Kerry kept still, watching Dar’s face, seeing only intent thought behind her expression. “I know. It’s hard,” she agreed softly. “Telling my family was hard. I’ve never felt embarrassed by it, but I knew they’d be.”

“Mm.”

“I think it will make them uncomfortable.”

Dar nodded. “I think you’re right.”

Kerry inhaled, surprised at how difficult it was to get the words out. “So, I think it’s better if you go without me, this time.”

“It’d make them more comfortable if that’s what I did,” Dar agreed softly. “They’re a very traditional family.”

A breath. “So that’s what you’ll do, right?”

“No.” Dar’s voice was quite calm, and almost amused. “If I was in the business of making people comfortable, I’d be an airline flight attendant. I’m not. I’m an individualistic nonconformist with a lot more attitude than sense, so if they can’t accept the fact that I’m gay and I’m married to you, they can just kiss my ass.” She leaned over and brushed Red Sky At Morning 131

Kerry’s lips with her own, feeling the small gust of surprise as her lover reacted and exhaled. “But thanks for offering. And by the way, I think you missed a spot.”

Hmm. Kerry resumed scrubbing, a dumb grin on her face. “Did I?”

She worked her way up Dar’s belly to her breasts, making very sure there were no lurking patches of mud. “I’ll just have to go over everything twice.” Her hands slid over Dar’s collarbone and across her shoulders as she licked the warm droplets of water off the skin in front of her nose. “Mm.”

A light touch behind her neck moved her hair back, then Dar’s teeth were taking tiny nibbles out of her throat as their bodies slid together and she felt Dar’s thigh between her own. She forgot the sponge, letting it drop.

Dar felt like her body was on fire, not from the water coursing over both of them but from Kerry’s touch, dancing over her skin in gentle motions that teased her senses, running down her sides.

She had a feeling that getting up in the morning was going to be a problem.

Of course, they could just solve that by not going to sleep.

KERRY LET OUT a sigh and burrowed into her fluffy robe as they watched dawn start to color the sky across the water. “We’re going to be so toasted by tonight, you do realize that, right?”

Dar sipped slowly on a cup of fresh coffee, closing her eyes as a gust of cool salt air brushed across her face. “Oh yeah. I’m glad I decided to go into the office today. I’d have probably driven off Card Sound road into the Florida straits on the way back from the base, otherwise.” She offered the cup to Kerry, who took it. “Besides, I’ve got a pile of stuff to take care of here.”

“Me, too.”

They swung quietly in the rope chair for a few minutes. “Guess we’d better get started, huh?” Kerry finally sighed. “I know I need a run to wake me up.” She turned her head to look up at Dar. “Unless you want to maybe go over to the gym this morning. I could do circuit, too.”

Dar nodded. “Yeah.” She winced a little and exhaled. “I think I pulled a little bit of something in my back doing that crazy stunt last night. Running isn’t the best idea. I think stretching everything out makes more sense.”

Kerry squirmed around and slid a hand behind Dar’s back, probing gently. “Where you got hurt?” She saw Dar nod a tiny bit. “Goofball,”

she scolded. “I’ve been telling you to have Dr. Steve check that out, Dar, you never did go back for another scan.”

Dar scowled. “It hasn’t bothered me in weeks,” she protested.

“Must have been crawling through that tunnel that did it.”

“Tunnel?” Kerry queried. “Oh, Jesus. That explains why you had 132 Melissa Good bruises on your knees.” She sighed. “Well, come on. Let’s go get dressed, and see if we can work your kinks out.” Neither of them moved, however, and Dar managed to get a snuggly hold on her that turned into a cuddle, which turned into some kissing, which...

“This is not getting us anywhere,” Kerry murmured.

“Sure it is,” Dar replied. “It’s just not getting us dressed and headed to the gym.” She resumed suckling on Kerry’s earlobe, earning a soft grunt of pleasure from her lover. Her hands were already inside the loosened wrap of Kerry’s bathrobe, and she ran a light, tickling touch over the ribs she could feel as Kerry inhaled.

“Hey,” Kerry laughed softly.

Dar kissed her, then relented, and backed off to rub noses. “Tell you what. I’m going to invent an afternoon meeting we both have to attend, and we’re gonna leave early.”

“Yes, ma’am,” Kerry agreed. “So let’s get moving. The sooner this day starts, the sooner it ends.”


Chapter

Eight

“MAMÁ.” MAYTE SLIPPED inside the outer office of Señora Dar, where her mother was sorting mail. “I just heard something very bad.”

“Sí?” María looked up. “What is it now? Is Jose flirting with the new señorita in Accounting once again?”

“No.” The slim girl looked upset. She walked over and sat down next to her mother’s desk. “It’s about Ms. Kerry.”

María was very surprised. Rumors about her boss, yes, that she was used to; and just after Kerrisita had joined them, she had heard the things they had said about the two of them when they were together.

They had made such a cute couple; it was true. “What have you heard?” she asked her daughter, realizing that Mayte looked very anxious.

Mayte fiddled with her hands. “They are saying that Ms. Kerry, she was with a man here, at night last night, after we all left.”

María’s jaw dropped. “Come mierda,” she snorted.

Mayte’s eyes opened wide. “¡ Mamá!” She was shocked. “Someone was here, and they said they heard them, that she was with her hands all over this man and everything!”

“Who is saying that?” the older woman asked agitatedly. “Who is passing these lies? I want to know this, Mayte, right now!”

“B...b...” Mayte stammered. “Mamá, I heard it in the break room.

Everyone is saying it.”

