Lupine Dreams----Chapter 12

Nikki stood in front of her freezer tying to figure out what to eat.  She was still a little numb from the two beers that she’d had on an empty stomach.  She didn’t see anything that jumped out and said ‘eat me’.  She shut the door before she defrosted the contents.  Nothing seemed to sound good when she thought of it.  Finally she grabbed a can of peach halves out of the cupboard and ate them straight from the can.  She thought about calling Lena, but she wasn’t sure whether she was quite ready for that reunion yet.  She needed to figure a few things out first.
  
What was she going to tell Mark about Scott?  Should she tell him the truth?  He had risked his job and could have very likely faced jail time giving her that duffle bag of goodies.  Should she return the favor by telling him something that was just as damaging to her life?  It was rather heavily weighted against her, though; what’s a little theft compared to murder?  

She wondered what would have happened if she had simply called the authorities about finding an apparent bear attack victim and hiding the vest and gun.  Why didn’t I think of that sooner?  Because you felt guilty as hell and you needed to cover your crime, that’s why.  I’m not a very good liar, so what do I tell Mark?  Especially as he always seems to know when I’m lying.

She turned on her stereo and dropped in Mozart’s Requiem; that always helped her to think.  She looked at her answering machine and saw that she had three messages.  She played them through and thought once again about calling Lena to assuage her fears, but then Steve’s message had left her the most concerned.  And she also knew that if she called Lena, that she’d drive up and skip classes tomorrow just to be with her and she didn’t want Lena to do that.
  
She called Steve to find out what was so important.  Thirty minutes later she was pacing back and forth in the living room, mad as hell.  She felt a tingling sensation crawling across her skin, and snapped out of her internal tirade.  She calmed herself down and tried to think about what Steve had said.  She couldn’t believe that such a nice guy like him would marry a woman that was like that.

What a bitch!  She considered what he had just told her about his family situation.  That he was the only one in the family that had shown any support for Lena.  That his own children had never seen their Aunt Lena; they knew she existed, but his wife had forbidden her presence in the home.  That Steve had to sneak out of his own house to see or talk to his own sister.  Then, to top it all off, when Lena had been seen in town, she had blown a gasket that night at the dinner table.  When Steve swore he hadn’t been aware of Lena’s presence, Wendy hadn’t believed him and had called Lena to tell her to stay out of Choteau, and their lives.  

Now, according to Steve, Lena had told Wendy that she hadn’t been in town to see her brother but to see her girlfriend.  So Wendy, being the bitch that she was, started calling around town to see where Lena’s car had been seen.  Enter her co-worker Faith, that nosey bitch had told Wendy that Lena’s car had been at Nikki’s overnight.  Now, not only was her secret out at work; Wendy was pressuring Steve to fire her because of it.

How did my life get so fucked up so fast?  What did I do to the world to get handed this crap?  She didn’t buy into that religious claptrap about God hating gays.  God was about love and forgiveness, not hate and bigotry.  So she didn’t think for one minute that God hated her.  Of course, now that she was a werewolf, things might be a bit different.  Well, screw it, if he’s pissed at me, then, well, I don’t know what I’d do.  She needed to get off this train of thought quickly.  What am I going to do for a job?  She didn’t think Steve would fold under and have to explain the big picture to Wendy about multi-million dollar lawsuits that routinely got paid out to people fired simply because they were gay.  

Once Wendy found out that her bank account could suffer, that should cool her jets.  Faith, however, was a different story.  That bitch could ruin her life simply by telling the entire town that she was gay and having a love affair with a professor at a Catholic college.  Then Lena would get pressured to move on; they’d never fire her, but it would amount to the same thing.

She suddenly realized what she needed to do.  She rushed into her bedroom and quickly dressed.  She grabbed her purse and drove straight to Faith’s house.  She got out of her truck and thought again about what she was planning to say, and smiled.  This is going to be so much fun.  She walked up to the door and rang the bell.  Faith opened the door and stood there open-mouthed.
  
“Hello, Faith.  Just telling your friends about me now, are you?  Yes, I can see from the expression on your face that you were.”  

Nikki watched as Faith suddenly paled.  Nikki spotted the cordless phone on the hall table, and with her newfound hearing, could hear someone calling Faith’s name.  Nikki changed her tactics immediately.  She smiled at Faith and started talking really loud, 

“WHAT?  What do you mean you won’t sleep with me again, Faith?  I thought you said you loved what my tongue did for you!  Why, Faith?  You said you loved to feel my breasts against yours!”  

Nikki grinned evilly at Faith as she went crimson and started to sputter and shake.  She looked at Nikki as if she was going to hit her, but then she whipped around and grabbed the phone, almost dropping it, before hitting the off button.

“How dare you!  You-you bitch!”  

Faith was trying to say more, but she couldn’t get her mouth to work as fast as her brain.

“Yes, that very well may be the case, Faith, but you started this little war by being one first.  I won’t tolerate it any more, Faith.  If you insist on telling the entire town that I’m gay, then I will tell them you were my first lover.  It’s that simple, Faith.  You’ll go down in flames just as fast, if not faster than me.  How do you think your little social circle of tattle tales will treat you after that little tidbit hits the airwaves?  Which, if I’m not mistaken, already has.”  

Nikki pointedly looked at the phone in Faith’s hand and grinned.

“Get off my porch!  Go away!  I’ll call the Sheriff and have you arrested for trespassing and harassment.”  

Faith was trying to gain the upper hand but Nikki still had one more card to play.

“Yes, you could, but you won’t.  I’ll say this only once, Faith.  You fuck with me again and I’ll bury you.  Now, call your friends back and tell them it was all a great big misunderstanding and a practical joke that went too far.  Oh, and Faith, if you test me on this, you’ll find out I’m not the little quiet mouse you thought I was.  Do you understand me?”  

Nikki’s expression went cold and she stared into Faith’s eyes with an intensity that smoldered with menace.  Faith started to say something in response, but when she saw the look in Nikki’s eyes, she stopped.  She swallowed and nodded.

“Yes.”

“Good.  Let’s keep it that way, shall we?” 

Nikki turned and walked back to her truck.  She drove off down the street smiling.  She still couldn’t really believe that she had done that.  Two weeks ago, and she wouldn’t have dared, but now she was more assertive.  She knew that some of it had come from her new condition but after seeing Faith’s face and her reaction; Nikki didn’t mind the change so much.  

She considered who else needed a stern talking to, and figured that if she was going to lose her job anyway, she might as well go out with a bang instead of a whimper.  She drove over to Steve’s house and went into to their driveway.  She thought about using the same tactics with Wendy, but then she remembered the kids, and changed her mind.  The kids.  Damn.
  
She thought about Steve’s daughters and how much fun Lena would have being around them, teaching them things and playing soccer with them on Sundays.  Then it clicked.  The girls.  Wendy might be afraid that Lena would teach them to be gay.  How messed up in the head do you have to be to think of that?  Ignorance is the breeding ground of intolerance.  Hadn’t one of her professors said that?  It sure sounded right.  Well, I’m about to teach that woman something.  Nikki smiled and got out of the truck and rang the doorbell.

Steve answered the door and his eyes bugged out.  He suddenly looked guilty and couldn’t meet Nikki’s gaze.  He stammered for a few seconds and then calmed down enough to speak.

“Dominique, uh, what are you doing here?”

“Well, Steve, I’ve just had a friendly chat with Faith.  That’s been taken care of.  Now, I’m here to talk to Wendy.  May I come in?”

“Ah, ah, uh, yeah, I guess so.”  

Steve suddenly changed from being her boss to a scared man about to be lined up against the wall and shot.  Nikki hid her grin at this observation and the change in Steve’s demeanor.  She stepped past him and then waited for him to show her in.  Steve looked at her and started to say something, but then shut his mouth and shrugged, before shaking his head.  

He led her into the living room where Wendy was sitting; both girls were curled up on the couch next to her.  Nikki looked at them, the youngest was most like Wendy, dark hair and brown eyes.  She was only five years old, but Nikki could tell she was going to look just like her mother when she got older.  The oldest one--seven, if Nikki remembered correctly--took after Steve’s side of the family.  She was petite and very blonde with blue eyes that were just a couple shades darker than Lena’s.  Wendy was just about to say something when Nikki suddenly cut her off and spoke to the girls instead.

“Hello, Michelle and Stephanie, I’m your Aunt Nikki.  I’m here to talk to your Mom, okay?”

Both girls looked at her with surprise and wonder.  They had never even heard of her before, and to see her standing there now telling them that she was their aunt?  WOW!  Their eyes widened and they looked at Wendy with questioning looks, as if to ask, is this true?  Wendy was livid but managed to keep her voice low.
  
“Go upstairs, girls.  Me and Nikki have some things to talk about.  I’ll be up later to tuck you in.  Go on, now.  Get upstairs.”  

Wendy was staring daggers at her but she didn’t say anything until the girls had disappeared upstairs.  

“How dare you come into my house and call yourself that!  You are sick and I won’t have you or that little-“  

Nikki cut her off.

“No, Wendy.  How dare you!  Are you so small minded that you are willing to ruin everybody’s lives over your groundless fear?” 

Nikki stepped closer to Wendy as she got up off the couch to face her.  Her anger made her face flush.  

“Are you afraid that one of your daughters might ‘learn’ to be gay because Steve’s sister is?”  

Nikki was really angry now, but then she remembered her lessons and started to exercise one of the calming patterns in her mind.
  
“It’s none of your business what I teach my children.  Get out of my house.”

“No.  You haven’t finished learning your lesson yet, Wendy.  I’m not leaving until you do.”  

Nikki walked up to Wendy and shoved her down into the couch.  Nikki grabbed a small chair and set it in front of Wendy and looked her straight in the eyes.  Wendy was too shocked to speak, her mouth dropped open and her eyes bulged.

“Shut your mouth before the flies find it.  Now, you listen to me very carefully, Wendy.  If you keep this up and try to push Steve into firing me, you’re going to lose.  Steve knows what would happen if he caved in to your wish.  I’d sue him for every thing the paper is worth.  That would mean no more nice things for you or the children, not even a roof over your heads.”  

Nikki could see that she was scaring Wendy now.  Wendy hadn’t thought that far ahead, but she now knew that it could happen.  

