by Becky Harmon
“We’ll start dinner after everyone checks in so we won’t be interrupted. If they were going to be later than six, they would have called by now.”
“That’s fine.”
Cassie sat down at the table and layered a cracker with meat, cheese and an apple slice. “Do you want to watch a movie or something while we wait?”
Kathleen nodded her mouth filled with cracker.
“Why don’t you pick something from the rentals in the office?”
As Kathleen disappeared into the office, Cassie carried the plate of snacks to the coffee table in front of the couch. In a few minutes, Kathleen returned, handing a copy of Imagine Me and You to Cassie.
Cassie loaded the DVD and grabbed the remote before taking a seat beside Kathleen on the couch. They quickly emptied the plate of snacks before the previews had finished. Cassie put her arm across the back of the couch and Kathleen snuggled into her. The opening scenes were barely beginning when the gate chime sounded on Cassie’s phone.
She kissed Kathleen’s head before jumping up and heading toward the office door. She pressed receive on her phone and said hello as she closed the door behind her.
* * *
Kathleen stretched her legs in front of her and took a deep breath of fresh air. She couldn’t remember the last time she had done the same at her own house. The view there was nothing compared to the raucous play of the goats in the pasture or the horses grazing in the distance. She had tried to watch the movie when Cassie left, but it couldn’t hold her attention. She had seen how easily her words had hurt Cassie when she talked of leaving, and she was struggling with how close they had become so fast.
This was just another one-night stand. Right? She knew it wasn’t. She wanted it to be that simple, and when she had decided to give in to her desires she had told herself it was. Now, replaying the emotions that had been displayed on Cassie’s face, she knew she was in deep and the giddy, happy part of her didn’t care.
She heard the glass door slide open behind her and smiled when Cassie brushed her shoulder as she passed. Intimate gestures had always irritated and pushed her away from others in the past, and she was surprised at how different everything felt with Cassie. Kathleen couldn’t take her eyes from Cassie as she watched her drop into the chair beside her. “Everyone all settled in?”
“John and Sara are happily tucked into Cabin One and were headed to the beach when I left them. You didn’t have to stop the movie because I left.”
“I wanted the fresh air.”
“I understand. Would you like to go for a walk?”
“Sure. Can I borrow another pair of socks?”
“Of course.” A flush covered Cassie’s face. “I’ve enjoyed seeing you in my clothes. Well, except for the white bra, of course. I don’t have anything like that, and it looks amazing on you.”
Kathleen winked at her. “It was either that or go without.”
“Go without. Always go without.” Cassie smiled evilly.
Kathleen laughed as she climbed the stairs. She could still hear Cassie mumbling to herself about all the things she should go without. She pulled on a pair of Cassie’s socks and the running shoes she had given her the night before. She couldn’t resist grabbing the dark blue baseball cap she had noticed in the closet earlier. She pulled her hair through the opening in the back and glanced in the mirror.
Though she had made the decision to sleep with Cassie because she couldn’t think of a reason not to, she could admit that maybe things weren’t going to be as simple as she had hoped. What she couldn’t think about, though, was where things would go after she left tomorrow. Maybe after tonight the initial lust that had consumed both of them would fade and she wouldn’t feel the same as she did right now. She looked at herself in the mirror and smiled. There was something so intimate about wearing Cassie’s clothes and the hat on her head with the simple West Virginia State Trooper label.
She glanced around Cassie’s room. How had she not realized sooner that she felt at home here? With Cassie. She liked everything about her. The kindness and compassion that came naturally to Cassie was a constant surprise. Kathleen wasn’t used to that. The women she dated were usually more concerned about themselves and what Kathleen could do for them. Cassie made her feel desirable. She didn’t want to leave. How could she have this life and her own too? Didn’t she have to return to Pensacola? This was a fantasy world that couldn’t stand up to the test of time, but for now she would ignore the nagging thoughts in the back of her mind and enjoy another night of pleasure with a woman who was too good to be true.
