by AJ Adaire
Using her fists on each end, Peri fluffed the pillow and sat up to lean against the headboard. “I think, because I’ve been so busy surviving, I haven’t had much free time to think about it. Kim came to my apartment and said we were leaving. It’s been a nonstop drive to get here. Before we left home, I don’t think either of us thought about what we’d find when we arrived here for more than a few seconds. We just wanted to get away, and this was the only place we could think of to go.”
Paige smiled. Everything she’s saying is true. “I agree with you. I walked out the door of my home. I had no plan other than to get away from everything I’d lost. I wasn’t heading toward something. Rather, I was running away from a setting so unreal I could no longer remain there.”
“Maybe we need to talk to Allie tomorrow. You know, talk about everyone’s future. Does she want to stay here? Does she want us to stay and help? Can we all survive here?”
“Peri, I’m not sure I’m going to stay.”
“What? Why? Where would you go?”
“I’ve given some thought about going back to Villy’s. The problem is that by the time I get back there, it’ll be too late to plant.”
“Paige, please don’t go. Wait until the fall. If we stay here and help Allie, we can plant and harvest enough food for all of us. We can learn from her. If you still want to leave then, at least you’ll be prepared for the winter and will know how to do what’s needed to survive in the spring. I couldn’t bear it if you left now.” Peri reached for Paige’s shoulder. “Don’t leave me Paige. I care for you too much for you to go. Please.”
“You have Kim.”
“Kim? She has nothing to do with this. I need you in my life, Paige. Please, promise you won’t go yet. Please.”
Paige was surprised by Peri’s level of distress. She reached up and patted Peri’s hand. “Shh…I promise. I’ll stay until fall, if Allie wants us.”
Peri wiped her eyes and slid down in bed facing Paige. After covering herself with the sheet, she reached for Paige’s hand. “I need to know you’ll be here when I wake up.”
Paige sighed. She linked her fingers with Peri’s. “I’ll be here in the morning and beyond. I’ve given you my word.”
Chapter Twenty-six
PERI AWOKE WITH HER arm wrapped around Murdoch. She opened her eyes and tried to orient herself. She was in bed sandwiched between Paige and Murdoch. Paige’s arm was wrapped firmly around her middle. She felt Paige’s head against her own, her breath warm against her neck. Paige’s arm, the skin soft and warm, felt silky against her bare midriff. Her body immediately responded. Heat flooded between her legs, and her nipples ached with a need to be touched. She closed her eyes against the sensation. What would happen if I just turned over and took her in my arms? Would she reject me? Why am I feeling such a need for her?
Peri’s mind continued to race. What did she mean last night when she said, ‘You have Kim?’ Kim is my friend. Does she think there is something between us? Her mind drifted back over the past, day by day. There had been a difference between them. Was it simply the tension of the last leg of their journey? No, I remember wanting to talk to her, even tried a couple of times when we were fishing, to ask about what had changed between us. Paige was more reserved around me. Before the shift in her attitude, we’d been easy with each other.
We were fine when we found Villy’s place. We slept together that night. The memory of her dream brought a new round of arousal. What happened at Villy’s that made Paige think I’m coupled with Kim? She recalled the time there, day by day. I kissed Kim. She couldn’t have seen that though. She wasn’t there. Oh my God! Zeke saw us and mentioned we were necking when he found us. Oh no! The kiss was a total mistake and we both realized it. She doesn’t know that though, and she thinks Kim and I are together.
Murdoch yawned and jumped from the bed. The movement woke Paige, who hurried out of bed.
Peri turned over to see Paige throwing on her clothes. Before she could even say anything, Paige was heading toward the door.
“Murdoch needs to go out. I’m sorry I woke you.”
Peri got up and dressed. She made the bed. As she did so, her mind churned. What must she think of me? I’m begging her to stay and she thinks I’m in love with Kim.
