by Alex Riordan
By the time the work day ended, neither of the women felt the desire to go to the gym and work out. Nor did they feel like going to band practice that evening. Still, Jessie had a show that weekend, and she at least, had no real choice in the matter.
Unwilling to spend the evening away from Jessie when they had so little time left, Stephanie chose to tag along. Arriving at John and Lacy’s, Jessie headed out to the barn, where the guys were already setting up. Stephanie, having been greeted by Lacy when they arrived, hung out with the blond, while the band rehearsed.
Sitting in John and Lacy’s living room, curled up on one end of the overstuffed couch, Stephanie had a cup of hot tea in front of her. Lacy, sitting with her legs under her on the other end, was busy watching Stephanie brood. Taking a sip of her own tea, she said, “Stephanie, you haven’t touched your tea. Is there something wrong?” She had noticed immediately that Stephanie didn’t seem to be her usual, talkative self this evening.
Stephanie took a deep breath and shrugged. She looked at Lacy, who was waiting patiently for her answer. “My agent called this morning. They need me back in LA in two weeks for final costume fittings and read-throughs.”
Lacy closed her eyes and breathed in slowly. She knew exactly what this was going to do to Jessie…and to Stephanie. Reaching over, she let a hand rest on the redhead’s. “I’m so sorry, Stephanie. What are you two gonna do?”
“I have no idea, Lacy. We’re going to talk about it tonight, after we leave here,” Stephanie answered, shaking her head. “I really want to stay with Jess, but she adamantly refuses to entertain that idea. She told me I’d resent the decision eventually, and she’s right, I know.”
Lacy nodded in agreement. “As much as I hate to say it, she is right, Stephanie. No matter how much you may want it right now, you would end up resenting it in the end. Besides, what would you do here, in the middle of Ohio? You’re an actress. That’s something that’s in your soul. I know,” she said. And she did, too. After all, Lacy was an actress as well. Albeit in a far different genre than Stephanie…but, acting is acting. Then, a slow, wicked smiled crossed her face. “Unless of course, you wanted to star in our movies?”
Stephanie felt the blush rise up her cheeks immediately. Shaking her head, she said, “Uhh, I don’t think so, Lacy.” Not wanting to hurt the blondes’ feelings, she added, “I don’t think Jessie would appreciate that very much. And, I have to admit…I don’t think I could do what you do.” After meeting John and Lacy and finding out about the movies they produced and acted in, she had pestered Jessie to let her see at least one. It wasn’t like she’d never seen porn before, but she’d never known anyone acting in them. And, it would be fair to say that after seeing it, it was far more…risqué…than the movies Stephanie was used to working on. Even though she did spend a lot of time in her underwear or completely topless. And…Stephanie had to be honest with herself. She was 31 years old. How much longer was she going to be able to act in movies like that, anyway? No one wanted to see an aging actress running around in her underwear or naked. Although…Jessie seemed to enjoy it well enough. She smirked to herself.
Lacy, taking no offense at Stephanie’s reaction started laughing. “I’m sorry Stephanie, but you should see the look on your face. It’s priceless. You’re right about one thing, though. Jessie would have a fit if you started acting in our movies.”
Stephanie rolled her eyes and started laughing, too. “That’s an understatement, Lacy. She doesn’t seem to be the jealous type, but I don’t think I’m willing to push the limits like that. Sorry, it’s a really generous offer, but I can’t.”
“I know. But hey, it doesn’t hurt to throw the offer out there,” Lacy said, getting her laughter under control. She’d known Stephanie would say no. Still, it was worth a shot. John would’ve been ecstatic, but Jessie would kill all three of them. So, Stephanie’s answer was probably the right one.
Feeling her mood lightened a bit, Stephanie took a drink of her tea. “So, where are the boys? I haven’t seen them tonight?”
“Oh, they’re out at the barn hanging out with the band,” Lacy answered, rolling her eyes. “John’s been teaching them how to play the drums, so they think they can play with the band, now.”
“Are they any good?” Stephanie asked, smiling at the prospect of seeing Jessie singing in the band with two nine year old drummers.
Lacy shrugged. “They’re gonna be really good, when they’ve had more practice.” She shook her head, thinking about it. Then, looking at Stephanie, she asked, “Did you ever think about having kids, Stephanie?”
“I’ve thought about it from time to time,” Stephanie said slowly, taking a deep breath. “I’ve just been so focused on my career, it never seemed like a good time. And…there’s always that pesky problem of, you know, who would the father be? I mean, I’m gay…so my options are kind of limited.”
Lacy laughed. “I see your point, but there are ways around that. Still, if Jessie was willing, would you consider having kids with her?”
“I think Jessie and I need to focus on keeping our relationship together from a distance before we think about kids,” Stephanie answered, her voice betraying her emotions. As she thought about it, she believed that Jessie would make a wonderful mother. After all, she seemed to get along with the twins well enough, and she definitely liked kids.
“Well,” Lacy began, “I know Jessie loves you, Stephanie. She’s not going to let you go now that she’s found you. And I have a feeling it’s the same for you?”
