Tropical Storm - DK1 (40 page)

A surge of water washed against her, and her legs got taken out from under her, ducking her head under the water as she squawked in shock and indignation. Moments later, she was dragged to the surface, dripping and outraged, to face a smug, smirking Dar. “How did you…wh…”

The executive chuckled, releasing her and swimming away. “I’ll do anything to avoid singing broccoli. Remember that, my friend.”

“Hey!” Kerry lunged after her, grabbing an ankle. “Hold on there,” She gave a tug and found herself being pulled through the water. “Oh, crudpuppies.” she muttered, kicking a stroke and getting a better hold. “I said, hold on there!”

Dar grinned and kept swimming. She felt Kerry’s hand slip, then reach up and get a good grip on her suit, her fingers sliding over the older woman’s skin, leaving a gentle tingle behind them. She stopped, then whirled in place, pulling the shorter woman closer. For a moment they just looked at each other, and Dar enjoyed the intense energy she could feel between them, then she smiled, and dunked her companion with a triumphant chortle.

Kerry got her feet under her and broke the surface, then stood with her hands on her slim hips, dripping chlorinated water everywhere. “I’ll get you for that,” she vowed, but her grin belied her threat.

“Promise?” Dar answered, startling herself a little, then shrugging and returning the grin.

They splashed out and got their towels, drying off and walking back to the locker area where they’d stowed their clothing. “This was a great idea, Dar, except I think I got sunburned.” Kerry winced as she touched the back of her neck. “That’s going to be a little hard to explain at a business meeting.”

Dar put a hand on her shoulder and peered at her skin, reaching out to lift the damp hair up and then touching the sensitive skin with a fingertip. She felt Kerry suck in a breath at the touch and bit off a smile. “Tender, huh?”

“Uh…yes.” Kerry was startled at how her body had reacted to the simple touch. “Sunburned, right?”

“A little,” Dar observed, tracing a second line across the back of her neck.

“Have to get you some cold cream.” She handed Kerry her towel, rented from the facility, then slipped her shorts and shirt on over her suit. “Good thing about this stuff, it dries fast.”

Kerry swallowed. “Yeah, I noticed that.” She cleared her throat. “Might get a little chilly with this sunburn tonight.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “Maybe I can pick up a sweatshirt.”

“Good idea, not like they don’t have seven thousand varieties,” Dar answered innocently, as she handed her companion her T-shirt. “C’mon. After all that, I’m starving.”

Kerry heard a telltale rumble, and put a hand over her stomach after she slipped her shirt on. “Me too.”

DAR LEANED BACK in her bus seat, propping a knee up against the seat in front of her and leaning her head against the cool glass of the window. She
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watched the green grass and thick foliage go by, as the vehicle traveled through the property back roads heading from the water park to the more centrally located Epcot Center.

She stifled a yawn and tried to think about all the work waiting for her when she got back. High as that pile would be, it couldn’t make a dent in her lazy good mood, and she realized this was more fun than she’d had in many years.
Just like some damn kid, Dar. But maybe this is just what you needed.

It certainly seemed to be helping. She felt relaxed and was looking forward to the evening, and her gentle teasing with Kerry had steadied at a pleasant, mild stimulation. She felt very comfortable with the younger woman, who was seated next to her, one warm shoulder pressing up against Dar’s, and she was really glad she’d chosen to take Kerry with her.

It had been an opportunity too good to pass up, both to get to know her new assistant and to sneak in a little R-and-R at the same time. Dar was cautiously pleased with how it was turning out, and if Michelle Graver didn’t take too much offense to her turning down their dinner date, they had a chance at the bid, too. That reminded her of something, though, and she took out her cell phone and dialed a number. “Mark?”

“Hey, boss,” the MIS Chief’s voice responded. “Is it true you slugged Minnie Mouse?”

“I haven’t slugged anyone.” Dar paused deliberately. “Yet.”

“Uh oh, I sense a tongue lashing.” Mark chuckled. “That was a toughie, Dar, two of those boxes have pretty high security on them.”

“And?”

“It’s in progress,” Mark stated circumspectly. “You’ve got Provisioning up in freaking arms, Dar. When I called him, Eldon snapped one of those mechanical freaking pencils he’s got millions of in half. I heard the sound.”

