Blurred Lines by KD Williamson (28 page)

“Just don’t—” He started.

The door opened, halting their conversation.

Kelli glanced at her brother for a few seconds before her look turned into a glare. “I better have beer left.”

Sean rolled his eyes. “Nora brought more.”

Kelli’s gaze softened. She smiled, and it was big enough to encompass the room. Nora’s uncertainty dissipated. There was freedom in letting go. Nora had already walked forward two steps before she realized she was moving, but Kelli noticed. Her eyes darkened accordingly.

Kelli cleared her throat and pointed at her brother. “He didn’t bother you, did he?”

The moment ended and seamlessly developed into another.

“Hey!” Sean protested.

Nora looked at him. He pleaded silently with his eyes, and she said, “No, he didn’t bother me at all.”

“Uh-huh.” Kelli sounded vaguely suspicious. She narrowed her eyes. Then, her expression changed completely. “My God. What is that smell?”

* * *

Nora rinsed the dishes and placed them in the dishwasher. On the other side of the kitchen, Kelli wiped the stove and countertops. The lack of conversation wasn’t unusual or awkward, but rather it was a part of the growing comfort between them.

Nora glanced over her shoulder. “Your brother is interesting.”

Kelli snorted. “Careful now. He’s just in the living room. He might hear you and get a bigger head.” She paused. “You’re not gonna say he’s the male version of me, are you?”

Instantly amused, Nora asked, “Heard that before, have you?”

“Ugh, Travis, Williams, and even my mother.”

Nora bent slightly over the dishwasher to put the silverware in the tray. Kelli brushed against her. In response, Nora stiffened and straightened. Kelli touched her lower back and Nora turned her head only to come face to face with Kelli herself.

Kelli closed the open cabinet behind Nora’s head. Their eyes met, and Kelli cleared her throat. “I had to put the spices up.” Her eyes darkened and strayed downward to Nora’s lips.

Nora’s stomach tightened, and a deep, powerful pull of arousal surged through her. She was equal parts panicked and lured by the feeling. Within a few seconds, her anxiety tipped the scales. Nora pulled back abruptly. She remembered Sean’s words.
Kelli doesn’t do this.
Nora had free reign over Kelli’s home. Kelli discussed Nora with her friends and family. Nora put it all together, and obviously, she meant a lot to Kelli, more than she thought
,
and that was a tremendous responsibility. Did she have the ability to take that on? It was certainly something she needed to think about. What if she couldn’t give Kelli what she wanted? What if—

“Whoa.” Kelli held up her hands. Her voice was a whisper. “You thought I was gonna kiss you?”

Nora swallowed and averted her gaze. Still, Kelli was close enough to smell, to feel, and to touch. She didn’t know what to say.

“Nora?”

There was something about the way Kelli said her name that set her nerves on fire. Nora was helpless against it. Analyzing it wasn’t going to change that fact. They continued to stare at each other, and the flames burning between them grew. She opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out.

“Did you want me to?” Kelli asked throatily.

Nora’s stomach dropped, and her body flooded with need.

Kelli stepped closer. Her pupils were nearly black, her breathing ragged. “Did you?”

Nora took a deep breath in an effort to center herself, and it wasn’t helpful in the slightest. Dear god, she wanted to kiss her. The need bordered on compulsion, and part of her still ran from it. “Your…brother is in—”

“Then, I guess you’d better hurry and decide.” Kelli reached out to trail a fingertip over Nora’s nose and onto her bottom lip.

Whatever control Nora thought she possessed fled in that instance. She swiped Kelli’s fingertip with her tongue, then parted her lips, and sucked it into her mouth.

Kelli moaned. Nora was captivated by the sound. She pulled Kelli in deeper.

“Fuck,” Kelli whispered.

Arousal bolted through Nora. That one word—dirty and vulgar—was her complete undoing. Nora gasped. Then, before she could take another breath, Kelli swooped in. Their lips met, and Kelli kissed her ravenously. She grasped Nora’s hips, and the touch made her shudder. Hard. Nora clutched the back of Kelli’s neck, desperate to hang on. Kelli continued to press forward, backing Nora into the counter. Nora used the leverage to push herself harder against Kelli’s body. As Kelli licked at her bottom lip, Nora moaned and opened her mouth to let her inside.

