PART FIVE
By M. E. Tudor
CHAPTER TWELVE
Kelly had been glad that she had been so busy helping Marge yesterday. It had left her little time to think about the day she had spent with Pat and the feelings she was having about her. Today, however, things were slower and she was getting a certain amount of subtle teasing from Timmy about her "date" with Pat. She was really surprised when Rick showed up on the job at about nine and he began teasing her as well.
"So how was your date with Pat?" He asked as he leaned against the doorway of the kitchen that Kelly and Timmy were putting cabinets in.
"It wasn’t a date but I had a really good time. It is absolutely beautiful around Telluride and Rico." Kelly didn’t even turn around to look at him to answer the question.
"Rico?" Rick said with a grin and wink towards Timmy who had turned around to pick up a piece of trim. "She must really like you to take you all the way to Rico."
Kelly rolled her eyes, "Why is that?" She couldn’t resist asking.
"That’s a long way from here and that must mean she wanted to spend extra time with you to take you out that far."
Kelly turned to face the two men who were grinning like Cheshire cats. "Not only did she take me to Rico, she took me hiking to see a waterfalls there. Does that make me extra, extra special?"
Rick and Timmy looked at each other and each raised an eyebrow. "Absolutely." They both said at the same time.
"She didn’t take you to dinner at the Adobe Inn, did she?" Rick asked, still grinning.
Kelly thought about what the hostess had said about it having been a long time since Pat had brought someone with her there and what Pat had said herself about not taking very many people there. "So what if she did?"
Rick and Timmy looked at each other; shook there heads and snickered. "It was definitely a date." Rick stated.
Unbeknownst to the three, Pat had quietly entered the house from the front door and was making her way to the kitchen. She could hear Rick and Timmy questioning Kelly about their day together. She was making plans in her mind to kill both of them later for picking on Kelly when she heard Rick state that they had definitely been on a date. Kelly said no that it wasn’t and Rick said it was. Pat continued to quietly pick her way through the house while listening and trying to avoid the obstacles of construction tools strewn about.
"It was a date." Rick said again.
"It was not." Kelly said again.
"Why?" Rick asked. "Why don’t you consider it a date?"
This really caught Pat’s attention. She wanted hear Kelly’s answer. She was still moving forward towards the kitchen and not really paying attention to where she was going.
"Because I didn’t get a kiss at the end of the night." Kelly stated glaring at Rick but with a grin playing on her lips.
There was a crash in the room next to them and a groan. Rick, Kelly and Timmy rushed into the next room to find Pat on the floor with her leg wrapped up in an extension cord.
"Pat," Rick and Kelly both rushed to her side, "Are you okay?"
"Yeah," Pat didn’t look up at them right away. She was embarrassed that she had fallen because she had been trying to hear what Kelly was saying about a kiss. "Nothing more bruised than my ego."
They all laughed. "Let me help you up." Kelly said. She leaned down, took Pat’s hand and braced her arm around her back and started pulling her up.
Pat’s leg was still twisted up in the cords so Rick put arm around Pat to help Kelly get her up. "Timmy, unwrap that cord from around her foot."
Timmy got Pat’s foot untangled and Rick and Kelly stood Pat up on her own feet. Pat leaned towards Kelly slightly when they did stand her up. She was enjoying the feel of the woman’s body pressed against her. Pat could feel Kelly’s breast brushing against her arm and it was stirring up the desire for Kelly that she was trying so desperately to suppress.
"Are you sure you’re okay?" Rick asked, seriously concerned that his sister might be more hurt than she was letting on.
"I’m fine, really." Pat assured Rick and gave him a quick hug. "Thanks you guys for picking me up."
"No problem," Kelly said, too still concerned that Pat might be hurt.
Pat looked at those concerned blue eyes and quickly looked away. "I’m fine, you guys. Really."
Rick and Kelly both stepped away to give Pat room to move ahead of them. They all went into the kitchen. "Did you hear these too teasing me about our day together?" Kelly asked.
"Yes, I did and I think they need to quit." Pat stated glaring at the two men who just grinned.
"Aw Pat," Rick chuckled, "It was all in fun." Rick studied his sister’s reaction. She wouldn’t looked his way. He knew that she liked Kelly more than she wanted to admit and based on the way Kelly was looking at Pat, she liked Pat too.
