Darkness Falls: A Lesbian End-of-the-World Romance Adventure Read online

  phone and made a quick call to a friend on the Seattle police force. He was considerate enough to run the TAKE IT

  plate. Once the name of Danson Marlin Jr. came back, Taylor had performed some online research and liked none of it.

  The man had dodged the sexual harassment label, but only just barely. In the least, he was famous for dating a long line of large chested B-list celebrities with the occasional playmate tossed in. All in all, the man was the last person with whom Taylor could imagine Jackie, and she had to wonder why the woman would bother to meet with him at all. Because he’s loaded thanks to his Wall Street dad and it takes money to run a magazine, she thought. But at how high a price? Taylor shook her head. Although she barely knew Jackie Scott, she could never see the woman caving into a man like Marlin, and then the words on the man's license plate jumped into her mind. TAKE IT. Taylor had set down her still untasted beer and ran for her helmet.

  Now she was just in time to hear Jackie telling Marlin she was leaving for another appointment. As Taylor came up to the doorway of the conference room, she saw the man grab Jackie by the wrist to stop her from leaving. “Everything okay here?” Taylor asked and was pleased to see a surprised look cross the man's face. The look on Jackie's face, however, was of stark relief and Taylor immediately felt fury rising up in her. It did not take a genius to see what was going on. Marlin dropped his hand but did not rise. Instead, he smirked.

  “Well, who have we here?” he asked as he looked Taylor up and down before turning back to Jackie. “Maybe I was not too far off base with the not liking men comment.” Taylor started to clench her fists as she contemplated how best to hurt the guy when she felt Jackie slip up beside her and put a hand on her shoulder.

  “You’re early, baby,” Jackie cooed to Taylor. “But we are just wrapping up.” Taylor worked hard to keep the shocked

  look off of her face and instead put a hand possessively on Jackie’s lower back.

  “Well, I’ll be right out here if you need me,” Taylor said with a nod at the nearest empty cubicle. Jackie turned to her and smiled, but there was a clear message in her eyes to not go. Taylor nodded and looked at Marlin. “Although it seems like you folks are done here.” Marlin shook his head, grinning, but stood up. As he started out the door, he looked back one last time.

  “You know, I'm very open to threesomes,” he said. Before Taylor could tell him to shove his threesome up his ass, Jackie leaned into Taylor. She could feel the heat of the woman's body and smelled a hint of her perfume wafting up. Suddenly a little distracted, Taylor paused. Jackie, however, had plans of her own.

  “No thank you,” she said with sweet sarcasm. “Taylor keeps me more than satisfied.” Marlin chuckled and after dropping them a wink walked away. Once he left the suite, Jackie rushed forward and locked the door. With a sigh of relief, she leaned back against it and Taylor saw her close her eyes to gather herself. Giving her a moment, Taylor waited and tried not to focus on the lingering feeling of Jackie against her. There would be time to analyze all of that later. Finally, Jackie opened her eyes and looked at Taylor.

  “Sorry about that,” she said and stepped away from the door to come stand beside her. “I was not quite sure what to do, but I don't think I was ever happier to see a person than I was to see you.” Although the words were music to her ears, Taylor shrugged.

  “I saw the guy drive up and had a hunch he would be trouble,” she said. Jackie laughed wryly.

  “Well you sure know how to read them,” she said. “Come on, I need a drink. My treat.”

  Taylor smiled. “You’re on,” she said.

  CHAPTER 5

  exi found herself swinging from euphoric excitement to Labject fear all day Sunday and now, as she tossed and turned in bed while waiting for dawn to finally come on Monday, she once again could not believe she actually asked Anna to dinner. Anna Patten. The woman she once loved with every ounce of her being, in a way only teenagers can seem to feel. Passion and longing so deep it seemed to eclipse everything else. Now, as Lexi laid in the bed, she replayed the good and the bad of their star-crossed love affair. The incredible first kiss on Lexi's bed while they were supposed to be studying, with the sounds of her parents downstairs watching TV seeping up through the floorboard. The first time Anna let Lexi touch her. Taste her.

