The Ultimate Betrayal

by Annette Mori

  Rachel towel dried her hair and walked into the closet, selecting her clothes for the day. “Well, actually, I promised Joy I would go to breakfast with her. Sophia is abandoning her today. I think that’s rude to drag your friend all the way across the country and then take off on a romantic getaway. I know you aren’t able to spend time with your friends and now Sophia has deserted her. I feel bad for her.”

  Lara followed Rachel into the master bedroom. “Trust me, Joy can take care of herself. It’s not that I’m jealous or anything, but Joy can be a bit of a stalker. That’s the reason I reacted so strongly last night. You are a very beautiful woman and Joy has absolutely no morals. Even though we’re friends, she will think nothing of making a play for you.”

  Rachel chuckled. “Oh, she already has. It’s harmless flirtation. Besides, don’t you trust me?”

  Lara watched as Rachel pulled on her clothes, rushed around the bedroom, and got ready more quickly than usual.

  Lara sat on the bed and Rachel continued to button her blouse. “I trust you, but Joy is a piranha.”

  “So, who is Sophia going off with? Does she have a love interest here in Seattle? Is that really why she came to visit, dragging her best friend across the country?” Rachel asked.

  It took all of Lara’s boardroom skills to control her reaction. “I don’t really know. Sophia tends to keep things close to her chest.” Working to keep control, Lara added, “Can’t you please cancel your breakfast date with Joy? I won’t see you for at least a whole week.”

  Rachel walked back into the master bathroom and grabbed her toothbrush.

  As Lara followed her, she noticed that Rachel was using the manual brush. Normally she would use the electric toothbrush unless she was in a hurry.

  “I can’t. Really, I’m already running late. I told her I’d meet her at eight and she’s probably on her way already,” Rachel mumbled through her toothbrush.

  Lara frowned. Things were definitely not going her way this morning. She needed to find out if the unthinkable had occurred. In her mind, she focused solely on Joy making a play for her wife—hoping their time together would not lead down the path of enlightenment for Rachel. Lara was at the edge of the volcano and she knew it. There wasn’t much she could do about the precarious situation she found herself in without raising a red flag. She needed to find out more.

  “I know you, Rachel, something is wrong. Talk to me.”

  Rachel rinsed out her mouth and began applying her make-up.

  “Nothing is wrong. Well, sure, I’m not happy you have to leave again so shortly, but I’m used to it and I’ll get over it. I also didn’t appreciate your Neanderthal response to an innocent round of drinks with a friend that you are totally ignoring.”

  “I’ve already apologized for my behavior last night. Are you sure that’s all?” Lara asked.

  “Of course, what else could it possibly be? Just have a safe trip and take care of your business. I’ll be here when you get back.”

  Lara sat on the edge of the Jacuzzi tub and watched her wife get ready. “I promise, when I get back, I’ll make it up to you. Maybe we can plan a second honeymoon. You name the place and I’ll take you there. Anywhere you want to go. Paris, Rome, Greece, you name it. I’ll make the arrangements.”

  Rachel grabbed the hair dryer and plugged it into the outlet. Before turning on the dryer she answered. “We don’t need to go far. I’ve always wanted to go to Rosario Resort on Orcas Island and then maybe a visit to Victoria.”

  It was a good thing that Rachel turned around and focused back on drying her hair as the hair dryer blocked out the sound Lara made when she reacted to Rachel’s suggestion. She experienced a niggling in her brain that suggested this was not a coincidence. Her plans to take Sophia to Rosario and then to Victoria was a freaky link to Rachel’s request.

  After Rachel finished drying her hair, Lara attempted to lead Rachel in a new direction. “I’m sure they are nice places to visit, but wouldn’t you rather go somewhere farther away?”

  “No, I don’t think so. Listen, I really have to go. Call me when you arrive in New York. Bye.” Rachel pecked Lara’s lips, then grabbed her keys and purse as she ran out the door.

