The Real Prize

by Malone, Misty

  "We have to get going," Sally said. "We haven't gone to the grocery store yet, and I have to stop and get gas before we go home."

  "Yeah, whatever you do, don't run out of gas," Sarah said. "That can be very dangerous." Both ladies' eyes fell to Sarah's bandages on her arms and elbow.

  "We have to have time to get the salad made and the potatoes ready to put on the grill, too," Sally added. They said good-bye to their friend and hurried to the grocery store. They got what they needed and got in line. Of course, the lady in front of them had something that didn't ring up right, and the lady argued with the cashier. They had already put their purchases on the counter to be rung up, and since someone else was behind them, they couldn't go to another line, so they had to wait while the cashier called the manager over to settle the dispute.

  When they were finally done at the grocery store, they stopped at the gas station and headed home. Sally was hurrying a little more than she should have been, and they were talking when she saw blue lights flashing behind her.

  "Uh-oh," she said quietly as she pulled over to the side.

  The officer was friendly when he came to her door and asked for her license, registration, and proof of insurance. "Ma'am, you were going a little over the speed limit."

  "I'm sorry, Officer. We were talking, and apparently I wasn't watching my speed close enough."

  "I understand. You weren't going that much over the limit, so I'm just going to give you a warning on that, but when I called your license plate in, there's a problem with the registration."

  "There is?" In the next instant her shoulders slumped, and she quietly said, "Oh, no. My husband reminded me a couple weeks ago to get my plates renewed, but I forgot."

  "Yes, ma'am. They ran out on your birthday a few days ago. Happy birthday, but I'm afraid I don't have a birthday present for you. I can't give you a warning on that. I'll have to site you for expired plates, but since it's within thirty days, if you get them renewed within seven days I won't have to send the citation in to the state, so they won't put any points on your driving record. That will help a lot with your credit and insurance rates."

  "Thank you, Officer. I appreciate that. It's too late today, but I'll get them renewed tomorrow."

  "Good. Stop at the police station and show them your citation and the new registration, and once you pay the fine, they'll close the case. It won't be sent to the state."

  "Thank you. I'll renew the plates and take it to the station and pay the fine all tomorrow. I'm sorry I forgot."

  "I'm sorry, as well, ma'am. The fine will be $125, but it goes to $300 if it's past thirty days."

  He gave her license and insurance card back, along with a citation. "You ladies have a good day, and slow down just a little bit."

  "We will. Thank you, Officer," Sally said.

  Sarah was worried about her good friend. "How upset is Ed going to be?"

  "He's going to be upset," Sally confirmed. "He reminded me a couple weeks ago that I hadn't done it yet. I told him I'd take care of it the next day. And I planned to. But that was the day my mom called and told me about my old friend being in an accident. I called her right away to make sure she was okay, and we started talking, reminiscing. I forgot all about going in to take care of my plates. To be honest, I didn't even think about it when he asked for my registration."

  "I know you were excited after talking to your old friend. You told me about your conversation."

  "I was. I hadn't talked to her in several years."

  "So it isn't like you just plain didn't renew your plates; you just forgot about it."

  "I really did." She thought a few moments, and shrugged. "It's really not an excuse, though. I should have written it down someplace so it could have reminded me."

  Sarah looked up at her with a worried expression. "So what happens now?"

  "I'm sure I'll be wanting a pillow to sit on after Ed finds out about this."

  "What if he doesn't find out about it?"

  "What do you mean? I'll have to go in tomorrow and do all this."

  "But do you automatically tell him? I mean, you said you write the checks out. If you don't tell him, would he find out?" Sally was quiet. She was obviously uncomfortable, though, so Sarah went on. "I mean, I'm not saying you should lie about it. I'd never do that to Heath, and I know you wouldn't, either, but if you don't tell him, will he know about it? If it's taken care of tomorrow, and he doesn't look at the checkbook, it seems to me like he wouldn't know about it. I mean, I don't know what you two have agreed to, but does it include telling him anytime you forget something?"

  Sally thought a bit longer before responding. "Now that you asked me that, no, it doesn't."

  Sarah could see she was still uneasy. "I don't mean to give you any ideas here, Sally. If you always do, that's fine. I'm new at this, and it's actually something I'm curious about. I mean, I'd never lie to him, but if you make an honest mistake, if you fix it and they don't know about it, do they expect us to go to them and admit what we did?"

  "That's a good question because frankly, I don't think it's ever come up before. I don't know. I'll have to think about that."

  "Well, here's the deal. I really didn't mean to suggest something to you. I'm guessing the only reason I even thought about it is because this is all new to me yet. But you do whatever you feel comfortable with. I don't plan on saying a word to Ed or Heath about it, or at least not unless they ask. If you want to tell them, you can, but it's your call to make; not mine."

  "Thanks, Sarah. I'll give it some thought between now and when Ed and I are alone tonight. If I tell him, that's when it'll be."

  "Oh, of course. That's certainly not something you'd want to talk about in front of an audience. I just want you to know my thoughts on it. It's your call entirely."

