“No,” Tory whispered fervently. “Your need is mine. It always has been.”

Reese shook her head. “Not this way. Not this way.”

Before Tory could protest again, Reese turned and disappeared down the stairs. A minute later Tory heard the door slam. When an engine revved in the driveway outside and tires kicked up stones that cracked like rifl e shots, she knew it was Reese in the patrol car. Leaving.

Reese had never, ever walked away from her before and the pain was so acute she was nearly ill.

❖

“Hell of a party,” Cath said, dropping into a chair next to Tory on the deck. “Wait’ll next year when she actually knows what’s going on.”

“Thanks for helping out.” Tory sipped her wine, then set it aside when she realized she couldn’t taste it. “Where are Marcus and the kids?”

“I sent them back to the B&B. Where’s Reese?”

“Working, I think.”

“You think.” Cath reached across Tory and grabbed her wine glass.

• 37 •

RADCLY fFE

Then she settled back and took a swallow. “I noticed she disappeared earlier.”

“She’s not quite herself.”

“Is she having a hard time with what happened over there?”

“Yes. At least I’m sure that’s part of it.”

“How are you doing?”

“I’m not sure.” Tory regarded her sister. “No, that’s not true. I’m scared to death. I don’t know what to do for her.”

“What’s wrong, exactly?”

Tory laughed humorlessly. “I don’t know and I feel like I should.

I’m her partner and I should know.”

“Uh, I don’t think just because you love her you’re supposed to be a mind-reader.” Cath took Tory’s hand. “Give yourself a break, honey.

You’ve both been through a lot. Is it post-traumatic stress?”

“At fi rst I thought so. I’d pretty much expected it. Even troops who haven’t been captured or wounded suffer some form of reentry shock.”

Tory watched the stars overhead, thinking of the nights she had sat out here alone wondering if Reese could see the same stars from where she was. “She certainly has reason to show those kinds of symptoms, but now I’m not so sure. She’s not eating or sleeping, and that’s typical enough—but there’s something more. Sometimes she seems so lost. I hate not being able to help her.”

“It hasn’t been that long. You both probably just need some time.”

“I know. I’ve been telling myself the same thing, but tonight…”

Tory swallowed back tears. “She left tonight. She left the house, she left me, because she was upset. She’s never done that before.”

“Does she… God, this is really hard to say. Does she drink or abuse drugs or anything like that?”

Tory laughed incredulously. “Reese? God, no. She has always been so solid, so certain. She’s unshakable.”

“Until now.”

“Yes, until now.” Tory said softly, wondering where she was. If it had been KT leaving after being rebuffed, Tory knew where she would go. KT would have sought respite with another woman, at least when she and Tory had been lovers. But Reese was not KT—she had never…

would never… “God, I want her to come home. She’s the strongest

• 38 •

Winds of Fortune

woman I’ve ever known and seeing her like this just about kills me.”

“You’re no pushover yourself, honey,” Cath said. “You can be strong for both of you until Reese heals.”

“What if I can’t? What if I can’t give her what she’s always given me?”

Cath squeezed Tory’s hand again. “You will.”

Tory held her sister’s hand and ached for the touch of her lover.

• 39 •

• 40 •

Winds of Fortune

CHAPTER FOUR

How about some pizza?” Deo clasped Allie’s hand as they strolled along a sandy walkway between two buildings that led up from the beach to Commercial Street. When the party at Reese and Tory’s had broken up, Deo offered to drive Allie home, but instead of saying good night, Allie suggested they head into town. Even more so than most weekend nights during the season, tourists and summer residents packed every available B&B and condo for the Fourth of July.

For another hour or so, the streets would be fi lled with mostly same-sex couples celebrating the freedom to be visible and among community.

Deo hadn’t been anxious to return alone to her condo at the end of Bradford Street, and Allie was fun—easy to talk to and easy on the eyes. And she seemed okay with a relationship that was just as easy.

A little mutual company, a few hours of shared pleasure, an encounter with no expectations. In Deo’s experience, a lot of girls said they were okay with that, but after a couple of dates, things changed. Now, she was careful not to see anyone more than a time or two, and she didn’t sleep with half the women everyone gave her credit for. It didn’t seem worth disavowing everyone of their notion that she scored more than most guys, and her reputation kept the women she saw from expecting much more than a casual night out.

“Pizza. Hmm. I sort of thought you had an appetite for something else,” Allie said suggestively.

“Oh, I do.” Deo laughed. “But certain activities burn a lot of calories, so it’s always good to stock up when you can.”