  Lara felt like she’d just been blindsided by something, but didn’t exactly know what. Is the honeymoon finally over? Every other time an energetic romp in the bedroom would sway her passionate wife and forgiveness would soon follow. She didn’t have any time to react or control the state of affairs before Rachel ran out the door. The situation was a bit more than unsettling to her and she didn’t have the time to make a course correction with her wife, because she needed to get moving on her plans with Sophia. For the first time, Lara thought having two wives was far too exhausting to manage effectively. She was losing her tightly maintained control on everything and that was disconcerting to her.

  She had to pray that neither Joy nor Rachel would spill the beans on her marital status. She was banking on Joy’s self-centeredness.

  †

  Sophia yawned as she sat in the café with her best friend waiting for Rachel to arrive.

  Rachel burst through the front door. “Sorry, sorry, I’m late. I know. Here’s the good news. I am relatively confident she read the texts. Lara thinks she doesn’t show emotion on her face, but I, no, we, definitely have her on the run. I could almost see the wheels in her head spinning and trying to find a way to control the situation. I left the phone on the dresser and if you sent the final text at the specific time I told you to, she would have found them all. I imagine she woke up in the chair when her alarm went off and then started searching for me. She would have entered the bedroom at just the right moment to hear the buzz. You know all about Lara’s need to control every situation. We have her on the run right now and everywhere she turns is another obstacle.”

  Joy grinned. “How were my texts?”

  “Perfect,” Rachel said enthusiastically.

  “So, now I just wait for her call. I’m getting nervous. I don’t know if I can pull this off. Right now, I want to scratch her eyes out—not act like everything is hunky dory. I don’t know if I can manage to let her kiss me without puking in her mouth,” Sophia announced.

  “Ew. That is definitely not a mental picture I want. I think I may be rubbing off on you. That’s something I would say, not you,” Joy said.

  “Yeah well, a person changes when they learn they are married to a lying, cheating, manipulative, bitch,” Sophia spit out.

  “Ooh, you go girl. I think I like this new side of you,” Joy said.

  “Are you gals ready for the next phase? Sophia, can you do this? If you can’t, I totally understand. I had a hard time not slapping her silly myself this morning. You have the hardest part,” Rachel remarked.

  Sophia felt Rachel’s warm hand cover her own. She genuinely liked Rachel. She was such a good person. When she first learned about Lara’s deceit, she had been bitchy and insensitive, but when she saw some of the light retreat from Rachel’s expressive eyes, it was her undoing. Although they were still somewhat dull, what she saw in them this morning was compassion.

  Rachel was a very beautiful woman and under different circumstances, she would have wanted to get to know her better and perhaps she would have tried to explore a relationship. That was out of the question now, but she couldn’t help feeling the attraction. She felt a pull toward Rachel that she didn’t have a lot of control of at this moment. The circumstances didn’t matter. It was a strange, yet not an altogether unwelcome feeling. She’d have to tamp down that attraction, because the last thing Rachel needed was Sophia acting on her attraction to muddy the waters even further. Besides, Sophia was not about to jump into anything for oh, maybe ten years. That wasn’t an unreasonable time to remain celibate.

  “I can do this,” Sophia responded.

  †

  After the confusing interchange with Rachel, Lara shook it off and concentrated on the need to focus on Sophia. She’d find some time to call Rachel and do wh
atever was necessary to repair the continental divide that had suddenly appeared between the two of them this morning.

  Calling Sophia’s phone, she found a new irritation when it went straight to voicemail. She tossed the phone on the dresser, not bothering to leave a message.

  “Goddammit. What the hell is going on this morning? Which Goddess did I piss off? Sophia knew I would call her this morning to tell her the plans,” Lara barked.

  She stomped into the shower to try to let the warm water wash across her body. She felt tense. Rachel hadn’t even stopped for one minute this morning while she got ready. Not only did she have to worry about Joy spilling the beans, but she’d also lost out on having sex with her wife last night. She’d hoped to have some intimate time with her before leaving for Rosario and now she had a bunch of pent up energy.

  Lara soaped up her breasts and let her hand travel down to her treasure trove. She wanted to release the tension from her body, but everything was going wrong for her. None of her strokes had any effect on her. After several minutes of targeted caresses to her own body, she gave up and opened the shower door to find nothing hanging on the hook.