Peri gathered her dirty clothes and the pile Paige had set aside to wash. She went to the kitchen where she found no sign of Kim and Allie, who were probably still asleep. She threw her clothing and Paige’s into the sink and ran some water. The sun was barely peeking above the horizon by the time she’d finished washing them. She looked out the window above the sink and saw Paige and Murdoch coming across the field. Her heart fluttered and picked up its pace as she contemplated her conversation with Paige. Her stomach rolled as she stewed over what Paige must be thinking of her. She was eager to correct the mistaken impression Paige had of her.
One final twist of the last T-shirt left it dry enough to hang. She gathered the damp clothes against her chest and carried them to the porch, where she draped them over the porch banister. One by one, she retrieved them from the railing, hung, and then pinned them to the clothesline behind the house.
“Hey!” Paige and Murdoch came up behind Peri. “You didn’t need to do that. I would have washed my own. They were all so dirty, I’m embarrassed you had to even handle them.”
“Trust me. Mine were at least as dirty. It’ll be nice to have clean clothes.” Peri looked to the left, and then to the right. With a straight face, she said, “Shh. Don’t tell anyone. I’m going to take another shower tonight, before bed, and put on clean clothes again.”
Paige’s face registered surprise at the comment, and she laughed.
“It’s good to see you laugh.”
“Peri, I owe you an apology. About this morning…”
“Come, let’s take a walk together. I have something to talk to you about as well.”
“Something I did wrong? I was about to apologize…”
“Stop!” Peri smiled and slipped her hand into Paige’s to give her a gentle tug.
“Okay, come this way, though. I have something I want to show you that Murdoch and I found this morning.”
Allie looked through the kitchen window as she waited for the water to heat for the mint tea she always had for breakfast. She watched as Paige and Peri strolled away from the house with Murdoch running circles around them.
***
“Good morning.” Kim smiled a greeting to Allie. “I slept like the proverbial dead.”
“That’s reasonable. You didn’t get much rest the past couple of days on the trail.”
“I need to wash some clothes this morning. Everything in my pack is filthy.”
“Peri and Paige already did theirs. It’s on the line already.”
Kim looked over her shoulder into the living room. “Where are they?”
Allie tipped her head toward the window. “Outside. I think they’re headed for a stroll. Murdoch is with them.”
“Oh well. Where’s that coffee? I’m not waiting for them to come back. I’m famished. What’s for breakfast?”
Allie turned away toward the sink. Her brows pulled together into a frown. “I don’t think they’ll be long.”
“I want to do that wash. Can’t do it without the coffee though, and something to keep my belly from growling.”
“Okay. How about some fruit and cinnamon bread? I made the bread yesterday. You can eat, while I go milk the goats. You can churn some butter for us later. I’m almost out.” She set out the bread, a knife, the last of the butter, and a container of cream she’d skimmed from last week’s milk. Taking a canning jar off the shelf, she set it on the table in front of Kim. “Here’s a jar of sliced apples and cinnamon I made from our orchard. I’ll be back as soon as I finish.” Allie left the kitchen by the back door. When did Kim become so self-centered? I don’t remember her being like that when she was with Becky.
Chapter Twenty-seven
PAIGE LED PERI UP to the north end of the
property, where she and Murdoch had explored earlier that morning. “I have something to show you up over the hill. We found a lovely pond there, at the base of a small waterfall. It’s a beautiful spot. May take a dip there later when the sun warms up. Come, there’s one other little surprise I want to show you.”
The sound of the small waterfall announced its presence before it came into view through the trees. “Look, Peri. There’s a little family of ducklings.”
Water dropped over the edge of the outcrop of rock and dropped into the pool. The rising sun illuminated the peaceful scene of flowing water and a feathered family of fowl. Paige and Peri left the trees and settled on a shelf of rock, above the pool created by the water tumbling over the falls. The ducks seemed unfazed by their presence. Chickadees chattered a warning as a jay swooped too near their nest. Peri watched a nuthatch come down the ash tree, beyond the opposite bank of the water. The nuthatch was one of her favorite birds. This one was a red-breasted fellow. The large black stripe cut across his large head, from his pointed black bill backward. Bracing his short tail against the trunk, he worked his way down, headfirst.
