“Ah.” The smile was very evident through the phone line. “How long are you going to be in Texas?”

“Just an up and back. Probably fly back tomorrow night.” Dar sighed. “Sounds like he’s getting a lot of crap from that new guy...and it’s about the network, so…”

“Ew.”

“Yeah.” Dar relaxed and closed her eyes. “He’s a pinhead. I’m going to have to come up with Sesame Street words to describe a global Intranet to him tomorrow. Wish me luck.” The project was hers, really. Something she’d been able to do because Kerry had really stepped up to the plate in the last few months and taken most of the day to day headaches off her shoulders. It would triple productivity and almost quadruple the amount of bandwidth they had to offer, and Dar was quietly proud of herself in the design.

It had been damn nice to have the time to sit back and really think about it, working with a hand picked engineering team and laying out a new design that replaced circuits in some places twenty years old. But it was obscenely expensive, and Dar knew that’s what the newbie had picked up on, as a way to make a name for himself with the stockholders, since they wouldn’t see any benefit from the new system for at least two quarters, maybe more.

Pinhead.

“Hey, Dar?”

“Hmm? Sorry. I was just thinking.”

“I love you.”

Dar smiled at the ceiling. “I love you, too.”

“What were you thinking about?”

“When?” came the puzzled response.

Kerry laughed. “Never mind. Listen, my flight’s due in at nine on Friday, assuming I finish up by then. Can I get a ride?”

Dar snorted. “You have to ask? What kind of dumb question is that?

You bet your ass I’m going to be at that gate, my friend, And you tell those people in Vermont their butts better be done by then, or they’re going to have a lot bigger problem than a consolidation to worry about.”

“Like you?”

“Like me,” Dar growled. “Live and in color, and wanting to know why they’re monopolizing a very, very valuable company resource.”

Kerry giggled. “Oh my god. You have no idea how cute you sound.”

“Cute?” Dar affected a wounded tone. “That’s the second time Eye of the Storm 9

tonight. Alastair accused me of turning into a mushball, too.”

“Did he?” Her lover laughed. “Well, he didn’t hear you with those network carriers before I left, I guess. They could have heard you in Atlanta without the phone.” She’d been privately thinking that she’d detected some changes in Dar recently and had wondered if anyone else had noticed.

Apparently they had.

“How’d practice go tonight?” Kerry asked.

“Pretty good,” Dar allowed. “I think it’s possible I won’t embarrass myself totally at that damn meet.”

“Great. I have my little flag and T-shirt all ready,” Kerry teased gently.

“Ermph.” Dar rolled her eyes. “I hope I don’t regret this.” She stretched her legs out, feeling the strong pull of newly redefined thigh muscles. “Me and a bunch of kids.”

“Ooo. Listen to old grandma there. Want me to send you a nice frilly cap for your cane?” Kerry retorted. “C’mon, Dar. Don’t start that. You bounce Ken all over the place and leave most of those other people in the gym standing slack jawed.”

It was true, Dar acknowledged silently. But what do I say, that most isn’t good enough? That I’m not happy unless I beat them all? Do I tell her coming close ain’t gonna cut it? “We’ll see,” she finally compromised. “Anyway, let me let you get some sleep. It’ll be a long day tomorrow.”

“You’re right.” Kerry sighed. “Have a safe flight and say hi to Alastair for me, okay?”

“Mmm. I will. He’s…um,” Dar shifted a little, “sending you flowers.”

Dead silence.

“Huh?” Kerry finally spluttered. “For what?”

“Apparently he, ah, thinks you’re a good influence on me,” her lover replied. “He appreciates that.” She could imagine the stunned look on Kerry’s face. “I think he may be right.”

A long, in-drawn breath was clearly heard. “Oh,” Kerry murmured.

“Well, it’s mutual, you know. I couldn’t do half of this stuff if you hadn’t shown me the way.” She paused a moment. “God, I so want to hug you right now.”

Dar smiled wistfully at the phone. “Yeah. That’d be nice,” she responded. “Anyway, have a good night, Ker. I’ll be in touch tomorrow.”

“G’night.” Kerry sighed, then closed the phone, and rested her chin on it thoughtfully. “Be careful,” she murmured softly. “Give ’em heck.”


Chapter

Two

A COLD, WET nose poked her in the eyeball. Dar jerked her head back in startlement, then blinked and looked around dazedly. “What th—

” Chino was curled up against her chest, the puppy’s tail thumping against Dar’s leg. The condo was lit warmly with dawn light and the TV

displayed an infomercial for a revolutionary new pooper scooper.

