VIOLENCE WARNING/DISCLAIMER:

GENERAL DISCLAIMER:

This story is a prequel to Daredevil Hearts. It is better to read Lost Paradise before you start DDH. Comments can be sent here to WolfDragon.

THANKS:

I'd like to thank my Beta readers, Pat, Carole, Dawn and Trish. You guys really helped a lot. But I would like to thank a very special person. Her name is Cindy. Throughout this project and also with the Daredevil Hearts project, you have been a solid shoulder for me to lean on. Your help and great suggestions and ideas were and still are very precious to me. You're the best! J

Hope you enjoy the story as much as I had fun writing it!

By WolfDragon.

'One more store to go to and I'm done with shopping!' Alex told herself as she drove her car into the parking lot. She was doing last minute shopping for her two month trip that would lead her all over Africa. She smiled as she imagined life on location with a movie crew. 'What an adventure that will be!' She grinned to herself. 'Just like Nicole is about to live her own.' She added, thinking of her cousin moving to and living with the stuntwoman in Austria. After the party at Kris' place and knowing that Alex had only a few days remaining in Montreal, Kris had invited Alex to spend some time with them, wanting the two cousins to have as much time together as possible. It had been very thoughtful of Kris, especially since Nicole would be gone by the time Alex came back.

The rest of the week had gone by too fast, Alex sighed as she stepped out of her old, beat up Mercury Topaz and closed the door behind her. Trying to remember what else she needed to do before going back home, she missed the figure that was walking by who suddenly changed direction and was now heading directly for her. "I picked up Mom's stuff and Dad's suit from the dry cleaner's," Alex spoke to herself, going through her list of things to do, "Sophie asked me to…" she suddenly stopped as a large hand grabbed her arm and spun her around roughly. "What the fu…" she exclaimed in irritation. She looked up at whoever was grabbing her and felt the blood drain from her face as she looked into the enraged face of Nicole's father.

"Where is she?" McGrail growled, staring at his niece. "Where did you hide the little bitch?"

Alex quickly looked around and spotted a few people looking at them and she clenched her jaw, feeling braver by the fact that they weren't alone in the parking lot. There were too many people around for him to do anything. "First," she said, pulling her arm out of his grasp, "Don't you dare touch me. Second, I don't know a 'little bitch'." She spat and looked him straight in the eyes, "Only one tall bastard." Alex saw his jaw clench and his hand swung back, ready to strike her. "Don't you even think about it!" Alex warned. She knew that she couldn't do anything against the big man, especially if he decided to strike her, but at least it would give her a reason to strike back.

"You're the one who filled Nicole's head with crazy ideas, didn't you?" he said as he took a step closer to Alex. "She would have never left the house otherwise!"

"She left because you treated her badly!" Alex said as she clenched both hands. "If you would have been a good father, none of this would have happened."

"How dare you tell me how to raise my own daughter!" he screamed, causing a man walking by to stop and watch.

"You beat the hell out of her!!" she screamed back, feeling her body shake with anger. How she wanted to punch him in the face, 'Just once!' she wished. "Why don't you let her live her own life?"

McGrail saw that some people had started to gather around them and took a step back. "If that's what she wants to do, fine!" He told Alex but in his mind said, 'This is far from being over. She's coming back home with me.' He then made his way through the assembled crowd.

"Are you okay Miss?" A man asked gently, looking at the brunette's pale looking face.

Alex nodded and took a shaky breath. 'Wow! I can't believe I did that.' She told herself. 'Feisty little Amazon aren't you?' She smiled at the stranger and nodded again. "Thanks." Alex kept an eye open for her crazed uncle. She still had a few places to go to and the last thing she wanted was to see him again. 'Every family has a weird member I guess.' She thought.

McGrail stomped across the parking lot and entered the magazine store to buy some cigarettes. He grabbed the morning paper and absentmindedly scanned the front page. Seeing his niece this morning brought back the memories of the night when Nicole left. He guessed that Nicole had gone to his brother's house and was on his way there to bring her back when Robert showed up at his door. They had fought and he had suffered a humiliating defeat at the hands of his own brother. Robert didn't understand the importance of having Nicole back at the house. All he wanted to do was keep an eye on his own daughter until she would get married and give birth to a baby boy. That's all he ever wanted in life, a boy. He didn't care that the child wouldn't be his son, a grandson would do just fine.

A long time ago, he had been thrilled to find out that his wife was pregnant and was looking forward to be a father. He had made so many plans for his son. He already saw him as a hockey or baseball star. Had the college he was going to attend already picked out for him. But his wife had given birth to a girl, Nicole. He had been so disappointed. Girls were much more trouble than boys he told himself. He still had the hope that one day, his wife would give him another child and this time, he would get what he wanted.

He eventually got used to the child but it wasn't the same. Years went by still without the birth of a boy. His wife spent less time at home as he became more aggressive and one evening he decided to follow his wife. What he found angered him to the point of beating her senseless. All this time he thought she was having an affair with another man, but it had been with another woman. He followed for many days, watching as the two women spent time together, going to the movies, shopping or taking walks. What else could they have been but lovers? He had asked himself. No wonder his wife didn't give him another child, she was a damn lesbian! Everything had started going wrong when the women he had tried to pick up at the bar had laughed at him and now this, his own wife was doing the same. He thought about the girl child back at the house and could feel his blood boiling. The only thing she would cause him, once she was grown up, would be more trouble.

McGrail shook his head, trying to forget the bad memories and glanced at the other newspapers on the shelves. He picked up a copy of the Financial Post and as he was about to leave, his eyes fell on a magazine. He didn't recognize the dark-haired woman on the cover, but what caught his attention was the blonde woman standing in front of her. "It can't be!" he breathed as he picked up the magazine. The picture showed Nicole smiling up at the woman, her hand resting on the dark-haired woman's arm. The taller one was reaching for Nicole's cheek, the picture catching the movement in half motion. Looking to see where the article was, he quickly turned the pages and looked at the pictures.

The article was about an Austrian stuntwoman named Kristina Von Deering and her work at the Canadian Stunt School not too far away. He quickly scanned the article but no mention was made of Nicole. He paid for his newspapers and the magazine along with a pack of cigarettes before he walked out of the store. 'All this time I thought you were hiding at Robert's,' he spoke to himself. 'I bet you're with her!' He opened the magazine again and searched for the reporter's name. He glanced at the pictures and at the bottom was the photographer's name. 'Well, now I have two names I can contact. Thank you for telling me where the bitch works!'

******************************

Kris' rented house came into view as the stuntwoman took one last curb on the paved path and pushed herself a little more as she jogged towards it. When she had awoken this morning, Nicole was sound asleep. It was Alex's last evening in Montreal and the small party had lasted until early morning. Kris had wanted for her lover to sleep in and so she had gotten ready and quietly left the house to go run for a couple of hours. She slowed her pace a little and made her way towards the house where she then went through a last series of stretching exercises to cool off. Kris entered a still silent house and went to check on Nicole. She smiled as she saw the younger woman sprawled all over the bed still deep in sleep. Kris silently chuckled and shook her head. 'It's the weekend,' Kris told herself, 'Why don't I let her sleep for awhile?' And left her sleeping lover to take a quick shower. 'It's nice and sunny, I think I'll just relax and wash the Harley this morning.' Kris decided.

Kris had been washing and polishing her motorcycle for some time now. As much as she enjoyed Nicole's company, she appreciated the time she spent alone. It gave her the opportunity to do a lot of thinking. So many things needed to be done for Nicole's moving with her to Austria. She wanted for Nicole to be able to go to school in Innsbruck so she would learn the proper way to handle video cameras and studio work. At least, the job Nicole had right now gave her the chance to get a little practice. Kris smiled as she remembered listening to Nicole speak about her job as a VidCam assistant. Kris felt that the younger woman could become a very good camerawoman one day, if given half the chance. All Kris needed to do now was to get the legal papers that would allow Nicole to stay in Austria and not just as a tourist.

She couldn't believe that she had asked Nicole to come and live with her. She had always thought of herself as a very solitary person, actually liking the fact that she was mostly on her own. But Nicole had stirred something deep in her soul that asked, no, that demanded that they share their lives together. That was so out of character for Kris. But she smiled at the notion of having somebody in her house, especially somebody that loved her, waiting for her at the end of the day. It would take some getting used to, but Kris knew that it wouldn't take much work on her part to do so.

