“Oral? I thought they did that . . . Oh!” The lights finally turned on in Laurie’s head. She looked over at Jenny with wide eyes. “Oh!”
“And now that Laurie is all caught up,” Heather said. “Jenny . . . Damn, I don’t even know where to start. Are you sure? I mean, are you saying that you might be bisexual or . . . Wait, when I asked you if you were gay that one night at O’Malleys, you said ‘No.’ Did you just change your mind or . . . ”
“I don’t know if this counts,” Jenny started to explain. “I mean, I can’t see myself living the rest of my life with a woman. But I’ve always been just as fascinated by women’s bodies as men’s . . .”
“That’s not that unusual,” interrupted Heather.
“How about . . . well, masturbating while thinking about having sex with a woman?”
“That’s a bit more unusual.”
“How about enjoying lesbian porn?”
“Okay, I think I get the point,” Heather said as she rested her eyes. ‘Some gays are able to detect other homosexuals with their gay-dar,’ she thought. ‘I have a lesbian gravitational field.’
“I still see myself marrying a guy and settling down with a guy and having kids with . . .”
“A guy?” Laurie said, happy to finally get involved in the discussion, and looking for all the world like she had just solved the most complicated riddle in the world.
“Good girl!” Heather said. Laurie stuck her tongue out at her girlfriend. Heather continued, “So, did you have anyone particular in mind for . . .”
“No! Sorry, I wasn’t implying that I want to have sex with you. Or Laurie. Not that there’s anything wrong with . . . Shit!” Jenny paused to collect her thoughts.
Heather was snickering. Jenny was sounding just like Laurie.
Jenny seemed to have composed herself. “I wasn’t really planning it. I’m not sure I’d even ever go through with it. I just . . . I just want to . . .”
“You want to have that option open without losing what you already have.” Heather sighed. “Jenny, you can’t always have your cake and eat it too. Have you told Mike about this? I mean, there are a lot of guys who would love to be involved in a threesome like that, or might like to watch their girlfriend with another woman. Again, being honest with him might make all the difference. And the sooner you do it, the better it will be. Right now, all he’s doing is thinking about it. Would you rather wait until he’s actually bought a ring?” She paused, letting that sink into Jenny’s head. “Are there any other things you want to do that we should know about?”
Jenny blushed. “I’d like to go on a real road trip. You know, a really long one to someplace really cool. And maybe try and tackle one of those steaks that you get for free if you eat it all. And . . .”
Heather just tuned out for a moment. ‘What the hell does this all mean? Please God, let Mary still be straight!’ she thought.
——————— ——————
Late in the month of May . . .
——————— ——————
The tension in the air was as thick as pea soup. Almost a week earlier, the band had auditioned to be in the Battle of the Bands contest. After the catcalls and whistles for the all-girl band had died down, the five young women had played their hearts out. Both their songs “Lost in Texas” and “The Itch” were upbeat rock’n’roll songs that got great crowd reactions, and the band known as Lost in Texas had earned their spot. In just a few days, they would be competing for an opportunity to open for one of the greatest rock bands in history, the Eagles, when that group’s tour came through the area. One day, twenty bands, five songs apiece . . . just a few days until the chance of a lifetime.
All the girls that worked at O’Malley’s had given their two weeks notice at the end of the previous month. All of them had jobs waiting down on the ranch after the contest, and if providence provided, they would be heading back early to hit the local music circuit in preparation for their date with destiny. They liked the restaurant where they had worked, so they had stayed on until their manager had found replacements for them. He had once had dreams of being a rock star himself, so he wished them luck with a full heart.
But as if the anticipation of the contest wasn’t enough, today was the day that the first wave of their friends arrived in town. Jane, Freddie and Michelle had checked into their hotel and were headed over to the restaurant to meet the entire band. Alice’s father, Laurie’s father, Jenny’s parents and Mary’s mom were all arriving the next day. But the scary part was that Michelle and Liz were about to be in arm’s length of each other for the first time. Both women had promised Alice that they wouldn’t start a fight or anything, which was a relief. Heather was the only other girl there who knew how to fight, and she knew she didn’t have a snowball’s chance in hell of breaking those two bulls up if they decided to scrap.
When the three women from the ranch showed up, there was a tense moment when Liz and Michelle locked eyes. They had never met or even spoken directly, but they knew who the other was somehow. Alice kept a tight grip on Liz’s hand while Jane and Freddie flanked the muscular cowgirl. As long as they stayed between her and her adversary, then nothing would happen. Even when angry, nothing would make Michelle hurt either of her two lovers.
