"The Lady in Blue"

Chapter Eight: Ted gets enlightened

Ted's point of view

Sunday morning dawned very brightly for me. I woke up laying flat on my
back with the most wonderful sensations coursing through my body. I
could feel the hot, wet caress of a mouth sucking my cock. Soft
whimpers of pleasure came from my waist. Lisa's blonde head was bobbing
up and down rhythmically.

She slid her mouth off of me and smiled. "Good morning, sleepy head.
I woke up hungry." Lisa licked my tip before taking a deep breath and
swallowing most of me.

My eyes were riveted on her as she pleasured me in such an intimate
way. I ran my hands through her hair and marveled at how beautiful she
was. It was so erotic, waking up to find her feasting. I would have to
return the favor one morning soon. I tried to pull her body around but
she wouldn't cooperate.

Kissing my little head, she tsked.  "I don't think so, lover. I want
to focus on you and if you slide that tongue of yours inside me, I
won't able to think. Lay back and enjoy." She licked up my length
from base to crown several times before she wrapped her hand around me
and took the head into her mouth once more.

There was no way I could take such intense pleasure for long. Her blue
eyes stayed locked with mine as she drove me absolutely crazy. When I
felt the first stirrings of my impending orgasm I gripped the sheets.

"Lisa, I'm close." I wanted to give her warning so she could do
whatever she felt most comfortable with. I knew some women didn't like
the taste and hated having a man come in their mouths.

Lisa didn't seem to be worried. She redoubled her efforts and was
jacking me hard as she sucked. The silky smooth sensation of her tongue
along my underside made me shiver and quake.

I felt the momentary pause before orgasm, that moment that seemed to
slow time, and then the world shrank to one point: the head of my cock.
I heard her moan as I thrust upward and arched my back. It felt like my
insides were being pulled through the head of my cock, sucked out by
Lisa. My strength seemed to desert me all at once.

Lisa smiled at me, licking her lips and my manhood like a cat. Then she
slid up and kissed me deeply. I tasted myself on her lips but it didn't
matter. "You taste so good. I didn't realize how much I had missed
the taste of my lover." Her eyes took on a seductive look.
"More?" she asked in an innocent little voice.

She resumed kissing me hard and passionately, then she began rubbing
her sex on my belly, wet and needy, arousing me to another erection.
Without touching me with her hands, she slid herself down on me and
began riding me for her pleasure.

I held her upright and searched for the right level of pressure in
pinching her nipples and squeezing her breasts. She was lava hot around
me and oh, so tight. I knew it would be a while for me to come again,
if I did, so I just enjoyed her arousal.

Lisa arched her back and ground herself against me, lost in her own
world. It was wonderful to watch her make love to me. She began to lose
her coordination and I knew she was ready.

Gripping her hips, I began thrusting into her from below. The heat and
wetness seemed to be growing greater as she came. I could feel her
internal muscles rippling around me when she cried out and collapsed
across me. I kissed her softly and held her close.

"That was fantastic," she murmured. "But I need to bring you off
again."

I kissed her and shook my head. "No, I'm fine. Three times in
twenty-four hours can take a lot out of a man. We have plenty of time.
Let's shower and see how Hawk is doing."

She stretched luxuriously but didn't rise. "Let me catch my breath
and cuddle first. Hawk can wait a few more minutes. Just hold me,
Ted."

I was happy to do that. I held her lithe, warm body on top of me and
listened to her breathing slow down. The scent of her skin was
threatening to start me back up again. I don't know that I had ever
stayed inside a lover as we relaxed. The sensation was indescribable.
If Lisa had been a cat, I think she would have been purring. "Lisa,
you're terrific." I said.

"Why, thank you! I have to reassert my lead position after yesterday.
You almost made me crazy and that, sir, is my job!"  She poked me on
the chest as she rolled over onto her side next to me. "I will have
my revenge!"

I laughed and held her to my chest, kissing her on the forehead. "You
will be my doom, lover! Mercy!"

