Behind the Pine Curtain (30 page)

And she’s
out
, as they say.”

“Rene Wells, the bitch,” Kay hissed, then looked quickly at Lee Ann.

The girl was no doubt listening to every word.

“What are you talking about?”

“She came by the shop today, fishing for info about Jackie. I swear, just like in high school.”

Rose closed the lid, then walked closer. “You know, Kay, if something
was
going on with you and Jackie . . . I mean, not that I think it ever would . . . but if there was, you could tell me, you know. I wouldn’t freak out.”

Kay laughed nervously. “Oh, Rose, of course nothing’s going on. Don’t be silly. I’ve known Jackie forever. We’re just friends, and we’ll never be anything but that.” Kay cleared her throat. “And yes, you would freak out.”

Jacqueline stood in the hallway, her heart breaking as Kay’s words washed over her. What had she expected? Did she think Kay would confess to Rose that they’d made love last night? Did she think Kay was ready to embrace this change? She shook herself, finally moving into the kitchen. Kay’s eyes flew to her own.

“Forgot my tea,” she murmured.

“Jackie—”

Jacqueline stared into Kay’s eyes, acknowledging that she’d overheard.

She gave a slight nod, then walked away.

Oh God.
Kay closed her eyes, moving away from Rose, knowing the hurt she saw in Jackie’s eyes was because of her. What a hypocrite she was. In private, to herself—to Jackie—she could admit what she felt . . .

what she
was
. But to
Rose
? To any of her family? Could she? Could she say out loud that she and Jackie were now . . . lovers?

No. Not ever.

She couldn’t. Despite Rose’s words, she would never understand.

Mama would never understand. And not just that. She owned a business, for God’s sake! Would people still patronize her store? No, most likely, they would stay away in droves, and she would become the joke of Pine Springs.

“Kay? What’s wrong?”

Kay shook her head, reaching blindly for her glass of tea. “Nothing.

Just . . . hate that Jackie is leaving already,” she murmured. She took a deep breath, finally facing Rose, hoping the smile on her face looked genuine. “I’m going to miss her.”

“I know. But at least this time, you know she’ll be back.”

Kay wished she could be sure of that.

“But I’m tired of her taking all of Greg’s time. Now go tell them dinner is ready.” Rose turned to the kids. “Lee Ann, clean up the colors. Time for dinner.” Rose stuck her head into the hall. “Kay, tell Greg to get the twins,” she yelled.

Kay nodded, knowing very well that Greg, as well as the neighbors, had heard her. She found Jackie bent over Greg’s shoulder, the computer squeezed into a corner of Rose and Greg’s bedroom. They were both pointing at the monitor, and Kay allowed her eyes to travel the length of Jackie. In the short time it took, memories from last night flashed through her mind, causing Kay’s breath to catch, her heart to pound. As usual, Jackie felt her presence. She stood slowly, back straightening.

She turned her head, meeting Kay’s eyes. Kay saw Jackie’s eyes darken, and she wondered what Jackie had seen in her own.

Desire?
Could Jackie possibly know what thoughts were running through her mind right now?

“Greg, Rose wants you to get the twins,” Kay said quietly, her eyes never leaving Jackie.

“Yeah, I heard,” but he continued tapping away on the keyboard.

“I think she meant now. She’s a little cranky.”

“I’ve seen enough, Greg,” Jacqueline said. “You can e-mail me the rest.”

“Are you sure?”

“Sure,” Jacqueline said.

As soon as Greg left them alone, Kay moved closer, her eyes still locked on Jackie’s blue ones.

“I’m sorry,” she whispered.

“For?”

“For this morning. For what you overheard with Rose.” Her eyes slid shut. “For your leaving me again,” she whispered.

“Oh, Kay, I’m not leaving you. I’m leaving . . .
us
. It’ll be better for you if I’m gone.”

“No, Jackie. You’re leaving because I freaked out this morning and ran from you. You’re leaving because I couldn’t talk to you about it. And you’re leaving because of what I told Rose.”

Their eyes held.

“Yes,” Jacqueline admitted quietly. “Yes to all of those.”

“God, Jackie, I don’t want you to go. The thought of you leaving breaks my heart.”

Jacqueline took Kay’s hand and drew it to her, placing it above her left breast, holding it close. “It breaks my heart too.”

