Chapter 27

Amanda looked at the mantle clock for the third time in as many minutes. Twelve-thirty, she sighed to herself, shaking her head. The young woman had finished her packing, put her bags in the front hall, taken a shower, and played cards with her grandparents during the course of the evening. Where on earth is she? Amanda wondered, pacing back and forth in the darkened den. The crackling of the fire in the fireplace was the only sound in the room, except for the occasional mutterings of the blonde woman bouncing from place to place.

Jacob and Anna Leigh had gone to bed hours before, trying to get their granddaughter to do the same. When she had refused, they good-naturedly teased her about 'letting her wayward child stay out too late,' and then wished her a good night. I know she's a grown woman…I know she can take care of herself…I know there's a perfectly good explanation for her not being here with me right now, she thought to herself, dropping her now exhausted body onto the sofa. "God, Lex…where are you?" she sighed aloud.

"Right here." A voice from behind her uttered quietly.

Amanda squealed, then vaulted over the couch, giving Lex an armful of anxious blonde. "I'm glad you're okay…" she murmured into the rancher's neck, wrapping her legs around the slender waist. "I thought…when you didn't…" she sniffled.

Lex carried her mumbling bundle to the sofa and sat down. "Shh…everything's okay…" she whispered, rocking back and forth gently.

Amanda finally calmed down, then pulled away slightly to look up into Lex's shadowed face. "Sorry…guess I'm just really tired…" she gave her lover a wry smile. "And I'm a little nervous about tomorrow…I'm afraid of how my family is going to treat you."

"Don't worry about me…I'm a big girl." Lex gave her a tender smile, wiping the tears from the younger woman's face. "I'm sorry it took me so long tonight - I had a lot of paperwork to sign." Kissing Amanda lightly on the nose, she asked, "I tried calling a couple of times, but the line was busy. Is everything okay here?"

"Uh, yeah…everything is just fine." Amanda hid her face in the older woman's chest, embarrassed by her earlier emotional outburst.

"Amanda…sweetheart?" Lex put her hand under the young woman's chin, gently forcing her to look up. "I'm really sorry that I caused you to get so upset…" she gave her a loving smile. "Aren't you even curious where I went?" Knowing her friend's very inquisitive nature.

The blonde chewed her lip thoughtfully. "Well, I figured if it was any of my business, you'd tell me when you got ready to."

Uh-oh…time to soothe some ruffled feathers, I think. "It was stupid of me not to tell you earlier - but I thought that if you knew, you'd force yourself to go." Lex looked deeply into the green eyes a breath away, almost drowning in their depths. "And, I knew how much you wanted to spend time with your grandparents before we left." She cupped the beautiful face in her hands. "You have me so tightly wrapped around your little finger, I can't tell you no. One look into your eyes, and I've fallen. One touch of your hand, and my heart stops. I can deny you nothing, but would gladly forsake everything to see your smile."

Amanda opened her mouth, closed it, and then shook her head in disbelief. "You know, for being the strong, silent type," she ran her hand lovingly across Lex's jaw, "You can bring me to my knees with just a few words." She looked down, smiling at the proof of her statement. She was on her knees, straddled across the older woman's legs. She stood, pulling her tall lover up beside her. Pulling Lex's head down for a tender kiss, Amanda murmured, "Let's go to bed. We can talk tomorrow." And she led the willing rancher down the dark hallway and up the stairs.

Part 5

Chapter 28

Lex was understandably nervous as she and Amanda walked through the airport terminal. Were they just trying to be funny when they named it a terminal? I'm feeling pretty terminal myself right now, she thought as she followed the lithe young blonde down the crowded walkway. God…I don't know if I can do this, Lex felt her stomach cramp painfully, and she looked around frantically for the nearest restroom as she felt her breakfast begin to rebel.

"C'mon, Lex…we've got to go pick up our boarding passes - according to the monitor, our flight leaves in a little over an hour." Amanda tossed behind her, not looking back.

