Killer Summer

by Kay Bigelow

  Camryn was waiting for them near the reception desk.

  “You can have your office back. Thanks for its use.”

  “No problem. Will you join me for dinner?”

  “Yes,” Leah said without consulting Dani. “Around seven?”

  “See you then.”

  Chapter Nine

  Dani led the way out of the building. A small vehicle stood waiting for them at the foot of the stairs. There was a roof on it and a front windshield, but no doors. Leah didn’t see any wheels, either. Dani headed toward the driver’s side, on the right, while Leah slid into the passenger seat.

  “How does this thing work?” Leah asked, concerned she’d not seen wheels.

  “It’s a hover-car. I’m not sure about the workings, but I think we travel on a bed of air.”

  Leah had seen plenty of hover vehicles, but they were all huge and had wheels on them. She hadn’t known anyone made vehicles this small using the hover technology. Leah made a mental note to send photos of the car to Cots and get him to explain how it worked.

  They left the main building behind them at a very sedate speed, but once on the path leading to their bungalow, Dani opened the little vehicle up and they clipped along at the lively pace of twenty-five miles an hour. While it was nothing like Leah’s near-sentient car on Xing, it felt fast nevertheless, perhaps because of the lack of doors and the wind in her hair.

  “Can I have a shirt like Stanhope was wearing?”

  “Baby, you can have anything you want.”

  “Silver-tongued devil,” Leah said as her mind went wild with the possibilities, all of them sexual, of Dani giving her anything she wanted.

  Dani parked the vehicle in front of the foot of the path leading to the bungalow. The car had barely stopped before Dani was out of it. She went around the car and took Leah’s hand as she stepped out of the hover-car. Leah led them farther up the “street” toward a small bungalow not far from theirs.

  “Is that where my team will be staying?” Leah asked, stopping in the middle of the street.

  “Yes. What’s going on?”

  “We need to talk.”

  “Why can’t we go inside and talk?”

  “Because I’m pretty sure all the rooms I’ve been in are bugged, not only here,” she said, nodding toward their bungalow. “But the main building as well.”

  “What!” Dani exclaimed, but then fell silent. “What makes you suspect that?”

  “I’m not sure,” Leah started to say.

  “Those hairs on the back of your neck busy again?”

  “Yes. When Peony and Alex get here, we’ll know for sure.”

  “Phuc. I guess I should have spent more time being involved in the day-to-day activities.”

  “There’s not much you could have done. Your security firm is either incompetent or someone’s paid them to overlook security issues—or sabotage them.”

  “What do we do?”

  “Nothing. We’ll go about our business as usual. We’ll talk about the case out of doors until Peony gets the sweep done.”

  “Do you think there’s video?”

  “Probably.”

  “Will you review it?”

  “I’ll have to, Dani. We may have footage of the killer killing our victim.”

  “So you’ll only look at the footage for the hours before we found her?”

  “Depends on how she was killed.”

  “Oh.”

  “What is it you don’t want me to see?” Leah asked.

  “This is not my first time here.”

  “Ah,” Leah said, finally understanding why Dani was nervous about her watching the recordings. “I know you’ve fucked other women, Dani.”

  “Knowing it and seeing the act itself are two different things.”

  “What say we handle that when, and if, it happens?”

  “Good. Why did you agree to have dinner with Camryn?” Dani asked, obviously glad to change the subject.

  “She needs to be interviewed. I thought I’d do the preliminary interview over dinner.”

  “Can we go inside now?”

  “Of course. I’d like to take a shower before we go to dinner. What does one wear to dinner here?”

  “Most of the time, whatever you feel like. When there’s something formal, like a fundraiser, the guests like to dress up.”

  “Thanks. It seems I packed the right things.”

  “If I’d had my way and this murder hadn’t gotten in the way, you’d be wearing nothing at all for ninety-five percent of the time.”

  “Really? You had that planned, did you?”

  “One of my best fantasies about these two weeks.”

  “You’ll have to tell me about the others so we can make at least one or two come true before we leave.”

