Guarding Hearts

by Jaycie Morrison

  * * *

  Kat thought she was having a nightmare about her evening at Sweetie’s, but a few moments later she realized the voices she was hearing were actually coming from the kitchen. She roused herself, surprised, since Whit was usually very thoughtful about not waking her when she came in off her night shift. After a quick check of her face and hair, she put her robe on over her nightgown and eased down the hall. Whit was sitting at the breakfast table opposite Miriam Boudreaux. They each had a beer in front of them.

  “And then she says,” Miriam blustered, her words slower and more garbled than usual, “I thought when your gun went off it meant—” She broke off abruptly upon seeing Kathleen in the doorway.

  “Hey, baby,” Whit said, standing and coming toward her. “Look who I ran into on my way home.”

  Kathleen understood Whit was telling her that this impromptu visit wasn’t her idea, but that didn’t make her any happier about the situation. “Get rid of her,” she whispered as Whit bussed her cheek.

  “Why don’t you join us, Miss Hartley?” Boudreaux asked, her eyes roving over Kathleen’s body as she lumbered unsteadily to her feet and gestured at a chair.

  Boudreaux’s clothing was disheveled and there was a darkening bruise under one eye. Lovely, Kat thought. She’s been drinking and fighting. As she caught the unpleasant tang of old sweat, she wondered if her uninvited guest had even gone to bed the night before. She’d never understood how some people considered that sort of life fun.

  “Isn’t there work you could be doing at ordnance, Lieutenant Boudreaux?” she asked coolly. “Possibly preparing for next week’s classes or making some contribution to the war effort?” Whit might not want to be rude to her friend, but she had no such reluctance. And if she used that Miss title again, Kat was going to correct her. She wasn’t going to let Miriam forget that she outranked her.

  “No need, cher.” Boudreaux used one of those phrases that had once seemed sophisticated and charming. Now it just seemed pretentious, like her. “I could do that speech in my sleep, and probably have. And that’s the great part about being in charge. You pick someone to be your second in command who knows how keep it all running, then you can stroll in whenever it suits you and everyone salutes and everything is okey-doke.” She made the common thumb to forefinger sign and peeked through it. Smirking in Kathleen’s direction, although her vision didn’t quite seem to focus, she added the crude gesture of sticking her other finger through the opening. “If you’d loosen up a little, you’d see how good life can feel. Let your woman here take care of you. Give her a little morning screw to go with her brew. I got a feeling she could use it. And so could you.” She laughed raucously as Kat turned furiously to Whit.

  “Are you just going to sit there and let her talk to me like that?”

  Whit looked helplessly from her to Boudreaux. “Aw, Kat. Don’t be that way. She’s only joking around.” Out of Boudreaux’s line of vision, she motioned as if swigging from an imaginary glass, mouthing the words, and drunk.

  Kathleen rolled her eyes. Leave it to Whit to state the obvious. And offensive as it was to find an unpleasantly intoxicated woman in her house first thing in the morning, what really upset her was Whit’s failure to curtail Miriam’s suggestive leering. She put her hands on her hips. “Well, I don’t find it funny. I find it disgusting. As is your lack respect for me or my house.”

  Whit sat, staring at the floor, her expression one of abject misery. Boudreaux dropped heavily into her chair and took a long drink of her beer. “Funny,” she slurred into the silence. “I thought you lived here too, pal. How is it only her house? Sounds like you need some help to get your woman in line.” She licked her lips. “And I’m definitely the one to do it, you know?”

  “All right,” Whit said, her voice quiet but firm. “That’s enough, Boudreaux. You’d better get to back to base and I need some sleep.”

  Miriam belched. “Stop being such a chicken shit,” she muttered to Whit.

  “Stop being such a revolting drunk,” Kat responded directly to Miriam. She gave Whit a piercing glare before turning and walking away, toward their bedroom.

  Whit got to her feet. “Party’s over, buddy.”

  Boudreaux’s eyelids drooped and her expression might have been a pout. “But I need to tell you about what happened.”

