Destiny

Part 6

By Sheri

Last Updated November 14, 1999 - 3:00 AM

Disclaimers: See Part 1

 Des and Lita spent the weekend recovering and waiting. The events of Friday and the phone call on Saturday morning served to dominate their thoughts. They spent many hours talking and loving. When Sunday night came around and Lita had to go back to her normal shift at work Des decided to go back to her place, Lita agreed. Lita figured Des would be safer there with her sister next door. Des figured she wouldn't be getting much sleep without Lita so she might as well be at her place where she could get some other things done. The phone call they had been subconsciously waiting for all weekend never came.

The week went by and things started to fall back into their normal routine. Des went back to sleeping nights at her place and every evening was spent together waiting. When the phone rang on Thursday night it wasn't what either of them were expecting.

"Dee. It's Amy."

"Hey Amy. What's up?"

"I just got a phone call from Dad's lawyer. He's in the hospital, they don't expect him to make it through the night. He's asking to see us."

"I'll be right over to pick you up."

"Thanks. Steve is going to stay with the kids and I didn't want to drive down by myself."

"No problem. I don't want to go alone either." Des assured her sister as she hung up the phone and turned to Lita.

"That was Amy. Dad's lawyer called her to let us know that he is in the hospital and not expected to live through the night. I'm going to get Amy and we're going to drive down to see him, he's asking for us."

"I'll go with you."

"No. You have to go into work. I doubt they'd let you off for this. Amy and I'll be fine. I'll see you later."

"Are you sure? I could just call in sick or something, they wouldn't have to know I was going with you."

"I'm sure. There really won't be much we can do tonight anyway."

"What hospital is he at?"

"St. Mary's in Rochester."

"I'll come in the morning, after work."

"I don't want you driving without any sleep. I'll call you in the morning and let you know how he's doing. If nothing has happened then you can get some sleep and come in the afternoon. Ok?"

"Ok." Lita grumbled. "I would rather be with you."

"I know and I love you for it but you can't miss work. You only have tonight's shift to get through and there really won't be much for you to do."

Lita reached down and brushed Des' lips with her own. "I love you." She deepened the kiss and Des absorbed the love and warmth gaining the strength she needed but couldn't ask for.

"Let me get ready for work and then I'll drive you into town. I don't want you going alone."

"Ok." 45 minutes later Des and Amy were in the car and headed to the hospital. Lita had a few hours to wait before going in to work but she didn't feel like going back to her place. Des had said she was welcome to stay at her place so she did. Des' computer was in the living room with the television so Lita decided to see what the pack was up to. She sent out a message letting everyone know what was going on with Des' father and was amazed at the number of messages that started pouring in with good thoughts for Des and her father. Lita saved all the messages so Des could read them when she had the time. The phone rang and Lita let the machine pick up.

"Lita, if you're there please pick up." It was Des.

"Des! What's wrong?"

"Nothing major. I just realized that I forgot to call and get a sub for tomorrow. Judy's phone number is by the phone there. Would you call her and tell her why I won't be able to make it to work tomorrow?"

"Sure, no problem. Where are you calling from?"

"Amy brought her cell phone along in case Steve needed to get in touch with her."

"Oh. Are you two handling things ok?"

"Yeah. We just got to the hospital and saw Dad for a few minutes. He doesn't look very good. We are only allowed in to see him for 15 minutes every hour and he was asleep so we didn't even stay that long yet. Then I remembered needing to call Judy."

"When do you go in next?"

"In about a half an hour."

"When you come back out you can give me a call here if you need to. I won't be leaving for work for at least another hour. Please call me if you need someone to talk to?"

"I will. I'll call anyway just to let you know what's going on."

"Great."

"I've got to go, Amy wants to call Steve before we go back in."

"Des."

"Yeah."

"I love you." It amazed Lita how much easier that got to say the more she said it to Des.

"I love you too. Thanks. I really needed to hear that. I didn't even know how much until you said it."

"I'll say it so often you'll get sick of hearing it." Lita promised.

"I'll never get sick of hearing it."

"Well then, I love you."

"I love you too. Now I've really got to go, Amy is starting to make gagging noises and pointing to her watch."

"Bye, Des."

"Bye."

Another hour went by and Lita was just shutting down Des' computer when the phone rang again. This time Lita answered it right away.

"Hello."

"Hi."

"How's he doing?"

"Still hanging in there. He was still sleeping when we saw him so I really can't say too much. The nurses say that he usually wakes up about 10:30 for a while so hopefully we'll be able to talk to him then. I want to make sure he knows we're here. I think he knows but it is so hard to tell without looking into his eyes."

"I know. When Luke died the worst part was that I never got to say goodbye. I know he knew how much I loved him but I never got to tell him that one last time. Even if he doesn't wake up and talk to you tell him goodbye Des. You'll need to know you did later. How are you doing?"

"Much better now. I really needed to hear your voice. It's so quiet in the hospital. Amy and I have been talking but I really needed to hear your voice in my ear."

"Are you sure you don't want me to come down there? I could be there in an hour."

"No. I'll be fine. Will you get into trouble if I call you at work though. I may need to talk to you again later."

"Call me whenever you need to. It's usually so quiet at night that a phone call would be a welcome interruption."

"Ok. Li?"

"Yeah."

"I'm so glad I met you."

"Me too. Love you."

"Love you too. Talk to you later."

"Later.

The rest of the night followed a similar pattern. Every hour or so Des would call Lita and give her a progress report. There wasn't much to report though. Des' dad was only awake for one of their visits and then he was only able to say that he was glad they were there. They got to say goodbye and then he slipped back to sleep and didn't awaken again that night. By the time Lita's shift was over she was about ready to crawl out of her skin. The hourly reports from Des had not really helped Lita at all. Every time Des called Lita could hear the sadness and the weariness in her voice get more and more pronounced. The last report had just about ripped Lita's heart out. Des sounded so tired. Lita knew she was being strong for her sister and for her father just like she always was and she also knew that Des needed someone to be strong for her. Lita got into her car and started to drive out to her house. She really intended to do what Des wanted her to. She intended to try and get some sleep. As she got farther away from the prison and closer to the road leading to her house Des' voice during that last report kept running through her mind and Lita knew that she was not going to get any sleep until she could see for herself that Des was all right. She turned the car around and started the long drive to the hospital.

When she pulled into the parking lot she saw Des in front of the main entrance with the phone to her ear. Lita quickly found a place to park and walked up behind Des.

"Hello." She whispered into Des' ear.

"Li. I was getting worried. I didn't get any answer for so long. I was so afraid..." The phone in her ear rang again and Des stopped talking confused. She was sure she had heard Lita's voice, but the phone was still ringing. She wiped her hand over her face and said "I must be more tired than I thought. I hope Lita made it home all right. She must be really tired too. That's why she isn't answering the phone, I'm sure nothing's wrong."

"You're right. Nothing's wrong. I'm fine." This time Lita put her arms around Des as she was speaking. Des froze for an instant then slowly turned around, a look of disbelief on her features.

"You're here? How did you...? When..?" She couldn't think of what to say so she just threw her arms around Lita's neck and pulled her head down for a kiss. One kiss turned to several as Des tried to convince herself that Lita was really standing there and she wasn't dreaming. Lita finally remembered where they were and gently pulled away from the kiss and hugged her instead. Des stood in the safe circle of Lita's arms with her heart thumping steadily under her ear and felt all the tension from the last 12 hours float away.

"You're supposed to be home sleeping." Des mumbled from her comfortable spot.

"Wrong. I'm supposed to be where you need me and that is right here."

"I guess it doesn't do me any good to argue now that you're here." Des agreed hugging Lita tighter.

"You're right it doesn't." Lita said returning the hug. "Shall we go inside?"

