Leather And Lace Part 12

Kris turned around, pus.h.i.+ng her partner on her back and covered her Captain's body with hers. Looking into the concerned blue eyes calmed her racing heart. She realized that Raven probably hadn't wanted to tell her because of the worry that it would cause. "I'm beginning to realize that what you do scares the h.e.l.l outta me." Kris admitted. "But I'll never ask you to quit and I'll always be waiting for you at home." She paused. "I just want you to promise me that you'll always come back to me, no matter what."

"Always." Raven looked deeply into pleading green eyes. "I promise." She wrapped her arms around the smaller body and pulled them into a comforting embrace. She knew that nothing could keep her from returning to the love the two of them shared.

After a shower, packing, calling Gwen, talking to John and Sharon, checking out, eating lunch, and extending the return date of the rental car, the two women headed east towards Ocean City, Maryland. Kris happily snacked away on one of the many goodies she had stocked up on before leaving the hotel. Raven had to admit that when driving for more than a few hours at a time she tended to get the munchies too. Though she knew that it was more from boredom than from hunger.

About 30 minutes into the drive found both women deep into their own thoughts and concerns. The studio apartment she had now was definitely not big enough for both of them and not good enough for Kris. 'I want her to have the best I can give her.' Raven had always meant to look into buying a house, she just had never gotten around to it.

'They're probably going to tell me I need my head examined. Leaving every thing and every body I know to move across the country with someone I hardly know.' Kris glanced sideways at her companion and smiled. 'But she's worth that and more. I know I'd never be happy without her.' "Looks like rain." She pointed to the south.

"Yeah, but we're about to head southeast, so maybe it won't effect us." Raven said as they started across the toll bridge that took them across Chesapeake Bay. She noticed the far away look and the anxious tone in Kris' voice. 'Could she be having second thoughts about this? And why in Hades not, you idiot, you're dragging her across the d.a.m.n country. Could I live here if she changes her mind? I'd have to, because I know I can't lose her.'

'She looks a little lost. I wonder if she's nervous about meeting my grandparents?' "Are we there yet?" She grinned at the surprise in her friend's face.

"Don't start." Raven tried to scowl. "And don't pout." She said as Kris did just that. "I'm warning you."

"Or what?" She crossed her arms over her chest and poked her bottom lip out further in defiance.

"Or I'll turn you over my knee." The Captain warned.

"Huh." Kris got a gleam in her eyes. "I might like that too much, Taz. Better think of something else." They both started laughing. Kris' mission to get Raven out of her funk had been accomplished. She reached over and closed her hand around her friends. "I think we might have the makings of a new kind of fairytale here."

"What do you mean?" Raven glanced at her companion out of the corner of her eye, before turning her attention back to the road.

"Most fairytales end with the rescue of the fair maiden by the knight in s.h.i.+ning armor, ours begins there." She brought their entwined hands to her lips and kissed Raven's. Kris almost laughed at the bewildered expression that she was getting. "Watch the road, love, I'd like to get there in one piece."

Raven finally found her voice. "Kris, I'm not..."

"You are to me." She interrupted. "I know you're human and you make mistakes and that we're going to argue about things, but you're also my hero, so learn to live with it, Taz." She winked at her companion when Raven stole a glance in her direction. "You'll learn in time that's it's easier just to agree with me when I have my mind made up."

Raven shook her head and chuckled. "I always say a good soldier knows when to fight, when to retreat and when to surrender."

"Which is this?"

"Let's call it a strategic retreat, pending a complete surrender." She winked at the grinning woman.

Raven had been floored by Kris' willingness to tell her grandparents that they were in love. Then the unexpected and complete acceptance of her and their partners.h.i.+p had left her a wee-bit stunned. She was left wondering how Kris' mother was a product of those two understanding and supportive people.

Raven glanced over at her sleeping companion then leaned her head back to rest against her first cla.s.s seat. They had left in the very early morning hours to drive to Baltimore, after spending a couple of days with Kris' grandparents, to catch their flight home. They were due to land at 4:10 p.m. but had been 45 minutes late taking off due to thunderstorms that plagued the Baltimore area all day. She hoped the pilot could make-up the time in the air, she really didn't want to be in the middle of rush hour traffic all the way to the apartment.

Kris yawned and stretched. "How much longer?" She asked as she raised the covering and looked out the small window.

"About an hour and a half. I doubt you'll be able to see anything. It's overcast with scattered showers. That's the standard October to April forecast by the way. In case I forgot to tell you, it rains here most of the time in the fall and winter." Raven replied.

"But it stays green here during the winter, doesn't it?" Kris grabbed her water bottle from the pouch in the back of the seat in front of her.

"Most everything does, yeah. That was the hardest thing to get used to, being in other places where everything would be grey and bleak, like it was dead." She handed her empty gla.s.s to the flight attendant as he pa.s.sed by collecting them.

