Christmas All Around Us ; The Perfect Time for Love ; Playing for Keeps

by Carla Kincaid

  "Yeah, well I'm a mother and I know at some point kids go to bed so spill it!"

  "There's nothing to spill," Julie protested. "Misty was asleep by the time we got home. Rachel carried her to bed, and I made some grilled cheese sandwiches and then the two of us went to sleep. In separate rooms," she added quickly before Sarah got any ideas.

  Julie didn't bother to share the details of her and Rachel's midnight snack. After all, nothing happened, which if Julie was honest, had been a little disappointing.

  When Rachel came into the kitchen last night, there was a part of Julie that was hoping the evening might end with one of them splayed across the kitchen counter eating cupcake crumbs off of the other's body. She wasn't picky about who was doing what to whom she just wanted some part of the fantasy to become reality. But sadly none of that happened. In fact, it didn't even seem like Rachel noticed that Julie had been standing in front of her half-naked. Julie had been so aroused by her thoughts that she was sure her nipples were standing at full attention longing to be sucked.

  "It was an uneventful evening," Julie continued.

  "Humph," was Sarah's reply but before she could say more her phone beeped. "Dang. That's Nat. I've got to take this, but this conversation isn't over," she promised.

  Julie let the phone drop to her lap and let her head fall back on the headrest. She let out a long breath trying to calm her body down after stirring up the memory of what last night could have been. Julie wasn't exactly sure how long she'd been sitting there but a knock on the passenger side window jolted her back to reality.

  "Hey there!" Linda Daniels one of the Empowerment Now members greeted when Julie rolled the window down. "I was just heading in to talk to Lorraine when I saw you sitting here. I wanted to ask how Gail was doing. Just terrible news," Linda said as she clutched at her pearl-less collar with her usual melodramatic flare.

  Julie didn't really consider Linda a friend -- more like an acquaintance she had to tolerate. No doubt Linda was the one who'd let everyone know about Gail's accident. The woman was always gossiping about something and causing turmoil within the usually peaceful organization.

  "She's doing much better," Julie said not wanting to feed the gossip machine. "She had surgery last night to put some pins in her leg and she'll have to stay in the hospital for a few days but she's in good spirits."

  "Oh, I'm so glad to hear that. But what about poor little Misty? She must be absolutely terrified with Claire out of town and all!"

  Julie was sure Misty was probably a little scared at first but she refused to let Linda overdramatize the situation. "Misty's doing fine too. Rachel and I are looking after her for a few days until Gail gets out of the hospital and Claire gets home."

  Linda's left eyebrow shot up in the air. "Rachel and I," she repeated. "I didn't know the two of you were an item."

  Julie struggled to keep her expression neutral. "We're just friends," she assured Linda. "Friends helping another friend."

  "Oh, that's nice," Linda said coyly. "Rachel is after all, a very friendly person." The smile that spread across Linda's face was filled with innuendo. "You know Rachel has a bit of a reputation -- in our circle."

  Linda was an attorney like Rachel. Her last comment was obviously a dig at the fact that she and Rachel traveled in different circles than Julie did.

  "There are quite a few women in town who Rachel has been friendly with."

  "Well, I wouldn't know anything about that," Julie said hoping to end the conversation.

  "Oh, it's nothing," Linda said with a shrug but then she continued to talk. "Let's just say Attorney Samuels has quite a fan club." A smirk crossed Linda's face and then her usual fake smile returned. "It just seems like something you should know if the two of you are going to be... spending a lot of time together."

  Julie ignored the bait Linda was casting. "Like I said. We're just friends." But each time Julie repeated the phrase she felt more and more somber about it.

  "Well, I'd better get out of this cold. See you at the gala!" Linda gave Julie a beauty queen wave and scurried away.

  As Julie sat there in the car, she repeated the phrase again.

  "We're just friends." The words were completely true -- and they left a sad and slightly bitter taste in Julie's mouth.

  ❤️❤️❤️

  "I'm hungry," Misty announced two minutes after she and Rachel walked through the doors of Gail's hospital room. Rachel looked down at the little girl who she'd just witness eat a plate-sized waffle and three sausage links no more than an hour ago.

  "We just had breakfast," Rachel explained hoping Gail didn't think they were starving her child while she was laid up in the hospital.

  Gail let out a chuckle. "Don't be fooled by the little body," she said. "This one eats more than Simon does." She playfully pointed at Misty who was busy drawing a crayon-picture on the white cast encasing her mother's leg.

  "Speaking of Simon," Rachel continued. "Does he always wake you up by peering over the edge of the bed like a serial killer?"

  Gail let out a snort of laughter. "Hey, just be glad you didn't find him under the sheets with you when you woke up. I swear that dog thinks he's human."

