry,” the older woman said cheekily.


“You’re lucky you’re not within my reach, Miss Cartwright,” she playfully warned. Ronnie poured the steaming hot chocolate into two mugs, then added mini-marshmallows. She brought one to the table and set it down within the young woman’s reach.


“I’m within your reach now, what are you going to do about it?” The intelligent executive realized her mistake a second later when small fingers slipped around her waist and began to tickle unmercifully. “Oh, hey now, heh heh, come on now, Rose, I was only joking.” She backed away out of reach of the playful hands. “You just wait…” she said between breaths. “When you’re out of this chair…I’ll get even with you.”


“Yeah, you and what army?” Rose was beaming at her, obviously quite proud of herself. “It seems to me I only need my two hands to defeat you, oh mighty warrior of the corporate world.”


“That’s because you know my weaknesses,” Ronnie replied.She walked behind the chair and put her hands on the smaller woman’s shoulders.

“And one weakness right now is that I’m starving. You want your steak broiled or sauteed?”


“Surprise me.”


“Sauteed you said? Coming right up.” She gave a gentle squeeze and went over to the refrigerator. “Oh, there are eclairs for dessert.”


“Sounds great. Maria always picks out the best food,” Rose said. “You were practically drooling over the chicken last night.”


“Another one of my weaknesses,” she said while retrieving the steaks and butter.


“I’ll have to tell your prospective suitors that the way to your heart is through your stomach.”


Ronnie thought to herself. “And what about you? What secret things should I know to tell your prospective suitors?” She watched as Rose’s attention turned to anything but her. “What’s that? I didn’t understand you.”


“Um…” Her fingers traced the delicate pattern of her doily. “I dunno,” she finally answered with a shrug. “I guess I never really thought about what I would want in a lover.”


“Okay, so think about it now. Let’s start with the basics: tall, dark and handsome. Now what else?” She put the steaks on to cook, grabbed her mug, and headed for the table.


“Well, I guess I’d want someone who was intelligent, thoughtful, had a sense of humor but was not a practical joker, no problems with gambling or drugs or anything like that.”


“Would be attentive to your needs and wants…”


“But not at the expense of their own,” Rose interjected.


“Right,” she agreed.Her eyebrow rose slightly. “Okay, what else?”


“Hmm.” The young woman tapped her finger on the tip of her chin. “Oh, well there’s honesty and trust. I’d have to know they would never lie to me. There has to be that trust.”


“Don’t forget that he’d have to be able to fulfill your every desire.”


Rose seemed to mull a thought over in her head for a moment before speaking. “I don’t know how our parents did it. Waiting until they were married to have sex.”


“Um, I hate to clue you my friend, but I don’t think they waited. I mean, would you buy a car without first taking it for a test drive?”


“Yeah, maybe that’s why so many trade theirs in after a few years.”


“I think they’re just looking for a newer model.”


“Maybe what they’re really looking for isn’t a car at all,” Rose offered nervously.


“Perhaps.” Ronnie took a deep breath and plunged ahead into dangerous territory. “Not everyone is interested in cars.”


“And that’s fine,” the young woman blurted quickly. “If someone would rather have a truck than a car, more power to them.”


“Whatever makes them happy, I guess.”Another thought occurred to the dark-haired woman.a“There are even those that like both.”


“Some people aren’t sure what they like.” Rose looked up for a split-second then back down at the table. “Maybe they thought they liked cars but now they think they want a truck.”


Ronnie let out a deep breath.“Um, well…t-that’s okay too. But I think they should take their time and not rush into anything because of what they think someone else might like.” She noted the nervous fingers tapping the ceramic handle.

“Especially if they’re not sure.”“Maybe they’ve only driven cars and now they have a friend who likes trucks. They may think they want a truck too but they really don’t.”


“So you’re saying they shouldn’t rush into anything, even if they really feel that they want a truck?” came the soft voice as green eyes raised up to meet Ronnie’s.


“Have they ever wanted a truck before?” As much as the metaphors were driving her nuts, the older woman did not want to do anything that might spook the obviously nervous Rose.


“No.”


“I think the best thing is for the person to just spend some time riding around with their friend to see if they really like trucks.”The smell of sizzling meat gave her the perfect excuse. “Damn, I forgot about the steaks.” Ronnie hopped up and went to the island. “Good, they’re still fine. Now you see why Maria doesn’t like me cooking.”