"I suppose. It's almost time for our hourly visit." Des and Lita walked into the hospital lobby and over to the elevators with their arms around each other. When they got to the floor where Des' father was they met up with Amy who was almost as stunned as Des was to see Lita.

"Well. I guess that explains why Des couldn't reach you on the phone." Amy said.

"Yeah." Lita said and then turned to Des. "I'm sorry about that. I didn't think that you might be trying to call. I was on my way out to the house and I just couldn't make myself keep going. I knew you needed me so I turned the car around and came here instead."

"I'll forgive you on one condition."

"What's that?"

"After we see Dad you try to get some sleep. The chairs here aren't the best but you can get some sleep in them. Right Am."

"Right." Amy said with a grimace.

"Ok. As long as you're next to me."

The nurse on duty came over and told Des and Amy that their father was awake and asking to see them.

"You go on then and see him. I'll wait here for you."

"Are you Lita?" The nurse asked.

Surprised Lita answered, "Yes."

"He's asking to see you too."

"Ok then." Lita stood up to follow Des and Amy. When she saw Des' father lying on the bed it was hard to believe that this was the same man she had met in the cafe little more than three months ago. The disease had ravaged his body leaving little more than a shell. The anger that Lita had felt towards this man for what he had done to her lover had slowly been replaced by pity and eventually real sadness. Whatever she felt towards the man personally the woman who meant more to her than anything ever had or would loved him and that was enough to allow her to feel genuine sadness. If for no other reason than his passing would cause Des pain.

Des and Amy went over to the bed and each grabbed a hand.

"How are you feeling Dad?" Amy asked.

"Like it's time to go. I want you to know that I regret not being a better father to you two. Amy, I wish I had had more time to get to know your family. You've done real good with them kids of yours and that husband seems pretty good too. I hope you can forgive a stupid man his mistakes."

"Of course Dad. I love you." Amy said. She squeezed her father's hand and wiped tears from her eyes.

"Destiny?"

"I'm here Dad."

"Is that woman here too?"

"Yes sir. I'm here." Lita replied as she came over to stand behind Des.

"I didn't like you when I first met you."

"I didn't like you either." Lita replied. "You hurt the woman I love and that's unacceptable."

"I still don't like you." Des' father went on. "You make my daughter happy though. I remember when she was just a kid and no one wanted to be her friend because of that darn dream of her mother's. I always hoped that some day she would find a nice young man to take care of her and make her forget all the pain of her childhood, including the pain that I put her through. I have watched you with my daughter over these last months; I've seen the way you take care of her and the way she takes care of you. I have only one thing to say to you young lady. If you don't keep her happy I am personally going to come back from wherever I go and haunt you for the rest of your life."

"Yes sir." Lita said and shook the man's hand. The tears were streaming down Des' face and Lita felt her own throat tighten up and tears welling in her eyes.

"Destiny."

"Yes Dad."

"I know you had to grow up faster than any kid should ever have to and I know that that was my fault. I wasn't ready to be a father no matter what I thought at the time. You had to be the parent and I'm sorry for that. Sometimes it takes a lifetime for a person to be an adult and sometimes children are born that way. I love you and I have always been proud of the woman you turned out to be, in spite of the father you had. You truly live up to your name."

"I love you too dad." Des said as her father's breathing slowed. He closed his eyes for the last time and breathed his last breath. Des turned and hid her face in Lita's chest, sobbing. Lita's arms reached around her and pulled her closer. Lita heard a choked sob from across the bed and realized that Amy was also crying. She walked Des over to the other side of the bed and pulled Amy into the circle of her arms too. As she stood there with the two women sobbing she thought about what Des' father had said before he died. 'Sometimes it takes a lifetime, sometimes it takes an instant, and sometimes it takes a very special person coming into your life to make you realize it's time to grow up.' Lita knew it was time for her to take care of her past so she could face her future. Right now though, she had something more important to take care of, helping the woman she loved bury the man she had loved and hated with equal passion in her lifetime.

The next few days passed in a blur of arrangements and tears. Des and Amy buried their father with the help of their adopted brother who showed up at the hospital. Daniel was in the Marines, like their father had been and wasn't able to get home in time to say goodbye. He was a nice young man and Des was glad to get to know him again. Des was her normal composed, helpful self all through the funeral and the lunch afterwards. She consoled Daniel and told him that she knew how much their father had loved him and that she was sure he understood why he wasn't there to say goodbye. They made plans to stay in touch, then Daniel had to leave and get back to his base. Amy and Des made sure that each guest at the lunch was fed and there were many kind things said about her father. Of course Lita, being virtually unknown to the relatives gathered, was able to eavesdrop and hear how people truly felt. One overwhelming sentiment was that Des and Amy had gone through hell with that man as their father and most were surprised and pleased at how well they had turned out. Most of the relatives were suspicious of his deathbed turnaround but were careful not to mention it in front of the girls. Lita couldn't help but smirk at a few of the comments but she was pleased to hear all the comments about Des. 'I always knew she was a special person but it is nice to hear that so many others realize it too.' She thought as she worked her way across the room to where Des and Amy were finally alone talking.

"You two are definitely the best thing your father ever produced in the eyes of this crowd." Lita announced as she walked up and put her arm around Des' shoulders. Under the guise of a hug she brushed her lips across Des' ear and murmured, "How you holding up?"

Des shivered slightly and whispered back, "I wish we could get out of here. Other than that I'm fine."

"Your wish is my command." Lita said playfully as she moved her hand down Des' arm to clasp hers in a firm grip. "We're taking a break." She said to Amy as she started leading Des towards the door.

"Li! I can't leave Amy here alone to talk to all these people."

"Sure you can." Amy argued. "There aren't that many people left anyway. Steve is on his way over here, he can help me deal with who's left. Just don't be gone long."

"We won't be." Lita assured her and continued to pull Des towards the door.

"Are you sure?" Des asked Amy as she let Lita drag her away.

"I'm sure. Go."

"Ok. Thanks." Des turned and followed Lita out the door and over to her car. They climbed into the back seat and just sat there for a moment, arms around each other, enjoying the peace after a hectic morning.

"I never realized how many people cared about my Dad." Des said quietly after a few minutes.

"I think they care more for you and your sister than they did about your dad." Lita responded truthfully.

"What do you mean?"

"I guess most people in there didn't realize I was with you and they were a lot freer with their comments around me. There were a lot of comments made about how they were amazed at how well you and Amy turned out considering who you had for a father."

"I can't really blame them." Des admitted. "He was a terrible father. I am still glad we made peace before he died though. Do you think you will ever be able to make peace with your mother and brother?"

"When I first left California I figured it was really for the best that I had to sever all ties with them. We weren't getting along very well anyway. I figured they would be glad to be rid of me, the reminder I was of Luke and what had happened to him. Then I met this incredible woman who showed me how important family is. Now I really hope that when all this is over I will be able to try and mend some fences with Mom and Troy. We didn't have the best relationship but I miss them more than I ever thought I would."

"I'm glad." Des said. "You do know that I will be there to help you mend those fences don't you? I am pretty good at getting people to talk."

"No? Really?" Lita said incredulously. "I never would have guessed that."

"Funny Li." Des said, leaning over and kissing Lita tenderly.

"What was that for?" Lita asked.

"For being here with me."

"Is that all."

"It's enough for me. I don't know how I would have gotten through this without you."

"I do." Lita replied. "You would have been very calm and strong and every one here would have been as proud of you as I am."

"And then I would have gone home and curled into a little ball in my room and cried until I made myself sick."

"That's not going to happen while I'm around." Lita assured her with a hug and a kiss. "I will be there to hold you while you cry and I will do whatever I can to help you get through this."

"You already have." Des said with another kiss. They spent a few enjoyable minutes kissing and cuddling and then Lita reluctantly looked at her watch.

