Chapter fifteen: Perfectly fine
Lara pulled into the Country Club's parking lot, looking for a free space to park her car. She wasn't exactly running late after having taken a slight detour to the dry cleaners, but she didn't want to lose anymore time, knowing her own tendency to dawdle when alone, especially now that she had Dana to think about. The sous chef smiled when she spotted the free space right next to her girlfriend's car. Pulling up next to it and turning off the ignition, she leaned back in her seat, taking a deep breath to prepare herself for a hard day at work.
-
The locker room was somewhat busy, Lara could tell by the sound of different voices she heard when approaching. Usually she prefered getting changed alone, enjoying the quietness before heading off to the loud and hectic kitchen, but it couldn't be helped. The redhead let out a somewhat annoyed sigh and pushed the door open. Stepping inside, she nearly bumped into a girl, probably at the age of twelve, who was running around the locker room with a bunch of other kids.
"Oh, I'm sorry, Miss.", the girl apologized, blushing and looking to the ground.
Lara couldn't help but think of Dana, who would probably have acted the same way the girl did and smiled. "It's okay.", she said, making her way through the locker room. Turning round the row where her locker was located, her eyes fell upon another person. The woman had her back turned towards Lara and stood there in nothing but a sportsbra and a white tennis skirt, her brown hair pulled into a loose ponytail. The redhead was about to turn her eyes away, not wanting to stare at a unknown woman, when she noticed the familiar mole on the small of the woman's back. A grin spread across the chef's lips and she walked up behind the woman, wrapping her arms around her waist and resting her head on her shoulder. The other woman shrieked, jumping at the contact.
"Don't worry, it's just me.", Lara whispered, barely able to contain her laughter. She felt the smaller woman relax in her arms and placed a small kiss on her nape.
"Geez, Lara, you just scared the shit out of me.", the brunette complained. "Don't ever do that again."
The chef chuckled lowly, placing another kiss on the other woman's nape. "You looked so hot standing there, I just couldn't resist, Dana.", she said. "How are you?"
Dana chuckled. "Well, beside still being a little freaked out about that pseudo-attack?", she asked, teasing.
"Oh, I'm so sorry. Will you ever forgive me?", Lara playfully begged, loosening the embrace a little.
"Of course I forgive you, Lara.", Dana told her then, turning around in her girlfriend's arms. "How could I not forgive my one and only soup chef?"
The chef simply smiled, not saying anything in response. She closed her eyes and leaned in for a kiss. The moment their lips met, Lara felt a wave of desire overwhelm her, her whole body aching for the other woman's touch. She backed the tennis player up against the lockers and ran one hand down her back, over her ass and under her skirt, while deepening the kiss. Dana let out a muffled moan.
"Lara, don't...", the athlete breathed out, blushing furiously when the heated kiss broke. "What about the kids?"
The sous chef giggled, pulling her hand from under Dana's skirt. "Don't worry, Dana, I won't make them witness us having sex.", she whispered, stepping back so that her girlfriend could move again. "Although I have to admit that I'm quite turned on, you know, thinking about having sex with you in here. What do you think?"
Dana blushed even more, smiling a shy smile. "I, uh, well, yeah, it is kinda, uh, kinda hot...", she mumbled, grabbing a white top and pulling it over her head. "I, uh, I have to go."
"Okay, I'll see you later.", Lara said with a smile, pulling the smaller woman towards herself for one last kiss before she could grab her bag and head for the courts.
--
Lara wiped the sweat from her forehead with one swift move, her gaze focused on the work at hand. The redhead was busy sharpening knifes and since the electric sharpener wasn't working, she had to do it the old-fashioned way, using her hands. Trying hard to keep her concentration on her work to avoid any injuries, Lara had to fight her vivid imagination, which seemed more than willing to slip back to the kiss shared with Dana not too long ago.
"Hey, Lara...", the chef heard someone call out to her and looked up, putting the knife aside, just in case. Simon stood at the counter, on the very same spot Shane had been standing when trying to find out if the sous chef was gay.
"What's the matter, Simon?", Lara asked, noticing the goofy smile on the waiter's face. "Another customer who wants to talk to me?"