Stephanie nodded. “You’re right, Lacy. Jessie’s the only one I’ve ever felt this deeply about. I can’t even imagine what LA’s going to be like without her there.”
Before Lacy could say anything else, the room was inundated with sound as the band, and the twins, entered the room. Jessie, her eyes lighting up when she saw Stephanie on the couch, came over and kissed her right away. “Hey,” she said, releasing her.
“Hey, yourself,” the redhead answered, her eyes never leaving Jessie’s. “Rehearsal go okay?”
Jessie cracked open a can of Diet Coke and sat down, catching Steph’s hand in hers. “Yeah. We picked up two new songs, tonight.”
“And we’re ready for this weekend,” Mike added, sitting down in the chair next to them. “So that,” he added, looking over at them significantly, “means that you two can have the rest of the week to yourselves.”
“So that means no more rehearsals this week?” Stephanie asked, getting excited.
“That’s what it means,” Jessie said in answer. “Which is great, because we…” she leaned over and kissed Steph again. “…have plans to make for our future.”
“Mmm, ‘our future.’ That sounds really good, Jessie,” Stephanie agreed.
“Yes, it does. So, you ready to go?”
“Whenever you are, Jess,” she said.
Jessie stood up then. Looking at everyone, she said, “Well, I guess we’ll see you guys Saturday night, then.”
Lacy stood up with them and hugged them both. “You don’t have to rush off, guys. You’re welcome to stay and hang out for a while.”
Jessie shook her head. “We should go, Lace. But thanks.”
Just then, the twins ran over and wrapped themselves around Jessie and Stephanie’s legs. “Don’t go Aunt Jessie! You and Stephanie stay! We can watch a movie?”
Jessie hugged them to her. “Sorry guys, but Stephanie and I have some things to take care of.”
“You’re not gonna kiss her again, are you?” Jason asked.
“Jason!” Lacy yelled. “That is so rude. Apologize to Jessie and Stephanie right now.”
“Aw mom,” the boy said, looking chagrined. Rolling his eyes, he looked up at Jessie and Stephanie. “I’m sorry I was rude,” he said.
“That’s all right, Jason,” Jessie said, accepting his apology. She was trying very hard to keep a straight face, she really was. In the end she couldn’t help herself though. “But, to answer your question…Yes, I probably w
ill kiss her again. Right now, though, we have some grown up things to talk about. Now, you guys go on. I promise I’ll watch a movie with you some other time.”
“All right, Aunt Jessie.” Both the boys hugged them again. “Bye, Stephanie. Bye Aunt Jessie,” they said as they headed to their room to play video games.
Lacy rolled her eyes. “I’m so sorry, you guys. I swear, those two are gonna kill me.”
Jessie and Stephanie both shrugged. “It’s no big deal, really. It’s hard to be the only kids around all adults.”
“I know, but still…” Lacy began. Then, shrugging it off, she said, “Well, I guess I’ll see you both on Saturday, then. Be careful going home.”
“We will. Bye, guys,” Jessie said to everyone else, heading for the front door with Stephanie’s hand in hers.
* * * *
An hour later, they pulled into Jessie’s driveway. Ten more minutes found them changed and ready for bed. When Stephanie came out of the bathroom from brushing her teeth, Jessie was sitting up in the bed, leaning back against some pillows. She had a calendar and a pen in hand.
“Ready when you are to get started planning our future,” she said, smiling at the redhead as she crawled into bed beside her.
Pulling the blankets up over her legs, Stephanie squeezed up next to Jessie and looked at the calendar. Her flight out to LA was planned for June 6th, so they wrote that on the calendar first. Then, they started flipping through, looking for the holidays. The 4th of July was on a Monday this year, so they’d have a long weekend not too long after she left. Still, that seemed like a long time to be apart, and neither one of them was happy with that.
“Jess, why don’t you come with me when I leave? Just for a few days, or so?” she looked at Jessie, her green eyes practically pleading for Jessie to agree. She knew that Jessie would say no, but she asked anyway.
“I’d like to, Steph. But I don’t know if Mr. Mason will let me have any more time right away,” Jessie said, putting her arm around the other woman and pulling her in closer. She leaned her head to the side, resting against Stephanie’s, and stroked the soft auburn hair gently. Closing her eyes, she said, “I’ll see what I can do, though. I haven’t taken any vacation time in years. Not since I got clean after I was attacked.”
“Jess, that was what…five, six years ago?” Stephanie said, giving her a look that plainly said she was crazy. How could anyone work as much as Jessie did and never take a break? Anyone else would have gone nuts, without one. She suspected however, that with Jessie, it was simply the brunette’s way of not dealing with the problems in her life.
“Six,” Jessie answered, quickly calculating how many weeks of vacation she had available. “If we don’t count the two weeks Mr. Mason told me to take off after your attack, I should have…twenty weeks of vacation.”
“Twenty! Good God, you could move out to LA with me for the rest of the year, Jess,” Stephanie said, disbelievingly.
“Not quite the rest of the year, Sweetheart,” Jessie said in answer, kissing her temple. “Still, we might want to save a week or two for something special. You think?”