The rancher was torn between following her heart, and emptying her stomach. Another painful cramp made her gasp and almost drop to her knees, deciding for her. "Amanda," she moaned, trying to get the younger woman's attention. Aw, hell… Lex made a mad dash for the ladies' room, dropping the bags outside the door to the lavatory.

Amanda turned to point out something to her partner, and saw that the dark-haired woman was nowhere to be seen. "Lex?" She stopped and looked around slowly. Now where has she disappeared to?

An elderly man sitting on a nearby bench waved to her, beckoning the young woman over. "Miss? Are you looking for that rather tall young lady that was behind you?" he asked kindly, patting the empty spot beside him.

"Yes, the one with the dark hair…did you happen to see where she went?" Amanda sat down next to him.

"Oh yes…"he patted her hand. "Poor thing…she doesn't fly much, does she?" his clear blue eyes twinkled.

Amanda tried to control her anxiousness. "No, I'm afraid she doesn't. You said you saw where she went?" She kept scanning the people milling around them, hoping to spot Lex.

Scratching his stubbled chin, he smiled. "I could tell…she looked like a fish out of water, that one did. I like to try and figure out where people are from, and where they're going - why, just the other day…"

"I don't mean to sound rude, sir…but I'm a little concerned about my friend. Where…" Amanda butted in gently, feeling an unease settle over her. She wouldn't change her mind and leave, would she? The young woman wondered. No, not without telling me.

Pointing towards the ladies' room across the walkway, he chuckled. "I figured she was feeling a mite ill, 'cause she grabbed her stomach, turned about three sheets of pale, and high-tailed it over there." He was about to tell the pretty young woman more, but she absently thanked him, patted his shoulder and took off across the way.

"Excuse me…sorry…" Amanda carefully battled her way through a large group of people who had just disembarked from an arriving flight. Dropping her bags next to Lex's, the small woman shouldered through several women who were standing next to the sinks, complaining about the airline food. "Lex?" she called out, trying to find out which stall held her friend.

"Over here." A weak voice muttered, from the sink on the end. The tall woman was frighteningly pale, leaning up against the wall with a wet paper towel over her eyes.

Amanda's heart clinched at the sight. I really wasn't taking her fear of flying seriously, she berated herself, noticing how the hand holding the paper towel trembled. Standing beside the slumped form, Amanda placed a gentle hand on Lex's arm. "Oh, Lex…" she murmured.

"Sorry…" Lex whispered, taking a deep breath and removing the damp towel from her eyes. Seeing the sympathetic look on her lover's face, she forced a smile to her lips. "I didn't mean to take off on you like that…"

"Are you going to be okay?" the younger woman asked, fighting the strong urge she had to pull Lex into her arms.

The rancher swallowed several times. "Yeah…" she pushed away from the wall and started towards the door. "C'mon…let's go." The ladies' room was getting more and more crowded by the moment, which wasn't helping her queasiness any. Where in the hell did all these damn people come from, anyway?

Once they were safely out of the restroom, Lex was almost tempted to turn back around and hide in one of the stalls. Two flights had just unloaded their passengers, and the roaring throng of people was almost more than she could stand. Now I know why I hide away on a ranch, she thought, picking up their bags then leaning up against the wall. I can do this, she told herself, gathering up what was left of her nerves. Feeling a light hand on her side, Lex looked down into concerned green eyes. "Lead the way, my friend - I'll be right behind you." She motioned towards the crowd with a nod of her dark head.

Amanda started to say something, then stopped. Maybe it'll be less crowded by our gate…We can get our passes and she can sit and let her stomach settle.She slid the strap of her carryon over her shoulder. "Okay…stick close, and give my bag a tug if you need to make another side trip." She almost reached up to caress the pale cheek, but quickly reminded herself where they were.

"Gotcha." Lex smiled, giving the bag a test pull.

The younger woman politely maneuvered them through the crowd, turning back every few steps to check on the condition of her companion. Over halfway to their destination, Amanda noticed a fine sheen of perspiration covering Lex's brow. Stopping in the middle of the concourse, she asked, "Are you going to make it? We can stop for a moment, if you need to."