"I hate to say it but I think we need to be heading back in."

"I know." Des said with a sigh. "Look on the bright side though. There can't be too many people left in there and we should be able to go home soon."

"I like the sound of that." Lita said with one final kiss.

"Mmmm. Me too." Des agreed as she stretched that one kiss into two or three. They got out of the car and went back to face the crowd and relieve Amy. Des was right. There weren't very many people left and within an hour they were able to leave. Lita was exhausted by the time they made it to Des' place. She had worked the night before and had only been home to change out of her uniform and then had picked up Des for the funeral. It was now going on 4:00 in the afternoon and Lita had to go back to work in a few hours. She had brought her uniform into town with her so they decided to stay at Des' place and try to get some sleep. As they snuggled together under the covers Des found herself being lulled to sleep by the steady pounding of Lita's heartbeat under her ear and the rhythmic stroking of Lita's hand on her back.

"Love you." Des murmured as she nuzzled Lita's chest.

"Love you too." Lita yawned and settled into sleep.

When Lita woke several hours later it was to find herself alone in the bed. She looked around sleepily wondering where Des was. As she got out of the bed and threw on a robe the smell of fresh brewed coffee reached her nose. She wandered down the stairs and into the kitchen where Des was busy making supper. Lita couldn't resist walking up behind her and putting her arms around her waist. As Des leaned back into the embrace Lita let her lips find the pulse point in the hollow of her neck, happy to feel it accelerate as the lips lingered.

"You know you could scare a person sneaking up on them like that." Des said turning and placing her arms around Lita's waist.

"So why weren't you scared?"

"I knew it was you."

"How?"

"Something in me just knows when you're nearby I guess." Des explained with a shrug of her shoulders. "I can't explain it."

"I know what you mean. That day at work I was out walking and suddenly I knew you were in trouble. I don't know how but I knew. Same thing with the morning your dad died. I was on my way out to the house and all of a sudden I could tell you needed me."

"Wow. I'm glad."

"Me too." They stood in silence for a few minutes and then Des pulled away to check on supper.

"I suppose I had better go and get ready for work. How long til that's ready?"

"About 20 minutes."

"Great. I'll go take a shower."

"How am I supposed to keep my mind on cooking with that image in my head?" Des asked semiseriously.

"I guess you'll just have to suffer." Lita said kissing Des quickly and darting up the stairs.

"I don't think so." Des replied quietly turning down the food to cook safely without her and following Lita up the stairs.

After a long shower and a hurried meal Lita was ready for work and saying goodbye to Des when the phone rang.

"Let the machine get it." Des whispered between kisses. The machine picked up on the fourth ring and Des' voice filled the room as the outgoing message played. When the beep sounded signaling the person on the other end to start their message there was only silence then the dial tone sounded as the phone was disconnected.

"I guess it was wishful thinking on my part to hope that they would just let you go huh?" Des sighed, hugging Lita.

"Fraid so." Lita answered somberly.

"What are we going to do?"

"I don't know." Lita answered truthfully. "I've tried to get them to come after me and they keep calling you. Trying to disappear didn't work either. I guess I'm going to have to go after them."

"How?" Des asked, uncomfortable with the cold look that had crept into Lita's eyes.

"By going back to my roots."

"You mean back to California?"

"I mean back to my childhood. Remember I told you Luke and I hung out with a group of kids?"

"Yeah?" Des answered.

"We considered ourselves to be a gang. We were nowhere near the level of most gangs but we weren't the local church group either."

"No offense Li, but how does that help?"

"One of my old 'gang' members works to keep kids out of gangs now. He has connections that can tell me who's pulling the strings here and why. I can't figure out why I'm so important to them. I thought that they would just let it go when I disappeared -it wasn't profitable for them to keep after me. There has to be more to it than I know and Jose should be just the guy to find out what."

"Please be careful." Des whispered.

"I will." Lita promised. "You be careful too. Lock the doors and keep the phone near you."

"I will. Call me on your lunch break."

"I wouldn't want to wake you."

"After the nap we had this afternoon I probably won't be sleeping anyway. Besides, I'll feel better knowing you're ok too."

"Ok. I'll call you. I've got to get going or I'll be late."

"Can you still call your friend tonight?"

"I'll try. Goodnight Des."

"Night Li. I love you."

"Love you too." Lita gave Des one last kiss and headed for her car.

When she got to work Lita made the call to her friend Jose in California. She explained her situation and what she needed him to find out for her. She left him her work number and her home number but didn't expect to hear from him for a while. When he called back less than an hour later she was surprised to say the least.

"Lita, you have the worst luck of anyone I know." Jose said as soon as Lita said hello.

"What do you mean?"

"That punk that died was no ordinary gang member. His brother is the leader of one of the local factions here in LA with major ties to the National Heads."

"No wonder they didn't let it drop. I thought the reaction was a little out of proportion for some punk they protected because he killed a cop." Lita mused. "So... what's the brother's name?"

"Fransisco De La Cruz."

"How do I get them off my back Jose?"

"The big gangs work just like any other business Lita." Jose began, "If an action isn't profitable or personal it's not worth the money used. Take out the personal angle and you're no longer a viable operation to them and they should let it drop.

"So you're saying I have to get rid of the brother." Lita said, her stomach starting to roll as she contemplated how she was going to have to do that.

"You could humiliate him enough to make the big bosses see that it's not worth the effort needed to pursue you on the whim of one relatively minor leader."

"Well, then, how do I humiliate him without having to kill him?"

"Challenge him to a fight, one on one, to avenge his brother."

"I tried to challenge him. He hasn't taken the bait."

"I would suggest making sure the big bosses hear about the challenge. They won't let him ignore it."

"Would your connections be able to get the word to the right people?" Lita asked.

"Sure thing. I would bet that you will get a response before the week's out."

"That fast?"

"Sure. They wouldn't want to give you time to prepare. Speaking of which, are you sure you can beat this guy?"

"Oh I think so." Lita answered with confidence. "I still have a few tricks up my sleeve from the 'bad ole days' and I've had some martial arts training." 'Some?' she thought. 'If you consider 15 years some.' One of the things her mother had insisted on after the incident with Troy's friend was self-defense training. Lita had been so impressed with the power and focus she learned from those beginning classes that she had explored a variety of different schools of the arts since then.

"Just remember, he'll fight dirty." Jose warned.

"Oh I'm counting on it." Lita replied. "Let me know if there's ever anything I can do to repay you for this Jose. I can't even begin to tell you what it means to me to finally be working towards getting my life back."

"You can take me out to dinner next time you're in town. We'll paint the town and relive our wild, reckless youth."

"Wouldn't your wife object to that?"

"Nah. She's very open minded."

Lita laughed because they both knew that Jose would never cheat and his wife would never let him. "Tell you what. My girlfriend and I will take you both out on the town."

"Sounds like a plan to me my friend. I can't wait to meet her."

"Well if all goes according to plan you'll have the chance real soon."

"Take care Lita."

"You too Jose and thanks again."

"Anything for a friend." Jose replied and hung up. Lita continued on with her work until it was time for her lunch break. She went into the office and sat down in the chair next to the phone. Lita stared thoughtfully at the phone for a moment then with a shrug of her shoulders picked it up and called Des.

"H'lo." Came the sleepy voice.

"Did I wake you?" Lita rumbled.

"No. I'm still sleeping. This is just a continuation of the wonderful dream I've been having."

"Oh really?" Lita chuckled. "Tell me about it." She leaned back in her chair with the phone propped on her shoulder and closed her eyes, letting Des' voice wash over her releasing the tension she hadn't even realized was there.

