Playing With Fire

+++++++



"Where'd you disappear to?" Shanna asked as Kelly rejoined them in the living room.



Kelly shrugged as she sat next to Carrie, "Fresh air."



"Baby," Carrie whispered softly so that only she could hear as everyone else went back to their previous conversations.



"I don't know," Kelly whispered back, turning to her. "I talked to him. I hope it helped."



"Thank you," Carrie smiled at her lovingly.



"Anything for you," Kelly replied, with just as much emotions burning through her eyes.



"Kelly, Carrie," Carole smiled thinly, breaking the tension. "Why don't you two come help me finish up in the kitchen?"



"Oh."



"Um."



"Sure," Kelly nodded.



"Ok," Carrie stood, as they followed her mother out the room.



"I think you two should try and be more careful," Carole frowned as she turned around the dish that was in the oven so it would cook evenly.



"Careful?" Carrie asked.



"Yes. You need to be more careful if you don't want your sisters or in that case, anyone else to find out."



"What are you talking about?"



"If you could have seen the way you two were looking at each other," Carole replied before sighing. "I think it's great that you're in love. I do. I may not understand it, but I can see it, and if I can see it, then the entire world can see it. So maybe, just turn it down a bit. Ok?"



"Yes ma'am," Carrie frowned.



"Was it really that bad?" Kelly asked, curiously.



"Yes," Carole smiled. "And the fact that you two were inching towards each other, didn't help matters either."



Kelly locked eyes with Carrie as they shared a smile.



"You're doing it again," Carole pointed out.



"Sorry," Kelly apologized.



"It's hard not to look at her like that. I mean look at her," Carrie said. "How can you not just be head over heels for the girl?"



Kelly felt her face flush, and Carole laughed softly.



"Just be careful," she pleaded.



"We will," Carrie nodded. "And thanks for looking out for us mom."



"Yea, it really means a lot," Kelly agreed.



"Anytime."



++++++++



The seven of them sat around the kitchen table, in awe of the food that was spread out before them.



"Mom, this looks great," Stephanie commented.



"Yea," Shanna's husband, who had finally arrived, agreed. "Delicious."



"So boys," Carole smiled gently at her two son-in-laws. "Who's going to cut the turkey?"



"Isn't that my job?" a low voice came from the doorway of the dining room. Kelly looked up to find Stephen standing there, nicely dressed after a shower. She looked across the table at Carrie whose eyes were glistening. She mouthed a thank you to her, and Kelly just nodded in return.



"We didn't know if you were going to make it in time," Carole replied, her smile finally reaching her eyes for the first time that night.



"I wouldn't miss this for the world," he replied, taking his place at the table.



++++++++



"Carrie, why don't you come help me bring in the wonderful desserts that I know your mother made," Stephen said as they finished their meal.



Carrie nodded nervously, following her father into the kitchen. She watched as he shifted nervously. She was taken off guard by this, not being used to seeing him anything but strong and sure.



"Care bear," he said, using her childhood nickname. "You know that I love you, right?"



"Daddy, I..."



He raised an eyebrow.



"Yes sir," she nodded, tears forming in her eyes.



"And all I want is what's best for you, and to keep you safe. That's my job as a father. To keep you safe until some guy who would never be good enough for you comes and sweeps you off your feet. Then it would be his job to keep you safe."



"I'm sorry--"



"Don't apologize. I should be the one apologizing," he smiled softly. "The way I reacted was wrong. That girl...she loves you, very much. She's gonna protect you," he nodded. "She's gonna keep you safe from now on."



"Daddy," Carrie cried as he wrapped his arms around her. "I love you too."



"You're always gonna be my baby girl, and I'm always gonna love you. No matter what," he replied.



"Thank you."



+++++++++



"Looks amazing mom," Shanna smiled as Stephen placed a sweet smelling pie in the middle of the table.



"Where's Care?" Kelly asked, making sure to keep the worry out of her voice.



