Chapter Twenty-Four

For a couple of days, Trevor did nothing but sleep and eat, but by Friday he was up in his room, making calls and trying to set up interviews. Abby was proud of how businesslike he was being about finding a job, even as she was disappointed with Hayley's lack of initiative. Her musings about finding a job when she returned from Maine had disappeared, and she seemed content to lie in the pool, listen to her music, and read popular novels.

On Friday afternoon, after having played golf with the women's league at her club, Abby returned to the house. Hayley was sitting on the desk chair in the kitchen, talking on the phone, but when Abby entered, she turned toward the wall and spoke more quietly. Trying to be respectful of the girl's privacy, Abby put a few things into the freezer, then went into the den, staying until she heard Hayley hang up.

The younger woman walked into the den and dropped inelegantly into a chair, her ability to look almost boneless always amazing her mother. "Gramp's not very happy with you," she said with a careless air.

The short hairs on the back of Abby's neck rose. "What?"

"I was talking to Grampa. He thinks you're being selfish."

Abby got up and walked over to her daughter. The look she gave her made the girl sit up straight. "Listen. I'm sick and tired of your acting like a child! You're eighteen years old, and that's long past old enough to be respectful. No matter whom I'm involved with, I'm still your mother, and I'd advise you to remember that." She started to walk out of the room, but she was so angry she turned and added, "You're old enough to decide where to live, Hayley. If you feel closer to your grandparents, you might want to stay there when you're home from school."

The girl's mouth dropped as quickly as the tears started to flow. She got to her feet and ran by her mother, sobbing as she dashed to her room.

Abby stood right where she was, finally looking Heavenward. I'm so damned glad I didn't let you talk me into having another child, Will. God knows what the third one would have been like!

Abby spent an hour trying to control her emotions, knowing she couldn't get away with yelling at her father - even though she was forty-five years old. When she felt calm enough to be rational, she called, partially relieved when her mother answered. "Where's you husband?" Abby said, laughing a little at her own tone.

"Oh, lord, what did he do now?"

"He told Hayley I was being selfish! He's conspiring with my child!"

"Oh, crap!"

Profanity was very rare for Elizabeth, and even this mild curse made Abby laugh. "Can you rein him in, Mom? I don't wanna block his calls, but I will."

"I'll talk to him, honey. And I think we'd better come home. I think we all need to sit down and talk about this."

"Tell me when you're coming, and I'll be there to pick you up," Abby promised.

"I'll talk to your father and see what we can agree on. You know he hates to come back while his dahlias are in bloom."

Abby waited a second, trying to stop herself from telling her mother just where she thought her father could stick his dahlias.

"I know you're upset, Abby. We'll be home as soon as we can."

"Thanks, Mom. I could really use some support right now."

Abby called Clancy not long after the landscaper had returned home for the day. "Would you like to help me stay out of prison?"

"Ahh … yeah," the younger woman said.

"I'm gonna kill my youngest if I have to see her again today. Can you help me out?"

"Sure," Clancy said, laughing. "I'll shower and change, and then come get you."

"Where do you want to go?"

"Does it matter?"

Abby laughed, too. "Nope. I'll be waiting."

After listening to Abby rant about Hayley's behavior all the way to Sierra Madre, Clancy turned briefly and said, "I know you're upset, babe, but I can't tell you what to do. I'm too involved, and I don't think I can be objective."

"I don't normally seek advice about how to raise my kids," Abby insisted, "but I'm about ready to have someone step in and take over for me. I'm honestly at a loss."

"If you want someone to tell you what to do, Eileen Donovan is your woman," Clancy said. "Whether you want her to or not, she'll tell you what you should do in any given situation. One really good thing about her, though - she doesn't mind if you ignore her advice, she just wants to offer it."

"I'm at her mercy," Abby moaned, resting her head back against the seat to try and stem the headache that was pounding behind her eyes.

They weren't at the house for more than two minutes when Eileen looked Abby up and down and said, "That kid still giving you trouble?"