Pat raised an eyebrow at the two men, "Well, if you two keep on, she won’t go anywhere else with me for fear of having to listen to you two."
Rick chuckled again. He knew his sister too well. She had come by the job to see Kelly with the intention of asking her to go out with her again. "Come on Timmy." Rick motioned towards the door. "Let’s go get some lunch. Pat, are you staying around? I’ll pick up extra if you are."
"No, I just stopped by for a minute." Pat caught the wink Rick gave her. She knew he had already figured out that she had just come to see Kelly. He knew that she had sworn herself off married women but there was something about Kelly that drew Pat to her and she did seem very serious about getting a divorce.
"Okay. We’ll be back in just a little while." Rick and Timmy went out the back door of the house, leaving Pat and Kelly alone in the kitchen.
"I’m really sorry about them giving you such a hard time." Pat said as she moved closer to where Kelly was standing.
Kelly smiled. "It’s okay. I know they are just trying to embarrass me. I thought about telling that we had wild sex thinking that would shut them up but I decided that would just bring a new round of even more embarrassing teasing."
Pat flushed at the thought of having sex with Kelly. She wondered how wild it would be. She looked up and saw Kelly watching her, her own face turning beat red from her embarrassment of her own thoughts. There eyes met and Pat was sure she saw a desire there that matched her own. Kelly quickly looked away. Pat cleared her throat. "I did come by to ask you to go the Paonia Cherry Festival this weekend. I have a house I have to go look at up there and I was going to the festival afterwards. I thought you might want to go."
Kelly studied her. Pat was being shy about asking her. Maybe this time she really wanted it to be a date. Kelly wanted to go. She really liked this woman’s company and she did things to Kelly’s insides. "I’d love to." Kelly said in a strong, confident voice that surprised her. She didn’t want Pat to have any doubts that wanted to go with her.
Pat looked up and met those incredible blue eyes. She smiled, "Great. I’ll pick you up around eight Saturday morning."
"Okay." Kelly smiled at her warmly. She couldn’t wait to get to spend the day with Pat again.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
The week had flown by. Rick had picked up several new jobs so they were all working overtime. At night, Kelly was still cleaning units for Marge and having dinner with her every evening. The two women had developed a strong bond. Kelly had never imagined that she would have someone in her life like Marge. She talked to her like a friend and a mother.
Kelly talked to Marge about her going to Paonia with Pat. Marge was very happy that she was going. Kelly wasn’t quite ready to talk to her about the way Pat made her feel but she knew when the time come she would be able to talk to Marge without Marge being prejudiced or hateful the way her own family would have been.
Kelly had worked until eleven o’clock that Friday night. Marge had a unit that needed cleaned because some tourist had called and booked the room. Kelly made sure it was spotless. She fell into her bed exhausted after she had finished cleaning and forgot to set her alarm. She woke to the sound of knocking on her door.
Jerking upright and grabbing her clock that read seven fifty-nine, Kelly cried, "Oh shit!" She jumped up out of bed and opened the door. "I’m so sorry. I forgot to set my alarm."
Pat smiled at her and looked her over. Her hair, that now had just streaks of blond and gray in the original auburn color, was sticking up and out every which way. She was wearing a long blue t-shirt that went down just past her underwear giving Pat a nice view of her shapely legs. Her eyes traveled back up and hesitated briefly at Kelly’s full breast that were clearly braless. She brought her eyes back up to Kelly’s face where Kelly was wearing a knowing grin.
Kelly couldn’t stop herself from teasing Pat, "Well, do I pass?"
Pat blushed but continued to look into Kelly’s eyes. "Most definitely." She cleared her throat and dropped Kelly’s gaze. "Why don’t you go ahead and get ready and I’ll wait outside."
"Don’t be silly," Kelly didn’t want Pat to wait outside. "Have seat somewhere," she motioned to the table and chairs and the bed, "Turn on the TV if you want. I’ll get us some coffee going before I hop in the shower." Kelly suddenly remembered Pat was supposed to be meeting someone to look at a house. "This is not going to make you late is it?"
Pat grinned, "No. I’m not supposed to meet them until ten-thirty. You go ahead and get in the shower and I’ll make the coffee, okay?"