Simon shook his head. "No, but check out who just walked in here.", he said, pointing to the dining area of the country club. "Isn't that your precious Miss Fairbanks?"
Lara's heart skipped a beat at the mention of her girlfriend's name and a smile sprung to her face. Simon crooked a brow, leaning on the counter. Noticing this, the chef tried to hide her smile, putting up a mask of indifference. "What is it, Simon?", she asked.
The black haired man chuckled. "Come on, Lara, you can't fool me.", he said, watching his friend intendly. "You're totally gay, she's a gorgeous woman, you've been sending her free food, you've waited on her, you smile like a fool everytime she comes in here, I mean, come on..."
The redhead sighed, shaking her head at her friend's curiousity, comparing him to Alice, who'd probably done the same thing to Dana. She wasn't in the mood to be teased about her relationship and especially her love life-something she knew Simon would do-so she decided not to tell anything. "Don't you have a job to do?", she asked with an innocent smile.
Simon pulled a face. "Don't think you'll get away with it, Lara.", he mumbled before returning to the customers.
Lara smiled at her victory and let her gaze wander around the room. Her eyes immediately found Dana, who was busy talking to a tall, dark haired man with yellow sunglasses. At the sight of the other woman, who looked like she came right from the courts, the sous chef felt her heartbeat quickening and resisted the sudden urge to walk over to her and kiss her.
"What are you looking at?" The sound of Simon's voice pulled the chef out of her trance.
"Nothing.", she whispered, her voice barely audible, turning her eyes away from the tennis player, feeling the blush creeping up her face. Lara silently cursed herself for this somewhat childish reaction, knowing Simon knew what she had been staring at.
"Nothing, huh?", the waiter kept on teasing.
"Get lost, Simon.", Lara growled. She had never enjoyed being asked about things she didn't want to talk about and she had absolutely no intention to start enjoying it now.
The black haired man chuckled. "Oh, no, I don't think I will.", he said with a smile.
"Yeah, whatever." Lara shrugged, trying to ignore her friend's radiant smile and his curious brown eyes. "Just don't get in my way, okay?"
"Of course not, Lara, I don't wanna end up like those vegetables on skewers you keep sending to Miss Fairbanks.", Simon joked, earning himself a glare from the sous chef. "Oh, come on, Lara, loosen up."
Suddenly another voice spoke up, causing Simon to turn around and Lara to look up.
"Hi, I'd like to talk to the sous chef.", Dana said, smiling a polite smile at Simon.
The waiter nodded. "Of course, Miss Fairbanks, she's all yours.", he said, retreating from the counter. On his way back to the tables he turned to look at the two women again, winking at the chef, mouthing a "You go, girl." at her.
"Who is he?", Dana asked with a chuckle.
"Simon, my best friend.", Lara simply said, shaking her head at the waiter. "You could say he is the male version of Alice."
The tennis player turned around to look at her girlfriend's black haired friend. "He's attractive.", she said at which Lara raised her brows. "Maybe we could set them up on a blind date."
Lara laughed. "Yeah, I've been having the same idea.", she said.
"Really?", Dana asked rather surprised, turning back around.
"Really.", the redhead answered. "But I don't think you wanted to talk about Alice and Simon."
"No, not really.", the athlete began. "Well, I wanted to ask you out to another dinner."
--
Later that night Lara found herself standing in front of Dana's house, waiting for her girlfriend to get ready for dinner. She smiled at her reflection in the front door and straightened her blouse one last time, wondering why she was being so nervous. She wiped her sweaty palms on her pants and turned around, looking around the neighbourhood. Suddenly the door opened, causing the redhead to spin around, coming face to face with Dana.
"Wow, you look beautiful.", Lara commented, taking in the sight of her girlfriend in a blue sundress.
Dana blushed. "Well, thank you.", she said. "You don't look bad yourself."
Lara kept watching the other woman, wondering whether she'd notice the resemblance to their very first date, clothes-wise. When the corners of Dana's mouth curled up into an amused smile, the chef knew she had noticed.
"I'm kinda overdressed, aren't I?", the athlete stated with a giggle.
Lara nodded. "Yes, but, you know, we've all felt like that before and I can assure you, Dana, it will go away soon enough."