  Sally nodded, and they didn't mention it again. As soon as they got home they got busy, and when Ed got home, they were ready to take their salad and potatoes over to Heath's. He had his grill already heating, so they put the potatoes and steaks on, and sat down to visit.

  Both ladies were happy when the conversation went to the nice weather they'd been having, and Ed told a funny story from work. They forgot all about the police officer incident as they all had a wonderful time visiting.

  After they ate, Sally and Sarah insisted on doing the dishes. "You guys cooked the steak, we'll wash the dishes," Sally said. "We'll get these washed up in no time and come back out and join you." Both ladies picked up a stack of dirty dishes and went into the kitchen.

  While they were washing them, Sarah leaned over and spoke softly. "I'm glad they haven't asked about how our day went."

  "You and me both," Sally answered.

  "I'm terrible at hiding things. I don't want Ed to know anything about what happened until you guys are home."

  "You're not good at hiding your thoughts, either?"

  "I'm awful. I would never lie to Heath because he means too much to me, but I'd be stupid to even try. I'm a terrible liar, and I can't hide anything. He'd know right away if I ever lied to him."

  Sally giggled. "We are alike in so many ways. I have the same problem."

  While they were talking softly and giggling inside, Heath pointed toward them. "What do you suppose they're up to?"

  "I don't know," Ed said with a grin, "but I'm sure something's up. Don't they just look like a couple high school girls that got caught out after curfew?"

  Heath laughed out loud. "Now that you mention it, yes, they do." They were both quiet for a couple minutes, but they both kept their eyes on their ladies. "You know, those two both have enough mischief in them that together they could be dangerous."

  Ed nodded. "I was thinking the exact same thing. You don't suppose they'd work together to try to hide things from us, do you?"

  "Our little angels?" Both men laughed, but Heath continued. "Maybe we need to warn them that if they try to cover for each other they'll both end up paying the price."

  "That probably wouldn't be a bad ide
a," Ed said. "I'm not sure if they would try that or not, but it would probably be better to let them know right up front what to expect if they do think to try it."

  "We'll mention it after they come out. I don't want to make a big thing out of it, though, because I don't want them to think we're accusing them of anything."

  "Agreed," Ed said. They changed the subject and were talking about a project Heath was working on when the ladies came back out. The four of them visited until it started getting dark and Ed suggested it was time they go home.

  Chapter Six

  As they were getting ready to go home, Heath thanked the ladies for providing the salad and potatoes. "After I said those potatoes sure would taste good I wished I wouldn't have. I forgot you said you used your last red pepper for the last batch. I saw you two leave today in Sally's car. Did you have to go into town just for a pepper?"

  Sally tried to put him at ease quickly. "No, I needed a few things at the store, too, so we decided to have lunch out and then get some groceries."

  "Oh, good," Heath said. "I'm glad you had the chance to have lunch out."

  "Me, too," Sarah said. "I met Barb, a friend of Sally's, and I really like her."

  "Barb's a good lady," Ed said. "Where did you see her?"

  "She was at the restaurant for lunch, so we invited her to join us," Sally said. "We got to talking and forgot to watch the clock. We had to hurry at the grocery store then."

  Sarah could tell Sally immediately wished she hadn't said that, and she wondered why. She soon had her reason. Ed's eyebrows raised. "Did you remember to watch your speed in the car?"

  The ladies quickly caught each other's eyes, but just as quickly they both looked away. That caught both men's attention, but neither one said anything. When neither of the women said anything, Ed cleared his throat. "Maybe this is a good time for all of us to have a little chat. Heath and I have something we'd like to talk to you about."

  Sally was upset. "You found out already? How? Ed, I was going to tell you about it, I really was. I was going to wait until we were alone, though."

  Now Ed and Heath looked at each other, confused. Before either could say a word, though, Sarah spoke up. "She really was, Ed. With all due respect, I know I'm new at this, but I have to say something. I can't just sit here and let you do something that would be a big mistake."

  Heath looked at her, trying to catch her eyes. "Sarah?"

  "No, I have to say this. I don't mean to be rude, but I feel strong about it." She turned to face Ed. "It would be wrong of you to spank her for not saying anything to you, because she was planning to."

  Heath tried again. "Sarah, maybe you two should listen to us a minute and hear what it is we wanted to tell you."

  "Okay, but—" He caught her eyes and held them, and she stopped talking. "Okay, go ahead."

  "Thank you. Now, we don't know what you two are talking about, but I have a feeling we're about to find out. First, though, let us tell you our concern."

  Both ladies looked nervous. They nodded, but didn't say a word.

  Ed started the conversation. "It occurred to us that since you two are good friends, now that everything is out in the open as far as spankings, we should probably warn you about our thoughts on trying to cover for each other."

  Both girls looked both shocked, and hurt. Heath went to Sarah and put his arm around her shoulders. "Before you get upset, let me tell you we're just trying to cover all bases before anything comes up. This is new to you, honey, and we know you two are good friends, and we're glad. We don't want that to change. We don't want there to be any misunderstandings, either."

  No one said anything for several moments. Ed turned to his wife. "I don't know what you were talking about when you said you were going to tell me, but I'm willing to listen to whatever it is you were going to tell me."