“But he’s moving on the project?” Dar persisted, watching the trees go by. “He had to rob two circuits from FPL. You’ll have some fence mending to do up there, but yeah, he’s moving on it. He’s not happy.”

“Ask him if a formal commendation in his personnel file would make him happier,” Dar commented. “And tell him not to be so god-damned anal. This is important.”

“I know that. He knows that. Jesus, Dar, every freaking body in HQ

knows that, including the cleaning staff,” the MIS chief advised her. “John called in. There are stories of you blowing off the IBM team already circulating.”

“Great. All right, Mark, I’ll leave my cell on, as usual. Give me a call when you get things finalized. Is Robert Maccen publishing the response document?”

“Yep, he sure is. Say, where are you, anyhow?” the man asked curiously.

“Sounds quiet.”

Dar hesitated, tempering her good spirits with natural caution. “Casing the place, actually,” she stated. “Evaluating the infrastructure.” She ignored Kerry’s amused look.

Mark clucked his tongue. “Dar, you’re the only goddamn person I know who would go to freaking Disney World and end up tracing cables. Take a 194
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damn break, will ya? At least go see the fireworks.”

Dar surveyed her disheveled and slightly sunburned body, slumped easily against both the seat and her companion, and bit off a wry smile. “If I have a couple of minutes, sure.”

“Dar, don’t make me think of you walking around up in Orlando in one of those wool suits. Sweating in the control room is a bad thing, okay?”

“I’m, um, not wearing a wool suit, Mark, if it makes you feel any better.”

Dar laid a hand on her bare knee, tracing a tiny scar just above the kneecap.

“And I’ll try to catch a firework or two, if you’ll guarantee me that plan will be complete by ten AM tomorrow.”

“Dar…” Mark sighed. “Oh well, I don’t need any sleep. All right, I promise, but you gotta bring me back a souvenir.” He paused. “Tell you what, to make it fair, you bring me a back a picture of you actually taking it easy for five minutes. Is that too much to ask?”

“Oh, so if I take my shoes off and kick a stuffed Goofy around in the grass, that counts, right?” the executive drawled. His sigh could be heard clearly. “Okay, you’re on, Mark. You come through, you get your picture, I promise.” Dar chuckled. “Tell you what—you get it done on time, and I’ll make it a bathing suit picture.” Dead, absolute, not-even-breathing silence greeted the offer. Dar glanced at the phone, then at her companion, who had a hand firmly clamped over her mouth and was turning pink from the effort not to laugh. “Mark?” Silence, then a rustle of sound and another voice picked up.

“Hey, who is this?”

“Jeffrey, it’s Dar Roberts.”

“
Oh
. Oh, sorry, ma’am. Um…did you do something to Mark? He’s sitting here with this weird, weird look on his face.”

Dar sighed. “Just tell him I said I’d talk to him later.” She hung up the line and glanced at Kerry, who was chewing on her knuckle and giggling softly. “You think that’s funny, huh?” She reached over and tickled Kerry’s ribs and grinned as the smaller woman jerked and squealed. “Oh, I can see there’s something your profile didn’t mention, Ms. Stuart.” She tickled her again, and watched Kerry squirm away from her.

“Gah…stop that.” Kerry grabbed her hand and held on. “Poor Mark! And are you going to tell me what the plan is, or do I have to guess, too?” She cautiously released her tormentor’s fingers and was relieved when the attack wasn’t repeated.

Dar sat back and wrapped her hands around one knee. “Well, I have two people working on writing up a proposal that answers their request, with specific resources, that kind of thing. Usually I’d do it myself, but…” She shrugged. “It’s not that complicated. Anyway, since they have access to all the information, they’ll prep the document for us and send it over before the meeting.”

Kerry absorbed that. “And?”

Slowly, pale blue eyes looked over at her. “What do you mean, and?”

A shrewd glance studied her. “That’s what the other guys will be doing, too. If I read you right, you go over and above. So what’s the rest of the plan?”

Dar smiled, an open, genuine smile. “You’re right, but I don’t want to jinx it. Let me wait for Mark’s call tonight, then I’ll tell you all about it.”

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As the bus pulled up in front of the park, Kerry chuckled in triumph, and she stood up, waiting for Dar to join her. “I don’t think they have Mongolian here, though. How about Italian?”

Dar stretched, feeling a little tightness in her shoulders from all the swimming. “How about Japanese?”

