by Annette Mori
Rachel felt the silky softness of Sophia’s mouth and returned the kiss. Her tongue tentatively sought entrance into Sophia’s mouth. The kiss had a level of sensuousness that she’d never experienced before. Normally, Rachel kissed a woman with passion and energy. She felt her body relax into Sophia’s as her hands untied the robe and caressed Sophia’s back.
When Sophia pushed away, she felt the loss instantly.
“I wanted to do that all night long, but as much as my body tells me I want to make love to you, I just can’t. You’re right, we shouldn’t be doing this. I’m sorry. Can we re-wind? I don’t want to fuck up what will probably turn into a great friendship.”
“Okay.” Rachel hesitated before continuing. “But…I reserve the right to change the rules somewhere down the line.”
“That’s a fair compromise.”
Sophia scrubbed her hand on her face. “Would it be completely inappropriate if I asked you to sleep with me to just have someone to hold me?”
“Not exactly inappropriate, but you are testing my willpower,” Rachel answered.
“Forget I asked that. Stupid idea.”
“Wait. I was kidding. I am an adult and believe I can control myself enough. I could use a little innocent cuddling myself.”
Sophia raised her eyebrow. “Somehow innocent doesn’t really spring to mind when I think of you.”
“Perhaps, but there is always time to learn something new.”
Chapter Twenty-One
The small puffs of clouds dotted the sky, but at least it wasn’t overcast or raining. Joy reveled in their good fortune, as the weather seemed to attempt to put its best foot forward as if they were in the beginning stages of a new relationship. All she’d ever heard about Seattle and the surrounding area was that it always rained. They’d only experienced the famous Seattle drizzle once since they’d arrived.
Joy walked gingerly to the small shop where they were about to receive instructions on their whale watching adventure. She’d almost talked Sophia into letting her sleep in this morning, but for whatever reason, Sophia insisted she come along with them. When she learned they would all have to don those disgusting orange jumpsuits she was even more inclined to pass on the quest for whales. Joy could sense that something had happened between Sophia and Rachel and she was dying to corner her best friend to find out. She hoped they just did the nasty and got it out of the way. All the sexual tension was spilling over and since Tanya had to return to work today, she had no one to play with.
“All right let's get this party started. Lead the way, Rachel. I can't wait to put on the fashionable orange jumpsuits,” Sophia quipped.
"And I can't wait to see Joy here slip her lithe body into a suit some guy has sweated in all afternoon."
“The suits aren’t cleaned between use?” Joy remarked, aghast at the implication.
“This I can't wait to see. Who's got the popcorn? You can't buy better entertainment than this.” Rachel burst into laughter.
“Why do I think you selected this particular company at my expense? I noted in the brochures at the desk there were other options for a whale watching excursion, including large covered boats. I thought you were my friend,” Joy grumbled.
“Where's the fun in that?"
“Come on, Joy. We'll all stink together. It can be a bonding experience,” Sophia added good-naturedly.
“I think I would rather bond in another manner. A bellini, mojito or margarita would be my preference." Joy turned her wrist. “Oh look, it’s cocktail hour in New York.”
“I did instruct you to dress casually.” Rachel grinned.
“Sophia, you promised we would take a luxury excursion, not this tiny raft with these smelly things,” Joy pouted.
“These inflatables guarantee the best views. Those other boats are too high on the water. Don’t be such a pansy,” Rachel taunted.
†
Joy crinkled her nose as she stepped her legs into the sweat soaked jumpsuit. There was a decidedly unpleasant odor in all of the suits. As the tallest member of the group, she was obliged to wear a man's jumpsuit. Hers was by far the most rancid.
Rachel grinned as she retrieved her smart phone and snapped a quick picture. "We should get a picture of us all together in our high fashion garments." Rachel handed the phone to the tour guide and asked. “You don't mind do you?”
“Not at all.” He pressed the button and handed the phone back to Rachel.
Rachel looked quickly at the screen and turned the phone around so the others could view the picture. “Not bad. I'll send you all a text with the picture attached.”