“This is beautiful, Paige. Thanks for sharing it with me. It’s a good place for us to talk. I have something you need to know.”
“Wait. I know what you’re going to say. I told you I owe you an apology, and I intend to make it right now.” Paige brushed her fingers through her hair. “First, I don’t think I ever thanked you for my haircut. If I did, I neglected to mention that I love it.”
“I do too. It softens you…you look good.”
Paige waved away the compliment. “That’s not what I wanted to say to you, and I wasn’t fishing for a compliment. I want to apologize about this morning. You know, when we woke up, I was holding you. I, uh…” Paige swallowed hard. “I didn’t mean to do anything inappropriate. I was asleep. I’ll use my sleeping bag tonight…on the floor. I won’t do anything like that again.”
Peri felt a twinge of guilt, watching Paige squirm her way through the unnecessary apology. She hid her grin and asked as innocently as she could muster. “Why not?”
Paige’s head snapped around. “What?”
“Why not?” Peri reached over and placed her hand on Paige’s arm. “Why don’t you want to do that again? It was nice. Cozy. Being close to you felt good.”
“Oh, yeah. It felt good. What about Kim? Does it feel good being with Kim, too?” A red flush crept up the side of Paige’s face, her green monster finally getting the better of her. Her lips were pressed together. “I don’t do threesomes, Peri.” Paige pulled her arm away and started to stand up.
Peri grabbed onto Paige’s pocket to pull her down onto the rock again.
“Wait, please. It’s my turn to apologize. I should have stopped you before you choked out that apology. You were so cute being all righteous and jealous.”
Paige’s jaw worked as she fought to control her anger.
“Paige, this is very important. You have to listen to me. You’re wrong.”
“Wrong? About what?”
“I’m not with Kim. Never have been. Never will be. She is a friend only.”
Paige locked onto Peri’s eyes to test the level of truth she saw there. “No. Zeke said you and Kim were necking when he found you at Villy’s. Then, later, I saw you kiss her with my own eyes through the window of the cabin. You can’t deny that. How can you look me in the eyes and lie to me?”
“I have never lied to you, Paige, and I never will.”
“Zeke said…”
“Yes, Zeke did find me kissing Kim.”
Paige’s eyes misted. She started to stand up.
Peri’s hand darted out and restrained her. “You asked, and I’ll tell you all of what happened. Will you hear me out? What I tell you will be the complete truth. I swear to you, I’m not with Kim the way you think.”
Paige looked away.
Peri took Paige’s hand and gave a gentle tug, pulling Paige’s focus back to her. “Kim can be strong willed if she doesn’t get her own way. I kissed her once. Okay…maybe one and a half times.” She smiled and hurried on when she saw no answering smile on Paige’s face. “Kim is afraid. I doubt she realizes it. She’s drifting, afraid to be alone. She wanted to know why we couldn’t be a couple. She knows I love her.”
Concerned that Paige rolled her eyes, Peri hurried on. “I do love her, but only as a friend. I kissed her to prove my point.”
“To prove your point that you love her?” Paige couldn’t, or wouldn’t, look at Peri.
“Let me finish. No, I kissed her to prove that I love her only as a friend and to prove that we have no chemistry to be more than friends. That’s when Zeke found us. So much happened so fast, that we never had a chance to discuss the kiss we’d shared. It wasn’t until the day we were leaving for Zeke’s that we finally got to talk. We were outside by the shed.”
“I saw you through the window. You hugged and kissed her then, too.”
After taking a deep breath and exhaling it, Peri pushed on. “You’re right, I did. This is what happened. Kim told me that I was right to say we lacked chemistry, because the kiss didn’t work for her either. She said it was pleasant.” Peri chuckled. “My feelings would have been hurt if I wasn’t so relieved. Anyway, she agreed that we make good friends and would make terrible lovers. The bottom line is that we agreed nothing exciting happened as a result of the kiss we’d shared. She told me she loves me. I told her I love her, and we exchanged a peck on the lips. That must have been when you saw us. We care for each other, have for years, only as friends though. That’s all there was to it, Paige. We’re friends, that’s all.”