María drummed her perfectly painted nails on her desk. “Why would they say this? Why would anyone want to hurt Kerrisita?” She thought a minute, then dialed a number on her phone. “Sí, Ricardo? Can you check for me the log, please? Was there someone to visit Ms. Stuart last night?”

There was the sound of ruffling papers. “Looks like...” Ricardo paused, then ruffled some more. “Oh yeah, here it is. Yeah...she had a guy come up last night. ’Round six-thirty, I guess.”

Mayte and María looked at each other in stunned shock. “May I have his name, por favor?” María asked quietly. “I need to send him something.”

“Sure. Roberts,” Ricardo answered genially. “Andrew Roberts.”

María covered her eyes with one hand. “Gracias, Ricardo. I will 134 Melissa Good speak with you later.” She released the phone. “Jesu…”

Mayte blinked. “Who is that, Mamá? Do you know him?”

“Sí.” María looked troubled. “He is Dar’s papá. He is a very nice, a very sweet man. He is very much accepting of Kerrisita; she is like another daughter to him.”

“Ay.” The younger woman exhaled. “I have heard her speak of him. There is a picture in the office, I think.”

“Sí. That is Dar’s mamá and papá. It was very hard, I have told you, when Kerrisita had such troubles with her family.” María was thinking hard as she spoke. “Mayte, we must fix this problem,” she told her daughter firmly. “I cannot let this be said about Kerrisita. Dar will be so upset.”

Mayte blinked. “Oh.”

“We must find who is saying this.” María got up. “Come. We will go to someplace where I know that all the talk gets to be heard.” She led the way out of the office and down the hall. As they passed the break room she could hear the chatter, and Kerry’s name, and she grew very angry. “Do they not have better things to be doing?” She stopped and peered inside. “Go to work!” she told the startled occupants.

“Vámonos!”

Mayte just looked at her as the assorted administrative assistants and junior clerks bolted from the room, streaming down the hallway like an assortment of colorful birds.

“I am getting very bold, no?” María asked. “I am learning from Dar.”“Yes, Mamá,” Mayte murmured as they continued off down the hall.

At the end of the long walk, María lifted a hand and knocked on the thick metal door before them, waiting a few seconds, then knocking again.

“Hang on; hold your chupacabras.” The door swung open. “Oh...”

Josh, one of Mark’s assistants, blinked. “Hi, María. What’s up?”

“Shoo shoo.” María waved him backward. “I am here to speak with Mark. He is here?”

“Uh...uh...sure...um...he’s in his office...but I—”

“Tch tch.” María brushed by him and circled the equipment-packed console, where three techs were busy monitoring different screens.

Mark’s office was in the back and she made for it, reaching out to tap on the half-closed door.

“Look,” Mark’s voice floated out, “I don’t give a crap what you think. If you can’t deal with other people having private lives that are not your business, find another place to work, dude.”

María hesitated, listening.

“From what I hear, it ain’t that private,” a softer, less distinct voice answered.

“Don’t start that shit,” Mark warned. “I’m telling you right now, Red Sky At Morning 135

Brent. Don’t talk about them, don’t repeat bullshit you hear at the urinal, and keep your redneck attitudes out of the office or I’ll bounce you right on out of here.”

“For what?” The response was outraged. “For having an opinion?”

“For insubordination and fucking with the antidiscrimination regs,” Mark stated.

“What about everyone else? They’re—”

“Everyone else ain’t in Dar’s chain of command,” the MIS chief interrupted. “You are.”

There was a moment of silence. “Fine,” Brent finally said. “Can I go now? I got stuff to do.”

“Sure,” Mark replied. “Take off.”

The door swung open a moment later and Brent emerged, his face crimson. He almost crashed headlong into María and Mayte, and he paused to stare at them for a few seconds before he brushed by and left.

María eyed him, then she shook her head and walked into Mark’s office.

“Hey.” Mark looked up, pausing in the act of listening to his voice mail. “Guess you heard.” He chewed his lower lip. “About last night, I mean.”

“Of course,” María agreed. “And we are going to fix it.”

“Fix it?”

“Sí. You have the little program there, that goes to all the PCs?”

María folded her hands. “That makes the funny noise, no?”

“Our messenger service, yeah,” Mark replied, puzzled. “What about it?”

“I want you to send a message, please, from me, to all the people, yes?”

“Okaaay...” Mark sat down slowly. “What kind of message?”

“I will write it.” María took a piece of paper and one of Mark’s cushion grip roller balls and got to work. Mark watched her, twisting his head to one side to read the upside-down letters.

His eyes widened. “Oh boy.”

DAR HAD TAKEN a breath to say good morning to María when she opened the outer door and realized the office was empty. She closed her mouth with a faint click of teeth meeting and entered, shouldering her laptop as she made her way across the quiet space and into her inner office.

The sun was pouring across the floor and she stepped into it, feeling the faint warmth through the fabric of her skirt as she circled her desk and put her briefcase down. She pulled the leather chair out, and settled into it with a tiny sigh.

“Morning, guys.” She greeted her Siamese fighting fish, removing their jar of food from her desk drawer and sprinkling a little bit into the small tank. Her chin resting on one fist, she watched the fish gobble 136 Melissa Good their breakfasts before she sighed again and turned her attention to her monitor.

“Wonder what disasters we have to deal with this morning?” Dar asked the empty office, spinning her trackball to douse her screensaver and reveal her running programs. Her eyebrows contracted slightly when she saw the blinking Dogbert head in the lower corner, and she clicked on it to bring up the corporate messaging alert the symbol represented.

Slowly, Dar’s head tilted to one side, then the other, then she leaned forward and blinked as she read the message. “What in the hell?”