"Nervous?" he asked.
"Nope," I lied.
"You do that only when you're nervous."
"Well, today is not turning out the way I expected it to, so maybe that's what is causing me to take a few deep breaths."
"Hm," was the only sound he made and it threw me off because it didn't sound like he believed me. "So what is this girl's name?"
"She is not a girl. She’s a woman."
"What's this woman's name?"
I hesitated because I was concerned that he might recognize the name, but I did not discuss the case with them until the trial was over and her name was never mentioned. I told them I voted to acquit the defendant. I gave them an overview of what being a juror was like and what the trial was about, but they had no name or face to go with the story.
"Her name is Kathy."
"What's her surname?"
"Dad, I’m not giving you data to take back to Mom. I already told you her name and…"
"Why are you getting so defensive and secretive? This is someone we have never met or know anything about, so I'm just asking," he said then put his hands in his pocket and turned to me. "Sounds like there’s something to hide about this woman. Is she into drugs? Prostitution?"
"Dad!"
"I'm sorry!"
"Do I look like I would have friends who are into drugs and prostitution?"
"You keep everything a secret so who the hell knows what you would do," he said and turned his attention back to the streets.
"Dad, I’m fine waiting for…"
My phone started to ring, and I was happy to see that it was Kathy and not my mother.
"Hello?"
"Hey. I'm just a few minutes away...Lee, how far away are we?" I heard her ask someone, and I was a little disappointed because I wanted it to just be us. "I'm ten minutes away."
"Great," I said with a smile.
"So you are standing at the gas station?" she asked with such a pretty voice.
"Yes...my dad is here with me, but I'm hoping he’ll leave right now," I said for my dad to hear but was grateful that he didn't reply.
"Can't he hear you?" Kathy asked as she chuckled.
"That was the intention."
"He's doing something wonderful. You shouldn't be mean to him."
"I'll forgive you for not knowing who these people are…"
"You shouldn't talk about your family like that, River," my father scolded.
"If only it were a lie," I said to him.
"Omg," Kathy said. "I have to meet your family."
"Will never happen," I replied and wanted to say more but my father was standing there, and I didn't want to give him any more ammunition. "See you in a few minutes."
"OK. See you."
I disconnected the call and stood looking away from my father as if I didn't know that the questions were about to come.
"Where did you say you met her?"
"Dad, she’s just a few minutes away. Can you please go? Tell…"
"I will leave when I see that you are safely on your way. Besides, I would like to meet your friend."
"No. You will not meet her. I'm going into the car and we drive away without an introduction," I said with a very serious face.
"Do you understand that you are acting a little suspicious?"
"Grrrr!" I sounded in frustration and walked away to a spot where Kathy could pick me up away from my father.
Chapter 4
I thought he would come after me, but he didn't, and I was happy. I didn't have to wait long before a sleek black Mercedes pulled up to me. Before I could check to see if it was Kathy, she opened the door and came out. She walked around to me with the broadest smile on her face, and my lips automatically returned it because I was so happy to see her. I did not expect her to give me a hug, but she did, and her arms were the most peaceful place to be. I did not want to let her go, and she apparently felt the same. I knew my dad was looking at us, and that was the worst thing that couldn't happen, but I was willing to pay the price just to be in her arms a little longer.
Kathy was the one to pull away first, and she seemed to have done so because my father was making his way over to us.
"Hi," Kathy greeted, and I wish I could just grab her and throw her into her car and drive away.
"Hello," my dad said, and I couldn't find my voice to tell him to get lost. "I must say I’m disappointed that such a beautiful friend of my daughter was kept a secret."
"Well, we have to change that," Kathy replied with a smile.
"Absolutely. How about…"
"How about we leave. Come, Kathy,” I said, holding on to her elbow and almost dragging her to the car. “Bye, Dad.”
“Wait...hold on. Let me hear what your father has to say,” she said.
“No…”
“Kathy, my name is Hogan. It’s nice to meet you,” he said and extended his hand.
“Nice to meet you, Mr...nice to meet you, Hogan,” she corrected herself when she realized that Hogan was too friendly but she did not know his last name.
“So, you don’t know my surname?” my father said looking at both of us and that was probably when Kathy realized that she should have gone into the car like I suggested. “You two are friends but you have no idea what my daughter’s last name is?”
“I forgot. I don’t really have much opportunity to use it,” Kathy said.
“Sweetheart, why don’t you tell your friend what your name is.”
I sighed and looked down at my feet in disappointment at how my day was turning out to be the worst yet.
“Kathy, for the second time in our friendship, my name is River Callaway.”
“Oh yes! How could I have forgotten? When you told me, it reminded me of this friend I had in high school. Julia Callaway,” Kathy said, so convincingly that I almost believed it.
“How long have you both been friends?” my father continued his interrogation.
“A few months,” Kathy said then quickly added. “You were extending an invitation?”
“Kathy!”
“Yes! My wife’s birthday is in two weeks, and I would like you to be there so we can get to know you better…”
“Why? Why would you want to know her better? She’s not the only friend I have,” I interrupted my father.
