Landslide Read online

  Landslide

  © by Diane Marina

  ISBN mobi: 978-3-95533-090-3

  ISBN epub: 978-3-95533-091-0

  ISBN pdf: 978-3-95533-092-7

  Published by Ylva Publishing, legal entity of Ylva Verlag, e.Kfr.

  Ylva Verlag, e.Kfr.

  Am Kirschgarten 2

  65830 Kriftel

  Germany

  http://www.ylva-publishing.com

  First Edition: July 2013

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, events, and locations are fictitious or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons or events, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  All rights reserved. This book, or parts thereof, may not be reproduced in any form without permission.

  Credits

  Edited by Sandra Gerth and Day Petersen

  Cover Design by Amanda Chron

  Cover Photo by Aniram | Dreamstime.com

  Table of Contents

  Dedication

  Landslide

  Diane Marina

  About Diane Marina

  Other books from Ylva Publishing

  Coming from Ylva Publishing in summer and fall 2013

  Dedication

  Writing this story has truly been a labor of love, and it has been a joy getting my feet wet again after a break of many years. I couldn’t have done this without Angela King-McGavin, my partner in crime of the past 18+ years. Her support, encouragement, love, and friendship is amazing and endless. I appreciate the countless times she read the story for me, even when I know she had other deadlines.

  Thanks also to my very good friend Kathy King for taking the time to read an early version of the story. Her insight and questions about the characters were essential to making an even better story. Thanks as well to Astrid Ohletz for her guidance during the process, and to Day Petersen and Sandra Gerth for their expert editing.

  LANDSLIDE

  Diane Marina

  The first sensation Rachel felt as she woke up was a warm, wet mouth moving lazily across her breast. She sighed, and when she opened her eyes, Michelle’s wicked smile greeted her.

  “Oh, sorry, darlin’. Did I wake you?” Michelle asked innocently, before swiping her tongue across Rachel’s other nipple.

  “Mmm, very funny.” Rachel moaned and grasped Michelle’s head in her hands. She loved the way Michelle’s silky, auburn-tinged hair felt between her fingers. Rachel stretched, relishing the feel of Michelle’s skin against hers. “Don’t stop. You have my full attention.”

  Michelle rose to straddle her body.

  At Michelle’s insistent kiss, Rachel parted her lips. She could taste the coffee Michelle had brewed.

  Kisses left scorching desire along Rachel’s body as Michelle moved her mouth familiarly against her skin.

  Rachel was ready. Moisture pooled between her legs within seconds. This was how their lovemaking had become of late—fast, frequent, and fiery.

  Michelle rose for another tantalizing kiss before she slid down Rachel’s body and settled between her legs. She dipped her head and moaned. Smiling, she looked up. “You’re so wet.” She swirled her fingers through the slickness between Rachel’s folds. “Dreaming about me, baby?”

  Rachel released a sharp breath. “I don’t need to dream. The reality is more of a turn-on. Please come up here, ’chelle. I need to taste you.”

  Without hesitation, Michelle moved up next to Rachel, then reversed position until her head was toward the foot of the bed. “Is this what you want, babe?” The confident tone in Michelle’s voice was evidence that she knew it was exactly what Rachel wanted.

  The air was thick with desire, and Rachel was almost drunk with want. She wrapped her arm around Michelle’s thigh and pulled her nearer to her face.

  Michelle tucked herself flush up against Rachel and returned her mouth to her center.

  Rachel took Michelle, groaning at the sensations of taking while being taken, of fingers and mouths, softness, wetness, and warmth. The irrepressible feeling began building deep inside her, growing stronger until she knew her release was imminent. She pumped her fingers faster and deeper into Michelle, until, seconds later, they both plunged over the edge.

  Michelle crawled up and collapsed next to Rachel on the bed, then reached toward her and took her into her arms. They lay in each other’s embrace as their breathing returned to normal.

  After several moments of blissful silence, Rachel managed a faint, “Wow.” She glanced up at Michelle, who lay with her eyes closed, contented fatigue clear on her face.