  The girls looked at each other again, and then down at the ground. Heath turned to Sarah. "Is there anything either of you want to tell either of us?"

  Sarah looked from Heath to Ed and back. "I certainly hope I'm misunderstanding what you two are trying to tell us," she said.

  Sally jumped in. "It's okay, Sarah. It was my mistake. I won't let you get in trouble for it." She turned to Ed. "I got stopped today by a policeman."

  "For speeding?"

  "Yes, but I was only going a couple miles over the speed limit. He gave me a warning."

  "Okay. You'll have to be more careful in the future, but I'm not too upset over a couple miles."

  "I'm not done yet," she said. "I forgot to get my license plates renewed."

  "But I—"

  "I know, you reminded me a couple weeks ago, and I meant to do it the next day. Mom called me, though, and I got sidetracked. I never once thought about it again until he told me about it today. Anyway, I admit I forgot to do it. He gave me a citation for it, but if I get the registration renewed within seven days and show it to them when I pay my fine, they won't send it into the state, so I won't have any points on my license. I'm planning on doing it tomorrow. I'm really sorry I forgot to do it when you reminded me, Ed."

  "Thank you for telling me," Ed said.

  "Wait a minute," Sarah said. "I'm sorry, but I've got to say a couple things here. Ed, I meant what I said before."

  Heath jumped in before she could say anything further. "Sarah, what Ed and Sally do is their business. It's none of our business. We don't know what kind of agreement they have."

  "I know, Heath, and I understand what you're saying. But this ties in with what you guys told us a few minutes ago, and I have to make sure I understand what you were saying."

  "What's your question about what we said?"

  "Please tell me I'm wrong, because I thought it sounded like you expect us to rat each other out if we do anything. Surely you didn't mean that?"

  "Let me remind you that we're trying to protect you two," Heath said. "If one of you does something we should know about, but the two of you work together to hide it, how are we supposed to protect you?"

  "I get that, Heath; I do, and believe it or not, I appreciate that you're watching out for me. It's a nice feeling. And if you two ask us something, like if she kept her speed down, we neither one have any intention of lying to you. But you're making it sound like if one of us does something wrong, you expect us to run to you and tell you."

  "How are we supposed to keep you two safe if we don't know what—" Ed stopped and looked over at Heath. "She's right, Heath."

  "I know," Heath admitted. "I was thinking the same thing as she was talking."

  "I mean, you said you're glad we're friends, but think about what you're asking us to do. How can we do what you're asking, and still be close friends?"

  "We hear you, honey, and you have a good point. Hearing you say you would never lie to us is all I need to hear."

  "Thank you," she said as she leaned up to give him a quick kiss on his cheek. "Ed, she really was going to tell you about all this, but she was going to wait until you two got home tonight and had some privacy. I think we deserve that."

  "As do I," Ed confirmed. "Rest assured, Sarah, Sally will not be punished for not telling me."

  "Thank you," Sarah said.

  "We will, however, be discussing the expired plates. It's late, so I think we better be going now." Sally nodded and said good-bye to Heath and Sarah, and they left.

  After they left, Heath and Sarah talked a little more. Heath wanted to be sure she knew he did in fact understand what she was saying, and that he agreed with her. He pointed out that that was a fine example of why they needed to talk about things as they came up.

  * * *

  Heath and Sarah fell into a very comfortable routine. Since he worked mostly from home as a computer consultant and software designer, they saw each other daily, having dinner together most evenings. She liked to cook, and he loved to eat her cooking, so they ate at home often. Other times he'd take her out, but they always enjoyed being together. They had Ed and Sally over for a barbecue regularly and t
heir friendship grew stronger.

  There were a few times over the next several weeks that she got "the look" from him, and she was usually able to rectify what she was doing without further incident, earning only two spankings over the next couple months, neither of which were as severe as the first one she'd gotten. Both times she hated the spanking, which always hurt a lot, and the lecture, which always made her realize exactly what she was doing wrong and why, but she loved the cuddle time afterward, and the contented feeling that seemed to float with her for the next few days.

  One evening while they were watching a movie at his house he asked, "How's your writing going? I haven't heard you mention it lately. Are you working on a book, or a short story, or what?" He noticed her squirming a bit, and she tried to casually change the subject, but he persisted. "Sarah, talk to me about your writing. What's your latest project?" After more squirming, but no talking, he said, "Sarah Louise?"

  His stern voice always got results, and this was no exception. She looked rather sheepish as she said, "Well, I seem to be having writer's block or something. I haven't been able to come up with anything lately."

  "How long's this been going on, sweetheart?"

  She noticed and loved how he could switch from being so stern to using an endearment with her so quickly. "I don't know; a little while."

  "How long is a little while? When is the last time you worked on a specific project?"

  She looked away from him and softly admitted, "A couple of months ago."

  Heath was shocked. He pulled her chin up to look at him. "Why didn't you say something?"

  "I figured it's my problem, I just have to deal with it."

  "And how have you been dealing with it?"

  "I've been hoping something inspires me and I find something I want to do again."

  "Sarah, when I told you I want you to come to me with your problems, I meant all your problems. I may be able to help, I may not, but we'll never know if you don't give me a chance to try, will we?"