Turning the Page (5 page)

it. Once she had made the break from Maggie, she still found herself at the gym three times a

week, using the visits to work her body as well as clear her mind.

Today, the thoughts filling her head to the point of spilling out her ears were all orbiting

around the same subject: Melanie. Taylor shook her head with a wry grin as she pushed against

the steps of the Stairmaster, sweating as she climbed her way to nowhere. It had been quite

some time since she had clicked so easily with somebody. Melanie seemed just as comfortable

with her, judging from dinner last night and this morning’s ride. Was Melanie flirting with her

on purpose? Was she even aware that she was flirting? For that matter, was she gay? Taylor

didn’t think so. Samantha had made Taylor’s sexuality painfully clear yesterday when she’d

first introduced them and it would be just like her to out Melanie in a similar, immediate

fashion, for shock value, if nothing else. The fact that she hadn’t done so told Taylor that

Melanie was straight.

I’l just have to watch myself, she thought with determination. It was such a lesbian cliché;

the gay girl falling for the straight girl she could never have. It was a cliché that Taylor would

like to avoid at all costs.

What was it about Sam’s cousin anyway? Sure, she was very attractive. She was very, very

attractive, but so what? So were a lot of women Taylor had contact with almost every day.

Aside from the occasional fantasy, she didn’t find herself spending her workout analyzing

what it was about them that she found so attractive.

It wasn't like she'd had so much experience with women that she had no trouble reading them.

She hadn't actually come out until her senior year in college, a mere five years ago. Other

than a few casual flings, Maggie was her only real relationship, and what a disastrous model to

follow. Truth be told, she hadn't the foggiest idea how tell if a woman was interested in her,

unless, of course, they used the old neon-sign-on-the-forehead trick. Taylor was pretty sure

she'd catch that.

Before she could dwell more on the subject, her mind shifted to focus on the ad playing

through her headphones. A young man and young woman were discussing the benefits of a

nearby community college. Both sounded painfully like they were reading from a piece of

paper, coming off so incredibly scripted, that it left a bad taste in Taylor's mouth.

Ugh, she grimaced, making a mental note to mention the ad to Jason tomorrow. He was the

newest sales rep at the station, and Taylor had more or less taken him under her wing. He had

great sales potential and he was a very likable guy, but he was still leery of being firmer with

the talent when they didn't deliver. The local college was his account, and she was amazed

that his client had approved the ad before it aired.

With the onset of that train of thought, Melanie was quietly transferred to a back burner

while Taylor wasn't paying attention.

Chapter Six

"HEY."

MELANIE NEARLY jumped out of her skin at the sound of Taylor's voice. She hadn't heard

the door or her approach to the tiny office in the back of the store, so absorbed was she in

the paperwork she was studying.

Recognizing the shock on the older woman's face, Taylor immediately apologized.

Melanie smiled, embarrassed. "It's okay. I tend to tune out the rest of the world when I'm

working. Has it been an hour and a half already?"

Taylor looked around with amusement. Files, books, and binders were strewn all over the tiny

office, Melanie in the center like a floating buoy in a sea of paper. "Actually, it's been two.

Sorry I'm late. How's it going?"

"Wel , I'm not quite sure yet." She gestured to the mess she had made. "You were right.

Jeff's a pretty organized guy. Al his records are well-kept and in order. No thanks to me."

Taylor nodded, not surprised.

"However, I don't think he made one red cent the whole time he's had this place."

Taylor chuckled, again not surprised. "That's because he didn't listen to me."

"What do you mean?"

"I told him he needed to specialize."

Melanie furrowed her eyebrows, an expression that made Taylor smile.

"Come here." Taylor reached for Melanie's hand and pulled her out of the office and into the store itself. She made a grand gesture with the sweep of her arm. "Take a good look at this

place."

"Okay. I’m looking." She pause for a minute. "What am I looking at?"

"Size, my dear Melanie. Contrary to popular belief, when it comes to retail, size does matter."

Melanie blinked with understanding. "You’re right. You’re absolutely right. This is a tiny shop...

much too small to be a general interest bookstore. You can’t compete with Barnes & Noble

when you’ve only got four bookshelves. The only way a place this size could be effective is to

specialize in something."

Taylor touched her nose with the tip of her finger. "Bingo."

"And you suggested this to Jeff?"

"More than once."

"Apparently, he didn't agree."

"I told you. Organized idiot."

"He must have been getting kil ed by the big chain stores."

"Yup. Barnes & Noble is just a ten minute drive from here."

Melanie shook her head. At least she had something to tell Uncle Phil. He'd given his daughter

and son-in-law a business with potential. They just hadn't known what to do with it. Too bad.

It really was an enchanting little place.

WHEN TAYLOR AND Melanie pulled into the driveway at Taylor's house, there was a

distinguished-looking man watering the flowers out front with a gentle spray from the hose.

He was very handsome, with a thick head of salt-and-pepper hair and familiar, smiling, dark

eyes. Melanie guessed him to be around fifty, although his athletic build suggested he might

be a bit younger. He was dressed in a smart pair of khaki shorts and a forest green polo shirt,

a brown braided belt cinching the shorts around his waist. He smiled and waved as they

coasted past him to a stop.

"Come on," Taylor said to Melanie as she exited the car. "I want you to meet the gardener."

Ben Rhodes shook hands firmly with Melanie, holding on a split second longer than necessary,

something not lost on Taylor.

And we're off, she thought.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Melanie. I hope you're enjoying your stay so far."

"Your daughter's been a fantastic tour guide. This is a beautiful place you have. Sam's very

lucky to have found the carriage house. It's wonderful."