After they landed and collected their luggage, Kris asked, "So, where's home and how do we get there?" Kris asked as she shouldered her laptop case and stuck her hands in her pockets since Raven insisted on carrying their two large bags.

"We get there by taxi." She quickly maneuvered around the people still huddled close to the moving carousel and directed Kris towards the exit. They had made up a little time in the air and she still held out hope of missing most of the commuter traffic. "And home is a studio apartment on Bell Street a little north of the downtown area." She headed for the taxi that pulled over at her signal. "We'll have to talk about getting a larger one or maybe a house. I was thinking about looking for something out of the congested areas." She climbed in the backseat after Kris and gave the driver the address.

"I don't want you to change the way you live, just for me." She stopped Raven from interrupting her by placing her fingers over her companion's mouth. "I'll be happy wherever you are."

Raven turned Kris' fingers around and kissed her knuckles. "I know you would be. But I've thought about doing this for a while. I just never had the motivation to deal with the agents and the banks and stuff." Their hands stayed clasped together and rested on the seat between them. "It won't hurt to look and we won't rush into anything." She promised.

Kris agreed for now. She promised herself that they would talk about finances later. The money she had from the investments by her grandparents was quite a bit more than she had originally made, but she didn't think it would go too far on paying for half a house and expenses. She spent the rest of the time looking at the pa.s.sing scenery and asking tourist type questions until the taxi pulled up in front of an older five-story red brick building. Raven paid the driver while Kris waited at the top of the four concrete steps that lead up to the single wooden door. The Captain fished in the outer pocket of her duffel bag and retrieved her keys. She unlocked the door and pushed it open for her companion to enter first.

"Don't you want to check your mail?" Kris asked as Raven bypa.s.sed the mailboxes hanging just inside the door and headed for the elevator.

"Uh uh. Granny always picks it up for me when I'm gone." She pushed the b.u.t.ton for the fifth floor and waited for the slower than mola.s.ses in the winter, antique lift to start upwards. "The stairs are faster if you don't mind the climb." She informed Kris who had moved over and leaned against her side.

Kris wrapped her arm around Raven's waist. "I don't know, I think this time can be used for a good cuddle or two." She stated and was rewarded with a kiss to the top of her head. "So when do I get to meet Granny and see if I pa.s.s inspection?" She tried to make the question sound casual but she was a little nervous about meeting her since she knew Raven valued the older woman's friends.h.i.+p and opinion and it showed in her voice.

"Hey." Raven dropped one of the bags she was caring and tilted Kris' head back until their eyes met. "There is nothing to be nervous about. She's going to love you almost as much as I do, Sagira." Their lips met briefly. "I promise." She stated as the door slid open and she lead the way down the hall.

'I hope your right.' Kris followed her taller companion to a doorway with the number 20 fixed to the wall beside it. Raven had told her earlier that there were 20 apartments in the building, ten one bedroom units and ten studios and that Granny lived in number 16, directly below them.

"She'll probably come up a little while after she hears us moving around." Raven explained more to fill the silence than anything else. "She always has to see for herself that I'm still in one piece. But she'll never admit she's worried about me."

Kris had been looking around the apartment and turned towards her companion. "Does she know what you do?"

"No, she doesn't know anything about The Division. I think she's talked herself into believing that I'm an undercover cop or something." Raven was standing beside the couch that she had dropped their bags on. "You want the nickel tour?"

Kris nodded her head. Raven opened a door that lead to a fairly large walk-in closet, which she thought was an odd thing to have in a small apartment. The next door lead to a small bathroom that contained a cabinet and sink combination, a toilet, a small corner shower stall and a normal sized bathtub. The room was wallpapered in an off-white color with yellow and orange pinstripes to give it a little color.

The kitchen was tiny; it contained a stainless-steel sink, a few feet of counter s.p.a.ce with cabinets above and below it, a small microwave, a white stove and a white refrigerator that looked skinnier than a normal sized one. An open counter area with bar stools was used as a dining table but also served to separate the kitchen from the living area.

The bedroom contained a double bed pushed against the northwest corner of the apartment and separated from the rest of the apartment by a wooden screen that reached almost to the ceiling. A small table sat beside the bed and held an alarm clock. The main room contained a cloth-covered couch, cream in color with a beautiful forest green colored afghan folded across the back. One overstuffed chair, the same color as the couch, sat at a 90-degree angle from the sofa with an end table between the two. A small entertainment center occupied the corner across from the couch and contained a TV, VCR and small stereo. The entire floor, except for the kitchen, was covered in a dark brown carpet.

"I told you it was small." Raven reminded her as she stood behind the young woman and rested her forearms on Kris' shoulders. "We'll need to get you a table or desk, you need someplace to put your laptop to write."