"She sure is," Abby said, nodding. "Worse now than ever."

Immediately, the other three members of the family disappeared - everyone recognizing when Eileen was about to deliver a lecture. "Tell me what's going on," she said, leaning back in her chair and gazing thoughtfully at Abby.

"Well, she's unhappy about Clancy and my being together. My father's not happy about it, either. She talked to him on the phone today, and he told her I was being selfish. It's not just that she told me that, but she acted so superior! I honestly wanted to slap her!"

"Did ya?"

"No, of course not! I've never hit the kids."

"Mmm … too late to start now, I guess," Eileen mused thoughtfully. "That how she normally is?"

"No, not really, Eileen. She's a lot like me in some ways. It's hard for her to talk about her feelings, but she's usually respectful. Or at least she was before this started."

"What have you and Bitsy been doing to spend time together? Do you go to her place?"

Abby looked a little ashamed of herself when she said, "We haven't been seeing each other much. Clancy and I have had a couple of fights about it. I think she's running out of patience."

"She's never been very patient with girls. She knows what she wants, and she wants it right then."

"I know, but I just don't know what to do about my daughter. I'm … struggling," she said.

"So instead of having a plan and sticking with it, you've given the kid what she wants - exactly what she wants," Eileen emphasized.

"I … I guess that's right," Abby agreed. "I thought that was the best way to handle it."

"Has it helped?" Eileen persisted. "At all?"

"Uhm … no," Abby was forced to admit.

"Look," Eileen said, grasping Abby's hand and holding it firmly. "The kid's manipulating the shit out of you. She's acting like a three-year-old, and you're letting her! Why should she change if she's getting what she wants?"

"What does she want?" Abby asked blankly.

"She doesn't want you and Clancy to be together!" Eileen cried. "Hell, you're the one who told me that in the first place!"

The expression on her face made Abby burst into laughter. "I hardly know my own name at this point."

"Look, Abby, I can tell that you love my little pip, but she's not the kind of kid who'll put up with your kid running her life. Matter of fact - I'm surprised she's hung in there for this long. She's a very independent little cuss, and letting someone else tell her what to do drives her stark raving mad! I hate to see you blow this with her because I can see how much you care for her."

"But what should I do, Eileen?" she begged, panic starting to set in.

"Haven't you been listening?" the older woman asked, cocking her head. "I'll tell you again: stop letting your girl run roughshod over you. You're the adult - remind her of that. It's your house - remind her of that, too. Don't let a three-year-old who's pitchin' a bitch run the damned house. It's not good for her and it's not good for you."

"I'm normally a much better mom, Eileen, I swear it," Abby said earnestly. "I'm just having a hell of a time with this one. I can usually figure out how to help her choose the adult path - just not this time."

"When's the last time you were the issue?" Eileen asked. "It's easier when it's about curfews and boyfriends and jobs. This one hits too close to home."

Abby sat back in her chair and let out a relieved sigh. "I can't thank you enough, Eileen. I'm seeing this clearly for the first time. You're a lifesaver."

"Hope it helps," the older woman said. "I wouldn't have an eighteen-year-old in my house again for all the tea in China!"

When Abby got home, there was a message from Maria on her machine. "Hi. Ellen called to say she won't be playing tennis with us anymore. I'm sorry, hon, but I couldn't talk any sense into her. Do you still wanna go tomorrow and look for a single?"

Abby leaned against the counter, trying to will herself not to cry. Hayley walked into the room and said, "Since you're not gonna play tennis tomorrow, can I have the car? I wanna go to Santa Barbara with Gretchen."

There was nothing snotty or rude about the question, but the fact that Hayley didn't show the slightest bit of sympathy for Abby having lost her best friend struck her the wrong way. "No, you can't," she said. "Gretchen has a car. She can drive." She brushed past her daughter without even bothering to say goodnight.

