“So this is mi casa. And those were my cats.” Both Sampson and Delilah had taken off as soon as they realized there was a stranger with me. “Don’t worry, Sampson will be back soon, he’s pretty brave, but you probably won’t see Delilah the whole time you’re here.”
Sandy laughed. “I love cats. And dogs.”
“Why don’t you have one?”
“Because I work a very demanding job and I coach. I’d never see them. It just doesn’t feel fair to leave a pet alone all the time.”
“I get that.” I hesitated a second. “Well, I’m going to head upstairs and change. Make yourself at home.”
Sandy smiled, and my brain went fuzzy like it always seems to when that happens, but I managed to get up the stairs without tripping and falling down. As soon as I closed my bedroom door behind me I stripped off my dress. It didn’t look nearly as good without the infrastructure of my shapewear smoothing things out, and I was glad to have it off again. We’d driven separately, so I wasn’t sure what Sandy was planning for the rest of the day, or even if she had a plan. But I was definitely both excited and terrified of spending time with her.
I sat down at my vanity, running a brush through my dark brown hair. The reflection in the mirror was smiling, and I took a long look at her. She’d had great sex last night. Incredible, passionate, lesbian sex, and her body, my body, was still buzzing from the experience.
Of course, part of that was the knowledge that my partner from that life changing experience hadn’t gone running off wondering what the hell she’d been thinking. She was downstairs, waiting to spend the day with me. Like, really with me. Maybe it was finally sinking in that she actually likes me. I gave myself a shake. Let’s not get ahead of ourselves, just get dressed.
I had picked up a couple of new pairs of jeans in the last few weeks, and I tried to ignore the ’18’ on the inside tab. It was far more important that they fit properly than the number. It wasn’t easy to accept, but it was true. At least, that’s what I kept telling myself.
I spent a hurried few minutes thumbing through the blouses hanging in the closet, picking out one that I liked, an orange, tunic style with a modest V-neck, and slipped it on. It was still flow-y and roomy, and it fell down to the top of my thighs, helping to hide my butt.
I tied the built in waist sash, defining my figure a bit. I actually took a moment to look at the curve of my hips, thinking for the barest moment that it wasn’t that bad. I did remember the way Sandy had run her hands over my waist last night, the way she’d looked at me. Oh! Sandy! She was waiting downstairs.
I pulled on a pair of ankle socks and headed in that direction, blushing as Sandy stood up, taking me in with wide eyes.
“Just ordinary, everyday me.” I rotated my shoulders, hands behind my back, looking down.
“You look beautiful.” She stepped close to me, taking my hands.
“Yeah?” I looked up into her eyes, my knees going weak as she gazed down at me.
“Yeah.” She lowered her mouth to mine as my eyes fluttered closed. I think I made a little happy noise as we kissed, and by time she pulled away my heart was tripping merrily along as I grinned like a schoolgirl.
Sandy laughed, pressing her lips to my forehead. “You are so adorable.”
“I know.” I know? What was that? But the way she was looking at me, mm, maybe I was, just a little. “So what are we doing today?”
“Well, I know I’m hungry, so I definitely still want, well, I guess it’s brunch by now. See, I got a pretty good work out last night.”
My grin widened and my blush deepened. “Really? Me too. Best work out I’ve had in a really long time.”
Her hands slipped around my waist, her body pressed against me. “Yeah?”
I gasped as her breath tickled my ear. “Yeah.”
“Do the kids come home tonight?”
Her lips caressed my ear, and I husked out my response. “No, their, ooh, their dad will get them to school tomorrow.”
“Then you’re going to get another workout tonight, if you want. I have something special planned.”
“Okay, ahh.” She sucked my earlobe into her mouth for a moment before letting it go.
“But first I need to eat.” She gave me a quick peck on the lips before letting me go and grabbing her purse. “You ready?”
“Yeah, soon as I catch my breath.” I grabbed my own bag from the table in the entryway, and we were out the door.
Sandy handed me up into the side of her Jeep Wrangler, and I fastened my seatbelt as she went around to the driver’s side and climbed in. We backed down the driveway, pulling out onto the road. As we started to drive, I noticed the Coopers’ climbing out of their sedan, dressed in their church clothes, just getting back from the early service, most likely.