Stephanie nodded and sighed. There was simply no way she was going to be able to persuade the gorgeous brunette next to her to take almost six months off work. Not even if it involved sleeping together every night. “I get your point, Jess. Still…I need to be with you.”
“You will, Steph. You will,” Jessie hugged her close. “I need to be with you, too. So, how about scheduling something for say…every two weeks? That’s workable, I think.”
“Every two weeks?”
“Yeah. We can talk to each other every day, and it’ll give us something to look forward to,” Jessie explained.
Stephanie mulled over the suggestion for a moment. “Hmm, every two weeks…” Then, raising a brow in question, she looked at Jessie. “And every holiday?”
“Of course,” Jessie answered, smiling and kissing her again.
“You’ve got a deal, Jess,” Stephanie said, knowing that for now, it was the best she could hope for. After all, only six short weeks ago, Jessie was so afraid of considering a relationship it had taken all Stephanie’s considerable patience to wait for even a touch from her. Now, she seemed ready to consider more, but it had to be done slowly, so she didn’t get spooked and run the other way. Leaning into the brunette, she closed her eyes and breathed in her scent. God, she was going to miss this.
Chapter 34
When Mike found out that Stephanie was scheduled to head back to LA, he’d offered to throw her a going away party. The actress had only been in their lives for a few short months, but she’d fit right in with their little family so well, it was difficult to remember that. And, because he cared about Jessie so much, he wanted to do this. If nothing else, it might give them something good to remember when they were apart. After all…they had, for all intents and purposes, realized their mutual attraction to each other at a party at his place. So it seemed appropriate that the going away party be there, too. If nothing else, life was circular.
So, on Friday, June 3rd, everyone gathered at Mike’s. At first, he was only going to invite the band, but that seemed a little too small. Stephanie had met quite a few people while in Ohio, and he thought that everyone should have the opportunity to say their goodbyes. And so it was that he invited not only the band, but everyone from Jessie’s law office, including Mr. Mason, Jessie’s mother, even Bao Yu and Jing.
Stephanie, upon seeing everyone who had come to say goodbye, was overwhelmed. She hadn’t realized just how many people she’d met on this little trip. Nor had she realized how much these people had come to mean to her. It was extremely humbling, to know that all these people had come together for her; because they’d wanted to.
When they’d arrived at Mike’s, she walked into the living room, Jessie close behind, with a hand lightly touching the small of her back. She’d known about the party, but the surprise she’d felt when she saw everyone gathered, was unexpected. “All for you, Love,” Jessie had whispered before stepping away and returning only a brief blink of an eye later, drinks in hand.
Accepting the offered glass of Vodka gratefully, Stephanie had accepted hugs from everyone as she made her way around the room.
By the time Lacy managed to find her three hours later, she was feeling decidedly exhausted. The party was almost over, and only a few people were still there. Sitting in a deck chair by the pool, she was relaxing, when the blond pulled the chair next to her over and flopped down.
“Whew, what a night!” Lacy said, relaxing back in the chair and taking a drink of her beer. “How you doing, Stephanie?” she asked, looking over at the redhead with genuine concern. She had always cared for Jessie, and had been thrilled when Stephanie had shown up. Even more so, when Jessie not only showed some interest in the woman, but had actually mustered the courage to take a chance.
“Oh, I’m okay,” Stephanie answered, looking over at the blond. “I didn’t realize I’d met so many people over the course of only three months. It’s a bit overwhelming.”
“Well I, for one, am going to miss you,” Lacy said fondly. “I’ve enjoyed spending time with you, Stephanie. And, I wanted to tell you that I’m really glad that you came here. Not just because I’ve found a new friend, but for Jessie’s sake. I’ve worried about her for years. After the whole fiasco with Bobby, I didn’t think she’d ever open herself up and be willing to take a chance on love again. I wanted to thank you for that. She’s been more like her old self again, since you’ve come along. It’s a nice change to see.”
“Well thanks, Lacy, but I don’t think I had all that much to do with it,” Stephanie said in answer.
“You have no idea how much your love has helped her, Stephanie. I’ve never seen Jessie so happy…or in love,” the blond added, taking another sip of her beer.
“Jessie’s showed me what courage and strength really are, Lacy. Did you know that at first, I thought she didn’t want me around? Then, when I realized
she’d been trying to keep her distance because she really liked me…” the redhead shook her head, remembering how afraid she was that the brunette didn’t like her at all. Only to be floored, when she realized that Jessie had been trying to hide her feelings from her.
“Jessie’s always been hard to get to know,” she agreed. “But she’s infinitely worth all the wait and patience.”
Stephanie nodded. “Don’t I know it?”
“So, did you two decide how you’re going to handle this separation?”
Stephanie nodded and launched into a description of their plan. When she was finished, Lacy nodded her head in satisfaction. “Well,” she said, getting out of her chair, “it certainly sounds like you’ve got things figured out for the moment.” She hugged the redhead, who had stood up as well, and said, “Don’t forget my offer, Stephanie. If you decide to leave LA and move back here the offer’s always open for you.” She had a twinkle in her eye as she released Stephanie. “We’ll all miss you.”