Hayley didn't go to Santa Barbara on Saturday, but she did spend much of the day with Gretchen. She got home at around four p.m., finding the garage empty. "Where's Trevor?" she asked her mother.

"He and Sam took the car to go down to San Diego. They're staying overnight."

"Oh." She opened the refrigerator and took out a diet soda, nodding to herself. "That's why I couldn't have the car."

Abby looked at her. "No, it's not. I didn't want you to have it because I was angry with you. I'm angry with you a lot these days," she said, her voice growing softer.

Tears were in Hayley's eyes before Abby could blink. "You've never gotten mad at me before this all started," she said. "Why are you being so mean?"

Abby walked over and put her arms around her. "I'm not trying to be mean, Hayley. But you've been rude and spiteful. You've gone behind my back to talk about me with your grandfather, and you haven't even tried to have any empathy for me. I don't expect this to be easy for you, but I do expect you to talk to me about it like an adult."

"I'm not an adult," the girl said, her tears making her hard to hear.

"Yes, you are," Abby said. "I know you don't always feel like one, but you are, honey. You're going to be a sophomore in college this year. You're old enough to vote, to get married, join the Army - all sorts of things."

"But I don't feel like an adult," she said, nuzzling her face into her mother's shoulder. "I feel like a kid."

"I know it's hard," Abby said. "But you've got to try harder to be mature about this. I can't have this much tension in the house; it's not good for any of us."

"What do you want me to do?" Hayley asked, pulling away and wiping her eyes.

"I've given you a few weeks, honey, and you won't even have a civil discussion with me about Clancy. I can't wait any longer. I'm going to have her come here for dinner, and I'm going to sleep at her house sometimes. I need to see her."

Eyes wide and cheeks hot with anger, Hayley started to say, "You need to fu -" She caught herself and her jaw snapped shut. She stalked out of the room, went into the den and put on her iPod headphones. A moment later, she was lying on the couch, her eyes closed as her music played.

"Are you sure this is a good idea?" Clancy asked when Abby let her in that evening.

"No. But your grandmother is right. I've given her enough time; now I have to live my life."

"Okay." Clancy stood in the entryway, looking around discreetly.

"She's in her room. Go on into the kitchen and grab a drink. I'll tell her we're having dinner soon." Abby walked upstairs and knocked on Hayley's door, opening it even though she hadn't been invited in. "Clancy's here. We're going to have dinner in about fifteen minutes."

Hayley was sitting in front of her computer, IMing with someone. "Not hungry," she said.

"Suit yourself," Abby said, pursing her lips as she shut the door.

After dinner, Abby walked over to her partner and sat on her lap. Leaning close, she whispered. "I wanna make love. How about you?"

Laughing, Clancy nodded. "Yeah, I could get interested. Are we trying to force Hayley's hand?"

Abby kissed her lover on the nose. "I'm tempted, but I think we should go to your house."

Clancy's eyes lit up. "Really? You'll stay over?"

"Of course I will. I've told her that I've got to live my life, and that doesn't include any more drive-by sex."

Leaning her head back, Clancy blew a big air-kiss into the sky. "I'm a happy, happy girl!"

The next morning, Abby woke and gingerly tried to get out of bed. She was expecting the worst, but got up without much difficulty. On the way to the bathroom she thought, Either my back has acclimated or I love sleeping with Clancy so much that I don't feel any pain. Oh, well, either way I'm thankful.

Getting back onto the futon, Abby lay there quietly for a while, then decided that Clancy looked so delicious that she had to cuddle her. Within moments, she was sound asleep, the feel of her lover's body acting as a powerful sleep-aid.

They spent the rest of the morning making love and napping. Abby hated to leave, but she was determined to make some headway with Hayley. When she returned home in the early afternoon, she went out onto the patio and saw Hayley floating in the pool. Kicking off her shoes, she padded over and sat on the deck, dangling her feet into the cool, clear water. "Feels good," she said.