  “Yeah, wow.” Michelle kissed her solidly. “I love how responsive you are in the mornings. Big turn-on.” She waggled her eyebrows, then turned toward the bedside table and reached for a mug she had set there earlier. “I made you some coffee, but it’s probably cold now. I swear that I brought it to you with the best intentions, but you just looked so yummy lying there fast asleep.”

  Rachel rolled her eyes as she took the mug and sniffed at it. The scent of vanilla and cinnamon tickled her nose and made her mouth water. “Mmmmm.” Even though it was cold, she took a taste.

  “So…now the bad news, I’m afraid.”

  Rachel paused mid-sip, her eyes narrowing to slits. “Noooo! Michelle, no, it’s Saturday! Can’t you please take some time off?” She slammed the mug down on the bedside table, frustration supplanting the pleasure of their lovemaking. The February weather in Denver had turned almost springlike, but Rachel knew that they could just as likely have a blizzard tomorrow and she ached to spend this lovely day outdoors with her partner. “I wanted to do something fun, like head up to Estes Park.”

  Michelle’s face fell, and she clasped Rachel’s hand in her own and kissed the palm. “I’m sorry, babe. I have to go in. We’re getting to the end of the big project I was telling you about, and Linda is expecting me. I’ve even asked Lara to come in to help me with some things, so I can’t just not show up.”

  Rachel sighed, and her chin dropped. She knew that Michelle would feel obligated to be there with her coworkers.

  “I’ll tell you what. Why don’t you call your sister and see if she’ll go up to Estes with you? Make a day of it shopping around town, and I’ll take you out to dinner tonight when I get home. How does the Wynkoop sound?” Michelle asked, dangling Rachel’s favorite brewpub as the deal sealer. “You can drink as much green chile beer as you want, and then when we come home, you can have your way with me.”

  Rachel recognized the tempting offer as an attempt to cheer her up, but it still rankled to have Michelle’s work interfering with her plans again.

  “Come on, Rach, it won’t be long before this project is finished. I promise you. Just bear with me until then, and I won’t ever be working anywhere near as much.”

  The persuasive pleading broke through Rachel’s resolve to remain upset. Her lover looked so contrite that it melted Rachel’s heart. Michelle was everything to her. “Fine.”

  Michelle cupped Rachel’s cheek and kissed her. “Thank you. I promise I’ll make this up to you. We can go to Estes together the next time we have nice weather. And don’t forget our long weekend over Valentine’s Day. We’ll spend every minute together.” This time her grin was infectious.

  Rachel had been advised to keep Valentine’s Day weekend free, but no additional details had been forthcoming. She molded herself against Michelle’s body and pressed her lips against the inviting neck. “You still haven’t told me what we’re doing,” Rachel murmured, her anger dissipating.

  “That’s right. I didn’t. Good memory.” Michelle’s smile revealed a solitary dimple as she rose from the bed. “I need to hop into the shower and get going, but I’ll be home in time to hit the restaurant by around seven.”

  * * *

&
nbsp; That evening, Rachel and Michelle occupied a booth and chatted over pints of craft beer while they waited for their meals to arrive. Rachel felt relaxed after her trek to Rocky Mountain National Park with her sister. She sat back in the booth, relishing the taste of the cold beer as she took in her surroundings. The restaurant was filled with the typical loud Saturday night crowd, obviously celebrating the arrival of the weekend. Rachel’s cheeks were still tingling, evidence of the day spent outside in the elements. The weather had held up well, but the temperatures in the higher elevations were chillier than in Denver.

  Michelle reached across the table and brushed Rachel’s cheek lightly. “Looks like you got a little sun, babe.”

  At the look of adoration on Michelle’s face, Rachel took Michelle’s hand and held it against her cheek. She kissed Michelle’s hand, sniffing it as she picked up an unfamiliar scent. “Mmm, you smell good. Are you wearing a new perfume?”