“Don’t go,” Kay whispered.

“I will never forget last night, Kay. You don’t know how special it was.”

“Yes I do.”

“You’re not ready to live this life, Kay. You know you’re not. Yo u may never be. But I’m too old, I’ve been out too long. I can’t go into the closet and hide this, Kay.”

“I’ve got my family to think about,” Kay said. “My business.” Kay shook her head. “Jackie, I could never be . . . be open about this.”

“I know. And that’s why I’m leaving.”

“Jackie, please, maybe give me some time—”

“
Girls? Dinner!
” Rose yelled.

Jacqueline squeezed Kay’s hand. “We’ll talk tonight.”

“I don’t want to talk tonight. I want to make love with you again,” Kay whispered.

Jacqueline’s eyes closed briefly. “God, Kay. You don’t know what those words do to me.”

Kay moved closer. “Just the thought of you touching me makes me weak, Jackie.”

Their eyes were locked together, their lips only inches apart when Rose yelled for them again.

“
Goddamn
,” Jacqueline murmured.

Kay squeezed her hand. “Come on, sweetie.”

Jacqueline felt her heart breaking once again as Kay released her hand.

She knew they would make love again tonight. And she also knew that she would still leave tomorrow.

I’m in love with her
.

The truth didn’t shock her. She admitted to herself she’d always been in love with Kay. Always. That’s why, year after year, she could never find anyone to chase Kay from her heart, could never find anyone to replace her.
And I’m leaving her again.
Because this time, Kay was choosing her family over Jacqueline.

“Jackie?”

Jacqueline nodded sadly. “Coming.”

Kay drove through town, having to force herself to mind the speed limit.

Dinner had been endless, and she wondered what Rose thought of her and Jackie’s silence. Silent, yes, but they couldn’t keep their eyes from one another. She looked in the mirror briefly, seeing Jackie following close behind. She couldn’t wait to be alone with her.

Jacqueline had a tight grip on the steering wheel, her eyes focused on the car ahead of her. She wondered if they would talk at all. The looks they shared over dinner suggested they would not. Kay’s eyes were smoldering, and it was all Jacqueline could do to keep breathing at a normal pace. In fact, it was all she could do to remain seated. Kay’s eyes promised . . .
so
much. They had made love last night, yes. But it had been tentative, hesitant at first. It was new for them as they learned what pleased the other. Tonight, oh tonight, there would be no hesitation. She could see it in each look Kay gave her. Her eyes blurred as she imagined Kay moving down her body, Kay’s hot mouth finding all her secret places, Kay’s mouth moving between her thighs to make her come.

“Sweet Jesus,” she murmured.

By the time she pulled into Kay’s driveway, she was nearly shaking with nervousness, with anticipation. She took a deep breath, the night air cool after the earlier rain. Closing her eyes, she tried to regain some control over her body. But when she opened them, Kay was there, waiting.

“Come inside, Jackie.”

The words, spoken so quietly, promised so much. Nodding, she followed Kay through the garage and into the kitchen. Kay didn’t bother with lights. She grasped Jacqueline’s hand and led her through the house. Jacqueline offered no protest. But when they walked into Kay’s bedroom, Jacqueline was nearly gasping for breath. Her heart was pounding so hard in her chest, it was nearly painful.

But she had no time to think. Kay turned, facing her, her hands sliding up Jacqueline’s arms as she took the one step necessary for their bodies to touch. Jacqueline moaned as she pulled Kay close, her lips seeking, finding Kay’s mouth. Kay’s mouth was as hungry as her own, and Jacqueline felt weak when warm hands found their way under her shirt.

Kay pulled away for only an instant, her blue eyes locking on Jackie’s.

“I want to make love to you until you’re begging me to stop,” she whispered. Her hands moved, covering Jackie’s breasts. She knew there would be no bra to hinder her.

“
Kay—
”

“And I’m going to make love to you like you made love to me.” She moaned as Jackie’s nipples hardened even more. “I’m going to . . .” She closed her eyes as one hand traveled down Jackie’s body, slipping intimately between her thighs. Jackie moved against her hand, and Kay could nearly feel her wetness through her jeans. “I want my mouth right there, Jackie.”