“Is that right?” Allie slowed within the slanting shadows of the overhanging eaves and kissed Deo, squeezing her ass with both hands while rolling her pelvis against Deo’s crotch. “Then I suggest you have two slices.”

“Much more of that and it won’t be pizza I need,” Deo muttered breathlessly, surprised not only by Allie’s aggression but by her own

• 41 •

RADCLY fFE

swift response. Her stomach tightened with urgency, and she felt herself grow hard and tense. She skimmed her fi ngertips over the outer curve of Allie’s breast and smiled to herself when Allie moaned. Good to know she wasn’t the only one with a hair trigger tonight. “I’m a little past groping girls in dark alleys, but Jesus, you feel good.”

“Baby, you have my permission to grope.” Allie hooked her calf around Deo’s thigh and rocked into her crotch again, digging her fi ngers into the fi rm muscles of Deo’s backside for balance. She ran her tongue around the edge of Deo’s ear and nibbled on her earlobe. “I can’t believe how hot I am. I’m ready for you to fuck me right here.”

“You’ve really got me stoked too,” Deo gasped, tilting her head back as Allie sucked on her neck. When she pinched Allie’s nipple and Allie whimpered, her vision went hazy and all she could think about was being inside her and making her scream. “Time out. Oh man…

Allie, time out.” She grabbed Allie’s hips and put some air between them. “I’m about two seconds from forgetting where we are, and I’m not going to do this up against a building.”

“I know, I know.” Allie shivered. “But I want you to.”

“You’re making me a little bit crazy.”

“Bad crazy?”

Allie sounded genuinely worried, and Deo experienced an unexpected rush of gratitude. Usually her companions fi gured she didn’t care about anything except the sex, and it was nice to have someone actually ask what she felt. Deo circled Allie’s waist and started walking again. “Feels pretty good to me. You?”

“Better than good.” Allie stroked Deo’s stomach before sliding her fi ngers an inch or two underneath the waistband of her pants. She purred when Deo groaned. “You tripped all my switches and there’s no off button. I’m so wired my whole body’s buzzing.”

“Still want pizza?”

“Sure. Just don’t fi ll up on it.”

Laughing, Deo led her through a horde of men spilling out onto Commercial in front of Spiritus Pizza. “Grab us a seat and I’ll get the food. What’s your pleasure?”

Allie grinned. “For now, cheese. I’ll tell you the rest later.”

Deo kissed her. “Coming up.”

“Hurry.” Allie staked out a spot on the low brick wall edging the

• 42 •

Winds of Fortune

sidewalk in front of the restaurant.

Deo grinned. “Count on it.”

❖

“Hey,” Carre shouted above the din, tugging on Bri’s arm as they edged through the crowd. “There’s Allie.”

“Huh? Where?” Bri slowed and followed Carre’s gaze. She stiffened when she saw Deo Camara settle down behind Allie and slide a leg on either side of Allie’s smaller frame. Allie snugged her ass back into Deo’s crotch while Deo dangled a piece of pizza in front of Allie’s mouth. Bri grunted when Allie chased it with her tongue. “Cute.”

Carre gave Bri a look. “What’s with you? Jealous?”

Bri stared. “Jeez, babe. No. Come on.” She saw the fi re in Carre’s eyes and knew better than to blow her off. Allie had always been a sore spot between them, ever since Bri had been a jerk the year before and almost slept with her. Almost. Well, she’d been in bed with her, and she’d been naked, and she’d let Allie touch…

“Fuck,” Bri breathed, not blaming Carre for being sensitive about it. And just what was she feeling right now anyhow that made her want to punch Deo for licking the sauce off the corner of Allie’s mouth like she was doing at the moment? “I like Allie. She’s my friend, and besides, she’s my partner.”

“I know that,” Carre said, pulling Bri closer to the building across the narrow twisty street from where Allie sat wrapped up in Deo’s arms.

“What I don’t know is why you’re getting twitchy about her and Deo.”

She stuck her hand under the bottom of Bri’s T-shirt and rubbed her back. “What’s that about?”

“Allie has a crazy streak, you know?” Bri said, working it out in her head while she watched Allie run her fi ngernails up and down the inside of Deo’s leg. “Sometimes I think she does stuff so she doesn’t have to think about how she’s feeling.”

“Baby,” Carre said reasonably. “Maybe she just wants to get laid.”

Bri grinned and kissed Carre nice and slow and deep. “Could be.