by Julie Cannon
She turned back to Larry, looking him straight in the eye. “Yes, I do.” She hesitated another second before plunging on. “If he thinks that way about lesbians, then he thinks that way about me, and I refuse to be spoken about like that again.”
Leigh wasn’t in the closet at work, but she also never openly spoke about her private life. First, because there was nothing to tell, and second, because it wasn’t anyone’s business. This was a game changer for her.
Larry studied her as if judging her authenticity. Finally, he said, “I believe you. I may need the names.”
Leigh was overcome with waves of relief. She honestly didn’t know if he would believe her or take the side of his long-time employee. Her respect for him skyrocketed.
“I’ll have them on your desk first thing Monday morning.”
* * *
“Peyton, can I talk to you for a minute?” Leigh wasn’t sure if Peyton would stop or simply keep walking into the clubhouse. When she turned to look at her, Leigh was suddenly more than a little nervous.
“I’ll get you the names,” Peyton said, her voice flat.
“What?”
“The names. Of the others in your group who heard what Stark said.”
It took a moment for Leigh to attach Peyton’s comment to a question. She finally got it. “That’s not what I want to talk to you about.” Before she could say anything, Peyton removed her sunglasses, her look hard.
“My God, Peyton. Are you okay?” Leigh asked. She started to touch the discolored skin but stopped herself. “What happened?”
“Conway. But it doesn’t concern you.” Peyton’s voice was cold and emotionless.
Leigh didn’t know what to say. She’d made it clear that it wasn’t any of her business, as Peyton had so accurately said. She’d lost track of what she wanted to talk to Peyton about. Peyton waited, impatience written on her face and in her body language.
“I’m sorry,” Leigh said. “I’m sorry for everything. For the way Stark spoke to you, the way I didn’t stand up and tell him to shut the fuck up. The way I reacted when I…when you…”
“Don’t apologize, Leigh. I don’t want or need you to.” Peyton’s voice was harsh. “I also don’t need your pity. I’m a big girl, an even bigger one because of what I did. I took responsibility for my actions, paid the price, and am moving on with my life.” Peyton hesitated, her eyes dark with uncertainty, pinning Leigh with their intensity. “With or without you.”
Leigh was stunned. When did this happen? When had a romp of casual, no-strings-attached sex become a lifeline she didn’t want to lose?
Chapter Thirty-seven
“You’re in love.”
“Excuse me?” Peyton asked after wiping her chin from the after-dinner coffee that spewed out of her mouth.
“You heard me,” Olivia said. “Who is she?”
Peyton was taken aback by Olivia’s statement, which wasn’t a question. They were sitting on the back patio, the coffee in her cup still steaming. It had been three days since she’d seen Leigh.
“Don’t try to pretend you don’t know what I’m talking about.”
“Her name is Leigh Marshall.” It felt good to say Leigh’s name out loud.
“What’s the problem? No woman in love looks like you do right now.”
Peyton didn’t know where to start. She’d barely been able to get out of bed the past several mornings, and she felt like someone had ripped out her guts and tossed them into a bucket.
“Tell me about her. She must be pretty special to have captured your heart,” Olivia said, her voice gentle and inviting. She sat back in her chair, settling in for a long conversation.
“She’s warm and kind, and she makes me laugh and think. She makes me want to be a better person, to do my best in everything I do.” Peyton went on to tell Olivia everything about Leigh, finishing with, “She cares deeply for other people.”
“Like ex-cons on parole?”
“She doesn’t want anything to do with me,” Peyton said, defeated.
“How so? You’ve served your time.” Olivia said like it was just that simple.
“She has a pretty big, important job. She’s probably afraid of how her company would react if they found out about me. God only knows about her family. And the whole Conway scene. It was ugly, and she didn’t need to see that.”
“I get it.” Olivia pursed her lips and frowned. “So?”
“So?” Peyton asked, a little angry. “What am I supposed to do? I can’t change history.” Peyton told Olivia the ultimatum she’d left Leigh with.
Olivia was looking at her so intently she started to squirm.
“Do you love her?”