  Whit put her hand under Boudreaux’s arm, lifting her carefully. “Tell me on the way out.” As she half dragged Boudreaux toward the front door she called, “I’m taking Miriam back to the base.”

  It took a few seconds, but she might have heard the word “good.” Whit hated that she hadn’t had a chance to explain, to tell Kat that Miriam had been sleeping in her jeep when she’d gotten off shift. Her plan had been to bring her friend here, get her sober with some food and coffee, and drive her back to ordnance and let her try to work at least half a day. But the moment Miriam woke up, she pulled a flask from her pocket and started drinking…drinking again, judging from the way her speech slurred and her movements were uncoordinated. “I’ll be right back.” There was no reply to that.

  Predictably, Miriam fell asleep before they’d pulled out of the driveway. She snored all the way to the base and only roused when Whit shook her. Since there was rarely any parking near the officers’ quarters, she’d stopped directly across from them at the parade grounds. It was pretty much a straight shot across a manicured lawn, and she was sure Boudreaux could manage.

  “This is your stop, buddy.”

  “What time is it?” Miriam wiped some drool from the side of her mouth with her hand.

  Whit checked her watch. “Almost 0700. Why don’t you go grab some chow and then get some sleep?”

  “No time for chow. Gotta find…” She trailed off, looking around the grounds.

  Whit held her breath, hoping she wasn’t going to say Rains. She had no doubt Rains could take Miriam under any circumstances, but in her current condition, it would be a thrashing. Deciding she didn’t want to know, Whit said, “I gotta go, buddy. Gonna take your advice and go take care of the little woman, okay?”

  “Yeah, okay,” Miriam said, sounding fairly lucid for the first time in what seemed like hours. She turned the door handle, using it to steady herself as she got out of the car. “See you in the funny pages.”

  Watching until Boudreaux’s staggering gait seemed to be headed in the right direction, Whit pulled slowly away, but her relief was short-lived. Two MPs emerged from the officers’ quarters and walked briskly toward Miriam. Shit. Stopping, she watched in her rearview mirror as an apparent confrontation took place between the parties involved. “Don’t resist, Boudreaux. Just take your house arrest and be done with it,” Whit muttered to herself. Then a horn honked behind her and she drove on. There wasn’t anything more she could do at this point, and she had her own troubles at home to deal with.

  Chapter Nine

  At 7:45 Monday morning, Lieutenant Rains called to advise her secretary she’d be arriving late. Sharon assured her everything was in order and Rain was confident she was right. As much as she enjoyed greeting her crew every morning, they could begin their repairs without her presence. And it wouldn’t hurt if the drivers didn’t leave on their runs until 10:00. She shouldn’t be any later than that.

  At about 8:30, when Bett came home, she looked tired but her eyes were bright.

  “Things are better?” Rain asked, pouring Bett some tea and putting a plate of eggs and toast in front of her.

  Bett ate for a moment. “Luna’s alive,” she said quietly. “He’s back on the front, and we’re getting most of our current information from him.” She managed a weary smile. “He was doing just what you said.” Then her face became solemn again. “He’s been wounded, but apparently it’s not too severe. He’ll probably get to go home if he survives this offensive.”

  Rain breathed out in relief and lowered herself into a chair opposite Bett. She took a long sip of her own tea. “That is very good news.” She watched her lover finish breakfast. �
��When do you have to go back?”

  “They’re going to call me if they need me tonight, and I’m pretty sure they will. I’m sorry my schedule has gotten backward with yours. I miss you so much,” Bett said, her voice almost teary. Rain recognized it was at least partly fatigue. She came around behind Bett and began rubbing her shoulders.

  “I’m here, Beloved. You don’t need to worry. Do what you need to do, and it will be over soon.”

  Bett leaned back into the chair, enjoying Rain’s touch, but still upset. “But there’s another matter. I don’t know how long this situation will go on, but we might not be able to get to New York. How am I going to tell Mother? She’ll be furious after all the plans she’s made.”

  “Bett, surely she understands there’s a war on. She can’t be angry with you because you have an important job to do. We can reschedule our trip there for the spring or summertime.”

