The Price of Fame - KJ1 Page 26
Nervous beyond measure that she had read Jay wrong and moved too far too fast, Kate began to babble into the stunned silence. “I know it hasn’t been that long, and I know we can’t legally get married, and I know there’s a lot of logistics to work out, but I don’t care about any of 199
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that, all that matters is that I want to be with you for the rest of my life, and I want that to start right away, today, right now...”
“Yes,” Jay whispered so quietly that Kate was sure she hadn’t said anything at all. “Yes,” she said more strongly, lunging forward, wrapping her lover in a huge hug and knocking her over backward into the sand, where she landed on top of her. “Yes I will marry you, yes I will live with you, yes it can’t happen soon enough, yes I love you more than life itself. Yes!” She punctuated her exclamation with a kiss that left no doubt as to how she felt about the proposal.
After several heart-stopping moments, Kate managed to breathe, “As much as I’m enjoying myself, and believe me I am, perhaps we should take this somewhere more private, love.”
Jay, who had lost any sense of time or place, looked around her sheepishly. “Yeah, maybe that would be a good idea, Stretch.” She got up, dusted herself off, and helped her lover to her feet.
“Aren’t you going to look at what’s in the box?”
“Oh my God, yes.” Jay had forgotten all about the small item she still clutched in her grasp. She opened the lid and gasped, tears leaping to her eyes and rolling down her cheeks when she blinked at the sight before her.
“May I?” Kate asked, lifting from its velvet nest the platinum band with 2 1/2 carats of glittering channel-set princess-cut diamonds around most of its circumference.
Jay nodded mutely as her lover slipped the ring onto her left ring finger. “Sweetheart, it’s the most beautiful ring I’ve ever seen.” She turned it in the sunlight, watching as the rays reflected off it, creating rainbows. “And it fits perfectly; how did you do that?”
Kate blushed. “I cheated a little and borrowed the emerald ring you wore to the LCA Show and had it sized by a jeweler friend of mine while you were squeezing the produce that Sunday in Albany when you made me go to the grocery store.” She had made a quick call to her jeweler, asking him to meet her at the store with his circle full of ring sizes in hand. He had thought it an unusual request, but God knew he’d gotten stranger ones, and Kate was one of his best customers.
She had met him in the frozen foods department, giving him the ring, and he had compared it for size before handing it back to her. When they got home, she had slipped the emerald ring back onto the nightstand where Jay had left it the night before. The next day, after she had dropped Jay off at the train station, Kate had met the jeweler at his store and explained exactly what she wanted. He hadn’t had it in stock, or anything like it, but he had located it for her—handily enough, in St.
Thomas at a store called Diamonds International with whom he had an ongoing relationship. Kate had predicted accurately that her lover would 200
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want to browse the stores on the island that was famous for its jewelry before going home, and she had picked the ring up when they had been window-shopping, using the excuse that she had to find a restroom and leaving Jay several blocks away in another store.
The younger woman was silent for a moment, her mind working furiously. “But, Kate, the LCA Show was more than a week ago and we had only spent one or two nights together.” She looked up, shocked recognition on her face. “You had this all decided and planned out that soon?”
“Um, I knew how I felt, and I knew what I wanted, and I usually go after the things I want, Jay, especially when they mean everything to me.
I didn’t have any doubt what I was going to do, only the timing of it and how you would react.”
“You had no need to worry there, love.” She smiled adoringly up into those beloved blue eyes.
By this time they had reached the villa, and Jay fitted the key into the lock, letting them into the air-conditioned comfort. Walking deliberately over to the table in the dining area, she placed the key on it, turning back around and taking a running leap into her surprised partner’s arms, wrapping her legs tightly around the muscular torso and kissing her with unbridled passion. I can’t believe she wants to marry me. How can she be so sure, so soon? Get real, Parker, you’re more than sure yourself, why shouldn’t she be?
After the initial moment of shock, Kate returned the embrace, her hands cupping her lover’s backside as she maneuvered them into the bedroom. This amazing woman is going to be my wife. She said yes!
Unbelievable.
Before they had even crossed the threshold, Jay had managed to divest her lover of her top, and she was busy licking and biting her way down to taut nipples that begged for her attention.
Kate gasped as Jay found a particularly sensitive spot, barely managing to deposit her safely on the bed before losing track of what she was doing. Within seconds she had been shorn of the remainder of her clothing, and the blonde, who had somehow managed to strip herself as well, was in complete command, straddling her and taking her in a haze of pure lust.
As she was cresting, Kate’s last conscious desire was to carry her lover along with her and to be able to see her face as she came. She freed one arm, running her long, tapered fingers up the inside of a muscular thigh and entering Jay in one swift motion, knowing she was ready. With a cry, the two lovers came together, soaring into the atmosphere for several glorious moments as one.
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Two hours later they had ordered room service and were sitting at the dining room table, feeding each other a breakfast of scrambled eggs, bacon, toast, and home fries. “I’m really glad we decided to take the later flight, honey, even if it means we’re dragging our asses tomorrow,” Jay said.