“I can see it’s starting to sink in now, Wendy.  Now, there’s something else you need to get through to that little mind of yours; Lena is your sister-in-law and she deserves to be treated a whole hell of a lot better than you have been treating her.”

“I don’t have to listen to you.  You are just as sick as she is.” 

Wendy’s voice finally returned after her anger overrode her shock.

“Oh, yes you do, Wendy, and I’m not sick, you are the one who needs help.  Now, here’s the deal, Wendy.  You are going to chill out about Lena and her lifestyle.  You aren’t going to use the kids against Steve anymore either.”

“Who do you think you are?  What gives you the right to order me around?  You can’t---“

“Oh, yes I can, Wendy, and I will.  I have the right because I love Lena with all my heart and because I like Steve, he’s a damn nice guy, and he’s my friend.”  

Then Nikki caught it, just a flicker of the eye, but she knew exactly where that look went and just what it had been looking at.  OH MY GOD!  Wendy just checked out my tits!  I’m chewing her out and she just looked at my tits!  Holy Shit!  Now it makes sense!  She suddenly knew what she had to do and say.  

“Steve, you need to go upstairs and read a story to Michelle and Stephanie.  Now.”  

She turned to see Steve just standing there staring at her, his mouth agape.  

“Steve!  Story, upstairs, now.”  

Nikki waved her hands and snapped her fingers.  Steve blinked and nodded.  He turned and ran up the stairs, leaving Wendy and Nikki alone.  Wendy started to say something, but Nikki shushed her.

“Wendy, listen to me.  Lena is my girlfriend and lover now.  That means you can’t have her.”  

Nikki sat and watched Wendy go white as a sheet.  She looked at Nikki in terror and shot a glance up to the stairway.  

“No, Wendy, I won’t tell him.  You will.  When you are ready, you will tell him.  It’ll be tough, but you know what Wendy, Steve’s a lot smarter than you think he is.  He’s also a lot more understanding too.”

“How did you know?  Does Lena know?”  

Wendy was starting to panic.

“Wendy calm down.  I saw you check out my tits while I was chewing your ass.  It clicked; it was the only thing that really made sense as to why you would treat Steve’s sister so badly and then take it out on your kids.  Wendy, shame on you.  Are you that scared of being tempted, or is there something else?”

“There’s something else.”  

Wendy suddenly stopped.  Nikki shook her head.

“What, Wendy?  I won’t tell Steve, unless you say it’s okay.  Look Wendy, I don’t hate you.  I’m annoyed with you, but I don’t hate you.  Now what is it?”  

Nikki could see the turmoil on Wendy’s face.  She was still trying to be angry, but she was now more scared than anything else.

“It was Stephanie, when she was really young, maybe just two years old at the time.  She said something.  She had just started making sense with some of her words.”  

Wendy looked at Nikki again and then at the stairway.  “She pointed at Lena’s picture and said ‘pretty Leenee’, and I got scared.”

“So?  That’s it?  You did all this because of that one comment?”  

Nikki was starting to get annoyed again.

“No, it wasn’t just that.  She was looking at the picture with a strange look on her face.  I never thought I’d see that look on a two year old.  She was pointing to the picture and she said that.  I swear it was a look of want on her face, Nikki.  My little two year old wanted Lena.”  

Wendy started crying.  Nikki sat down on the couch next to her and put an arm over her shoulder.  Wendy flinched and started to pull away, but Nikki stopped her.

“Wendy, chill out, I’m not putting moves on you.  I’m trying to help you.  Okay?”  

Nikki watched Wendy carefully; she didn’t want a huge scene on her hands.

“Okay.  Thanks.”

“That’s what friends do, Wendy.  We help each other.  I am Steve’s friend and I would like to be yours as well.  Would that be okay?”

“Yeah.  I guess that would be okay.  You are the only one that knows about me.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure about that, Wendy.”

“What do you mean?”  

Nikki saw Wendy’s panic starting to rise again.

“I mean, Lena is the smartest person I know and she is damned perceptive.  My guess is that she knew and that’s why she never pushed the issue over you not wanting her around.  She may not know all of the reasons, but I would venture a darned good guess she knew you were attracted to her.  I doubt if she realized that you were upset because you thought Stephanie was attracted to her.  Now the question begs to be answered, Wendy; what now?”

“I don’t know.  What if Steve finds out and gets really mad?”

“Wendy, I don’t think he will be mad.  Well, he might be for a little bit, but he’ll come around.  He obviously loves you, I know he adores Stephanie and Michelle, and he loves his sister.  So, yeah, he might be a little miffed about how much grief you have given him with this, but it won’t last.  He’ll deal with it and will be happy if you let Lena back into the family.  If Stephanie still has a crush on Lena, well, so what?  Lena’s my girl and nobody, not even that little cutie, is going to take away my Lena.  Understand?”  

Nikki smiled to take the edge off her words, but Wendy had already started smiling, long before Nikki did.

“Yeah.  I never would have guessed it about you, Dominique.  I even saw you with a boyfriend once, so what is the deal with you and Lena?”

“Well, up until I met Lena, you’re right, I wasn’t inclined to date women.  I had a bad breakup with a guy and Lena gave me a shoulder to cry on.  Well, that led to me realizing that Lena was cute as hell and I found myself attracted to her.  Some looks were exchanged and then one thing led to another, and, well, we love each other.  We are hopelessly crazy about each other, and I am very happy.  So, you can look, but no touching, got it?” 

Wendy laughed and nodded.

“Thank you, Dominique.  So, what do I tell Steve?  He’s up there right now wondering if we are killing each other.”

“I have an idea.  Why not let me go up there and finish reading the story to the girls?  While I’m doing that, you can talk to Steve.  Trust me, Wendy, he’ll understand.”

“Okay.  Aunt Nikki, huh?”  Wendy smiled.

“Yeah, uh, it was the only thing I could think of when I walked in.”

“Well, Aunt Nikki, go upstairs and read to my girls while I talk to my husband.”

“Yeah, why don’t I do just that?  What a great idea! Too bad I didn’t think of it first.”  

Nikki gave Wendy a grin and walked up the stairs.  Nikki heard Steve’s voice and followed it to the bedroom door.  She looked around the doorframe and watched for a minute.

The girls were in their beds and Steve was sitting in between them on a chair with a book on his lap.  He was looking from one daughter to the other as he read the story.  It was obvious from watching him that this was the same story he told them every night, he never once looked down, but flipped the pages as if he were reading it.  Nikki smiled and thought to herself, yeah, I could do that.  She stepped into the doorway and both girls looked at her with big round eyes.

“Hi, girls.  Steve, why don’t you let Aunt Nikki here finish the story and you can go downstairs.”  

She smiled at Steve and nodded, before looking at the girls to see what they thought of the idea.

“Oh, okay.  Uhm, would that be okay with you girls?  Can Aunt Nikki finish the story for me?”  

They both nodded but didn’t say a word.  He smiled and patted them both on the head.

“Okay, I’ll be back up in a little bit to tuck you in and kiss you goodnight.”  

Steve turned to look at her and raised a questioning eyebrow.

“You’ll have to wait and let her tell you.  In the mean time, what page are you on?”
  
It didn’t really matter about the page number.  The girls were voraciously curious and Nikki never got a chance to read any of it.  They wanted to know all about her and how she was their aunt.  So, she told them about her and Lena being really good friends; almost like sisters.  Nikki watched Stephanie closely when she mentioned Lena’s name but there wasn’t any difference from her reaction than that of Michelle’s.  

Nikki figured as much.  Wendy had over-reacted and misread her daughter’s reaction.  Wendy had read too much into that look because she had those feelings for Lena and was feeling particularly guilty about it.
  
Steve came back up the stairs and stood there listening to Nikki talk to the girls.  He was a little perplexed at Wendy’s confession and apology.  He wasn’t mad, just disappointed.  All that time lost when they could have been a closer family.  Well, it looked like it was going to work out okay anyway.  The girls liked Nikki and he could tell that Nikki liked them, and was good with them.  He stepped into the room and the girls shouted ‘Daddy!’ at the same time.  They were disappointed that Nikki had to go so soon.

“You both need to get to sleep, you have school in the morning.”  

They whined but smiled when Nikki gave them each a goodnight kiss on the forehead before stepping out of the room.  Nikki went back downstairs and when she walked up to Wendy to say goodbye, Wendy hugged her.

“You’d better not be doing this just to cop a feel.”  

Nikki smiled and hugged Wendy back.

“God, you are as bad as she is, no wonder you two are in love.  Thank you, Dominique, for everything.  You were right, he wasn’t mad.”

“I told you he’d surprise you.  That’s why I like him; he’s a nice guy.  You’re lucky too, Wendy.”  

Nikki winked at Wendy.  Steve walked in and looked at the two of them standing there and grinned.

“You know, this doesn’t change anything, Dominique.  You still have to show up for work tomorrow morning at eight o’clock.”
  
“Yeah, good old Steve.  Business first.  Okay.  See you tomorrow morning.  Oh, and Steve, let me tell Lena, Okay?”  

Steve and Wendy nodded and waved as she left.  Nikki got in her truck and drove home.  She got inside the house and heard the phone ringing.  She wasn’t sure she was ready to talk to Lena just yet, but she needed to at least let her know she was home and safe.  She picked it up before the answering machine did.

“Hello?”

“So you’re back.  Is it fixed?” 

The cold tone of Mark’s voice came out of the handset.

“So to speak.  One thing got fixed, the other stayed.”  

Nikki didn’t really want to get into this conversation with him tonight.

“What got fixed?”

“You don’t have to worry about that duffel bag, it got buried in a deep hole and nobody will ever find it.  As for the other, well, I have to go and spend a few days a month out in the deep woods.”

“Why did you bury it?  Don’t you still need it, you know we still haven’t caught him?”

“I don’t need that stuff anymore, Mark.  I thought you’d be relieved to know that it will never be found.”

“Yeah, I am sort of, but what about Scott?  He’s still a threat as long as he’s out there.”

“I don’t need it anymore.”  

Nikki hoped he’d get the message and drop the subject quickly.

“Oh, I don’t want to know, do I?”  

Marks tone became quiet.