That casual comment signaled no hard feelings from the night before, and Hayley sheepishly paddled over to her. "Sorry about last night, Mom. I just … I just can't stand to see her," she grumbled. "I feel like I have PMS all the damned time. I wish I could be more polite."

"This is a tough time for you, honey. I understand … really I do."

"Thanks," the girl said quietly.

Taking a breath, Abby said, "But even though I have empathy for you, Clancy and I are going to see more of each other. I've tried to give you time to get used to this, but it's hurting our relationship to see so little of Clancy."

The young woman gave her a look that was filled with sadness. She slid from the float and swam for the steps, then stood on the pool deck and said, "I think I need to leave."

"Oh, honey, I wish you'd stay and try to work through your feelings."

"I can't, Mom. I just can't." She wrapped a towel around herself and started for the house, her slumped shoulders showing her defeat.

Hayley got on the Internet and found that she could get a fare to San Francisco for the same price as her ticket to San Jose had cost. She sent an e-mail to Alexander, and went next door to Trevor's room, finding him lying on his bed talking on the phone in his "adult" voice. He motioned for her to sit, so she plunked down onto his desk chair and spun around lazily while she waited.

When he hung up, he asked, "What's up?"

"Who were you talking to?" she asked. "You sounded so serious."

"Oh. I called one of my professors to ask if he had any leads on a job. He didn't," he said, getting up and stretching. "I think I might have to go back to being a lifeguard at the country club." He put his hands on his hips, trying to look impressive. "No running, kids! I have a master's degree, and I'm not afraid to use it!"

"Do your friends have jobs yet?"

He sat on the edge of his low dresser. "Some do … some don't. Seems like there are more jobs available on the east coast. But I don't think I wanna leave California."

"Not even to get away from Mom and Clancy?" She said the name like she was on the verge of vomiting, and Trevor reached over and flicked her skull with his finger.

"Knock it off, will ya? Why does it matter who she's with? It's not like they're making out in the kitchen."

"That'll be next," Hayley said. "She was here for dinner last night, and Mom said that she's gonna eat here all the time."

Trevor sighed, then got up and flopped back onto his bed, making the box springs cry in protest. "So, what are we supposed to do? I want Mom to be happy. I think this is weird, too, but … it's her life. We can't tell her what to do. Hell, we don't want her telling us what to do. It's the same thing, Hales."

"Sucks," she said, pouting.

"Yeah, well, a lot of life does. It sucked to lose Dad. I'm sure as hell not gonna lose Mom. If she wants to date an ax murderer, I'll just do my best not to piss him … or her … off."

"I can't stand to see them together. I'm gonna go to San Francisco until school starts … I think."

"San Francisco?" He sat up and looked at his sister carefully. "You gonna stay with that guy?"

"Yeah," she said, swiveling in the chair. "I think."

"How old is he?"

"About your age. You'd like him. He's kinda like you."

Trevor scowled. "I don't trust an older guy who wants to date someone your age."

"What?" Hayley was clearly outraged.

"You heard me," he said. "A guy my age shouldn't be interested in a girl who's only eighteen. I'd never go out with someone who wasn't at least out of college. If you'd stayed with your class, you'd just be graduating from high school. There should be a big maturity gap."

"I'm mature," she insisted.

He smiled at his little sister. "You're pretty typical for an eighteen-year-old. But you change a lot in college. Things are different when you're working for a living."

"Like you know! You don't have a job!"

"I had a job this summer," he said, "and I interned every summer. It's different."

"Fine," she sniffed. "Maybe Alexander thinks I'm mature, even though you don't."

"Maybe," he said dubiously. "But I know one thing he's gonna expect if you stay with him. Are you ready for that?"

She laughed, seeing that Trevor was embarrassed. "Are you really asking me if I'm gonna have sex with him?"

"No. I'm telling you that he's gonna expect to have sex with you. If you don't wanna, you'd better not stay with him. There's a word for girls who lead a guy on."