“Nice.” Cassie gave her an appraising look when she joined her again.
“I let my hair dry without doing anything with it, so now it needs to be covered to be presentable.”
“I’ll just say again that I love you in my clothes.”
She slid her hand into Cassie’s as they walked out the front door with the dogs following close behind. Pete and Rory were grilling on the beach and talking with the new arrivals so Cassie turned them toward the barn.
She laughed at Cassie’s obvious detour. “Don’t want to see the boys right now.”
“Not hip on ever seeing them again after this morning.”
“I remember there were some death threats being thrown around.”
“I’ll give them hell later, but I’m afraid they’ll have some harassment for us too. Best to avoid that in front of the new guests.”
They walked into the shade of the barn and leaned on the railing, watching the horses and goats that were within sight.
“I guess that could be embarrassing. Gay or straight. How do you handle that? Are you out with your guests?”
“It depends. I don’t hide, but I also have never had a woman here to flaunt before.”
“You want to flaunt me?” Kathleen grinned.
Cassie pulled her into her arms. “I want to do more than flaunt you.” She bent to kiss her as the chime on her phone sounded again.
“I’ll stay out here. Out of sight,” Kathleen suggested.
“I don’t think so.” Cassie took her hand as they headed back toward the office.
She listened to Cassie’s side of the conversation as she answered the phone. “Hello…Great. I’ll open the gate in a second. Past the barn and the office is on your right…See you then.”
* * *
Pandy and Zoey took up guard positions on the porch as Cassie and Kathleen entered the office. Cassie pressed the buzzer under her desk to open the gate remotely and in a few seconds a white SUV pulled in front of the office. Cassie watched as a small girl climbed out first, raced to the porch and wrapped her arms around both dogs.
“Ana, wait.” A woman called climbing out of the passenger seat and quickly joining her daughter on the steps. “You should never charge a dog like that, honey. Wait for them to approach you so they don’t feel threatened.”
Cassie motioned to the two stools behind the counter, and Kathleen pulled one of them out of the way and took a seat. The voices on the porch drifted through the open window and Cassie watched as the other woman joined her partner and child on the porch.
“It’s okay, Roz. It’s clear these dogs are used to people.”
“The next dog she meets may not be.”
“She can’t help she loves animals. Give her a break. We’re on vacation.” She held the door open for her to enter the office.
“Hello.” Cassie stepped around the counter and offered her hand to both women. “I am Cassie. This is Kathleen.”
The taller of the two women shook Cassie’s hand and then stepped to do the same to Kathleen. “I am Anita and this is Roz. That’s Ana on the porch mauling your dogs.”
“They’re loving it as much as she is.” Cassie stepped behind the counter and opened the folder. “Sign here and we’ll let you get settled.” She marked the spot with her yellow highlighter. “Here’s your information packet. It has most of the same information that was mailed to you except for the gate code.
You’ll find directions to the nearest grocery stores and lists of local attractions. You should find everything you need in your cabin, but if you can’t just give us a call.”
Cassie stepped to the window and pointed to the cabin directly across the lake. “That’s Cabin Four. Cabin Three is the next one to the right.”
“Great,” Roz said, picking up the information packet while Anita signed her name to the paperwork.
“Is there anywhere close by to get dinner?” Anita asked.
“There is a small diner at the edge of Riverview. That’s about eight miles west of here.” Casey patted the information packet. “Directions are in here as well as to the grocery store in Riverview. Unfortunately the meat market closes at five on Saturday, but the bakery is open until six. They have wonderful muffins and rolls for breakfast. They even sell the mixes ready-made if you want to bake them yourself. If you can hold off on buying any burgers or steaks until you can make a trip back to the meat market, it’s worth the drive.”
“Thanks for the information,” Anita said as they closed the door behind them.