  “No. I’m not wearing any perfume at all.” Michelle raised her hand to her nose, then shrugged. “Not sure what that is, but I’m glad you like it. Tell me about your day. Did you run into any scary beasts?”

  Rachel grinned as she recalled her day trip. Although she would have preferred to spend the day with Michelle, she and her sister had shared a pleasant day shopping and then having a leisurely lunch. Afterwards, they took a brief drive through nearby Rocky Mountain National Park, always on the lookout for wildlife. “We did. We saw a few elk in town, but when we drove into the park, we saw some female bighorn sheep and a coyote. I wish you’d been there with us.”

  Michelle’s response was forestalled by the ringing of her cell phone. Her eyes narrowed as she viewed the display, before she silenced the phone and put it in her purse.

  “Not going to answer that? I don’t mind,” Rachel said.

  “No.” Michelle pursed her lips. “Tonight is for us. Now tell me more.”

  Rachel continued to share the events of her day until she was once again interrupted by Michelle’s phone ringing.

  Michelle retrieved the phone and glared at the display.

  “Who keeps calling you?” Rachel asked, her head tipped in query.

  “I have no idea, but they won’t bother us anymore tonight.” Michelle turned the phone off and stuffed it back in her purse, then gestured toward the server who was bringing their food. “Let’s order another couple of beers.”

  * * *

  The bedside lamp was on its lowest setting, its light blanketing the bedroom in an inviting glow. The moonlight that crept through the bank of bedroom windows added to the romantic ambience as Rachel lay Michelle’s arms, skin against skin, their bodies sated as fat snowflakes fluttered outside the windows.

  Rachel absentmindedly twirled a strand of Michelle’s hair around her finger as she reflected on how much she loved the unpredictable winter weather in her home state, Colorado. Just when she thought she could take no more of the cold, a warm day came to melt all the muck, only to be replaced by a fresh coating of white fluff within days.

  She glanced over to find that Michelle had fallen asleep, her face relaxed. Her long chestnut locks swirled around the pillow, and her lips were parted. Rachel supposed she must be exhausted from working long hours. She was proud of how far her partner had come since they had met five years earlier. Now that Michelle was well-established in a company that provided management services to outside firms, some projects took more of her time than others. Despite the pride Rachel felt in Michelle’s hard-earned accomplishments, she hoped that this project would be completed soon. She missed nights like this one.

  She reached past her sleeping lover and turned off the bedside light before snuggling up against her. Her last cogent thought before sleep took her was to wonder what plans Michelle had made for Valentine’s Day weekend.

  * * *

  By Monday morning, Saturday’s flurries had turned into a storm that dumped several inches of snow on the region, covering the roads in a slick mess. During Rachel’s commute to the pet clinic where she worked as a small-animal vet , she toyed with the radio’s settings, keeping an eye out for careless drivers along her route. Her auto-scan stopped on one of her favorite local stations, one with the typical morning-show format—top forty hits, with silly chitchat between the DJs interspersed among the popular tunes. She hummed along to the music as she carefully steered onto the highway ramp to I-25, which would take her north to the clinic.

  After a commercial break, the DJs bantered about their weekend, but it wasn’t until one of the jockeys announced the topic for the morning discussion that Rachel ears perked up. “So, guys and gals out there in the Denver metro area, we have a question for you this morning. Do you ever wonder how to tell if your spouse is being unfaithful? Do you want to know what the signs are? They might surprise you. That’s coming up right after this short break.”

  Rachel grinned as she turned the volume up. The DJs’ over-the-top enthusiasm was contagious. She loved these topics because they often prompted heated or comical calls from listeners. She hoped that today’s topic would be no exception.

  Within minutes, the jockeys were back, updating listeners on traffic and weather before proceeding to the morning’s topic. “Well, as we said earlier, we have a list of warning signs that indicate your significant other may be seeing someone on the sly,” Mikey, the male half of the morning team, said. “This list was just released by Relationships Today magazine, and the clues might surprise you.”