Kelly was becoming more nervous about being in just her nightshirt. Pat was clearing enjoying the view because her eyes kept drifting to Kelly’s breasts. She decided that it was a good idea for her to go on into the bathroom and let Pat make the coffee. "Okay." She went to the dresser and dug out jeans and a t-shirt for the day. She pulled open the draw that had her underwear and bras. Out of the corner of her eye she saw Pat quickly look away but not before her eyes hesitated momentarily on Kelly’s behind that was almost exposed by her bending over to get into the drawer.
Kelly grinned at Pat’s embarrassed expression when she saw that Kelly was watching her out of the corner of her eye. She had men look at her in the past in a similar way that Pat had just done and it had always mad her feel disgusted. Pat’s look made her feel attractive.
Pat was busying herself with making coffee. She was still feeling the flush of arousal at seeing Kelly’s half naked body and the embarrassment of having been caught looking at her so openly. Pat was already having a hard time fighting her attraction for Kelly and seeing her like this had not helped. She has a beautiful body. She felt a new rush of arousal as she thought about her hands cupping Kelly’s full breasts. She shook her head to clear her thoughts just as Kelly passed her.
"I’ll be right out." Kelly said slipping into the bathroom and shutting the door.
Pat didn’t dare look at her because she knew her eyes would betray her. After she finished getting the coffee going, she turned the Weather Channel on and sat down at the table. There was no way she was sitting on the bed with her thoughts already going in the direction they were. She couldn’t remember the last time she had fallen so quickly for a woman. Kelly filled her thoughts all the time. She didn’t even really know her but she felt so comfortable with her that it scared her. She hadn’t really ever felt this comfortable with any of the other women she had dated.
She knew that she was falling for Kelly more and more every time they talked or spent a few minutes together. She knew that today could push her over the edge and she would be completely in love with this woman that she knew so little about. She didn’t even have any real clues as to how Kelly felt about her. She had caught her checking her out but that didn’t mean anything. What if Kelly was just seeing her as a friend? What if Kelly decided to go back home to her husband or get with another man? Pat didn’t think she could take going through all that again. Too many of the women she had dated in the past had done that. They had told her they loved her all the while they were just playing with her.
Kelly came out of the bathroom completely dressed. Her hair was a little damp which made it more attractive. She had put on a little bit of makeup and that perfume that Pat was growing to love.
Kelly stopped in the kitchen by the coffee maker and studied Pat’s face. She had a dark distant look that lightened just a little when her troubled brown eyes met Kelly’s. "Are you okay?"
Pat looked up at Kelly. Kelly’s beautiful concerned blue eyes searched Pat’s dark brown ones and Pat’s resolve melted. She knew she could not fight her attraction to this woman. It might mean that she was going to get hurt but she wasn’t going to be able to stop herself from taking a chance with Kelly. "I’m great. Do you have cups that we can take on the road?"
Kelly smiled when Pat smiled warmly at her, "Yeah."
They made their coffees together. Pat groaned when she saw how much sugar and creamer Kelly was putting in her cup. Kelly laughed, "I like to call it my coffee milkshake."
Pat crinkled her nose. "That’s appropriate. Do you even like the taste of coffee itself?"
Kelly laughed again, "Of course but I just like to tame it with the creamer and sugar."
Pat laughed and shook her head, "Well, whatever makes you happy."
Kelly continued to smile at Pat as she thought that being with Pat made her happy. She wasn’t ready to tell Pat that and was surprised by her own admission. She really liked Pat in a way that she had never liked anyone before. She wasn’t anything like anyone else she had ever known. She made her feel beautiful and intelligent. "You ready to hit the road?"
"Yeah," Pat’s smile fading only a little. She knew it was best for them to get going because if they stayed there too much longer she was not going to be able to stop herself from kissing Kelly’s luscious lips.
They left Kelly’s room and climbed into Pat’s jeep. It was a very warm already and Pat had the top off the Jeep. They buckled up and left the parking lot headed to the north. Kelly hadn’t been this way since she came down on the bus. It looked different now. It was much greener now that the fields were filled with plants.
"I had never really thought about Colorado as a place that grew much produce." Kelly commented as they drove through the farmland.
"Are you kidding? Colorado is the fifth largest potato growing state. We have all kinds of crops here. You’ve never heard of Olathe sweet corn?"
Kelly shook her head and shrugged, "You don’t hear about Colorado produce much in the South. We either grow our own stuff or it’s shipped up from Florida."