  “Where the hell is the other towel? Fuck. How many more things can go wrong?”

  Lara shivered as she walked out of the shower dripping wet.

  Espresso poked his black furry head just inside the bathroom door.

  Lara looked down at Rachel’s cat. “What are you looking at? I’m entitled to a hissy fit now and again.” She reached into the cabinet where the extra towels were stacked neatly on top of one another and pulled one from the top.

  Sauntering naked into her bedroom, Lara considered what clothes she needed to pack for her week long get-away. She liked to do her pre-planning ahead of time. She would pack her suitcase after selecting clothes from her back up wardrobe that she left at the penthouse. By the time she went to pick Sophia up, she wouldn’t have to waste her precious time deciding what would come with her on the trip.

  She stepped into her comfortable pants and pulled her soft natural cotton shirt over her head. She looked at herself in the mirror and groaned. The tiny crow’s feet at the corner of her eyes were starting to become more prominent. Vanity was beginning to get the best of her and she decided to consider some minor plastic surgery. She wasn’t positive when she would be able to fit that in with her busy schedule, but she would just have to make some time. Turning forty was not a welcome milestone.

  It was still relatively early, but certainly Sophia would be awake by now. Sophia tended to be an early riser, especially when she slept alone. Lara assumed that she was able to catch up on her sleep these past two nights. She wondered why the phone went straight to voicemail when she’d try to call earlier.

  Espresso sprawled his long lean body across the bed and lifted his head when Lara sat on the bed next to him and put on her shoes.

  “Meow.”

  “Well, excuse me. I guess I disturbed the king. I should have told Rachel I needed to leave yesterday. A lot of good it did me to stay one more night, I didn’t even get to sleep with her, but you did, didn’t you. Lucky bastard. I still can’t believe she left me sleeping in the recliner. It’ll take two days to work out the kinks in my back. Oh, what do you care? I’ve officially lost all my marbles—talking to a cat.”

  Lara picked up her phone from the dresser and called Sophia again. When a groggy Sophia finally answered the phone after four rings, Lara wondered why she was still in bed. “I’m sorry, babe, did I wake you up. Yes, I got everything done and I’m ready to pack a bag and be on our way. I’m not sure we’ll make the eleven am flight, so I’ll call and rearrange our flight for two. That should give you enough time to pack and be ready to leave by noon. I hope you are as excited as I am. I’ll see you in a little while. I love you.”

  Lara decided she would call Rachel on her way to pick up Sophia. She wasn’t sure when she would get a chance to break away and call her when she was on her way to Rosario, so she might as well take advantage of the shitty Seattle traffic that was sure to delay her drive to Hotel 1000 where Sophia was waiting at the penthouse.

  Hopefully, she’d learn more about the breakfast date with Joy. There had to be a way to keep those two apart while she was out of town with Sophia. Maybe she could ask Chandra to keep Joy occupied. Chandra was exactly Joy’s type. Chandra might even have some fun. Lara rationalized that everything would work out and she was just doing everything to keep all parties happy. What was the harm in that? She wasn’t really pimping Chandra out. Joy was charming and beautiful. Chandra was single. It was the perfect solution to her current dilemma.

  †

  Rachel hugged Sophia, holding on a few seconds more than she would normally. “Lara is nothing if not punctual, so you better get back to the penthouse.”

  Her hands absently caressed the sides of Sophia’s arms. “Listen, you’re going to do just fine. I hate like hell to ask you to do this, but you have to act as though nothing at all is wrong. I’ll take care of all the legal paperwork, but I may need you to respond to a text here and there as I work with your attorney. We’ll see you tomorrow. All you have to do is make sure she doesn’t whisk you to a new location. Lara is very clever—one change of venue is child’s play to her, so two won’t pose much of a challenge. We have to time it just right so she can’t do a damn thing about the inevitable. I want her to see the train coming and know she’s doomed.”