"When it starts out I'm sitting on my front steps in the sun and I hear rumbling on the street coming towards me. As I'm sitting there this vision in black leather rides up on a gleaming gold and white Harley. The bike stops and the person riding motions for me to join them. I go to get on the back of the bike but the vision tells me to sit in front. As I drive the bike away the leather-clad arms enfold me in their embrace and a low voice rumbles in my ear leading me to a secluded area where we make love under the gentle rays of the sun." Des' voice had a decidedly dreamy, sexy lilt to it as it purred in Lita's ear.

"You really only love me for my Harley don't you?" Lita teased.

"Well..." Des teased back drawing the word out. "You do have a few other redeeming qualities."

"Glad to hear it." Lita said chuckling.

"So. How's your night going?" Des asked.

"Pretty good actually. The guys have been quiet and I got some interesting news from my friend Jose."

"Already! What did he find out?"

Lita relayed her conversation with Jose and her plan of action. Des was dismayed to learn that Lita had made such a powerful enemy but slightly relieved to learn that there may be a way to get him out of their lives once and for all.

"How much time do you have before you have to go back to work?" Des asked when Lita was finished.

"Only a few minutes." Lita sighed. "Are you coming back to work in the morning?"

"Yeah. Meet me at the car?"

"You bet. Try to get some more sleep ok."

"Ok. I'd like to go back to that dream anyway. Goodnight Li."

"G'night Des."

Jose was right. Three days after word was put out about Lita's challenge. The big bosses heard about it and ordered De La Cruz to accept it and take care of the problem or let it drop. The phone rang at the lake house and when Lita answered the person on the other end was curt and to the point.

"Saturday, midnight, the abandoned K-mart building." The dial tone buzzed in her ear as the connection was severed.

Des reached up and took the phone from Lita and placed it back on the receiver then wrapped her arms around Lita's waist and laid her head over Lita's steadily pounding heartbeat.

"So it's all set." She whispered.

"I guess so." Lita replied and pulled Des closer to her.

"Can you beat this guy?" Des asked, looking up into Lita's beautiful blue eyes."

"With you to come home to? He doesn't stand a chance." Lita replied and kissed the top of her head. As they embraced Lita sent a silent message to whoever might be listening that she would be right.

Somehow Lita made it through work that night and even managed to get a bit of sleep before Des came home and they prepared for their Friday night ritual of supper and bowling.

Supper was a bit strained as Lita and Des were understandably preoccupied with thoughts of the next night and lost track of the conversation more than once. Finally, Amy exclaimed, "What's up with you two?"

"Nothing." Lita mumbled.

Des jumped, startled, and hastily added her own "nothing."

"I don't believe you." Amy replied. "You've both been on edge for weeks. At first I thought it was because of Dad but now that he's gone I know that's not it. So what's up?"

Des looked at Lita asking with her eyes for permission to share their burden. Lita thought for a moment and then nodded. Haltingly at first; then with more confidence, Des revealed the entire story from the death of Lita's brother to the real reason behind the attempted assault at the prison.

"That's terrible." Amy said. "What are you going to do?"

"Lita challenged the leader to a fight and it's been accepted. By Sunday it'll all be over, one way or the other." Des finished reaching for Lita's hand under the table and squeezing it.

"Where is this 'challenge' supposed to happen?" Steve asked.

"That abandoned store south of town." Lita said quietly.

"Well that's appropriate." Steve said. "So... Are we having a Christmas party for bowling again this year?"

Des smiled at him, grateful for the change of subjects. "Yeah. I figured we would do the potluck appetizers again and the gift exchange. I brought letters announcing it."

"What is the gift exchange?" Lita asked. "Is it like a secret Santa exchange?"

"Not really. Every person who wants to participate brings a neutral $5 wrapped gift. We put all the gifts on a table and then start bowling like any other night. When you get your first strike you can go to the table and choose a gift. Every time you get a strike after that you can either exchange your gift for someone else's or keep it. Then, about halfway through the third game I'll make an announcement saying the exchanging is done and then we can open the gifts."

"What if someone hasn't bowled a strike all night?" Lita asked.

"It's never actually happened but if it did there would still be a gift on the table that the person could have. Everyone who brings a gift goes home with a gift."

"Sounds like it could be fun."

"There is usually one gift that everyone wants and whole teams will be trying to get it." Amy added. "Pretty soon whenever anyone on the team gets a strike they go and get the one gift that everyone wants. It's really fun when one member of a team gets a strike, grabs the gift and has it taken away by someone else who got a strike before they can even get back to their seat with it."

"When is this party?" Lita asked.

"Next week." Des replied. "It will be the last week of bowling until after the New Year. With the next two Fridays being Christmas Eve and New Year's Eve."

"Have you two made any plans for Christmas?"

"Not really." Des answered. "We haven't really had any time to think about it. I'm sure we'll be at the family happenings at least some of the time." Des said with a glance at Lita, who nodded.

"Good." Amy said as they got up to leave the restaurant.

Bowling went well. Des had to explain the Christmas party to quite a few people who didn't want to take the time to read her announcement but she was pleasant to all of them. Lita, on the other hand, was ready to stick the paper to their foreheads and send them on their way. Des hadn't been able to spend any time on their lanes, except when she had to come over and throw the ball.

Finally, Lita had had enough. She finished her turn and saw that Des was gone again. Spotting her at the other end of the lanes talking with some relatives, Lita walked over, placed her hand on Des' arm and gently tugged her away from the relatives and into the locker room.

"Li. What's the matter?"

"Nothing." Lita replied as she pulled Des into her arms and kissed her.

"Not that I'm complaining or anything," Des said breathlessly when they parted. "But what was that for?"

"I missed you."

"We've been together all night."

"No we haven't. You've been running around here all night, I've hardly even seen you."

"Oh poor baby. Are you feeling neglected?"

"Yes." Lita pouted.

"Well. What can I do to make it up to you?"

"I have a few ideas." Lita answered with a grin. "But for now you can kiss me."

"I don't know, that's asking a lot." Des said with an answering grin.

"Please." Lita whined, pouting again.

"Oh, all right." They kissed for a few breathless moments before going back out to bowl.

Lita and Des spent the next day together. They tried not to think about what could happen that night but the vague feeling that it might be their last day together placed a sense of urgency behind everything they did. Of course, the day went by much too quickly and all too soon they were preparing supper. Or rather, Des was preparing supper and Lita was 'helping'.

They were just about to sit down when the doorbell rang. Lita went over to the door with a quizzical glance at Des and peered out the side window. With another glance at Des she opened the door and Des' family piled in carrying food.

Des stood and in a daze helped place the food on the counter. When everything was set down she turned to face her family.

"What's going on?"

"We're here to help." Steve said.

"We've talked it over and decided that you two shouldn't go and face this guy alone. It's a safe bet that he won't be. We're your backup."

Des stared at them. She couldn't think of anything to say. She looked at each of her uncles and aunts in turn and saw the determination and love on their faces. Suddenly, she burst into tears and ran into Lita's open arms.

Lita had been just as stunned by the announcement as Des was. She watched Des absorb the love of her family and knew what was coming next. She opened her arms in time to draw Des in. Lita rubbed Des' back trying to soothe her while blinking back the tears in her own eyes.

"You guys are unbelievable." Lita said after taking a moment to compose herself. Des was still quietly sobbing against her chest. "You do know that I can't let you do this though right?"

"Truthfully Lita, I don't think you could stop us." Rick said.

That earned him a raised eyebrow and a chuckle. "You think not?"

"Did they tell you to come alone?" Rick countered.

"No." Lita admitted grudgingly

"Do you think this guy is going to come alone?"

"I'm sure he won't but..."

"But nothing Lita. If you haven't learned this yet it's time you did. The people in this family stand behind each other no matter what. You are part of Dee's life and that makes you part of this family. You need someone to watch your back and make sure this stays a fair fight. That's us." Tracy added in a tone that dared Lita to contradict her.