Lisa's eyes twinkled and she shook her head. "Nope. Accept your fate!
Now, come and wash my back!" She swayed into the bathroom and I
watched her sexy body go before I followed her with a smile.

Thirty minutes later, I left her touching up her makeup and went out
into the living room. The couch still had a lump under the blankets.
The lump snored, too. I shook my head. How could that little woman
snore like a lumberjack? I considered shaking her but decided that
might not be the best idea since she owned a gun. Even if it was in the
pile of her clothes.

"Hawk?" I said kind of loudly. Not even a lowering of the snore
volume. "Hawk!"

The lump rolled over and groaned. "Ten more minutes, Dad. Just ten
more minutes," Hawk mumbled.

I smiled and shook my head. "Okay, ten more minutes but you better be
up and ready to eat in fifteen." An incomprehensible mumble came from
under the covers and then Hawk sat bolt upright, staring at me.

In the light, she didn't seem nearly as unfeminine as her street
clothes made her look. I averted my eyes and gave her time to get
control of her blanket but I still had a good view of her. Her breasts
were small but well formed. The nipple rings added to her
"attitude." The glimpse I had of her hips showed some curve and a
flat stomach. She was slender and more girlish than womanly.

"Christ," she mumbled. "I'm sorry, Ted. You can look," she said
as she wrapped the blanket around her again. "I was dreaming I was
home again, and my dad was waking me up for school." She looked up at
the ceiling and sighed. "What the hell is wrong with me?"

The question sounded rhetorical so I didn't answer it. "I'll go start
breakfast, Hawk. Lisa will be out in a few minutes."

"Wait!" she said quickly. "I have a question that sounds stupid,
even to me, but did - did I make a pass at you? Did anything -
happen?" The shock on my face must have answered her question because
she breathed a deep sigh of relief. "Thank god, it was a dream."
She shook her head and winced. "I should have known you were more of
a gentleman than that, Ted. I'm sorry for even asking. Go cook and add
some aspirin to the tab, okay? Thank you for taking me into your home
and making sure I was okay."

I don't know if I would have ever imagined her so vulnerable looking.
Galveston and last night must have taken a lot out of her. "That's
what friends do, Hawk. And, no, we didn't have sex. I don't think I'm
your type, and I'm with Lisa," I said with a smile. That produced a
haunted look that I didn't know how to interpret so I headed for the
kitchen. "Lisa can let you in and get you to the shower. She also has
the bag with your fresh clothes. I folded your other clothes and put
them next to the couch. Your gun is in the stack."

She waved me on. "Go ahead. I'll sit here and wake up first. Lisa
might want to come to me rather than have me barge in on her. Besides,
I need to get my cop face back on."

I stopped and half-turned. "Don't. Today you aren't a cop. I want to
meet the woman behind the mask. She seems like a nice person."

A look of astonishment greeted my foray into the friend zone. I guess
she didn't have many friends. I left her to close her mouth and regain
her composure. The kitchen was quiet and comfortable. No one else was
up and that suited me just fine.

Within minutes, I had the makings for breakfast scattered about and was
starting to cook.

"Good morning," Lisa said. Her voice sounded strangely distorted
and a little soft but I turned to smile at the door. Oddly, she wasn't
there.

Then I heard Hawk. "Good morning." That same odd tone. I finally
located the voices as coming from the air vent over this end of the
kitchen. I had lived here alone with Stan for so long that I had
forgotten the vents sometimes carried voices. I remembered listening in
on my mom and dad when I was a kid. That brought back a lot of fond
memories and a smile.

As the morning pleasantries began, I wasn't worried about listening in
on them, but the conversation quickly turned in a direction I hadn't
anticipated.

"I heard you," Hawk said. "Last night."

There was a moment of hesitation. I could imagine Lisa coloring. "I
thought you were too far gone to be awake, or to remember. I didn't
even think I was loud enough to wake you up. I'm sorry."