"No, I'm okay," Lex assured the small blonde, although her legs were shaking from the strain. "We're almost there, anyway."

Not able to stand it any longer, Amanda took a strong grip on Lex's arm. "Lex, you don't look okay…" she looked around for someplace to sit. "C'mere…let's take a little break." She pulled the rancher towards a group of chairs by the window, watching as the tall woman collapsed gracelessly onto one. "Why don't you sit here with our bags, and I'll go get our boarding passes?" Seeing that her companion was about to argue, Amanda dropped to her knees beside Lex and added, "I think my shoulder is about to fall off from dragging this darn bag around… humor me, please?"

Lex lifted her hand and unconsciously touched her lover's cheek. "You are so transparent, sweetheart." She smiled tenderly. "Okay, you win. I'll wait for you right here."

"All right…" Amanda gave the strong thigh under her hand a squeeze. "I'll be back in a few minutes." She smiled at Lex and then stood, hoisting her purse to her shoulder as she hurried away.

The dark-haired woman watched Amanda's compact body move through the crowd with ease, until she finally disappeared from sight. Lex closed her eyes for a moment, only to have them pop back open when the plane parked next to her window started it's engines. Shit. Just what I need. C'mon, Lexington…don't be such a damn baby! She felt her stomach clinch again painfully. Lex started to stand up, but dropped back to her chair as another cramp hit her. I am not going to throw up again, she thought to herself angrily. Inhaling through her nose to combat her nausea, Lex wrapped her arms around her waist, bent over, and laid her head on her knees. Maybe I should have taken a tranquilizer, she thought as she fought to ease her rebelling stomach.

Calm…I need to stay calm…focus on something else… Breathing deeply, Lex let her thoughts drift to her gentle lover. In her mind, she pictured the sea-green eyes, the small perfect nose, and the petite, but well-built body. She imagined holding the younger woman in her arms, burying her face in the long silky reddish-blonde hair. I can almost smell her perfume, she marveled to herself. This self-hypnosis stuff really works!

"Lex?" a soft touch to the top of her head brought the rancher out of her musings.

"Hmm?" Lex raised her head slowly, opening her eyes to focus on the green eyes that she had just been thinking of. "Hi."

Amanda sat down next to the still-sweating rancher. "Honey, you're really pale," she wiped the damp hair out of Lex's eyes. "Is there anything I can do for you?" Ignoring the disgusted stare from the woman sitting two chairs away from Lex, Amanda pushed her lover back in the chair gently, twining their fingers together.

"Nah…I think I'll live," Lex quietly teased. "And you're doing more just being here, than any medication can do." She absently brought their linked hands to her lips, and kissed the small knuckles. "Thanks."

"Hrumpph! Disgusting!" The middle-aged woman glared at them, gathered her collection of shopping bags and luggage, then stormed off.

Lex grinned at Amanda's sudden blush. "Heh…maybe I should pull you onto my lap and kiss you senseless." She chuckled. "That would give the old bat something to stare at."

Amanda glanced around them. The irritated woman seemed to be the only person paying any attention to them. "Lex." She gently chided her partner, "You're so bad."

Wiggling her eyebrows comically, the dark-haired woman smirked. "I thought that's what you liked about me." She widened her blue eyes innocently.

"Nut." Amanda proclaimed, then she squeezed Lex's hand. "You must be feeling better… the color is coming back to your face."

"Lex sighed. "Yeah…sorry about that. I really didn't think it would be that bad." She gave Amanda a tired look. "Were you able to get our passes?"

"Yep." The younger woman pointed to a cart nearby. "And I also procured transportation for our fine luggage." She gave a gentle kick to the duffel bag she had decided to use. I really didn't see any need to pack much - I have plenty of clothes in Los Angeles, she grinned to herself. Besides, Mother will have little green kittens when I show up without matching luggage - gotta take my points where I can. "We still have to check this stuff in."

Standing up, the tall woman offered her hand to the still seated blonde. "Right, boss. Well, let's get this over with." She pulled Amanda up, then grabbed several bags and headed towards the cart.