“We know them already or we have heard about them…”
“There are friends that you don’t know.”
“Therefore, I can’t extend an invitation to them. I see Kathy standing right here, so I am inviting her,” my father said and Kathy seemed to be enjoying the conversation that was giving me a headache.
“Thank you, Mr. Callaway. I would be happy to…”
“Hogan! What’s taking so long!”
I looked in the direction of my mother’s voice and saw her heading toward us. I grabbed Kathy’s hand against her will and pushed her into the car, not taking her around to the side she exited. I pushed her over to make room for me to sit and closed the car door against my father’s objection and told the driver to go. He was not prepared to take orders from me, so I told Kathy to tell him to go, and the look on my face told her I was serious. I was relieved when the car was on the road driving farther and farther away from my parents.
“Why did you do that?” Kathy asked. “I would have loved to say hello to your mother.”
“After what happened with my father, you would love to talk to my mother?” I asked.
“What happened with your father? I thought it was a very nice conversation. I like him.”
“That’s because you don’t know him. And a conversation in which you have to lie is not a good conversation.”
“You didn’t say goodbye to them,” she pointed out.
“No, I didn’t, and I am fine with it,” I said, and she sighed and sat back in her seat. “What do you think was going to happen when my mother joins the group? She is worse than my dad. They have no boundaries and put you on the spot to get answers to questions they have no right to ask.”
“I see. Well, you know them more than I do.”
“That’s why I’m protecting you.”
“For the second time.”
For a moment I had no idea what she was talking about then I remembered the trial. She was referring to my acquittal. Her smile was so breathtaking that it was difficult to take the eyes away after they had seen it.
“Yes. So trust that I did the best thing for you by taking you away from my parents,” I said.
“If they were to learn my full name, would they know who I am?” she asked and the smile disappeared from her face. She was clearly very embarrassed about that stain on her life.
“No. I didn’t share your name with them. When the trial was over, I gave them an idea of what the case was about, however, I don’t believe there’s anything that would make them recognize that it’s you,” I explained.
“Are you going to tell them?”
“Why would I tell them? Are you going to be a permanent part of my life? Otherwise, there’s no reason for them to know.”
“I would love to be,” she said in a whisper then turned to look at me, resting her elbow on the backrest and her head on her hand.
Her eyes were so beautiful and had a pulling effect that had me lost in them a few times. They made it impossible to object to her suggestion of a permanent friendship.
“I would love you to be,” I whispered back and her face lit up.
She held on to my hand as she looked into my eyes, and that was when I remembered that I had mentally labeled her as a lesbian, and suddenly, I was not comfortable with her touch. I was not gay, and even if I were, Kathy Poland would not be the woman I would date. I had no reason why...I just wouldn’t. I quickly pulled my hand away and suddenly everything became awkward.
I should not be here in the back of a car with Kathy Poland. I should have been at my grandmother’s Thanksgiving dinner, eating, laughing, and fighting with my family, but my boss ruined my whole holiday and sent me right into Kathy’s path. She wanted to be in my life, and I was curious to find out in what capacity. Did she want me to be her friend...or her lover? I had never been with a woman before, but that didn’t mean I haven’t thought about it. I had a few coworkers who were lesbians, and I often wondered what it was like and how different it was from being with a man. I imagined it to be more sensual and emotional, but some of the lesbians I knew were so animalistic about sex that I could not imagine them being sensual.
Kathy kept her eyes on me and suddenly I wanted to get away from her just as much as I wanted to get away from my parents. I was reacting to her closeness, and I could hardly breathe. I wished I knew what she was thinking so that I could feel comfortable that all she wanted was for us to be friends. She had a habit of just looking at me, even when she was on trial. I remembered seeing her glancing up numerous times, even when she was so scared about spending time in prison. Was there something going on here? Was she interested in me from the time I was sitting in the jury box? This would be so freaky if it were so and we ended up in each other’s life.
“You are so beautiful,” she said, and I looked at her.
I was thirty-one years old. I knew passion when I see it in someone’s eyes, and this woman wanted to fuck me. I needed to get to the airport!
“Where are we heading? The airport?” I asked and that slapped the passion right out of her eyes.
“What? Why would I take you to the airport? It’s Thanksgiving,” she said, sitting up in her seat.
“I thought you were just giving me a ride to the airport.”
“You asked if my offer was still available. I never offered an airport trip.”
“You didn’t, so now I’m asking. Can you please take me to the airport?”
“Do you really want to go home and spend the rest of the day alone? We’re two minutes away from my apartment.”
I didn’t want to go, but I was scared of letting her into my life. I had written off relationships because everything about it was too difficult and draining. I had no problem just fucking a man and go our separate ways, but I would not be able to do that with Kathy. There was something about her that would lock me in, and I would never be able to escape even if she was no good for me. However, this day was one of the most difficult of my life, and it made the desire to spend the rest of it with her more appealing than my fear of letting her in.
“I would love to spend Thanksgiving with you,” I said with a smile.
“Awesome!” she beamed.