The three women found seats in the front of the boat with Rachel’s insistence that it was the best spot. Eleven other men and women joined the tour and they sped out of the bay. The radio crackled to life as the tour guide obtained the location of a pod surfacing on the west side of the island. Excitement built as everyone prepared for the first sighting. The boat slowed and the tour guide cut the motor. “We are required to stay at least one hundred yards from the whales. We let them come to us. They should be coming up on the starboard side soon. Get your cameras ready.”
“Holy shit. Look, that whale is just sticking his head up and starting a staring contest with me. It's kind of creepy but fascinating at the same time.” Rachel reached for her phone to try to get a good picture.
“That's called spy-hopping. Orcas can be very curious and scientists have noted that they actually do this more often around tour boats. They want to check us out as much as we want to check them out. Spy-hopping is kind of like treading water. They can actually do this for several minutes. We'll give them a few minutes to migrate farther north of us and then we can head out again."
“I've lived here all my life and have seen Orcas before, but this is the first time I’ve seen one spy-hop,” Rachel proclaimed.
“I must admit it was worth it to put on this noxious suit. The Orcas are truly magnificent creatures,” Joy conceded.
“Thank you, Rachel, for arranging this trip. I'm really glad I decided to stay and spend this time in Victoria,” Sophia said.
“Hey look, there's a little seal playing in the waves. I know it's not as exciting as the Orcas but I think they're adorable. Kind of like a hairless puppy. They're fun to watch.” Rachel pointed to the playful sea creature.
“The fishermen don't always appreciate the seals when they steal salmon but the tourists sure love them,” the guide explained.
The bright yellow inflatable raft raced back to the dock as the tourists leaned back and enjoyed their journey across the crystal blue waters. Everyone was smiling as they crawled out of the boat.
“All right, I believe a mojito is calling my name right now. Ladies, shall we head to Milestones? I told Tanya we would meet her there after our whale watching excursion,” Joy clarified.
Joy noted the smile on her best friend’s face and the equally enamored look that Rachel was tossing quite naturally in Sophia’s direction. They looked good together. Joy wondered what would transpire after the three week vacation was done. Rachel seemed entrenched in the Pacific Northwest. She grew up here and wasn’t likely to make a drastic change. Sophia was a New York gal and Joy didn’t want to lose her best friend to the unruly West. She had to admit that Sophia was more relaxed here in Victoria than she’d ever witnessed and the Pacific Northwest seemed to suit her more than the somewhat pretentious East coast. Right now, it was time for fun and games with Tanya and alcohol—she would ponder this dilemma later on.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Two long weeks had passed since the big reveal and Lara was starting to get restless waiting until she gave Sophia enough time to settle. Chelsea had turned out a surprising distraction. She’d spend a few days and nights in the pleasure of her company and wondered how it was possible that Chelsea bent her own rules regarding intimate liaisons with women within her circle of business.
Discussing things and straightening out exactly what was the nature of their relati
onship was not high on Chelsea’s list of priorities when they came together. Lara chuckled at the phrase came together because that is exactly what they’d spent most of their time doing in-between extraordinary lunches and dinners. Chelsea had good taste in food, music, wine, and women. If Lara really thought long and hard about it, Chelsea was a far better match than Sophia, but Sophia was who she wanted. Lara always did enjoy a challenge and now that Sophia had left her, the gauntlet was down.
As Lara was pondering her next move, Fawn wove through her legs and reminded her of the first idea she’d had which was to call Sophia because she was concerned about Fawn and the fact that he seemed listless lately. She could later explain that he wasn’t sick, but probably just missing Sophia. It would be her foot in the door. Sophia loved that cat and might even fly home early.
Her cell phone startled her and when she looked at the caller ID, she frowned. Talking to Sophia’s acerbic older sister was not something she was looking forward to, but if she ever hoped to win Sophia back, she had to play nice in the sandbox. She decided to risk getting verbally bitch slapped by Marie.