They smiled and waved, and I made myself return the gesture, although my spirit was shrinking inside. Stop it, Melanie, they didn’t see anything, they have no idea where I’d spent the night. And they’d have no clue as to who the woman driving was. And even if they did, whom would they tell? No, I was fine, safe. I took a deep breath.
“You okay?” Sandy glanced over at me, as I put on what I hoped was a reassuring smile.
“Yeah, fine.”
She grinned at me, placing her hand on my leg, giving my thigh a squeeze. I put my palm on her arm, and our fingers found each other and intertwined. Okay, relax, just enjoy this.
***
“So, what are you going to get?”
“Probably just an egg white omelet, the veggie one.”
Sandy cocked her head at me. “Is that really what you want?”
“It is if I ever want to fit into my smaller jeans again.”
Sandy set her menu down. “Let’s make a deal. Today we’re not going to think about that. We’ll stay active, treat ourselves a little, and have a nice day where we don’t worry about it.”
I sat back, a little embarrassed. “You, a doctor, are actually going to tell me not to eat healthy?” There was a bite in my voice I hadn’t intended.
“Melanie, if I knew you were on a sustainable diet and exercise program that you were pursuing because you want to be healthier, not just skinnier, then I wouldn’t say anything. But you’re just ordering that to not feel embarrassed, right?”
I bowed my head, conceding the point and trying to keep the tears out of my eyes.
Sandy picked up her menu. “So, I’m doing the biscuits and gravy, with a side of home fries and a scrambled egg. What about you?”
I looked down at the menu. An omelet really did sound good. “I think I want the Mexican omelet, chorizo, with peppers and onions. And salsa. I love salsa.”
“Perfect, and good to know.” She set her menu down and signaled our waitress.
My omelet was delicious, and I laughed my way through Sandy’s numerous stories of playing abroad. And with each giggle and laugh she pulled from me, Sandy’s smile shone a little brighter, and my insides got a little warmer.
After our plates were delivered, and a few minutes later, were decidedly bare, I sat back and tried not to belch like a sailor. “That was really good.”
“Yeah.” Sandy ran a finger through the last bits of sausage gravy in her plate before licking it off. Lucky finger. “You know, I am of the considered opinion that the only reason God invented biscuits was to hold gravy.”
I giggled again. “You’re weird.”
“Guilty as charged.” She folded her hands into her lap. “So what are we going to do for the rest of the day?”
“I have no idea?” I grimaced playfully.
“Well, let me ask you this, how do you usually spend Sunday afternoons? At least when you don’t have the kids.”
“Well, sometimes I watch T. V. I like, well, love to read. So I do that a lot when I’m alone.”
“Like what? Romance, crime thrillers?”
I shrugged. “Sometimes. I really like the classics. Jane Austen, the Bronte sisters, George Elliot (who was a woman, by the way). I also like the Russians, like Tolstoy and Dostoevsky. ‘War and Peace’ is amazing.”
“You’ve read ‘War and Peace’?”
“Yeah, twice. It’s excellent.” I cocked my head. “How about you, what do you like to read?”
Sandy grimaced. “Nothing that dense. I’m more the dime store novel type. I like medical mysteries, thrillers, things like that.”
“C’mon, there’s a great little used book shop over there, I’ll see if we can’t find something for you.”
When we got there I headed straight for the classics. “Here, you should try this one.” I pulled a book off the shelf and showed it to her.
She looked at the green jacket. “‘Jane Eyre’? Really? Isn’t this, like, some sappy romance?”
“It’s a gothic romance, which means there’s mystery woven in. Read it.”
She grinned at me, stepping closer. “So does this mean I can give you homework, too?”
“I guess,” my pulse shot up as she got closer, “if you’re nice to me.”
“I can be nice.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.” She lifted my chin for a kiss, and as our lips made contact I totally forgot I was still holding the book, which tumbled out of my hand onto the floor.
“Oh damn.” I pulled away, blushing and bending down to pick it up. When I straightened up Sandy’s arms went around my waist.
“You are so adorable.” She leaned in.
“Wait.” She paused and I set the book down. “Okay, I’m ready now.” She chuckled, and I could feel the grin stretching my cheeks for a moment as Sandy closed the distance, and I wrapped my arms around her neck as our lips met. I sank into the kiss, our tongues dancing together, my body starting to hum like it always did when she was this close to me. She broke away, looking into my eyes, and I giggled stupidly. God, what was it about Sandra Dalton that turned me into a moon-eyed teenager?