Peri waited for Paige to process all she’d heard and look at her. Peri squeezed Paige’s hand and gathered her courage. “Besides, I can’t be in love with Kim. I care for you.”
Paige’s head turned, her eyes were glistening as they met Peri’s. “You do?”
“I do. I have feelings for you. However, Ms. Monroe, you said something very hurtful to me.” Is that relief I feel pouring from Paige, or my hope? Peri put on what she hoped was a stern face. “You accused me of wanting a threesome. I’ll tell you right now, I don’t do threesomes either.” She paused for effect. At the exact moment Paige opened her mouth to answer, she jumped in with, “So we may have to train Murdoch to stay in his own bed.” Her fully dimpled smile appeared.
Paige’s eyes flew open and she burst into laughter. She stood and pulled Peri to her feet and into an embrace until their laughter slowed. “Do we need to kiss to prove we have chemistry?”
Peri wasn’t finished teasing yet. “No, I don’t think so, not yet.” She turned away pretending to leave.
Paige made a grab for Peri’s hand to pull her back. She over reached and teetered on the edge of the rock. Peri grabbed her hand to steady her, but was too late to keep Paige upright. Paige fell sideways, pulling Peri with her into the water. They surfaced at the same time to a cacophony of quacking complaints from the duck family. The instant the shock of the chilly water wore off, they both broke into laughter. Paige, immersed to her shoulders, reached to support Peri whose feet didn’t quite touch the bottom.
Peri circled Paige’s neck with her arms and wrapped her legs around the taller woman. “I do think it’s time now though,” she whispered.
“Time?”
“Yes, time to see if we have chemistry.” Peri leaned in, and their lips met for the first time. The kiss, tentative at first, was sweet until she felt Paige deepen it. Their tongues met, igniting a fire that left them breathing hard.
Paige broke the kiss and leaned back. “I think I’m glad we’re standing in this chilly water.” She playfully looked around. “Do you see steam?”
Peri laughed and leaned in, stopping just a breath away from Paige’s lips. Before she closed the final fraction of distance between them, she murmured, “No, no steam yet. I think we’ll have to try harder this time.”
As their second kiss ended, Peri snuggled into Paige’s nec
k. She kissed her way up to Paige’s ear and gently bit on her earlobe. “I don’t know how to tell you this,” she whispered, “so I’m just going to say it…”
Paige pulled back, concern showing on her face. “What? Is something wrong?”
“With us? No, it’s me…I’m seconds away from chattering teeth. Aren’t you cold?”
Paige chuckled. “A bit. I will say that some parts are definitely much warmer than others.” She walked toward the edge of the pool, until the water was shallow enough for Peri’s feet to touch the bottom. Hands still joined, they made their way to the outcrop of rock they’d fallen from. They sat down, side by side, shoulders touching and hands joined while they enjoyed the calm.
Paige glanced at Peri’s face. It held a serious expression. “This feels right to me, Peri. Are you okay with it?”
“I am.” Peri pressed her hand to her chest, checking for her locket. “Oh no.” She pulled the locket from under her shirt and wiped it off with her still wet T-shirt. “Oh, please don’t be ruined.” She popped open the clasp. Trish’s face stared back at her. “It’s okay,” she said sighing with relief.
“Can I see?”
Their heads moved closer as Paige studied the picture. “She had a beautiful smile. I’m glad your photo wasn’t ruined.”
Peri squeezed Paige’s hand and gave her a quick kiss. “Me too.”
“You okay?”
“You mean about Trish?” Peri nodded. “Yes, I think so. She would want me to be happy. You?”
“Yes, I am. I loved my wife and my daughter. For the most part, we were happy. We had an ongoing disagreement over my job and well…” She shrugged. “It’s ironic, when you think about it. She always thought I would get shot or killed because of the work I did. It preyed on her mind all the time.”
“Did you consider giving up your work, maybe doing something else?”