“Ask me no questions, Mark, and I’ll tell you no lies.”  

Nikki used that old song title which seemed to fit the situation perfectly.

“I see.  Well, um, now what?”

“Like I said, I have to go out in the woods for a few days each month and everything will be fine.”

“You won’t go shifting and rampaging through town?”  

Mark sounded dubious and pissed.

“No, Mark.  No rampaging through town.  I go to work tomorrow and things will eventually get back to normal.”  

She tried to believe that, but somehow didn’t think it would really be true.

“Did you find him?  Dagomarus.”

“Yeah, he helped me and he’ll continue to help me control this.  He’s staying out in the forest though, he’s not coming back to town.”
  
“Oh, okay.  So, what are you going to do now?”  

Nikki could sense the relief in Mark’s voice at the news of Dagomarus and that he wouldn’t be coming back, but she also read between the lines with his question.  Damn it boy, don’t you ever give up?

“Well, I thought I’d just go back to work this week and then either go see Lena or have her come up here.  Actually, I know she’s coming up here.  We’re going to have dinner together.”

Nikki didn’t add, with Steve and his family.  Anyway, Mark didn’t need to know every last detail.

“Oh, so you and her are really going out, then?”  

Mark sounded disappointed.  Good.

“Yeah, we are, Mark.  Exclusively.”  

Give up you bastard.  She didn’t want to think of him like this, but he wasn’t giving her much choice.

“Oh.  Okay.  Well, I’ll talk to you later then.  Bye.”  

Nikki was relieved and annoyed.  Glad that he didn’t push the Scott issue, but pissed that after all they had discussed last week, he still had the balls to think he could have a shot at dating her.  What was it with him?  She half wondered if it wasn’t some sick infatuation because he had seen her having sex with Dagomarus and he’d been turned on by it. 

Well, Mark was a smart guy, and the trend was usually that the smart ones were the really kinky ones.  That made her stop and think for a second.  The smart ones are the kinky ones.  Lena was really, really smart; and she had already admitted to her that she was a pervert.  Nikki had assumed she meant her thing about the feet.  That seemed rather mild for someone as smart as Lena, especially when she was insatiable in bed.

Thinking about Lena like that made her skin tingle and feel warm.  I have to call her; I can’t put it off any longer.  She dialed Lena’s number from memory.

“Hi, lover, I’m back.”  

Nikki had to hold the receiver away from her ear for a second as Lena squealed in delight.  

“Yes, I’m okay.”

“No, I’m a werewolf, Lena.”

“Yeah, I know, me too.  However, not all things are bad; Scott won’t be a bother anymore.”

“No details, Lena.  He just won’t be bothering me anymore, that’s all.”

“No, don’t come up tonight, Lena.  You have classes in the morning and I also have to go to work.”

“Yeah, I want to really bad too, but you know I’m right.”

“Yeah, I think we can arrange dinner some night this week.”

“No, why don’t you come up here for dinner.  I have something really special planned for you and I would like to cook for you.”

“You are insatiable, and I love you too.”

“Goodnight, my lovely Lena.”  

Nikki hung up and walked into the bedroom.  She stripped off her clothes and crawled into her nice soft bed.  Where she could curl up under the covers and smell Lena’s scent in the sheets and the pillow next to her.  Yes, this was good enough for the first night back to reality.  She snorted when she said that to herself.  Reality, what the hell was that?

Nikki awoke to the sound of birds and crickets loudly serenading in her ears.  Had she left a window open?  She got up and checked, no, all the windows were closed.  She swore to herself and shook her head.  This enhanced hearing is going to drive me nuts!  

She was ravenously hungry so she grabbed a flat of eggs and the slab of bacon out of the fridge and started heating up the skillets.  She cooked herself six eggs and a dozen slices of bacon.  She pulled four slices of Texas-style toast from the toaster and heavily buttered them before smothering them with honey.  She was wiping her plate with the last piece of toast when she became cognizant of just how much she had eaten.  Damn!  If I keep this up I’ll blow up like a balloon!
 
The funny thing was, she didn’t feel like she had just eaten that much, and she still felt slightly hungry even after all of that.  She drank the last half of the pitcher of orange juice as well.  That bacon had been a little on the salty side of decent taste.  She made herself a pot of coffee and reveled in the smell; drinking a cup before the pot was really ready.  Taking the first super-strong portion out of the carafe to get that jolt of concentrated caffeine.  She took a few sips and felt the rush as it hit her system.  Whoa!  It never hit me like that before.  Maybe I’d better cut back a little.  It did have the effect of curbing her appetite though, just like she had planned.

She went back into her bedroom to get dressed and while she was trying to decide on what to wear; she looked at herself in the mirror.  She was pleasantly surprised to see how well toned her body looked.  WOW!  She looked like she could have been a professional gymnast.  Hey!  I think I like looking like this!  No, I know I like this!  Even after eating that horribly unhealthy breakfast, she didn’t feel bloated or queasy like she would usually expect.  In fact, she felt energized and slightly hyperactive.  Well, my grocery bill is going to be quite a bit higher than last time.

She picked out an outfit that highlighted her lithe new body and smiled at herself in the mirror.  Yeah, this is nice.  It really is a good thing Lena isn’t here right now; I’d never make it to the door dressed like this.  She snickered and grinned, yeah, Lena is going to be really surprised when she sees me.  She grabbed her purse and headed out the door.  She wanted to get to work early and see how much backlogged work she was going to find.  She pulled up to the back door and saw that Steve was already there, but nobody else was.  Good, this will give me a few minutes to talk to him about Faith and her plans for Lena
.
She went inside and walked over to his door.  He looked up and smiled.

“Good morning, Dominique.  How are you feeling?  Ready to get back to the grind?”

“Yeah, and thanks for being there for me, Steve.  You don’t know how much all of this means to me.  Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.  I’m glad I could be there for you.  I’ve always liked you, and, well, I’ve thought of you as my long lost cousin, sort of.  Anyway, I’m glad I could help out.”

“Cousin, huh?  Well, it looks like I’m going to be your sister-in-law, even if it isn’t legal yet.  Speaking of sisters, Lena is coming up to dinner tomorrow night and I would greatly appreciate it if you and your family would join us.  I want to surprise Lena and I can’t think of a better way to do it other than dinner with everybody.”

“Wow!  Yeah, I would love to have dinner with you and Lena.  I think the girls would enjoy it as well.  Yes, I’ll tell Wendy.  What time?”

“I think six o’clock would be fine.  Any requests?  I’m cooking.”

“No broccoli, other than that, what ever you want to fix would be fine.”

“No broccoli?  Allergies?”

“Yeah, I can’t stand the smell or even the thought of that stuff.  It makes me gag.  Childhood trauma.  I’ll tell you all about it sometime.”  He grinned.

“Okay.  Now, on to your favorite thing; business.  What do I need to catch up on?”

“Yeah, you slacked off last week.”  He smiled and shook his head.  

“There’s some brochures to lay out and some repeat orders for business cards to print up.  I left you a prioritized list on your desk.  It’s nice to have you back.  Oh, and what’s this about taking care of Faith?  I don’t want a catfight in the office this morning.”  

Nikki grinned at the catfight comment.  No, Steve, it wouldn’t be a catfight.  She didn’t say that, but the thought was there in her mind.

“I made it clear to Faith that any of her gossiping and character assassination crap wouldn’t be tolerated.  I told her that she needed to call her network back and tell them it was all a big mistake and that it was a practical joke that had gone too far.  She agreed to my terms and that should be it.  I don’t think she’ll be a problem.  We have an understanding between us.”

“Okay.  You know, I think I really like the new you.  What ever it was that happened last week has sure made a difference in your attitude and demeanor.  I like it.  Now, cut the chit chat and get your butt over to that desk and get busy.”  He grinned to take the sting out of his words.

“Yes, boss.  I bow to your superior will.”  

Nikki grinned back and left his office.  She went to her desk and found the list Steve had left for her.  Whew!  Well, it had been a week and even in this small town, people still needed their services on a regular basis.  When Faith showed up, she just gave Nikki a cool stare and went to her office, not saying a word.  Well, at least there weren’t any heated words or a bad screaming match.  Dave just looked from Faith to Nikki and grinned, shaking his head.  He thought it was funny.  

When the only other employee, Charlenne, came in, she just gave Nikki a suspicious glance and went to her workstation.  Charlenne only worked two days a week; she was the proofreader.  She was just out of high school and was waiting a year before going on to college.

Charlenne was an okay person, quiet and very bright, but not very pretty.  She wasn’t ugly, just very plain.  She tended to blend into the background if you didn’t pay any attention to her.  Nikki had had very little interaction with Charlenne, since Nikki tended to do her own proofreading before handing her work over.  She could tell that Charlenne liked her; they’d just never really talked to each other.  Now, she was getting surreptitious looks from Charlenne as she sat at her workstation.  Nikki didn’t make an issue of it and just tried to ignore it.  

However, by lunchtime, Nikki had had enough.  She got up and went over to Charlenne’s desk.  Charlenne looked like she was about to bolt for the door.  Nikki smiled to take any threatening overtone out of the confrontation.

“Charlenne, did you want to ask me something?  You have been looking at me every five minutes this morning.”  

Nikki was still smiling and her tone was friendly and light.  Charlenne looked like she wanted to crawl under desk and cry.  Nikki still smiling shook her head.  

“It’s okay, Charlenne, what is it?  I promise not to bite.”  

Nikki tried not to laugh at her own little inside joke.  Charlenne looked up at Nikki and gave her a nervous smile.

“I’m sorry, Dominique.  I didn’t mean to do that.  It’s nothing.”  

Charlenne couldn’t meet Nikki’s gaze and her voice was barely above a whisper.

“Charlenne, it is something.  You’ve never acted like this with me before.  What is it?”

Nikki wanted to hear it from her before jumping to any conclusions, but she strongly suspected she knew what it was all about.  Charlenne blushed a deep red and looked at her desk.  Nikki tried to reassure her some more.  

“I promise not to get mad or upset about anything you say.  Trust me, I think I know what’s bothering you, but I want to hear you say it.”  

Charlenne gave her a look of barely contained horror and this time, Nikki wasn’t so sure that Charlenne wouldn’t dive under her desk.  