  “Only one or two?”

  “Or more, depending on what they are,” Leah said with a smile.

  “The more time I spend with you the more fantasies I have.”

  “I repeat, you are a silver-tongued devil.”

  Dani took Leah’s hand and headed toward the bungalow. Inside, they went into the bedroom.

  “What time is it?” Leah asked.

  “It’s three. Why?”

  “That gives us three hours before we need to get ready to go to dinner.”

  “Uh-huh. So you want to nap?”

  Leah pulled Dani onto the bed with her. “Not exactly what I had in mind.”

  “What, exactly, did you have in mind?” Dani asked.

  “I want you to fuck me. I want to feel your mouth on me. I want your fingers inside me. I want the orgasm of the century. Can you do all that for me?”

  “That and so much more.”

  “Promises, promises.”

  “Let me show you,” Dani said as she lay back and pulled Leah with her.

  After Dani had kept her promise of giving her, if not the orgasm of the century, at least the orgasm of the decade, Dani lay down next to Leah. Leah moved to her and began stroking her body. She could feel Dani’s arousal, and thought Dani had nearly come when Leah had. She was determined to make that happen. When Leah entered her as she was kissing Dani’s left breast, she wanted Dani to be aware of only two things—Leah’s fingers inside her, and that she loved Dani.

  Leah kissed her way down Dani’s body as she stroked her slowly. When she sucked Dani’s clit into her mouth, she felt Dani tighten.

  Please don’t stop me. Please don’t stop me.

  Dani put her hand on Leah’s head. She was sure Dani would stop her, and was surprised when she didn’t. She kept moving her fingers deeper into Dani and knew she was so close. She felt a slight pressure on her head as if Dani both wanted to stop her, but didn’t want to stop her. Leah didn’t stop and quickened her strokes. She felt Dani tighten around her fingers.

  When Dani came, she was quiet. As her body began relaxing, she whispered, “Leah, Leah.”

  When she could think again, Leah thought how good it had felt to have Dani’s clit in her mouth and her tongue caressing it. It was a feeling she’d never tire of, especially since she knew it was something Dani had never allowed any other woman to do.

  When Leah moved up the bed and laid her head on her pillow, she put her hand on Dani’s chest between her breasts. She could feel Dani’s heart pounding. She couldn’t help but wonder if Dani would run. She’d been incredibly open and vulnerable while they were making love.

  Leah gently pulled Dani into her arms and held her tight, wanting to make Dani feel safe in her vulnerability. She felt the wetness of tears on her shoulder. She didn’t say anything, but tightened her arms around Dani.

  Leah felt Dani fall into a light sleep and she, too, lost the battle to stay awake. Leah had wanted to tell Dani she loved her but wasn’t sure it wouldn’t make it easier for Dani to walk away. Instead, she said nothing, and felt sad at not having said the words.

  Chapter Ten

  Leah was awakened by her computer softly dinging in the living room. She eased
out of bed and went to find it. When she stroked it open, she read the message.

  “Shuttle captain says he’s two hours out. Am sending a van to retrieve passengers and medical equipment. Dinner now?”

  Leah answered Camryn with one word: “No.”

  Before Leah turned to go back to the bedroom, she paused long enough to request music from the sound system. She wondered what she’d find in the bedroom. Would Dani be up and showering in preparation of departing the scene or would she still be in bed? I’d lay money on the former rather than the latter if I were a betting woman.

  She would have lost the bet with herself. Dani was still in bed, still nude, still looking sexy as hell, and Leah still wanted her.

  “You look better than any woman has a right to. Am I correct in guessing we’re not going to make love again until later?” Dani asked.

  “Thank you for not running, Dani.”

  “I admit the thought crossed my mind for about a nanosecond. And if I were with anyone but you, I would have. I think something shifted inside my head and heart during the last three hours because I don’t want to run. How about you? Are you going to leave me alone with all these newfound feelings?”

  “I’m not a runner, Dani. I’ll keep you and your feelings safe.”

