Fresh Tracks (28 page)

"I'm good."

Silence settled upon them once again. Darby swore under her breath and leaned to her left,

willing her character in the game to do the same, but it didn't help. "Game Over" flashed onto the screen. The irony was not lost on Darby as she looked down to study the controls

in her hands.

"You two.. .fix things?" she asked softly, trying hard not to absorb the scent of Molly sitting so close.

"I wouldn't go that far." Molly caught herself, immediately feeling guilty for her dismissive tone. "But we're working on it."

Darby still didn't look up and her voice remained quiet. "And that's what you want?" '

"Yeah," Molly said hoarsely. "It's what I want."

Darby finally lifted her head, her blue eyes boring directly into Molly's, intense, imploring.

"Does she make you happy, Molly?" It was a simple question, but it meant everything.

Molly's gaze never wavered, even though she was surprised by the query. She had to

consciously keep herself from breaking into a huge grin, but she did allow a kind smile to

peek through. "I love her, Darby. Despite everything she and I have been through...and

despite what you and I have been through, I love her with all my heart and I'd be a fool to

let her go without fighting for her." She felt like she should say something more and she shifted her position on the floor. "I'm sorry."

"No," Darby stated firmly. "Don't say that. Don't be sorry. I'm not. Do I wish things had turned out differently? For me, yes. For you?" She paused, briefly lost in her own thoughts about what might have been. "I don't think so. I think you're right where you're supposed to be. You're an amazing woman, Molly, and you deserve to be happy. If it's Kristin who can

give that to you, then more power to her. She's a lucky girl." Molly flushed a light shade of pink that Darby thought was adorable and she bumped Molly's shoulder affectionately.

"And stop with the blushing or I won't be able to control myself."

"I think you're the amazing one," Molly said with sincerity. "You're going to make some woman very lucky one of these days."

Darby grimaced with disdain. "I doubt that. I think maybe I'm not cut out for a real

relationship."

Molly's voice was strong as she surprised Darby by grabbing her chin and forcing her to

make eye contact. "Don't do that. Don't sell yourself short. You're a wonderful woman.

You're smart and sexy and kind and you will find the right person. I guarantee it."

The beginnings of a small grin crept across Darby's face and she was touched by Molly's

sincerity. "You guarantee it, huh?"

"Absolutely."

Darby's voice dropped to a whisper. "Thanks, Molly."

"No," Molly said as she leaned over and kissed Darby tenderly on the cheek. "Thank you."

She patted Darby chastely on the thigh and pushed herself to her feet with a groan. "I

suppose I'd better get my stuff together, too, and get my butt home. Back to work

tomorrow." Despite the fact that she'd always loved her job, the idea of getting the

attention of a classroom full of five-year-olds still riding their holiday highs made her

physically shudder as she mounted the stairs.

Darby watched her go, cursing her eyes for sliding down to settle on Molly's ass. She

looked away and shook her head with a self-deprecating chuckle. As she was about to reset

the video game so she could take out more of her frustrations on the zombies, her cell

phone rang. She pulled it off the clip and looked at the screen. She bit her bottom lip as

the phone rang again and continued to stare, trying to balance the pros and cons of

answering. On the third ring, she made her decision and flipped the phone open. She took a

deep breath and put the phone to her ear.

"Hey, Rebecca. Happy New Year, babe. How you doin'?"

Ricky lay on the bed and watched with large brown eyes as Laura folded clothes and

stuffed them into her duffel bag. His furry head moved with her hands, from the left to

the right and back as she worked. When she stopped and looked at him, he met her gaze

with adoration, causing her to put down the shirt she'd been folding and clasp his head in

both hands while she rained kisses on him and told him how cute he was.

"That poor dog has no idea what he's in for," Sophie commented wryly, smiling and shaking her head. She was packing her own bag on the opposite bed.

"Love," Laura said, kissing the dog again. "Love, love, love. That's what he's in for."