  Rachel shuttered at the thought of waking up with Simon in bed with her. He definitely wasn't the housemate she wanted to spend time with between the sheets.

  "What would you like to eat, Misty?" Rachel asked. "I can go down to the hospital cafeteria and get something for you." She figured the mother and daughter needed some time alone and she could use the trip to make some phone calls on the way to the cafeteria.

  "Shrimp cocktail, please," Misty replied as if her request was totally normal.

  Rachel's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Interesting taste this one," she said nodding to the child.

  "Sorry," Gail said. "Claire made shrimp cocktails for a Christmas party a few weeks ago and Misty was her kitchen taster. Since then it's become my daughter's favorite dish!"

  Even if I do find shrimp cocktail in the hospital cafeteria, I'm not sure I recommend eating it, Rachel thought, masking her grimace with a smile. "I'll do my best," she said to Misty. She tussled the little girl's hair before leaving the room.

  As strange as it was accommodating the wants and needs of a five-year-old, there was something about it that had put Rachel in a really good mood. She'd never thought much about having kids of her own -- largely because she was afraid she'd screw their lives up as much as her parent's had screwed up hers.

  Rachel thought back to the daily drama at her house before her parents finally divorced. She'd never been able to understand why two people who had so little in common even got married in the first place. Her parents didn't seem to enjoy each other's company. Her father was the outgoing constantly socializing type and her mother was a rather shy homebody. Rachel endured their constant fighting from the safety of her room but the tension in the house scarred her none-the-less. Rachel swore she'd never have a relationship like that one. She'd never marry someone who she didn't have anything in common with. And she certainly wouldn't cheat on the person -- like her father had done.

  As she rode down the elevator to the 2nd floor, Rachel's thoughts drifted back to her new temporary roommate. Not the one who'd woken her up with a cold nose but the one who'd caused her heat to rise with the sexy pink underwear. The memory of the image made Rachel inhale quickly as a pleasant shiver surged through her body. Rachel had always been able to keep her attraction to Julie under wraps but now -- being in such close quarters -- things seemed to be bubbling up and threatening to spill out of control.

  "Well, hello there!" A voice interrupted Rachel's provocative musings.

  Rachel had been so preoccupied she hadn't even noticed the elevator doors slide open. Now she was face-to-face with a familiar beaming smile. Katie Prescott, Rachel thought as she scanned the length of the woman's body out of habit. The two of them had gone out a few times -- each date ending in some rather athletic horizontal activity -- but Rachel never pursu
ed their exchange further than that. Katie was someone nice to have an evening of fun with but Rachel couldn't imagine getting serious about her. The two of them just didn't have the same perspective on life.

  For example, as much as Rachel liked the nice things her six-figure attorney salary afforded her, Katie was a little too materialistic for Rachel's tastes. It was one thing to dress well, but it was another to be preoccupied with wearing the latest fashions to the point of obsession.

  "Hi, Katie. What are you doing here?" Rachel asked giving the woman a friendly but reserved smile.

  "I'm in charge of the hospital's employee Christmas party," Katie said.

  Rachel nodded her head. Katie was an event planner who had a lot of high profile corporate clients. In fact, that's how she and Rachel met. About a year ago, Katie was hired by the law firm where Rachel worked to plan a staff retreat for the firm's upper-level attorneys. Rachel remembered how even then Katie had mentioned having her sights on landing Memorial General as a client. Obviously, she'd succeeded in her goal.

  "And what brings you here?" Katie asked with a flirtatious smile.

  "A friend of mine had a little accident yesterday. She's upstairs recovering from surgery."

  "Oh, I'm, so sorry to hear that," Katie said surprisingly putting attention on someone other than herself. "I hope she has a speedy recovery but I'm never disappointed by a chance to cross paths with you." Katie batted her eyelids seductively.

  A moment later, the elevator stopped on the 3rd floor but there was no one there waiting. When the doors closed again the flirtatious event planner stepped closer to Rachel. Rachel felt her body react involuntarily.

  "So, why haven't you called me about the Rainbow Christmas Gala yet?" Katie wagged her finger at Rachel like she'd been a naughty girl. "I've got a beautiful Versace gown all picked out and I think you'd appreciate how it looks on me -- and off of me."

  Katie took a step closer and Rachel willed her body not to react to the feel of the woman's breast pushing against her arm. She could smell Katie's signature fragrance -- $500 Shalini -- and Rachel's olfactory senses carried her back to some intimate encounters when the fragrance was all Katie was wearing.

  "I'm sorry, Katie. I'm already going to the gala with someone," Rachel said.

