Countdown

by Julie Cannon

  “Andrea?”

  Andrea almost jumped, and she realized everyone was looking at her, including Kenner. She felt a flush creep up her neck. “I’m sorry. I was thinking about something else. What was the question?”

  Andrea cringed inside when the question was repeated. She never lost track of a conversation, daydreamed in a meeting, zoned out, or lost interest. Never. Ever. And everyone in the room except Kenner knew it. What in the hell was happening to her?

  Ten awkward minutes later she adjourned the meeting. Everyone filed out like good little solders, but Kenner remained. Great, just great.

  “Are you okay?” Kenner asked, approaching her.

  “Of course.” Even if Andrea were on her death bed, she’d never say otherwise.

  “You looked a little distracted,” Kenner said, obviously trying to get her to confess.

  “No, not at all,” Andrea lied. “I’m just concerned that we’re not making any significant headway. That’s all.” That part was true.

  Kenner looked at her for several moments. Her eyes roamed across her face, and Andrea’s pulse started to race. She had to play it cool, keep it together. That was easy enough to do. It was a simple case of mind over matter. She always accomplished what she set her mind to, and why would this be any different? But you can’t erase something you’ve seen, especially when it was as stunningly beautiful as Kenner’s bare skin and breasts. The sight of them was burned into her brain like a brand.

  Kenner’s penetrating eyes made Andrea uncomfortable. She forced herself not to squirm or be the first to look away. She was in charge and had to maintain control of the situation. “Is there anything else?” she asked, praying the answer was no.

  Kenner must have been giving serious thought to her answer because it took a long time for her to respond. “We’ll get it,” she said, referring to why she was here in the first place. Her face relaxed its intense scrutiny. “It’ll take a little time, but we’ll get it.”

  Andrea breathed a sigh of relief as Kenner walked out the door.

  *

  “Bullshit,” Kenner mumbled as she strolled down the hall. Her conversation with Andrea pushed her bullshit meter off the charts. She’d seen the look in Andrea’s eyes last night. She knew the unmistakable signs of raw desire. She’d seen the way Andrea’s body responded when she saw her in bed this morning. Kenner hadn’t intended for the sheet to slide down, but gravity being what it is… She wasn’t shy, and to quickly grab the sheet and cover herself would have caused more attention to the situation than doing nothing, or at least that’s what she told herself.

  Kenner had wanted to reach out and pull Andrea into bed with her, but she hadn’t. The threat that Andrea would slap her and throw her out of her house and this job was deterrent enough. Kenner instinctively knew Andrea wanted her, but no way was she going to put herself out there to get knocked down. There were many, many other fish in the sea. She pulled out her phone and pushed the number next to Susie’s name.

  The day flew by, and Kenner finally felt like she was starting to make progress. She was beginning to fully understand the situation and knew the solution would jump out at her in the next few days. Her neck hurt, her back ached, and the data in front of her was starting to run together. She needed a break. She rolled her chair next to the man sitting in the workstation to her right.

  “Hey, Mitchell.”

  “Yes,” he answered, not looking up from his own data.

  “Is there a place to blow off some steam around here? Like a gym or a track or something?”

  “There’s a basketball court just outside building twelve. Robertson in Purchasing has a ball under his desk. Two halls over behind the blue door.”

  Kenner thanked him and set out to find the aforementioned blue door.

  The ball bounced off the end of the rim, and Kenner sprinted to catch it before it rolled off the court and into the mud. She didn’t know how long she’d been shooting hoops, but she was breathing fast and her arms were getting tired, as evidenced by her missing her last several shots.

  “What are you doing out here?” Andrea’s angry voice came from behind her.

  “Shooting hoops. Wanna join me?”

  “You’re shooting hoops?” Andrea asked, sounding incredulous.

  “Yes,” Kenner said. Her answer was pretty self-explanatory. She released another shot from the left of the basket, relieved the shot hit nothing but net. The last thing she wanted to do was to have to chase the ball down in front of Andrea. How embarrassing would that be?