Taylor was used to losing attention to her father. After all, he was a handsome, charming guy,

and, although they never actively competed against each other, it wasn't unusual for Ben to

ease a woman's intentness from his daughter to himself. They had never really discussed her

preference for women, but Taylor was sure that there were times when he intentionally

sought out a woman she had been interested in or whose company she happened to be enjoying

at the time. It was a little game he seemed to find amusing.

Most of the time, Taylor let it slide, gracefully excusing herself.

This time was different. She wasn't sure why. It just was. Losing Melanie's attention to him

irked her, and rather than say or do something stupid, she made a quick and quiet exit.

Neither Melanie nor Ben seemed to notice, which annoyed her even more.

In the kitchen, she got some orange juice out of the refrigerator and poured herself a glass,

trying not to hear the soft, lilting laughter as Ben Rhodes put his wit and charm to work on

their guest and Melanie ate it up.

She chided herself for acting like a jealous teenager. After all, she had no claim on Melanie.

So what if she was attracted to Ben? Lots of women were. Lots. He was a good-looking,

successful, single guy. Why wouldn't Melanie want to be with him?

In the year and a half since Anna Rhodes had been kil ed, Ben had dated a number of women.

At first, Taylor had been angry, which was to be expected really. Once she'd gotten past the

feeling that he was cheating on her mother, she'd decided it was good for him to date. She

didn't want him to be alone for the rest of his life. Plus, she was getting antsy living at home

and was anxious to find her own place again. She'd begun to rethink her approval; however,

when the front of the house had become a revolving door, and Ben had seemed to date a

different woman every month. Finally, Taylor had snapped, and the two of them had had it out

in the middle of the living room. To an outsider, it would have looked like a strange game of

role reversal, with the child scolding the parent about his poor dating habits and lack of

responsibility and how about acting his age? In the end, Ben had seemed to take his

daughter's words to heart, and the endless stream of women had slowed to a trickle. Taylor

absolutely did not want Melanie to become another drop in his bucket.

She sat down at the kitchen table and slowly banged her forehead on the tabletop. How had

this happened? She'd known Melanie all of two days, and already she was playing protector.

She had always been this way, ever since she could remember. She developed a "crush" on a

woman and became her self-appointed bodyguard, making sure nobody hurt her. It had started

at summer camp with Theresa, her camp counselor. Taylor was fourteen, Theresa was sixteen.

Taylor had no idea what was going on. Hell, she hadn't even known what the word sexuality

meant. All she had known was she wanted to be near Theresa all the time. She'd followed the

older girl around like a puppy dog, always ready to help. Theresa had been flattered by the

attention. One rainy day, the camp had organized a mud war. It was something they often did

when the lake activities were rained out, and it was loads of fun for the kids. How often were

you allowed to just get absolutely, irretrievably filthy? It had been noon and the war had been

in full swing, various cabins trying to stay cleaner than their rivals, when twelve-year-old

Danny Jenkins had thrown a fistful of mud that had caught Theresa in the side of the head.

At her yelp of pain, Taylor hadn't even stopped to think. She'd been on Danny like a heat-

seeking missile, slamming his face into the mud-covered ground, screaming at the top of her

lungs. It had taken three counselors to get her off the poor kid. She often wondered where

Theresa was now, if she remembered her from camp. Did she have any idea then or even now

that her little shadow had been a lesbian-in-training with a serious crush on her?

She shook her head, disgusted with herself. Why couldn't she fall for a nice, available girl who

would fall for her in return? It didn't seem like a lot to ask. She sighed, finished her orange

juice, and headed upstairs to shower.

MELANIE RETURNED FROM the grocery store that evening still in awe. She'd wanted to

stock Sam's kitchen, since there wasn't much more in it than some Saltines and an old jar of

peanut butter, and Ben had given her directions to a place called Wegmans. Never had she

seen such a gigantic grocery store. It was like a giant warehouse full of food and sundries. The

seasonal aisle alone had boasted enough summer items to stock a small drug store. She'd spent

nearly two hours in there, gaping at the enormity of it. She'd also spent way more money than

she had originally intended.

Waiting for her at the door of the carriage house was a small bundle. Picking it up, she

realized she held three tapes, six episodes, of Xena: Warrior Princess, as promised. She

smiled to herself. Now, I have something to do tonight.

Her thoughts returned to Ben and the unexpected lunch invitation he had extended for the

following afternoon. It had been so long since she'd gotten such attention from a man, so long

since she'd taken the time to accept it, that she had sucked it in like life-giving fluid. He was

charming and handsome, familiar with the corporate world, and she liked him immediately. She

had been talking a little about the bookstore, and he mentioned a nice little place across the

street. As long as she was planning to be there tomorrow anyway, would she be interested in

joining him for a bite? Although her initial reaction to his invitation had been refusal—what

would Taylor think? Sam?—as she turned it over and over in her mind, she decided to go. Why

not? He wasn't asking for her hand in marriage. He wasn't asking for a relationship. It wasn't

even dinner, for Christ's sake. It was lunch. That was all. And when she looked at it that way,

the fact that he was more than ten years her senior didn't seem to bother her quite as much.

Her thoughts shifted focus with a sudden jolt. Where the hel was Sam anyway? She'd been

gone since the previous evening.

Here it was, almost twenty-four hours later, and she had heard nothing. Not that it was

unusual for Sam to disappear without telling anybody, but a little bit of goddamned

consideration would be nice. I'm her guest, for crying out loud.

She proceeded to put the food away, guessing where things should go. She had purchased a lot

of fresh summer fruits; peaches, plums, and nectarines, and filled a big, round, wicker basket

she found in one of the cupboards with the sweet-smelling delights, placing them in the middle

of the tiny breakfast table. A loaf of bread and a package of English muffins on the counter