“Yeah, that was good planning on our part. Now we can spend a couple of hours on the beach before we head out. Speaking of which, you about ready to hit the sand and surf?”
“Mmm-hmm, just need a little lotion on my back and I’ll be all set.”
“I think that can be arranged.” Kate winked at her and began massaging the sunblock onto her lightly tanned back. When she had finished she placed a small kiss on one shoulder and gently shoved her lover ahead of her out the door, grabbing two beach towels on the way.
They found that they still had the beach to themselves, most of the tourists preferring the pool or the shopping on St. Thomas to the heat of the sun and the beach. They sat on their towels side by side for a while, holding hands and watching the surf roll in and out.
“Want to go in the water?” Jay asked.
“Sure, why not.”
The blonde got up and moved to the water’s edge, her back to the beach and a stand of nearby trees and brush. Kate ran past her into the surf up to her knees, splashing her on the way by. Reaching down, Jay splashed a little return spray in her lover’s direction, which started a small water fight. The two played with each other, having fun like children.
Finally Kate got to within arm’s reach of her companion, facing her and wrapping her arms around her, effectively pinning Jay’s arms to her side and preventing her from further splashing. Just as Jay was about to protest, Kate leaned down and kissed her gently on the mouth, silencing her.
At that exact moment, hidden in the brush about 100 feet away, a man with a camouflage vest and shorts was busy taking photos of the women with a Nikon camera and a lengthy zoom lens. He couldn’t see anything of the shorter woman except her blonde head, her back, and a tiny bit of her profile, along with a nice view of her bikini-clad backside, but he had a clear shot of the dark-haired woman, who was his main concern. He snapped off a few shots in quick succession of the two women, clearly lovers, frolicking in the surf and kissing. Oh, he was going to get paid well for this.
This is my kind of assignment, he thought to himself. Follow a beautiful woman to an exotic island and ta
ke pictures of her without her knowing it. He leered. And to make it even better, it turns out she’s a 202
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lezzy and I’ve got the snaps to prove it. Yeah, it just doesn’t get any better than this, although I wish I could get a click of the blonde’s face; that might make it worth even more.
He briefly entertained the notion of staying around for a few more minutes to see if he could get a better shot, but thought better of it when the tall one paused and began looking around. After creeping quietly away, he headed directly for the airport and a flight back to Miami. Heh, he thought, the press photo didn’t do that bitch justice, she’s much better looking in person and in less clothing. He laughed as he considered that the images he had just captured of her would be splashed all over country in the gossip rag by Tuesday morning.
He had been distracted with other things when the editor from the National Enquirer had called telling him he had a job for him, but his ears had quickly perked up when he heard what the assignment was. He had shown up in the man’s office less than an hour later. The editor handed him a release from Time promoting the upcoming cover story on a new breed of journalist and naming Katherine Kyle as the subject; it was the kind of advance publicity major magazines put out all the time to increase the buzz about the next issue to hit newsstands. The magazine helpfully supplied a publicity photo of Kate and a little background about her.
The editor fixed the photographer with a meaningful stare. “Find this woman. No one knows anything about her except what they saw on CNN. Time is only interested in her professionally. I want to know the more...personal side to her.” He turned up his lips in what amounted to more of a snarl than a smile. “I don’t care what it costs, but I want the goods to go to print Monday and to hit the newsstands on Tuesday, got me?”
The freelance photographer agreed, getting to work right away. He was surprised at how easy it was to track his quarry to the Virgin Islands.
He had merely posed as a friend looking for her, and the helpful receptionist at WCAP-TV had been only too glad to tell him that she was on vacation in St. John; she even told him that it was the first vacation the anchorwoman had taken in the five years she had been at the station.
The fact that she had taken time off was the talk of the newsroom. He was most grateful for her help, and had hightailed it out of there and onto the next plane so that he could meet his deadline.
Kate paused for a second after the first gentle kiss at the water’s edge, and looked around, a troubled expression on her face.
“What’s the matter?”
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“I don’t know, I just...” The hair on the back of her neck was standing on end. “Nah, it’s silly.”
“No, go ahead, what is it?”
Kate didn’t want to alarm her lover. “I feel like we’re being watched; it’s nothing, I’m sure.” And, as quickly as the sensation had come, it passed. “We better get back, though, if we’re going to have time for a shower before the flight.” Leaning down once again, she brushed her lips against the soft ones below her, and the two women picked up their towels and headed off down the beach arm in arm toward the resort, home, and a new life together.
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CHAPTER SIXTEEN
hey were buckled into their seats on the flight from Miami to TNew York, Jay in the window seat and Kate, with her longer legs, comfortably sprawled in the aisle, having just taken off on the second leg of their journey home. “Kate?”
“Hmm?”
“Can we talk about the logistics now?” Jay was bubbling with enthusiasm.