She got up and started to walk out of the room, then turned. "It's two words," she said, sticking her tongue out at him. "Hyphenated."

Alexander did want Hayley to stay with him, and he offered to pick her up at the airport. All she had to do was convince her mother to pay for the ticket. She went downstairs and found her mother sitting under the pergola, reading a book. Hayley sat down on a chair and put her feet up on the seat of her mother's chair. "Whatcha reading?"

Abby held the large book up. "Robert Caro's biography of LBJ."

"Is it good?" the girl asked, clearly just trying to make conversation.

"Mmm … good isn't the right word. But it's very informative. I'm learning a lot about how Johnson's beliefs and policies helped create some of the social programs that people really thought would change America for the better."

"Did they?" Hayley asked.

"Well … no, for the most part, they didn't. The Voting Rights Act of 1964 had a decent impact, but I wouldn't say that most of the programs had the intended effect."

"Huh. That must be a bummer. He's not still alive, is he?"

"Gosh, no! He's been dead for a long time."

Hayley nodded. "You don't hear much about Johnson."

"You do if you're interested in American government," Abby said. "He was a very, very powerful president."

Looking puzzled, Hayley said, "I took American government this year. My professor just talked about what an asshole he was because of the Vietnam War."

Abby smiled at her. "You can't take everything your professors say at face value, honey. Teachers always have a point of view that isn't unbiased. If you care about a topic, you'd better do your own research."

"So … Johnson wasn't an asshole?"

"I didn't say that," Abby said, smiling. "When I was your age, I certainly thought he was. But he was in a difficult situation. Many people believed that losing Vietnam would spread Communism."

"But it didn't, did it?"

"No, it didn't."

"Why?" Hayley asked, looking truly interested.

"I think the best antidote for Communism is a free, functioning, capitalist state. Communism looks great on paper, but it hasn't worked. Once people in the Communist states began to understand how little they had compared to people in the capitalist countries … there was no way the governments could hold. Satellite TV did more to destroy Communism than war ever did."

"That's kinda cool," Hayley said. "And you lived through all of that, huh?"

"Yep. I saw it all. I was passionately opposed to the war, but I think that people who supported it had the best interests of the country at heart, too, even though I didn't think so at the time."

"I guess that's true," Hayley said. She put her feet on her mother's knees and rubbed them up and down. "It's cool that you know stuff. Most of my friends' moms are dolts."

"I don't know if that's true," Abby laughed. "But I appreciate the compliment."

"You think I'll like Clancy someday?" the girl asked, looking innocent and hopeful.

"I sure hope so. I'd like that more than you can imagine."

"Well, it's gonna take a while," Hayley said. "I really don't like her now, and I don't like you for being with her. So I'm gonna go visit Alexander for a week. I can take a nine o'clock flight tonight. Is that okay?"

"A week, huh?" Abby's mind was racing with the implications of what such a visit meant. "Are you sure you're ready for that?"

"Yes, Mother," Hayley said impatiently. "Trevor already asked me that."

"Can you change your ticket?"

"Not without a penalty, but since it's the same price as the ticket for San Jose, I thought you might pay for me to go to San Francisco now and let me use ticket I already have to come home for Thanksgiving. It wouldn't cost you any more," she said quickly.

"That's fine," Abby said, making a dismissive gesture with her hand. "I'm really not cheap, honey. I just want you to make plans and stick with them."

"Okay. I understand."

Abby leaned forward and grasped both of Hayley's ankles, holding them tightly to get her attention. "I worry about you. Are you sure you're ready to spend a whole week with Alexander?"

"Yeah, I am," Hayley said, blushing.

"How will you protect yourself if you have sex with him?"

"If?" Hayley asked, laughing. "Trevor says I'm gonna have to do it just to get a ride from the airport."

A laugh burst from Abby. "Did he really say that?"

"No, but he said Alexander wouldn't want me to stay with him if I don't sleep with him."

"That's probably true," Abby said.

"I know what guys want, Mom. I'm not nine!"