Cassie waited until they had corralled their daughter into the vehicle before calling the dogs and locking the front door. Then she followed Kathleen and the dogs into the house.
Chapter Sixteen
“How can I help?” Kathleen asked, joining her at the counter.
“You could cut up the vegetables.”
Cassie pulled an electric wok from under the counter and dropped a small amount of olive oil in it. She began pulling vegetables from the refrigerator. “If you see something you don’t like, tell me.”
“I’m pretty easy to please.”
Cassie raised her eyebrow. “Good to know. Back to the vegetables, though, I will never learn your likes and dislikes if you eat whatever I make.” She closed her mouth in surprise. Why was she talking like they were planning a future together? Tomorrow Kathleen would leave and she would return to cooking for one again.
“You’d have to serve something crazy like anchovies for me not to like it.”
“You’re safe with me. I won’t eat anchovies.”
Cassie cut the chicken into small chunks and added them to the olive oil. She added a few seasonings and then closed the lid. “Would you like some rice or pasta with it?”
“How about salad? Was there any left from last night?”
“Yep.” Cassie pulled a plastic bowl from the refrigerator. “And I have some of Shelley’s balsamic vinegar dressing too.”
“That would be perfect.”
Cassie stirred the chicken and tossed in several handfuls of vegetables before adding soy sauce and replacing the lid. She pulled a bottle of red wine from the rack under the island and held it out to Kathleen. “Yes?”
“Yes.” Kathleen took the bottle and read the label.
“I’m not much of a wine connoisseur. I mostly buy what tastes good to me.”
Cassie pulled the foil cutter and straddle-style wine bottle opener from the drawer and began opening the bottle.
“That’s interesting.” Kathleen watched Cassie slide the metal tongs on either side of the cork before twisting it out of the bottle.
“I learned to use this at San Sebastian Winery in St. Augustine. They claim a standard corkscrew can push pieces of the cork into the wine.” She gave Kathleen a grin. “Besides I always found corkscrews difficult to use.”
Cassie set plates and silverware on the table before placing the wineglasses on the counter in front of Kathleen. She poured a little in both glasses and held hers up to toast.
“To a relaxing weekend.” She clinked her glass against Kathleen’s.
“Is this what we were drinking last night?” Kathleen asked after taking a sip.
“Yes. Did you like it?” Cassie took a sip and then set her glass down to stir the chicken again. She turned up the heat and placed the lid in the sink. Picking up her wineglass and taking another sip, she continued to stir their dinner. When Kathleen didn’t respond, she looked up to find her watching her. She smiled. “Did you like the wine last night? We can open something different if you want.”
“I do like this wine. I was just admiring you at home in your kitchen. Trying to imprint the picture into my head.” Kathleen slid off the barstool. “No wait.” She patted her hips, searching through the pockets of her shorts. Holding her phone up, she looked at Cassie and quickly snapped several pictures.
“Oh, that’s what we’re doing, huh?” Cassie pulled her phone from her back pocket and held it up. “Me too.” She reached across the counter and undid several buttons on Kathleen’s shirt. Stepping back, she quickly snapped several shots of the bemused look on Kathleen’s face before she could object.
“Enough indecent photos.” Kathleen held her hands up in surrender. “Thanks for reminding me I need to put a load of clothes in the washer.” She disappeared into the laundry room.
* * *
Cassie placed the salad bowl on the table and two plates filled with chicken and vegetables. When she turned to pick up Kathleen’s wineglass, she noticed her phone still laying on the counter. She picked it up and snapped a shot of Pandy and Zoey, reminding herself she hadn’t fed them yet. She placed Kathleen’s phone back on the counter where she had found it and filled the dog dishes. She carried the bottle and wineglasses to the table and took a seat.
Kathleen joined her and they ate for a few minutes in silence.
“I almost starved you, right?” Cassie joked.
Kathleen smiled. “Actually you distracted me so well today I didn’t really think about food. Who handles your website for the resort?”