Peyton had thought about that question for days. The way she felt, the pain in her chest, the sleepless nights. The paralyzing fear that Leigh wouldn’t be in her life. She had no other answer to Olivia’s question. “Yes. But she wants nothing to do with me.”
* * *
“Leigh,” Peyton said, after yanking open her front door. She’d tried to ignore the knocking, but whoever it was, was insistent. It was obvious they weren’t going away. She didn’t want to see anybody and was in no mood to entertain guests. Leigh was the last person she expected to see standing on her doorstep the next evening.
“Hi,” Leigh said tentatively, her eyes darting back and forth between Peyton’s and the ground. “I hope I’m not interrupting anything.”
Peyton snapped herself from the shock of seeing Leigh again. “No, uhh, would you like to come in?” She opened the door for Leigh to enter.
“Could we sit outside? Under the tree.” Leigh pointed to a large tree in Marcus and Olivia’s backyard.
The tree was mature, its canopy at least thirty feet wide. She and Marcus had built a bench circling the base and added soft lights for nights just like this. It was her favorite spot when she needed to think.
“Sure. Would you like something to drink?” Peyton asked, surprised she remembered her manners.
Leigh shook her head. “No, thanks.”
Peyton closed the door behind her and followed Leigh across the neatly manicured yard to the tree. She used her hand and wiped leaves that had fallen in the last day or two off the bench.
“It’s beautiful out here,” Leigh said, gazing into the sky on the horizon. Peyton was looking at Leigh.
“Yes, it is.”
“Are those crickets?”
Peyton wasn’t in the mood to make small talk. She didn’t want to dance around why Leigh was here, so she asked. It was several moments before Leigh answered, her eyes still on the night sky.
“I don’t know. I can’t seem to get you out of my head.”
“But you don’t want me beside you.”
Leigh turned to look at Peyton. “I do, but—”
“There is no but, Leigh. I either am or I’m not.”
“It’s not that simple.”
“Isn’t it?” Peyton asked, turning to fully face her. Leigh was breathtaking, heartbreakingly beautiful. “I love you, and you either love me enough to spend the rest of your life with me and whatever that brings—the good, the bad and the ugly—or you don’t.”
“I’m afraid.”
“So am I,” Peyton said, her voice softening. “I can’t breathe when I’m around you. I can’t think. I took a chance being with you because I couldn’t imagine my life without you. I don’t want to miss this chance at happiness. I don’t want to walk away from you.” Peyton took a deep breath. “But if you can’t accept me, all of me, then I will. Because I won’t settle for less.”
When Leigh didn’t say anything, Peyton rose. Her heart was breaking, but her legs were steady. She had no idea what she was going to do now, but her resolve was firm. She walked the dozen dark, shadowy yards to her door.
“Peyton!”
Peyton spun around, catching Leigh when she leaped into her arms. Leigh wrapped her hand around the back of Peyton’s head and drew her down into a hot, passionate, possessive kiss. The sl
eek slide of Leigh’s tongue and the pounding of her heart pushed away any thoughts of ever letting this wonderful woman out of her life. And in that moment, Peyton felt as though she had truly been paroled.
The End
About the Author
Julie Cannon divides her time by being a corporate suit, a wife, mom, sister, friend, and writer. Julie and her wife have lived in at least a half a dozen states, traveled around the world, and have an unending supply of dedicated friends. And of course, the most important people in their lives are their three kids: #1, Dude, and the Devine Miss Em.
