Marge grunted. "The likes of her Ive not seen before."

Catherine looked alarmed. "Dont tell me shes some kind of playboy - playgirl rather, - or something worse! My sister had her heart broken once already by someone like that!"

"Thats not what I meant," Marge soothed. "Shes about as honorable as they come - maybe too honorable. Shell protect your sister to the point of holding back what the doc might like offered."

"Shes not straight is she?"

"Havent seen any signs of it," Marge said with a grin. "But then you dont exactly shriek married mother of two."

"Yes, well, I dont look like a combination of k.d.Lang and Gregory Peck either!"

"True enough -" Marge conceded. "Ive known Doc King for three years, and I know damn well she can take of herself. Reese Conlon is a tough one to figure, but I get nothing but good feelings from her. And I can tell she thinks a lot of your sister. And Id bet my last dime that shes gay. I know youre going to worry, but it wont change anything."

"I know. Its just that Tory's had so many lousy breaks. She deserves so much more."

Marge nodded. "Whatever happens between them, you dont have to worry about Reese Conlon. She believes that Marine Corp stuff - including the semper fi ."

God, I hope so, Cath thought. She had seen the way her sister looked at the woman.

"I cant believe how crowded this place has gotten!" Reese exclaimed as she maneuvered the Cape Codder in its tall frosted glass onto the small table in front of Tory. She slid into the seat beside her, nearly draining her own seltzer and lime in one deep draft. "Dancing is quite the experience," she commented. "Thank you for the lesson."

Tory searched for a hint of sarcasm, but found none. "My pleasure," she said, knowing only too well how dangerously true those words were. "Youre a natural. I didnt do anything except follow your lead. Youll have to ask my sister to fast dance with you - shes great."

"No thanks," Reese said emphatically. "Youre more than enough for me. Let her wear Marge out if she can."

Tory couldnt help but blush, even though she knew perfectly well that Reese wasnt flirting. She wouldnt know how to flirt if she wanted to, Tory thought to herself with disgust. You have got to get over yourself with this woman!

"How would you like to have an early dinner?" Reese asked.

Tory hesitated, still searching for calm after the way she had felt dancing. Reese looked so damn handsome with the sun highlighting her blue-black hair and her tanned, golden skin. The fact that she was watching Tory intently didnt help. If she didnt know better, shed swear the woman was asking her out. Her body refused to behave. Her pulse skipped, her stomach fluttered, and there was no denying the wet warmth that pounded insistently between her thighs. Reese excited her, and that was impossible. That way lay disaster. She saw Marge and her sister approaching with relief.

"I cant," she said, beckoning her head toward the women. "I need to spend some time with my sister."

Reese felt a quick stab of rejection, which made no sense at all! Of course Tory needed to see her sister. Her acute disappointment was embarrassing. She stood abruptly, needing suddenly the comfortable familiarity of her work.

"Of course - I should be going anyway." She looked about to say more, but she simply turned and disappeared into the crowd.

Marge looked after her retreating back in surprise. "Wheres she off to?"

Tory sighed. "To work, would be my guess. Where else?"

Now Marge stared at her in astonishment. What was it with these two? They both looked as if they had lost their last friend.

"Your sister and I were just discussing dinner. You ready for that?"

Tory pushed herself up, reaching for her cane from the back of the chair. "Im not really hungry. Why dont you two go? Ill be at the clinic. You can pick me up later."

She didnt wait for their reply. She was too preoccupied with the memory of Reese Conlons face when she walked away. Despite an attempt to hide it, Reese had looked hurt, and that upset Tory more than she wanted to admit.



Chapter Fourteen

It was close to two a.m. Reese was parked on the pier, facing Commercial Street, watching the last of the visitors straggle out of town. She was looking for anyone who wasnt fit to drive.

"Reese? You copy?" the disembodied voice of the night dispatcher called over the car radio.

"Im here," Reese responded. "Go ahead."

"We just got a request for you to call the East End Health Clinic..."

Reese gunned the engine, flipping on her lights with one hand as she wheeled out into the street. "Whats the situation?" she questioned, her voice tight. "Is it another break-in?" She was two minutes away, and it seemed like an eternity.

"Unknown. Handle as routine."

