The Long Way Home

by Rachel Spangler

  “Me?” Rory laughed. “That was all you. I’ve never felt anything like that before.”

  “How can you say that? I’m sure you’ve been with plenty of women who are thinner, or prettier, or more practiced.”

  Rory sat up quickly. How could Beth doubt her right now? Why couldn’t she see herself the way Rory saw her? “No one has ever loved me like you just did. I’ve never opened myself up to anyone that way. I’ve always been performing. Even in bed I played a role. The great Raine St. James had a reputation to protect or sometimes hide behind, but you didn’t want that. You didn’t want her. You wanted Rory, and Rory has never made love to anyone before.”

  Beth’s eye’s filled with tears, but the smile that accompanied them eased Rory’s tension. “I’m honored to be your first.”

  Rory gave her a goofy grin as she dropped back on the bed and hugged Beth once more. “My first. I like the sound of that, but I want you to be more than that. I want you to be the first, last, and only woman Rory St. James ever sleeps with.”

  Beth kissed her fully on the mouth before she leaned back long enough to ask, “How do you always know the right thing to say?”

  “You inspire me to greatness.”

  Beth gave her a playful shove but quickly closed the distance between them with another searing kiss. This time they didn’t pull away but allowed their hands to roam over each other’s bare skin. They were lost in an eternity of exploration when a loud knock on Rory’s apartment door interrupted their reverie.

  “Go away,” Rory groaned.

  Beth sighed. “What if it’s important?”

  “I don’t care if it’s the pope,” Rory grumbled, and stepped into her boxers. “You stay here while I go kill whoever’s at the door, and we’ll go back to where we left off.”

  Beth laughed as the door knocker struck again. “I’ll be here as long as you want.”

  The words were almost as beautiful as the woman who’d said them. Rory thought about diving back in bed, but another loud knock made her growl and head toward the door, pulling on a T-shirt as she went.

  Rory unlatched the deadbolt and swung open the door. “This better be good.”

  “That’s not the way the dean of the college usually gets greeted,” Flores said with a grin. “It’s kind of refreshing, actually. You never cease to surprise me, like your speech today.”

  “Oh?” Why would the dean come to her personal apartment without warning, Rory wondered, but her body was still screaming at her to go back to bed.

  “You surprised the board of trustees too,” Flores continued quickly. “They’d been worried about you pushing a gay agenda, whatever that means, but now they’re all convinced you’re the kind of person they’ve been dreaming of.”

  “How’s that?”

  “Cultured enough to be credible, level-headed enough not to be threatening. One of them said, and I quote, ‘Big-city ideas with a small-town sensibility.’”

  Rory smiled and remembered her conversation with Miles about having to choose between small towns and diversity. “I guess we can have it all.”

  “Right now, you can have just about anything you want at this college, because I’ve been authorized to offer you a full-time job heading up our new Gender and Sexuality certificate program. It’ll fall under Women’s Studies, but you’ll have a lot of say in the courses you design.”

  “Wow.” Now Flores had Rory’s full attention. This was her chance to secure her future in Darlington, her future with Beth. A week ago she would’ve felt nauseated at the thought of a life in her hometown. Even now it worried her that she didn’t feel more unease at the prospect, but all she could think about was Beth. She wanted to drive to work with her in the morning, meet her on the quad for lunch, have dinner with Beth and her family, and make love to her every night. And she had the added bonus of continuing to work with the students she adored. “You’ve got a deal.”

  Flores seemed skeptical. “Don’t you want to talk to your agent?”

  “No, I want the job.” The words were barely out of her mouth before someone slapped the back of her head.

  Beth appeared beside her, wearing the green, button-down shirt Rory had discarded during their lovemaking. It came halfway down her thighs, covering enough to be decent but not enough to keep Rory’s libido in check. “Hi, Flores. She’ll accept on the condition that she teaches on a Tuesday/Thursday schedule and gets time for travel. She shouldn’t give up the public speaking altogether.”

  Flores gave them a bemused smile. “And the surprises just keep on coming. I don’t imagine there’ll be any problem with those conditions. Whom should I send the contract to?”

  Rory shrugged. She didn’t know what was happening. All she could think about was how good Beth looked in her shirt and how much better she’d look out of it.