  Take her. All of it left an ache in Lexi, which she realized now, she carried her entire life. Even though there had been other lovers, which Lexi met online or in the bars in Portland, and the sex was fulfilling, it never touched the place in Lexi's heart Anna owned. And now she is coming here, Lexi thought with a groan. It was going to be sweet torture, and she knew it.

  Finally unable to stay in bed any longer, Lexi got up and wandered into the kitchen down the hall to start a pot of coffee. Outside she could hear the first chirping of birds waking up in their nests and knew dawn was not far off.

  There was the sound of the pitter patter of light rain too, and Lexi guessed walking the fence line today was probably out of the question. Instead, she would have to stay busy on chores inside the house until it was time to go shopping for fresh ingredients for dinner tomorrow night. She had no idea

  what Anna liked and was too nervous to call and ask. The concept of light conversation over the phone made Lexi break out into jitters. Not to mention I’m afraid she would cancel, she thought although a part of her almost wanted it to happen. It seemed impossible to imagine the dinner going well if the topic turned to anything about their past.

  Anna had left town almost literally in the middle of the night to get away from Lexi and all the gossip. The lack of a note or any apology or goodbye made her heart ache still to this day. Even at the farmers market the instinct to lash out almost made for an embarrassing incident. It was the last thing either of them needed.

  With the coffee finally ready, Lexi poured a mug and decided to try to let the past go and think positive about the dinner tomorrow. The least she could do was feed Anna a good meal, served with good wine, and then say the goodbye which was long overdue. Nodding at her new resolve, Lexi went to the fridge to take inventory. Since she did not know what Anna liked, Lexi had decided to go with a classic cheese lasagna and a bottle of California red wine.

  There was no way to know if Anna even drank alcohol, but Lexi knew she sure as hell would need some and so made a mental note to buy two bottles, just in case. Satisfied she knew what she needed, Lexi padded back to the master suite to get dressed. Today I will go back to working on the crown molding in here, she thought. It was her first attempt at the tricky install, and so she decided to learn the skill in a room which was not as frequently used as someplace like the dining room. With a little luck, it would be just the distraction she needed.

  JACKIE WAS LOOKING for something to distract her too as she surfed through the channels on her XM radio. Whenever

  she let her mind relax, her thoughts kept wandering to Taylor Barnes. It was becoming ridiculous, and as a sultry song came on the radio and the image of what it might be like to dance with Taylor popped into her head, Jackie snapped off the radio with a growl of frustration. For crying out loud, she thought. It was a ruse to get rid of Danson. It was not like the flirtation with Taylor was for real, and yet, now she was not only continually thinking of the woman, but she was actually a little nervous about seeing her in a few minutes when she drove into the garage. They had gone for a drink and Jackie had happily bought her rescuer a whiskey neat. The woman carefully sipped while Jackie plowed through two lemon drops to settle her nerves.

  Once the edge was off, Jackie tried to chit-chat playfully with Taylor, had even hugged her with gratitude at one point, but the woman was a bit standoffish. All of which translated to Jackie having no idea how seeing her at the guard booth in a few minutes would go. At least she had one more stop before arriving and pulled into the Starbucks line to order a Skinny Cinnamon Dolce. Venti, of course. As she was about to order, she had a thought and decided to get something for Taylor too. As an icebr
eaker, she thought. But what would the woman like? It seemed unlikely the veteran Army soldier, something she learned Saturday night, would want anything girly. Probably not tea either. Finally, she settled on black coffee. Bold and hot. Immediately her mind went to how bold, and hot represented Taylor quite well actually, and Jackie slapped the steering wheel. Oh come on, she told herself. This line of thinking really had to stop.

  After the drinks were secured in the cupholders of her car, Jackie blasted the final quarter-mile to her office building. She was being silly about Taylor, and she knew it.

  Yet, her heart was beating faster when she made the last turn and saw the woman standing in the guard booth. Taylor looked up, and when she saw Jackie, their eyes held. It was only for a moment, and then Taylor smiled, yet Jackie could

  not help but feel the power and the passion behind the look.