"I wasn't awake much. Just long enough to realize what was going on.
It didn't bother me nearly as much as the dreams did later. I - I
dreamed about Ted having sex with me while you whispered in my ear."

I felt my face flush and yanked my attention back to the eggs before I
burned them. Sliding the bread into the toaster, I tried to stop
listening. This was not the kind of conversation I should hear; it was
private. Physics had other ideas, though. Even with the eggs on, I
could still hear them.

"Really? Does that make you uncomfortable?" Lisa asked.

Hawk was quiet for a minute. "No, more like confused. I've never
thought about doing something like that, not even in a dream. Then we
talk and my subconscious is thinking about it. I don't know if men are
my cup of tea, but in the dream, I reacted to Ted. Not like making love
to a woman, but not like some horrible fate either. Not that I am
committing to anything, mind you," Hawk cautioned, "but I'm not
sure who I am anymore and I don't like that.

"Hawk, you are the same person you have always been." Lisa said.
"I wasn't saying you needed to rush out and sleep with a guy. I just
wanted you to think about it as hard as I was thinking about what you
asked me."

I *really* shouldn't be listening to this conversation, I decided. A
quick look told me that breakfast would take five more minutes, and
then I could get away from that vent. Still, I had to admit that I knew
I could call them into the kitchen and not have to listen in to the
private conversation but, like Hawk, part of me wanted to know.

"And where has that thinking gotten you?" Hawk asked. "Look, I
know you are with Ted. I can see how you and he are growing closer but
I have to admit that I want you. I might even want you enough to
consider..."

"Hush now." Lisa said. "I wasn't trying to seduce you into Ted's
bed."

I let out my breath. I'm not sure what I would have thought if she
were. I began scooping the scrambled eggs onto a plate.

"After Ted went to sleep last night, I thought about doing it with a
woman." There was a pause long enough to make me hold my breath.
"Specifically, I thought about doing it with you."

"To use your own words, does that make you feel uncomfotable?" Hawk
asked.

"No, confused, the same as you. I don't want to admit I want to have
sex with another woman but I have to. When you look at me, I feel
aroused. I dreamed about you again last night, but you were there with
Ted." She paused. "You know that's how it would have to be, right?
I won't sleep around on Ted. I don't know what we have yet, but I
*know* running around would break his trust. That won't happen."

I felt a flood of relief. I didn't know what I thought about that, but
her support of us filled me with warmth.

"Is sex with a woman really cheating on a man?" Hawk asked. "I'm not
pushing for that, I just never thought about it like this and I'm
curious now."

"I'm no Bill Clinton." Lisa answered. "Sex is sex and I'm not going
to have sex with someone outside my relationship. It's just wrong."

"Well, I certainly don't want you to compromise your morals." I could
hear the smile in her voice.

Lisa continued in a rush, as though she wanted to say something before
she lost her nerve. "I need you to understand. I want to but I can't.
Ted seems like he supports my fantasies, but I don't want him to think
I want someone in place of him or that I'm some easy floozy. I'm happy
with him and I think he is with me. I don't want to change that."

"What about if you convince him?" Hawk asked. "You could ask him to let
you experiment with me."

"No, I want to be with you but if it ever did happen, it would *have*
to include Ted." Lisa said at last.

My breath froze in my chest. What did she just say?

"You need to ask him if you can join *us*, if that is what you
want," Lisa continued. "That's the only way it can happen. I think
I'm falling for Ted but I can't deny my attraction to you, my curiosity
of wanting to be with you, but I'm not a slut. If Ted doesn't agree to
having all three of us together, I'll just have to regret not meeting
you sooner."

"Oh, God." Hawk moaned. "I want you but I just don't know if I
*can*. Lisa, what do I do?"

"You do what is right for you, Hawk. You have my answer but I've had
more time to think about it. You just keep thinking and by the time you
are done, I think you will know more about yourself than when I asked
you. I know that I do. Come on, I'll show you to the bedroom and you
can shower in the attached bathroom and dress in peace."