  She grabbed the ball and turned to face Andrea, who did not look happy. Her hands were on her hips, her feet shoulder-length apart. A scowl covered her face, and her eyes were dark. “Do you need something?”

  Kenner wasn’t done shooting, her thoughts only starting to clear and synthesize. Her brain worked best when it was relaxed. It was as if the absence of stimulation or data input made room for it to all come together. She’d determined the solution to her last two assignments while on the racquetball court at her apartment.

  “I need you back at work.”

  “Did you find something?” she asked quickly, her pulse jumping.

  “No, that’s why you’re here. Against my better judgment,” she murmured after the fact.

  “Is there a problem?”

  “You are the problem,” Andrea snapped.

  “I thought you just said I was the solution. Make up your mind, Andrea.” Kenner had no idea why she’d said that, but her well-earned relaxation had all but disappeared with Andrea’s arrival.

  “Seventeen men and women in the control room and another several dozen more are working on this problem. I don’t see any of them out here shooting hoops.”

  “Not my problem they don’t know how to relax.” Kenner goaded her.

  “Don’t you think you should be inside working?” Andrea asked, not even trying to mask her sarcasm.

  “No, but obviously you do.”

  “Yes, I do, and everyone else does as well.”

  “I don’t care what they think.” She had long ago stopped worrying about what people thought of her. After years of enduring teasing and taunting, Kenner had toughened her skin as a matter of survival. If it didn’t matter, it couldn’t hurt.

  “I need—”

  “Didn’t we have this conversation yesterday? The one where you chastised me because I wasn’t sitting in the ergonomically NASA regulated position. Well, this is same thing, and for the second time I don’t need to explain myself to you. And I’m not going to.” She sank another seventeen-footer with nothing but net. “So unless you’re going to join me, I suggest you get off the court. You might get hurt. Never know when the ball will rebound off the rim at an odd angle.” Kenner was furious but wasn’t about to let Andrea see that she’d upset her.

  Kenner ignored Andrea, or at least she let her think she was ignoring her, and sank a few more before transitioning to layups. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Andrea standing there, probably deciding what to do next. This was a classic power play, and Kenner didn’t participate in that game. Finally Andrea turned and stormed back into the building, her body stiff. Kenner knew this wasn’t over.

  Andrea fumed as she stomped back to the door she’d come out not five minutes earlier. She’d walked over to the window in the control room to stretch her legs, and movement on the court below her had caught her attention. When she saw Kenner’s workstation empty she’d reached the conclusion that she was on the court instead of in her seat.

  Andrea hadn’t expected Kenner’s flip attitude but then again, after their earlier conversation, she wasn’t surprised. She seethed because Kenner was right. They had had this conversation yesterday, but this situation was different. Why couldn’t she see that? Andrea had a staff to keep focused, discipline to maintain, and a reputation to uphold. Kenner was undermining her just about every step of the way. This couldn’t go on much longer, but she would never ask Barry to remove Kenner from the team.


  Andrea simmered. Never in a million years would she admit that she couldn’t control a team member. That would be career suicide. She’d worked too hard, trained too long for this snot-nosed, pompous little shit to throw her off track. It wouldn’t happen. She would not let it happen.

  Several people looked up as she reentered the control room, and she kept her expression neutral as she walked to her desk. She didn’t need for anyone on her team to see how angry she was. And angry she was—at Kenner, but more at herself for letting Kenner get under her skin. No one had ever sparked her anger and frustration like this woman did. Was it her lackadaisical attitude? Her youth? Her confidence?

  For a moment Andrea wondered if she might be jealous, then brushed the possibility off as ridiculous. After all, Kenner was brilliant, obviously worked and played hard, didn’t care who knew she was gay, and added to all that, she had dynamite looks. She had her entire future in front of her.