Still, some part of her was a little hesitant. She wanted Nicole to be sure of her decision. Kris didn't question her love for the smaller woman, but she couldn't help her dark and negative side questioning her actions. Did Nicole really love her as much as she loved the blonde woman? Was Nicole moving to Austria with her because she loved her or was it because she wanted to escape her father? Then she remembered a conversation she had some time ago when she asked Nicole to move in here with her. "Kris, I'm not asking to move in with you to run away from my father." Nicole had smiled at her. "I'm doing this because I want to be with you."

Nicole woke up and found herself alone in bed. Nicole knew that Kris had gone running, having seen the stuntwoman do that every single morning since they had lived together. But as she stretched her neck to look at the time, she noticed that it was close to noon. She got out of bed and went in the bathroom to brush her hair and teeth. Padding around the house, she saw that there were no signs of Kris anywhere. She looked out of the window at the lakeshore where she knew Kris often went to relax, but she wasn't there. 'Maybe she just decided to go for a ride on her motorcycle.' Nicole thought, but it wasn't Kris' habit to leave without telling her first or at least without leaving a note behind. She opened the door that lead to the garage and noticed that the garage door was opened and that the garden hose had been pulled to reach outside.

Kris stopped polishing her Harley, lost in her thoughts. She had been hurt by previous lovers, the only thing some of them had wanted was to be able to tap into her large bank account. 'But Nicole isn't like that,' Kris scolded herself. 'She was even embarrassed by all the things I bought her.' The only dark thought that remained in Kris' mind was how much did Nicole really love her? Of course, the smaller woman had often said that she did love her, but Kris also knew that she was Nicole's first love. Relationships were so nice and perfect when they started. But as the novelty wore off, things often changed. It sure happened to Kris and her own first love. The dark-haired woman prayed that it wouldn't happen again. She wasn't sure if she could survive another failed relationship, especially since Kris felt that this time she had found her soulmate.

Nicole silently made her way outside and stopped at the sight of her lover. Kris was barefoot, dressed in shorts and wore a torn, cut off sweatshirt, her hair done into one neat braid that went down her back. Kris' motorcycle was parked on the side of the driveway and she was sitting on the grass, a bucket of soapy water beside her and a rag in her hand. The dark-haired woman seemed lost in her thoughts. Kris just sat on the ground and was staring at the bike. Nicole wondered what her lover was thinking about. She started making her way towards Kris and saw her look up and smiled.

"Hi." Kris grinned. "I thought you would spend the rest of the day in bed." She teased the smaller woman.

"Well, if I had some company when I woke up, maybe I would've." Nicole grinned back. "Everything okay?" she asked, remembering Kris' deep frown from earlier.

"Oh yeah," Kris smiled, not wanting to worry Nicole by her dark musings. "What do you want to do today?"

Nicole thought about that for a moment. Something was bothering Kris and she didn't seem like she wanted to talk about it. Maybe it was something that happened at the school or something that had to do with her breeding program in Innsbruck. Either way, Nicole decided that she needed to do something to make Kris relax and have fun. She had looked so tense a couple of minutes ago. Nicole smiled as she spotted the garden hose on the ground and picked it up.

"I can help you wash your motorcycle," she grabbed the hose nozzle and was about to squeeze the trigger when she saw Kris quickly get up and point a finger at her warningly.

"You can hose down anything that you want but not the Harley." Kris said as she took a step away from the bike and toward Nicole.

"Hmmm," she thought for a minute then grinned. "Anything?" she asked her lover.

"Why don't you water down the plants over there." Kris asked Nicole as she pointed to the flowerbed. "Or if you really want to water something, we can always wash the Pathfinder."

"Or I can always water…" she started to say with an evil grin, "…you!" She aimed for Kris and squeezed the trigger, letting the jet of water hit the taller woman on the chest.

"Don't you…" Kris started to say and tried, unsuccessfully, to get out of Nicole's shot.

Nicole laughed as she saw Kris try to get out of the way and continued spraying her with the garden hose. She knew that Kris could easily run out of the water's reach, but what puzzled Nicole the most was that Kris had doubled back and was now standing beside the Harley. Nicole let the trigger go so she wouldn't hit the bike by mistake and felt her smile slowly fade as she watched, as if in a dream, Kris pick up the bucket of soapy water and throw the contents directly at her. The move had been so quick, Nicole never had the time to react.

Drenched like a tunnel rat, Kris had decided that two could play the same game and had quickly reached for the bucket and aimed for Nicole. Kris watched as the water hit the blonde woman square in the face. It happened so fast that Nicole didn't even try to get out of the way. She laughed as she saw Nicole drop the garden hose to push her soaked and soapy hair away from her face and grinned as she grabbed the hose and waited for Nicole to open her eyes.

'That was the last thing I thought she would do!' Nicole silently chuckled to herself as she spit a mouthful of water and brushed her hair back. "Okay, you got me good." Nicole admitted as she stuck her tongue out at the taste of soap in her mouth. She wiped her eyes one last time before opening them and saw Kris standing in front of her, garden hose in hand and a very evil grin on her face. "Huh, Kris?" she said as she slowly stepped back and away from the advancing stuntwoman. "We're even now…huh, you can put the hose down now…I, ah…Kris…" she warned as her lover shook her wet hair out of her eyes and smiled.

"But you're so soapy." Kris chuckled. "What you need is a good…rinse cycle!" With that, Kris lifted the hose and squeezed the trigger, soaking Nicole who tried her best to run away from Kris.

Sounds of laughter could be heard on the front lawn of the house as the two women ran after each other and then as they tried to wrestle the offending garden tool out of the other's grab. It was no use trying to run away, since both Kris and Nicole were drenched from head to toe. Miraculously, the Harley had stayed dry throughout this little water fight. After having put the motorcycle in the garage, Kris and Nicole had made their way to the back of the house and sat down on the grass to let the sun dry them a little.

"Now this is what I like to do." Nicole smiled as she rested her head against Kris' thigh and looked out at the passing sailboats on the lake.

Kris leaned her back against a tree and distractedly played with Nicole's wet hair. "You mean you like having wet clothes and getting chilled by the wind?" she teased.

"No silly!" Nicole laughed. "What I mean is doing nothing. Just relaxing with you like this."

"Yes," Kris smiled, "It is nice." She admitted. She was so used to working all the time that she had forgotten how it felt to just relax and do nothing.

"That's what I would like to do today." Nicole stated in a half serious voice. "Stay like this and enjoy the view."

"Hmm, that's an idea." Kris agreed. "But we could also go take a shower together and then once we're nice and dry come back here and then enjoy the view."

"Oh, I like your idea better." Nicole said as she quickly got up and pulled at Kris' hand. "Come on."

Kris smiled as she let the smaller woman pull her up from her sitting position and followed. Judging by the grin on Nicole's face, Kris was sure that it would be some time before they would step out of the shower and frankly, she didn't mind one bit.

******************************

The photographer couldn't believe his luck. So many pictures of the Austrian stuntwoman had been taken already that he was sure that he would make a very nice profit with them, especially the ones of Kristina and her little girlfriend. Now all he had to do was to find a buyer. He had contacted a lot of magazines, both American and European, a few had returned his calls saying they were interested but nothing was definite yet. He had spent some time watching the stuntwoman, but all she seemed to be doing was to wash her motorcycle. He was about to leave when the small blonde, Nicole he thought her name was, walked out of the house. That's when most of his pictures were taken. After the women's little water fight, Mark had seen that they were heading towards the back of the house and the lakeshore. He found a good spot on the beach to continue with the pictures. He had taken a few great ones, especially with the two of them leaning against each other and a few others of them kissing. All the photographer could see while taking the shots were dollar signs in his head. Without her knowledge, Kristina was going to make him a lot of money.

He watched as the two women suddenly stood up and walked back to get inside the house. Mark was getting ready to leave himself when his cell phone buzzed in his pocket. He took it out and flipped it open. "Yeah?"

"Mark Dunham?" A man's voice asked at the other end of the line.