My mind was whirling over this unexpected revelation. I made plates of
food on autopilot while my mind was working in overdrive. I don't think
men should ever hear themselves being discussed by women as an object
of sexual desire. I wasn't sure if I was supposed to be pleased,
annoyed or frightened.

This was complex. Hell, this wasn't just complex, it was convoluted. A
Gordian knot. I really felt something growing with Lisa. She did with
me, too. Enter the third party of this possible triangle, Hawk. She was
attracted to the same woman I was. A bit of a twist on the stereotype,
I admitted wryly. Lisa was attracted to her as well. I guess I needed
to do some thinking about it, like they had been. In the end, it might
never come to pass. Hawk didn't sound at all enamored with the idea of
a man in the mix. That, I admitted, might be the best outcome. Leaving
aside my male fantasy of a threesome, Hawk was a lesbian and sounded
more than reluctant. That seemed to border on sex with the unwilling. I
would never do that to someone.

My mind chased itself around in circles for a bit and I decided to just
let things sit. I could eat myself up over all the possibilities or
wait and see what developed, then talk with them both, if it did.
Option two sounded better. It wasn't as if they knew I knew. Satisfied
with my plan, I sat down and waited for them.

Lisa came in a few minutes later and gave me a kiss. "Good morning!
This all smells wonderful. Thank you!"

"It's my pleasure. How's Hawk doing?"

Lisa gestured at the bedroom hall. "She's showering and getting
dressed. Frankly, she seems a little off balance today so I think we
should cut her some slack today, okay?"

I pursed my lips and nodded. "Good idea." Pouring her some coffee,
I sat and sipped with her, small talking. I was curious if she would
spill anything but I guess that's what comes from dating a lawyer. She
gave nothing away about the simmering sexual tension in the house.

Twenty minutes later, Hawk sauntered in dressed in jeans, a Harley
shirt and her boots. She looked much more together than when I saw her
last. "Morning. That coffee smells good. Pour me a cup and I'll be
human again. Cops live on this stuff."

I poured and wagged a finger at her. "Today, you are *not* a cop.
Today, you are off and recovering. Time enough tomorrow to get back to
work."

Hawk smirked. "Okay, Dad."

Lisa looked over at her with raised eyebrows. "Dad? Are you going to
call Ted Dad now?"

Hawk colored. I didn't think anything could embarrass her. I just
smiled, oblivious on the outside.

"I'm not really that old," I joked. "I just woke her out of a
dream about her being a teen and getting woke up for school. No big
deal."

Lisa smiled. "Ah, I see. We should all dig in. Food seems to bring
Stan out so if we want anything left for us, we have only a few
minutes."

Hawk and I both laughed and started in. I gave Hawk her aspirin to take
with her food.

"This stuff is great, Ted," Hawk said as she sipped her coffee.
"Beats the hell out of the swill they try to pass off as coffee back
at the station. Does that bean pickin' son of a bitch, Juan Valdez,
bring it here on his little donkey?"

I just smiled.

The three of us spent time taking a detailed tour of the vineyard. Both
Lisa, and surprisingly Hawk, asked a lot of good questions and really
seemed interested in what was here and how it all worked.

When the sun was high in the sky and the heat had become oppressive, I
suggested we go in and get some lunch.

Hawk smiled and shook her head. "Actually, I've heard there are some
nice stores in Spring that I'd like to see. Some have a really
*historic* view, I hear. Can we check them out and then get some lunch
there?"

I grinned back as Lisa colored nicely. "Sure, I know a great café
with outstandingly *discreet* service."

Lisa smacked me on the arm. "Ted!"

I looked at her in mock surprise. "What's the matter, honey?"

"Ooooooo, men!" We all laughed.

We drove into Spring and I pulled right up to the Rose Petals store.
Lisa turned beet red but didn't hesitate getting out and walking in.
Hawk and I followed right behind her. The same lady clerk was up front
and smiled at us.

"Welcome back. I always like to see repeat business! Feel free to
look around and don't feel awkward about touching the merchandise."

