Radclyffe - Crossroads

“You should.” Honor leaned back and traced the muscles in Quinn’s chest. “Don’t forget we have the barbecue at Linda and Robin’s Sunday. You switched call, right?”

“I did. And I saw Linda leaving just now—she said to remind you to bring your macaroni salad.”

“I’m on it,” Honor said. “They’re definitely planning on a natural birth at home, by the way.”

“You sound like you don’t approve.”

Honor sighed. “It’s not that, really. I think the idea is great and I’m sure it will be a wonderful experience. I just—” She waved her hand toward the curtain. “This I know. This I trust. Linda is so important to me, and I guess I’m just…”

“A little nervous?”

Honor nodded. “Yeah.”

“Linda is too smart to take any chances. I’m sure if there’s any suggestion of difficulties, she’ll opt out. Besides,” Quinn said, cupping Honor’s cheek, “you’ll be there. And this ER is only so good because you’re here.”

Honor smiled and kissed Quinn’s throat. “How is it you always know just what to say to me?”

Quinn’s eyes softened, melting into the endless blue sea that Honor always wanted to drown in. “Maybe because I’ve always loved you.”

“I’m so crazy about you, you know.” Honor tilted her forehead to Quinn’s shoulder.

“Is there something else that’s bothering you?”

Honor shook her head. “You always could read my mind too. I think maybe I’m a little jealous.”

“Of Linda?” Quinn asked carefully.

“I would have loved to see you holding Jack when he took his first breath.”

“You said after he was born you wanted another.”

Honor didn’t miss the cautious note in Quinn’s voice and loved her all the more for it. “The two we have are amazing.”

Quinn let out a breath. “I’m perfectly content. But if it’s something you want—”

“Are you okay with the way things are? Because I’m sort of settling in at work now that Jack is a little bigger. And Arly will be a teenager soon—she had a rough start after Terry died, though I tried—”

“Hey,” Quinn said firmly. “Arly is solid. You gave her everything she needed.”

“Still, I want this time to be special for her.”

“Baby,” Quinn said, cradling Honor’s face in both hands and kissing her forehead. “Our family is the only thing that matters to me. If we stop at two, I’m great. If you want another, I’m there too—all I ask is that we see an OB first and get clearance. Last time was scary.”

“I know. I know.” Honor hugged Quinn quickly. “Let’s stick with the status quo for now.”

“Okay, but just say the word, make the appointment, and I’ll be there.”

“Thanks. I love you.”

“I love you too. I better let you go. I’ll see you later.”

“Or better yet, later-later.”

Laughing, Quinn disappeared around the curtain. Even as her footsteps faded, the heat of her body lingered along Honor’s. She had the perfect family—two wonderful, healthy kids and a lover who made her heart sing and her body melt. She had everything she’d ever wanted.

*

“Let me help you with the dishes,” Annie said when Hollis stood and started to clear the table.

“Thanks,” Hollis said, carrying their plates to the sink. She washed while Annie put the silverware and glasses on the drain board beside her. Annie stood nearby, dish towel in hand, and Hollis contemplated how unexpectedly natural it all seemed. Lunch had been comfortable too, the conversation light and easy. She’d talked a lot about her plans for the house and Annie had seemed genuinely interested, commenting on Hollis’s ideas and adding some interesting insights. She hadn’t spent so much time with anyone other than family in years. Annie got her to relax without noticing it.

“That was great.” Annie folded the dish towel after drying the last plate. “I can’t remember the last time someone cooked for me.”

“Really?” Hollis felt a surge of pleasure at the remark, and a strange kind of satisfaction. “Someone has been falling down on the job, then.”

“Ah,” Annie said, blushing, “I’m afraid there isn’t anyone on the job.”

“What about Callie’s father?” Instantly, Hollis realized her misstep. She’d gotten too relaxed and dropped her guard. “I’m sorry. That was way, way out of line.”

“No, it’s a natural enough question.” Annie’s tone was crisp. “Let’s just say he’s never been in the picture and doesn’t rate the name.”

Hollis folded her arms across her chest and eased back, giving Annie space. “I am really sorry. That was thoughtless of me.”

Annie registered the regret in Hollis’s eyes. “Really, there’s nothing to apologize for. You’re certainly not responsible for my stupidity.”

“That’s not a word I’d associate with you.”

“You didn’t know me when I was an impressionable girl right off the farm.”

“You mentioned your father was a cabinetmaker. Did he farm too?”

Annie turned to the open screen door and looked out over the half-finished porch. The deep yard was bordered on the street side by a row of large oaks and along the back by shrubs—while large by city standards, it was a far cry from the acres of corn and wheat that had been her backyard until she left for college at nineteen. “I grew up in western Pennsylvania on a big dairy farm. We were self-sustaining—my father built most of our furniture, my mother made our clothes, and we ate what we grew and raised. What we couldn’t make or grow ourselves we traded for with neighbors.”

“Amish?”

Annie turned, surprised. She usually directed conversations away from her personal history, but Hollis just kept surprising her. She had a way of moving right to the heart of the matter with a single question. Maybe it was the surgeon in her. “No, Mennonite. Similar, but not quite as rigid. We had electricity, used machinery. How did you know?”

Hollis looked uncomfortable. “I remember you didn’t want surgery because of your beliefs.”

“You remember that after all this time?”

“It’s strange. I usually remember surgical cases in absolute detail, so that’s pretty normal for me. I remember you because…”

“Why?” Annie asked, suddenly needing to know.

“You’re the only patient that’s ever fired me.”

Heat rushed to Annie’s cheeks. “A rather inauspicious honor, then. I’m surprised you fed me, let alone cooked.”

Hollis wasn’t ready to break their fragile truce by reliving that day. They’d have to, and when they did, she wasn’t sure how their budding relationship would be changed. For now, she just wanted to know more. More of Annie. “How does all that mesh with your midwife practice?”

“I’ve left the congregation,” Annie said, “so it’s not an issue. In fact, I didn’t have much choice. I was shunned.”

Hollis sucked in a breath, shock and fury racing through her. “You? Why?”

“I had a child out of wedlock, and I refused to give her up. I refused to return to the fold if it meant having my child scorned. And I insisted on modern medical training, including some things the congregation outlawed.”

Hollis rubbed her hands over her face. “So you had Callie and then…” Annie had been alone in the delivery room, but everything happened so quickly, she’d just assumed Annie’s partner and family hadn’t had time to get to the hospital. Now she realized there hadn’t been anyone. Annie had been totally alone. “No wonder you were angry. Everything you’ve accomplished is amazing.”

Any laughed mirthlessly. “Is that what you call it? I survived. I didn’t have any choice. I had Callie to think of.”