Jacqueline groaned, holding Kay’s hand to her, pressing it hard against her throbbing clit. Her knees literally buckled, and Kay was there, holding her. She found Kay’s mouth again, but it was Kay’s tongue that came out to do battle, leaving little doubt as to who was in control.

Before she could think, Kay had her naked, and Jacqueline watched as Kay removed the last of her own clothing. The bed was soft under her, and she licked her lips, waiting, watching, as Kay came to her.

“Tonight, you’re mine,” Kay murmured as her lips closed over an aching nipple.

“I’ve always been yours,” Jacqueline whispered. She closed her eyes, giving herself to Kay as Kay’s wet mouth traced a path lower across Jacqueline’s body. Expert hands spread her thighs, and Jacqueline quivered as Kay’s mouth covered her.

She knew, in that instant, she would never be the same.

The early morning chill woke her, and she reached out, trying to find Jackie’s warm body. But the bed was empty.

Kay sat up, listening to the silence. She closed her eyes.
Please be here.

She walked barefoot through the empty house, her hand trembling as she turned the doorknob to Jackie’s room.

“No, no, no,” she murmured. She ran into the kitchen, impatiently shoving the curtains away from the window.
Oh, Jackie
.

The black Lexus was gone. Kay let the curtains fall back into place as she sunk down to the floor, not trying to stop the tears that poured from her eyes.

Jackie was gone.

Jacqueline stood on her balcony, cursing the fog. It was nearly June.

Where was the sunshine?

But she knew where it was. Her sunshine was in a tiny town in East Texas. She brought her hand to her chest, trying to chase away the hurt.

Six weeks had done nothing to ease the ache in her heart.

She went back inside, her eyes moving around the familiar room, her desk and computer mocking her. She’d not been able to write since she’d been back. She made a couple of half-hearted attempts, but she had no flow, no rhythm. Her only saving grace was that she had no deadline looming. She had finished the last of her edits before she left Pine Springs.

Before she left Kay.

It seemed like the right thing to do at the time—leaving. The longer she stayed there, the deeper she would get. Kay, too, for that matter. She closed her eyes, still able to recall with exact clarity, how it felt to have Kay’s mouth on her. And if she’d stayed, they would have continued their
affair
, their secret affair. And Jacqueline knew, for awhile at least, she would have been content to hide what they had. But not indefinitely.

That’s not who she was. She’d been run out of town once because she refused to hide. She wasn’t about to start now. But Kay, oh Kay, couldn’t be open about it. Her family, her business came first.

It was ironic, really. Kay was worried about losing her business, and here Jacqueline was, with more money than she knew what to do with.

To say she had been astounded by her father’s wealth would be an understatement. Obviously, Madeline had been surprised as well. The portion that he left her would allow her to live as exorbitantly as she wished for the rest of her days. But still, that evidently was not enough to convince her to drop the suit she filed, even though two judges had ruled against her. John Lawrence said Madeline’s other option was to contest the will and the bequest of Pine Springs Lumber to Jacqueline.

And apparently she had fond memories of the beach house on Padre Island. She wanted that as well. Jacqueline shook her head. She couldn’t understand her mother’s obsession with Keys Industries, the lumber mill, with Jacqueline herself. Why would she want the headache of owning Keys Industries when she now had
millions
and nothing but time to spend it?

But really, it hadn’t been a headache. She and Greg communicated almost daily by e-mail and spoke on the phone a couple of times each week. No, Greg had things running smoothly. Jacqueline had no worries there.

No, her only worries were personal. Like how was she ever going to recover from Kay? When was she going to be able to get on with her life? And would she ever let another woman touch her?

She glanced at the phone lying next to her computer. Every day she had to fight the urge to call Kay, to see how she was doing. Obviously, she was making out okay. It wasn’t like Kay had been calling either. After her initial inquiry as to how Kay was, she and Greg avoided the subject.

And Greg wasn’t stupid. Surely he knew the reason she left so abruptly.

Surely
everyone
knew. But his words still troubled her. Kay had been very quiet, he said. Kay had pulled away from them again, just like she did after her divorce. The thought that Kay had withdrawn from her family—the thought that Kay was alone—bothered Jacqueline more than she wanted to admit. Yes, it was her fault. Part of it. But it was also Kay’s fault. She would never have moved their relationship to such an intimate level if Kay hadn’t initiated it. Because she knew that Kay couldn’t handle it, and she knew that she would be leaving again.