"She's coming," he replied, cutting the pie into pieces.



"Does she need any help?"



Stephen looked up at her, "I'm sure she'd appreciate it."



Kelly nodded as she stood and walked into the kitchen. Carrie wasn't in there, but Kelly didn't really expect her to be. She made her way to the guest room and into the guest bathroom. She found Carrie standing in front of the mirror, washing the mascara stains off her cheeks.



"Care?" Kelly asked nervously.



Carrie turned to her, her eyes starting to water once again, "Thank you."



Kelly smiled in relief as she walked over to the country signer and pulled her into a hug.



"I love you," Carrie smiled, pulling away enough to look her in the eyes.



"I love you too," Kelly replied.



Carrie bit her lip before leaning in to kiss her more softly than she ever had before. She brought a hand up to cradle Kelly's face as a satisfied sigh escaped from the Texan's lips.



"Thank you so much," Carrie whispered as they broke apart.



"I told you I'd fix it."



"I didn't think you meant right that second," she laughed softly.



Kelly shrugged, "Your dad's a great guy. He just needed to realize what he was gonna be losing."



"And what was that?"



"Only the most amazing girl ever," she said, brushing their noses together.



"We should be heading back," Carrie smiled.



"Yea, I can't wait to dig into that pie your mom made," Kelly grinned as Carrie kissed her once more with a laugh.



"I swear," she rolled her eyes.



+++++++



"So, you're the famous Kelly Clarkson," Shanna smiled carefully as she offered Kelly a drink who turned it down.



"No more famous than Carrie," Kelly replied.



She laughed softly, "I meant that Carrie's constantly talking about you. You seemed to have really made an impression on her."



"Oh...I..."



"I'm glad," she decided. "I don't know much about the music industry and all that mess, but from what I've seen it isn't always easy finding a friend you can trust. From what I can tell, you seem like a pretty decent person, so I'm glad y'all became friends."



"Thanks," Kelly smiled.



Shanna nodded, "Well, we've got to get going. Heaven forbid we make his parents stay up late waiting for us."



Kelly laughed as she stood, "It was great meeting you."



"You too. How long are you staying?"



"I'm not sure actually."



"You'll be here tomorrow?"



"Yea," she nodded.



"Well, I'll see you then," Shanna replied. "Stephanie and I will be back to help you and Carrie clean up. Sort of a tradition."



"Where will your parents be?"



"Oh, Dad always takes Mom out Christmas night to some hotel. You know give the two of them some alone time away from it all."



Kelly nodded, trying not to smile too wide, "Well I'll see you tomorrow then."



"Yea."



+++++++++



"You didn't tell me we were going to have the house to ourselves tonight," Kelly grinned, wrapping her arms around Carrie from behind as the country singer closed the door behind Stephanie and her husband, leaving only the two of them and Carrie's parents in the house.



"Merry Christmas," Carrie smiled, her eyes dancing as she turned in her girlfriend's arms.



"Very Merry Christmas," Kelly said, her eyes glued to Carrie's lips.



Carrie giggled, "I just can't wait to finally be able to relax around you and hold you and to just be completely wrapped up in you."



Kelly smiled in agreement as she placed an innocent kiss on Carrie's lips before pulling her into an embrace, resting her head on the country singer's shoulder.



"You had fun tonight?" Carrie asked, swaying them back and forth.



"Yea, your sisters are great."



"They have their moments," Carrie agreed. "Shanna wasn't too hard on you?"



"No, why?"



"She's let several of my friends have it before. She's a pretty good judge of character, I have to admit."



"She was really nice," Kelly replied.



"Good," Carrie smiled. "Stephanie didn't scare you?"



"No," she laughed. "She's just a fan. No big."



"But come on. My sister shouldn't be obsessed with my girlfriend. I mean, how awkward is that?"



"She'll calm down some once she starts spending more time around us," Kelly assured her.