“Calm down, Charlenne.  Whatever it is, I’m not going to explode or throw a snit.  What?”

Charlenne looked at her to make sure Nikki was telling the truth; Nikki just raised an eyebrow and grinned.

“Oh god, I am so embarrassed.  I’m sorry, Dominique.”

“Quit being sorry and spit it out, what is it, Charlenne?”  

Nikki was still grinning.  Charlenne took a little courage from her grin and nodded.

“I was thinking about what Faith said about you, but then she called me back and told me it was a bad joke and you two had let it go too far.”  

Charlenne stopped and looked at Nikki to see if there was going to be a bad reaction.  Nikki snickered and nodded, well, at least she did as I asked.

“Yeah, something like that.  So, what’s the problem, Charlenne?  If Faith told you it was a bad joke, why are you staring holes into my back?”  

Nikki was still grinning to let Charlenne know that she wasn’t upset about the revelation.  Charlenne blushed again and couldn’t quite meet Nikki’s gaze.  Then Nikki smelled it, very faint, but a distinctly recognizable scent.  An aroused female.  Nikki’s eyes suddenly widened and she looked at Charlenne closely.  Charlenne saw her look and turned pale.  

“Oh! Charlenne, it’s okay.  I think I get it now.  You didn’t want it to be a bad joke did you?”  

Charlenne was shaking and tears started to fall down her cheeks.  

“Come with me, Charlenne, let’s go into the lunchroom so we have some privacy.”  

Nikki grabbed her hand and Charlenne, although still looking like a scared lamb being led to the slaughter; let Nikki pull her along.

Nikki pulled her into the lunchroom and before closing the door, looked around to see if anyone had noticed, nope, all clear.  Nikki turned to look at Charlenne, who was now standing against the far counter with the small table between them.  Nikki didn’t try to get any closer; she didn’t want Charlenne to panic and scream.  Nikki smiled to reassure Charlenne that she wasn’t upset.

“Okay, Charlenne, calm down.  I’m not going to attack you or even touch you.  I just want to talk to you.  Sit down before you fall over.  Go on, I’ll stay right here.”  

Nikki was still smiling and nodding to Charlenne trying to reassure her that she wasn’t going to do anything other than she said.  Charlenne stared nervously at Nikki but did as she was told; she pulled out a chair and sat down.  Nikki smiled reassuringly at Charlenne.  

“Okay.  I think I understand a little more now, but I don’t want to jump to any conclusions here.  You can tell me, Charlenne, what’s going on?  I promise that whatever you say will never go outside that door.  I am not like Faith.  Trust me, okay?”  

Charlenne looked nervous again, but still nodded.

“I thought about what Faith told me the first time and…” 

Charlenne’s voice trailed off.  She had tears running down her cheeks again.  Nikki reached over to the counter and picked up the box of tissues and slid them across the table.  Charlenne gave her a look of gratitude and smiled.  She pulled a couple tissues out of the box and wiped her eyes.  She looked at Nikki again but didn’t say anything, just blushing once more.

“It’s okay, Charlenne.  Really.  I won’t get mad or say anything to hurt you.”  

Nikki smiled and put her hand over her heart.  

“I promise.”  

Charlenne laughed with relief before nodding again.

“Okay, Dominique.  You’re right.  I didn’t want it to be a bad joke.  I was hoping it was true.”  

Charlenne looked as if a huge weight had just been lifted off her shoulders, her relief at saying what she had been thinking and feeling left her lightheaded.

“Okay, Charlenne.  So, when Faith called back and said that it was a bad joke, you were disappointed.”

“Yes, I was.  I had hoped that, well, that you were like that because…” 

Charlenne’s voice trailed off and she blushed.

“Because you are like that and you were hoping to find a friend to share it with.  Right?”

Charlenne’s head jerked up and she looked at Nikki, her eyes pleading for understanding.  

“Charlenne, it’s fine, really.  I won’t tell anybody.  Not unless you say it’s okay.”

“Thank you.  Yes, I am like that.  I like girls.  I, uh, I like you.  You are so beautiful, Dominique.”  

Charlenne rushed out the last few words as if she was afraid that she would lose her nerve if she waited any longer to say them.  Charlenne looked at Nikki’s chest and then up to her eyes before blushing crimson.  Nikki found herself blushing lightly at the compliment and then smiled.

“Thank you, Charlenne.  I like you, too.”  

When she said that, Charlenne’s eyes lit up and she smiled so big that Nikki was afraid the girls face was going to split in half.  Uh, oh.  She’s got it bad for me.  Why me?  First Mark and now Charlenne.  Two people I like and they both have crushes on me.  How am I going to let Charlenne down without hurting her?  She needs a friend right now so badly, especially after this revelation.  The truth is what I need to tell her, so she can understand.  Hopefully, it won’t crush her spirit.

“Charlenne, I’ll tell you the truth about me, but I need you to promise me the same thing that I did for you.  That whatever I say inside this room, stays inside this room.  Okay?”  

Nikki was still smiling, but cautiously now.  Charlenne smiled and nodded.

“I promise, Dominique.  I won’t tell anyone.”

“Okay, I’m going to trust you.  I do like a woman.  We are seeing each other and we are in love.  I’ve never felt like that about another woman before her, ever.  We became friends first and then lovers.”  

Charlenne’s face fell and she looked like she was going to cry again.  

“Charlenne, listen to me.  This doesn’t mean we can’t be friends.  It just means that’s all we can be, okay.  I’m not trying to hurt you; I’m trying to be your friend.  I know you like me, in that way.  I’m flattered, really, I am.  However, I’m involved with her, and I have to be faithful to her.  Do you understand?  We can be friends, but that’s all.”  

Nikki hoped Charlenne would understand and be her friend.  Charlenne looked at the table for a few seconds and then raised her up to Nikki’s face.

“You are in love with her?”  

Charlenne looked at her with reverence and respect in her eyes.

“Oh, Charlenne!  Yes!  I love her so much it makes my chest hurt sometimes even thinking about it.  I get lightheaded and giddy when I think of her and her smile and her laugh!  Oh, it’s like bells ringing in the breeze!”  

Nikki hadn’t planned on revealing this much about her private life to anyone, but when she thought about it, she was telling the absolute truth and she was glad she could share it with Charlenne.
  
Charlenne smiled and looked at Nikki in awe.  There was a dreamy wistful look in her eyes as she listened to Nikki tell her about her girlfriend.  

“Wow!  You really are in love with her.  I hope one day I will find someone like that for myself.  You look so happy when you talk about her.  I’m jealous of her.  Yeah, I know.  We can’t be like that, but I’m not upset about it anymore.  Not now.  We can be friends, Dominique.  I’d like that a lot.”

“I would too, Charlenne.  Really.  One of these days soon, you will have to come over to my house and meet her.  I think you’ll like her too.  I know she’ll like you.  Oh, and one piece of advice, Charlenne; don’t ever let Faith catch you looking at my ass like that, she won’t have an ounce of mercy, she’ll go for the jugular.”  

Charlenne blushed furiously and snickered.

“Yeah, okay.  It’s all right though if I look once in while?”  

Charlenne was still blushing, but she was gaining more self-confidence and Nikki liked that.  Good for her, she thought to herself.  That’s the first step in getting out there and finding someone.

“Yeah, it’s okay.  Just don’t get caught.  Faith is afraid of me, but I don’t think I can stop her from trashing you if she thinks she can get away with it.  One ‘bad practical joke’ story will fly, but two of them?  Nope, if she thinks that of you, she’ll go after you, if for no other reason than to piss me off.”

“I used to like Faith, but after some of the things that have happened to me in the last couple of weeks, I have found that she is shallow and petty.  She can’t be trusted with any personal knowledge, Charlenne.  Even if she only suspects it, she’ll rat you out in a heartbeat and smile while she’s doing it.”

“Yeah, I know.  Why do you think I was so afraid to tell you anything?  I have seen you two talking before and thought you were friends, but when she told me that you were gay and seeing another woman, well, I changed my mind about you and her.  Is it true that it’s Steve’s younger sister that you are dating?  Or is that one of Faith’s attempts at self destruction at the hands of the boss?”  

Nikki laughed when Charlenne made that observation.  This girl wasn’t stupid, just quiet and shy.  There was a real brain lurking underneath that plain face and hazel eyes.

“Yes, I’m seeing Lena, and she is Steve’s younger sister.  He introduced us, so he’s happy about us being together.  As for Faith?  You might be right about that self-destructive streak.  I honestly don’t think that woman looks past her nose.  It’s really too bad.  She has the potential to be a nice person, she just let’s her pettiness and her need to run other people down get in the way.”  

Nikki suddenly gave Charlenne a piercing look realizing what she had just said.  Charlenne laughed and smiled.

“I’m glad we had this talk, Dominique.  I won’t say anything, trust me.  We’ll just keep it between us girls, right?  Our little secret observations of office personnel?”  

She grinned and then put on the sweetest little innocent expression.  Nikki couldn’t help but laugh at Charlenne.

“Yeah, our little secret.  I like you, Charlenne.  You surprised me there.  I guess I just never thought you were quite so observant.  You do a damn good job of hiding that brain power you’ve got.”
 
“Thanks, I think.  No, I know what you meant.  Yeah, I guess I do hide it.  I find it easier that way.  People assume that I’m not all that bright and they don’t ask me to do things, I just skate by.  I know that’s not the best way to go through life, but in high school, it was the only way to survive.  I know I’m not pretty like you, so it’s harder to go through life when you aren’t showered with people’s good intentions.”

“Charlenne!  I don’t…” 

Then Nikki stopped when she saw the expression on Charlenne’s face.  Nikki looked chagrinned and blushed a little.  

“Oh, okay.  So I let people think that because I’m pretty they can do things for me to get on my good side.  I just never thought about putting myself in your shoes.  I’m sorry, that sounded bad, didn’t it?”

“It’s okay.  I’m used to it.  I’ve accepted my lot in life.  However, now that you know I’m smart, don’t you forget it.” 

Charlenne grinned and winked at Nikki.

“I promise, I won’t.  And you know what?  When you use those brain-cells and show your true self like you did just now, you are really cute.  So, think about that next time you’re walking around and would like things to go your way a little more.  Now, lets get out of here before someone notices our absence and starts whispering behind our backs.”  