The tennis player smiled. "You know, this is actually the dress I had wanted to wear on our first date."
"But you're friends thought I'd think you were a geek and wouldn't want to date you...", the redhead finished, remembering that evening. "Though, I turned out to be quite a geek myself."
Dana laughed at that, linking her arm with her girlfriend as they started to walk towards Lara's car. "So, Lara, where are we going to have our date at?", she asked, causing the sous chef to grin.
"Well, I don't know.", Lara answered.
"You don't know? What does that mean?", the athlete asked, apparently confused. "But you said..."
Lara smiled, placing a kiss on the smaller woman's cheek to silence her protests. "Well, I thought we could just drive around and pick a restaurant on the way.", she suggested.
--
Lara stood in the doorway of Dana's bedroom, watching her girlfriend, who lay in bed, holding her stomach. Dana had her eyes closed and looked rather sick, occasionally whining in pain. Not knowing what to do to make the other woman feel better, Lara walked up to the bed, lay down next to Dana and moved her hand under her shirt. The tennis player winced at the touch.
"Your hand is cold, Lara.", Dana said, her voice weak.
"I'm sorry. Do you want me to stop?", Lara asked, not wanting to make the other woman feel even more uncomfortable, about to pull her hand away.
Dana shook her head, holding Lara's hand in it's place. "No, it feels nice."
Giving a soft smile, the chef brushed her lips against the smaller woman's forehead, softly massaging her stomach. "You'll feel better in the morning, Dana.", she said, trying to cheer the other woman up.
"I just hope it's not food poisoning.", the tennis player said, rolling onto her side, facing away from Lara. " Can you stay here tonight and just hold me, Lara?", she asked.
Lara smiled. "Sure, Dana.", she said, spooning her girlfriend.
The evening hadn't exactly gone as planned. Everything had been fine, until they had left the restaurant to walk back to Lara's car when Dana had suddenly started to feel really sick.
"Do you feel like you have to vomit?", Lara asked, placing a soft kiss on her girlfriend's nape.
The athlete shook her head. "No, and I'm glad I didn't have to yet.", she said. "Do you think there was something wrong with that fish?", she asked after a short silence.
"I don't know.", the sous chef answered. "Maybe it contained something you're somewhat allergic to."
Dana shrugged. "Yeah, maybe."
-
When Lara awoke the next morning she found the space next to her empty. Slowly she sat up, rubbing her eyes, yawning. Hoping Dana was feeling better, she got out of bed, stretching her tall body.
"Now, Mr. Piddles, look who's finally getting out of bed.", Dana's teasing voice came from behind, causing the redhead to turn around.
Dana stood in the doorway, holding Mr. Piddles in her arms, and smiled brightly, obviously feeling better. Lara returned the smile, walked up to her girlfriend and kissed her softly on the lips.
"And what about me?", Dana said in a childish whiny voice, holding Mr. Piddles up. "Don't I get my good morning cuddle from my favourite Lara-mommy?"
Lara laughed at this. "Of course you get your good morning cuddle, Mr. Piddles.", she said, taking the cat from the brunette's arms, starting to stroke his soft fur at which he purred contentedly.
"He really likes you, huh?", the tennis player wondered, smiling at the display.
"How could he not like me? I'm irresistible.", Lara joked. "Are you feeling better, Dana?"
Dana nodded. "I'm perfectly fine, Lara.", she then said, leaning in for another kiss.
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at WolfgalX: Yes, you have been late to review and yes, I admit I haven't been updating in a long time (maybe I've been waiting for your review :)...lol ), but here it is...or was, the new chapter, I mean. Well, about chapter fourteen: Yes, Lara was needy and yes, they seem to become the moving van cliché Harrison joked about in The Pilot :D... I noticed that, too when I had finished the chapter, and it did bother me a little, but then again I liked the chapter and I didn't want to erase it, so...
at ihatemessbutiloveyou: Thank you and I assure you there'll be more. Hope you'll stay tuned.
at kickboxing.gurl: Yeah, they seemed pretty needy and clingy (and it did bother me to a certain degree), but since you still liked it, it can't have been that bad :)
at auggy1984: Thanks for reviewing, auggy, I appreciate it.