  “That’s right,” Margie, his bubbly female counterpart, chimed in. “Now, some of these, I would have guessed. A few are no-brainers, but there are a few things on this list that I never would have come up with, and I have to admit, they’re making me more than a little bit suspicious of my husband!”

  The DJs laughed, and Rachel giggled at their on-air chemistry.

  “All right, not so surprisingly, on the list are things like: ‘your intuition tells you something isn’t right,’” Mikey said. “That right there would be my first inkling, don’t you agree, Margie?”

  Margie uttered agreement.

  “But there are definitely some things here that I never would have thought of either. You know, when I think of someone cheating, I think of them being distant and not at all affectionate with their spouse, but according to Relationships Today, that’s not always the case. For instance, this says that if your husband is cheating on you, he may want more sex with you rather than less. Now I find that fascinating.”

  “Yes,” Margie said. “That one surprised me, too, but I guess it makes sense. The magazine says that the sneaking around may add more excitement, meaning your spouse will want to have more sexy time with you.” Again the DJs chuckled at their own humor before Margie continued. “It also says here that he or she may smell like the person they’re cheating with, so if you smell a new perfume or cologne on your partner, that might be another indicator.”

  A cold chill traveled along Rachel’s spine, and she began listening more intently to the patter. Michelle had been more amorous and had been initiating sex more frequently. Rachel had chalked it up to hormones or to the fact that they missed each other because of how little time they had to share, but the comment about the new fragrance made her stomach churn. Could the unfamiliar scent on Michelle’s hands have been the result of her running her hands through another woman’s hair or over her body? The thought turned Rachel’s insides cold.

  “Another clue might be phone calls he gets that he won’t answer while you’re in the room. Often a spouse will say it’s a wrong number or a number he or she doesn’t recognize. Also on the list, does she suddenly have a glow about her?”

  Icy fear gripped Rachel, and she slapped the power button to silence the radio. She clutched the steering wheel as a multitude of thoughts flitted through her mind. Was it possible Michelle was seeing someone else? Rachel didn’t have the gut feeling that was mentioned on the broadcast, and Michelle had never given her reason to suspect her of being unfaithful, but so many of the othe
r warning signs seemed to fit. Michelle was putting in extra hours at the office, and there were two phone calls that she had refused to take during their night out.

  As Rachel fought back tears, she realized she had passed the exit that would take her to work. “You need to pull yourself together,” she choked out. “There is no way Michelle would cheat.” Hearing the words out loud did nothing to stop the acid pooling in her stomach or the iciness of her fingers that had a death grip on the steering wheel. She pulled into the slow lane and did her best to keep her mind on the road and put all thoughts of Michelle’s recent behaviors out of her mind. This was a topic better analyzed when she was safely back at home.

  * * *

  That evening, Rachel arrived home and trudged into the living room, dead-tired and chilled inside and out. In addition to being late for work and trying not to think about her nagging suspicions, she’d had to deal with euthanizing an elderly couple’s cat. To top it all off, the roads on the drive home had been treacherous, thanks to the additional inches of snow that had fallen during the day. Rachel wanted nothing more than to climb into a hot bath. Rubbing her arms, she sat on the leather sofa and kicked off her boots. Her cell phone rang, and she jabbed at it to answer the call.

  “Hi, Rach, how’s your day been?” Michelle sounded tired herself.

  Rachel blinked several times, running her free hand along her arm. “Not so great. Pretty crappy, actually.” Please don’t make it worse.

  “I’m sorry, babe. Listen, I have to stay about an hour or two tonight, but tell me what you’re hungry for and I’ll bring dinner home with me. Go take a nap or something, and before you know it, I’ll be home with a spread.”

  Rachel didn’t respond, scanning her memory as to whether “being more attentive” was on the cheater’s list. She couldn’t recall. The morning drive seemed so far away.

  “Rachel? You still there? How bad was your day, hon?” Michelle sounded genuinely concerned.

  “Just in a mood, I guess.” Rachel felt as if she was answering on autopilot. “I had to put a cat down today. It belonged to this couple who was just heartbroken, and it was rough. It never gets easier.”