Lisa burst out laughing. "You are *so* bad! I'm Lisa, this is Ted and
our friend Hawk."

"Alice Jenks, owner and eye in the sky." She winked at Lisa.
"Don't feel bad, my husband, Andy, didn't complain later on, if you
know what I mean."

"I think we'll just browse this time," I said with a grin. "We
have company."

Alice grinned. "Please yourselves. I'll be right here."

As Lisa walked in, I looked back at the door and made a locking motion.
Alice nodded and grinned widely.

As I caught up with the ladies, Hawk gave me a look. "Sounds like you
have a fan. Is this *the* store?"

Lisa nodded, still blushing furiously.

Hawk smiled and stopped. "Then I'll check out the delicates and you
two browse. Don't mind me and I'll be ready to leave when you are."
She headed for the other side of the store and we both giggled.

"I don't know if I could do anything knowing someone was watching,"
she confided as we moved to the clothes lining the back wall. "That
seems way too risky."

I thought about how turned on she got when she risked being seen. It
was a part of her that we were just beginning to understand. I stopped
and looked at the layout of the place, the lack of other customers.
Alice was glancing back at the mirror and she smiled when she saw me.
Hawk was looking at frilly underclothes and not looking this way.
"Remember when I told you I would hold you to doing some things but I
promised you wouldn't regret it?"

Lisa's eyes grew huge. "No! Ted, we can't!"

"Trust me. Alice knew what we were doing before. Hawk knows what you
like. I am nervous, too, but there will never be a better or safer
place for your first time in public."

She looked undecided for a moment, afraid even, but then she nodded.

I put my hands on her waist and pushed her against the wall, dropping
to my knees in front of her. I kissed the inside of her thigh just
under the edge of the skirt and then rapidly kissed my way up. Her
panties were already damp when I got there and were soaked after I used
my tongue on her through the thin fabric. The soft sound of her
whimpering came through the skirt over my head just fine. I half
expected her to hold my head but she seemed to be gripping the wall
instead.

I pulled the panties to the side and dug my tongue into her flower,
savoring the sweet flavor. My face was promptly made damp as she ground
herself onto me. Crossing my fingers, I slid two inside her. A low moan
of pleasure came out of her lungs.

"Ted, Alice is watching us. I can see her in the mirror. She can see
you eating me."

I pulled back. "Does that excite you? Do you want her to watch me
lick you, Lisa?"

"Oh, God. Yes... I want it." She sighed.

"Then hold up your skirt so she has a good view." I said before
digging back into her with my lips.

Lisa didn't hesitate this time. She pulled the skirt up all the way to
her chest. I watched her face as I kept on and could tell her eyes were
locked on Alice, not through the mirror but directly over the clothes
racks. Her breathing was getting ragged really quickly and her nectar
was flowing. I guessed it would only be a minute before she exploded.

"I found these nice..." Hawk said from behind me. "Oh..."

I started to pull back but Lisa grabbed my head with one hand.
"Finish what you started. Let them watch. I want it."

Unable to look around, I mentally shrugged and resumed fingering her
and running my tongue up her wonderful sex. I wondered what Hawk was
thinking now.

"I think I'll go talk to Alice and let you two have some privacy,"
Hawk said. She sounded embarrassed.

"You can watch, if you want to," Lisa husked.

"I'm not used to this so I'll feel better watching from up front.
Please, don't be disappointed. Maybe next time, after I adjust to the
idea. Okay?"

I saw Lisa nod, her eyes locked on Hawk. She was really getting into
this. I was shocked when she started unbuttoning her blouse. It was
twice as shocking when she pulled her bra up and began massaging
herself and pinching her nipples.

"It's okay. Go ahead up front and watch," Lisa said.

I could see her watching Hawk move away. I could even hear Alice when
she arrived at the counter.

"They do make a sweet couple, don't they?" Alice said. "I locked
the door so they could have a good time without interruptions."

"Lisa?" I asked in a breathless voice. "What do you see? Tell
me."