“Marie, to what do I owe the pleasure of this call? No, I’m sorry Sophia is not here. Why haven’t you tried her on her cell phone? Oh, God, I am so sorry to hear that. I’ll be right there and I’ll try to get ahold of Sophia as well. She probably turned off her phone for some reason. Um, she isn’t in New York right now. No, she hasn’t talked to you and explained everything? Don’t worry, Marie, I’ll make sure she gets the first flight out as soon as we connect. I’ll personally make the arrangements. You’re welcome. In the meantime, I will be there in a jiffy.”
Lara ended her call with Marie. She knew she shouldn’t be happy by this recent turn of events, but she couldn’t help thinking that maybe fate was intervening by giving her another opportunity with Sophia. Certainly, Sophia would need her strength as she dealt with her father’s serious heart attack. Lara always knew that Dominick was one tiny step away from another heart attack. Everyone had been telling him for years he needed to lose weight and get more exercise. But since he’d lost his wife to cancer, he was slowly eating himself into an early grave. Moving to New York to be closer to his daughters had helped him with his profound grief, but not enough to overcome his addiction to food. Lara loved the tough old goat and prayed that this was her ticket back in. Dominick always favored her and he would at least be in her corner.
She quickly pressed the contact for Sophia and left a voice message. “Sophia, I know I promised not to contact you, but things have changed and no matter what, I still love you and want to be there for you. Please call as soon as you get this message, or call Marie, she’s been trying to get ahold of you. This is an emergency and I need you to call me back as soon as you can.”
Lara followed up her voice message with a text.
Call me. I’ve taken care of everything. Your flight leaves in two hours. If you don’t make that flight, I’ve arranged for the next flight out. I’ll pick you up at the airport.
†
It had been a glorious day and as they paddled back to shore. Rachel got a mischievous grin on her face as she dipped her paddle into the water and scooped up the fifty-five degree shock of liquid sending it in Sophia’s direction.
“Ha ha, very funny. Are you trying to tell me I need a shower after kayaking?” Sophia asked.
“Nope, you were looking so hot there I thought I’d cool you off. The sporty lesbian look definitely suits you as much as the sultry Italian,” Rachel responded.
“Well then, maybe I should return the favor because you look like you also need cooling off.” Sophia used her paddle to splash Rachel back.
Rachel laughed as she emerged from her kayak and handed it off to the dock worker. She extended her hand to Sophia to assist her as she wiggled out of her Kayak. The kayak began to rotate from side to side as Sophia tried to step on to the dock. The movement of the kayak and Sophia’s inexperience was just enough to flip the boat, sending both Sophia and Rachel into the freezing cold waters of the bay.
Rachel’s head popped up first as she scrambled onto the dock.
Sophia sputtered as she surfaced next. Rachel quickly stretched her hand out and clasped Sophia’s arm as she pulled her up onto the dock.
They were both rolling on the dock in a fit of laughter.
“Well, I suppose that’s one way to cool off. Holy hell, that water is cold,” Sophia noted.
Rachel looked at Sophia and noticed how her t-shirt clung nicely to her body. The cold water brought her nipples to the surface, protruding despite the two layers of clothing beneath.
“Cold is an understatement.” Rachel pointed to Sophia. “Your breasts are saying hello to me. Friendly little buggers, aren’t they.”
Sophia playfully slapped her hand away. “Well, I’d say they were successful, because yours are waving back.” Sophia grinned.
Rachel looked down at her chest. “Well, of course they are. I’ve taught them manners, you know. They would never ignore a friendly wave from a beautiful woman.”
The female dock worker was laughing. “You two are hilarious. You make a beautiful couple. Did you have fun today?”
Sophia turned to the young woman and crossed her arms. “We had a blast. I didn’t realize how big the Orcas were until one of them surfaced right in front of us. I barely managed not to flood the kayak with my pee.”
“I wasn’t as lucky. You may want to clean my kayak out more thoroughly,” Rachel quipped.
Sophia giggled when the dock worker frowned.
“Oh, just kidding. Sorry, I have a sick sense of humor,” Rachel clarified.