Lucky bastard, Sophie thought without bitterness. "When I die, I want to come back as a

lesbian's dog."

Laura laughed, and the sound alone made Sophie's smile widen. "That would be a pretty

perfect life, wouldn't it?"

"Damn right."

They went back to packing in silence for a while. Sophie got their things from the

bathroom and handed Laura hers as if they'd been packing for trips together for years.

Laura thanked her, trying not to register any feeling at all when their fingers brushed and

failing miserably.

Sophie went back to her side of the room and sat down on the edge of the bed, watching

Laura's back as she worked. There were things she wanted to say, things she wanted to tel

Laura, things she wanted to ask her. But she sat in silence, just watching, unable—or

unwilling—to do anything but that. Just watch. Dozens of words sped through her head,

handfuls of things she could say, but she couldn't figure out which one to grab or how to

say what she wanted to in some sort of coherent fashion. So she sat.

Laura turned to get her books off the nightstand and noticed Sophie in her stillness. The

look on her face was...odd, like she was trying to figure something out, like she was puzzling over a problem. Cocking her head to the side, Laura asked, "What?"

"Have dinner with me." The words flew from Sophie's mouth

before she was even aware that she'd been about to say them. She flinched as though

somebody else had said them and startled her.

Laura suppressed a grin and glanced at her watchV "Now?" she asked teasingly. "It's a little early for dinner, don't you think?"

Sophie swallowed, knowing. Laura was joking with her, but unable to latch onto some

semblance of ease as more words tumbled from her mouth. "No, not now. But some time.

Any time. This week? Wednesday? Friday?"

Laura opened her mouth to answer, but Sophie went on, looking surprised that she was

doing so. The words poured from her lips in an endless stream. "Look, I know we're both

still licking our wounds and I know we didn't get off on the right foot and I know that

neither of us is ready for another relationship, which is perfectly okay because that's not

what I'm asking for, but we've been so good together the last couple of days and we were

so good together last night and I think we have a lot in common and I really like talking

with you and I'd really like to see you again."

Sophie took a breath and blinked, as if she was unsure whether or not she was done talking.

Her breathing had become rapid and now she was very nearly panting. She rubbed at the

back of her neck, embarrassed.

Laura sat down next to her on the bed and licked her lips. Sophie's words had surprised

her, but she expected to be frightened by them and she wasn't. And that surprised her

more. She felt such a connection to Sophie, but she'd been afraid to say anything about it,

knowing Sophie's hurt was still fresh, stil close to the surface, that her wounds were still open and sore. Those wounds had been made by an adulterer, which is exactly what Laura

was. It was a fact. There was no denying it, no way around it, and Laura honestly wasn't

sure if it was something Sophie could handle.

But here she was, asking for more. Just a little more, but more, and Laura was inexplicably

proud of her. Sophie had taken a huge step and Laura had at least an idea of how hard it

must have been for her to do so. She looked at Sophie now, dark hair pulled back from her

face, cocoa skin tinted with a hint of red at each cheekbone, announcing her consternation

to anybody who looked. Her deep brown eyes darted around the room and then settled on

her own hands clasped in her lap as

if waiting for her fate. Laura placed her own hand over Sophie's, once again struck by the

contrast of their coloring. She waited until Sophie found the strength to look up and meet

her eyes. Then she smiled and squeezed Sophie's hands.

"I'd love to have dinner with you."

At almost exactly three o'clock, Amy closed the front door and leaned against it with a

pout. Jo smiled at her from the couch and held up a glass of red wine.

"I saved a bottle of that Merlot for us," she said. "It's back to work for you tomorrow, so let's enjoy the rest of today. Come sit with me."

Amy flopped down next to her wife and they sat in silence for a long while, cuddled in each

other's embrace in front of the fire, just enjoying being together.

Speaking quietly so as not to disrupt the peace, Jo finally said, "So, how do you think the week went?"