  “Mmm.” Bett relaxed as Rain’s fingers worked their way up her neck. “I’ll have to call her one way or the other before long.”

  “Then let’s worry about that tomorrow,” Rain suggested. “Now go take a shower. You’ll sleep better that way.”

  Rain finished getting ready to leave and then went into the bedroom to check on Bett. She watched from the doorway as Bett got into bed, naked, and then came over help smooth the covers around her. When Bett’s arms came around her neck, the scent of Bett’s soap and her clean body—the essence of herself—mingled together, filling Rain’s head. What she had intended to be a good-night kiss turned into something much deeper. Bett’s hands began undoing the buttons of her jacket. “I need you, Rain. Can you stay with me for just a little while?”

  Nowhere in Rain’s mind, body, or heart could she find the word no. Her clothes were on the floor and she was next to Bett in the bed, with her mouth on Bett’s body, her neck, her lips. She made sure her touch was tender, moving her hands slowly across Bett’s belly, down her thighs, knowing Bett was very tired. Bett turned so they were facing each other and drew Rain’s thigh between her legs, savoring the contact there. “Oh, Rain, I missed you so much,” Bett said, her body moving deliberately. “All night there by myself, I couldn’t stop thinking about you. I want you now. I need—”

  “I know what you need, Beloved,” Rain said, turning Bett on her back. She began moving her hand between Bett’s legs, stroking lightly with the same slow, gentle rhythm that Bett had used, kissing her neck and shoulders with soft, wet lips. Bett was moaning with each caress, making a high humming sound. Rain kept the same tempo but increased the pressure of her contact slightly as she felt Bett’s arms tighten around her. Rain stretched herself up until her breast brushed against Bett’s face. Bett cried out delightedly and put her mouth onto Rain’s breast. Her hips began to move. Rain felt Bett’s flesh pull her in a little deeper, to a wetter, hotter place. “Oh yes. Yes, Rain.” Bett’s mouth had come off Rain’s breast and she drew the words out in a long, soft whisper. Rain moved a little faster and she ran her other hand over first one and then the other of Bett’s rigid nipples. “Ahh,” Bett breathed, pulling Rain’s body tightly against hers as she rode the wave of her climax. They moved together until Bett’s hips began to slow. Then Rain moved her hand just enough to hold Bett lightly until she felt Bett’s body let go as she relaxed. Rain kissed across the middle of Bett’s body. Between each kiss she whispered a word. “You…are…so…beautiful…and…your…body…is…so…incredibly…perfect.”

  They lay quietly when she had finished. As she listened to Bett’s breathing, Rain knew she could fall asleep too. She also knew that if Bett touched her, it would all start again. But with thoughts of work intruding, she tried moving a few inches away.

  “Rain?” Bett said in the sleepy voice Rain loved.

  “Hmm?”

  Bett turned her head to Rain’s side. “No one has ever made me feel like you do.”

  Rain came back as close as she could and laid her head on Bett’s shoulder. “I’m glad.”

  Bett’s voice became increasingly emotional. “I’m sorry about all the others. I should have waited for you.”

  Rain thought that Bett might have spent some time with her own ghosts as she worked through the long night. She’d never known many details of Bett’s history and she would never ask. Her past didn’t matter. “No, Beloved,” she said, kissing Bett softly on her forehead. “You mustn’t regret any of the journey that brought you to me. That is not how it is with us.”

  “How is it, then?” Bett asked, still sounding drowsy, but brushing her fingers through Rain’s bangs.

  Rain turned Bett on her side, facing away. She spooned her body close against Bett’s back, with her arm around Bett’s chest and answered, “Do you think I could possibly love you less because of someone you knew before? Don’t you know that every moment we have together forms a treasure we are collecting now? Nothing from the past can tarnish it.” Rain put her mouth to Bett’s ear. “We are not then. We are now.”

  Rain felt Bett’s head nod and then she sighed. “Do you believe I love you more now than I did ten seconds ago?”