The woman smiled. “Have a great day, ladies.”
Sophia shivered and her teeth began chattering uncontrollably.
Rachel slipped her arm around Sophia and pulled her close. “Come on, we better get back to the hotel to change before we both die of hypothermia. Unless you want to continue showing off how friendly our breasts are with one another. It’s a good thing the weather is nice again today.”
“I am definitely chilled to the bone. It’s a darn good thing I didn’t take my phone with me today. Having never experienced kayaking before, I do believe that was the right call to make. Joy is going to be so jealous she missed all the excitement.”
Rachel picked up her pace and they walked quickly in silence back to the hotel. In a less than a week, Sophia would return to New York and this sobering thought saddened Rachel. They’d both danced around their attraction the past few weeks, never crossing the line again, but continuing the light flirtation. Although the line was invisible, it was always there.
Joy continued to spend time with Tanya, probably a record for her, Rachel thought. This gave Rachel more alone time with Sophia. The more time she spent with her, the more enamored she was with this incredible woman. She’d learned about Sophia’s family, her work, and her life. She knew she’d fallen in love, but needed to keep that fact to herself. If friendship was all she would ever have with Sophia, well, then it had to be enough.
Not wanting to cause her any more distress, Rachel mustered up every ounce of willpower and kept her embraces to not much more than a friendship and just shy of enthusiastic lovers. It was damn near killing her not to take Sophia in her arms and make mad passionate love with her.
They reached the suite that had evolved into their joint dwelling for the past few days and Rachel pulled the Ziploc bag from her pocket and retrieved the key card. She waved Sophia into the room. “You go ahead and shower first. I clearly have more adipose tissue than you to keep me warm.”
“Oookay. Th..thanks,” Sophia chattered.
Rachel pulled off her wet shirt and bra and laid them out carefully on the drying rack she found in the closet. After removing her wet shorts, she pulled on a new pair of khaki shorts and soft t-shirt without bothering with a bra.
Rachel looked at the desk when Sophia’s phone buzzed. She resisted the urge to walk to the phone and see who was calling when two
minutes later it buzzed again. By the time Sophia emerged from the shower and walked into the common area toweling her hair, her phone had whirred on the desk six times.
“Your phone’s been buzzing up a storm. I didn’t look, but I admit I wanted to. If it’s Lara, you should ignore it. I’m not sure why all of a sudden she’s calling when she has so far adhered to our wishes.”
Sophia stopped drying her hair and looked up at Rachel. “Do you think you can wait to take a shower while I check my phone? I think I might need encouragement to delete a few messages, or maybe to come up with a few witty retorts that will stop all the nonsense.”
“Of course. If you want I’d be happy to respond to the big shithead,” Rachel answered.
Sophia picked up the phone and grimaced. “Shit, there are twenty messages and a lot of them are from my sister.” She put the phone to her ear and listened.
As Rachel watched Sophia’s facial expression, she knew something was wrong. She crossed the room quickly and placed her hand on Sophia’s arm as a measure of support.
Sophia pressed a button and began talking. “God, Marie, I’m sorry I was out kayaking and didn’t want to dump my phone in the bay. I don’t want to get into that right now. I’m in Victoria. Of course she did. No, everything’s fine, I’ll call her to get the details and be in New York as soon as possible. Yes, I love you too. I promise I’ll bring you up to speed when I get there. No, it’s okay, she loves him too, and I won’t let our shit get in the middle of her relationship with him, especially right now. Bye.”
Rachel was dying to ask what was going on, but waited patiently for Sophia to finish her calls. Clearly something big was happening.
Sophia pushed the phone again to connect another call. “I suppose I should thank you for making all the arrangements. Obviously, I didn’t make the first flight, so I need the details for the next one. Don’t, just don’t. I won’t ask you to leave, but don’t think for one minute this changes anything between us. That’s not necessary, I can get a limo to the hospital.” Sophia sighed. “All right, fine. I’ll see you at the airport. Thanks.”