Pat shook her head, "Florida? We get our out of season stuff from California. I guess that is just because it’s closer than Florida.
"Makes sense." Kelly looked out the window at the mesas on the horizon.
"Do you like festivals?" Pat asked, bringing Kelly’s eyes to hers.
"I guess," Kelly said. "I haven’t really been to many."
"Well, you will this year." Pat stated glancing back at road. "We have all kinds of festivals out here and it will be a great way for you to try out Colorado produce and some good down home Colorado cooking." Pat smiled at Kelly who was trying to shade her eyes with her hand so she could see her in the bright sunlight, "I have an extra set of sunglasses in the glove box."
"Thank you," Kelly said, opening the glove box and pulling them out. "I didn’t think I was going to be able to see much after squinting all the way to Paonia in this bright sun.
Pat hated that Kelly was going to cover those beautiful blue eyes but she could tell that Kelly was having a hard time seeing and she didn’t want her to have a head ache when they got to Paonia. There would be too much to see and do today.
It took about an hour to get to Paonia and the streets were already filling up by the time they arrived. Kelly could smell cherry pie and her stomach growled so loud that Pat heard it.
"We better get you some food." She said with a laugh.
"No, I can wait until after you have your meeting about the house."
"Okay," Pat smiled and drove just a little ways out of town where the house that the owner wanted to list with her was. Kelly waited in the jeep while Pat and the owner walked around the property. A short while later Pat was shaking the guys hand and coming back to the jeep.
"Done already?" Kelly asked when Pat got into the jeep.
"Yep, ready to go check out this festival?"
"Let’s go."
Pat drove back into town and found a parking spot not too far from where the festival was set up downtown.
They began strolling around the festival and visiting all the booths. Pat knew some of the people from past dealings so there were people who called her by her first name.
Kelly was always surprised at how friendly people seemed here. She had never really gotten out to deal with anyone other than her family and what few friends she had back home so this was yet another new experience she was having due to Pat. She smiled over at the beautiful woman she was with as she talked to a lady about how she made her pie.
Pat caught Kelly watching her out of the corner of her eye. She smiled when she saw Kelly’s eyes travel appreciatively over her body. When Kelly’s eyes came back to hers, Pat gave her a knowing smile, making Kelly blush and turn away.
The day went by too quickly Kelly thought as they evening began coming on. Pat and she had been to every booth. Pat had bought four pies and three bottles of cherry wine. Kelly had also bought three bottles of cherry wine, two pies and two jars of cherry preserves. They had eaten all kinds of cherry dishes. Kelly had no idea that you could do so many things with cherries. The most bizarre was the cherry salsa. It was good and hot but Kelly couldn’t image wanting to have it with anything.
The drive back to Montrose was filled with talk about the bands that had played. They stopped in Delta and got deli sandwiches and coffee. They were almost back to Montrose when Kelly reached over and took Pat’s hand. "Thank you so much. I really had a great time today."
Pat squeezed her hand and smiled over at her, "I’m glad. I did too. I really enjoy your company."
Kelly’s smile broadened. "I enjoy yours too."
They pulled into the motel parking lot and in front of Kelly’s unit. "May I come in?" Pat asked quietly.
"Sure," Kelly said hopping out of the jeep and unlocking her room.
Pat brushed against her on the way in. "Do you mind if I use your rest room?"
"Not at all." Kelly said and began putting her goodies from the festival away.
Pat came back out and Kelly had poured them each a glass of wine. "Do you have time for a glass?" She asked, holding one of the glasses towards Pat.
Pat took the glass with a smile, "Yes. I have plenty of time." Pat wanted to stay all night with Kelly but she knew that they couldn’t do that tonight, or rather they shouldn’t. Pat sat down at the table and sipped her wine.
Kelly sat on the edge of the bed. She studied Pat as she sipped her wine. She seemed nervous, Kelly thought. She sipped her wine too and neither said anything. After a few minutes of Pat avoiding her eyes, Kelly asked, "Is everything okay?"
Pat looked at Kelly. She got up and moved in front of Kelly. She held out her hand and Kelly put her hand in it. Pat pulled her up so that they were standing toe to toe. Kelly set her wine down. "What is it?"
