”Okay, that’s better.” The mare was apparently encouraged, and she sped up, matching her stable mate’s pace. ”Good girl, yeah, that’s it.”

She gripped hard with her knees and leaned forward, as the mare caught up to Dar’s horse and she came even with her lover, who was grinning happily. ”Very nice Dar, very nice. I like this,” she shouted.

”You do?” The blue eyes twinkled merrily. ”Great!” With that, she leaned forward and gave the stallion a nudge, pushing him from a canter into a full gallop, as the path opened up into a long, narrow grassy area. ”C’mon!”

”Oh boy.” Kerry settled down and hung on, as her mare sped up doggedly to match the gray horse, her pace moving into a gallop that whipped the wind past Kerry’s ears and made her eyes tear up. It was very shaky for a moment, then she relaxed a little and began to enjoy it.

”Yeah!” She urged the mare forward. ”Go get ‘em.”

The two horses raced alongside each other, the grass whipping against their legs, and the wind tearing across their laughing riders’

forms.

Dar let the race continue until she knew they were coming to a narrowing in the path. She gently pulled the stallion up, and allowed Kerry to thunder past her. Kerry quickly started to slow when she saw Dar do so. She half stood in her stirrups and pulled back on the reins as the mare reluctantly slowed. They cantered down the narrowing path and up into a steepening slope for the next part of the ride. ”Wow, that was fun.” Kerry grinned. ”Brings back a lot of good memories.” She exhaled and caught her breath.

Dar gazed at her, smiling at the way the activity had brought a ready flush to her face. ”Yeah? For me too.” She slowed her mount to a walk, patting the warm neck with an idle hand. ”Here.” She handed over a water bottle.

”Thanks.” Kerry gratefully accepted it, and sucked down a mouthful, tasting the mineral tang of the local water as she swallowed.

”Oo, do you see that squirrel, Dar?” She pointed with the bottle at a bushy brownish red animal, who was clutching to the far side of a tree Hurricane Watch

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near the path, peering at them suspiciously.

”Sure do.” Dar slowed her horse and stopped him, then carefully fished a handful of nuts from her pouch, and tossed one at the ground under the squirrel's tree.

Then she waited, sitting in perfect silence, the wind blowing stray tendrils of dark hair about her face.

The squirrel peered at her, then slowly inched down the tree and scampered across the leaves, sniffing at her offering warily.

Kerry watched her lover, the angular face quietly intent, pale blue eyes flicking minutely as she watched the squirrel pick up the nut and nibble it. A smile pulled at Dar’s lips as she tossed another nut down, and the squirrel scampered right over to snatch it, apparently assured of her harmlessness.

Too bad I didn’t bring my camera, Kerry mused. Dar Roberts feeding squirrels. No one would believe it. I’d put it on my desktop as a wallpaper. ”He’s cute,” she commented softly, getting a suspicious glance from their tiny friend. ”Yeah, you,” she told him.

Dar shifted her eyes to Kerry, then she held a nut up at about shoulder level, near the tree the squirrel had been perching on.

Obligingly, the animal scuttled up the bark, edging around until his head was level with hers, and they could see his earnest brown eyes.

”Here you go,” Dar murmured softly, holding it closer.

”D...” Kerry held her breath, watching the creatures sharp teeth get closer to her lover’s hand.

One clawed foot worked itself loose and made a grab for the nut, brushing Dar’s fingers as she released it. The squirrel darted around the back of the tree, and onto a branch, where he sat, nibbling the nut and chittering at her impudently.

One long finger pointed at him. ”Watch it, buddy. There are Fortune 500 CEO’s who’ve gotten less from me with a whole lot more trouble.” She warned the animal, then pressed her knees into her horse’s side and moved away from the tree.

Kerry joined her, glancing back at the squirrel, who was watching her with a vaguely disappointed air. ”That was pretty amazing.”

Dar glanced at her. ”What, that he ate nuts?” She raised an eyebrow. ”No it wasn’t.”