  Rain kissed across Bett’s back. “Yes. It happens to me all the time.” She started to move away again. Bett’s hand moved behind her and found Rain’s crotch.

  “Wait,” she said, feeling Rain’s need. “I can’t let you go to work like that.”

  Bett’s touch was so sure and true that Rain’s head went back and her mouth opened against Bett’s back, a low breath whispering out. Bett’s hand controlled her absolutely. They began to rock together and Rain heard herself moan with every movement, but she couldn’t seem to stop, any more than she could stop the wetness surrounding Bett’s fingers. Each stroke of pleasure built on what was there before.

  When Bett heard in Rain’s voice that she was getting close, she took Rain’s hand from off her chest, put two of Rain’s fingers in her mouth, and then pulled them out very slowly. She tasted something that must have been herself there, but that was lost in the feel of Rain bucking against hers, pressing herself harder and faster, and the sound of Rain’s voice getting wilder in its desire. When she came, Rain pressed her forehead into Bett’s back; the place where her mouth had been made a wet streak that cooled quickly in the morning air. She was still crying out with each movement but now they were cries of release, of satisfaction, of bliss. When the sounds stopped, Bett moved her hand and turned over, putting her thigh between Rain’s legs. She could feel Rain’s chest rising and falling and see Rain’s face, a bit flushed with her mouth open slightly and her eyes closed. Bett leaned forward and ran her tongue around Rain’s lips. Rain’s eyes opened and she looked at Bett with longing. “How am I supposed to leave you now?” she whispered.

  “You’re not ever supposed to leave me,” Bett answered, pulling Rain’s face between her breasts.

  * * *

  It was almost 11:00 when Rain finally got out of bed, tucking the covers close around Bett when she saw Bett was sleeping soundly. She left Bett a note on the breakfast table: No one has ever made me feel like you do either.

  As she rode to the base, Rains considered how she had willingly forgone her Army duties simply to have time to be with Bett. It was unlike anything she had ever done, which made her examine herself in light of that fact. When she committed herself to the WAC, she had done so with the understanding that her duties would come first, unless a family emergency arose. As important as that morning with Bett had been—delicious, Rains’s body suggested, and she forced herself back to her thoughts—it could not be considered a crisis. Should I have said no? she wondered. What Rains knew for certain was it was her doing and not Bett’s. As I make a choice not to drink, couldn’t I have made a choice not to be so—what was it the girls sometimes said—easy? Arriving on the base, she concluded the course of events could only have changed when they spoke on the phone, because she could not imagine a way to say no to Bett once they were in bed together.

  Sharon smiled her usual greeting and assured her there w
as nothing pressing. There were only two pickups and Helen Tucker had volunteered to make both, making her quite popular with the other drivers. Rains made the rounds, speaking with the girls who were on duty, asking about Christmas plans for those she hadn’t already spoken to. She hadn’t even been in her office yet, and as she headed that way, Sharon cut her off. “Phone for you, Lieutenant.”

  Rains answered it at Sharon’s desk. “I was wondering if you might be ready for another fine dining practice, Lieutenant,” Kathleen Hartley said. “But when I called earlier, you weren’t in.”

  Even with their plans for New York less definite now, Rains knew she would need to be ready whenever she got to meet Bett’s family. “That sounds like a good idea, Captain Hartley. Are you at the mess hall now?”

  “Actually no, I’m at my office, and I’m sure the mess hall is already into their lunch service, so now is probably not the best time,” Hartley answered. “Perhaps we could work in a quick session between lunch and dinner. Unless you’d rather join me for a run after lunch—say about 3:00? I could really use the exercise.”

  Rains was thrilled at the idea. It was moderate weather for December, and she hadn’t run in days. “I’d certainly rather run than talk about plates and spoons.” She heard Kathleen chuckle. “Shall we meet on the parade grounds at three?”

  “That’s fine. And Lieutenant?” Her voice lowered and Rains sensed some tension. “I have yet to talk with Whit about what she has learned from Miriam. But you remember what I told you about not opening any packages?”

  “Yes.”

  “Good. We’ll talk more when I see you.”