  “Send it to Edmond. I’ll read it before she signs.”

  “Great, then. I’ll let you ladies get back to your evening,” Flores said with a chuckle. “I won’t expect to see you at any of the Homecoming festivities tonight.”

  Beth closed the door and pushed Rory up against it, kissing her forcefully on the mouth. Then she pulled back and punched her lightly on the arm.

  “What was that for?”

  “The kiss was for taking the job. The hit was for not talking to me about it first.”

  “I’m sorry. I thought you’d like having me around all the time.” Rory found Beth genuinely perplexing, but somehow that only enhanced her charm.

  “I’ll love having you around all the time, but I don’t want you to stop being you. You can’t stay cooped up here forever. You’re too good onstage to give that up, and I don’t want to be the one who keeps Rory St. James from her adoring public.”

  “What if they don’t like Rory? She’s not as exciting as Raine was.”

  “She’s more exciting.” Beth slipped her hands under Rory’s T-shirt, dragging her fingernails across the bare skin of her ribcage. “Audiences will love you almost as much as I do.”

  Rory shuddered at Beth’s touch and allowed herself to be led back to bed. She couldn’t imagine being apart from Beth even for one night. “If you love me so much, then how will you stand me being away on these speaking dates?”

  Beth pushed her down on the bed. “Who said I wasn’t going with you? I’ve still got a lot of ballparks to see.”

  Rory pulled Beth down on top of her, wrapping her in her arms and holding her tight. “I’ll go anywhere you want to go or we’ll stay right here forever. Whatever we do, I want to do it together.”

  About the Author

  Rachel Spangler never set out to be an award winning author. She was just so poor and so easily bored during her college years that she had to come up with creative ways to entertain herself, and her first novel, Learning Curve, was born out of one such attempt. She was sincerely surprised when it was accepted for publication and even more shocked when it won the Golden Crown Literary Award for Debut Author. Since writing was turning out to be a real blast, Rachel decided to combine it with another passion and set her next romance on the ski slopes, and was absolutely stunned when her second novel, Trails Merge, won a Goldie in the category of Contemporary Romance. However, no amount of book signing or award winning can really change a Midwestern boi, and her third novel, The Long Way Home, is just that, a return to the themes and settings that mean the most in Rachel’s life and writing.

  Rachel and her partner, Susan, are raising their young son in small-town western New York, where during the winter they all make the most of the lake-effect snow on local ski slopes, and in summer they love to travel and watch their beloved St. Louis Cardinals. Regardless of the season, Rachel always makes time for a good romance, whether she’s reading it, writing it, or living it.

  Rachel can be found online at www.rachelspangler.com as well as on Facebook.

  Books Available From Bold Strokes Books

  The Long Way Home by Rachel Spangler. They say you can’t go home again, but Raine
St. James doesn’t know why anyone would want to. When she is forced to accept a job in the town she’s been publicly bashing for the last decade, she has to face down old hurts and the woman she left behind. (978-1-60282-178-1)

  Water Mark by J.M. Redmann. PI Micky Knight’s professional and personal lives are torn asunder by Katrina and its aftermath. She needs to solve a murder and recapture the woman she lost while struggling to simply survive in a world gone mad. (978-1-60282- 179-8)

  Picture Imperfect by Lea Santos. Young love doesn’t always stand the test of time, but Deanne is determined to get her marriage to childhood sweetheart Paloma back on the road to happily ever after, by way of Memory Lane-and Lover’s Lane. (978-1-60282-180-4)

  The Perfect Family by Kathryn Shay. A mother and her gay son stand hand in hand as the storms of change engulf their perfect family and the life they knew. (978-1-60282-181-1)

  Raven Mask by Winter Pennington. Preternatural Private Investigator (and closeted werewolf) Kassandra Lyall needs to solve a murder and protect her Vampire lover Lenorre, Countess Vampire of Oklahoma all while fending off the advances of the local werewolf alpha female. (978-1-60282-182-8)

  The Devil be Damned by Ali Vali. The fourth book in the best-selling Cain Casey Devil series. (978-1-60282-159-0)