With the release of Fore Play, Julie will have seventeen books published by Bold Strokes Books. Her first novel, Come and Get Me, was a finalist for the Golden Crown Literary Society’s Best Lesbian Romance and Debut Author Awards. In 2012, her ninth novel, Rescue Me, was a finalist as Best Lesbian Romance from the prestigious Lambda Literary Society, and I Remember won the Golden Crown Literary Society’s Best Lesbian Romance in 2014. Julie has also published five short stories in Bold Strokes anthologies. www.JulieCannon.com
Books Available from Bold Strokes Books
Breakthrough by Kris Bryant. Falling for a sexy ranger is one thing, but is the possibility of love worth giving up the career Kennedy Wells has always dreamed of? (978-1-63555-179-2)
Certain Requirements by Elinor Zimmerman. Phoenix has always kept her love of kinky submission strictly behind the bedroom door and inside the bounds of romantic relationships, until she meets Kris Andersen. (978-1-63555-195-2)
Dark Euphoria by Ronica Black. When a high-profile case drops in Detective Maria Diaz’s lap, she forges ahead only to discover this case, and her main suspect,aren’t like any other. (978-1-63555-141-9)
Fore Play by Julie Cannon. Executive Leigh Marshall falls hard for Peyton Broader, her golf pro…and an ex-con. Will she risk sabotaging her career for love? (978-1-63555-102-0)
Love Came Calling by CA Popovich. Can a romantic looking for a long-term, committed relationship and a jaded cynic too busy for love conquer life’s struggles and find their way to what matters most? (978-1-63555-205-8)
Outside the Law by Carsen Taite. Former sweethearts Tanner Cohen and Sydney Braswell must work together on a federal task force to see justice served, but will they choose to embrace their second chance at love? (978-1-63555-039-9)
The Princess Deception by Nell Stark. When journalist Missy Duke realizes Prince Sebastian is really his twin sister Viola in disguise, she plays along, but when sparks flare between them, will the double deception doom their fairy-tale romance? (978-1-62639-979-2)
The Smell of Rain by Cameron MacElvee. Reyha Arslan, a wise and elegant woman with a tragic past, shows Chrys that there’s still beauty to embrace and reason to hope despite the world’s cruelty. (978-1-63555-166-2)
The Talebearer by Sheri Lewis Wohl. Liz’s visions show her the faces of the lost and the killers who took their lives. As one by one, the murdered are found, a stranger works to stop Liz before the serial killer is brought to justice. (978-1-63555-126-6)
White Wings Weeping by Lesley Davis. The world is full of discord and hatred, but how much of it is just human nature when an evil with sinister intent is invading people’s hearts? (978-1-63555-191-4)
A Call Away by KC Richardson. Can a businesswoman from a big city find the answers she’s looking for, and possibly love, on a small-town farm? (978-1-63555-025-2)
Berlin Hungers by Justine Saracen. Can the love between an RAF woman and the wife of a Luftwaffe pilot, former enemies, survive in besieged Berlin during the aftermath of World War II? (978-1-63555-116-7)
Blend by Georgia Beers. Lindsay and Piper are like night and day. Working together won’t be easy, but not falling in love might prove the hardest job of all. (978-1-63555-189-1)
Hunger for You by Jenny Frame. Principe of an ancient vampire clan Byron Debrek must save her one true love from falling into the hands of her enemies and into the middle of a vampire war. (978-1-63555-168-6)
Mercy by Michelle Larkin. FBI Special Agent Mercy Parker and psychic ex-profiler Piper Vasey learn to love again as they race to stop a man with supernatural gifts who’s bent on annihilating humankind. (978-1-63555-202-7)
Pride and Porters by Charlotte Greene. Will pride and prejudice prevent these modern-day lovers from living happily ever after? (978-1-63555-158-7)
Rocks and Stars by Sam Ledel. Kyle’s struggle to own who she is and what she really wants may end up landing her on the bench and without the woman of her dreams. (978-1-63555-156-3)
The Boss of Her: Office Romance Novellas by Julie Cannon, Aurora Rey, and M. Ullrich. Going to work never felt so good. Three office romance novellas from talented writers Julie Cannon, Aurora Rey, and M. Ullrich. (978-1-63555-145-7)
The Deep End by Ellie Hart. When family ties become entangled in murder and deception, it’s time to find a way out… (978-1-63555-288-1)
A Country Girl’s Heart by Dena Blake. When Kat Jackson gets a second chance at love, following her heart will prove the hardest decision of all. (978-1-63555-134-1)