She held on to my hand again and this time I did not move it, despite the erratic racing of my heart. I didn't understand why she was affecting me so much, and I was not sure if I was comfortable with bringing in the defendant that I acquitted into my life. I knew she was innocent, but just my involvement in her trial made her off-limits, even as a friend.
"Here we are," she said and I looked out the window as the car drove up to the front of the luxury beachside hotel.
"Very nice," I approved. "Your family owns this hotel?"
"Yes. Come on," she said as her chauffeur opened the door.
She got out and I followed. Kathy held my hand to help me out of the car, but she didn't let go once we were out. I slowly wiggled my hand free from her grasp as the driver took my carry-on from the backseat. Kathy took it, and I walked with her to the glass door which was held open for her. We entered the huge lobby and a young man ran over to take my carry-on from her, but she told him she could manage. As she passed the front desk, the employees greeted her, and she politely returned them.
We entered the elevator and once we were alone, Kathy retook my hand. I wanted to pull it from her firm grip, but I couldn't because her palm was touching mine and I was paralyzed from the contact. I had no idea what was happening to me, but I felt like I was freefalling into an abyss and there was nothing to hold on to.
The elevator door opened and my first instinct was not to be seen with a woman holding my hand in such a romantic way, but my hand seemed to be locked in place with hers. I was happy when she stopped at her door and no one saw us like this. Kathy opened the door and pulled me and my suitcase inside.
"Oh my God!" I exclaimed because I had never seen a hotel suite so beautiful. "Is this how all the other rooms are?"
"Not really," she chuckled, still holding on to my hand. "This one is just for me. My parents have the penthouse, but all the other rooms are for guests."
"It's beauti...what the hell is that?" I asked as my eyes caught the dining table.
"Thanksgiving dinner," Kathy said and took me to the table.
It was set for two but there were numerous silver dishes covered with food, and I was stomped about how and when this took place because when she opened the lids, steam was coming out. She finally released my hand so that she could unveil the feast that she arranged for us. There was a whole fucking turkey that looked like it was for a magazine and it had taken forever to create such perfection.
"How did you...when did you do this?"
"You mean roast the turkey?" she laughed.
"No...I mean…"
"I know what you mean. I asked for it to be set up after you asked me to come and get you," she explained.
"That was rather presumptuous of you to assume that I would come here instead of the airport."
"I assumed you would have called a cab."
"I couldn't get one. If I did, then I wouldn't be here."
"That's not the point. The point is, you didn't, and you told me to come get you. After that, I made a call, and now we have Thanksgiving dinner," she said without a smile, and I felt bad that I was being rude after she came all that way to get me then arranged Thanksgiving dinner for us so I wouldn’t miss out.
"I'm sorry. This was very kind and thoughtful of you," I said.
"It's for both of us…the Thanksgiving rejects," she smiled.
"You were not rejected. I was," I said sadly.
"The real story is, we would have been alone today, but fate brought us together,
so the day will not end as badly as it could have."
"True."
"Come on. Let's wash our hands," she said and took mine then led me over to the kitchen.
Kathy turned the water on, pumped soup into her hands, then took mine. She gently and slowly lathered my hands with hers, slipping her fingers through mine, as she deliberately fucked with my head, and it was driving me insane. My whole body reacted to the sensual play of my fingers as hers slipped in and out of them. I didn't want her to know that it was affecting me, but my heavy breathing was giving me away. She slowly raised her head and locked her blue eyes with my hazel, and I was lost in them. At that moment, she could do whatever she wanted to me and I would be powerless to stop it. She locked our hands together and just kept staring into my soul, and I knew then and there that I was in a whole lot of trouble.
This woman wanted to fuck me, and I knew I would just let her. I had never been with a woman before, but I was a grown thirty-one-year-old woman who knew when someone was sexually interested in me. I didn't know what the gay cues were, but it couldn't be much different from the heterosexual cues.
Kathy's face came closer to mine as her eyes moved to my lips, and I prepared for her kiss.
"Happy Thanksgiving, Riv," she whispered so close.
"Happy Thanksgiving, Kat."
"That's your first time calling me that name, and it sounds so beautiful coming off your tongue."
Oh my God, I'm wet!
This was fucking insane! She licked her lips and for the first time in my life I wanted to taste the tongue of another woman. Kathy took her eyes off my lips and lowered them to our hands locked together, then to my disappointment and relief, she put our hands under the running water. She rinsed them well then took a towel and dried them. I prayed that she didn't notice how effectively she broke me down because I was starting to feel embarrassed about my behavior. Kathy was clearly a seasoned lesbian so her actions were fine. Mine was jumping from zero to ten at the snap of a finger.
"Let's have dinner," Kathy said and I nodded, still not getting my body to calm down.
Kathy took me to the table and pulled out a chair for me. I sat slowly as I tried to wrap my head around the direction my day was unexpectedly taking. I was thrown out of my grandmother's Thanksgiving dinner and landed in the apartment of the woman who was on trial that I helped to acquit, having dinner with her instead. I could not have dreamt that up.
The Juror Page 4