"That's me. What can I do for you?" Mark asked as he put his two cameras in a black leather bag.

"I contacted the magazine you work for. They tell me you're also a freelance photographer." The voice said, then added, "Are you for hire Mr. Dunham? I can make it worth your while if you are."

'This is interesting,' Mark thought, "It depends on what you want me to do." He told the man, "Who is this?" the photographer asked.

"Your questions will be answered when we meet." The man replied in a low growl. "If you accept, there will be $1000.00 waiting for you when we meet. The rest will come with your delivery of the pictures." There was a moment of silence before the man continued speaking. "Then if I'm really pleased with your work, there's a fat bonus for you."

Mark silently listened as the man talked and wondered who he was and of who he wanted pictures taken of. The promise of a large amount of money was very tempting. "Okay," Mark said finally, "Where do you want to meet?" he asked.

The man gave him a rendezvous time and location and Mark was surprised to find that it was only a few blocks away from where he was standing right now. He closed his cell phone connection and smiled. 'One thousand dollars even before I start taking pictures! This man must be desperate!' The photographer looked at his watch and decided that he had enough time for a beer before he would meet his mysterious employer.

Not too far away, McGrail smiled as he hooked the receiver and stepped out of the public phone booth. 'My plan is now under way.' He said to himself with a chuckle. His plan was a simple one really. What he had planned to do was perform his repentant father act and get Nicole to believe him when he said that he was sorry and ask her to give him another chance. The plan would have worked beautifully if Nicole had lived alone. But he hadn't counted on the stuntwoman's friendship with Nicole and it had complicated things a little. If he could only drive a wedge between the two, he would have an easier time to influence Nicole and make her believe him.

'First things first,' McGrail thought, 'Get the photographer's money and then tell him what I want from him.'

******************************

Mark checked the time once again to make sure he wouldn't be late as he made his way toward the meeting place. The chosen area was a secluded spot some distance away from the bicycle path that stretched along the lake. The area was quiet enough for a private talk but busy enough if something happened. After all, he had no idea who the man he was going to meet was. 'But why would a serial killer hire a photographer?' Mark chuckled nervously as he sat on the park bench. 'This is starting to look like a bad X-Files episode.' He silently shook his head and then quickly looked up as a tall, strongly built man approached him. Mark swallowed nervously at the intense look on the man's face and put on the best, bored expression he could muster. 'No sense in looking too eager for this project.' The photographer nodded to the man as he sat down.

"Mr. Dunham?" McGrail asked and smiled when the man nodded. "I know your time must be valuable so I'll be brief. I need you to take pictures of two women. You took some already when you worked on that stunt school interview." He explained.

"You're talking about the stuntwoman Kristina Von Deering and her girlfriend?" Mark asked. He thought that he had seen the man's jaw tighten at the mention of the name but as he looked again, the man seemed very calm.

'Her girlfriend?' McGrail silently growled. 'How could Nicole do this to me?' He looked at the photographer and tried to keep his anger out of his voice. "That's them." He said. "What's the blonde's name again?" Deep down inside, he hoped that it wouldn't be his daughter. He didn't want to deal with another lesbian. His wife had been enough and he didn't want to add Nicole to the list. 'What's wrong with the women I come in contact with? Are they all goddamn dykes?'

The photographer tried to remember when he had met the stuntwoman and searched for a name. "Oh, I remember now." Mark exclaimed. "Kristina introduced her as Nicole. I don't think she ever mentioned a last name though." He watched as the man closed his eyes for a moment then took a deep breath. When he opened them again, Mark was staring into hard, hazel eyes. For a second, he thought about refusing the contract, wanting to have nothing to do with the strange man, but the promise of a lot of money made him decide otherwise. "They share a house a few blocks away from here. I took some great shots of them this morning. I could always sell you a few if you want some."

'They're just a few streets away from me?' McGrail could feel his temper start to rise, but the last thing he wanted to do was scare the photographer away. "Yes, I know where they live." McGrail lied, doing his best to stay calm. "But the pictures I want are specific shots. Are you interested?"

"Yes, I am. What do you want from me?" Mark asked.

'What do I want from you?' McGrail silently said, 'What I want is to find a way to keep that bitch away from my daughter.' He looked at the photographer and handed him an envelope. "This is for you then."

Mark took the yellow envelope and looked inside. A large amount of money was there and so was a slip of paper. He took it out and looked at it. What it said was the amount of the cash inside, what would be given to him for the pictures and the amount of the bonus if the job was more than satisfactory. Mark let go of his breath as he realized the money he would be making out of this project.

"What I want is no questions asked." McGrail said and waited until the photographer nodded. "I want the best compromising pictures you can take of the stuntwoman. Leave her…girlfriend," he almost spat, "…out of it. I want the Austrian. Take pictures of her with men or other women, I don't care. I want them to look like she's got another lover. You got that?"

Mark nodded quietly. As much as he wanted to know what the pictures would be used for, for some reason he didn't want to make the man angry. There was a lot of money to be made and he didn't want to screw this up. "I got it." Mark replied.

"Good." McGrail said as he stood up. "I'll contact you again to check on your progress." He turned then stopped. Tilting his head slightly, he stared at the photographer. "One piece of advice." He warned, "Don't try to screw me over. I could make your life a living hell." He watched the younger man swallow nervously and then left him still sitting on the bench.

'What did I get myself into?' Mark asked himself and then looked down at the envelope he was holding. "But there's so much money to be made here." He smiled and stood up. His girlfriend wasn't the only one able to get shady deals anymore. "Just wait until she sees what I'll get for a couple of lousy pictures!" he laughed as he made his way towards his car.

******************************

The drive back from work had been a quiet one. Kris spent most of the time lost in thought, thinking back to the incident at the stunt school and the student that had almost caused another to get seriously injured. She didn't mind teaching people the art of performing stunts, but she didn't have any patience with thrill seekers. That student had proved to be trouble since the very first day at the school. He had little regard if any for security procedures and never listened to the instructions given to him. All he wanted to do was to throw himself off the towers or drive cars at breakneck speeds. Kris had yelled at him when he did a maneuver on the driving range the wrong way and had caused the car he was driving to rollover and barely miss other students who were watching. The car had been totaled and one student had been lightly injured by a flying piece of metal.

Kris lost her temper when the student had gotten out of the car and had laughed at her when she reprimanded him. It took a couple of men to keep Kris away from the student so she wouldn't hit him. After she had a long talk with the school's director, Marcus had agreed to give the student his money back and had expelled him from the school. Performing stunts was a serious business and Kris didn't want to deal with people who didn't want to do the job safely.

The rest of the day had gotten worst by the hour. Not only was there a leftover tension at the school after the incident, but Marcus had agreed to test some new equipment and that would only mean long extra hours after a hard day of teaching. Her cell phone rang, causing Kris to break out of her reverie. She flipped the phone open and gruffly answered. "Yes?" She listened silently for awhile then replied in her native tongue.

Nicole looked at Kris while she was speaking on the phone. She couldn't understand what was being said, but it looked like trouble judging from Kris' facial expression. Her lover had been unusually quiet ever since she picked her up at the studios. A hello with a quick kiss had been the only thing Kris had done for the past half-hour. Nicole felt that Kris needed some quiet time and so had left her to her thoughts. Something that sounded like a curse came out of Kris' mouth and Nicole watched as the dark-haired woman's jaw muscle tightened. A few more words were said before Kris closed the connection and dropped the cell phone on the dashboard.

Nicole had seen Kris this way twice before and the only thing she could do was to keep out of her way. "Kris?" Nicole asked softly.

"Hmm?" Kris replied absentmindedly.

"Why don't you take a nap once we get home. I could wake you up once dinner is ready." She offered. For a minute, she thought that either Kris didn't hear her or that she wouldn't reply, but then she heard Kris sigh and received a small smile. She looked so tired, Nicole thought.

"I'm sorry." Kris said as she lightly squeezed Nicole's thigh. "It's been a bad day and the phone call didn't help any."

"Is there anything I can do? Nicole offered.