  “God, I hope so, Leah.”

  Leah leaned toward Dani to seal her promise of keeping her safe with a kiss.

  “Who was the text from?” Dani asked.

  Leah suspected Dani was moving away from the vulnerability she was feeling, but not away from Leah. Dani would need to get accustomed to the new feelings. It had to be a huge adjustment for her.

  “Camryn telling us the shuttle captain gave her a heads-up that he’s two hours out, and she’s sending a van out to pick up the team and equipment. So if we’re hungry, we should come over now.”

  Having told Dani what Camryn had told her, she realized what she’d missed when she’d read Camryn’s message. I don’t think the shuttle captain would have told Camryn he was transporting not only Leah’s team, but medical equipment, too. Peony’s going to have her work cut out for her just finding all the bugs that have been planted. Since Camryn knows what was said in her office, I wonder if she’s responsible for the other bugs as well.

  “Are you hungry?” Dani asked, breaking into Leah’s thoughts about the listening devices Peony was sure to find.

  Leah held Dani’s eyes and knew exactly what Dani was hungry for—and it wasn’t food.

  “Yes,” she said as she ran her eyes down the length of Dani’s body and back to her eyes. “But I think we should eat dinner while we can.”

  “Oh,” Dani said, clearly disappointed. She sat up and moved to get out of bed.

  “Where do you think you’re going? We’ve got an hour and a half before we have to be at the big house,” Leah said, changing her mind about wanting to have dinner.

  “Come here, gorgeous,” Dani murmured.

  “Yes, ma’am,” Leah said, smiling.

  An hour later, Dani said, “Leah, we need to get moving if we’re going to be there when your team shows up.”

  “You take a shower first. I can’t move.”

  “Poor baby, can I help?”

  “You’re responsible for this state. Go,” Leah said, pointing to the bathroom.

  As soon as Leah heard the shower begin, she forced herself to get out of bed and stood in the bathroom doorway watching Dani through the opaque shower enclosure.

  God, I hope this isn’t a dream. Why, though, would a galaxy-class doctor want to be with an ex-cop private investigator? Stop it! What does it matter why she wants to be with me? Can’t it be enough that she wants to? For how long? Who cares how long? Enjoy the time you have with her no matter how long—or short—it may be.

  “Oh, shut up,” Leah whispered to the nasty voice in her head.

  Leah opened the shower door and stepped in. She moved to stand behind Dani and pressed her body against her. Dani moaned and pressed her luscious ass into Leah, who moved black tendrils of hair from Dani’s neck so she could kiss it.

  “Come here often, sailor?” Leah asked.

  “Nah, this is my first time with my girlfriend.”

  Did she just call me her girlfriend? I must have misheard.

  Leah waited for Dani to say something more.

  Finally, unable to stand the silence any longer, Leah said, “Dani,” but Dani cut her off before she could say more.

  “Leah,” Dani said and paused. “Leah,” she started again. “Will you be my girlfriend?”

  “As in we’ll go steady?”

  “I’m not sure what that means, but if it means you’ll be mine exclusively, and we won’t date others, only each other, then, yes, let’s go steady.”

  Leah was stunned. Dani Bensington had just asked her to be her girlfriend. How much had it taken for Dani to ask that question? She wasn’t sure how to respond to what was happening. She grabbed one of the soft washcloths and put body soap on it and began washing Dani’s back. Dani moaned again as Leah moved down Dani’s back and over her ass.

  “Turn around, Dani,” Leah said softly.

  Dani turned and held Leah’s gaze.

  “Are you serious, Dani?”

  “About wanting to be your girlfriend? Or about wanting to be yours exclusively?”

  “Both.”

  “Of course I’m serious. I’ve never asked another woman to be my girlfriend. I want you and only you. Please say yes.”

  “Well, phuc. I certainly wasn’t expecting anything like what has happened today when I agreed to come here with you, that’s for sure.”

  Dani twirled her finger in the air signaling Leah should turn around so Dani could wash her back. Leah did as she was told.