  Rachel felt Sophia pulling her in for another hug and she melted into her arms. After she broke away from Sophia, their hands remained linked together.

  “Thank you for taking care of all the legal crap. I honestly don’t have the energy for it. Do you think you might be interested in taking a short vacation after this is all over? I’ve always wanted to spend time in the Pacific Northwest and I’d hate to return home with my tail between my legs. I begged for this time off and I’ll be damned if I’ll let her ruin my vacation,” Sophia announced.

  “You know. There are an awful lot of places I’ve never visited. I’d love to hang out with you and Joy. I’m due a bit of vacation. Sure. I think that would be lovely. Count me in. We can make plans after the shit show is finished. You really better get going now. No more procrastination.” Rachel broke away from Sophia and kissed her cheek. “Good luck.”

  “Thanks for your help too, Joy,” Sophia said.

  “Anytime. You know I’ll always have your back.”

  Sophia started walking toward the exit.

  “Come on kiddo, let’s go meet with your attorney and wrap up the boring stuff and then we can have some more fun.” Joy flung her arm over Rachel’s shoulder and they followed Sophia out of the café.

  †

  Lara entered the penthouse and listened to the shower running. Having already planned which clothes she wanted to take to the islands, she began pulling out the various outfits to pack in her suitcase.

  She found Sophia’s bag open on the bed with a pair of casual pants and pullover top laid neatly next to the fully packed case.

  Lara smiled as she noted the outfit. It was one of her favorites. The blouse clung to Sophia’s shapely curves and accentuated her full round breasts. Sophia always knew how to select clothes that would complement her coloring. Her classic beauty was easy to showcase, but Sophia had a knack for choosing just the right style.

  Lara lifted her head when she heard the shower turn off.

  Sophia walked into the bedroom with a towel wrapped around her body and her long wet hair hanging loose in a disheveled manner. She oozed sensuality.

  Lara gently loosened the towel. She watched the droplets of water make their way down Sophia’s breast. Bunching the towel up, she pressed it against the ends of Sophia’s hair. She leaned down and captured Sophia’s lips in a slow torturous kiss. For a brief second she thought she felt Sophia tense in her arms before acquiescing to the kiss.

  Sophia broke away, pulled the towel from Lara’s hand, and vigorously rubbed her hair. “I don’t think we have time
to start anything if we plan on catching that plane.”

  “You just look so tantalizing right now. I better stop gawking at my beautiful wife and finish packing while you get dressed.”

  “Good idea. We’ll have plenty of time for that when we get to the resort.”

  †

  Sophia stepped up to the counter with her bag. She’d wanted to avoid raising any suspicion so she made sure to pack enough for a weeklong excursion. Unfortunately, she was unaware of the weight limit.

  The young woman frowned as she hefted the bag onto the counter. “The bag is ten pounds more than the limit, ma’am. We’ll have to wait to see if we’ll be able to put this on the plane. How much do you weigh?”

  “Excuse me?” Sophia asked.

  “Your weight. I need to know how much you weigh so I can balance the plane.”

  “You’re kidding, right?” Sophia glanced at Lara.

  “No, hon, she’s not. This is standard with small planes,” Lara answered.

  “Women never tell the truth about their weight and I’m supposed to get up in a plane that quite possibly is imbalanced?” Sophia asked.

  “We know that, ma’am, it’s why we usually add ten pounds to whatever number that is given to us,” the woman whispered.

  Sophia chuckled nervously. “You’re sure this is safe? A lot of famous musicians have died in these tiny planes.”

  “If you’re talking about Buddy Holly and Ritchie Valens—that was like fifty years ago. It’s perfectly safe, hon. Kenmore Air has a stellar safety record,” Lara soothed.

  Sophia was already nervous enough about continuing to act as if nothing was wrong and now she had to squeeze into what felt like a tin can with wings. She tried to visualize Rachel’s encouraging smile. She wished that Rachel was the one performing in this little one act play, but unfortunately, the situation didn’t call for that particular rendition. She tried to imagine how Rachel would react. She was vibrant and adventurous. She would love going up in a floatplane. If only she was more like Rachel.