Kris was about to start the dreaded financial discussion when a knock interrupted her.

"What'd I tell you." Raven winked at her and moved to open the door.

"I figured you'd be hungry when you got back so I made you some lasagna the other day and put it in your freezer with heating instructions. Here's your mail." She stated before noticing they weren't alone. "Oh, sorry. I didn't realize you had company." She looked from the one to the other. "You gonna introduce me or what?" It was unusual for her tall friend to have anyone other than John and once-in-awhile Sharon, stop by. In fact, now that she thought back, those where the only two people she had ever remembered seeing much less been introduced to in all the years she had known her.

Kris watched the, younger than she was expecting, woman as she talked to Raven. She had short grey hair, not quiet reaching her collar. Expressive bright hazel eyes, covered by wire framed gla.s.ses that moved over every inch of the tall frame in front of her. 'Probably checking to see if she's in one piece like Raven said.' Kris smiled to herself. She was only an inch or two taller than Kris but had a larger bone frame and a heavier build. She walked up and stuck out her hand. "Hi, I'm Kris and you must be Granny, nice to meet you. Raven's told me a little about you, in her own talkative way. Is it okay if I call you Granny?"

The older woman shook the hand held out to her. 'She's nervous.' Granny realized as she grasped the firm but slightly sweating hand. She stole a glance at the completely open expression that was plastered across Raven's face as she stared lovingly at the young woman. 'It must be important to Kris for me to like her. And anybody that can get the 'queen of solitude and isolation' here to open up and take a chance, is worth getting to know.' She gave Kris a genuine 100-watt smile. "It's a pleasure to meet you too and yes, everybody calls me Granny." She rea.s.sured the young woman.

"I like her." Kris played with a strand of dark hair as they lay in bed. "I think she likes me, too." She rolled over and attached herself to the naked body that was stretched out beside her.

"I told you that she would." Raven yawned and wrapped her arms around the smaller, also naked body, and pulled her close.

"That lasagna was delicious, I think I'll see if she'll give me cooking lessons." She moved her head until she found the perfect spot on Raven's shoulder.

"And here I thought you could cook. What do you think I dragged you across the country for?" Raven said feigning exasperation.

"Well heck, Taz, I thought it was for the s.e.x. That's what I came for." She ran her hand down bare skin causing Raven to draw in a breath and grabbed the wandering appendage before it ducked down between her legs.

"Don't you ever get enough?" Raven laughed at the pout she could see in the moonlight s.h.i.+ning through the window behind Kris' body.

"Never. I could make love to you all night and still want you again." Kris stated emphatically but a large yawn gave her away.

"Get some sleep, love. We'll work on our stamina tomorrow."

"Love you." Mumbled sleepily.

"Love you too, Sagira." Raven turned and kissed her forehead. "Goodnight." Slight snores were the only reply.

The next morning Raven got up and showered while Kris was still sleeping. She moved quietly to the kitchen, setting up the coffee maker and opened the fridge to grab the can of coffee. 'Guess shopping is in order.' She thought as she searched the equally bare cupboards.

The smell of fresh coffee made Kris stir from her state of hibernation. She stretched and threw on her sleep s.h.i.+rt before joining Raven in the kitchen. She grabbed the clean mug beside the pot and filled it. "Morning." She sleepily stated before kissing her companion's cheek and sitting on the other stool at the counter.

Raven grinned. "Good morning, suns.h.i.+ne."

Kris ignored the jab at her less than cheery morning personality. "What are you looking at?" She inclined her head in the direction of the newspaper that was open to the cla.s.sified section.

"Houses right at the moment. But I've also looked at the sales ads for cars. And there was one in here from a computer store I wanted you to look at. You mentioned that yours was kinda old and out dated." She had dressed and walked down the block to get a paper while the coffee was making.

"Hey, slow down a minute." Kris reached for her companion's hands that where busily searching through the sections of paper for the ad. "I know we could probably use a bigger place and I did say I'd eventually like to update my computer but I don't think we should go rampant spending money. I haven't got that much." She had turned her body to face her companion.

"But I do." Raven countered.

"Do what?" Kris was confused. "Spend money we don't have?" She asked for clarification.

"No." Raven chuckled. "Have money. More than enough for both of us." She continued on in a hurry when Kris opened her mouth to comment. "Listen, my job pays pretty good and I've never been one to spend it just because I had it, so I'll take care of us while you're the struggling writer and you can take care of us after you become rich and famous." She tilted her head until their foreheads met. "Deal?"

Kris was silent for a few minutes while she basked in the warmth of the love she felt surrounding her. "Are you trying to tell me that I'm going to be a kept woman, Taz?" She leaned her head back and grinned at her companion.

Raven let go of the breath she had been holding and felt relief flood through her. "I guess so since you're definitely a keeper."

