Flying Under Radar (10)
Don't ask me why, I just felt like doing this (inevitable) part of the story a bit differently. #dives for cover#
CHAPTER TEN
Quietly letting herself into the house, Jo was wondering to herself if she should disturb Tess or sleep in the spare room when she found Tess sitting at the bottom of the stairs, tears staining her stricken face as she turned to look at her lover. Rushing to her side, Jo enfolded Tess in her arms, desperate to ease the pain of the woman she cared so much about.
Roughly pushing Jo away, Tess rose unsteadily to her feet.
"Where the hell have you been?" she spat.
Taken aback by Tess' attitude and rejection, Jo was too tired to explain to Tess the events of the evening, secretly resenting Tess for not understanding the importance of her job.
"I told you I was working late tonight, like I told you yesterday. If you'd bothered to listen to me you could've saved yourself all this fuss." Jo shot back, striding past Tess into the kitchen to pour herself a drink.
"I was worried about you, it's so dangerous for police officers nowadays, I keep hearing stories in the press: officer shot, detective stabbed to death, traffic cop mown down in hit and run. You got shot at on Christmas Day for God's sake!" Following Jo into the kitchen, Tess attempted to explain her reaction.
"I can take care of meself Tess, you should know that by now. 'ey, remember that bloke in The King's Head, reckon he's still singing soprano?" Jo chuckled, choosing to ignore her dramatic destruction of the unmarked car earlier that evening, instead remembering her decisive rejection of the man's over-enthusiastic advances towards both herself and Tess.
"But what about me, Jo? You're never around when I need you, I hardly see you anymore. I need more than a girlfriend who's devoted to her job, I need someone to love me, someone to love in return."
"But I do love you Tess," Jo responded automatically, the words out of her mouth before she even had time to really think about what Tess had said.
"I know darlin', but you're never around to show it." Tess brushed off Jo's declaration
"I'm here now aren't I?" Jo observed, stepping up to Tess, one arm loosely draped around her partner's shoulders.
"Well, yes...but-" Tess began to pull away, both physically and verbally, but Jo wasn't going to let her back away again.
"Then let me love you Tess." Jo spoke softly, dimming the lights with her free hand as she pulled Tess with the arm around her shoulders.
Looking into her lover's eyes, Tess felt the guilt of her betrayal cut deep, but then Jo's lips were upon hers, and she lost the courage to tell Jo what she had done. Wrapping her arms around Jo, Tess held her close, backing up until she felt the cold marble of the work surface pressing into her back.
Seeing the arousal in Tess' eyes, Jo drew closer, intertwining her legs with Tess', until the fear also registered, and Jo's heart skipped, dreading what Tess would say next. Had she come on to strong? Was Tess afraid of her?
"It's too late Jo..."
"What's too late?"
"This...us..." Tess clarified, gesturing vaguely around the small kitchen.
"What do you mean 'us'? Tell me... Tell me you feel nothing." Jo blurted, unable to believe Tess was willing to give up so easily.
"Jo..." Tess began, reaching for Jo's hand before her partner snatched it away. "I'm so sorry darlin', I never wanted to hurt you..."
"Hurt me? I thought this was my fault, because I'm never around..." Jo felt her temper rise as Tess' true meaning became clear. "Who is she? Do I know her?"
"I'm sorry Jo, I wanted this to work out, really I did. I tried to talk to you, but you were so busy at work, putting in more and more overtime..."
"You couldn't even wait 'til we were over. You didn't have the guts to finish it, and meanwhile you're screwing someone else behind my back?"
Tess winced, the combination of the harsh but true reality Jo's accusation, but the pitch of Jo's voice, rising as she became more and more worked up.
"That's it; I want you out of my house by the end of tomorrow." Jo declared, turning her back on Tess before finally reaching for the bottle of whiskey and a glass.
Sitting morosely at the kitchen table, Jo downed the first measure of whiskey easily, trying to block out the sounds of Tess packing her things in the bedroom they had once shared upstairs.
Hearing Tess lugging a suitcase down the stairs, Jo grabbed the bottle and glass and headed into the lounge. Picking up a photo of the two women, eyes dancing in the summer sun as they laughed at some unspoken joke, Jo felt a deep pang of regret, realising that although she wasn't totally to blame, she could have made the effort to spend more time with her partner, instead of volunteering for various tasks at the station. Shaking her head, Jo placed the photo frame back on the coffee table along with the bottle of whiskey, holding her head in her hands in despair. She had been so sure that Tess was the woman for her, convinced they would last the distance. But I was wrong. So very wrong. She couldn't even come to me when she felt we were drifting apart... Slumping sideways, Jo surrendered in her battle against exhaustion, welcoming the restless sleep that ceased the ramblings of her troubled mind.
(phone rings)