Nikki opened the door and looked around.  There wasn’t anybody in sight, so she breathed a sigh of relief.  At least she didn’t need to try and explain this little meeting to anyone.  She felt Charlenne behind her and she turned around and hugged her quickly before walking out the door into the office area.  Charlenne stood there blushing and smiling.  Nikki winked at her and sat back down at her desk.

---------------------------

When Nikki got home that evening she felt tired but happy.  Work was becoming interesting and that was something she had never expected.  Charlenne had really surprised her today.  Well, I guess there are more women out there who harbor that little desire than I thought there were.  She was sure nobody else thought that of Charlenne though.  Like everybody else, she had just let Charlenne blend into the background and never really given her much thought.

She skipped getting a beer tonight.  She figured that since she had drunk two last night, she’d skip a day to make up for it.  Besides, her stocks were getting low and she’d need to order another three cases soon.  She liked to order that much at a time to save on the shipping costs and that way she only had to order once every three months.  Oh, yeah, Lena wanted some too.  I guess I’ll order her a case with mine.
  
She changed out of her work clothes and put on a pair of workout shorts and a tank top.  She went into the living room and turned on the stereo, putting on Beethoven’s 9th to relax to.  She went into the kitchen and tried to think of what to cook for dinner.  She found a package of steaks and went to put them into the microwave to defrost like she usually did but then stopped.

Crap!  I’m going to have to get rid of that infernal machine.  I’m going to have to start a new habit and get out my dinner in the morning before I leave for work.  She got out a large bowl and filled it with warm water, slipping the steaks into a baggie and putting it into the water to speed up the thaw.  While that was slowly taking place, she unplugged the microwave and carried to the basement and set it on top of some old boxes.

When she came back upstairs the phone was ringing.  She picked it up.

“Hello?”

“Hey sexy!  How was your day?”

“Yeah?  Well I got a surprise at the office today.  No, nothing earth shattering, but interesting all the same.  I’ll tell you all about it tomorrow night when you come up here for dinner.”

“Yeah, I know you want to see me tonight.  I would like nothing better either, but work comes first.  Your semester schedule is almost over anyway, and you can spend more time with me after that.”

“Dinner first, you insatiable minx.  I have a surprise for you.”

“No, well, yeah that too, but like I said, dinner first.  Dress casual.”

“No, not THAT casual.  God, you are so bad, Lena.  And I love every little inch of you too.”

“Yeah, I could go for a big hug and a kiss right now.”

“Yes, dear.  I know you love it when I kiss those lips too.”  

Their conversation became more sensual and they ended up getting each other off over the phone.  They came together, each one setting the other off over the edge with the sound of their moans.  When they had gathered themselves together again, they laughed.

“Yeah, that was awesome.  I needed that.”

“I know it wasn’t the same, but still, that was a first for me.”

“Nope, never.”

“I have to say it was better than I had thought it would be, but I think that had a lot to do with you, my little minx.  You have a dirty mouth, and I loved it.  That was really sexy.”

“Yes, absence makes the heart grow fonder.”

“Yes, my little minx, and a few other parts too.”

“Just remember, you have to behave for dinner tomorrow, but afterwards, we can set the sheets on fire.  How’s that?”

“You little pervert.  I know I can put out the fire if you do that to me.  You are absolutely evil, and I love you.”

“Yes, I really love you too.  Goodnight, my lovely Lena.  See you tomorrow at six.”  

Nikki hung up and laughed.  God, that woman is incredible!  And so sexy when she gets talking, too.  Wow!  Touching herself listening to Lena was the weirdest and most sensual thing she had done in a long time.  She had always thought phone sex was for fat old guys listening to faceless women on those over-priced services, but now she wasn’t so sure.  

Lena was darned good at arousing her, especially when she said things like that!  Yeah, the smart ones are kinky.  Nikki smiled and shivered with anticipation.  She couldn’t wait until after dinner tomorrow night.

She went and checked on the steaks, and although they were still solid in the middle, they had softened to the point where she could prep them for the grill.  She sprinkled them with some meat tenderizer and cracked pepper.  She let them sit on a platter and went out the back and started the charcoal.  She came back in and tried to think of what she could do for the next twenty minutes.  

Well, I guess I could do some shopping on-line.  She went into the spare bedroom and booted up her computer.  She hit the favorite’s button on the browser and clicked on the store that she got her beer from.  She ordered four cases of Brown Ale and one case of Oatmeal Stout.  Whew, that was a hefty bill, but she thought it was worth it.  That stuff was awesome.

Then she thought of her changing eating habits and how much that was going to cost her.  Plus all the driving to the larger discount shopping centers was going to use up more gas.  That was the only bad thing about living in a small town.  You traded peace and quiet for the convenience of large selection shopping.  She had a sudden thought and started looking at the sites selling large appliances.  She found several but one had a decent sale price and reduced shipping costs for home delivery.  She ordered the largest deep freezer she could afford.  

That should be able to hold half a cow if I want it to.  According to the website it would be delivered within the next two weeks.  That should give the butcher time to select a good side of beef and process it for her.  The cost of those two things had reduced her savings account to almost nil.  Well, at least I didn’t have to use a credit card to get that stuff.  I hate those things.

She went and checked the coals and found that they were ready, so she got the platter of steaks and laid them out on the grill.  She set the timer for five minutes and waited to flip them.  She flipped them once and then had the sudden urge to eat them rare instead of cooking them for another ten minutes.  She closed the vents on the grill and brought the steaks inside before sitting at the table and consumed them both.  

When she had finished, she sat back and looked at the bloody juices on the plate.  She leaned forward, holding her hair back out of the way, and licked the plate clean.  She sat up and thought about what she had just done.  Whew!  It’s a good thing I didn’t do that in a restaurant.  I am going to have to work on those urges.  I can’t be doing that if I have company or when I go out to eat with Lena.

She was in a strange mood this evening and she didn’t feel like watching TV, so she went in and reloaded the carousel with some darker, heavier music.  She put in Tony Iommi’s solo album, Godsmack’s first CD, Danzig’s Lucifuge, ZZ Top’s Antenna, and System of the Down’s Toxicity.  That should do it.  

She smiled at her selection and shook her head.  Yeah, people wonder how I can go from Beethoven to Godsmack, but they just don’t get it if they have to ask.  Talent is talent, good music is still good music.  Soaring to heights of wonder and the deep emotions with Beethoven isn’t all that far from the rush I get from listening to the lyrics and music of Godsmack or Megadeth.  Besides, I don’t have to change the settings on the equalizer to listen to both.

She pulled the easy chair over to the sweet spot in the middle of the room, curled up, and closed her eyes.  Floating away with Iommi’s guitar licks and Serj Tankian’s vocals, she smiled and moved with the music.  Yes, this was good.  She was feeling better already.  When Godsmack started playing she really got into it.  She faded off for a little while and woke up in silence.  She stretched and got out the chair with a groan.  She looked at the clock and groaned again.  Damn it!  Well, I’ll sleep for another three hours in my bed and get up again.  She made her way to her bed before slipping under the covers and went back to sleep.

When the alarm clock went off with it’s incessant chirping, her hand shot out and grabbed it, frantically stabbing for the snooze button.  She found it, but not before giving herself a headache.  I’ll have to get a different alarm; with my new hearing that thing is demonically evil.  She got up and went into the kitchen and started to make the coffee.  

She repeated the previous days breakfast and marveled that it didn’t bother her body at all to eat that much.  I guess my condition needs more energy and I can burn this stuff off at an incredibly high rate.  I’m going to have to eat something for lunch today, or I’m never going to be able to sit through dinner and do the polite thing and eat little dainty portions.

Thinking about dinner, she went to the freezer and got out the largest shoulder roast she could find.  She put it in a baggie and slipped it into some water to thaw.  She also grabbed another pair of steaks and set them to thaw as well.  I can’t wait until that new freezer gets here.  I’ll be out of meat in another week at this rate.  

She got dressed and headed off to work.  When she got there, Faith was in her office and as Nikki walked past, Faith called her over.  Uh oh, I really don’t need this today.  She tried to smile, but it only made it to a half grin.

“Look, Dominique, we have to work together and this thing between us is making it tough for me to get my job done.” 

Nikki furrowed her eyebrows.  What the hell is she talking about?

“Uh, Faith, I’m not sure what you are talking about.  Why is it difficult for you to do your job?  I just lay it out after you give it to me.  What’s the problem?”  

Nikki couldn’t fathom what Faith was referring to.

“No, not that part.  The talking to people about your case and the fugitive part, you know, being a reporter?  I have to get it all second hand.  I need to ask you some questions for the paper and I can’t do that right now.”

“Why not, Faith?  You are talking to me right now.  What’s so hard about this?”

“You said to leave you alone and Steve backed you up.  So, I haven’t been able to get the full story out because of it.”  

Faith was actually looking worried.

“Faith, I never said you couldn’t ask me questions.  What I said was that I wasn’t going to put up with your shotgun method of questioning and your attitude of me being just another rube with a story.  If you had been polite and considerate in the first place that would never have happened.”

“Oh.  I see.  Um, I’m sorry.”  

Faith, for once, actually did look sorry.  However, Nikki also knew that Faith was manipulative and callous, so it really didn’t carry much weight.

“Look, Faith, at one time, I did consider you a friend.  But then you treated me like crap on a bad day and I lashed out.  You took offense to that, plus Steve slapped you down.  So, I can see why you were mad at me, but I also had a reason to feel betrayed.  I was willing to forgive and forget, then this little incident with Wendy happened.”

“I know, she’s Steve’s wife, however, she had a personal problem with Steve’s sister, whom I am very good friends with.  There were some assumptions made and accusations thrown out.  Instead of asking me politely if any of it was true, you went on a campaign of slander and gossip.  That is what sealed your fate in my eyes, Faith.  You are no longer to be trusted, period.  So, if you need to ask me some questions about the criminal case, you can.  If you ever bring my personal life into question again Faith, just remember what I told you last night.”

“Last night is the problem, Dominique.  When you said those sick things about us loud enough for Marge to hear, well, even when I told them about it being a bad joke, they don’t believe me; and the whole bunch of them have cut me out.  I don’t have any of my usual sources anymore.  They think what you said is true and they won’t even speak to me anymore.”  