“I do. Why?”
“I was just thinking about a few things that might draw more traffic.”
“I had a woman design it for me, but I do the updates. What would you add?”
“Pictures of your guests. Ask them to email you pictures to add to it when they check out.”
“I’m not sure I could set up a new page.”
“I could do it for you.”
Casey raised an eyebrow. “It’s in DreamWeaver. Can you work in that?”
“I can. I could even design you a new site with a carousel of pictures on the home page.”
Cassie pointed her fork at her. “You’ve been holding out on me. What other talents do you have that I might take advantage of?”
“Websites are what I do for a living.”
“Wait! I thought you worked at Fosters?”
“I only work there part-time. I also own a website design company.”
“I’m impressed. You are a fascinating woman.” Cassie paused before laying her fork down. She stared into Kathleen’s eyes. “Can I ask a personal question?”
“Of course.” She narrowed her eyes. “How personal?”
“We haven’t talked at all about our personal lives.” She took a deep breath and continued. “Is there someone in your life?”
Kathleen smiled. “There isn’t anyone. I haven’t even been on a date in months.”
Cassie loudly exhaled the breath she had been holding. “I should have asked that question before I ever kissed you. I’m sorry.”
“What about you? Are you dating anyone?”
“I went out with a woman a couple times when I first moved here, but we decided to be friends instead.”
“Can I ask why it didn’t work out with her?”
“She was mean and kicked my dogs.”
Kathleen laughed. “No, that wasn’t subtle. You could have just said it’s none of your business.”
Cassie shrugged. “She was nice and not bad to look at.”
Kathleen tossed her napkin at Cassie.
“Hey! You asked.”
“I asked why it didn’t work, not for details about how attractive she was.” Kathleen pulled her foot up onto her chair and rested her chin on her knee, waiting patiently for Cassie to continue.
“She’s a deputy sheriff and we got along well. She was looking for something permanent, but I w
asn’t ready for a relationship.” Cassie frowned. She couldn’t remember a day passing where she hadn’t thought of Nett, let alone several. “I was just out of a twenty-year relationship and not ready to move on yet.” Cassie took a deep breath, laying down her fork. “Nett had cancer. It’s been almost five years since she passed away.” She couldn’t remember when the empty feeling had left. Sometime in the last week she had started to feel whole again. She glanced at Kathleen, wondering if she had said too much. Finding Kathleen’s blue eyes filled with sadness, Cassie knew she needed to give closure to the story of her life. “We had a lot of good years together, but the last couple weren’t easy.”
“I’m sorry for your loss,” Kathleen said softly.
“Thank you. Today it feels like another lifetime ago. I’ll never forget her, but I’m ready to move on now.” Cassie picked up her fork and took a bite, chewing slowly. Kathleen followed her lead and for a few minutes they ate in silence. Cassie finally looked up and smiled. “Okay, your turn.”
“The last woman I dated showed up for our second date with an overnight bag. I hadn’t even decided if there would be a third date yet,” Kathleen joked. “She was nice and not bad to look at though.”
Kathleen ducked as Cassie threw her napkin at her.
“Seriously though, there wasn’t any spark. I’ve always felt like I tolerated the women I dated. I couldn’t wait to leave them and I never invited them to my house to avoid having to make them leave.” Kathleen shook her head. “I hear myself and it sounds so horrible and very cold-hearted. I guess some of those women would tell you that I am, but it’s not like that. I just wasn’t willing to pretend. I wanted my heart to beat wildly and my pulse to race.” She stretched her arm out and played with the tangled curl at the base of Cassie’s neck. “Like it does with you.” She pulled Cassie toward her and kissed her softly. “Is it time for bed yet?”
Cassie looked at the clock on the wall. “I should probably make another appearance. Do you feel like a walk around the lake?”
“One time and then I want to take you to bed.”
“Works for me. How about a cup of decaf with some Baileys Irish Cream?”