  Katie's eyebrow raised but she didn't increase the space between her and Rachel.

  "Oh, are you dating someone new?" she asked coyly. "Maybe we could make it a threesome?"

  "I'm going with a friend," Rachel said suddenly finding it a lot easier to resist the woman's flirtations. The idea of a threesome had never been a fantasy Rachel found appealing.

  "A friend. Humph. That sounds nice and dull," Katie said dismissively.

  The elevator pinged, and the doors slid open.

  "Well, this is my floor." Katie pealed herself from Rachel's side. "I guess I'll see you and your friend at the gala." Kate stepped off the elevator and winked over her shoulder at Rachel just before the doors slid closed.

  Alone, Rachel exhaled the breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. Her thoughts were all a jumble. Why had she told Katie she was going to the gala with a friend when just moments before she was having X-rated thoughts about the attractive dancer? Why hadn't she just told Katie that she had a date for the gala and leave it at that? But was it a date? Was Rachel really ready to go against her previous boundaries and get closer to Julie?

  It wasn't like spending the last day with Julie had changed Rachel's mind about the kind of woman Julie was. She still found her smart, funny and kind. And Julie was still the type of woman anyone with any sense would scoop up and marry. But that word immediately made Rachel tense. Had what she witnessed as a child damaged her so much that she found it easier to run from something that was beginning to feel so good? She let out a long sigh. It was all too much to think about right now. When the elevator doors opened on her appointed floor Rachel stepped out and attempted to leave all of her relationship thoughts behind her.

  Right now she just needed to focus on something easy -- like finding edible shrimp in a hospital cafeteria.

  Chapter 5

  We're just friends.

  When Julie pulled away after her conversation with Linda, the words followed her all the way back to the Collins family house. Sure she was attending the gala with the woman of her dreams but it still didn't seem like the dream was going to materialize into reality. The thought caused Julie's shoulders to slump.

  By the time she walked up the front stairs of the house she was covered in a cloud of funk but that would soon change when her other roommate came bounding toward her.

  "Hello, boy!" she said as she scratched Simon behind the ears. The dog's body wiggled in appreciation and the canine dance he did made Julie smile. At that moment Julie understood why pet owners were so crazy about their furry children. It was impossible to stay in a bad mood while being shown all this unconditional love.

  "Enough of this gloominess," she declared as if Simon could understand her. "We've got a Christmas list to tackle!"

  Julie hurried into the kitchen -- with Simon at her heels -- and pulled Claire's to-do list off of the refrigerator and began to read the listed activities. "Buy a tree and decorate the house. The lights and ornaments are in the attic."

  "All right, Claire! Elf Julie is on duty!" Julie said putting her hands on her hips like a superhero. She flew into the hallway and pulled the cord attached to the attic stairs. "You stay here boy," she instructed Simon. The dog cocked his head to one side and then flopped to the ground like a century on guard duty as Julie went up and down the stairs retrieving the Christmas treasures.

  By the time Rachel and Misty got home from the hospital, there were stacks of boxes covering every inch of the dining room table.

  "What's all this?" Rachel asked when she saw what must have appeared to be quite a mess.

  Julie reached into one of the larger boxes and pulled out a smaller box of shiny bulbs visible through the cellophane box top.

  "It's Christmas time!" Misty shouted joyfully when she saw the ornaments. "It's Christmas time!" Misty followed her exclamation with a series of wobbly pirouettes around the room.

  Julie clapped for the young dancer -- encouraging the attempt more than the execution.

  "Very graceful," Rachel added along with her applause. She looked over at Julie with a warm smile.

  Something about Rachel's expression sent Julie's thoughts in an entirely different direction. She swallowed as the more than friendly feelings she'd stuffed down earlier began to rise again under Rachel's glance.

  "Some kids are just born to dance," Julie said putting her attention back on the little girl.

  "Born to dance! Born to dance!" Misty parroted as she grabbed Simon's front paws and tried to convince the dog to join in her revelry.

  "Poor Simon," Julie said turning to Rachel. "I think we'd better take her Christmas tree shopping otherwise I see a pair of pink dance tights in Simon's future."

  Rachel laughed at the joke and Julie tried her best to ignore how her eyes sparkled when she did. For some reason, the sexy attorney seemed a lot more relaxed than she had when she left the house that morning. Julie didn't dare let herself believe Rachel's sudden good mood had anything to do with her but it made Julie happy none-the-less.

  The Christmas tree lot was only a few blocks from the house but Julie didn't want to risk Misty riding in the front seat of her truck anymore.

  "Why don't you take Misty in your car," she suggested to Rachel. "I'll follow the two of you in my truck. Unless you want to tie the Christmas tree on top of your Lexus?"