"Us," Carrie smiled, giving her a gentle squeeze. "I still get a kick out of hearing you say that."



"I still get a kick out of saying it," Kelly returned, nuzzling into her neck as Carrie rubbed her back gently.



"Girls," Carole said, announcing her and Stephen's presence.



The two of them let go of each other reluctantly. Kelly turned to find Carrie's parents standing there, a small suitcase in Stephen's hands.



"We're heading out," Carole informed them.



Carrie nodded, "Ok."



"We'll talk some more when we get back, ok?" Stephen said patiently.



"Sure."



"Kelly?"



"Yes sir," she nodded as well.



"Ok," he smiled. "You girls get some sleep."



"Alright," Carrie smiled. "See you guys later."



"Bye," Carole smiled, kissing each girl's forehead.



"Bye," Carrie replied.



"Bye," Kelly smiled as they closed the front door behind them.



++++++++



Carrie smiled as Kelly wrapped her arms tighter around her stomach. The Texan was sitting up in bed, leaning against the headboard while Carrie sat in front of her, her head leaning back on Kelly's shoulder with Kelly's legs on either side of her own. Both of them had turned their cell phones off, refusing to be interrupted by anything.



"Best day," Kelly said, continuing on their game of twenty questions that had quickly turned into two hundred



"When you--"



"No, that's against the rules," Kelly giggled. "It can't be about us. I know all about us. I wanna know more about you."



"But that's not fair," Carrie protested. "Then it wouldn't really be my best day. It'd be more like my hundredth best day."



"Hundredth?"



"Yea, cause the first ninety-nine easily belong to you."



Kelly turned to kiss the country singer's cheek softly, "It's still against the rules."



"Alright," she gave a playful sigh. "Oh, ok, I got it. The first time I got to record in an actual recording studio."



"Pretty amazing, right?"



"Oh God, Kell, there was nothing like it. I mean, that was it. I knew my dreams were finally gonna come true. Naturally, they didn't actually come true until years later when I got an actual contract, but I didn't know that then. The room just seemed to radiate this...this..."



"Hope?" Kelly offered.



"Yea," she nodded. "And also this sense of..."



"Home," Kelly smiled in agreement.



"Oo, got an idea," Carrie said, excitedly.



"What?"



"In a recording studio," she grinned, mischievously.



"We'll add it to the list," Kelly laughed.



"Right after on the stage, because we still never got to do that."



"Very true."



"Ok, your turn," Carrie reminded. "Best day."



"The day I realized that it's ok to put myself first."



"Exciting?" Carrie asked skeptically.



"Hey, it lead to a hell of a lot of days at the spa and vacation time, so I'd say so."



"Fair enough."



"Your question."



"Um..." Carrie said, thinking of a question. She could feel Kelly start to gently move her fingers beneath the hem of her shirt, and her heart started to flutter. "I can't concentrate when you're doing that."



"What?" Kelly asked. "Oh, sorry. I didn't even realize," she apologized, stopping her fingers.



"And the sad thing is, you're being honest," Carrie teased. "Oh, ok. Worst day."



"You needed to concentrate for that?"



Carrie pinched the side of Kelly's leg.



"Ow!"



"Worst day."



"Does right now count?"



"No, cause you know you love it," Carrie smiled. "Worst day."



"Care, I don't..." Kelly said, her voice growing soft.



"Worst day before you got into the industry. How's that?"



"Alright," Kelly nodded, biting her lip in thought. "When I was six."



"What happened?" Carrie asked gently.



"Um...I...that was when..." Kelly sighed, growing agitated by the shakiness of her own voice.



"It's ok," Carrie said, quickly. "You don't have to."



"No, it's alright," Kelly assured her. "That's when my mom and dad got divorced."



"Oh."



"We had all moved to California because my dad had gotten a job there. They were fighting all the time, my parents. I never really knew what about, but every now and then we'd hear one of our names thrown in there. That's about the time of the argument when I'd go hide under my bed."



