Ill Wind

“Do I want to hear this, Reno?” Kerri asked, pulling away from him slightly.

“Probably no more than I want to say it,” he answered. “But I feel like you ought to know.” He took a deep breath and began, “Last night, I stopped at the first place I came to that served booze, and I ended up getting fucking trashed. The place...it was also a brothel.”

Kerri pushed him away from her violently. “You fucked someone else?” she asked.

“No! No, it didn't go that far, babe,” he said.

“Then just how far did it go, Reno?”

He forced himself to meet her eyes, hating himself for the pain he'd put there. “She, uh...she gave me a blowjob, but I made her stop. I couldn't come.”

From behind clenched teeth, Kerri asked, “Too drunk?”

He shook his head, looking ashamed. “I couldn't come because it wasn't you.”

She stared at him for a moment, then said, “Well, you better overcome that little problem!” Without bothering to get her things, she whirled away and headed for the front door, wanting only to get away from him, to hide away with her pain like an animal.

“Kerri! Don't leave!” he yelled after her. When she ignored him, he ran after her, catching up with her by the front door. He grabbed her arm and tried to pull her to him, but she lashed out with her fist and hit him on his chin, rocking his head back. Stunned for a moment, he let go of her. She jerked the door open and fled into the hallway toward her own door.

Reno shook off the effects of the blow and went after her, heedless of the fact that he was wearing only thin cotton shorts. “Kerri! Please, Kerri,” he begged. “I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. I never wanted to hurt you.”

“Leave me alone,” she sobbed, fumbling her keys out of her pocket and trying to unlock her door. He took advantage of this to come near her and take her by the arm again, but she twisted away from him and aimed a high kick toward his chest. In her pain and anger, the move was sloppy and Reno avoided it easily. She pivoted, intending to attempt it again, but before she could she felt her arms pinned behind her back.

“Stop it, Kerri!” Elena said from behind her. The blond had come out of her own apartment at the sound of Reno's shout. “Calm down!”

Kerri twisted, trying to escape the hold, and Elena shoved upwards on one arm, causing the girl to hiss in pain. “Don't hurt her, Elena!” Reno shouted.

Elena ignored him. “Don't fight, Kerri. Be still or I'll take you down.” Kerri ceased her struggles, glaring at Reno.

“Ask him what he did!” she cried. “He paid a whore to suck his dick last night!”

Elena looked in surprise at Reno. “You didn't,” she said. Shamefaced, Reno nodded. “Oh, Reno. Why?” she asked.

“I was drunk out of my mind, confused, pissed off...I wasn't thinking straight. I didn't even let her finish, yo. All I could think about was Kerri,” he answered.

“See?” Kerri said. “It's over, Reno, it's fucking over!”

“Shut up, Kerri!” Elena snapped, and the pinned brunette's eyes widened in surprise. “I'm not going to let you do this.”

“What the hell do you mean, you won't let me do this?” Kerri snarled.

“I said to shut up!” Elena took a deep breath and then went on. “I've known Reno for years. He's always been a skirt-chaser...”

“He obviously still is,” Kerri sneered, and Elena increased the upward pressure on Kerri's arms for a moment until she was quiet again.

“As I was saying,” she went on sweetly, “he's always been a skirt-chaser. He loved sex, but his opinion on it was that pussy was pussy. That is until he met you. Kerri, did you know that he didn't touch another woman from the day he met you? Not just after he slept with you, but the day he met you.”

Reno nearly held his breath as he saw Kerri's expression soften slightly at Elena's words. “It's true, babe. I just didn't want anyone else.”

Elena continued, “He didn't have to tell you what he did last night, did he? You never would have found out. But he was honest with you about it, even knowing that he might lose you because of it. That's how important you are to him. And you want to throw that away because he made one drunken mistake? That's fucking idiotic, Kerri.” Elena couldn't see her face, but she could feel the tension drain from the other woman's body. “You're carrying his baby. Don't you want him to be as big a part of the child's life as you will be?”

Reno hesitantly came forward and dropped to one knee in front of Kerri. He hooked his hands in the waistband of her slacks and leaned his head against her stomach. “I can't change what I did, babe, but believe me, I wish I could. I'm so sorry that I hurt you. I'll make it up to you, just please, please don't leave me.”

“Reno,” Kerri said, and the word turned into a sob. Elena cautiously released her hold, ready to restrain her again if she attacked the kneeling redhead. Instead Kerri sank to the floor in front of him, and the two lovers wrapped their arms around each other. Kerri was crying in earnest now, and Reno had tears in his own eyes as he comforted her, murmuring softly to her between planting kisses on her wet cheeks.

Elena rolled her eyes. “Now that the temper tantrum is over, do you think you guys could take this back to your own apartment? I'd really appreciate some peace and quiet.”

“Sure thing, Lei Lei,” Reno said. He stood, pulling Kerri to her feet with him, then picked her up in his arms. “Thanks for making her listen to reason,” he told Elena with a smile.

“Yeah, yeah. Just go, all right?” The blond watched in amusement as Reno carried Kerri back through his door and kicked it shut behind them. She went back inside her own apartment before she allowed herself to start laughing, mainly for one reason--Kerri knew very well how to escape the hold Elena had used on her.