"Not really. Thanks for offering though." Kris turned her attention back on the road. "I need to get online as soon as we get home. There's a very important buyer interested in doing business with the Arabian stable, but he's also very difficult. Nobody wants to risk losing the contract and so I decided that I would take care of it personally." She explained.

"Will you be working late tonight?" Nicole asked as Kris guided the Pathfinder in the driveway and shut the motor off.

Kris let her head lean back against the headrest and closed her eyes briefly. "I think so." She sighed. "I'll also be working late at the school. Marcus wants us to test some new equipment. I'm afraid we'll have to drive separately to work this week." Kris said as she looked at Nicole with a sad smile. "You can take the Pathfinder if you want, I'll ride the Harley to school."

They got out of the vehicle and walked into the house. "I don't like driving that big thing. I can take the bus to go to work, I've done it for a long time. I can take care of myself, I'm a big girl you know." Nicole grinned but saw a quick flash of hurt on Kris' face before it was replaced with a smile. "I'll get the dinner started." Nicole said, wondering if she had said something wrong or if something else was going on.

"Do you mind if I eat later? I'd like to start working as soon as possible." Kris asked with a small smile. She watched as Nicole shook her head and left to go into the kitchen. Kris sighed and went to the office to try and get as much work done as possible. She would make it up to Nicole later, Kris promised herself as she booted her laptop and linked into her stable's computer in Innsbruck.  

After making dinner, Nicole had tried to get Kris to eat something but she had shook her head and continued working. Nicole ate alone, sitting in front of the TV. She knew that once Kris started working, she would only stop when everything was done, or if it was too late she'd just go to bed. Feeling a little bored, Nicole decided to go for a walk along the lake and informed Kris of her decision so she wouldn't worry.

She had been slowly walking for at least half an hour when Nicole realized that she was near where her father lived. She remembered that this was the spot he often came to when he had some thinking to do. A sudden pang of fear gripped her heart at the possibility of meeting him and she turned around to go back home.

There, standing ten feet away from her, was Nicole's father. The man looked calm and he even smiled a little, which confused Nicole. It wasn't a smile that said he was about to do something but more importantly, it said that he seemed happy to see her. He made no move to get closer to Nicole. Both of his hands were in his pants pocket and he cocked his head as he looked back at her.

"Hello Nickie." McGrail said softly. "How have you been?"

Nicole didn't know what to do. She wanted to run but on the other hand, her father seemed to be genuinely happy to see her. "I'm fine." She replied cautiously.

"Listen, I know that I did bad things," he started as he moved towards her but stopped, seeing Nicole take a step back. "But I wanted you to know that I'm getting help." McGrail said as he briefly looked down and sighed. His eyes found her daughter's again and he gave her a small smile. "I know that I can't ask you to trust me right now, not after everything I've done to you, but I'd like it if you could find it in your heart to give me a second chance."

Nicole couldn't believe it. It sounded too good to be true. Part of her was screaming to run away, that this was just a trick, but another part was hoping that it was true, that he was really getting help. She always loved her father, even with his bad temper and the beatings she had received occasionally. He was the only direct family she had. She always hoped that they could go back to the happy family life they had so many years ago. It would be nice to be able to make peace with her father before leaving to start a new life in Austria with Kris.

"I'm not asking you to meet me at the house." McGrail continued. "We could talk here in the park where there's a lot of people. I don't want you to be afraid of me anymore, Nickie."

Nicole nodded and gave him a small smile. "I'd like that very much." She said softly.

McGrail smiled. "Good. How about meeting here, tomorrow? Same time?"

Nicole took a deep breath and let it go slowly. She was nervous about meeting him but if he really was making an effort to control his temper, she could at least listen to him. "That would be good."

"Okay then. See you tomorrow." He said softly. "Thanks for giving me a chance." He turned and started walking away, leaving a stunned Nicole behind. McGrail smirked as he thought of his naïve daughter. 'You were always so easy to manipulate. A couple more meetings like this and I'll have you eating out of my hand.'

Nicole watched her father go. He looked sincere enough. What harm was there in meeting him in a public place? Nicole decided to give him a chance. If things didn't work out, at least she could tell herself that she tried. 'The only thing I have to do now is not say anything to Kris. She's got enough problems already without having her worry about me.' Nicole made her way back home, lost in thought. She had to find a way to get out of the house without Kris knowing about her meetings with her father, then she remembered that Kris would be working late at the school. With this in mind, Nicole smiled at the possibility of having a more normal relationship with her father.

******************************

A new routine was established as Nicole started taking long walks alone after dinner and always ended up meeting with her father. It had been several days already and Nicole was happy to see that her father had really started to change. Not once had he raised his voice at her or gotten upset. They had talked about everything from her new job to the latest events happening in the world today. Surprisingly, he hadn't asked where she lived or if she had anybody in her life. Nicole wasn't sure if she could have talked about her life with Kris, certain that he wouldn't understand what she was doing.

There was also somebody else who wouldn't understand and that was Kris. Nicole wanted so much to tell her lover about her father and the fact that he was doing his best to change, but she was afraid of Kris' reaction. Kris never hid the fact that she despised her father. She had even heard Kris talk to Robert when she told him that she would hit him if he ever touched her again. Nicole felt bad about keeping something from Kris, but right now, it was the only thing she could do. She didn't want to ruin the progress she had made with her father and having Kris hovering behind her like a bodyguard was the last thing she wanted.

Early on in the week, Nicole had thought that Kris knew about her father. She had come home one day with Kris asking where she had been. There had been a moment of panic from Nicole before Kris added that she had called a couple of times but nobody was home. Nicole had smiled and explained that when she had taken a walk after dinner on Monday, it had been very relaxing and she wanted to continue walking, especially since Kris was going to work late.

Both McGrail and Nicole were sitting on a bench facing the lake, each lost in their own thoughts. It was a comfortable silence and Nicole used that time to figure out how she was going to tell her father that she was soon going to leave for Austria. She needed to reassure the part of her that still believed her father was still a violent man and would never change. The only way she could prove to herself that he had changed was to provoke him. Nicole could have chosen to tell him about Kris but she had decided to let him know about her leaving the country instead. She braced herself for any kind of reaction as she talked about her decision.

It had taken every bit of control he had not to blow up in Nicole's face. McGrail was sure that the stuntwoman was responsible for Nicole's decision, even though she never even mentioned the dark-haired woman. He took a couple of breaths as he kept staring out at the lake, trying to calm his raising temper. McGrail had thought he had plenty of time to win Nicole back, but now he needed to get his plan moving faster. He looked at Nicole and gave her a sad smile. "Why do you want to move? Aren't you happy here?" he asked softly. He saw Nicole relax visibly and snickered at the fact that she was so easily fooled. He knew that she now believed him when he told her that he was doing his best to change. 'Stupid girl!' he thought.

Nicole had taken a gamble and won. She had expected her father to react the same way he had when she told him that she was moving out of the house that fateful evening, but to her surprise, her father had stayed calm. He even looked sad about her leaving. "It's not that I'm not happy here, but I have a chance to travel and see the world. I've always wanted to do that." Nicole explained. Her father nodded and smiled. They continued talking for some time and then, after wishing each other a good night, went their separate ways.

******************************

Sitting behind the wheel of the Pathfinder, Kris rubbed her eyes again as she waited for the light to turn green. It had been another long day at the school and she was looking forward to spending the evening and weekend with Nicole. The past week had been a little strained between the two of them and she knew that it was mostly her fault, but all the hours spent online with the stable in Innsbruck and the many conversations on the phone with the potential client had paid off. Kris had a new buyer and she had succeeded in convincing the man to sign a contract. Not only would the new client bring in a lot of money, but it would also make Kris' breeding program better known on the international market.

Once home, Kris went to the kitchen and put the grocery bag on the counter then went to the livingroom and let herself drop onto the sofa and closed her eyes. The house was silent and seemed so empty without Nicole. She was glad that her lover had started taking walks everyday, but she wished that she had been able to join her once in a while. Nicole had seemed so distant this week and Kris wondered if something was bothering her. For a fleeting moment, Kris thought back to her ex-lover and she couldn't help but think that their breakup had begun the same way. Kris shook her head. 'If something's bothering her, she'll tell me…Right?' she asked herself. She just hoped that her lover wasn't getting tired of their relationship. 'Maybe Nicole just needs to spend time alone.' Kris told herself. They had been together ever since they met, it was only normal to have a need to do things on her own. Everybody needed to be alone once in a while, including herself, but now she wished that Nicole was home.