Faith was crying now.  Nikki almost felt sorry for her, but this woman had cooked her own goose.

“That’s really too bad, Faith.  The shoe is on the other foot now.  You were willing to make me the pariah but now that you are that pariah, it sucks.  Well, I’d almost feel sorry for you Faith, but somehow I just don’t have it in me.  When you want to ask your questions about the case, just let me know.”  

Nikki turned and walked away from Faith’s office and went to see Steve.  She knocked on the doorframe and he waved her in.

“Hey, if it isn’t Aunt Nikki.  Sorry, couldn’t resist.  You started it, so don’t give me that look.”

“Sorry, Steve, but I just had a talk with Faith.”  

Steve’s face fell as soon as she said it.  

“No, we didn’t fight.  We never raised our voices; it wasn’t that kind of discussion.  We do have a problem though and you need to be aware of it.  Due to my actions the other night in retaliation to what Faith had started, she is basically shut out of this community.  Her normal sources won’t talk to her anymore and due to being out of the loop like that, she isn’t able to do her job.”  

Steve gave her a suspicious look.

“What did you do?”  

Nikki repeated the scenario and her conversation with Faith.  Then she told him what Faith had said.

“Look, Steve, I know I’ve forgiven Wendy for what she did because we came to an understanding and I now know why she did what she did, but I just don’t have it inside of me to feel sorry for Faith.  I hope you can understand that.”  

Nikki sat down in the chair opposite Steve and looked at him hopefully.  Steve had a dark look on his face and she knew he wasn’t happy about what had all transpired.

“I know that I’m to blame for part of this, so I can’t really be all that pissed at you for things that were basically out of your control to start with.  I never thought that things would get so far out of control.  I know you did what you thought you needed to do to protect yourself.  When it comes to Faith’s behavior, again, I can’t really blame you.”

“Damn it!  So, you have been outed and by default, so has Faith, even when it’s not true about her.  If I weren’t so worried about the impact it could have on the newspaper, I’d laugh my ass off over this.”

“I’m so glad you think me being labeled ‘gay’ to the wonderfully open-minded community we live in is funny.”

“Damn it, Dominique, you know what I meant.  For the life of me, I just don’t know what to do about this.”  

Steve knew she was right about the open-mindedness of the locals.  Sure, there were enough that didn’t care one way or the other; however, there were also the vocal bigots who made life difficult for those who were on that particular shit list of people to be singled out for special treatment.  He had an idea but he needed to run it by Dominique first.  

“What would you say to me writing a special editorial on the subject of being tolerant to those around us?” 

Nikki snorted and shook her head.

“That’s a wonderful gesture, Steve.  But you know full well that it would seal your fate and the paper with it.  You’d be run out of town on pitchforks stabbing your tarred and feathered butt.”

Steve laughed at the image but stopped when he realized she was right.
 
“Yeah, I guess you’re right.  Damn it all to hell!  Why now?  Things were just starting to look up, too.  Well, unless you count the fact that that lunatic hasn’t been caught yet.  Which reminds me, how are you dealing with that?”

“Oh, I just don’t think of it anymore.  If he were going to try something it would have been last week.  I don’t think we’ll ever see him again.  He lit out for the backcountry and disappeared.  Some bear will probably eat his butt and take care of him for us.”  

Nikki tried to make her voice sound even and give Steve her best poker face.  It worked.

“Wow, I guess you have changed.  Okay. So, that still leaves us with our current dilemma.”

“I have a feeling that if we just go on without making a fuss, that it’ll blow over.  Those catty little friends of Faith’s will eventually chill out and realize that she isn’t gay.  Maybe if I suggest to Faith that she needs to get caught screwing some guy in the backseat of a car or in the gazebo at the park some night, that will pretty much end it right there.”

“NO!  No more suggestions on Faith’s sex life from you.  No wonder my sister loves you.  You are as bad as she is.”  

Nikki blushed and looked around the room, studiously ignoring the look Steve was giving her.  

“Just go back to work and I’ll go and talk to Faith.  I’ll see you tonight at dinner.”

“Okay, and Steve, it’s my house so my rules—no shop talk.  Work stays here.  It’s a family night, got it?”

“Yes, Aunt Nikki.  Now go back to work.”  

Nikki laughed and went back to her desk.  She left at noon to go and check on the roast.  She seared it to seal in the juices and then put it in the roasting pan.  She added about a quart of water, beef bullion, chopped celery, minced onion, sage, and a little crushed garlic to round out the flavor.  She quartered some potatoes and added a few handfuls of baby carrots.  She covered it and set it in the oven to slow cook for the rest of the afternoon.  

She used the hot skillet to sear the steaks and ate them almost raw, using just enough heat to make them warmer than room temperature.  When she got back to the office, Steve and Faith were waiting for her.

“Where’d you go?  We were looking for you.”  

Steve wasn’t too happy about having to baby-sit Faith during his lunch hour.

“I had to prep the roast for dinner tonight and eat something.  Why?  I wasn’t gone for more than an hour.”  

Nikki was a little defensive.

“Okay, so you were gone just under an hour.  You just didn’t say anything about going anywhere.  Anyway, the reason we were looking for you is that Faith needs some background information and details about how all this mess got started.”

“Yeah, okay.”  

Nikki was annoyed with Faith again.  I told her I would answer her questions as long as she was polite.  Fucking whining bitch had to get to Steve and tell him to do this.  Any hope that Faith had of redemption went out the door and down the street.  Nikki answered Faith’s questions with just enough information so she really couldn’t complain, but Nikki left out several things, either because the truth would not be a good idea or simply because Faith wasn’t asking the right follow-up questions.  While she was answering Faith, she had an idea start to form in the back of her mind.  I think I’ll ask Lena tonight and see what she thinks of the idea.

Nikki looked at her watch and noticed that it was almost quitting time, so she told Faith to either hurry up or wait until tomorrow to finish.  Faith got a little bent out of shape over this so Nikki gave her a look that would have chilled a polar bear.  Faith stopped complaining immediately and said tomorrow would be just fine.  Nikki nodded and left her office.  She grabbed her purse and hurried out the door.  Making one stop on the way home.  She hit the bakery and picked up a nice chocolate cake.  She knew this would be a hit with the kids.

When she got home, she hit the power on the stereo and started with Godsmack, to get herself motivated.  She pulled out the table and slid open the sections, added both leaves and locked it together.  She went down into the basement and got out the extra chairs.  When she had seating for six with plenty of room, she smiled.  There hadn’t been a gathering in her house this big since her parent’s death a few years ago.  This time though, the gathering was for a happy occasion.  

She checked the roast, basting it, and then she checked to make sure the potatoes and carrots were soft.  About another hour and it would be ready.  She went and changed clothes.  Not super sexy; but not boring either, her skirt was just above her knees, her top was revealing, but tasteful.  She decided that she would go barefoot for the night, why not?  It was her house; besides, Lena would have a tough time ignoring them.  She decided she had enough time to put a quick coat of polish on her toes, and chose the metallic ruby red.  Yeah, Lena won’t be able to keep her eyes off these tonight.  She grinned mischievously.

Nikki set the table semi-formally and made some iced tea for drinks.  She didn’t want any alcohol around the table just in case someone might be tempted to use it for loosening up and talk too much.  It was about repairing relationships tonight, not destroying them by getting ripped.  She had just taken the roast out of the oven when the doorbell rang.  She put the lid on the pan and went to the door.  She opened the door smiling at Steve, Wendy, and the girls.

“Welcome to my humble abode.  Come in and make yourself at home.”  

Steve smiled and just nodded.  Wendy was a little nervous, but Nikki just grabbed her hand and gently led her inside.  She gave her a quick hug and then turned to Stephanie, who wasn’t smiling, but not quite frowning.  

“Hello, Stephanie, how are you tonight?”

“Fine.”  

She shook Nikki’s hand when it was offered, but she didn’t really interact.  Well, thought Nikki, maybe she isn’t sure what’s going on and she’s nervous.  Michelle was happy to see Nikki and hugged her legs.

“Hello, Michelle.  Nice to see you again, too.  Why don’t we go into the living room and you can watch some TV while I finish making dinner.”  

Nikki led them into the living room and indicated that they could sit where they pleased.  Nikki hadn’t turned off the stereo before answering the door and Wendy gave her an odd look.

“You listen to this kind of music?”

“Yeah.  Would you rather listen to Megadeth, Slayer, or maybe some Prodigy?  No?  How about Beethoven?  Okay, Steve, I’ll stop and behave myself.  Sorry Wendy, I just like all kinds of music and I was just having some fun with you.” 

Wendy just nodded but noticed Nikki hadn’t been joking about the Megadeth and Slayer.  Nikki turned off the stereo and turned on the TV.

“I’ll let you decide what to watch.  I’ve got some last minute preparations to do.”  

Nikki went back into the kitchen and started ladling out the potatoes and carrots.  Wendy came in and asked if she could help.

“Yeah, Wendy, you can mash up those potatoes for me while I make the gravy.”  

Nikki showed her where the hand mixer was and the milk.  Nikki poured the drippings into a saucepan and started making the gravy.  Nikki was stirring the gravy when she heard Lena’s car pull up outside.  She turned to Wendy.

“Lena just pulled up, so if you could stir this while I go prepare her for this, I’d appreciate it.”

“You didn’t tell her we were coming to dinner?”  

Nikki grinned and shook her head.

“Nope, I wanted it to be a surprise.”  

Wendy grinned and nodded.

“Oh, it’s going to be that all right.”  

Nikki quickly padded through the living room and went to the front door before Lena could open it herself.  When Nikki opened the door, Lena was standing there looking at the other car.

“Isn’t that my brother’s car?”

“Yeah, it is.  Now get in here and kiss me you gorgeous thing you.”  

Nikki wanted to distract Lena for as long as possible.  Lena turned back around and was pulled into a hug that lifted her off the ground.

“Wow!  I guess you did miss me.”  

Nikki set her down and put her hands on either side of Lena’s face and kissed her hard, slipping her tongue along Lena’s lips, teasing her.  Lena responded likewise and they kissed just inside the doorway.  