"Alice and Hawk are standing there watching you eat me through the
mirror. I think they like what they see."

Her body began shaking and she closed her eyes. I focused my attention
on her nub and was rewarded with her explosive orgasm. She came for
seconds and then slid down the wall, pulling herself away from me.

I sat next to her and held her close to me, her clothes in wild
disarray and her sex on display for all to see. She seemed almost
unconscious and was breathing heavily.

Lisa slowly came back to herself and slid her knees open, allowing them
a better view. She turned and kissed me deeply, moaning at the taste of
herself on my lips.

Lisa climbed to her feet and pulled me up with her. Slowly, she put her
clothes back into place.

I dusted myself off and hugged her. "Lisa," I said quietly. "I
think you should give Hawk and Alice a thank you kiss."

Her eyes flashed to me, and she searched my face, looking to see if I
was serious. At my nod, we walked up front and she enfolded Hawk into
her arms and kissed her.

Hawk pushed her back in surprise and looked at me. "Ted?"

"A thank you kiss from both of us, for not being upset." I said.

With a sigh, she pulled Lisa into her arms and kissed her passionately.
Lisa molded her body to Hawk's and returned it with her own ardor.

Lisa broke the kiss after a minute and pulled back. "For both of us,
thank you, Hawk."

Then she hugged Alice, her kiss on the woman's cheek. "Thank you so
much!"

Alice hugged her back and kissed Lisa's cheek. "My pleasure, sweetie."
She looked at me. "You can kiss the other cheek."

I grinned, hugged her and kissed Alice's cheek.

Hawk looked at me. "Ted, that kind of trust is really special. To let
Lisa be herself and help her without being hung up on the details of
what she wants." She looked at Lisa. "I'm sorry, hon, but I think
Ted needs thank me himself."

I wondered what she was talking about until Hawk took me into her arms
and tilted her head as our lips met. I stiffened, in a couple of ways,
as her tongue ran across my lips.

She pulled back an inch. "Loosen up, Ted. I don't bite - much. No
obligations. The rules bent, not broken, for all of us." She kissed
me again, her tongue pushing it's way into my mouth.

The kiss seemed awkward for a moment and then she melted against me.
Her eyes were closed and I realized she was tasting Lisa. After a
moment of that, I returned the favor, and she didn't object to my
intrusion. We french kissed for just a minute and then she pulled back.
"That wasn't so bad," she said so low that I almost missed it. Then
she grinned and reached down to grasp me through my pants as she
stepped back. She released me almost as soon as she touched me. "I see
junior is okay with the afternoon."

Lisa was watching Hawk, well, like a hawk. When Hawk let me loose, Lisa
kissed her deeply. I could see their tongues dueling and it made me
like granite.

Lisa finally pulled back. "I think we need to leave before I do
something *we* are not ready for."

"I'm starving," Hawk agreed, grinning. "Let's go eat something."
She grinned even harder. "Or at least go eat something else."

Alice shook her head at us. Watching her scan the bra and panties Hawk
had selected while winking slyly at her was funny.

Hawk refused to let me pay for them. "I wear my own underwear, Ted;
not someone else's. At least, not unless they are my lovers. You're
not looking to become my lover, are you, Ted?" She raised an eyebrow
and I just shrugged my shoulders and smiled.

I did buy a gift card for $250 dollars. Alice grinned at me and said
she looked forward to us coming back to shop again as she unlocked the
door and let us out into the street.

Alice stopped Lisa and spoke softly enough to her that I could only
barely hear her. "When I was younger, my sister was the chaperone on
my dates. With the ones she really liked, she would sit on the hood at
the drive-in and give us space to play around without it getting too
serious or someone catching us. It taught me the value of having
someone watching out for you when you are doing something risky. I
don't want to be pushy but you really need to keep that in mind for the
future. We all have our secrets that would hurt us if they ever got
out, me included. Come back and we'll talk more. I bet I could help you
with finding boundaries." She grinned.