“Damn it.” Dar hitched herself up on one elbow and rubbed her face.

“Gotta stop doing that,” she muttered to Chino, who was apparently getting used to her falling asleep on the couch. Not that the leather surface was uncomfortable, but it threw off her internal alarm clock and made her have to scramble in the mornings.

Like now, for instance, especially since she had a damn plane to catch. Groggily, she sat up, then got to her feet, eyeing the cute abalone clock Kerry had insisted on getting, deciding they didn’t have one piece of tacky South Florida stuff in their living room. “Oh, hell.” Her flight was at eight, and here it was almost seven. “Chino, I’ll tell ya. They’re not getting a wool suit.”

“Woof.”

Dar ambled over and opened the back door for the puppy, then she ducked into the kitchen and grabbed a container of grape juice, which she popped open and sucked at as she headed for the shower.

Ten minutes later she was toweling off and rummaging through her clean clothes, wondering if her presence was worth the scandal she’d cause by showing up casual. Then Alastair’s comments of the previous night poked her and she grinned. “Guess we’ll find out.” She tugged out a pair of faded jeans and neatly ironed cotton shirt.

She pulled the shirt on and brushed a few errant Chino hairs off the sleeves, then slid into the jeans and buttoned them, eyeing the mirror to check the results. A tanned and lean figure was reflected back, showing the effect of three hard months of martial arts training and a multitude of weekends spent diving in the sunny waters offshore. “Oh yeah.” A twinkle entered the pale blue eyes gazing back at her as she added a belt, then clipped her pager and phone on. “Nice, huh? I’ll give you nice.” She pulled a jacket from the closet and slung it over her arm, then shouldered her briefcase and headed for the door. “Think you’ve forgotten just how much trouble I can be when I put my mind to it, Alastair.”


Eye of the Storm 11

Then she stopped. “Whoa.” She put her things down, jogged to the back door, and whistled for Chino, who came bounding up the steps.

“C’mon, girl. I gotta go.” The puppy put paws up on her leg and whined, and she gave her a quick hug. “Don’t worry. I’ll be back tonight.” She glanced around then gave the dog a kiss on the head. “And don’t you tell anyone I did that, okay?”

“Grrrr.” Chino chewed on her belt loop.

“Okay. Be good.” Dar stood up and checked to make sure the puppy had water and biscuits, then she grabbed her case and headed out the door.

It was close. Fortunately, the causeway she lived off of angled right across the city, and onto the one leading to the airport. She dropped her keys in the valet’s hand and jogged through the terminal, arriving at the gate just as the plane was boarding. Moments later, she was sprawled in a comfortable leather seat at the front of the plane, being offered her choice of beverage. “Chocolate milk,” she responded, sending the stewardess off to rummage.

It was a pretty day, Dar reflected, as she gazed out her window and watched the ground crew finish their routine. The sun came in the small portal and she closed her eyes against its brightness, finding a comfortable spot to rest her head as she let the world fade out a little.

“Wonder what Kerry’s up to?” She allowed an image of her lover to form against the inside of her eyelids.

KERRY SIGHED GENTLY as the first light trickled into her window.

She hadn’t slept much, her thoughts keeping her tossing and turning until she’d finally dropped off well after midnight. Now here she was awake before dawn.

Oh well. She sat up and dangled her feet over the bed, rubbing her bare arms and yawning. It would give her a chance to get a run in, at any rate, something she’d had only sporadic success at while she was out on the road. At least it would be pretty scenery.

Kerry stood and trudged into the rustic bathroom, turned on the water, and splashed a handful of it on her face before she realized the temperature difference between Vermont and Miami. “Yow!” Her green eyes popped wide open and she hastily adjusted the warm water faucet a little to cut the chill. “That’s one way to wake up.”

She investigated the little courtesy refrigerator in the room and found tiny crocks of cold apple cider and some little coffee cakes.

“Mmm.” She took one of each, dropped into the curved wooden desk chair, and hit the key to retrieve her mail while she nibbled on her breakfast.

The laptop connected and she logged in with two fingers, then sat back as her mail downloaded. “Oo.” She clicked on one mail from Dar and smiled as a small, dancing raccoon shimmied across the screen, singing “Dixie.” Kerry muffled a laugh, almost sending a spray of crumbs all 12 Melissa Good over her keyboard. “Where in the hell did she find that?” She watched the cartoon for a moment more, then shook her head and checked the rest of the mails, leaving the three urgent ones open and waiting for attention.