Kris swatted Raven on the shoulder and laughed. "Look for that ad, woman. And give me the real-estate section. I'm curious as to your taste in houses."

"Here." Raven pa.s.sed over the requested items and got up to refill their coffee mugs. "We need to go food shopping today. There's a grocery store not far from the computer store." She resumed her seat before she noticed the stunned expression on Kris' face.

She had been reading the listings of the houses Raven had circled. The areas of course meant nothing to her, but the square footage and the descriptions listed made her wonder if her friend had any idea just how much money the sellers would probably be asking. She continued reading until she came across one that actually had the price listed. "Oh...my...G.o.d!"

"Kris, what's wrong?"

"Did you see how much they want for this?" She turned to face her visibly relieved companion. "You did." She looked suspiciously at Raven. "Just how much money do you have, Taz?"

"Not real sure. You'd have to ask the firm that invests it for me. They also take care of all my bills and stuff since I'm gone a lot, they make sure everything gets paid on time." She shrugged her shoulders.

"You don't keep track of it?" She looked unbelievingly at Raven. "They could be stealing you blind and you wouldn't know it."

"Yes and no. I mean I look at the statements they send every month and the graphs and percentages keep going up but I don't know how much the stocks and bonds are worth." She explained.

Kris hung her head and shook it. "I guess I better hurry up and get my writing career off the ground if I'm going to support us in the manner that we're about to become accustomed to." She looked up and smiled at her companion. "Let's get dressed and you can buy me breakfast since you're loaded."

They stopped by Granny's apartment to see if she wanted to go with them, she informed Kris that she never turned down a free meal, and the three women headed for the diner a few blocks over. Breakfast turned into a becoming acquainted with each other affair for Kris and Granny. With both of them learning that they had at least one thing in common, that they cared a great deal for their most of the time serious and usually sedate friend. Which was most definitely enough of a reason for them to start a friends.h.i.+p of their own.

Kris had also talked Granny into agreeing to some cooking lessons, as long as she didn't expect anything too fancy. 'Good ol' home cookin' was the only thing she professed to know. Kris actually learned more about Granny in the two hours that they spent over breakfast than Raven had learned in the many years of their friends.h.i.+p.

Chapter Fourteen:.

Kris found out later that afternoon, why Raven had mentioned getting her a car, the only transportation that the Captain owned was a Harley-Davidson. They did manage to get all the groceries into the saddlebag compartments on the bike, but they had gotten a few strange looks in the process. Kris guessed that most people didn't go grocery shopping on motorcycles, even really big ones.

They had decided to leave computer shopping until the next day, so Raven headed in for her debriefing and to discuss the situation of Kris' whereabouts and the problem of The Division's probable leak with the Colonel. Kris spent the afternoon on the phone with real-estate agents setting up appointments to look at houses the next week.

When Kris had asked Raven if she really wanted to move and leave Granny behind, Raven had confessed that she would love for Granny to move in with them or at least somewhere close by, but she didn't think the older woman would. Kris' first cooking lesson was this afternoon; beef stroganoff was on the menu since she found that it was a favorite of her companion's. She told Raven that she would ask Granny to stay for dinner and maybe they could talk to her about their plans for buying a house and see if she might think about staying with them.

She had just finished with the last phone call when the knock came. She opened the door to let the older woman in. "Hey, I got all the ingredients on your list so we should be set. I really appreciate you taking the time to teach me."

"No problem, Kris. It actually gives me something to do, my bridge and bingo partner's in the hospital so if I weren't doing this, I'd probably be playing couch potato." She followed the younger woman into the kitchen.

"You want some coffee or tea before we start?"

"Yeah, coffee sounds good." She sat down on one of the barstools and leaned her arms on the counter.

"Your playing partner's not too sick, I hope?" Kris asked.

"She's gotten really sick over the last week and they don't expect her to last much longer. She's a lot older than I am." She took the mug Kris handed her and took a sip. "I use to volunteer at the nursing home she's in, reading and whatnot, and we got to be friends so when they needed a new person for bridge she conned me into it."

"I'm sorry." Kris wasn't sure what else to say.

"Thanks. She always tells me not to be sad. She says she's had a good long life and that when it's her time she'll be ready." She patted Kris' hand. "Enough about depressing things. Let's get started on dinner and you can tell me how you and Raven met."

'Oh boy, I should have asked Raven what I can and can't tell her.' Fortunately she was able to keep Granny talking about cooking until Raven came in a short time later.

Raven walked into the kitchen and wrapped her arms around Kris' waist from behind. "Hey. What smells so good?" She leaned over and down and gave the younger woman a light, quick kiss on the lips.

They had told Granny about them being together at breakfast, but Kris was a little spooked at the unrestrained show of physical closeness around someone she'd just met and started blus.h.i.+ng.