"I can't ask you to risk yourselves like that."

"You're not asking. We're insisting."

With a resigned sigh Lita relented. "All right but you're not all coming. 5 of you should be enough to watch my back."

"Our backs." Came Des' voice. She had gained control of her tears and was looking up at Lita with the same determined glint in her eye that her family had.

Lita looked at Des and then at the family members gathered around.

"Excuse us." She said as she led Des into the computer room and closed the door.

"I really wish you would stay here."

"Well I wish you didn't have to go fight this guy at all. Since you do, I'm going with you."

"Des." Lita protested halfheartedly.

"No Li. There's no arguing this. You are going to take this guy on so we can have a shot at a future together right?"

"Absolutely."

"What kind of partner would I be if I let you do that alone?"

"Alive."

"And if you were killed. Where would that leave me?"

"Alive, with your family."

"But without a soul what good would I be?"

Lita couldn't think of a response to that and could only stare at her.

"I have to be with you Li. No matter what happens, I have to be with you."

"Ok." Lita gave in and gathered Des to her for a hug. "Let's get going then, we've got some plans to make."

At 5 minutes to midnight Lita, Des, Steve, Rick, Eddie, Tom, and Joey pulled into the parking lot of the abandoned building.

"Everybody ready?" Lita asked.

"As we're gonna be." Steve said.

"Remember, you guys don't do anything unless they try to interfere. If you see any weapons drawn I want you out."

"Right." Eddie said.

They walked to the side door that was conspicuously left open for them. As Lita was about to open the door the rest of the way Des interrupted her by placing a hand on her arm.

"Li, wait. I have a better idea." She led them around the building to the old Auto shop entrance. At the door she took a pen out of her pocket and after a moment slowly opened the door.

"How'd you do that?" Rick whispered.

"I used to work here remember? The shop guys showed me that little trick. They used to use it when they had to pull a car out here and someone would shut the bay door behind them."

"Very nice." Lita murmured as she led the way into the shop. "Do you know any other tricks?"

Des just wiggled her eyebrows at her and turned to her Uncle Tom.

"Tom, you've got the cell phone right?"

"Right here."

"Good. Follow me." Des led Tom across the garage bay to another door and opened it. Tom flipped on his penlight and looked inside.

"Go up those steps and you'll be able to get to the warehouse loft. There are windows there where you should be able to keep an eye on us. You should be able to see the entire store floor from there. Take these." Des said handing him some small binoculars. "If anything starts to look bad call 911 and say there's a fire or something."

"Got it. Dee, please be careful. We need you."

"Thanks Tom. I will."

"After all, where would the bowling team be without the two of you?"

"Good point." Des said with a small chuckle as she hugged him. Then she went back to Lita and the others.

"Where's Tom going?" Lita asked.

"He's going to be our eye in the sky." Des said and quickly outlined her plan.

"Ok. You guys stay here. I'm going to check things out." Lita said. "And yes I'll be careful. Give me 5 minutes." Then, as silently as a breeze, she was gone. The next few minutes were spent in tense silence until Lita returned as silently as she had left.

"All clear." Lita whispered and led them out into the empty store.

Their steps echoed eerily in the cavernous emptiness of the store. The room was completely dark except for a single area illuminated by half a row of florescent lights. At the edge of the lighted area there were a number of men standing in a row trying to see into the darkness. Their eyes were fixed on the partially open door.

"Hey boys, lookin' for me?" Lita drawled as she stepped into the lighted area behind the men. To their credit none of the men flinched in reaction to their sudden presence although there were a few slightly widened eyes. As Des and her family moved to stand behind Lita the men parted and another, smaller man moved to face Lita.

"You must be Fransisco." Lita purred.

"And you must be the bitch that killed my brother." De La Cruz replied.

"I didn't do anything to your brother but I know you can't, or won't, believe that so let's get this over with."

Lita and De La Cruz began circling each other slowly. De La Cruz looking for an opening and a way to maneuver Lita in front of his men. Lita was waiting for him to make his first mistake, while trying to keep her back to Des' family and away from the goons.

"Who're your little friends?" De La Cruz sneered.

"We're her family." Des replied and Lita couldn't stop the little grin that found its way to her lips and the rush of warmth that accompanied those three little words. They circled each other some more until De La Cruz lunged at Lita trying to grab her shoulders and throw her down to the ground. She dodged his attempt easily and delivered a blow to his midsection.

"Is that your best shot?" Lita taunted. "You'd better go home now before you humiliate yourself."

Rick saw some of the goons look at each other and then discreetly check for their weapons. With a glance at his brothers Rick melted into the darkness. When he returned he handed something to each of them. Lita and De La Cruz had traded a few blows by the time he returned. Lita's were definitely landing with greater accuracy, more frequency, and greater force than the pitiful attempts by De La Cruz.

Des was watching Lita move with a sense of disbelief. She had always sensed that Lita was a powerful woman, that aura surrounded her. Seeing that power in action was another matter entirely. She was beautiful and deadly, the grace of her motions rendering incredible force and punishment. De La Cruz, in contrast, was clumsy and any blow he was lucky enough to land seemed to have the same effect as the mosquitoes so common to the area. Lita swatted him as efficiently as she did those pests. Things were not going well for the gang leader and he started to get desperate. Lita landed a punch that threw him back against one of his goons. De La Cruz knew he wouldn't be able to last much longer and as he righted himself his eye caught a gleam of metal and he grabbed it. Turning back to face Lita with the 9mm held steadily pointing at her heart. Lita froze. Even she realized she wasn't fast enough to evade a bullet at point blank range.

"So the big man isn't so big anymore." Lita taunted. "Can't even beat a girl without pulling a weapon. What kind of leader is that?"

Des saw that Lita was trying to stall and get De La Cruz mad enough to do something stupid. She glanced desperately around the store looking for anything she could possibly use to help. Finally, she spotted an old broom lying on the floor and picked it up slowly figuring it was better than nothing. She felt a strange sense of familiarity as the wood lay in her hands. A calm sense of purpose settled over her as she twirled the wood experimentally realizing suddenly that somehow she knew what to do with it. She eased herself into a position to the side of De La Cruz. All eyes were focused on the two people frozen in the circle of light.

"You are going to die, puta." De La Cruz ground out.

"Oh yeah. What'll that get you Frankie? You've already lost face in front of your men. Who's going to believe you're able to lead when you let a measly woman kill your brother and beat you to a bloody mess?" Lita continued to taunt De La Cruz. "That's right Frankie boy, when I walked into that room and saw your precious brother getting beat up by those guys I laughed. It was perfect. I got revenge for my brother's murder and I got commended for responding so well in a tense situation. Should I tell you what your brother's last words were? Do you want to hear how he cried like a baby and begged me to help him?" She could see that she was getting to him. The hand holding the gun was shaking now and a crazed look had crept into his eyes. One more should do it.

"By the way," she said almost casually, "did they tell you how your brother wet himself he was so scared. It was really pathetic. Not at all honorable or even manly." Gotcha she thought as she could almost hear the snap as his sanity broke and De La Cruz charged, forgetting the gun in his hand.

Lita smiled and prepared herself to deliver the final blow. Then started, surprised, when he never made it to her. All she saw was a flash of golden hair and the blurred motion of some kind of stick and then De La Cruz was laying at her feet out cold. Lita looked over at Des who was standing next to her, a stunned look on her face.

The goons had pulled their weapons when they saw their leader charge and Des' uncles pulled their own, licensed, handguns. As the goons and the relatives were frozen in this old fashioned standoff the sound of sirens approaching were faintly heard. The goons looked at each other and holstered their weapons, disappearing into the blackness of the store. Tom came running up to them, cell phone in one hand and flashlight in the other.

"Fire department's on the way."