A gentle laugh. ”Okay, if you say so,” Kerry agreed amiably. ”But I know you wouldn’t have caught me getting my hands that close to something with teeth that sharp.”

Dar just laughed, and led the way upward.

It was a pleasant ride, mostly in the shade, mostly passing quiet trees and soft mossy rocks. The scent of the forest was strong around them, and the cold air brushed against their skin. Finally, the climb let out on a small plateau, which sloped to a rock surrounded spring. It was sunny, and Kerry found a smile crossing her face as they pulled the horses to a halt and she leaned back in the saddle. ”Wow. This is nice.”


242

Melissa Good

”Thanks. Glad you like it.” Dar shook her boots free of her stirrups and swung her leg over her stallion’s neck, dropping down off his back and landing with a little thump. ”Whoo.” She stretched cautiously, moderately pleased at the relative lack of stiffness. ”You up for some lunch?” She laid a hand on the mare’s neck. ”There’s a nice spot over there. I used to come up here and just spend some time, listening to the water and,” she paused, ”mostly just thinking.”

”Sure.” Kerry got off her mare in a more conventional manner, getting her boots on the ground and easing her knees straight. ”Oh brother.” She rubbed her thigh. ”I’m going to feel this, that’s for sure.”

Dar took the mare’s reins. ”Come over here. I’ll get the lunch and try to work the kinks out of you, okay?” She felt a little guilty about dragging Kerry out on a ride this long. ”You could have said you wanted to do something shorter.”

”No, no. I’m fine.” Kerry tensed and relaxed her quadriceps.

”Really.” She walked gingerly after her lover, feeling the cramping ease as she kept moving. ”It was great. It was definitely worth it, Dar.”

”Uh huh.” Dar tied the horses under a tree, where there was a patch of mostly dried but still edible grass. She removed the lunch pack, carrying it with her as she guided Kerry up to a sunny spot near the spring. She set the pack down and dropped to the ground next to it, patting the earth. ”Siddown.”

Kerry did so, cautiously stretching her legs out in front of her and leaning back on her hands. ”I feel bowlegged. That horse is a lot bigger than the ones I rode.” She studied her mare. ”A lot chunkier, too.”

Dar chuckled, and eased down with one knee between her lover’s calves. ”Okay just relax.” She began to work on the tense muscles under the snug denim.

”Ungh.” Kerry closed her eyes in pleasure and exhaled. ”You are sooo good at that.” She relaxed as the long fingers worked their magic, easing the tight cramping.

”Better?” Dar finished, patting her leg lightly.

”Uh huh,” Kerry agreed, gazing at her through half closed eyes.

”Do I get a repeat when we get back?”

Dar settled on the ground cross legged, tucking her boots under her knees and pulling the pack over. ”Sure,” she answered with a chuckle.

”That hot Jacuzzi sounds good, doesn’t it?”

”Mmmmm.” Kerry sat up and gingerly crossed her legs. ”You bet.

Whacha got?”

Dar pulled out packages containing sandwiches. ”Chicken sandwiches,” she told her companion innocently, handing Kerry hers.

”Just like you asked for.”

Kerry peeked under the wrapping and burst into laughter. ”Dar, you are just a...a...” She slapped the taller woman on the leg. ”You’re so bad.” She smoothed the paper out and sighed. ”Smells good, though,”

she admitted, as the scent of the crispy fried chicken sandwich rose to Hurricane Watch

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her. ”What else?”

Dar pulled out two padded cases and handed one to Kerry.

”Newest gadget, keeps things warm for over three hours.” She opened up a large napkin onto the ground and set her case on it, then pulled out small dispensers of salt, pepper, and three small jars.

”What in th...” Kerry unzipped the container, and was surprised when steam escaped, bathing her face in a gentle, familiar scent. ”You brought Mr. Potato Head on a wilderness picnic?”

