A Fighting Chance

by T. L. Hayes

  Steve’s embrace made her smile, as did the picture Steve had just created for her in her mind. Her father had been a teddy bear too, once. She remembered when she was small enough to sit on his shoulders. He would put her up there saying, “Climb up on me so you can be closer to the stars.” She would eagerly run to him and be lifted up, and it felt so high. Her little legs would go around his neck and he would take her hands in his. Then he would proceed to tell her and her mother stories about the stars, most of which she couldn’t remember from that time. But since he often retold the same stories, she eventually learned them all, and later, after she was old enough to read and understand books, she would add to his stories with stories of her own. Once he had asked her how she knew so much, and she had replied, “I learned from the best.”

  A tear escaped her and she tried to surreptitiously wipe it away, but Steve noticed her movement.

  “Oh, honey, I’m sorry. I should have realized. No more stories.” Steve tightened her arms around Lou and kissed her on top of her head, cupping her cheek in her hand.

  “No, that’s okay. I like hearing them. And that was a happy memory. I promise.”

  “You sure?”

  “Yes, baby, I’m sure. I’ve worked hard over the years to hold on to them. I don’t want to forget that I did once have a good father. It wasn’t his fault what happened to him, but he chose to not seek help for it. I don’t want to be like him in that regard.” Lou leaned back out of Steve’s embrace a bit so she could look up at her. “I mean, I’m proud to have his tenacity when it comes to certain things. And I credit my career to him, in part. If he hadn’t taught me all about different weapons and such, who knows where my love of theater would have taken me. Probably just writing.” Steve was smiling at her and she realized she was babbling, so she decided to say only one more thing on the subject. “I’m going to get help for my past trauma.”

  “I’m glad.”

  Lou slipped a leg over Steve’s and looked up at her with a smile. “And I want a future with you, soldier. One that doesn’t involve anger and violence.”

  “Couldn’t agree more.”

  “But that doesn’t mean tickling’s off the table.” Lou rolled on top of Steve and began tickling her sides and anywhere else she could reach.

  Steve squealed but quickly got the upper hand and rolled Lou on her back. Their tickles quickly turned to playful kisses, and Steve’s tie got thrown to the floor. Just as Lou was in the process of playfully biting her on the neck, Steve pulled back with a note of surprised comprehension in her voice, “Sirius! The Dog Star! That’s why Rowling named him that!”

  Lou burst out laughing. “You are such a dork.”

  “What? It just came to me.”

  “Uh-huh.”

  “It did!”

  With a smile on her face, Lou replied, “Je t’aime, tu dork.”

  Steve growled low in her throat. “Ah, Lou, French!” Steve took hold of Lou’s hand and began to kiss up Lou’s arm, which just made Lou giggle more.

  When Steve’s kisses reached Lou’s lips, their mutual giggles subsided. Lou put her arms around Steve’s neck and met her lips with hers for a soft, sweet kiss.

  About the Author

  T.L. Hayes (http://TLHayesweb.com) is just your typical overeducated, underemployed dyke in the process of starting new journeys. She has held many jobs, including customer service agent, housekeeper, and poll-taker. None of them has been as satisfying as writing, especially writing stories with predominantly gay characters. She holds master’s degrees in English and educational studies, and an incredible amount of student loan debt. She has recently moved back to her home state of Illinois and is enjoying all four seasons again.

  Books Available From Bold Strokes Books

  A Fighting Chance by T. L. Hayes. Will Lou be able to come to terms with her past to give love a fighting chance? (978-1-163555-257-7)

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  Pleasure Cruise by Yolanda Wallace. Spencer Collins and Amy Donovan have few things in common, but a Caribbean cruise offers both women an unexpected chance to face one of their greatest fears: falling in love. (978-1-63555-219-5)

  Running Off Radar by MB Austin. Maji’s plans to win Rose back are interrupted when work intrudes, and duty calls her to help a SEAL team stop a Russian mobster from harvesting gold from the bottom of Sitka Sound. (978-1-63555-152-5)

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  Take a Chance by D. Jackson Leigh. There’s hardly a woman within fifty miles of Pine Cone that veterinarian Trip Beaumont can’t charm, except for the irritating new cop, Jamie Grant, who keeps leaving parking tickets on her truck. (978-1-63555-118-1)

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  Alias by Cari Hunter. A car crash leaves a woman with no memory and no identity. Together with Detective Bronwen Pryce, she fights to uncover a truth that might just kill them both. (978-1-63555-221-8)

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  Perfect Little Worlds by Clifford Mae Henderson. Lucy can’t hold the secret any longer. Twenty-six years ago, her sister did the unthinkable. (978-1-63555-164-8)

  Room Service by Fiona Riley. Interior designer Olivia likes stability, but when work brings footloose Savannah into her world and into a new city every month, Olivia must decide if what makes her comfortable is what makes her happy. (978-1-63555-120-4)

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  Take My Hand by Missouri Vaun. River Hemsworth arrives in Georgia intent on escaping quickly, but when she crashes her Mercedes into the Clip ’n Curl, sexy Clay Cahill ends up rescuing more than her car. (978-1-63555-104-4)

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  Wayworn Lovers by Gun Brooke. Will agoraphobic composer Giselle Bonnaire and Tierney Edwards, a wandering soul who can’t remain in one place for long, trust in the passionate love destiny hands them? (978-1-62639-995-2)

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