  It made Jackie catch her breath and right then she knew she needed to keep clear boundaries with Taylor. Keep it friendly but strictly platonic at all costs. Starting now, Jackie thought. As she stopped in her usual spot and Taylor stepped out to say good morning, Jackie held out the coffee.

  “Good morning, Jackie,” Taylor said and then raised an eyebrow. “Is that for me?” Jackie smiled.

  “It is,” she said and was pleased when the woman looked touched by the gesture. “I wasn’t sure what you liked so I hope this is okay.” She saw Taylor pause at her words and worried for a moment she was way off on the order, and then realized her statement was a little suggestive. She actually felt herself blush and was frustrated at her reaction.

  It was becoming quite evident what Taylor liked. Just friends, Jackie thought. You’re a CEO. Act like it. No doubt guessing Jackie’s inner turmoil, Taylor chuckled softly and took the coffee.

  “Thank you,” she said. “But you didn’t have to do it.”

  Jackie smiled, unwilling to lose the upper hand.

  “It is my pleasure. Oh, and wait,” she said on the spur of the moment and reached into her purse on the seat to grab a pen. “Let me see that again,” she said and reached for the paper cup. Taylor obliged, and once she had it, Jackie scribbled her cell phone number on the side. “Here's my cell. I thought we should exchange numbers, you know, in case either of us ever needed anything again.” She handed back the cup and looked up into Taylor's eyes. Jackie felt an unexpected tingle of heat run through her. Then she lifted her chin and put her resolve back in place. “After all, it's what friends do,” she stated. Taylor paused but then nodded.

  “Of course,” she said. “It’s what friends do.”

  AFTER JACKIE ROARED away in her Audi, Taylor let out a long slow breath. That woman is such trouble, she thought and stepped back into the guard booth as more cars arrived.

  Distractedly, she checked them in, but her mind kept returning to how Jackie had acted. For a moment, Taylor would swear the woman was flirting, but then it was as if Jackie purposely slammed the door on any of her emotions.

  It was all so confusing. And then there is the phone number.

  When there was a break in activity, Taylor ran her thumb over the numbers. Never in a lifetime did she think Jackie Scott would give it to her. But just as friends. Jackie had made that abundantly clear. Still, as friends should, Taylor took out her phone and after a short inner battle of should I, or shouldn’t I? Taylor punched in a text. “Thank you for the coffee,” she wrote. There was no answer immediately, and Taylor sighed. She knew it was asking too much to have the second highest executive in the company text back and forth with her. Still, a part of her had hoped just maybe. As she went to set down the phone, it chimed. Taylor looked at the screen.

  “Least I could do. Was it okay?” the text read. Taylor smiled and wondered for a fleeting second if she should wait a few minutes before answering, but then decided against it. She was not one to play games. Throughout her military career, Taylor took pride in being authentic and candid at all costs. There was no reason to start acting differently now.

  Especially with Jackie, she thought and sent a text back.

  “Excellent,” she wrote. Taylor's thumb paused over the letters as she contemplated writing a second message. It was crazy, and would no doubt meet with rejection, but she also knew you only live once. Sometimes being bold was the only way to go.

  “Will you have dinner with me?” she wrote. Expecting a long pause or no answer at all, Taylor was surprised when Jackie wrote right back.

  “Yes. Let's do dinner. Tomorrow? At 7?” the text read.

  Taylor's heart leaped at the words. Although “do dinner”

  sounded significantly more friend-like than romantic, she would take it. If nothing else, it would give her a chance to maybe figure out what was really going on between them.

  “All good. Where?” she typed. Again, Jackie wrote right back.

  “I know a place. I'll pick you up. Ok?” the text read. Taylor chuckled as she read the words. After seeing Jackie drive, it all sounded like a wild ride to her. But why the hell not, Taylor thought and sent back one word.

  “Perfect,” she wrote.

  CHAPTER 6

  here were times in Anna’s life when she was nervous.