Kris stood up and went back to the kitchen. As usual, the room was spotless and everything was neatly put away. She opened the door and stepped out onto the deck and lit the barbecue. Kris never bothered to do much cooking. Her housekeeper in Austria, Oma, did most of it when she was home. Otherwise, Kris usually ate in a restaurant. It was much simpler that way. But once in a while, Kris would prepare something when she felt like it. Today was one of those times.

She started preparing the dinner, taking the two steaks she had bought out of their wrappings, and prepared some potatoes for cooking. Earlier, Kris had called the studios where Nicole was working and had left a message for her to call back. Wanting to give Nicole a break from cooking, even though Kris knew that her lover absolutely loved to cook, she had told Nicole that she would take care of it tonight. Nicole had seemed a little hesitant at hearing the news and Kris remembered the conversation that had followed.

Kris stopped cutting the vegetables and took a deep breath as she closed her eyes. A common accusation came crashing back to her, sounding so real in her head that Kris almost turned around to see who was saying it. 'You're never home, you're always working. Don't you see what it's doing to us? Don't you care anymore?' the voice said. Kris shook her head as she tightened her jaw. She had heard that accusation before, uttered by another frustrated lover. But it hadn't been from Nicole…yet.

"No!" Kris muttered. "I won't let work destroy another relationship," she said as she clenched her hands. She had been working late all week, which can happen sometimes, Kris rationalized, but she knew her working habits and realized that once she got back into the routine, no relationship could survive her long work schedule. Kris could see the signs already. Nicole was distant and seemed quieter than usual. The walks that Nicole had started took longer everyday and she had stopped asking what they were going to do in the evenings.

There was no way that Kris would let anything come between them. She loved Nicole with all her heart and soul and she would do anything within her power to keep it that way. 'Unless Nicole gets tired of you and leaves like everybody else did before her,' a voice said inside of her. "NO!" Kris yelled as she hit the table with her fists. "Nicole isn't that way!" she said as she let herself drop into a kitchen chair. 'She might find somebody else,' the voice continued taunting Kris. 'Or you might scare her away with your temper. You're just like her father.' The voice accused. "No, I would never hurt Nicole." Kris told herself then looked at her hands that were still on the table, tightly made into fists. "Oh Gods!" she whispered. "I'd leave before I do anything to her." Her voice choked.

The sound of a door opening made Kris stand up again and she gruffly scrubbed her face. As much as she was in complete command of her professional life, she hated being so insecure with her personal one. 'I should give Nicole more credit. If something's wrong, I know she'll tell me.' Kris nodded to herself as she continued preparing the dinner.

"Hi!" Nicole said cheerfully as she walked up to Kris and wrapped her arms around her lover's waist, giving her a hug. "I missed ya!"

Kris smiled and hugged her back. "I missed you too." 'Does she sound like she's tired or scared of me?' Kris silently asked. 'I don't think so.'

"Need any help?" Nicole asked as she washed her hands.

"Sure." Kris replied. "Why don't you continue with the veggies while I start cooking the steaks?" She smiled as Nicole winked at her and took the knife away from her hand.

"Shoo!" Nicole grinned. "Out of my kitchen," she said as she gently pushed Kris towards the door.

"Okay! Okay!" she laughed and grabbed the meat before walking outside.

******************************

After dinner, Kris and Nicole went for a walk along the lake. The sun was slowly setting and the crowd was getting smaller as darkness fell. The evening had been fun, Kris thought. Both of them were relaxed and Nicole was back to her chatting self once again. Whatever had bothered her younger friend this week seemed to have been pushed to the back of her mind now. Kris couldn't help but feel that she was part of the reason of why Nicole had been so quiet this week. She was certain that the long hours at school and more hours spent in front of the computer at home had something to do with it.

Having shoved both hands into her jeans pockets, Kris absentmindedly played with the loose change. She had to make a decision. There were still a couple of days of work left to do at the school before the project could be finished. After that, she would work her normal teaching hours and then come home right after. The last thing she wanted to do was to ruin the beautiful friendship she had with Nicole. Kris silently nodded as she made up her mind.

"Nick?" Kris asked softly after having walked in silence for a couple of minutes.

"Hmm?" Nicole replied, looking up at Kris and smiled.

"I know that I've been working a lot this week." Kris started, looking more at her feet than at her companion, "I still have a couple of days left to do but…" she stopped walking and looked out at the lake where the last traces of the setting sun could be seen. "I promise that after this project, we'll get back to our routine. I'll drive you to work and we'll both come back at the same time. No more overtime at the school."

Nicole smiled and wrapped her hand around Kris' forearm and gave her a little squeeze. "I understand about your work Kris. But it'll be nice to be able to spend more time together." She replied honestly. "It's been some time since we did anything together." Nicole watched as Kris pulled her right hand out of her pocket and rested her arm across her shoulders, bringing Nicole closer to her.

"That's true." Kris agreed, trying to keep the guilt she was feeling out of her voice. She felt Nicole's hand slowly reach across her back to end up at her waist, her thumb hooked on Kris' belt. The dark-haired woman took a deep breath and smiled at Nicole. "Tomorrow's your day." Kris stated, "Where would you like to go?"

"Kris, I didn't say that because…" a long finger made her stop talking. Nicole looked up at her smiling lover and the next thing she knew Kris was softly kissing her. She closed her eyes and felt her knees go weak, letting a soft moan escape her lips. No matter how many times they had kissed since they had met, Nicole couldn't get enough of the feel of Kris' soft and full lips against hers. She sighed as the contact was broken and opened her eyes to see a smiling Kris looking at her.

"Where…" Kris asked again as she softly kissed Nicole's forehead, "…would you…" a kiss on a cheek, "…like…" the other cheek, "…to go?" Kris finished as she kissed Nicole's nose.

"You mean besides staying in bed with you?" Nicole blurted out breathless, causing Kris to laugh.

"We can work on that as soon as we get home," Kris whispered seductively in Nicole's ear. "I have one last phone call to make to the stables in Innsbruck tonight and then I'm all yours."

Nicole was glad for the darkness as it hid the blush that was slowly crawling up her neck and cheek. Kris was such a seductress, Nicole smiled and then froze as images from the Cancun airport of the journalists and their questions concerning Kris' lovers came crashing back to her. It was true that with Kris being such a beautiful woman, she didn't have any trouble in finding lovers. A jolt of lack of confidence hit Nicole as she briefly asked herself what Kris saw in her to want to have her move to Austria and live there. Nicole shook her head, trying to get rid of those thoughts and looked up at Kris who was looking back at her. She seemed to be waiting for an answer.

"I'm sorry, " Nicole said softly, silently cursing her lack of confidence and doubt. "I was just thinking," she replied, then remembered Kris' previous question, hoping that they were still on the same subject about what they were going to do tomorrow. She smiled at Kris and took a chance. "Horseback riding," she said simply. She knew that horses were a very important part of Kris' life and since she was going to live near dozens of horses, it might be a very good thing to learn how to ride.

"But you once told me that you never rode a horse before." Kris said softly. "Are you sure?"

Nicole smiled and nodded. "Yep. I couldn't ask for a better teacher than you." She grinned. "How about it? I really want to learn and I know you love horses so…" Nicole trailed, waiting for Kris' reaction.

Kris thought about that for a moment and when she saw the grin on her lover's face, she couldn't help but laugh. "Okay," Kris agreed, "You got it."

"Cool!" Nicole exclaimed and hugged Kris. "That'll be so much fun."

"Come on," Kris chuckled. "Let's go home." She said as they both turned around and walked back to the house.

******************************

After a phone call to one of the instructors at the stunt school, Kris had decided to go to the ranch that had been recommended by him. The center was only two hours away from Montreal and in the mountains. After they had gotten dressed and had a hearty breakfast, Kris and Nicole climbed aboard the Pathfinder and were soon underway.