There was a tiny gasp behind them and Nikki knew they had been seen.  Oh, well.  It was going to happen sooner or later, I just hadn’t planned on it being tonight.  Lena had opened her eyes when she heard the gasp and her eyes flicked to the side and then opened wide.  She pulled back and looked at Nikki in a panic.

“Oh, god, Dominique!  That was little Stephanie wasn’t it?  They are all here aren’t they?  Oh, my love, you messed up this time.  I have to go now, before the screaming starts.”  

Lena started to turn, but Nikki grabbed her and held her shoulders.

“No, you have it wrong this time, my lovely Lena.  They know you are coming to dinner.  That’s why they are here.  To see you and well, why don’t I let Wendy tell you herself?  Trust me, Lena.  It’s alright.”  

Nikki looped her arm around Lena’s shoulders and led her into the living room.  Steve was sitting on the couch with the two little ones just grinning ear to ear.  Lena saw this and started to cry.  Nikki held her.  

“Everything will be okay, my love.  Just enjoy tonight.”  

Nikki looked up and spoke louder, 

“Why don’t you three help me set the table while your mom talks to your Aunt Lena for a few minutes, okay?”  

Steve nodded and gathered the girls up and they went into the kitchen.  Wendy stepped out and looked at Lena and started crying herself.

“That’s just great, girls.  I go to the trouble of making dinner for you and all you can do is look at each other and cry.  Well, hug or do something.”  

Nikki kissed Lena on the cheek and nodded.  She left the two of them out in the living room to talk.  Nikki went into the kitchen and found Steve slicing the roast and Stephanie was putting the potatoes and carrots on the table.  Michelle was standing there not knowing what to do.  Nikki went over to her.  

“Michelle, how about helping me pour everybody’s drinks, okay?”  

Michelle smiled broadly and nodded.  Nikki got the ice bucket out and held it while Michelle scooped out ice into all the glasses.  Then Nikki let her hold the glasses for her while she poured the tea.  Michelle was really pleased at being able to help out in the kitchen just like the adults always did.  Nikki noticed Stephanie eyeing her a few times, but Stephanie kept quiet while everyone went about getting dinner set.

Lena and Wendy came into the kitchen holding hands and wiping tears from their eyes.  They were both smiling.  They walked up to Nikki and hugged her together.

“Thank you.”  

They both whispered into Nikki’s ears.  Nikki just nodded and hugged them back.  They stood back and smiled at each other.  Steve set the roast on the table and waved his hand.

“Dinner is served.”  

They jostled around until everybody was happy.  Nikki sat at one end and Lena sat next to her around the corner.  Steve and Wendy put the two girls between them.  Nikki motioned for everybody to dig in.  The atmosphere was slightly subdued as they enjoyed the meal.  Michelle and Stephanie kept looking at Lena and then Nikki.  They weren’t too sure what to think yet.  Nikki knew though that she had won Michelle over by letting her help out by setting out the table.  She also knew that Stephanie had seen her and Lena kissing but that Stephanie had elected to keep her secret observation to herself.  

At one point, Nikki started running her foot up the back of Lena’s leg, caressing her calf.  Lena had smiled and pretended to look for something that she had dropped under the table.  When she looked back up her gaze towards Nikki could have melted the polar ice caps.  Lena was almost humming in her chair after seeing Nikki’s painted toes.  She leaned over and whispered.

“That is so evil.”  

Stephanie must have heard that because she gave Lena a strange look and then glanced at Nikki to see what her reaction was.  Nikki just smiled and winked at Lena.  The rest of dinner passed smoothly.  When everybody exclaimed they were stuffed to their gills and couldn’t eat another bite, Nikki smiled and thanked everyone.  Then she grinned and looked at Michelle.

“Even you Michelle, are you really stuffed?”  

Michelle blushed a little and nodded.

“Oh, that’s too bad.  I’ve got this big chocolate cake with lots of frosting on it and I guess we just won’t be able to eat any of it, then.”  

Michelle squealed at the mention of chocolate cake.

“No, Auntie Nikki, I’ve got room for chocolate cake!”  

Everybody laughed; even Stephanie managed a smile then.

“Okay then!  Why don’t you go into the living room and watch some TV while I clean up the kitchen.  When I’ve finished, I’ll get the cake out and cut you a special piece, okay?”

“Okay!”  

Michelle jumped out of her chair and raced to the living room.  Everybody else got up from the table and Nikki shooed them out of the kitchen, telling them to go and catch up on the family gossip while she cleaned up the kitchen.  Just as Wendy was leading Stephanie out of the door she pulled her to one side and whispered in her ear.  Wendy looked at Stephanie and nodded.  Stephanie returned to help Nikki.  Nikki smiled at her and started to gather up the plates and glasses from the table.  

Stephanie helped not saying a word.  Nikki began rinsing the plates and Stephanie loaded them in the dishwasher.  When that was done, she helped Nikki put the leftovers in the fridge.  Still Stephanie didn’t say anything.  Nikki was going to wait until she was ready.

When Nikki got out the small plates and desert forks, Stephanie grabbed some napkins.  Nikki opened the fridge and pulled out the cake and took the cover off.  She got a large knife and started to slice it.  She removed the first slice and placed it on a plate.  Nikki picked up the plate and put a fork and a napkin with it; she then carried it out and handed it to Michelle who giggled with delight at receiving the first piece.  When Nikki came back into the kitchen, Stephanie spoke for the first time.

“You didn’t do that just to look good did you?  You really meant it when you told her you would give her a special piece of cake.”  

Nikki looked into the young girls eyes and recognized the look.  Lena had that same look sometimes, especially when she was analyzing something carefully.  Nikki smiled at the similarity.

“No, I didn’t do that just to look good.  It made me happy to hear her voice and giggle when she got that piece of cake, that’s why I did it.”  

Nikki started to divvy out the rest of the slices.  Stephanie picked up a couple of plates and carried them out to her mom and dad first, and then one for Lena.  She came back into the kitchen, picked hers up, sat at the table and looked at Nikki.  Nikki chuckled and sat down with her.  Nikki made a decision and spoke.

“I bet you are a lot smarter than anybody gives you credit for.  My guess is even your mom and dad are fooled, and you like it that way.”  

When Stephanie shot her a guilty look and blushed, Nikki laughed.  

“Oh, you and your Aunt Lena are way too much alike, it’s scary.”

“What about Aunt Lena, why was she gone for so long?”  

Nikki decided only the truth would satisfy this smart girl.

“Your mom and Lena had a huge misunderstanding a long time ago and your mom was really mad at Lena.  So your mom told Lena to stay away, forever.”

“So, why tonight?  How did this happen?”

“I talked your mom into it.  I told her it was a stupid thing to hold a grudge that long and everybody was getting hurt.  Especially Lena, I know she loves you guys to pieces and it hurt her a lot not to be able to see you.  So when I had a chance to fix it, I did.”

“Why?  Why would you care?  Is it because you are in love with Aunt Lena?”  

Nikki paused briefly at that question, and then continued knowing it was too late to change tactics now.

“Yes, Stephanie, I love Lena with all my heart and it hurt me to see her in that much pain.  She never admitted it to me.  I found out by accident because of something else happening and your dad said a few things, so I wanted to make Lena happy.”

“Oh, okay.  That’s why you kissed Aunt Lena like that in the doorway?”

“Yes, because I love her very much and she means an awful lot to me.”

“My mom says its sick and wrong to do that with another girl.”  

Oh crap.  Now what?

“I know a lot of people feel that way, but Lena and I like to do that, so we do.”

“You don’t think it’s wrong?”  

Oh damn.  I don’t need Wendy mad at me for this.

“Well, no I don’t.  I also think we need to discuss something else.  I don’t think I should discuss this with you anymore.”

“Why?  Because I’m seven years old and I’m too young to understand such things?”

Stephanie was annoyed now.

“No, Stephanie, because your mom got really mad about something very similar to this with Lena and for the past four years has treated her like a non-person because of it.  So after fixing things between them tonight, I don’t need your mom just as mad at me.”

“Oh.  Okay, I understand.  So if you weren’t afraid that mom would blow a gasket, you’d still talk to me?”  

Nikki laughed and nodded.

“Yeah, if I didn’t think she’d blow a gasket, I wouldn’t mind talking to you.”

“Okay.  You’re okay, Aunt Nikki.  I like you.”  

With that pronouncement she took the last bite of her cake and put the plate and fork in the washer and walked back into the living room.  Nikki sat there with a tear running down her cheek.  Wow!  Brutally honest and quick.  Yep, she’s Lena’s niece all right. Nikki finished her own piece of cake before following her.  

The three adults were on the couch; Lena was in the middle, and it looked like she was watching a tennis match.  They were both trying to talk to her and she was literally caught in the middle.  The two girls were lying on their stomachs in front of the TV watching some cartoon movie about a little fish trying to find his son.  

Nikki smiled at the scene before her, family, that’s what mattered and she felt warm inside.  It was the first time since her parent’s death that a family had been in this house.  She tried not to cry, but a little tear made its way down her cheek.  She quickly wiped it away before she curled up in the easy chair and watched the family re-bond.
  
Michelle looked over at her and then jumped up and came over to her.  She gave Nikki a strange smile and then crawled into her lap.  She turned around and sat in Nikki’s lap watching the movie.  Nikki looked down at Michelle and then over to Steve and Wendy, who had stopped talking and were smiling at her.  Michelle looked up at Nikki and smiled.

“Thank you for the special piece of chocolate cake, Aunt Nikki.”  

Nikki hugged her and tried not to cry.
 
“You’re very welcome, Michelle.  I am so glad you liked it.”  

Nikki glanced over at Lena and noticed a little tear in her eye as well.  She gazed into Nikki’s eyes and nodded.  She mouthed ‘I love you’ to her and the smile that lit up Lena’s face made the room brighter with it.  Nikki smiled back and nodded.

“Aunt Nikki, how’s come your crying?  Are you sad?”  

The voice came from her lap.  She looked down and found Michelle looking at her with a worried expression on her face.  Nikki smiled at her.

“No, little one, I’m not sad.  I’m so happy right now I just couldn’t help it.”  

Michelle hugged her tight.

“Oh, okay.”  

Simple acceptance from the innocent; sometimes it just knocks you over with a feather.