“Sure.” The anchorwoman looked directly at her tanned lover, whose hair had lightened to platinum in the time they’d been away. She was positively radiant, and Kate’s admiration showed in her eyes. “I meant what I said, Jay. I will go anywhere and do anything to make this work.”
“I know you did, love, and I can’t tell you how much that means to me. I’ve already been giving this considerable thought.”
“Oh you have, have you?”
“Mmm-hmm.”
“And?”
“Okay, here’s the deal.” Jay turned to face her lover fully, her breath momentarily stilled by the sight of piercing blue eyes in a face more relaxed, deeply tanned and beautiful than she’d ever seen it. “Really, I can do what I do from anywhere, as long as I show up in the office for assignments and to meet with my editor when I’m supposed to, which is usually on Monday mornings. Other than that, I can write my stories anywhere I can take my word processor or a pad of paper and pen, if necessary, and do the interviews as I always do, wherever the story takes me, as long as I have access either to my car or major transportation like an airport or a train station. Given that Albany has all of those things, there’s no reason I couldn’t move in with you in your house.” At this point she paused shyly and looked at her lover. “Assuming that’s what you would want.”
Kate was speechless. She had never expected Jay to make that kind of offer. “You’d want to live in Albany? But what about your place?”
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“Well, I’ve thought about that, too. I think we should hold on to my place for now; it will be convenient to have a place in the city for those times when I absolutely have to be near the office or am doing a New York-based story, and the rent is reasonable, for New York anyway, and the location is good. As to whether or not I’d want to live in Albany, darling, wherever you are is home to me and where I want to be. Your house is gorgeous and far more of a home than my apartment could ever be, Fred will be much happier there, there’s plenty of space, I love what I’ve seen of the area so far, and besides, you need to be there every day.”
Jay shrugged as if to say, “It makes all the sense in the world, silly.”
“Huh. Seems to me like you’ve thought this out pretty thoroughly, Scoop.”
“Yep,” Jay said smugly.
More seriously Kate asked, “Are you sure? It’s a lot to ask...giving up your comfortable home and everyday life to fit into mine.”
Shimmering emerald eyes locked on cobalt blue. “I’ve never been more certain of anything in my life, love. What do you think?”
Kate’s smile was brilliant. “I think I love you more than anything in the world and nothing would make me happier than to share my home and my life with you. When do you want to move in?”
Jay laughed. “Tonight would be great. But since that doesn’t seem realistic, how about this: you stay with me tonight at my place, since we’ll already be getting in fairly late, and tomorrow I’ll drive you and the first load of my stuff to Albany before you have to get to work. I’ll stay with you tomorrow night, leave my car at your house since I don’t need it in New York, and take the train back to the city Tuesday morning to be in the office at 10:00 a.m., which was when Trish said I needed to be there.”
Kate shook her head in wonder. “Is there anything you haven’t thought of?”
“I’m sure there is, but I’ve got another,” she looked at her watch,
“three and a half hours to figure it out.”
Kate entwined her fingers with those of her partner, thrilled once again to note the ring on her finger as it sparkled back at the lovers.
“You’re amazing, have I told you that?”
Jay pretended to consider. “Probably, but feel free to tell me again anytime.”
“We could turn the third bedroom into an office for you, unless you’d prefer your office downstairs, in which case I could either give you mine or convert the library.”
“No, I love the library, and so do you. The third bedroom would be fine, it has a nice view of the backyard.”
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“I’ll have a second phone line installed for you, and we can even forward your phone in the city to that so the move will be transparent to anyone calling you, unless you want them to know you’ve relocate
d.
What do you think?”
“I think that’s a stroke of genius.”
“And the guest bedroom can be your room.”
Jay looked at her oddly.
“For your clothes and when you need space, goofy. I meant that there would be our room, and then you could have an additional room, okay?”
“Aha. I see. That’s more than generous, Kate.”
“What else would make you feel at home, love? Do you want to bring some of your furniture or anything?”
“No, I don’t think so. Can we shop together to outfit the office?”
“I’d love to. Anything you want, you shall have.”
“I want to be clear.” Jay fixed her with a stern look. “I intend to pay my equal share, nothing less.”
Kate scowled.
“I mean it, Stretch. Otherwise, no deal.”
The older woman was taken aback. “You can’t be serious.”
“Oh yes I can. Ours is a partnership, 50-50. I am more than capable of pulling my own weight. Anything less will make me uncomfortable.”
“Okay, but fair share, not necessarily equal share: we pay as a percentage in proportion to our income and assets.”
Jay started to protest.
“Ah, ah, that’s more than reasonable and as far as I’m willing to go.
Love, my living expenses are a lot higher than yours, and I won’t have you taking on the burden of paying for my lifestyle. I’ve got more than I need to cover my tab and more on my salary alone, and on top of that my parents made sure that I was well provided for. Please, you don’t know what it’s taking for me even to agree to let you do that.”