The morning was still cloudy, but Nicole was happy to see that it finally stopped raining. Last night's storm had put a damper on her excitement at knowing that maybe they couldn't go horseback riding because of it. Kris had softly told her to just wait and see and had brought her closer, letting Nicole cuddle into her favorite spot, letting her head rest just underneath Kris' chin.

Kris was a little nervous about teaching Nicole to ride a horse. She had seen so many accidents with experienced riders, she shuddered at the thought that something could happen to her lover. 'If only we were at my own ranch,' Kris thought as she guided the Pathfinder along the gravel road. 'I would know exactly which horse to give her for her first time.' The stunt instructor had assured Kris that the young man they would have was a good guide but her main concern was to make sure that Nicole would get a very tame and calm horse.

Closing the vehicle's door behind her, Kris looked around the center and silently nodded her approval. The place looked well kept and the horses that were outside looked healthy and well taken care of. A young man, about Nicole's age, walked up to them with a smile. He was dressed in faded blue jeans with tan chaps, a beige flannel shirt, brown cowboy boots and a black, beat-up cowboy hat.

"Hi!" he said cheerfully as he extended his hand. "My name's Tommy. You must be Kristina and Nicole, right?" he asked as he shook their hands.

Kris silently nodded and Nicole smiled back at the young man. "That's us." She said and looked around at the different horses tied to the gate. "Wow, they're so big!" Nicole said as she looked at a grey mare that another guide was walking out of the stable. There was a group of tourists nearby that had already arrived and were waiting to see their mounts. "Are we going with them?" Nicole asked the guide.

"No. Uncle Dan told me to give you a private ride. He said that you would appreciate the peace and quiet." Tommy smiled as he looked at Kris. "Big groups like that can be very noisy sometimes."

"Dan's your uncle?" Kris asked surprised.

"Yep. He's the owner." Tommy stated as he started walking towards the stable. "Come with me. I'll get you your horses, okay?"

Seeing that Nicole was occupied with brushing the nose of a saddled horse, Kris took two long steps and was quickly beside the young man. "Listen, I'd like for you to give Nicole the most tame horse you have. She's never ridden before."

"Oh don't worry," Tommy smiled. "They're all very nice and well behaved." He suddenly stopped walking as a hand grabbed his arm in a solid lock. He looked up at the serious expression on Kris' face.

"I'm serious." Kris said, not letting Tommy go. "I want a tame horse for her."

Tommy swallowed nervously as he stared into the woman's icy blue eyes. He slowly nodded and gave her a nervous smile. "Of course. No problem," he said, looking from Nicole, who was still petting the horse, to the tall woman standing in front of him. 'Damn she's tall!' Tommy silently said as he had to crane his neck to look up at Kris. She was at least eight inches taller than he was and that glare was enough to scare anybody.

Having made her point, Kris gave him a little smile and stepped back as Nicole walked towards them. Kris couldn't shake the weird feeling she had that something would happen. She only wished that they had done something else instead of going horseback riding. The only thing she could do was to keep an eye on Nicole and be close to her in case something happened.

The horse that was chosen for Nicole was a golden, nine year old Palomino. Keeping an eye on the mare as she was brought out of the stable, Kris walked up to her and patted the horse, letting her expertise take over in assessing the animal. Satisfied as best she could be that the mare was a tame one, Kris smiled at Nicole as she handed the horse's reigns to her. The next horse to be brought out was Kris'. It was a beautiful chestnut Morgan, nearly fifteen hands tall.

Tommy guided the horse towards Kris and shyly smiled. "Uncle Dan told me you were an expert rider and said you'd appreciate riding Artemis."

"I never tried a Morgan." Kris said as she looked at the horse. "She's a beauty." She smiled at Tommy who beamed back at her.

"What's my horse's name?" Nicole piped in as she softly scratched the mare's jaw.

"That's Gabrielle." Tommy smiled at Nicole. "Her mane almost matches yours." He grinned and laughed as he saw Nicole blush a little. "But your hair is much nicer."

Kris chose this moment to step next to Tommy and gave him a 'back off' glare. He quickly looked away from Nicole and started making a last minute check on his own horse's saddle. She watched him a couple of seconds longer and after having tied her horse to the fence, went to perform a check on Nicole's saddle. Kris made sure that everything was set properly, and looked at Nicole who was grinning at her. "What?"

"That was so cute." Nicole giggled. "The poor guy was only making small talk you know." She said as she patted Kris' arm.

"Well, I didn't like the way he was looking at you." Kris replied, trying to keep the sharp edge out of her voice. 'What's the matter with me?' Kris asked herself. 'He was only being nice.' She looked at Nicole and shyly smiled. "I just…I don't…" she stammered.

"It's okay." Nicole smiled and reached up to give Kris a quick kiss. "If anybody gets too fresh with me, I'll let you know, okay?" Nicole patted Kris' arm again when her lover nodded. "Now, what do I have to do to get on this thing?" she asked nobody in particular.

Tommy was about to answer but quickly stopped at the look Kris gave him. He shrugged and turned back to his own horse and waited until the dark-haired woman finished explaining the basics of horseback riding. He sat on his horse and silently listened to Kris. 'She definitely knows her stuff,' Tommy decided after Kris had explained everything to Nicole and watched as she expertly sat on the Morgan. For once he wasn't dealing with weekend cowboys he grinned to himself. That was the term he used for riders that had absolutely no skills when dealing with horses but always claimed the contrary. It would be a very pleasant ride. "Everybody ready?" he asked. He received a silent nod from Kris and a big smile from Nicole. "Okay, here we go."

They made their way into the forest, going single file with Tommy leading the way on his Appaloosa, Nicole in the middle and Kris bringing up the rear. Tommy's dog, a small terrier named Buddy, followed excitedly, running beside the horses and going outside the trail and into the forest once in a while to chase after a creature or something.

The sun had finally come out and the smell of the horses, mixed with that of the wet vegetation and earth brought memories to Kris' mind. She closed her eyes and let her body relax with the sounds of nature. Kris couldn't figure out where the memories came from. Maybe it had been a dream she once had, but it felt so real to her. Kris remembered only one horse though and she could almost feel the heat and smell the smoke coming from a cooking fire as she sat quietly nearby and did something. Kris frowned as she tried to remember what she was doing and frowned even more as the image of her sharpening a sword came rushing back to her. Kris opened her eyes and blinked at the memory. 'Now that was weird.' She silently told herself. 'I've never sat at a fire like that, especially not while sharpening a sword!' She shrugged, thinking that it might have been a flashback from a small movie scene she had once worked on. Kris hurried her horse to close up the gap between Nicole and herself.

Hearing a fast trot behind her, Nicole turned her head around and saw Kris quickly approaching them. "Everything okay?" Nicole inquired catching Kris' frown. Her lover nodded and smiled. "This is so much fun Kris," she said excitedly as Kris brought her horse beside her. "I thought that it would be harder than this. It's just like sitting on a chair."

"Huh huh," Kris grinned, "Except your chair can't throw you off if something happens." She said, ducking her head as she passed under a tree branch. The trail was beginning to widen and Kris started to relax a little bit. Nicole seemed to be enjoying herself and so far, everything was going well.

"So far, so good?" Tommy asked from up front.

"Oh yeah!" Nicole laughed. "It's great!"

"How about if we do a little trotting?" he asked Nicole but was clearly looking at Kris. Seeing that the dark-haired woman was looking at Nicole, he waited for an answer from either one of them. He spotted Buddy running out of the forest and into the trail, zigzagging in front of Tommy.

"Do you feel comfortable enough for that?" Kris was asking.

"Huh," Nicole hesitated for a bit. "Will you show me how?" she asked Kris then smiled when her lover winked at her. She listened intently as Kris went through the motions, explaining the proper way to ride the horse so the back wouldn't get too sore. After a few minutes of instructions, Nicole finally nodded, ready to try what she had just learned. She smiled at Kris and then looked at Tommy who was waiting patiently and nodded. "Let's try it."

"Okay! Let's go." Tommy smiled back and started the horse trotting. Either Kris was very protective, he thought or she didn't have enough confidence in the young blonde, but Nicole was doing very well so far. Much better than some of the first timers that came to the center. Tommy smiled and decided that Kristina was just being protective of her friend. He looked back and saw that Nicole was following him with very little trouble. "Just relax Nicole. Follow the horse's pace like Kris showed you." He instructed and saw that Nicole was a fast learner. He waited for a little longer until the young woman got the hang of trotting and nodded approvingly. "That's very good."