An hour later, Michelle was asleep in Nikki’s lap and Stephanie was yawning at the TV.  Steve and Wendy nodded to each other and got up.  Wendy came over to Nikki and lifted up Michelle, who didn’t even twitch as her mother carried her off.  Steve gathered up Stephanie and took her out as well.  They all assembled at the doorway and said goodnight and thanked each other for a wonderful night.  As Steve and Wendy drove off, Lena put her arm around Nikki and hugged her.

“You, my lady, are totally awesome.  Thank you for this.  I don’t know how to say it any better.”

“You don’t have to, my love.  I can see it in your eyes and that’s all that matters to me.”  

Nikki shut the door and they walked side-by-side back into the living room.  Lena pulled Nikki over to the couch and they curled up together.  Lena tried what Michelle had done earlier.  She hugged Nikki tight and cried against her chest.  Nikki stroked her back and rubbed her shoulders as she cried.  Soothing her with little sounds of love and understanding.  When Lena had let it all out, she looked up at Nikki and kissed her with a passion that rivaled the sun.  She leaned back and looked into Nikki’s eyes.

“God, I love you so much.  How did I ever get along without you by my side?”  

Nikki grinned.

“I don’t know, my lovely Lena, but you won’t have to worry about it now.”  

They kissed and hugged each other.  Finally Nikki leaned back and looked a little disappointed.

“I’m afraid we’ve run out of time.  You have to get back so you can go to your classes in the morning and I have to go work as well.”  

Lena smiled at her and shook her head.

“Nope, I‘m spending the night.  Both my morning classes have tests, so it wasn’t hard to find a teacher’s aide to fill in and to administer them.  And I’ve already talked to Steve and he said you didn’t have to come in until noon.”

“Oh, god.  You told my boss that you were going to fuck me silly all night and that I needed some time off to recover?”

“Yep, sure did.  He was very understanding.”

“I just bet he was.  What ever am I going to do with you, my little minx?”  

Lena reached up and whispered in Nikki’s ear.  Nikki blushed and looked down at her.

“You are absolutely insatiable.  Let’s go, I can’t wait.”

They slid off the couch and were taking each other’s clothes off as they headed for the bedroom.  Lena pushed Nikki over onto the bed and knelt at her feet; rubbing and kissing them.  She sucked on Nikki’s smaller toes, flicking her tongue between them, before running the tip against the webbing.  She looked up and met Nikki’s gaze; the intensity of which was like looking into a kiln.

“You evil woman.  I almost didn’t make it back up to the table during dinner.  If it wasn’t for my nieces sitting next to me I would have stayed under there and sucked on them instead of your roast beef dinner.”  

Nikki chuckled low in her throat.

“I’m sorry, but I wanted to tease you and show you that I appreciate your love of my feet.”

Lena nibbled on Nikki’s big toe, causing her to squirm and moan.
  
“I worship your feet, my love.  Your choice of color is impeccable, I love it.”  

Lena continued to suck on her toes, running her tongue along the underside of each.  When Nikki reached a state of intense need, Lena grazed her teeth along the insides of her arches and Nikki shuddered with a mini orgasm.  She moaned deep in her throat and chuckled.

“I would have never thought I could orgasm from someone licking and nibbling on my feet.  That was wonderfully intense!  Whew!”  

Lena grinned and continued to lick and nibble her way up Nikki’s legs, heading for that wonderful musky center.  Lena could see it glistening in the dim light of the room.  She knew hers was the same; she could feel the moisture leaking down the insides of her thighs.  She slid up onto the bed and curled her body against Nikki’s, throwing her leg over and rubbing herself along Nikki’s thigh.  

She cradled one of Nikki’s breasts in her hand and slowly caressed and kneaded in her hand.  She started kissing it, pushing the tip of her tongue into the soft skin.  She could taste the sweat and flavor that was Nikki’s own special tangy sweet tingle on her tongue.  She ran the palm of her hand along Nikki’s nipple, grazing it as she caressed the rest of the flesh on her chest.  She kissed Nikki’s neck, nibbling and sucking lightly at the juncture of her shoulder, in that little hollow of her collarbone.
  
Nikki arched her back and moaned loudly, shuddering in pleasure.  Nikki ran her hands along Lena’s back and cupped the back of her head, holding Lena’s mouth against her neck.  Their feet and legs rubbing against each other trying to attain the maximum amount of contact between them.  Lena slid up against Nikki, grazing her stiffened nipples against Nikki’s skin, sending little shocks of passion to her swollen clitoris.  

She kissed Nikki’s lips roughly, reaching up and running her fingers through her hair.  She curled her fingers against Nikki’s scalp and caressed it, cupping her palm over her ear.  Nikki did the same to Lena and they held each other’s head as they kissed, pushing their tongues together and moaning into each other.

They separated, gasping for breath from the kiss.  Nikki slid her hand along Lena’s cheek, down along her neck, and finally to Lena’s small breast.  She palmed it, pressing her hand into it, moving her hand in small circles, grazing Lena’s nipple with her palm.  Lena moaned and shuddered, clinching her legs against Nikki’s.  

Nikki lowered her head and gently sucked on Lena’s other nipple, opening her mouth wide and sucking on the taut flesh.  She circled the nipple with the tip of her tongue as she suckled her rhythmically.  This sent Lena into a deep spasm, racking her body back and forth, her breath shot out of her; the orgasm rolled over her suddenly.
  
Lena was still trying to catch her breath when Nikki shifted on the bed, rotating around and placing her wet lips against Lena’s swollen and distended ones.  Nikki positioned herself so that her own swollen clitoris was against Lena’s and she began to roll her hips against Lena.  Lena arched her back and pushed herself against Nikki and matched her movements.  They rolled and moved in circles, reveling in the feel of their wet lips crushing against each other.  

Lena could feel Nikki’s hardened clitoris rubbing hers, occasionally pushing the hood back and making direct contact.  The jolts of pleasure making them jerk and cry out.  Nikki could feel the ball of pressure building up in her belly, filling her with need, and pushing her closer to her release.  A wave of lust and want rushed over her body, sending a shudder down her spine.  Lena’s body responded in kind and their legs tightened against each other.
  
Nikki felt that ball getting bigger and the pressure getting higher, her legs shaking uncontrollably.  There was a tingling in the back of her head and she felt that wave of love for Lena coming out of her.  Lena started to feel a deep itch start in her lower stomach, something she had never felt before and her eyes opened wide.  Nikki felt that wave surge over her and out of her into Lena, followed closely by her orgasm.  

The ball of pressure released suddenly, sending a gush of fluid out of her onto Lena’s swollen lips.  Lena felt the wave of emotion sweep over her and her orgasm followed it down to her center, releasing a small jet of fluid onto Nikki.  They screamed and moaned as the release hit them and rolled through them.  They fell back exhausted and content.  Both fought to catch their breath as they shuddered and jerked in the aftermath of their incredible orgasm.

Nikki opened her eyes and was shocked at what she was seeing.  The room was lit with a bright bluish tint, everything shimmering and sparkling.  She looked down at Lena and gasped, Lena’s body appeared to be glowing with an internal light, glistening in the blue light.  Lena finally opened her eyes and gazed up at Nikki and her jaw dropped, gasping.

“OH MY GOD!  Dominique!  Your eyes!  Look at your eyes!  They’re glowing and sparkling!”  

Nikki turned and looked at herself in the mirror over the dresser.  Her eyes glowed red and there were gold sparks floating in them; swirling around in a random pattern.  She looked back at Lena and she was still glowing, the sweat glistening in her enhanced vision.  Nikki could also smell the moisture she had released but it was different this time.  Her normal musk was there, but there was also an underlying scent, a different smell.  She vaguely recognized it, almost like it was from a dream.  It permeated the room, and she could see that Lena was also becoming aware of it.

Lena sniffed the air and she reached down between them and ran her fingers over her sensitive lips, shuddering again as she did so.  She brought her fingers up to her nose and sniffed it, then touched the tip of her tongue and tasted it.  Her eyes opened wide and she stuffed her fingers inside her mouth, licking them clean.  Lena felt a rush of excitement and something deeper, an almost primitive feeling that flowed through her.  

Somewhere in her subconscious it clicked and rose up and she suddenly knew what that scent was, what it meant.  Lena shifted and curled up against Nikki’s chest, putting her chin on Nikki’s shoulder.  She breathed deep and hugged Nikki, whispering in her ear.

“Yes, my lovely Dominique, I belong to you now.”  

Lena kissed her neck and wrapped her arms tightly around Nikki.  Nikki jerked at hearing Lena say that and deep down inside her, she knew that it was true, that the additional musk was her marking her territory, marking Lena as hers.  They stayed like that for several minutes and then they leaned back and looked into each other’s eyes.  Lena smiled in wonder and awe at the sight of Nikki’s glowing orbs.  Marveling at the gold sparkles swirling beneath the shimmering red.  Nikki was also in awe of the sight in front of her, Lena’s form was glowing bluish white and shimmered, highlighting the rippled muscle beneath that soft creamy skin.  Nikki wasn’t sure how to feel about this development but Lena seemed to like it, so she relaxed and melted into the embrace of her lover and mate.

They eventually laid back and slipped beneath the covers, snuggling up against each other, entwining their legs and wiggling their feet together.  They smiled at each other and kissed softly.  Nikki sighed.

“So, my lovely Lena, you aren’t bothered with my eyes or the fact that I marked you?”

“Oh my Dominique, no!  I love your eyes; they are so beautiful in the darkness.  The red and gold sparkling and swirling together, that is my favorite combination.  Why do you think I went absolutely over the top with your toenails?”

“I love the natural gold flecks in your green eyes, my love, but when they glow red, the effect is overwhelming.  As for your scent marking me, I love that too.  That means I am yours, and that is a great comfort to me.  I am so happy and fulfilled right now.  I love you so much, Dominique.”  

Nikki felt the warm internal flush of love and devotion for Lena sweep through her; the pressure wave flowed out of her and into Lena.  Lena shuddered and squeezed Nikki tighter and hummed deep in her throat.  

“Yes, my sweet Dominique, exactly.  I feel the same way.”  

They slowly drifted off to sleep together, wrapped around each other, satisfied and content in their love.