Part 11 (1/2)
Kay's customary cheerful expression darkened. ”I got her stabilized for now, but she's on the way down.”
”I'm sorry.”
”Yeah, me too. Sometimes there's nothing you can do. G.o.dd.a.m.ned cancer.” She made a visible effort to lighten her mood. ”So tell me about this guy.”
Annie shook her head. ”I'd rather not. You're going to think I'm crazy.”
”Not a chance. You'd be crazy not to jump the bones of a guy that looks like that.” She grinned.
”You've been holding out on me, girl. How long have you known this hunk'”
”Two days,” Annie said morosely.
”Two days'” Annie nodded.
”Good G.o.d, that's quick even by my standards.”
”There were extenuating circ.u.mstances.”
”Uh-huh. Yeah, I can see that.”
”Not just because of his looks!” Annie snapped.
Kay took a sip of her tea, her dark eyes regarding Annie curiously over the rim of her cup. ”Any particular reason you decided to do the dirty deed in my bed'”
Annie heaved a sigh. ”That's the part you're not going to believe.”
”Try me.”
Annie put down her cup and met her friend's gaze squarely. ”James is from the future and someone's trying to kill him.” Kay stared at her for a long moment. ”You're right,” she agreed at last. ”I don't believe you.” ”I figured as much.” ”Annie....” Kay grinned ruefully. ”This is some kind of a joke, right' You're pulling my leg, aren't you'” Annie shook her head.
Kay raised her cup and took a long swallow. ”Annie,” she said, very seriously, ”I've only been gone for two days. You cannot possibly have gone insane in two lousy days.” ”I'm not insane,” Annie said patiently. She could hardly blame Kay for her reaction. G.o.d knew she sounded crazy. ”James is from the future.”
”Oh, come on!” Kay exploded. ”Get serious, for G.o.d's sake. What is really going on here'”
”Annie is telling the truth.”
The two women turned to see James. He had, Annie noted with relief, taken the time to put on
clothes--a dark green polo s.h.i.+rt and a pair of b.u.t.ton-fly jeans that clung to him in all the right places. He looked civilized, in an extremely s.e.xy kind of way, and despite the frantic way he'd thrashed around in bed last night, his hair was perfectly neat. She supposed he'd found a comb somewhere, and wished she had taken the time to comb her hair. She imagined it looked pretty straggly, after last night's calisthenics.
Kay looked at him thoughtfully as he paused by the doorway. ”I'm not sure I blame you, Annie,” she said at last. ”If I found a guy who looked like this, whose only fault was that he was nuts, I might play along too.”
”I am not playing along!” Annie said hotly.
”It is the truth,” James said, entering the kitchen. ”I am from three centuries into your future.”
”Uh-huh,” Kay drawled. ”How'd he prove this, Annie' Did he show you a driver's license dated
2304'”.
”Look, I thought he was nuts too, at first. In fact, I was planning on having you examine him. But he's
not crazy. This woman'she was after him. She shot at us with some kind of ray gun.”
”A ray gun,” Kay repeated. She was clearly not buying it.
”Yeah,” Annie said defensively, ”a ray gun. Did one h.e.l.l of a number on the side of my car.”
”I didn't happen to see your car in the parking garage.”
”That's because I drove Steve's Mini over here.” Annie sighed. ”My car has this awful burned gouge on
its side. I don't think the guy at the body shop is going to know what to make of it.”
Kay looked at her for a long moment. ”Let's just say for the time being that this guy--James'-- is from the future. How, precisely, did this result in the two of you getting it on in my condo'”
”She knew where James was,” Annie explained. ”She somehow tracked him to my house. We had to go somewhere else, somewhere safer.”
”How come she didn't just follow you here'”
Annie swallowed. ”She tried to run us off the road. I, uh, sort of ran her into a tree in self-defense. But she's still alive, and looking for James. And James says there might be more of them.”
Kay shook her head slowly. ”Annie, if I didn't know better, I'd think you believed all this.”
Annie started to argue, but Kay held up a hand. ”Never mind. Forget I said anything. How about breakfast'”
”I would be happy to cook,” James said politely.
Kay looked at him with surprise. ”Geez. You cook, too'”
James nodded, and Kay gave him an approving grin. ”It'd be easy to overlook a little thing like insanity in a man like you.”
”I've got to get to the office,” Kay said, pus.h.i.+ng back her plate and sighing happily. She had consumed five pancakes and two gla.s.ses of orange juice. Apparently she had been too busy last night to have dinner.
”Oh, h.e.l.l, the office,” Annie said. It had totally slipped her mind that this was Monday. ”I should be heading out myself. But I didn't bring any work clothes.”