They shared a small turkey breast over Thanksgiving, and Brenda surprised Sharon with a sweet potato pie that was buttery smooth, and held hints of nutmeg and vanilla. Sharon surprised Brenda by retiring to the couch once the leftovers were wrapped and the dishes rinsed, and turning on…a football game?
"Really? Football?" Brenda's nose wrinkled just a bit.
"It's a time-honored tradition. Besides, the Steelers are playing." Sharon replied, as though that explained everything.
"You'll have to remind me of the rules. I haven't watched a game since I was a cheerleader in high school."
Sharon snorted over her beer, quirking an eyebrow at Brenda.
"You were a cheerleader?"
"I was. I was Captain, in fact." She tossed her hair haughtily, and sipped at her wine.
Sharon focused on the tv for a moment, and Brenda caught the hint of a smirk at the corner of her mouth. Just as she took a breath to mention it, Sharon threw her hands up and groaned. Brenda's wine sloshed dangerously in the glass, and she held it out a bit, hoping to save the light tones of Sharon's sofa from a permanent tint.
"What on earth, Sharon?"
"What…who was Big Ben throwing to? I swear, my GRANDMOTHER could pass better!" Sharon growled, taking a pull on her beer.
"Your grandmother played football?" Brenda couldn't keep the mirth from her voice.
"Well. No. But that's the point, isn't it? He's terrible! And don't get me started on his reputation for sexually assaulting women. How they let him play is beyond me."
"Want me to go arrest him?" Brenda laid her legs across Sharon's lap, and settled back into the cushion.
"Would that you could. He's such a…go! GO! YES! He's such a predator. There've been more than a few accusations, but clearly, he's part Teflon. It doesn't help that the mayor of that city is a 12 year old with hero issues."
Brenda nodded, but she felt pleasantly full, and the wine and the turkey were combining in what she thought taking an entire Xanax might feel like. She watched the tiny men on the screen, deciphering that the Steelers were in the bright yellow and black uniforms, and she decided she'd watch the little man with the giant hair peeking out from beneath his helmet. Sharon told her his name, which sounded like it might be Hawaiian, but Brenda couldn't be sure. She set her wine glass aside, and swung around so that her head rested on Sharon's thigh. Sharon reached back and pulled a sand-colored throw down over Brenda's shoulders, absently tucking it in around her. The action was so tender, that Brenda felt an unexpected lump in her throat.
"This is nice." She murmured, running her hand down the length of Sharon's shin, caressing the bare skin of her ankle beneath the hem of her jeans.
"It is. I'm glad you agreed to come over. I wasn't sure how you felt about holidays."
"Mmm. Normally I'm working. You know how it is, people get a little whiskey in them, and the turkey legs start flying. But I had a bit of PTO built up, so I took a day. They won't call for me unless it is well and truly unavoidable."
"You took the day? Brenda! I had no idea." Sharon thought back, wondering if she'd ever heard of Brenda taking time off before.
"Didn't want to interrupt our first holiday together. S'not a big deal."
Just then, Brenda's cell rang. Sighing, she sat up, muttering to herself. She hooked her bag with her toe, and dragged it closer, rummaging for her phone and answering it with a terse "Johnson".
Sharon smiled, knowing that if Brenda was being called in, there would be hell to pay for whoever was on the other end of the phone. She turned her attention back to the TV, bringing her beer to her lips.
"Oh! Hey mama! What a lovely surprise!" Brenda's voice was preternaturally bright, and Sharon nearly spat her beer across the room. Brenda waved a hand at her, and gestured for her to be quiet.
"Happy Thanksgiving to you, too. How are you and Daddy?" She curled up on the cushion again, and reached for her wine.
"Oh, just fine. Mmmmhmm. How's Charlie?"
Sharon wondered at the warmth suffusing Brenda's tone at the mention of her erstwhile niece. She bit back a groan as the Steelers threw another interception.
"We're good. Oh. He's ummm, on an out of town assignment. I'm having dinner with a friend."
Sharon swing her head around to stare at Brenda. Brenda had the grace to be blushing.
"Mama! 'Course I have friends!" Brenda scowled at the phone. "In fact, I'm bein' rude, so I'm going to get off the phone now. Tell Daddy I love him! I love you!" She made an odd kissy sound into the phone before hanging up.
"Am I to assume your parents aren't aware that you and Agent Howard are no longer a couple?" Sharon asked, her tone low and serious.
"Well for heaven's sakes, it's not like I talk to them all that often. And I thought…I thought maybe I could hold off on that for a bit. They're very traditional. When Fritz…when he and I moved in together, he wasn't allowed to answer the phone in case it was my Daddy. Cuz we weren't married, yet, you see?" Brenda twisted the wine glass in her hand.
"You…how long did that deception go on? As I recall, you were with Agent Howard for some time before the wedding." Sharon tried to imagine lying to her parents at her age.
"Ohh…a while. We got caught, of course. Daddy was none too pleased, but he got over it. Fritz went to the shooting range with him. I was terrified they were both going to come home riddled with buckshot."
"Buckshot?! At a shooting range. In Los Angeles." Sharon shook her head. "I suppose I can't expect you to be out, just because I'm out."
"Sharon, I'm going to tell them. I'd rather do it face to face. Maybe around Christmastime. They're supposed to come visit. Too bad you're going to go ski, or whatever it is you Yanks do when you go to those cold states up there."
Sharon let a smile escape, as she pulled Brenda closer. "I'll teach you how to ski. You never know, you might like it!"
"I had quite enough snow when I was in DC. I won't go seeking it out. That's insanity!" Brenda exaggerated a shiver. "So cold and wet."
"Mmmm." Sharon hummed. "But then there's the lodge, with the fire, where you could be warm," she paused, trailing a finger along Brenda's collar bone, "and wet."
Brenda swallowed convulsively. "Captain Raydor…are you trying to seduce me?"
"Is it working, Chief Johnson?" Her voice had that rasp that sent heat straight to Brenda's spine.
She leaned into Sharon's arms, settling their bodies flush, and capturing her lips with a kiss.
"It's working just fine." She murmured, before deepening the kiss with a slow swipe of her tongue.