"So … what will you use for birth control?"

Hayley pulled her feet away, stood up and unbuttoned her shorts, pulling them and her underwear down a few inches in the back. "I'm on the birth control patch," she said, showing it to her mother. "I went to student health before I left in May." She pulled her pants back up and sat down.

"Safer sex?" Abby asked.

"Yes," Hayley said dramatically. "I'll make him wear five or six condoms."

Abby leaned over and put her hands on Hayley's knees. "I don't want to lecture you, but I want you to make sure you don't get into a situation you're not ready for. You know that having sex is more of an emotional act than a physical one."

"I know that, Mom. Well, I think I do. And if I don't wanna do it, I won't. I don't care what I'm supposed to do."

"Fine," Abby said. "And you'd better have been kidding about extra condoms. You know that using another condom increases the risk of breakage."

Hayley's head dropped back and she stuck out her tongue, acting like she'd been strangled. "You've been talking to me about safe sex since I was born!"

"Safer sex," Abby corrected. "The only safe sex is masturbation."

Hayley put her hands over her ears. "Enough! I know what to do, and I know what not to do!"

"I wouldn't torture you if I didn't love you," Abby said.

Hayley gave her a begrudging smile. "Can't you love me just a little less?"

Looking at her with complete seriousness, Abby said, "No, I can't. I love you with all of my heart, and I always will."

After an early dinner, Trevor and Hayley left for the airport. Abby called Clancy, and when the younger woman answered she said, "Want to spend the evening with the world's worst mother?"

"I think she's in prison for killing her kids," Clancy said. "Got anything more interesting in mind?"

"Yeah," Abby said quietly. "I'm really down, and I'd love to curl up in your arms and have you tell me that everything will be all right."

"I'll be there in fifteen," Clancy replied, hanging up without waiting for a response.

True to her word, the yellow truck beeped once exactly fifteen minutes later. Abby stood on the porch and watched her drive in, immeasurably soothed by her mere presence. No sooner was Clancy out of her car than Abby was leaning heavily against her, murmuring, "I know I did the right thing, but my heart's about to break."

"It'll be all right," Clancy whispered into her ear. "Let's go sit down and you can tell me all about it."

They did, sitting on the porch, Abby nestled against Clancy's side.

Abby told her tale, and Clancy said, "I'm sorry that's how it turned out. I kept hoping she'd rally and try to work this out."

"I did too," Abby said softly. "That's what I'm most upset about, to be honest. I'm very disappointed in her. She's … she's not the girl I thought she was." She looked up at her partner and said, "I've tried my damnedest to make sure she didn't turn out like so many girls of our social class do - those self-absorbed little monsters who don't care about anything but how they look and what they can buy."

"She's not like that," Clancy soothed. "Really, Abby, she's not. When we were working together, she was very down-to-earth. I'm around a lot of those kids, and I didn't get those rich-bitch vibes from her at all."

"I hope that's true," Abby sighed. She cocked her head and asked, "What do you think of her?"

"Ahh … I'd rather not say. I don't know her well enough to have a valid opinion."

"Come on," Abby said. "Don't be a chicken."

"I don't wanna insult her," Clancy said. "Especially since you say she hasn't acted like herself all summer."

"Okay. How was she just this summer? Give me an opinion of her based on your very limited experience."

Clancy rolled her eyes, knowing she wasn't going to get out of this one. "She doesn't act like a rich brat," she said again. "She acts like an average brat."

Abby nodded, not looking surprised by Clancy's opinion. "I swear she's changed so much since she went to school."

"I think that's true of most kids," Clancy assured her. "Give her a little time - I'm sure she'll snap out of it."

Shifting around to slip her legs under herself, Abby settled back against Clancy and said, "I just can't relax, thinking about her wandering around San Francisco with some man I've never met."

"What's the problem?" Clancy asked. "Are you worried about her having sex?"