  Andrea suddenly felt old and tired. She’d single-mindedly driven herself so hard for so many years that she’d rarely taken a break. Her last vacation had been over two years ago, and she really hadn’t had any choice. Her brother Stan was getting married, and her mother had threatened to disown her if she didn’t show up for the full week of activities. Andrea had compromised and flown to San Francisco, where her brother and his fiancé were living, two days before and left the day after the wedding. Her friends had stopped calling her months ago and wouldn’t even try to get in touch again for several more. Dinner with Kenner last night was the first time she’d eaten anywhere other than at her desk or in front of the TV in she didn’t know how long.

  When had her life become so one-dimensional? It probably always had been, but when had it become such a mess? And why did it always start to unravel when Kenner was around? Andrea was shaking her head to regain her focus when Kenner strolled in. Instead of returning to her workstation she headed toward her. Andrea’s back tensed, ready for another battle. She wondered if this one would be of words or will.

  “Any news on a hotel?”

  That wasn’t what Andrea had expected Kenner to say, and it took a moment for her to process the question. “Not that I’m aware of.” Andrea had meant to send an email to the travel department but become sidetracked when she saw Kenner outside. “I know you’re eager to get out of my house and have your own privacy. I’m sure Susie would appreciate it too.”

  Kenner’s eyebrows rose. Hmm, Andrea thought. I read that one right.

  “It would make things…uh…less complicated,” Kenner admitted.

  “Of course it would. Far be it from me to stand in the way of true love.” Jesus, where did that come from?

  “You know, Andrea, I’m beginning to think you have a problem with sex.”

  “Don’t you dare even begin to assume you know anything about me,” Andrea shot back, furious, but of course Kenner just stared at her and obviously wasn’t about to let it drop.

  “Or is it just that you have a problem with me having sex? No.” Kenner paused and smiled. “I know. You have a problem with me having sex but just not with you.”

  Andrea fought the urge to jump up and slap the smug look off Kenner’s face. Obviously that wasn’t possible, but she did stand and step close to her. “I warned you, Kenner.” She kept her voice low, but her words came out between clenched teeth.

  “You started it, again,” Kenner said. “I simply asked about a hotel room. You’re the one who assumed sex was involved. But just to appease your prurient interest, yes, I do have plans for tonight. All night, as a matter of fact. But I do have enough class not to do whatever I have in mind in your home.”

  Chapter Sixteen

  T-minus 06:12:28:45

  The shocked expression on Andrea’s face clearly told Kenner she had hit her mark. She’d been after her all day, and Kenner couldn’t resist pulling her chain. Yanking it was more appropriate. She wasn’t going to let Andrea bully or intimidate her. Far from it. She’d dealt with power-hungry, insecure people before, and Andrea was just one more. She knew how to handle her, and she just had. But Susie had to work tonight, and now she had nowhere to go. But no way in hell would she let Andrea know that little fact.

  This wasn’t the first time someone had assumed she was having sex. Sure, she’d slept with a lot of women. So what? They were willing, and Kenner had made it clear what it was and what it wasn’t. It was the mutual enjoyment of each other, and it was not the beginning of a relationship of any kind. Having sex with a woman was no different than having dinner together or going to see a movie. If they both wanted to do it, why not?

  She didn’t understand women who had to be emotionally involved or had to “feel something” for the woman before they could have sex. Sex was a physical act, nothing more. What did emotion have to do with it? If anyone started to get serious or wanted exclusivity, Kenner calmly explained the facts of her life and ended their liaison. It had only gotten sticky once, and she’d had to practically pry the woman off her to get out the door. Needless to say, that one experience had been scary, and she didn’t plan to ever let it happen again.

  But what was she going to do about tonight? Where in the hell would she sleep? She remembered seeing a cot in the women’s locker room yesterday, and her first thought had been that it was the perfect place for a quickie. She’d never thought she’d actually sleep on it. But she’d spent the night in worse places, and the expression on Andrea’s face would make it worth it.