"Good job Tom. What are we going to tell them when they get here?" Eddie asked looking at Lita.

"Nothing. We won't be here." Lita knelt down and began patting De La Cruz's pockets. She found his cell phone, dialed 911, hit send, let it ring once, and then hit end. Then she went off into the shadows. When she returned she was dragging two unconscious men into the lighted area.

"Joey. Go move the truck around to the garage entrance." Lita said tossing him the keys.

"Who're they?" Rick asked.

"A little surprise De La Cruz had waiting by the door we almost came in."

"No wonder those other guys were surprised to see us." Rick commented.

"Yep. Now, let's get out of here." Lita led the way back out to the garage door. The sirens were getting closer. They made it out to the car and Lita drove over the yard at the back of the store and onto a parallel street before turning on the lights and heading for the lake house.

"Thank God for frozen ground and no snow yet." Lita muttered.

"Why?" Des asked.

"There won't be any tracks on the ground."

"Won't they get suspicious when they find those guys and no fire?"

"Oh. I set a small fire in the loft with my cigarette lighter. I left a cigarette laying around up there and I accidentally dropped a few by De La Cruz when we left." Tom admitted sheepishly.

"Brilliant." Lita complimented him.

As they drove to the lake house they saw a few more police cars headed towards the store. They made it to the house without incident and after many hugs and congratulations (and a few beers) everyone headed for their own homes and Lita and Des were alone once more.

They walked slowly up the stairs to the bedroom with their arms around each other’s waists. In the bedroom they undressed silently and crawled into bed. Cuddled together Des took a deep breath and asked, "Is it over?"

"I think so. I’ll call Jose in the morning and ask him to check with his contacts. See what he can find out. I don’t think De La Cruz’s bosses are going to be too happy with him. Not only did he lose the challenge to a woman; he was caught starting a fire in an abandoned store in a little town in the middle of nowhere. I wouldn’t be surprised to hear that they’ve cut him loose completely."

"I hope so." Des said as she snuggled closer to Lita. As the night sky slowly began to lighten with the coming dawn Lita pulled Des into her favorite sleeping position, kissed the top of her head and whispered, "I love you." As they settled into sleep.

Des was already half asleep but mumbled, "Love you too." Before drifting off to the rest of the way.

A few hours later the sun streaming through the windows woke Lita. She gave serious thought to ignoring it and going back to sleep but the beauty of the early afternoon and the realization that for the first time in a very long time she was free to enjoy her happiness had her carefully getting out of bed. She stood at the end of the bed and marveled at the amazing woman still asleep. The sunlight danced across her golden hair revealing the hidden reddish strands and igniting them.

Lita crossed to the windows and drew the blinds leaving the room in darkness once again. She then crept quietly out of the room and down the stairs to the kitchen knowing that Des was going to be hungry when she finally woke up.

As she viewed the contents of her refrigerator she thought back to her life before Des had entered it. From the little things like actually having food in her refrigerator, to the big things, like friendship and a love so big she was amazed her heart could hold it. So much had changed since the blond woman had entered her life. How on earth did I live before she came along? She asked herself, then answered. Simple. I didn’t live I survived. Living is so uch better. Realizing that she was still standing in front of her open refrigerator she took out some eggs. I can handle scrambled eggs I think. She did manage to cook the eggs and made some toast to go with it. She found some chocolate fudge pop tarts and made them too. She put it all on a tray with orange juice and milk and ran out to get the paper before taking it up to Des. As she came back into the house she caught a glimpse of the headline and stopped.

Unidentified Man Slain in Abandoned Store Fire

"Oh no." Lita whispered as she sank into one of the kitchen chairs to read the rest of the article.

An unidentified man was found dead on the floor of an abandoned building last night. Two other unconscious men where also discovered. The slain man had been severely beaten. The exact cause of death has not been determined at this time. The men were discovered when an anonymous phone call was received reporting a fire in the building. The fire was located in the rear of the building and extinguished quickly. Firefighters are not sure what caused the fire but the presence of the men points to arson. The dead man had a cell phone on him and appears to have dialed 911. Police speculate that the dead man may have been killed by the two other men after dialing 911. The two men were then overcome by the smoke from the fire. The men are being held for questioning at this time. An autopsy is being performed to establish the cause of death.

Lita finished reading the article, refolded the newspaper, and set it on the table. What am I going to tell Des? She thought. I have to tell her something. She’ll hear about it on her own if I don’t. Best thing is to just tell her and deal with how she reacts, right? Right. The decision made Lita stood up, picked up the tray and the newspaper and slowly headed up the stairs. The euphoria of earlier replaced with an air of resignation.

When Lita opened the door to the bedroom she saw that Des was still sleeping. She smiled as she noticed that Des had commandeered her pillow as a substitute for snuggling. She set the tray on the nightstand, climbed into the bed and proceeded to wake Des up. She started by brushing her hair off of her forehead and trailing her fingers down Des’ cheek to gently cup her chin. Leaning down she brushed her lips across Des’, smiling as those lips responded to hers instinctively. One taste was not enough so Lita returned for a deeper kiss as her hands began to wander, searching for the softness of Des’ skin. Her eyes drifted shut as she absorbed the sensations, then opened again when she felt hands brushing across her skin. Blue eyes meet green as their lips melded again.

"Morning." Lita whispered without halting the kiss.

"Morning." Des answered and continued her exploration of Lita’s mouth and body.

Much later, Lita and Des munched on the pop tarts and toast deciding to leave the cold eggs alone. With breakfast finished Lita knew she

couldn’t put off showing Des the paper any longer.

"Des?"

"Hmmm?"

"There’s something in the paper you need to see."

"Something about last night?"

"Yeah."

"Do they know we were there? Forget I asked that. If they knew we were there we wouldn’t find out from the paper would we?"

"No." Lita reached for the paper and handed it to her. "Read it for yourself."

Des saw the headline and looked wide-eyed at Lita.

"Keep reading." Lita nudged her. Des read the whole article and slowly set it down on the bed next to her.

"Do you think I killed him Li?"

Here it was, the moment of decision for Lita. Lie to Des to save her that pain or tell her the truth and help her deal with it.

"Tell me the truth Li."

"I think that the beating I gave him put him on the edge and that your shots with the broom handle may have knocked him over. We won’t know for sure until the autopsy is completed and even then only if they release the information." She hugged Des to her trying to comfort her.

"So we both get away with murder."

"NO! Don’t even think that. Yes he died but there is no way it was murder. He was trying to kill me and then he would’ve killed you. Those goons waiting for us by the door proved that. No one with me was going to leave that building alive."

"So if was self-defense?"

"Absolutely."

"I still killed a man."

"We killed a man."

"Ok, we. How do I live with that? When you only thought you were responsible for that punk’s death you almost shut yourself off from the world, not to mention me. This time it actually happened. How do I live with that guilt?"

"By living through it with me?" Lita asked hesitantly.

"You and me against the guilt?"

"All the way, all the time."

"It won’t be easy."

"Nothing worth having is easy to get."

"Am I still worth having?"

"God yes." Lita breathed. "Am I?"

"Oh yeah."

Of course it wasn’t that easy. That night, Lita had to go back to work and Des was plagued by the first of many nightmares. As soon as she slipped into Morpheus’ realm the fight and her part in it would replay itself over and over in her mind. Conjuring up images of the death blow from every possible angle. On the rare occasion that Lita was with her, Des could be soothed back to a peaceful sleep with gentle strokes on her back. When she wasn’t there Des would wake up sweating and shivering. Going back to sleep after one of these nightmares was nearly impossible and Des found her sleeping habits changing. She started taking naps with Lita when she got home and doing chores while Lita was working. After a week of sleepless nights and guilt that overwhelmed her normally cheerful demeanor, the autopsy report was finally released. Des brought the paper into the house with her when she came home from work.

