Every Waking Hour by Paisley Smith

Author:Paisley Smith [Smith, Paisley]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: LGBT 1950s Historical
Publisher: Loose Id LLC
Published: 2012-12-28T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Seven

Della awakened alone in Gray’s bed. No clock topped the nightstand, so Della could only guess what time it was. She guessed it was late. Probably two or three. No night creatures chirped or buzzed outside the open window. The bedroom door had been left open. She peered into the shadowy hall. Cypress Bend seemed far larger in the dark than it did in the daytime.

Minnie’s husband had picked her up after supper, leaving Gray and Della alone.

A shiver traversed Della’s spine. No wonder Gray hated staying out here by herself.

Easing out of bed, Della pulled on the same robe she’d worn the day they’d gone swimming, before venturing downstairs to find Gray.

Della had never been superstitious or even easily spooked.

Until now.

One lamp had been left on in the downstairs hallway. Darkness ensconced the parlor, the kitchen, and the other myriad rooms. She jumped when the big grandfather clock let out a mechanical clicking sound and then struck three.

Where was Gray?

Della stepped into the parlor where Gray had received her the first day she’d come out to Cypress Bend. The lamp’s light reached a row of framed photographs Della had never taken the time to peruse. Hugging her arms to herself, she padded barefoot across the hardwood floor and the threadbare rug. She stood out of the light and bent to view the pictures. At once she recognized Gray as a child. The dimpled smile and mischievous eyes were the same. The hair was very different. Two thick plaits snaked over her narrow shoulders. Della lifted the frame to inspect it closer. Proudly holding up two fish, a boy stood next to Gray. He looked enough like her that Della wondered if this might be her brother, Horace.

Della smiled and returned the photo to the table. She lifted another of Gray in a cap and gown. This looked more like the Gray Della knew. Gray’s lips were set. Her eyes looked hard. Haunted. Evidence of her masculine appearance was apparent in her hacked-off hair, which had been tucked behind her ears.

After returning that photo to the table, Della turned. She gasped when she saw Gray, leaning against the pocket door, staring. She was dressed in her undershirt and boxers, clutching a bottle of liquor in her hand.

Della’s hand flew to her heart. “Gray, you startled me.”

Gray’s shoulders rose and fell with a deep breath. She looked hard and pensive, and Della would have thought she’d been sleepwalking but for the way Gray’s gaze glittered as it swept down her body.

“Is this…is this your brother?” Della asked, reaching for the photograph.

“Take off your robe.”

Stopping in midreach, Della stared.

“Take off your robe,” Gray repeated, stalking toward her, hesitating only long enough to put her half-empty bottle on a table as she passed it.

Holding her feral gaze, Della untied the thick belt, opened the robe, and let it fall to the floor. Her body heated despite the fact that she stood naked in a vast, high-ceilinged room. Her nipples tightened. She felt her channel growing slick and ready.

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