Broken Star

Chapter 3-2

Lynn stirred, awakening from the unplanned sleep that had overtaken her. The warmth of the sun had been so inviting that the bright rays lulled her straight into slumber. She blinked when she heard the sound of nearby voices. Upon opening her eyes, she was surprised to see the female officer from the previous night with a little girl. The child bounced into the air, barely missing the ball Alexis had thrown towards her. The scene before her unfolded so fast that all she could do was watch helplessly when the little girl toppled against her lounge chair.

“Calista!” Alexis rushed towards her daughter when the little girl started to howl after falling to the ground. She drew the screaming child into her arms. “Oh, honey, I’m sorry. Baby, are you okay?” Alexis pressed her lips to Calista’s forehead when the teary eyed child stared up at her and continued to cry.

Lynn blinked again as a s****l thrill shot through her body. The memory of the previous night’s self pleasure crept into her mind. Her hungry gaze lingered on Alexis’s taunt body. The one-piece deep sapphire swimsuit clung to Alexis’s voluptuous figure like a second skin. A slight glimpse of cleavage teased her senses. Her hair hung like a protective curtain around her face, falling over the child in a sea of gold. Lynn rose from her comfortable position, throwing her legs over the side of the chair. “Is she alright?” she asked with a tilt of her head.

Lynn swore she saw Alexis audibly gasp when the recognition flooded onto her face. Alexis staggered backwards, nearly falling back to the sand when Lynn removed her dark shades. “I think so. I believe that the fall frightened her more than anything.” Alexis kissed the little girl’s soft curls as her crying suddenly came to an abrupt halt. “I’m sorry. We didn’t mean to disturb you.” Hurriedly lifting her daughter, Alexis backed away from Lynn.

“It’s fine. I shouldn’t have been sleeping anyways.” Lynn shook her head and blew out a frustrated breath when her barrette popped and the lengthy russet strands tumbled free. “I wasn’t able to sleep much last night. I guess the sun got the best of me.”

“It can do that,” Alexis replied in a clipped voice.

Lynn glanced to the little girl when Alexis carefully put her down on to the sand. The slightly chubby blonde clung to Alexis’s leg, hiding behind the safety barrier with nervous blue eyes. “And who is this little cutie pie?” Lynn peeped around, smiling at the nervous child. “It’s okay, sweetie. I don’t bite. I hope you’re okay.”

“She’s my daughter, Calista,” Alexis placed both hands securely on to her daughter’s shoulders when she reemerged from behind her mother’s leg. Calista’s eyes widened, staring at Lynn.

“Hi there, Calista,” Lynn leaned forward. “I’m Lynn. Calista is such a beautiful name.”

Calista snuggled closer to her mother, clinging to her leg as she pressed her nose against Alexis’s side. Alexis moved one hand to her daughter’s back, rubbing in comforting circles. “She’s shy around strangers.”

“I guess she takes that from her mother,” Lynn replied.

“I’m not shy.” Alexis narrowed her eyes.

“Well, you’re not very talkative either,” Lynn stated in a slightly sarcastic tone as she rose from her chair and stiffened so that her breasts were at full attention. After noticing Alexis’s intent stare, she could not resist turning into a bit of a tease.

“I didn’t realize that was a requirement.” Alexis glanced down when she felt Calista let go of her leg. She watched as her daughter carefully stepped towards Lynn, staring up at the towering figure with a tilted head.

Lynn refocused her attention and smiled when the child approached, kneeling to her level on the sand. Picking up the Disney beach ball, Lynn held it in both hands, and twirled the colorful ball. “Who is your favorite princess?”

Calista’s hand moved to her lips. She thoughtfully chewed her fingers and tilted her head, then said, “Sleeping Beauty.”

“Sleeping Beauty, huh?” Lynn twirled the ball around again with a smile. When Calista’s arms stretched towards her, she gently placed the ball back into her hands and grinned. “I like her too, but my favorite is Snow White.”

“I didn’t take you much for the cartoon type,” Alexis said with an arch of her brow.

“Hasn’t anyone ever told you that one should never judge a book by its cover?” Lynn replied with a smirk after meeting Alexis’s questioning eyes. She glanced back to Calista, watching the little girl cradle the ball into her arms as if it were a newborn baby. “You have such pretty hair.” Lynn’s long fingers brushed a bouncy curl behind Calista’s ear and caused the timid little girl to giggle. One of Calista’s front teeth was missing, which caused Lynn to smile fondly.

“I look like my mommy,” Calista replied proudly as she puffed out her chest.

“Yes, you do. And I think that your mommy has lovely hair too,” Lynn grinned. She glanced at Alexis for a split second, stifling a giggle when she saw the officer’s cheeks flush with crimson. Now that was a feat she had never deemed possible.

“We should get going,” Alexis said when she stepped closer. She placed her palms onto her daughter’s shoulders and tugged her gently away from Lynn.

“Mommy,” Calista leaned back so that she could see her mother’s face. “Can Lynn come build a sand castle with us?”

“No, Sweetie,” Alexis said with a squeeze to Calista’s small shoulders. “I am sure Lynn has other things to do.”

“Actually, Calista, I would love to help you build a sand castle.” Lynn frowned when she saw a look of horror spread over the petite officer’s face. Immediately she regretted that she said yes so abruptly when it was obvious Alexis did not want her around. “If that’s okay with you,” she added.

“Why would you want to spend your time making sand castles?” Alexis eyed Lynn suspiciously, “Don’t you have some posh event to attend or maybe a manicure to tend to?”

“No…” Lynn shrugged. Her voice turned cheerless and she stared at the grainy sand that slipped between her toes. “I took a couple days off to unwind. I understand if you don’t want me to though. It’s okay.”

“Mommy,” Calista’s small hand pressed against Alexis’s stomach, “Can she? Please!”

“Why not,” Alexis sighed as her daughter squealed excitedly and plopped down into the sand.