"I think it went really well, considering how it could have gone," Amy responded. "I mean, Molly and Kristin? They were a mess. I was really worried. But I think they're going to pull

through."

"Me, too."

Amy smiled at the straightforward response. Jo didn't say a lot, but she had very strong

feelings about those she loved. Amy knew her wife had been just as worried about their

friends' relationship as she had been. "I have to admit I was a little concerned about

Darby fixating on Molly the way she did, but I think she ultimately helped rather than

hurt."

"She hurt herself a little bit, but it was a lesson needed." Jo still felt pretty guilty about it and she gazed into the flames that crackled in the fireplace.

"Sweetie," Amy said softly as she laid a hand on Jo's thigh. "Don't feel bad. I know you're worried that you hurt Darby's feelings, but it's okay. You did what needed to be done and

you would have done the same thing to somebody who was not a blood relation."

"She's so damn young," Jo said, almost wistfully.

"And she has lots of things to learn about life and love. The people

who care about her, like you and me, are here to help her with those lessons so she doesn't

have to learn them from strangers." She kissed Jo's warm cheek. "That's what being

family is all about."

Jo turned loving brown eyes on her wife. "As always, my love, you're right."

"The sooner you accept that, the better off we'll all be," Amy said with a grin. A few more minutes passed in silence before Amy remembered the surprise of the entire week. She

whipped her head around to look at Jo and exclaimed, "And how about Sophie and Laura?"

Jo laughed at the mention of the two. "Holy shit. Who saw that coming? I know I didn't."

"Me, neither. I was more afraid that they'd kill each other. I was trying to decide the best method for getting blood out of my hardwood. I never expected the hook-up."

"No way."

Amy sipped thoughtfully. "They are very good together, you know? They actually have a lot in common. I'm surprised I didn't think about it sooner."

"So am I, given your penchant for matchmaking."

"Maybe I'm slipping in my old age."

"I doubt that."

Amy leaned her head on Jo's shoulder. "I don't know that they'll end up happily ever after, but regardless, I think they will end up friends. You can never have too many of those."

After a beat, she added, "Think they'll share custody of the dog?"

Jo's eyes widened with incredulity. "Seriously! What the hel with the dog? Just showing up out of nowhere like he did? How weird was that?"

Amy laughed as she nodded in agreement. "Molly and Kristin on their way to repair, Sophie and Laura hooking up, Darby learning an important lesson or two, the dog finding a new and

loving home..."

Jo began to chuckle as Amy's voice trailed off. "Oh, no. Don't say it."

"I'm going to say it."

"Don't. Don't say it."

"You know I have to say it."

"Please don't say it. I'm begging you."

Amy grinned widely as she poked Jo in the ribs. "The Magic Acre, baby. The Magic Acre."

"Ugh." Jo slapped a hand over her eyes. "You said it."

"It's the only logical explanation for everything that's happened. My grandmother would

agree wholeheartedly, I'm sure."

"Your grandmother was a little bit wacky, wasn't she?"

Amy slapped playfully at Jo as she laughed. "Hey. Watch what you say about my grammy.

She might be here right now."

Jo looked around in mock fear. "Oh, I hope not. I wouldn't want her to have to witness

this." Then she pressed her lips to Amy's and kissed her into silence.

They felt so right, so good, so perfect together, the two of them. They always had. How

was it feasible? Was it luck? Was it fate? Why was she chosen to be with her perfect

mate and so many others seemed to spend their entire lives searching and searching, but

never finding— or worse, settling for a life with somebody so completely and utterly wrong

for them, spending their whole existence never knowing what it feels like to be with a

soulmate?

Jo didn't consider herself an emotional person at all and she despised the use of words like

"soulmate," but there was really no other way to describe how well she and Amy fit. Like they were meant to be. Was that possible? She pondered these thoughts as she poured all

of the love in her heart into the act of kissing her wife, knowing that Amy felt every bit of it.

Maybe magic does exist...