"No, not really," Abby said. "I trust her to be careful. I mean … I don't think she's mature enough to be in a lasting relationship, but who is at first?"

Clancy gave her partner a light kiss on the cheek. "Good point. It's hard to know what you need from a relationship until you've been in a few sucky ones."

"Yeah. I know she's in for a lot of ups and downs before she'll settle down. I don't take most of that too seriously. What's really bothering me is the way that things are changing between us."

"Changing … how?"

"Our whole dynamic is getting out of whack. Even though she still acts like a kid most of the time, I felt a shift this afternoon. She's made it clear that she doesn't approve of something I'm doing - and that's never happened before. I felt our roles switch a little, and I hated it!"

"Ooh … that makes sense. That would be weird."

"Yeah, it was weird. I liked it better when she was the kid and I was the mom, and I could tell her what to do. I'm not sure I like her being an adult."

"Hard to stop her, though, isn't it?"

"Yeah." Abby laughed and snuggled up against Clancy's sturdy body. "It's funny," she said. "I like Trevor being an adult, but I don't feel like that with Hayley."

"Things will shift and shift again," Clancy said. "She still needs a lot of mothering."

"Oh, I know she does. I just worry that she won't let me give it to her." She made an unhappy little grunt and put her head on Clancy's shoulder, sitting quietly as they watched dusk settle onto the yard, the sound of the waterfall tranquilizing both of them.

When it was dark, they went into the house, then decided to swim for a while. Trevor had said he'd be going to visit one of his friends on the west side after he took Hayley to the airport, so Abby wanted to make good use of their alone time.

They swam and played with the dogs for a long time, tossing the girls' favorite toy back and forth to wear them out. When the dogs were sufficiently winded, Clancy held onto the toy and swam over to her lover. She grasped her foot and kicked, dragging Abby with her while she moved towards the waterfall. "Where are we going?" Abby asked, trying to keep her head above water.

As soon as they were under the strong stream, Clancy pulled Abby into her arms. The sound of the water was so loud that it was hard to hear, but Abby stared at her lover, watching her lips. Clancy said, "I imagine we're on our own little island. Just us and this fantastic cool stream pouring over our heads. We're safe here, baby. No one can ham us."

"I always feel safe in your arms," Abby said, watching Clancy's smile bloom.

"Wanna sleep with me tonight?" the blonde asked.

"I wanna sleep with you every night," Abby said. She held on tight and started to kick, moving them away from the powerful water. "But I want to be here when Trevor gets home. I think he's a little upset about Hayley's leaving, too."

"Uhm … I guess I can't stay here, huh?"

"I don't think so," Abby said. "Not until I talk to Trev about it. I wouldn't like it if he started bringing a woman home without having asked if I minded."

Clancy let go, then spent a minute floating on her back. "Okay. Give me a few dozen kisses and I'll be on my way."

Abby looked at the dogs and said, "Tell us if Trevor comes home, okay, girls? I'm gonna kiss Clancy until we're both deaf and blind."

They were walking to the door when the phone rang and Abby dashed inside to answer. To give her partner some privacy, Clancy stayed outside and threw a ball for the dogs. Neither dog was particularly obsessed with fetch, on dry land, but they were competent at the game and willingly participated, since it seemed important to Clancy.

Abby appearing a few minutes later, wearing a big smile. "Hayley made it to Alexander's apartment, and she wanted me to know that he put her suitcase in the bedroom and told her he'd sleep on the sofa." She sat back down and let her head drop against the back of the chair. "I feel so much better."

"Because she might not have sex?"

"No, that's her business. I'm just glad she called. She wanted me to know she was all right and was taking care of herself."

"I'm glad she called, too," Clancy said. "That was pretty thoughtful of her - given that she's angry."

"Yes, it was," Abby said quietly. Glancing up at Clancy, she said, "That's why it's hard to stay mad at the little scamp! She's not consistently obnoxious!"

"I wouldn't go wishing for that," the younger woman said. "She might go for that one just to spite you."