  TTaking her boards to become a family nurse practitioner, for example, or the day she reluctantly married Martin, her now ex-husband. Those had been monumental moments, which changed her life forever. Now, as she drove along the back roads outside of Astoria to have dinner with Lexi, Anna was just as nervous and could not help but wonder if tonight would have as much of an impact on her life. I am making too much of this, she thought as she followed the directions on the GPS app on her smartphone. It’s dinner with an old high school friend. Nothing more. The line of reason, however, did not explain why her stomach was doing flip-flops from anxiety. For two days, all Anna could think about was seeing Lexi again. The chance meeting at the farmers market seemed too much like fate to ignore, and she was haunted by the hurt look she saw in the woman's blue-gray eyes. No matter what else happened during the evening, Anna was determined to make Lexi understand why Anna left without even saying goodbye. As a girl of eighteen, she had believed, as had her parents, leaving for Stanford without a lot of drama was for the best. Therefore, she had loaded up her little blue Honda CRX and driven away at four in the morning before it was even light out to make her way to California. The drive down was hell as Anna had sobbed most of the way while her heart was breaking over losing Lexi forever. But now I know nothing is forever, she mused as the lights of Lexi’s farmhouse came into view. It shone brightly against the gloom of the rainy night and Anna could see the place was slowly returning to its original charm. And

  some. She smiled knowing Lexi's strong, capable hands were making the magic happen. Somehow the setting suited the memory Anna had of her long-lost friend.

  As she stopped the car, two bouncing golden retrievers came from the side of the house. They barked playfully and chased each other around the yard, while Anna watched laughing. She loved dogs, particularly goldies and had a memory of the one she was raised with. Sandy. A sweethearted creature who had to be put down only a year after Anna left for school. The memory of how much she loved her pet brought the sting of tears to her eyes, and she wiped them away with a little laugh. God, I'm an emotional wreck already, and I'm still in the car, she thought. Just then, she heard Lexi calling the dogs from the front porch.

  “Rosy! Clem!” she said. “Kennels.” Anna watched the two dogs immediately respond and obey. As they raced up the front steps, Anna got out of her car.

  LEXI LOOKED ON FROM the front steps and felt her heart pounding. For a moment, she was not sure she could even breathe. Anna. Here. Looking lovely even despite the rain in a flowing dark skirt and a knit wrap. “You don't have to put them away on my account,” Anna said, pulling Lexi out of her paralysis and she noticed the woman carried a basket of baked loaves of bread, cheese, and wine. Rushing down the stairs, Lexi reached to help with the goods.

  “I'll let them out after dinner
. As much as I've trained most bad habits out of them, they still tend to get underfoot when there is food around,” Lexi explained taking the basket and leading her guest up the stairs. Anna smiled at the gesture, and Lexi watched her shake the mist from her hair once they were under cover of the porch. In the glow of the old-fashioned pendant lights Lexi had installed there,

  Anna looked radiant, and Lexi again felt like she would not be able to breathe. Get it together, Lexi told herself. She did not come here to have you mooning around her all night.

  This is just a friendly dinner to catch up.

  “Well, I love goldies,” Lexi heard Anna say and she blinked to refocus. “So they can stay out as much as you want.” Lexi nodded.

  “I know you love goldies,” Lexi admitted before she could stop herself. Anna turned to look at her and their eyes held for a moment. Lexi could feel a slow blush starting and moved to open the front screen door to cover it. The last thing she needed was for Anna to know all the things Lexi remembered about her. Silently, Anna followed her in and then paused to admire the entryway. It was one of the finished rooms, crown molding aside, and Lexi was pleased with how the hand plastered walls painted a rich mocha brown made the warm white wainscoting she added pop.

  “Oh Lexi, this is lovely,” Anna murmured. Pleased, Lexi nodded.

  “Thank you,” she said and led the way to the kitchen where she put the basket down on the island. “And thank you for this too. You didn’t have to bring anything.”

  “Housewarming,” Anna said as her eyes roamed the true heart of the house. The kitchen was Lexi's masterpiece, and the amazement in Anna's eyes were her reward. The room was the perfect blend of refurbished old and cutting-edge modern. Slowly, Anna shook her head and turned to Lexi. “I can't believe how beautiful this all is,” she said. “How long have you been working on the house?” Lexi tried to shrug nonchalantly, but she knew her pride in her work was showing a little too.