“Mmm.” Kerry’s brow contracted “Hard choice.”

They ended up in England, mostly because Kerry really wanted to see the fireworks, and Dar knew a little secret. So they were comfortably settled in an outside table at the English Pub right up against the lake as the crowds started to gather to watch the show.

There was a nice, cool night breeze blowing off the water, and Kerry was glad she’d opted for a sweatshirt, choosing a forest green one with a happy-looking Winnie the Pooh dancing over her left breast. She sipped her pint of ale gingerly as she watched Dar do the same, and glanced at the menu. “It’s all pretty safe, right?”

Dar chuckled. “Well, there are a lot of interesting influences in English cooking, especially from India, and the other former colonies, but on this menu—yeah, everything’s safe.” She glanced around, then settled the gray, beautifully woven sweater she’d purchased in a nearby shop over her shoulders. “Nice.”

Kerry reached over and fingered the soft as butter fabric. “That feels so wonderful.” She admired it. “And I have to stop in that tea shop again. I need to get some of those flavors to bring back to the office. I’m kinda tired of orange cinnamon and regular.”

“Hmm, that’s right, you do like tea, don’t you?” Dar settled back in her chair and put her feet up on the one opposite her. They placed their order with the perky waitress, and Dar nodded yes to refills of their drinks. The ale had tasted good after their full day of activity, and she was in the mood to relax just a little. The cool breeze pushed the hair off her forehead, and she let her head lean back and her eyes close.

Dar certainly is a different person outside of the office,
Kerry decided, eyeing her surreptitiously. She had this…diabolical, mean, evil, nasty, mischievous streak that Kerry had found out about the hard way. Like when Dar kept her distracted while a large, bubble-headed green something-or-other had snuck up behind her and scared the crap out of her. Or being led into the Moroccan leather place where apparently curing hides wasn’t an acquired skill.
Ugh.
Or being given a small tumbler of something sweet and blue to drink, and not realizing until after she’d swallowed it that it was 200 proof.

To be fair, Dar had gotten taken in by the blue stuff too, which she admitted after getting Kerry some water to wash it down. And she had given her the little wax figurine the craftsman had made for her in front of the Chinese pavilion. Out of wax and sticks, he twirled and shaped the piece until it was a fanciful dragon shape with swirled wings. “Here.” Dar had shrugged as she handed it over. “I don’t collect stuff like this.”

No, you don’t.
Kerry thought, as she studied the angular profile. She leaned back, feeling a pleasant buzz from the ale, glad they’d managed to munch their way around the world at various snack stands before she’d started drinking. The Mexican stop was good. She could still taste the spices 196
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on her tongue from the tiny tacos, and she’d enjoyed the tidbits of bratwurst and smoked cheeses in Germany along with the tiny glass of sweet white wine. “Just our luck to visit during the International Food and Wine expo, huh?”

“Mmm.” Dar smiled and lazily opened an eye. “That’s a nice idea, have all the different countries put out samples of their kinds of food and drink.

Different. I liked it.” She took a sip of her fresh glass of ale. “Small enough portions so you can try a lot of them, and it’s a good chance for the different cultures to show off.” She took another sip. “Something like the festivals we have down in Miami—the Art festival, and the heritage festivals—when you can have a ton of the different nationalities down there put up stalls and have different stuff, though we tend to be Caribbean and Hispanic heavy. This is nice, because you get all the continental countries represented too.”

A blonde brow edged up.
Drinking makes her more talkative. Write that
down in the PDA, Ker. It could be useful sometime.
“I haven’t gotten a chance to go to one of those. They dragged me to the Scottish festival last year, but I almost got hit in the head with one of those logs and someone tried to get me to eat haggis.”

Dar laughed. “Nah, try the Cajun thing. It’s more fun, and you get to scarf down lots of spicy mud bugs.” She glanced up and smiled as the waitress brought their food, putting her glass down and picking up her silverware.

Kerry thanked the woman and nodded when she looked questioningly at their glasses.
One more couldn’t hurt, and besides, I’m succeeding in my quest to get
Dar to relax. Maria would be proud of me.

“I THINK I’M a little drunk,” Dar admitted as they strolled towards the exit, past the lighted fountains whose water danced to the background music.

“Not that anyone could tell,” Kerry assured her, observing Dar intently.