  Unfortunately the cot was as lumpy as it looked, and Kenner tossed and turned most of the night. She finally gave up and went to the cafeteria around five fifteen. Surprisingly several people were there, and the smell of bacon and fresh coffee made her stomach growl. She picked up a tray and placed her order.

  “Hey, stranger.”

  Kenner opened her eyes and saw Susie standing in front of her table. She had closed them for just a minute and wondered if she’d fallen asleep. She also wondered if her mouth had been hanging open and if she was drooling. “Hey, yourself,” she replied, motioning for Susie to join her. She was surprised when the woman sat beside her and not across from her.

  “Sorry I couldn’t make it last night,” Susie said, frowning. “If I’d had any idea you’d call, I wouldn’t have volunteered to work.”

  Kenner shook her head. “It’s okay. It was last minute, and I certainly didn’t expect you to change your plans.”

  Susie’s smile turned sexy and her eyes darkened. “I would have if it had been anything else.”

  Tingling started between Kenner’s legs, and her brain flashed to the cot. But her back said otherwise. “We’ll have to make it another time,” she said. Like the instant she checked into a hotel. Susie had told her she had a roommate, and between that and her bunking arrangements at Andrea’s, this hook-up was just a little more challenging than usual. But if Susie was half as good as she looked, it would be worth it.

  “You seem a little tired,” Susie said. “Somebody keep you up last night?” she asked, pouting a little.

  That was a warning flag in Kenner’s book, and she spoke carefully. “As a matter of fact, yes,” she said evasively. Let Susie draw her own conclusions. It also put some distance between them if she was thinking of getting too chummy.

  Susie scooted closer and put her hand on Kenner’s leg, the other around the back of her chair. Kenner thought she might lick her neck. Instead she whispered, “I hope I didn’t miss my chance.” Her voice had dropped to a baby-doll tone.

  That was warning number two, and it was time for Kenner to leave. But before she had a chance to say anything, a loud crash echoed in the near-empty room. Both she and Susie looked up to see Andrea across the way, her tray and its contents on the floor in front of her. Kenner spotted Andrea’s panicked expression before she quickly knelt to pick up her mess. Kenner used the distraction as an opportunity to excuse herself, slide her chair away from Susie, and leave her table.

  “Need some help?” Kenner asked, approaching Andrea.
r />   “No, I’ve got it, thanks,” Andrea said quickly, her once-pale face now flushed.

  Kenner ignored her and knelt to pick up a container of yogurt. Luckily it hadn’t exploded when it hit the floor.

  Andrea reached it first and snapped, “I said I’ve got this.”

  Kenner felt the sting of Andrea’s tone. “Jesus. I was just being polite.”

  “Well, I don’t think Susie would think it polite for you to run to my rescue after spending the night with her.”

  Andrea stood and Kenner did as well. Kenner looked into Andrea’s eyes, which appeared angry and hurt. An odd combination for someone who had told her very clearly to get lost.

  Andrea broke eye contact first. Kenner’s body responded as Andrea stared at her from head to toe. Did her eyes linger a little longer on her chest? Could Andrea see her tight nipples? Could she sense her arousal that hit her the instant Andrea’s eyes moved over her? Holy shit.

  “You may not care about how you look, but get yourself cleaned up before you come into my control room.”

  Kenner couldn’t miss the personalization Andrea put on the words control room. She was regaining the upper hand and establishing who was on top this time. Holy fuck. The thought of Andrea on top of her almost made her knees buckle.

  “I mean it, Kenner. Either make yourself presentable or don’t come in.”

  “Or what?” Kenner shot back, her eyes blazing.

  “Don’t push me, Kenner,” Andrea said, her teeth clenched so tight she thought they’d break.

  “Or what?” Kenner repeated. “What are you going to do, send me to my room? Oh yeah, that’s right. I don’t have a room because your people fucked up.” Kenner pointed at her before continuing. “Fire me? You won’t and you know it. But if you change your mind, please do, because I was having a lot more fun and had a lot less of this bullshit to deal with where I was.”