  Descent by Julie Cannon. Shannon Roberts and Caroline Davis compete in the world of world-class bike racing and pretend that the fire between them is just professional rivalry, not desire. (978-1-60282-160-6)

  Kiss of Noir by Clara Nipper. Nora Delany is a hard-living, sweettalking woman who can’t say no to a beautiful babe or a friend in danger—a darkly humorous homage to a bygone era of tough broads and murder in steamy New Orleans. (978-1-60282-161-3)

  Under Her Skin by Lea Santos. Supermodel Lilly Lujan hasn’t a care in the world, except life is lonely in the spotlight—until Mexican gardener Torien Pacias sees through Lilly’s facade and offers gentle understanding and friendship when Lilly most needs it. (978-1-60282- 162-0)

  Fierce Overture by Gun Brooke. Helena Forsythe is a hard-hitting CEO who gets what she wants by taking no prisoners when negotiating— until she meets a woman who convinces her that charm may be the way to win a battle, and a heart. (978-1-60282-156-9)

  Trauma Alert by Radclyffe. Dr. Ali Torveau has no trouble saying no to romance until the day firefighter Beau Cross shows up in her ER and sets her carefully ordered world aflame. (978-1-60282-157-6)

  Wolfsbane Winter by Jane Fletcher. Iron Wolf mercenary Deryn faces down demon magic and otherworldly foes with a smile, but she’s defenseless when healer Alana wages war on her heart. (978-1-60282- 158-3)

  Little White Lie by Lea Santos. Emie Jaramillo knows relationships are for other people, and beautiful women like Gia Mendez don’t belong anywhere near her boring world of academia—until Gia sets out to convince Emie she has not only brains, but beauty...and that she’s the only woman Gia wants in her life. (978-1-60282-163-7)

  Witch Wolf by Winter Pennington. In a world where vampires have charmed their way into modern society, where werewolves walk the streets with their beasts disguised by human skin, Investigator Kassandra Lyall has a secret of her own to protect: She’s one of them. (978-1-60282-177-4)

  Do Not Disturb by Carsen Taite. Ainsley Faraday, a high-powered executive, and rock music celebrity Greer Davis couldn’t be less well suited for one another, and yet they soon discover passion has a way of designing its own future. (978-1-60282-153-8

  From This Moment On by PJ Trebelhorn. Devon Conway and Katherine Hunter both lost love and neither believes they will ever find it again—until the moment they meet and everything changes. (978-1- 60282-154-5)

  Vapor by Larkin Rose. When erotic romance writer Ashley Vaughn decides to take her research into the bedroom for a night of passion with Victoria Hadley, she discovers that fact is hotter than fiction. (978- 1-60282-155-2)

  Wind and Bones by Kristin Marra. Jill O’Hara, award-winning journalist, just wants to settle her deceased father’s affairs and leave Prairie View, Montana, far, far behind—but an old girlfriend, a sexy sheriff, and a dangerous secret keep her down on the ranch. (978-1- 60282-150-7)

  Nightshade by Shea Godfrey. The story of a princess, betrothed as a political pawn, who falls for her intended husband’s soldier sister, is a modern-day fairy tale to capture the heart. (978-1-60282-151-4)

  Vieux Carré Voodoo by Greg Herren. Popular New Orleans detective Scotty Bradley just can’t stay out of trouble—especially

  The Pleasure Set by Lisa Girolami. Laney DeGraff, a successful president of a family-owned bank on Rodeo Drive, finds her comfortable life taking a turn toward danger when Theresa Aguilar, a sleek, sexy lawyer, invites her to join an exclusive, secret group of powerful, alluring women. (978-1-60282-144-6)

  A Perfect Match by Erin Dutton. The exciting world of pro golf forms the backdrop for a fast-paced, sexy romance. (978-1-60282-145-3)

  Truths by Rebecca S. Buck. Two women separated by two hundred years are connected by fate and love. (978-1-60282-146-0)

  Father Knows Best by Lynda Sandoval. High school juniors and best friends Lila Moreno, Meryl Morganstern, and Caressa Thibodoux plan to make the most of the summer before senior year. What they discover that amazing summer about girl power, growing up, and trusting friends and family more than prepares them to tackle that all-important senior year! (978-1-60282-147-7)

