Love had been one of the least permanent things in Kate's life. In her line of work, she traveled very light and nothing lasted long. Not even the pistols she used to snuff a contract were hers for more than a few days.
To look at Kate when she was all dolled up, you would have never expected her to be so cold. When she waltzed though a room, heads would turn and the smell of hot sex and signs of stiff erections were everywhere. Sure, when necessary she could suck a guy off in record time, however, she wanted the dames, and she did not have any trouble in that department at all.
When she was at her best, her heart was like a frozen ball of marble and you would be dead before you even saw the bright light on the way to the pearly gates. She had lost track of how many there had been. She knew she passed fifty hits in the first ten years and she had been at it for twenty when she gave up the business. That was years ago.
The morning snow flurry had left a light dusting of new snow on the foot of snow from last week's storm that was on top of all the other snow from the long winter. Kate's ancient rusted truck roared though the worn ruts in the snow. The four-wheel drive transfer case whined like a hurt wolf and she often wondered how much longer it would last.
All that mattered was that it get to the Deep Breath, her favorite lesbian pick up bar. The Deep Breath was a pure glory hole filled with smoke, the stink of old beer, and plenty of women on the make. Who could ask for anything better? Hell, Joan, who owned the joint even had some varnished wooden tables in the back that made for a crude facsimile of a bed. Just wipe them down when you were done was all Joan asked.
When Kate moved to mountain foothills outside of Coldwater years ago, it was rare to find another lesbian, and she had tried hard. These days, they were everywhere and some had been between many legs. Even the mayor and sheriff were lesbians. When Kate would hug the sheriff and stroke the nine-millimeter in the black leather holster on the wide black-tooled belt, Kate would get so wet between the legs her knees would almost buckle.
The twenty miles from her cabin to the town limit sign had long since become routine. Just past the sign, a dark blue BMW was stuck in a snowdrift way off the road. The tracks through the smooth new snow made it appear the car had spun more than once on the way to where it now rested. Kate parked her truck and walked toward the BMW. The window started to lower.
"Not a good job of parking," Kate teased as she waited for the window to finish lowering. "Do you need some help?" Kate took her Stetson hat off and knocked it against her leg, and then ran her fingers though her short curly grayish-brown hair before putting it back on.
"Guess if I'm going to live here, I need a better car for the snow."
The woman appeared to be in her forties, but regardless, younger than Kate was. She stepped into the two-foot snowdrift dressed in her L.L.Bean style winter clothes. "Hi, I'm Mandy," she said with a strong assured voice and held her bare hand with the long slim fingers out while holding the glove in the other hand.
Kate's eyes raced from the San Francisco Giants baseball cap resting over the shoulder length blond hair down to the almost new hiking boots. She didn't find anything that would disqualify Mandy from her bed. There were days when having a pussy and breathing was all that mattered to Kate. There were probably a few days when the breathing part might have been optional as long as the body still had some warmth to it.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Kate. Got a winch that will pull you, ah, pull your car out just fine."
Kate moved her truck and then dragged the discolored metal hook on the winch cable towards the BMW's rear while she continued to examine Mandy leaning against the open driver's door. Mandy made a small soft snowball with a handful from the roof and tossed it at Kate hitting her in the stomach. The hat and scarf hid some of what appeared to be a pretty face, but the dark red lipstick on the lips of her wide mouth sure looked like it would be fun to kiss completely off. The way Mandy smiled did not help destroy that idea either.
Parked along the shoulder of the road was Mandy's car and she stood behind it. Kate pressed the lever that made the winch wind the cable up while she watched Mandy rubbing some gloss over her lips with a finger and she wished it were her finger.
"Not much traffic. I can't thank you enough. Is there some way to repay you?"
Kate was so distracted she almost did not feel the winch start to suck her glove in. "Shit!" she cursed under her breath as she reversed the cable. "Let me buy you a cold drink to warm you up. Unless you mind drinking with another woman?" Kate kicked one well-worn boot in the snow and shifted her weight between feet as she mentally raped Mandy. The sight of snow angels made by Mandy's naked body raced through her mind and delighted her. The thought of Mandy begging her to not stop delighted her even more.
"Sure. I could use some warming up."
"Have you heard of the Deep Breath?"
"Seen it," Mandy replied while she pondered what Kate might look like without all the denim and flannel clothes. She puzzled, 'Boxers or no underwear, maybe briefs? Surely not thongs.' Her pulse began to race as she let her mind wonder though places she probably should not go.
Kate diagonally parked next to Mandy half a block from the Deep Breath. Parking was still easy to find in Coldwater, but not like it used to be with five hundred places and twenty cars. Everyone knew that the word was out about life in the paradise of Coldwater and it would not be many more years before it would be hard to describe it as such.
"You've never been to the Deep Breath, then you're in for a real experience," Kate yelled at Mandy over the squeak and groan of the hinge as she closed the car door without locking it.
"You didn't lock it."
"Who'd steal that piece of shit?"
"Well that 'piece of shit' just saved my ass." Mandy laughed as she took Kate's hand in hers and held it while they walked to the bar.
"Who's the hot number?" Joan yelled as they walked though the blue haze of smoke probably left over from the first day the dump opened back in some prehistoric time.
"That's Kate," Mandy shot back without breaking a smile.
"A real comedian. I mean you honey."
"I'm Mandy. Kate pulled me out of a snowdrift and now she is going to warm me up with a drink." Mandy's smile filled her face.
"Yeah. She usually pulls chicks out from between hot sheets with her teeth." Joan was an old broad that had been around the block, probably the whole damn mountain, more than a few times and was gruff with her words.
Mandy shoved a bar stool between her legs as though it was not the first time she had done that and then tossed her cap on the bar. "Brandy. Make that two," she called to Joan as she held two fingers up like a peace sign.
Kate stared at Mandy as she stared back. "So you going to do that to me?"
"What?"