Carrie bit down on her lip as she felt her eyes watering. She wrapped her arms around Kelly's, pulling the two of them closer.



"I don't remember too much from back then, but I do remember Jason and Alyssa having to convince me time and time again to come out from under there, and then the two of them would hold me and promise that they weren't fighting because of me. The worst day--"



Carrie felt her heart drop. How could it get any worse?



"The worst day was the day we left," Kelly continued softly, her chin resting on Carrie's shoulder. "I didn't know what was going on. I remember my mom packing up all my stuff and carrying me to the car. I asked her where we were going, and she said that we were going back home to Texas. I asked what about Jason and Alyssa, and she said they wouldn't be staying with us anymore. When I asked for how long and she said that she didn't know, that's when I started to cry. "



"I'm sorry," Carrie whispered, turning to kiss the Texan's temple. She rested her forehead there, feeling Kelly's warm tears against her own skin.



"I later found out that Jason had stayed with my dad and that my aunt had flown over there and picked up Alyssa, bringing her to North Carolina to stay with them. I once asked my mom what happened--between her and my dad--and she said, pretty simply, that he didn't want to be married anymore."



"Kell..."



"It's ok," Kelly assured her, turning to look her in the eye. She smiled softly. "That was a long time ago, and I'm over it. It's just hard bearing your heart to someone."



Carrie kissed her, touching her cheek softly before both went back to there original positions.



"How bout we go to something, happy? Ok?"



"Yea," Carrie giggled, wiping a tear away as Kelly kissed her shoulder lightly.



"How about...when did you know you wanted to become a singer?" Kelly asked.



"Oh, wow. Honestly, I don't know," Carrie replied. "I mean, I just always knew that's what I was gonna do. My mom used to say I started singing before I started talking."



"Is that possible?" she teased.



"Probably not, but you know how corny my mom is."



"She's not corny; she's just proud. And she has every right to be."



"Thank you."



"It's the truth," she shrugged.



"Ok, what about you?"



"Um well, I was in the seventh grade and it was at a choir recital. I had my first solo, and afterwards, people started coming up to me, telling me how much my voice had touched them. So I was like: ok, I think I'm gonna stick with this," she laughed.



"Good decision."



"I think so," Kelly replied, tilting her head ever so slightly so she could graze her lips across Carrie's neck. She had been doing this from time to time during the whole game, and honestly, it was driving the country singer crazy.



"Ok, I got one," Carrie smiled. "Sexiest song."



"Pour Some Sugar On Me," Kelly answered quickly.



"Be serious," Carrie laughed.



"I Wanna Sex You Up?"



"Kell."



"I'll make love to you," Kelly sang softly in her ear. She could feel Carrie's body shifting against her own, and she had to remind herself to breathe. "Like you want me to. And I'll hold you tight. Baby all through the night."



Carrie could feel her heart pounding.



"Is that one ok?" Kelly grinned.



"Yea," Carrie nodded breathlessly. "That'll do."



"Ok, your turn."



"Um, well, there's two."



"Ok, shoot."



"Firstly, 'Must Be Doin Something Right'."



"Huh?"



"Billy Currington."



Carrie could feel Kelly shrug behind her.



"Oh, you know," she sighed before singing. "Tonight's about giving you

what you want, whatever it takes.

Girl, I hope I'm on the right road,

And judging by the smile on your face..."



"Keep going," Kelly smiled.



"Must be doin' something right," she continued, feeling Kelly pull her even closer against her. Carrie could feel Kelly's body firmly pressed against her back, and her eyes fluttered closed. "I just heard you sigh.

Lean into my kiss and close those deep blue, need you eyes.

Don't know what I did, to earn a love like this,

But baby, I must be doin' something right."



"Sound familiar?" Carrie asked as she felt Kelly's fingers dancing beneath the hem of her shirt again.



"Yea, I knew the song. I just wanted to hear you sing it," Kelly admitted with a deep laugh.