"I'm gonna have a sore butt tomorrow!" Nicole said as she concentrated on her movements. Trotting looked much easier than it actually was she mused. "But I think I've had enough."

"You did great Nick." Kris said proudly. "All you need now is practice. That way, you won't get too sore." She grinned.

"Thanks." Nicole beamed at the sudden compliment. "I have a very good teacher."

They were coming up to an even wider section of the trail now and Tommy stopped his horse and waited until Nicole walked hers right beside him. The area was clear of low branches and the trees were cut far away from both sides of the trail. "How is it going so far?" Tommy asked Nicole.

"I love it! I never thought it could be so much fun." Nicole said as she looked back at Kris. She seemed to be busy with a piece of equipment.

Something had been bothering Kris since they had left the stable and she used the time to adjust her right stirrup. She couldn't get a good fix on it. Either it was too high or too low. "No wonder so many people are fussy about having their own saddles." Kris mumbled to herself.  

"Well," Tommy started as he got a good grip on his reigns, "Since you're doing so well, how about we do some galloping, okay?" he said to Nicole then quickly glanced at Kris.

"Huh," Nicole hesitated a moment then grinned at him. "Yeah, that would be fun!"

"I don't think so." Kris said from behind them. "Why don't you take it slow Nick."

"Ah, come on Kris," Nicole smiled as she looked back at her partner, "It's been going great so far, I'd like to try this."

"But I don't know how this horse will react." Kris said as she indicated Nicole's mount. "I'd much prefer if you'd try it with a horse I know better."

"I assure you that this mare is one of the tamest we have Kris." Tommy explained. "She's even trained to obey by whistles."

"Kris," Nicole pleaded, "Just once?"

"I don't know." Kris said but she could feel her resolve slowly melting under the look Nicole was giving her. How could she resist those emerald eyes blinking at her. "Oh, all right!" Kris gave up at Nicole's puppy dog look then turned to look at a smiling Tommy. "We'll take it slow okay?"

"Yes ma'am!" The young guide replied.

Kris did exactly what she had done with Nicole previously before getting the horses into a trot and explained the proper way of settling on the horse in order to gallop. Kris bit a smile back as she saw the serious look on Nicole's face. Her companion was intently listening to every bit of information given to her.

"Just remember that whatever happens," Kris said as she finished her impromptu lesson, "Don't let go of the reigns. That way your horse won't trip over them and won't send you flying over its head."

"And if it makes you feel better," Tommy joined in, "You can always hang on to the saddle horn. You ready?" He asked Nicole with a smile.

"Oh yeah!" she replied as she held the leather straps tighter in her hands.

"Okay let's go." Tommy said as he put the horse into an easy canter.

They went this way for some time with both Kris and Tommy keeping an eye on Nicole. The young woman seemed to enjoy herself as her laughter sounded in the forest.

"Everything okay?" The guide asked Nicole

"It's great!" Nicole replied, smiling from ear to ear.

"How about if we go a little faster?"

"Huh, okay." Nicole said, feeling her heart start beating at a furious pace against her chest.

"Nick, I don't think…" Kris started.

"Okay! Let's do it.YEAH!" Tommy yelled as he got his horse gallop.

"NO! Wait…" Kris started to yell but wasn't quick enough in stopping Tommy. She watched helplessly as Nicole's horse was spooked by Tommy's sudden yell and she started running after the Appaloosa. Cursing under her breath, Kris got her horse in a fast gallop and ran after Nicole trying to reach her before anything happened.

Nicole hung on for dear life as her horse bolted and quickly went past Tommy's. She hadn't done anything to get the horse running this way and had no idea how to stop it. She could see the trees flashing by as the horse ran down the trail. She remembered what Kris had told her before climbing on the horse. "Just remember that whatever happens, don't let go of the reigns. That way your horse won't trip over them and won't send you flying over its head." Nicole gripped the leather even tighter in her hands and grabbed the saddle horn.

Tommy's eyes bugged out of his head as he saw the Palomino run past him. He quickly pressed his horse into a faster pace trying to reach Nicole. He just wished that she would hang on tight until he could get the horse to slow down enough for him to stop them. The only thing he was thankful for was the fact that Nicole had a horse trained to obey by different whistles. Putting two fingers in his mouth, Tommy blew a command to stop and watched the horse start to slow down a little. He was coming up fast to Nicole's horse and bent over to grab at the reigns and slowed the horse to finally stop.

"I'm so sorry!" he blurted out as he quickly dismounted and reached Nicole. "I don't know why the horse reacted that way."

Kris came barreling towards them on her horse and had barely stopped when she jumped off the Morgan and ran towards Nicole and Tommy.

"I'm okay." Nicole said shakily as Tommy put his hands around her waist and helped her down. She closed her eyes as she touched ground and grabbed unto the saddle, wishing for the ground to stop shaking. She could feel Tommy's hands still solidly wrapped around her waist and nodded her head. "You can let go now. I'm fine." She said but still kept her eyes closed. 'First things first,' Nicole thought to herself. 'Get your breathing and heart under control.'

Kris was furious. She grabbed Tommy's shoulder and spun him around to face her. "Get your hands off her!" She growled as she glared at him. "What the hell were you thinking?" she asked as she grabbed his shirt and pushed him against his horse. "I told you to wait!" Kris nearly yelled.

"I'm sorry!" Tommy stammered with fear in his eyes. "I didn't know that the horse would…" he started to explain but Kris' eyes stopped him from saying anything else. The vibrant blue had quickly disappeared and what was left were two pieces of ice looking back at him. He swallowed nervously as he felt the hand grabbing at his shirt shake with barely controlled fury. "I didn't mean…"

"She could've gotten hurt." Kris said between clenched teeth and pulled her arm back as she made a fist ready to strike him.

Taking one last deep breath, Nicole slowly opened her eyes as she felt her legs become stronger under her. She looked over to where Tommy and Kris were standing and saw her lover grabbing at the young man's shirt, her arm pulled back ready to slug him. What caused the fear to course through her body was the look of total rage on Kris' face. The only time she had seen that look had been on her father's face just before he lashed out at her. Without thinking, Nicole screamed the first thing that came to mind. "Daddy! Don't hit!"

Kris froze in mid swing as she heard Nicole's voice. She stared at the trembling young man in front of her and then at her hand which was solidly grabbing his shirt. 'She called me Daddy.' Kris silently said. 'Oh Gods,' Kris breathed shakily as she let go of the guide. 'I'm acting exactly like her father.' Kris looked at Tommy who still hadn't moved and whispered, "I'm sorry." She took a step back and looked at Nicole.

Nicole could see the shocked expression on Kris' face. She hadn't meant to say what she did, but seeing the fury on Kris' face made her react this way. She watched as Kris let go of Tommy and whispered her apology and then turned to look at her. Kris seemed to have calmed down and so Nicole took a cautious step forward and gently touched Kris' arm.

"Nicole," Kris said with a shaking voice. "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to lose my temper like that." She looked down as Nicole softly glided her trembling hand on her arm. Kris wasn't sure if the shaking was due to her adventure with the horse or her reaction to the anger she had just witnessed. "Are you okay?" she asked softly as she looked up to see Nicole silently nod. Kris turned her head to look at Tommy who was still plastered against his horse. She made an effort to smile at the young man, trying to ease the tension. "How far are we from the stables?" she asked and saw Tommy visibly relax.

"We're not too far away." He answered.

Kris looked back at Nicole who was still silent and suddenly wished that the younger woman would say something, anything. "Do you want to walk the rest of the way?" Kris asked softly.

"I'd like that." Nicole replied and watched as Tommy took hold of her horse.

Walking past Tommy, Kris slowed down a little and looked at the young guide. "I didn't mean to lash out like that," Kris told him. "I was afraid she'd get hurt."

"Hey, it's okay." Tommy smiled. "I would have reacted the same way if it were someone I cared about."