Pat studied Kelly’s concerned blue eyes. Pat reached up and caressed Kelly’s cheek as she looked down into those beautiful eyes. "I want this to be a date this time."
Kelly studied Pat’s dark brown eyes that seemed darker in their seriousness. She could also see something else there, something that was drawing her into Pat’s eyes. "I’d like that too."
Pat let out the breath she had been holding. She lowered her lips to Kelly’s and kissed her lightly. Kelly responded by pressing her lips to Pat’s. Pat pulled back for just a moment to look into Kelly’s eyes again.
Kelly knew that her eyes reflected the desire she was feeling. It was a sensation she was sure she had never felt it before. She could see the desire in Pat’s eyes. She could see Pat’s pulse throbbing at the base of her throat. Kelly put her lips on Pat’s neck where she saw the pulse beating wildly. Pat’s heartbeat fluttered against Kelly’s lips. She gently sucked at Pat’s neck then followed Pat’s pulse up to her ear.
Pat let out a low moan. She pulled Kelly’s lips to hers and kissed her. When Kelly opened her lips in a soft sigh, Pat slipped her tongue past the open lips. Kelly’s tongue met hers and they danced together inside Kelly’s mouth.
Pat’s hands dropped from Kelly’s face to her hips and pulled her into Pat’s overheated body. Kelly moaned again at the contact and kissed Pat more passionately, sucking Pat’s tongue into her mouth.
Pat moved Kelly backwards a few inches until her legs hit the bed. Kelly instinctively laid back and pulled Pat on top of her. Pat couldn’t stop her hands from seeking out Kelly’s full breasts. She cupped them through Kelly’s blouse and moved her lips down Kelly’s neck. She pushed Kelly’s shirt up and ran her thumbs over the hard nipples straining against Kelly’s bra.
Kelly shifted her legs so Pat could slide her leg in between hers. Kelly moaned deeply when Pat’s thigh pressed into her. She cupped Pat’s hips, pulling her more firmly into her.
Pat could feel the heat from Kelly against her leg. She had told herself to take this slowly but she wanted Kelly so much right now that she didn’t think she would be able to stop herself taking what Kelly was freely offering. Pat pulled back and looked into Kelly’s eyes, so trusting. She knew that she had to stop before they went to far. She had been here before and knew that Kelly would let her make love to her then regret it tomorrow. "You have no idea how much I want to make love to you."
Kelly saw Pat’s withdrawal in her eyes before she pulled further away, "But…"
"But," Pat said after she rolled off of Kelly and pulled her up to a sitting position next to her on the bed. "I’ve been here before and I always end up being the one who gets hurt. I like you a lot, a lot more than I should for only knowing you such a short time. There’s something special about you, I saw it that first day at Wal-Mart. But, I’ve been involved with straight women before, married women, and I promised myself I wouldn’t do that again."
Kelly sat up straighter, "I see."
"Do you?" Pat asked trying to see Kelly’s eyes but she wouldn’t look at Pat. "I don’t want to make the same mistakes I’ve made in the past Kelly. I’ve been hurt, other people have been hurt and I just can’t go through that again."
Kelly turned at looked into her eyes. Pat was giving her a pleading look for her to understand. "I do understand." Kelly said taking Pat’s hand in hers. "I don’t plan on hurting you but I understand your fear. I’m afraid too. I’ve never been with anyone but my husband so I have no idea what I’m doing but I know that you make me feel things that I’ve never felt before. Like you said, from that first time in Wal-Mart, there was something about you that I couldn’t put my finger on but it was like we had met before."
"Yeah, exactly," Pat agreed. She smiled warmly at Kelly, "So, is it okay if we slow things down and go out on a few more dates before we take the next step?" Pat asked motioning to the bed.
Kelly smiled back and brought Pat’s knuckles to her lips, "Yes, I would like that very much."
Pat stood and pulled Kelly up with her. She kissed her lightly on the lips. "I’m going to get going but I’ll call you when I get home."
"Okay."
Pat went to the door and Kelly followed. She turned and kissed Kelly again. "Lock up."
"I will, you be care driving." Kelly shut and locked the door behind Pat. She watched as she turned around and drove away. She lay down on the bed and ran her hands over her body. She still felt like she was on fire everywhere that Pat had touched her. She didn’t know what was happening to her but she knew that she had wanted Pat to make love to her. Pat was right though; they needed to take things slowly.