A throat cleared, distinctly masculine in nature followed by a whistle. “Well,” Sean said. He sounded amused.

“That’s not what I do on the counters in my kitchen,” Carina said teasingly.

Kelli pulled away abruptly. Nora’s face flushed with heat, and the urge to hide was overwhelming. Kelli touched her elbow. Their gazes met. There was humor in Kelli’s eyes along with reassurance. Nora drew from that.

“Mom! What—”

“You missed dinner this week, so I thought I’d make up for it by fixing something here.” Carina held up the grocery bags and pursed her lips, but nothing could hide her smirk. “Not seeing her, my ass. Looks like you’re doing a lot more than that.”

Nora was sure she was going to pass out from embarrassment.

Sean grinned.

“Mom!” Kelli said.

“What? What’d I say?”

CHAPTER 17

Kelli passed Safeco Plaza and turned on Second Street to get on Marion. The chatter on the radio seemed loud. Otherwise, it was quiet. Too damn quiet. Kelli didn’t like it at all. She glanced quickly at Nora before cutting her eyes back to the road. Nora sat there with perfect posture and stared out the windshield. There was a weird sort of tension surrounding them. Kind of like the scene in a horror movie before everything goes to hell. Kelli swallowed the lump in her throat and wondered if she had pushed way too much and way too hard. She had no fucking clue what to do so Kelli went with what she knew—humor. It had to get them to a better place than they were right now. Right?

Stopping at a red light, she looked at Nora again and said, “You know, I just noticed something. I’m usually the one who drives us everywhere. I think it should be considered an audition of sorts, leading up to the Mercedes.”

Nora turned slightly and raised a brow in response.

Kelli’s grip on the steering wheel tightened, and the light turned green. Well, she was wrong on both counts. Her statement got them nowhere, and humor was definitely not the right way to go. A flaming bag of shit probably would have been better received. Nora had been like this all weekend. The only good thing was that she didn’t freeze Kelli out completely, but maybe freeze was the wrong word. They talked. They spent time together, but something wasn’t right. The easiness wasn’t there, and that hurt. It wasn’t a full on beating. More like tiny little needles poking at Kelli’s skin. Kelli didn’t know where she found the willpower to not say anything, but she was afraid if she waited any longer to speak her mind, an even greater distance would form between them.

“You’re even quieter than you were this weekend.” Kelli said.

The radio droned on. Nora didn’t say a word.

Kelli sighed as the needle went in a little deeper. “Was it dealing with my family or that kiss that caused this?”

Nora’s shoulders seemed to straighten even more, and Kelli could almost hear her thinking.

“We’ve kissed be—”

“Not like that.” Kelli interrupted as she remembered the raw need that pretty much kicked her in the stomach. She came to another red light. Kelli looked at Nora, and she made a point to hold her gaze. Nora glanced away, but not before Kelli saw agreement in her eyes. “Just because they saw us doesn’t mean there’s a label on us or anything.” She was grasping at straws. Kelli was sure she sounded a tad bit desperate, but it would be an icy day in hell before she let them go down like this.

The traffic signal changed and Kelli hit the gas.

“I don’t do things like this. It makes matters more complex. Our…friendship has already—” Nora started.

“Complicated your life?” Kelli asked

“Yes, but I’ve accepted it.” She hurried. “I appreciate it, especially with all that’s happening.” Nora paused. “I’m not trying to be insensitive, and I’m certainly not trying to hurt you.”

“I know.” Kelli nodded as she merged into the next lane.

“I’m used to being alone, Kelli.”

“I know that too, but you’re not anymore.”

“I don’t know how to do this.” Nora whispered, and she sounded so helpless. “My way has been easier.”

Nora’s way. Kelli learned what that meant a few weeks ago. Nora had been so matter-of-fact and detached while explaining her views on sex, as well as her lifestyle, as she sipped on a glass of chardonnay. That life was easier. Hell, Kelli’d even lived some of it herself, but that kind of existence had to be lonely.

“You’re scared. I know that already,” Kelli said. They were clearing the air, finally.

“I like order. It’s served me well, and there’s been nothing else. That, in no way, describes you.”

Kelli smirked even though her stomach just tied into about a hundred knots not the good kind either. All of a sudden, she really didn’t like where this seemed to be going. “Hurricane Kelli strikes again, huh?”

“She did,” Nora said softly.