Carrie sniffed indignantly.



"So what's the other one?"



She pouted.



"Come on, I won't make you sing it. I promise."



"Well, it's not so much the song itself," Carrie explained. "Well, I mean, it's a sexy song, but it's his voice that really does it."



"What is it?"



"Your Man."



Kelly nodded, "Josh Turner."



"His voice is just so..."



"Low?" Kelly asked, her lips right next to Carrie's ear.



The country singer could only nod.



"And sexy?" Kelly smiled. She could feel the heat radiating off of Carrie's skin.



"Yea," she squeaked.



"How'd that song go?" Kelly said thoughtfully as her one of her hands slid further up Carrie shirt, resting on her upper stomach. "Oh yea," she smiled. "Baby lock the door and turn the lights down low," she sang.

"Put some music on that's soft and slow.

Baby we ain't got no place to go.

I hope you understand."



Carrie nodded again as her breath caught in her throat. The feeling of Kelly's soft hand against her skin and her warm voice in her ear was starting to prove too much.



Kelly started to sway left and right slightly, making Carrie move with her as she continued. Kelly felt her own breath growing heavy at the feeling of their two bodies moving together.



"I've been thinking bout this all day long.

Never felt a feeling quite this strong.

I can't believe how much it turns me on.

Just to be your girl."



"There's no hurry" Kelly persisted as she lowered her face slightly. Her lips were mere millimeters from Carrie's jaw as she sang, her fingers still caressing the country singer's skin. She wasn't sure if this move was more torturous for her or the country singer.



"Don't you worry.

We can take our time.

Come a little closer.

Let's go over,

What I had in mind."



"Baby..." Carrie breathed as Kelly's fingers traced the outline of her bra.



"Hmm?" Kelly asked, her lips still tantalizingly close, but not quite touching her.



"Please..." she begged.



"Please what?" Kelly smiled.



Carrie took Kelly's hand and guided it southward to just above the waistband of her pajama bottoms.



Kelly laughed, her voice raspy, making Carrie groan in frustration.



"Kell..." she whined.



"Gladly," Kelly smiled, moving out from behind Carrie and sliding the country singer beneath her. All it took was one look at the fire blazing in Carrie's eyes, and Kelly knew that there was no need for pretenses. It had been far too long since they were together, and every moment that they had spent near each other leading up to this point had become more and more physically painful to endure. This wasn't about love, although, they both knew that was there. This was about something different. This was about desire--this basic raw need that the had for each other that was coursing throughout their veins.



Kelly leaned down, kissing her forcefully. Carrie immediately returned the kiss, with just as much hunger, wrapping a hand in Kelly's hair, and pushing their mouths even closer as Kelly started in on Carrie's shirt. The two broke apart, only for the country singer to be able to lift it off, then immediately reconnected in another searing kiss.



Kelly brought a hand up to Carrie's chin, tilting it upwards, breaking the kiss. Carrie immediately whimpered in protest, but found her voice catching in her throat as Kelly began to kiss her way across her jaw line. Kelly couldn't help herself as she ran her tongue along her neck, longing to taste every inch of her. She could feel Carrie's hands on her lower back, trying to get her shirt off as well, but not being able to entirely concentrate on the task. Kelly decided to help her out, lifting her shirt over her head and tossing it to the side as well.



She pushed herself lower, kissing her way down Carrie's stomach as her hands made their way around her back, unhooking the country singer's bra. No sooner had Carrie shrugged it off when Kelly's mouth made it's way up to explore the newly exposed skin. She felt Carrie's nails running down her back as she bit down softly.



"Shit Kell..." Carrie moaned.



Kelly pushed herself back up to find Carrie's lips parted as she breathed heavily. She kissed her once more as her hands slid down, finding their way to the country singer's pajama pants. She struggled to untie the strings, and Carrie took this opportunity to try and flip them over, but Kelly's hands flew up to Carrie's wrists, pinning them back down.