The group finally sat down and started enjoying their meal. Neither Liz nor Michelle spoke, but everyone else was determined to have a good time. Jenny just stared at Jane for five minutes before the matriarch of the clan told her to take a picture because it would last longer. Jenny had blushed. She had heard so much about this woman, but none of the descriptions of her did the woman justice. Once Jenny got talking, she almost couldn’t shut up. Jane listened with infinite patience to the young woman jabber about anything. She was used to that. Heather just stared at the two, smiling a bit. Jenny and Mike had discussed Jenny’s discovery of her boyfriend’s matrimonial plans and of her own reservations. Bless his heart, Mike had actually been more than understanding, and was quite appreciative that she been so forthcoming. Their relationship actually seemed even more solid than before. Jenny had learned from Laurie’s mistake. She knew what happened when you kept secrets from someone you cared about. That made Heather glance over at her own girlfriend, who was chatting amiably away with Mary about the prospect of matching outfits for the contest. Laurie was in favor of the idea, while Mary was making that “gagging” face that indicated she wasn’t at all pleased with the idea. Heather was pretty sure Laurie was going to lose this argument. Laurie seemed to realize she was being watched, and turned her face to give Heather a kiss and a smile. Alice was talking with Freddie about the new puppies they had gotten down on the ranch: two mutts and two purebred Rottweillers. Alice loved dogs and couldn’t wait to see them. Michelle and Liz just kept staring at each other.
They had been chatting for half-an-hour before anyone came by to get their food orders. None of them minded, since they were interested in conversing as much as anything else. But as the waitress asked Liz what she wanted, the tall girl asked for a burger, then looked past Heather to someone standing behind her.
“Did you want anything Grandpa?” she asked with a grin.
Heather heard a familiar voice from behind her. “A burger sounds good for me too.”
Heather jumped up and spun around. “Mr. Price?” The dark-haired siren bowled her own girlfriend out of the way in order to get to her longtime mentor and give him a big hug. “I didn’t know you were coming!” Then she glanced shrewdly at Liz. “Which was probably the point.”
Liz shrugged, still grinning.
“You didn’t think I would miss my most talented pupil’s long overdue debut, did you?” Heather just hugged the gray-haired old man again.
“I’m glad you made it,” she whispered. Mr. Price had been the closest thing she had to real family in the years before she had become part of this new, somewhat odd family down on the ranch almost a year ago. The group cleared a seat for the aged gentleman next to his granddaughter, and the conversations began all over again. Mr. Price grilled his protege about her training and music, which Heather was delighted to talk about. If it hadn’t been for Mr. Price taking a chance by training a young teenager born to a couple of alcoholics with no money, none of them would be sitting there that day. Even Liz and Michelle loosened up a bit and talked with the people around them, though they shot glances at one another quite often. Alice wasn’t happy about it, but there wasn’t much she could do about it right then and there. Besides, she had one other thing she had to do that night.
Everyone had finished their meals and deserts, and Jane had sneakily picked up the check when no one else was paying attention. Liz motioned towards Heather with her head, and Alice reached under the table to grab the package she had been hiding. Heather was confused as Alice wandered around the table and put a nicely wrapped box on the table in front of her.
“What . . .”
“Just open it.” Heather started to unwrap the gift as Alice continued. “I had to get your measurements from Laurie to do the alterations, but luckily she has them memorized. I know it’s not your normal style, but . . .”
Heather had finished unwrapping and had opened the box. It was a little more risque than the last time she had seen it after Alice had taken up the hem a bit and put slits in the sides, but for Heather there was no mistaking the garment. It was that blue dress Mr. Price had initially made for her when she had entered her high school talent show. Everyone was staring at her as she pulled the dress out of the box and unfolded it, running her hands over the fabric. Heather’s face was somewhat difficult to read, almost as if she were in shock.
“I . . . I had Mr. Price send it to Elizabeth and I’ve been working on it for a month . . . trying to get it to fit.” Alice was a little perplexed. She wasn’t sure what she had been expecting, but this wasn’t it. Heather seemed to be focused on a patch of blue just below the bust-line. ‘Was that where the egg hit her?’ Alice wondered. ‘I wondered how long she scrubbed at that spot, trying to get the dress clean. That dress was the only nice thing anyone ever gave her. Then some jock-asshole had to go and embarrass her in front of the entire school.’
Without warning, Heather stood and, with dress in hand, gave Alice a hug that took the young girl’s breath away. And Heather was doing something that Alice had NEVER seen her do before. Heather was actually crying. Even when she had argued with Laurie or been reminded of ugly things from her past or had her world-view shaken, the dark-haired girl had kept the tears in check. Now, presented with this simple blue dress, the unshakeable girl was actually crying.