Those needles? They were becoming a very dull blade just hacking away. Kelli tried to steel herself against the pain as she asked, “Is this the ‘let’s just be fiends’ speech, then?”

“No…I…” Nora faltered. “I’m not sure, actually.”

For some reason, Nora’s lack of conviction made Kelli hopeful, and she capitalized on the emotion. “You want this, though. I know it.”

Nora exhaled loudly, but whispered, “Yes. I don’t know what 
this
 is, but yes.”

As they came to yet another red light, Kelli gave Nora her full attention. She understood Nora’s hesitation and could actually identify with it. Kelli was no expert on feelings, on women, or on relationships, but this connection with Nora was powerful enough that none of that other stuff mattered. She was wide open and unguarded. Kelli flinched mentally. If all of this ended shitty, she was heading toward a world of hurt.

Knowing this didn’t keep her from watching Nora, studying her. Nora’s hands were sitting in her lap. They were clasped together and white at the knuckle, but Kelli could see the fine tremor.

“I just don’t know if I can do this.” Nora’s tone was apologetic.

“You’re warning me.” Kelli stated it as a fact.

“Yes,” Nora murmured.

“Would you run? Cut me off completely, if it got to be too much?” Kelli asked. She had to know the answer. It wouldn’t change what she wanted or how she felt, but she had to know.

A horn blared, but Kelli held Nora’s gaze. She could see Nora’s confusion and fear.

“I don’t know.”

Kelli turned away and gunned the engine. The car lurched forward, but it smoothed out quickly. The voices on the radio argued about the state of the Mariners. The smart thing to do was to cut her losses now and run the other way, but just thinking about that made Kelli sick as fuck to the stomach. Ending this just didn’t seem like the right decision. She could feel it in her gut. Yeah, there could be a shit ton of pain coming her way, but the possible pay-off didn’t even compare. “I’m a big girl, Nora.”

“Kelli.” Nora sounded vulnerable, small.

“I mean it.” This was her choice. Kelli was in too far now. She had no idea when that happened or what it meant.

Nora went back to looking out the windshield.

The radio commentators started discussing the Seahawks.

* * *

They walked toward the elevator in the Thomas, Young, and Associates parking garage. Kelli scanned the vicinity and kept herself on guard for the possibility of another Rader sighting. Out of need, out of habit, her hand pressed into the small of Nora’s back. Seconds later, Kelli realized her mistake, and pulled away. She didn’t want to make things any more awkward between them. Nora stopped and turned toward Kelli. The puzzled look was back, but there was something else too. Kelli wasn’t sure what it was.

“It’s okay,” Nora whispered.

Kelli reached out again. Touching Nora felt natural no matter what was going on between them. Still, the look in Nora’s eyes shook her, and Kelli wondered if it were possible to kiss away Nora’s confusion and make things better again.

* * *

“Ladies.” Tom Young greeted them with an overly-practiced smile and led the way to his office.

They sat down and peered at him from the other side of his large oak desk. Kelli glanced at Nora to look for signs of nervousness. She was still in the middle of a lawsuit, after all. Nora held her gaze, and for the moment, it was almost clear. Kelli smiled and tried to communicate some confidence and everything else she couldn’t say right now.

Nora responded with a slight curl of her lips, and that was enough.

Tom cleared his throat, and when Kelli looked at him, his smile was bright and wide. “The day is looking good, thanks to your suggestions, Detective. We got what we needed late Friday, and our investigators spent most of the weekend sorting through it. I had to change my entire approach. Angela, Dr. Fuller’s lawyer, is starting with you this morning, Detective McCabe. This is going to be a little different than what you’re used to. Be casual and confident. This isn’t court. Pay attention to her questions. Some of them may seem irrelevant. They are not, but if she leaves holes, fill them. You’re going to be considered hostile anyway. We want enough information in our favor on the record to make them withdraw, not end up in settlement. After you, she’s going to question Dr. Rader. I’m going to end the day with him, hopefully shake them up for next time.”

Kelli leaned forward. She could practically see the certainty rolling off him. Like on the job, she could smell it. Things were coming together nicely. “You’re about to nail them, aren’t you?”

Tom Young smirked. “Yes, I am.”

Kelli glanced at Nora and her expression was full of surprise and hope. Then, she turned back to the lawyer and asked, “Really? Do tell.”