  In Pursuit of Justice by Radclyffe. In the dynamic double sequel to Shield of Justice and A Matter of Trust, Det. Sgt. Rebecca Frye joins forces with enigmatic computer consultant J.T. Sloan to crack an Internet child pornography ring. (978-1-60282-147-4)

  The Midnight Hunt by L.L. Raand. Medic Drake McKennan takes a chance and loses, and her life will never be the same—because when she wakes up after surviving a life-threatening illness, she is no longer human. (978-1-60282-140-8)

  Long Shot by D. Jackson Leigh. Love isn’t safe, which is exactly why equine veterinarian Tory Greyson wants no part of it—until Leah Montgomery and a horse that won’t give up convince her otherwise. (978-1-60282-141-5)

  In Medias Res by Yolanda Wallace. Sydney has forgotten her entire life, and the one woman who holds the key to her memory, and her heart, doesn’t want to be found. (978-1-60282-142-2)

  Awakening to Sunlight by Lindsey Stone. Neither Judith or Lizzy is looking for companionship, and certainly not love—but when their lives become entangled, they discover both. (978-1-60282-143-9)

  Fever by VK Powell. Hired gun Zakaria Chambers is hired to provide a simple escort service to philanthropist Sara Ambrosini, but nothing is as simple as it seems, especially love. (978-1-60282-135-4)

  High Risk by JLee Meyer. Can actress Kate Hoffman really risk all she’s worked for to take a chance on love? Or is it already too late? (978-1-60282-136-1)

  Missing Lynx by Kim Baldwin and Xenia Alexiou. On the trail of a notorious serial killer, Elite Operative Lynx’s growing attraction to a mysterious mercenary could be her path to love—or to death. (978-1- 60282-137-8)

  Spanking New by Clifford Henderson. A poignant, hilarious, unforgettable look at life, love, gender, and the essence of what makes us who we are. (978-1-60282-138-5)

  Magic of the Heart by C.J. Harte. CEO Susan Hettinger and wild, impulsive rock star M.J. Carson couldn’t be more different if they tried—but opposites attract in ways neither woman can resist. (978-1- 60282-131-6)

  Ambereye by Gill McKnight. Jolie Garoul is falling in love with her assistant. The big problem is, Jolie is a werewolf. (978-1-60282-132-3)

  Collision Course by C.P. Rowlands. Tragedy leaves Brie O’Malley and Jordan Carter fearful and alone. Can they find the courage to take a second chance on love? (978-1-60282-133-0)

  Mephisto Aria by Justine Saracen. Opera singer Katherina Marov’s destiny may be to repeat the mistakes of her father when she becomes involved in a dangerous love affair. (978-1-60282-134-7

  Battle Scars by Meghan O’Brien. Returning Iraq war veteran Ray McKenna struggles with the battle scars that c
an only be healed by love. (978-1-60282-129-3)

  Chaps by Jove Belle. Eden Metcalf wants nothing more than to flee from her troubled past and travel the open road—until she runs into rancher Brandi Cornwell. (978-1-60282-127-9)

  Lightbearer by John Caruso. Lucifer dares to question the premise of creation itself and reveals that sin may be all that stands between us and living hell. (978-1-60282-130-9)

  The Seeker by Ronica Black. FBI profiler Kennedy Scott battles ghosts from her past, deadly obsession, and the evil that haunts her. (978-1- 60282-128-6)

  Power Play by Julie Cannon. Businesswomen Tate Monroe and Victoria Sosa are at odds in the boardroom, but not in the bedroom. (978-1-60282-125-5)

  The Remarkable Journey of Miss Tranby Quirke by Elizabeth Ridley. When love enters Tranby’s life in the form of a beautiful nineteen-year-old student, Lysette McDonald, she embarks on the most remarkable journey of all. (978-1-60282-126-2)

  Returning Tides by Radclyffe. Insurance investigator Ashley Walker faces more than a dangerous opponent when she returns to the town, and the woman, she left behind. (978-1-60282-123-1)

  Veritas by Anne Laughlin. When the hallowed halls of academia become the stage for murder, newly appointed Dean Beth Ellis’s search for the truth leads her to unexpected discoveries about her own heart. (978-1-60282-124-8)