Lita was sitting on the couch watching a talk show on TV and waiting for Des. Des dropped her bag on the counter and sat down next to Lita.

"Anyone interesting on today?"

"Nah. How’d work go?"

"Ok considering Christmas is just around the corner. There’s another article in the paper."

"Anything new?"

"The headline mentions the autopsy report."

"Didn’t you read the article?"

"No. I wanted to wait for you." She handed Lita the paper. Lita took the paper and quickly read the article. A grin spread across her face and she looked over to Des.

"You’re not going to believe this."

"What?"

"According to the autopsy report he died of an aneurysm. The beating he received didn’t kill him. If he had been home asleep he still would’ve died."

"We didn’t kill him?" Des asked hardly daring to believe it.

"We didn’t kill him." Lita confirmed.

"Unbelievable." They sat quietly absorbing this sudden absolution of the guilt that had been eating at them all week. Lita had gone through a few sleepless nights of her own, looking forward to the afternoon naps as much as Des was.

"So. Are you ready to go have some bowling tonight?" Lita asked, changing the subject. Des jumped up from the couch and started towards the door.

"Oh Man! I forgot all about the bowling party being tonight! What are we going to do? I don’t have a gift to exchange or an appetizer to share, nothing. I can’t believe I forgot." Lita stopped her with a hand on her arm. She gently led her back to the couch and with a slight pressure applied to her shoulders sat her down.

"Close your eyes."

"What!? Li, I don’t have time. I have to run back into town and get a gift, figure out something to make, and…" She stopped when Lita’s lips covered hers. After a moment Lita pulled away and repeated. "Close your eyes."

Breathlessly, Des did as Lita asked. She felt Lita move from the couch, heard her walk across the room and open a drawer. Then she felt the cushion move next to her as Lita sat back down and placed something in her lap.

"Open your eyes." Des opened her eyes and looked down to see two gift bags. One had polar bears decorating a Christmas tree on it and the other had mice sledding down a snow covered hill.

"How cute." Des exclaimed. "When did you get these?"

"I picked ‘em up the other day on my way home from work. I thought that you might have forgotten with everything else you’ve had on your mind lately."

"Thanks. Now I just need to make something to eat."

"Well, I stopped at the store and bought some brownie mix. You could make those up."

"Sounds good to me. What kind did you get?"

Lita ducked her head and replied sheepishly, "Double chocolate fudge with White chocolate frosting."

"I should have guessed." Des chuckled and got off the couch, pulling Lita up with her and heading towards the kitchen. "Have you heard anything from Jose?"

"Yeah. He called here this afternoon. Word on the street confirms that the gangs in California have given up on this measly prison guard in Minnesota. It's over."

"Well, that news calls for a celebration." Des said.

"What did you have in mind?"

"Hmmm. Since there's going to be a lot of food at bowling tonight we usually don't go out for supper beforehand..."

"I can understand that." Lita said watching as Des pulled out the brownie mix and pans.

"Uhhmm. So. After I get these brownies made there won't be anything for us to do until we have to go in to bowl." Des began mixing the ingredients together.

"That'll leave at least three hours to fill."

"I know. Any ideas on how we can fill all that time and make it some sort of celebration?" Des finished mixing the batter and poured it into the cake pan.

"I'm sure we could think of something to do." Lita replied watching Des bend over to put the pan in the oven. When she straightened she took the beaters off of the electric mixer and began licking the excess batter from one while handing the other one to Lita. Lita took the beater from Des and ran her finger down the edge, cleaning off the chocolate. She looked at her finger covered in chocolate and then looked at Des with a wicked gleam in her eye. She slowly walked towards Des and trailed her finger from one of Des' cheeks, across her lips and over to the other cheek. Des froze and forgot to breathe until Lita's lips brushed her cheek and her tongue reached out to remove the chocolate. Des' pulse rocketed as those lips and tongue slowly removed all traces of chocolate from her cheeks and then finally, her lips.

"What are you doing?" She asked Lita breathlessly.

"Celebrating."

"I like your ideas." Des replied as she went to place her arms around Lita's neck and 'accidentally' brushed a chocolate covered spatula against her collarbone. Of course she couldn't leave her covered in chocolate so she returned the favor and licked the chocolate off. By the time she was finished both women were breathing heavily. Lita spied the bowl Des had mixed the batter in and grabbed it. With a raised eyebrow she led the way to the couch in the living room and sat down placing the bowl on the coffee table. As Des came over to the couch  Lita reached up and began unbuttoning Des' blouse. Des unbuttoned Lita's shirt as well and then reached for the discarded bowl. Making brownies has never been so much fun. Des thought as she proceeded to use all of the batter left in the bowl.

When the brownies were finished and had been taken out of the oven Des and Lita moved their celebration upstairs and didn't come back down until it was time to leave. The bowling party went well. Everyone had a good time and it was a great kickoff for the parties of the holiday season.

The education staff and the officers each had parties that Des and Lita attended as a couple. They each relished the freedom of being able to acknowledge their relationship and most of their co-workers accepted them.

Before they knew it the workweek was finished and Christmas had arrived. There was no programming for the inmates during the holidays so Des had the day off from work and Lita finished her shift at 7:30 in the morning.

Lita wearily pulled into the garage after her shift. It had been a long night and she was glad to have a few days off. More importantly, she was glad to have the days to spend with Des. As she got out of the car and walked to the door she thought about the special gift she had hidden away for Des and wondered whether she would actually have the guts to give it to her. As the headache that had been pounding at the base of her skull moved to her temples she opened the door and stared.

Her house had been changed into a winter fairyland. Every conceivable surface in the house had been decorated for the holidays. There was a tree in the living room, garland and lights strung all around, and Christmas music was blasting from the stereo. Even the pool table was decorated. A lighted village, complete with skating pond and train, now adorned the surface. The smell was what drew Lita further into the house though. The glorious aroma of baking assaulted her senses and led her to kitchen and the sight of her best Christmas present ever dancing and singing as she mixed cookie dough. Lita smiled as her headache melted away. She put her work stuff on the counter and walked over to Des, put her arms around her, and kissed the back of her neck.

Des jumped, startled, and turned around to see Lita standing there, smiling at her.

"You scared the heck out of me!" She exclaimed.

"Sorry." Lita replied as she leaned in for a deep, passionate kiss.

"Am I forgiven?" She asked when they parted many minutes later.

"For what?" Des asked dreamily, and pulled Lita to her for another kiss. When they parted again Des whispered "Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas. I see you've been busy."

"I couldn't sleep. I wanted to make our first Christmas together special."

"It already is special. You're here."

"Well." Des said feeling the blush creeping up her neck and cheeks,

"You agreed to spend most of the holiday with my family. I thought that deserved some extra special treatment."

"What did you have planned?"

"I thought we would start with breakfast"

"Of course."

"Hey!" Des protested, slapping Lita lightly on the arm. "I resemble that remark. Anyway, after breakfast I thought we could open our gifts".

"You're the only gift I need."

"That's sweet but I got you some other things that I would really like to give you if that's all right."

"I'm impressed, you didn't even blush at that last compliment. You're getting better."

"I'm working on it. I'm still not used to hearing things like that though."

"Get used to it. What happens after the gifts?"

"I thought we would improvise from then on until it was time to meet at Mom's for supper."

"Improvise huh?"

"Yeah. You're pretty good at that so I'm not worried. Of course we need to work in some sleep sometime before supper and midnight mass with the family."

"I suppose that would be a good idea, and I’m sure we’ll get around to it eventually. Anything else?"

"Nope. That’s the extent of what I had planned."

"Sounds good to me. When’s breakfast?"

"In about 10 minutes so why don’t you go sit in the living room and enjoy the decorations and the music and I’ll bring it out when it’s ready."