They walked on in silence, each lost in their own thoughts. Kris cursed her temper and vowed to get a better grip on it. The last thing she wanted was to scare Nicole. She feared that she had done enough damage already and hoped that there was still a way she could repair it. Nicole had lived her whole life with a violent father, she really didn't need to have a violent lover too. Then she remembered something she had promised herself the day before: 'You're just like her father.' The voice had accused. "No, I would never hurt Nicole." Kris told herself then looked at her hands that were still on the table, tightly made into fists. "Oh Gods!" she whispered. "I'd leave before I do anything to her."

Nicole could feel the conflict within Kris. She knew that her lover was only trying to protect her but her violent reaction on her behalf had been a shock to see. She knew that Kris had a temper, she had seen it on a few occasions, mainly while she was talking on the phone, but it had been the first time that she had seen Kris nearly hit somebody. She wondered if she wasn't getting out of the proverbial frying pan and into the fire. But deep down inside her, she knew that Kris would never hit her, she's not like her father.

****************************** 

Somewhere in Montreal a cell phone rang, startling its owner. He sleepily reached for it and flipped it open as he looked at the clock on the nightstand. They'd been in bed for only a couple of hours and he looked at his girlfriend who grumbled as she put her pillow over her head. "This had better be good." He mumbled. "What do you want?" he nearly barked into the phone.

"That is no way to talk to your employer Mr. Dunham," the voice calmly replied at the other end. The photographer sat up in bed and wiped the sleep out of his eyes. "I'm sorry. I didn't know it was you." Mark said as he recognized the voice.

"Do you have anything interesting for me?" McGrail asked.

The photographer hadn't looked forward to this phone call. What he had so far wasn't worth the money promised to him. "I did get a few shots of her talking with some guys at the stunt school," Mark started, "but nobody gets close enough to get the type of pictures that you want."

"I want results Mr. Dunham." McGrail warned. He was silent for a moment then continued. "I want you to find a woman that will do something for me." McGrail said to the photographer.

Mark thought about that for a moment then his gaze went down to his sleeping girlfriend. "I may have the woman for you." He smiled into the phone.

"I want her to follow my instructions precisely. There will be an interesting amount of money for her if she does. If not," McGrail waited and smiled as he heard the photographer swallow nervously. "If not," he repeated, "You'll be responsible for the screw up."

Mark nodded vigorously at the phone. "I'll make sure everything goes well."

"Good." McGrail drawled. "Meet me in one hour at the same place as before. I'll give you the instructions." He said then hung up.

Mark looked at the now silent phone and flipped it closed. "This is getting weirder by the moment."

******************************

Nicole had suffered no injury from her little adventure with the horse except for a good scare but she had told Tommy that she really loved her day at the center. The young guide had kept Kris in his line of sight walking back to the stables but the woman had kept silent all the way. She didn't look angry anymore. In fact she looked like she just lost her best friend.

The drive back home had been a quiet one and once in a while Nicole would glance at Kris. She had never seen her partner look so sad before. Nicole knew what was bothering Kris and she bit her lip, trying to find a way to approach the subject. They silently walked in the house and Nicole gently held Kris' arm, causing the taller woman to turn around and look at her.

"Kris, I'd like for us to talk." Nicole said with a smile. She saw the guarded expression on her lover's face and caught a glimpse of fear too. Reaching up, she gently kissed Kris' lips. That single action made the stuntwoman relax and even made her smile a little. "I'm making myself a cup of coffee. You want one?" she asked Kris.

"Sure." She smiled and watched Nicole go into the kitchen. She sighed and made her own way into the livingroom, walked up to the glass door and looked at the stormy lake. The wind had picked up and judging by the gathering clouds, it looked like another storm was on its way. Kris closed her eyes and leaned her forehead against the glass door. What would she do if Nicole decided that she couldn't deal with her temper? The younger woman had become such an important part of her life in such a short time, Kris simply didn't know if she could survive life without Nicole. She had never felt this way with anyone before. A small hand gently brushed against her back and she opened her eyes to see Nicole look worriedly at her, the two coffee mugs sitting on the table in front of the sofa. 'How long was I standing like this?' Kris thought to herself. She gave Nicole a small smile, took the offered hand in hers and followed her lover to the sofa.

Nicole sat down beside her partner and twisted her body so she would be looking at Kris. She took a deep breath and reached for Kris' cheek and made her look up. "Kris," Nicole started not sure exactly how she would do this. "I know that you feel bad about what happened at the center today." She said as she gazed into Kris' blue eyes. "But I would be lying if I told you that it didn't scare me to see you that way."

Kris kept silent as she listened to Nicole speak. She was preparing herself to hear the worst. But the gentle hand holding her own confused Kris. Nicole wasn't screaming like her ex-lovers had done when something went wrong. Nicole was speaking with a gentle tone and she took one look at her partner and only saw love in the emerald eyes looking back at her.

"I know that the reason you reacted the way you did was because you were afraid that I might have gotten hurt. Am I right?" Nicole asked gently and waited for Kris to answer.

"You're right." Kris agreed. "But I should've been more careful." She said as she looked down and gave Nicole's hand a light squeeze. "You shouldn't have to deal with another mean tempered person. You don't need me acting like your father."

"Kris, you're nothing like my father." Nicole stated. "You do have a temper but it comes out only because you want to protect me." She reached up to touch Kris' cheek and made her look at her again. "Would you hurt me?" she asked bluntly.

"No!" Kris exclaimed. "Gods, I could never do that." She said with conviction. "I love you so much, I couldn't even think of doing such a thing."

"And I knew that too." Nicole smiled. "I just wanted you to realize that for yourself," she continued as she scooted closer to Kris.

"I was so sure that you were going to leave me." Kris said softly. "I promise that I won't let my temper get the best of me again."

Nicole leaned against Kris and tightly wrapped her arm around her lover's waist. "I know you will," Nicole said gently. "And you won't get rid of me so easily. I love you too much." She smiled as she felt Kris kiss the top of her head. Nicole gently brushed her hand over Kris' shirt and she started pulling it out of her pants, letting her hand glide under it and over the warm skin. She could hear Kris' breath catch in her throat as she softly let her fingers brush against Kris' bra, feeling the firm breast underneath. With her head leaning against Kris' chest, Nicole could feel her lover's heart beating furiously against her chest.

Pulling her hand out of Kris shirt, Nicole sat up and moved to straddle her partner's thighs. While looking into Kris' blue eyes, Nicole undid her blouse, starting with the last button and slowly worked her way up and watched as Kris swallowed in anticipation, unable to keep her eyes off of Nicole's nimble fingers. She stopped her movement for a minute and waited until Kris looked up and, as expected, raised an eyebrow. Nicole winked at Kris and finished opening her blouse, letting it slowly fall off of her shoulders and onto the floor.

Kris could feel the flow of blood rushing in her body, the sound deafening in her ears. She loved the show Nicole was giving her, as unexpected as it was. She reached up to Nicole and slid her hands on each side of her lover's waist and slowly brought them up to finally unhook Nicole's delicate brassiere, letting it glide down her arms and watched as Nicole dropped it on top of her blouse. Kris slowly brought Nicole closer to her and softly kissed the breast that was offered. She let her tongue slowly circle the erect nipple to finally let her lips suck on the sensitive flesh.

A moan escaped Nicole as she let her head tilt back and closed her eyes, enjoying Kris' touch as she licked and sucked on her breasts. She firmly wrapped her hands behind Kris' head and brought her lover even closer to her. She felt Kris' strong arms surround her waist and lost herself in their connection. She could spend the rest of her life locked in Kris' embrace like this. Nicole smiled as she felt Kris move from under her and felt her arms tightened around her waist as the stuntwoman slowly stood up, allowing Nicole to stand up with her.

"Going somewhere?" Nicole asked seductively and started nibbling at her lover's ear.

Kris smiled as she closed her eyes, letting the warm feeling run all over her body. She tightened her hold on Nicole and looked at her smiling lover. "Anyplace in particular you'd like to go?" she grinned.

"Hmmm, someplace nice and comfortable." Nicole said as she kissed Kris. "I have a feeling that we won't get much sleep tonight."

"You're right." Kris winked at her and walked toward their bedroom.

Continues in Part 7

Return to The Bard's Corner