Lisa hugged her. "Thank you so much."

The trip to the café was one of us falling back into some sense of
normalcy. By the time we were seated, it almost seemed like an erotic
dream. The girls sat side by side across from me and chattered about
the food options. Lisa admitted it was really the first time she had
read the menu.

I grinned and made my selection. Then the expected bare foot slid
between my legs and I had a hard time keeping my game face on. I wasn't
going to let Lisa know how much that was getting to me. She was
returning the favor in spades, chattering away with both Hawk and
myself as though she was just sitting there. So cool and collected.
Hawk noticed nothing, her attention focused on Lisa and what she was
saying.

When the food came, Lisa's foot slithered away and left me very
excited. She bit into her steak with a moan of culinary pleasure. Hawk
smiled at me and cut a bite off her own. The conversation was so normal
it was almost surreal.

The lunch was very pleasant. Everyone seemed very relaxed. When at last
we were finished, we all went and washed up. The girls were almost
giggly when they came out.

I walked back to the car with my arm around Lisa with Hawk next to us.
The drive back to the vineyard was wonderfully relaxed.

When we arrived, the weekly Sunday afternoon vineyard party Stan hosted
was in full swing. The bluegrass band was already playing, and almost a
hundred people were there, dancing, sitting, tasting wine and
hobnobbing. Stan was moving through the crowd with practiced ease. A
touch, a nod, a word. Everyone he passed felt his full attention. I
still had no idea how he managed to do that.

"Hawk, if you want to get a drink, I need to take Lisa for a turn on
the dance floor."

Hawk smiled. "You kids have fun. I'll get us all something to
drink." She sauntered off without a backward glance.

"I think she likes you a little, Ted." Lisa whispered in my ear as
we started dancing.

"Really? What makes you think that? The kiss was more for you than
me."

She smiled enigmatically. "Let's just say I have some insider
information that you don't."

I was about to ask what that meant when I was tapped on the shoulder. A
glance back and I smiled.

"Representative de la Cruz! You finally made it!" I stopped dancing
and wrapped my arm around Lisa. The energetic little man shook my hand.
"I'd like you to meet my girlfriend, Lisa."

"How wonderful to meet you, Lisa!" He stood beside us, his arm
around a Hispanic woman about his age. "This is my wife, Mary." We
were a little bubble in a very busy dance floor; the people didn't
precisely bump us but they were thick around us.

I saw Hawk with three glasses of wine slowly working her way in towards
us. With some difficulty, I helped open a spot for her to join us. She
was smiling but she looked worried."

"Hi! I'm Hawk. Pleasure. Lisa, I saw someone that looked just like
one of your cases. That Russian, Viktor Kotov. Can we... Gun!" Her
eyes were looking between Lisa and me. Dropping the wine, she was
pulling her own gun and shoving Ramon aside.

I don't know what I was thinking but I shoved Lisa and dove into Hawk,
Ramon and Mary. A loud bang or a small explosion went off right behind
me as we all tumbled to the ground. Pain exploded on the right side of
my head. The crowd went berserk and a stampede away from us made the
chaos total. I could hear Hawk cursing under me.

By the time she dug herself free there was no hope of seeing anyone. No
real hope of catching anyone either. Some people were watching, some
were milling and many were screaming for the fastest exit. Cars were
already pulling out of the parking lot in droves. Lisa was helping
Ramon and Mary to their feet and I started to get to my own feet and
felt the pain grow worse. I sat back heavily and touched the side of my
head. It was wet and sticky. I could feel the heat of blood flowing
down my face and neck. In confusion, I looked at Lisa.

Lisa's eyes widened in horror. "Oh, my God! Hawk! Ted's been shot!"


Hawk was back in a second and lay me flat on the ground. "Lay down,
hero. Let's look at this." I felt light headed and watched Lisa as
she shouted into her cell phone while Hawk dug painfully at my hair. I
decided this was definitely more surreal than lunch as my vision faded
to a point and went out.