"Sure I can’t just stay in here with you?" Lita asked as she moved close to Des and ran her fingers lightly down her cheek.

"I’m sure. You’re too distracting."

"Really?" Lita teased lowering her lips close to Des’.

"Uh huh." Des whispered.

"Ok." Lita said pulling back and turning to leave.

"Whoa, wait a minute there." Des said reaching for Lita and pulling her down for a kiss. "I’ve got a few minutes to spare." She saidagainst Lita’s lips.

 

After a leisurely breakfast spent discussing their holiday plans and reminiscing about Christmases past Lita and Des went into the living room.  Des had Lita sit on the couch while she played Santa’s helper and handed out the gifts from under the tree.

“My sister always handed out the gifts when we were young.  Now my niece and nephew do the honors.  I really want to do this.”  Des explained when Lita protested.

“Well, I feel extremely lazy but if it’ll make you happy I’m all for it.”

Des sorted through the gifts under the tree separating their gifts to each other from the ones they would take to her mom’s later that night and the ones they would take to the big family gathering in the morning.  The pile of gifts on the coffee table kept growing until Des could hardly see Lita sitting on the couch.  She stood up, raised her eyebrows at Lita and said, “Went a little overboard didn’t you?”

Lita raised her own eyebrow, glanced at the pile of presents addressed to her, then looked back at Des.  Des withstood the stare for all of 30 seconds before bursting into laughter.  “Ok.  So I did too.  It was just that every time I went shopping I found something I thought would be perfect for you and I bought it.  You mind?”

Lita looked at the pile of gifts she had given Des and shrugged.  “How can I mind when I did basically the same thing?”

“Good point.”  Des said as they started opening their gifts.  They opened their gifts one at a time watching each others’ reactions and opening styles.  Lita had bought a bunch of clothes for Des to wear at work.  She had noticed that Des rarely bought any for herself.  There were a few outfits in Lita’s packages as well although not nearly as many because Lita wore uniforms to work and usually changed into jeans and a t-shirt around the house.  Soon there were only a few small packages left on the table.  Des handed Lita a small, flat box to open next.  Lita took it, found the pieces of tape holding the paper together, and carefully ripped it off while Des’ fingers twitched with the urge to reach over and help.  They had learned a lot about each other in the 5 months they had known each other but there always seemed to be more to discover.  Today Lita discovered that Des tore into Christmas presents with the same carefree abandon that she tore into life and Des had discovered that Lita was as careful and methodical with her gift opening as she was with the decisions she made in life.

When Lita finally had the paper off and the tape off of the box.  (A rule ordained by Des’ mother.  All boxes must be taped shut before being wrapped in paper that will keep them closed.)  She lifted the lid and saw, “Plane tickets?”

Des was watching hopefully as Lita took the tickets out of the box for a closer look.

“You got me a round trip ticket to California?”

“First Class.”

“Why?”

“I thought maybe you would want to go see your mom and your brother now that it’s safe.”

“Their safety wasn’t the only thing keeping us apart Des.”  Lita reminded her quietly.

“I know.  But look, the tickets aren’t valid until February, when you’re on vacation for a week.  Maybe before then you could call them, get the ball rolling a bit and then go see them.  If you’re not ready then you could just use the tickets to go back and visit some of your old friends for a week.”

Lita sat quiet for so long that Des thought she was going to refuse the idea.

“I’ll go on one condition.”

“What’s that?”

“You go with me.”

“Deal.”

“Just like that?”

Des reached behind her, under the pillow on the end of the couch and pulled out an envelope matching the one Lita was holding.

“I already had my vacation approved for the same week as yours so we’re all set.  I can’t wait to meet your friends.”  And your family too I hope.

“You are amazing.”  Lita said grabbing Des and kissing her.

“Not really, just in love.”  Des whispered when they parted.

“It must be contagious cause I am too.  Open your next gift.”  Lita said nudging a flat package towards her.  Des ripped the paper off and lifted the cover, now it was her turn to be confused.

“A key and a piece of paper?”

“Read it.”

“You got your hours changed.”  Des breathed.

“Yep.  Starting the first of the year I’ll be working the day shift,” she paused as Des leaned over and kissed her.  “You haven’t heard the best part yet.”

“What could be better?”

“I’m going to be working as the security offices in the Education Building… with you.”

“You’re kidding.”

“Nope.  We can ride into work together, have lunch together, and ride home together.”

“That sounds kind of permanent.  Home together, I mean.”

“Well, that’s what the key is for.”  Lita said hesitating shyly.  “I was wondering if you’d want to move in here for good.”  As she was saying this she took a small box out of her pocket and placed it in Des’ hands.

“I’ve never been very good with words.  When I saw you walking towards me that first day, in a bowling alley of all the unlikely places, my heart jumped and everything seemed to fall into place even though I couldn’t, or wouldn’t, acknowledge it then.  I needed to be around you like I needed to breathe.  Since then the feelings have only grown.  I can’t imagine my life without you and I really don’t want to.  I know we can’t legally get married but,” she took the ring out of the box and reached for Des’ hand, then looked into her eyes.  “Will you be my partner in life no matter what it throws at us?  Will you share with me your hopes and dreams so I can make them come true?  Will you be my wife?”  Lita slipped the ring on Des’ finger.

“Oh yes.  Absolutely.”  She wiped away the tears she couldn’t keep from falling and reached into her own pocket and drew out her own small, velvet box.  She placed it in Lita’s hand.

Surprised, Lita looked up at Des wonderingly.

“I’m usually very good with words,” Des said.  “But I really couldn’t put how I feel into words.  The other day I was listening to a CD that I bought from one of the pack members.”

“Sticks?”  Lita questioned.

“Yeah.  Jennifer M. Ward.  I’ve listened to her CD hundreds of times since I got it.  Last week though, I was looking at this ring and trying to figure out how to ask you to share my life when the song ‘(Missing) Inside My Heart’ started to play.  As I was listening to that song I knew that I couldn’t say it any better.”  Des walked over to the stereo and switched the Christmas music for a new CD.  The opening notes sounded as Des walked back to the couch and sat down taking Lita’s hands in hers as the lyrics began.

 I’m always walking alone

 My shadow’s all that I have

 There’s no one in the view of my life ahead.

 No footprints are by my side

 No shadow cast beside mine

 The only love I know is inside my mind.

 

 Oh how I wish that love would find me

 And cast my pain away.

 

 I walk alone in the dark

 No light shines on my heart

 And the only thing I feel is emptiness.

 Oh how I wish that love would find me

 And cast my pain away.

 

 I want to know the life within me

 And to feel the love within.

 

 I’ve always walked all alone

 My shadow’s all that I had

 Until the day I found you

 I never knew what I had been missing

 Been missing inside my heart.

 

As the song faded away Des placed her ring on Lita’s finger.  “I never thought I would find someone who made my life complete.  I thought Mom’s dream and that shadow would keep love out of my life.  I never counted  on finding someone so strong, courageous, and stubborn.  I never thought I would find the other half of my soul.  You are what’s been missing inside my heart, you are the other half of my soul.  Will you share your hopes and dreams with me?  Will you be my partner in life and my wife?”

“Absolutely.  I love you.”

“I love you too.”  Their lips met sealing their pledge.

Many minutes later Lita stood reaching for Des’ hand to pull her up next to her.  They kissed again then Lita put her arm under Des’ knees and picked her up.  She walked to the stairs cradling her wife in her arms.

“What about the rest of the gifts?”  Des asked without raising her head from its comfortable position on Lita’s shoulder.

“Is there anything left that I shouldn’t open in front of your mother?”

Des thought for a minute then replied.  “No.”

“Good.”  Lita answered as she continued up the stairs to the bedroom.

They barely made it in time for dinner.

 

The End

  

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