  “Why are you avoiding answering my question?”

  “I’m not avoiding answering your question. I’m stunned that you’d asked and I’m trying to process it.”

  “Stop overthinking it, Leah. I’m beginning to think it was a mistake. Was it too soon?”

  Leah turned around to face Dani. She put her hand on Dani’s chest.

  “Asking the question wasn’t a mistake. Of course I’ll be your girlfriend.”

  “Yeah?” Dani asked, grinning.

  “Yeah,” Leah said.

  “We need to get out of the shower and get dressed if there’s any hope of grabbing something to eat before the shuttle arrives. I’m starved.”

  “You go get dressed. I want to wash my hair,” Leah said.

  “Okay, but don’t be long.”

  “I won’t.”

  Was that whole scene a little too bizarre, a little too adolescent? Was it weird? Was it just a spur-of-the-moment thing she’ll regret later? It was all those things, but a little romantic as well. And sweet. And maybe the only way to express what she really wants without having the language to do more right now. I did notice that the word “love” wasn’t mentioned, right? One step at a time, Leah, one step at a time.

  Leah was getting really tired of the voice in her head being so damnably negative. And logical.

  When Leah entered the bedroom ten minutes later, Dani wasn’t there. Leah moved to her closet and chose a pair of cream silk slacks and a bright blue shirt to wear. She added a pair of sandals and she was ready to go. When she entered the living room it was empty, as was the kitchen. She looked out the sliding glass doors, but the lanai was empty, too.

  Maybe Dani had run after all.

  Leah grabbed her computer, put it in her everyday bag, and stepped out the door to the front porch. She found Dani leaning against the railing waiting for her. The sight of her took Leah’s breath away. She smiled at Leah, and Leah knew she’d remember that image for the rest of her life. She slipped her computer out of the bag and snapped a photograph. She stuffed the computer back into the bag.

  “You look gorgeous, babe,” Dani said.

  “You do, too, toots,” Leah replied.

  “Did you really just call me ‘toots’?”

&
nbsp; “Sure did, babe.”

  Dani laughed.

  “I bet you thought I’d left, didn’t you?” Dani asked.

  “The thought crossed my mind,” Leah admitted. “But I’m so glad you didn’t.”

  “Your chariot awaits,” Dani said, pointing to the strange vehicle with no wheels.

  As Leah passed Dani, she was pulled into Dani’s arms.

  “Mmmm, you smell wonderful, too,” Dani said, and kissed Leah. “I don’t have the language for love. I’ve never needed it before today. So if I make a few missteps along the way, forgive me.”

  “I understand the non-spoken language of love, the gentleness when you first made love to me, the lustful looks you cast my way, the touch of your hand on my cheek, and your make-my-knees-weak kisses. The feel of your hand on the small of my back to steady me. To be sure, though, I need the words, too.”

  “I get that. I’ll give you all that and so much more. You will never doubt I love you.”

  “I love you, too, Dani.”

  Dani grinned at her. “Let’s get this show on the road.”

  Leah wondered if their chariot had headlights and how were they to see the road. The little cart had to have some way of dealing with night travel.

  As they enter the path leading to the main building, Leah’s question about head lamps was answered. They wouldn’t need them. The path was lit from above with strings of lights skillfully hidden in the trees.

  “This is magical. Thank you.”

  Everything about being with Dani is magical.

  Chapter Eleven

  Leah and Dani pulled up behind a white van sitting outside the main building. People were just beginning to exit the vehicle. Reagan was standing on the curb waiting for them. She waved at Leah and Dani when they exited their cart.

  Peony hurried over to Leah, saying as she came toward her, “Hey, Boss, I’ve got some people I want you to meet. Hi, Jardain.”

  Before either of them could respond to her, Peony hurried back to the van.

  “Take it easy with that equipment. It’ll take you years to pay for it if any of it’s broken.”

  A woman of average height and weight came toward Leah. As she neared, she smiled and held out her hand.