"No," she said, her voice like gravel, only making Carrie want her even more, if that were even humanly possible.



Kelly could see Carrie's eyes darkening, and she bent down, her lips finding the country singer's neck once more.



"Help me," she pleaded, giving up on the pull string as she needed her arms to support herself when she found that she, herself, had started to shake from anticipation. Carrie immediately did as was asked, quickly untying the knot and slipping down the pants as Kelly laid heavy, open mouthed kisses down her neck, sucking when she hit the spot that she knew would make Carrie's toes curl. She could taste the salt from the beads of sweat that were forming as she continued to kiss her way down Carrie's body.



Kelly's lips made their way across Carrie's lower torso between her hipbones which were peaking out over the edge of her low cut underwear. That space right there, in Kelly's opinion, had to be the most beautiful display of human anatomy ever created. She kissed her way over the cloth, teasing the blonde beneath her, and down the inside of her right thigh. She could hear Carrie's ragged breathing, and was reminded that this drawn out game wasn't part of the plan. Kelly quickly removed the last remaining article of clothing on her girlfriend's body, before kissing her way up the inside of her left thigh until she finally reached her destination.



"Fuck," Carrie breathed, her eyes rolling back. She could feel one of Kelly's hands snaking it's way up her body, massaging her gently while the other one sought out Carrie's hand. Carrie linked their fingers together, allowing herself to get lost in the moment while she searched for something to hold onto with her free hand, only to have to settle for the sheets beneath her. She could feel the pressure building in her lower stomach as she rolled her hips into Kelly's kiss, trying to find some sort of release.



Kelly recognized this and brought her hand down from Carrie's chest to help speed things along. Her mouth and hand soon fell into a rhythm with the country singer's body as she moved into each touch. Her mixture of cries and moans were mere reassurances to the Texan that she was on the right road. She could feel Carrie's grip on her hand tightening, the sweat on both of their skin causing their fingers to slip against each other.



Carrie bit down hard on her bottom lip as she felt Kelly quicken her pace. She felt her face flush as Kelly's tongue moved against her, and she began to wonder how the hell that was possible when she was sure all of her blood had traveled southward, but all thoughts were quickly silenced as she felt Kelly's fingers curl inside of her, and she bit down on her bottom lip hard as her head fell back. Several more of those motions combined with whatever the hell that skillful tongue of hers was doing was enough to set Carrie on fire as she cried out, not even bothering to muffle the scream.



Kelly could feel Carrie's muscles tightening around her touch as her body began to tremble, and she slowed down slightly, trying to draw out this moment as long as possible. She looked up to watch Carrie's head tilt back as her name poured from her lips, her grip on the sheets and Kelly's hand tightening to a point where her knuckles were white, and Kelly figured that she had dragged it out long enough. With only two more movements she felt Carrie falling completely over the edge.



The Texan slowly kissed her way back up Carrie's body, her breathing still shallow and her body still quivering ever so slightly as Kelly finally pulled away completely, looking down at her girlfriend in awe of how beautiful she looked at that moment. She took her hand out of Carrie's, pushing the country singer's damp bangs out of her eyes as they fluttered open to gaze back up at her.



"Shit," was all she can manage as her breathing slowly began to even out.



Kelly laughed softly, feeling herself grinning ear from ear as she leaned down to kiss her softly.



"I've missed you so much," Carrie found herself admitting as she brought a hand up to cradle the southern girl's face.



"Promise me something," Kelly said.



"Baby, I'd promise you anything right now."



"Promise we'll never go that long again."



"I swear it on my life," Carrie grinned, reaching up for another kiss before falling back onto the pillow, completely exhausted. Kelly smiled as she lowered herself onto the body beneath her, the two of them wrapping their arms around each other.



"I love you," she whispered as she nuzzled into Carrie's neck.



"I love you too," Carrie promised, tightening her arms to hold her closer.