Dar peered inside. ”Yep.” She indicated her own container. ”I have salt, butter, pepper, chives, sour cream, and bacon bits for them, too,”

she announced in a satisfied tone, as she speared a mini carrot with a toothpick and stuck it in Kerry’s potato. ”There. I even brought you a carrot.” She pointed. ”Look, Mr. Potato Head has a nose.”

Kerry removed it and stuck it in her mouth.” Not anymore,” she disagreed, munching the carrot.

”What about an ear?” Dar next poked a bit of cold broccoli in place, and then evaded Kerry’s hands and added a slice of melon as a mouth.

”There.”

”Stop it.” Kerry slapped her. ”Stop playing with my food, Dar, or I’ll turn Mr. Potato Head into Mashed Potatoes ala Dar’s shirt.”

Dar took the hint and chuckled, then broke open her own potato and applied everything to it she could get her hands on. ”Steven sort of reminded me of a Mr. Potato Head.” She commented wryly. ”Must have been those ears.”

Kerry laughed, as she neatly sliced up her lunch and ate it. ”Yeah, maybe. I’ll have to get you one of those to keep in your office.”

A dark brow cocked. ”So when I say 'off with his head' I can demonstrate?” she inquired wryly. ”No thanks. It sends a very mixed message.” She finished up her sandwich and scooted back a little, leaning against a sun warmed rock and stretching her legs out. Kerry tucked her wrappers away as well and crawled over to her, snuggling up against her chest and relaxing as Dar wound an arm around her waist and she leaned back.

Dar felt the warmth of the rock at her back, and the warmth of her lover against her, and decided it was about the most pleasant feeling she’d ever had. She gazed over Kerry’s shoulder, watching the running spring with a peaceful sense of contentment.

And familiarity. Her brow creased. No, she and Kerry had never done this before, that she was pretty sure of, and yet...

She gave Kerry a little squeeze, and Kerry reciprocated by pressing a hand against hers, and laying her other hand on Dar’s leg, stroking it gently.

Dar could smell the clean scent of shampoo, where Kerry’s head was resting just under her chin. Dar let her cheek drop a little, to rest against it, feeling a sudden wash of strong familiarity that brought a faint, pained smile to her face.


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Melissa Good

It was her dream, one of them. One of those strange ones, where she clearly remembered resting in a quiet glade not too different from this one, with the soft sound of water and the smell of the forest around them. She’d been leaning on a rock, her arm wrapped around a warm, somnolent body, whose fingers had gently traced across her thigh just...

Exactly...

As they were now.

Dar shivered in pure reflex, her eyes opening, as a silver hued image of the dream flashed through her mind.

”Hey?” Kerry turned to look up at her. ”What’s wrong?”

A soft exhale. ”Just a bit of, I don’t know, déjà vu, I guess.” She forced a laugh. ”Or something from a dream I—”

Kerry's eyebrows knit. ”You know, I get that a lot around you,” she commented casually. ”Or, I have these weird dreams where you and I are doing really strange stuff.”

Dar gazed at her. ”Me too,” she admitted softly. ”Like just now.”

Her eyes shifted. ”I think I had a dream a lot like this, trees, water, you and I lying like this. I was holding onto you.” She paused, considering.

”Weird.”

Kerry shrugged. ”It happens. I used to have dreams like that when I was in school, about stuff going on there. It’s just your brain cleaning house.”

”Yeah,” Dar agreed, feeling a sense of relief. ”You’re right. Hey.”

She picked up a flat stone and flipped it towards the spring. ”Can you do that?”

”Oh god, I’ve always wanted to, figures you can.” Kerry dug into the ground next to them and came up with a couple more relatively flat stones. ”Here, teach me.”

With a tender smile, Dar reached and arm around her and guided her arm, feeling a sweet echo in her words. ”Okay, like this, sideways.”

They spent a very pleasant hour just tossing rocks and snuggling in the sun, as the horses contentedly cropped grass, and the sun rose over head. Finally Dar patted her leg.” You ready to head back?”