Dangerous Waters by Radclyffe. Life, death, and war on the home front. Two women join forces against a powerful opponent, nature itself. (978-1-63555-233-1)
Fury’s Death by Brey Willows. When all we hold sacred fails, who will be there to save us? (978-1-63555-063-4)
It’s Not a Date by Heather Blackmore. Kade’s desire to keep things with Jen on a professional level is in Jen’s best interest. Yet what’s in Kade’s best interest…is Jen. (978-1-63555-149-5)
Killer Winter by Kay Bigelow. Just when she thought things could get no worse, homicide Lieutenant Leah Samuels learns the woman she loves has betrayed her in devastating ways. (978-1-63555-177-8)
Score by MJ Williamz. Will an addiction to pain pills destroy Ronda’s chance with the woman she loves or will she come out on top and score a happily ever after? (978-1-62639-807-8)
Spring’s Wake by Aurora Rey. When wanderer Willa Lange falls for Provincetown B&B owner Nora Calhoun, will past hurts and a fifteen-year age gap keep them from finding love? (978-1-63555-035-1)
The Northwoods by Jane Hoppen. When Evelyn Bauer, disguised as her dead husband, George, travels to a Northwoods logging camp to work, she and the camp cook Sarah Bell forge a friendship fraught with both tenderness and turmoil. (978-1-63555-143-3)
Truth or Dare by C. Spencer. For a group of six lesbian friends, life changes course after one long snow-filled weekend. (978-1-63555-148-8)
A Heart to Call Home by Jeannie Levig. When Jessie Weldon returns to her hometown after thirty years, can she and her childhood crush Dakota Scott heal the tragic past that links them? (978-1-63555-059-7)
Children of the Healer by Barbara Ann Wright. Life becomes desperate for ex-soldier Cordelia Ross when the indigenous aliens of her planet are drawn into a civil war and old enemies linger in the shadows. Book Three of the Godfall Series. (978-1-63555-031-3)
Hearts Like Hers by Melissa Brayden. Coffee shop owner Autumn Primm is ready to cut loose and live a little, but is the baggage that comes with out-of-towner Kate Carpenter too heavy for anything long term? (978-1-63555-014-6)
Love at Cooper’s Creek by Missouri Vaun. Shaw Daily flees corporate life to find solace in the rural Blue Ridge Mountains, but escapism eludes her when her attentions are captured by small town beauty Kate Elkins. (978-1-62639-960-0)
Somewhere Over Lorain Road by Bud Gundy. Over forty years after murder allegations shattered the Esker family, can Don Esker find the true killer and clear his dying father’s name? (978-1-63555-124-2)
Twice in a Lifetime by PJ Trebelhorn. Detective Callie Burke can’t deny the growing attraction to her late friend’s widow, Taylor Fletcher, who also happens to own the bar where Callie’s sister works. (978-1-63555-033-7)
Undiscovered Affinity by Jane Hardee. Will a no strings attached affair be enough to break Olivia’s control and convince Cardic that love does exist? (978-1-63555-061-0)
Between Sand and Stardust by Tina Michel
e. Are the lifelong bonds of love strong enough to conquer time, distance, and heartache when Haven Thorne and Willa Bennette are given another chance at forever? (978-1-62639-940-2)
Charming the Vicar by Jenny Frame. When magician and atheist Finn Kane seeks refuge in an English village after a spiritual crisis, can local vicar Bridget Claremont restore her faith in life and love? (978-1-63555-029-0)
Data Capture by Jesse J. Thoma. Lola Walker is undercover on the hunt for cybercriminals while trying not to notice the woman who might be perfectly wrong for her for all the right reasons. (978-1-62639-985-3)
Epicurean Delights by Renee Roman. Ariana Marks had no idea a leisure swim would lead to being rescued, in more ways than one, by the charismatic Hudson Frost. (978-1-63555-100-6)
Heart of the Devil by Ali Vali. We know most of Cain and Emma Casey’s story, but Heart of the Devil will take you back to where it began one fateful night with a tray loaded with beer. (978-1-63555-045-0)
Known Threat by Kara A. McLeod. When Special Agent Ryan O’Connor reluctantly questions who protects the Secret Service, she learns courage truly is found in unlikely places. Agent O’Connor Series #3. (978-1-63555-132-7)
Seer and the Shield by D. Jackson Leigh. Time is running out for the Dragon Horse Army while two unlikely heroines struggle to put aside their attraction and find a way to stop a deadly cult. Dragon Horse War, Book 3. (978-1-63555-170-9)