A call from the clinic at this hour could hardly be routine, and Reese knew it. No one should even be there. It had to be Tory. Reese slammed into the lot, half-way out the door before she even had the car in park. Torys Jeep was the only vehicle in sight. She scanned the entire area as she raced toward the door, looking for signs of an intruder. The front door swung open just as she reached the porch. Suddenly Tory was there.

"Reese -" she began.

Reese grasped her shoulders, searching her face intently. "Are you all right?" she questioned hoarsely. She pulled Tory out of the backlit doorway as she peered into the interior of the building, automatically shielding her with her own body.

Tory was momentarily off balance and pressed both hands against Reeses chest to steady herself. Reeses body was tightly coiled, shimmering with tension. "Whoa! Slow down," Tory gasped. "Im fine." There was a fierceness in Reeses eyes she had never seen before - a feral intensity that should have been frightening, it looked so dangerous. What Tory felt instead was closer to excitement. The powerful force of Reeses emotional fervor was stirring.

"Reese," Tory began again, "Im fine." As she spoke, she grasped Reeses arms, shaking her lightly to get her attention. "I called you about a patient. Everything is all right."

Reese looked at her then, not yet accepting that she was safe. What she had felt in those few minutes when she thought Tory was in danger was completely foreign to her. Her entire life had been spent preparing for defense - in the military, in the police force, in the dojo. She was trained to confront any threat with the cold calm of a soldier. The gut wrenching near-panic she had just experienced rocked her to the core. For the first time in her life she had felt the iron grip of fear. Without conscious thought she pulled Tory to her. "Jesus," she whispered, "I thought something had happened to you."

The intensity of her embrace was more than Tory could resist, and she yielded to it. She pressed into Reese, her arms slipping around Reeses waist.

"Im sorry," Tory murmured, holding Reese tightly. "I only asked that they have you call me." She couldnt seem to manage any other explanation. It was all she could do to control her own trembling. And it wasnt from fear, but from shear overwhelming desire. With a soft moan she pressed her lips against Reeses neck, aching with need. She clung to her while her senses raged, her mind clouded with the escalating physical arousal she couldn't contain. Oh, god, I want you so much . Her nipples stiffened, aching to be touched, and her clit expanded, screaming for contact. Her hips rocked against Reese's hard thigh, desperatelyseeking release.

"Hey, hey," Reese soothed, stroking her back gently. "I didnt mean to scare you - ." Her own sense of relief was so intense she was shaking.

God almighty, Tory, you can't do this now!! Tory struggled for composure. With more restraint than she thought possible, she pushed away from Reese, breaking the exquisitely agonizing contact .

"Let me catch my breath," Tory said as lightly as she could manage, turning away with effort. She was on fire, and she was seconds away from touching Reese in a way that could leave no doubt about her desire. She was going to make a fool of herself.

"Tory?" Reese questioned, confused by Tory's abrupt withdrawal. She stared after her as Tory moved resolutely down the hall, putting distance between them. Reese felt the separation as more than physical. As close as they had been an instant before, a chasm stretched between them now. The pain of an old wound flickered to the surface for a searing instant, the deeply buried agony of loss. Reese automatically pushed it away. That stoicism had protected her for years and it was second nature to her now. Whatever vulnerable place Tory had unwittingly touched was safely defended once again. By the time Reese followed Tory into her office she felt nothing.

"What happened?" Reese asked.

Tory sat behind her desk, needing to get as far away as possible. She prayed she would be able to look at Reese without revealing her turmoil. Even now she was trembling with the urge to touch her. She took a deep, slightly shaky breath and pulled forth her own defenses. She had called Reese as a doctor, and thats how she would deal with her. On that level she was safe.

"I just finished suturing a young boys forehead," she began, her voice sounding flat to her own ears. "He and his boyfriend were walking back to town along Route six, out near Herring Cove. Apparently they had been up in the dunes -"

"Damn," Reese muttered, intent on Torys story. She gave no sign of her own lingering agitation.

"They said a group of men in a truck tried to run them off the road. Someone threw a bottle at them. It struck one boy in the head. He had a nasty scalp laceration. I didnt think I should wait until morning to tell you, in case the men in the truck are still cruising around looking for trouble." She was finally calm enough to look at Reese, and she caught her breath at the undisguised fury in Reeses face.