Disclaimers: All characters referenced in this story are mine and mine alone. Any similarities between them and anyone else living, dead, or fictional, is purely accidental/coincidental. Basically, hands off without my permission-pretty please.
Warnings: No violence, sorry. This does involve a look at loving relationships between women. If this is not your style, you are under 18, or if this is not legal where you live: Either don’t read it, don’t get caught reading it, or forget you ever saw this stuff.
For those who think lesbianism is wrong -sorry, perhaps one day after we cure stuff like cancer and AIDS we’ll work on stupidity-until then, don’t read and don’t flame.
Sex: Of course-not in all sections but it does happen now and again.
Anything I missed? Fill in the blanks or email me.
All comments, questions, suggestions and nice stuff are LOVED!
Jeaninehemail-public@yahoo.com
Saturday morning dawned clear and temperate, with the forecast calling for nothing higher than seventy-four degrees. Jay met her father downstairs for a quick breakfast. They grabbed their gym bags and headed for the club. There was a wonderful feeling of homecoming for Jay. It was at this club that she had learned to play golf while still a child. She didn’t take the time to play much anymore, but she kept promising to make more time. Jay and her father went to their respective locker rooms, after agreeing on a place to meet. Jay tossed her gear in her locker, and changed into the soft spike golf shoes favored by most courses these days.
I must be getting nostalgic. I really miss the clickity clack of those metal spikes, thought Jay with a wry grin. She understood the need for saving the greens and fairways but thought that there was something to be said for tradition as well.
Her father signed them in, got a cart, and they headed out to the range to warm up while waiting for their tee time. Steve watched his powerfully built daughter as she placed a ball on the tee and lined up her shot. He noticed one of the golf pros watching her as well, and smiled to himself. He might never get used to people hitting on his daughter, but realized that most of the time she was oblivious to both men and women who made advances.
“Nice shot honey!” he called to her. She smiled and waved before rolling another ball onto the green mat and switched to her seven iron. The golf pro walked up to Jay and smiled, after Jay hit her shot.
“Nice form, try keeping your head down a bit longer.” she said. Jay looked up, startled, having been so focused that she hadn’t noticed the attractive golf pro walking up.
“Um, thanks. Perhaps you would like to show me what you mean?” Jay suggested. The pro took the club from Jay and set a ball down on the mat. As she settled herself into the shot, Jay watched, smirking, as she noticed that the pro had quite a nice form herself. The pro hit the shot, keeping her head down a bit longer and getting a much cleaner shot than Jay had managed. Jay smiled and took the proffered club saying, “I see what you mean. Nice shot. I don’t suppose you would have time later for a lesson?”
The woman grinned and extended her hand, “I’d be happy to make room for you in my schedule. I’m Riley.” Jay took the hand, noticing how strong and firm her grip was.
“Nice to meet you, I’m Jay. I have a tee time coming up with my father, but perhaps a little later? In fact, maybe you could join me for a late lunch to discuss the details?” Jay didn’t usually ask women out, but seeing Bailey had rattled her and she wanted to forget. Riley’s smile grew and she agreed to meet Jay at the club’s dining room around two. With a final wave, Riley walked off and Steve approached his daughter.
“So, does this mean you’re going to ditch your old man after the round?” He grinned as he said it, letting her know that he was fine with her plans.
Jay blushed slightly but said, “I hope you don’t mind Dad, we’re going to talk about golf lessons at lunch.”
“Jay, I seriously doubt either of you thinks that you need lessons in golf. I think it’s about time you had a social life. You join Riley, and I’ll have lunch with a few of my friends here. We can meet after lunch and ride home together, unless you decide to make other arrangements.”
“Dad! It’s not as if I’m going back to her place after lunch! I’ll gladly meet you to get a ride. Then I’ll have to get back to my place and do some work that’s been piling up.” The father and daughter gathered their clubs and got ready to make their tee time.
#
Jay squinted into the sun, as she judged the distance on her approach to the 18th green. She decided to use her six iron and try to land on the green. If she gave it a little extra, she should just manage to avoid the sand trap at the front of the green, and still land close to the pin. She lined up her shot, settled in, and after taking a deep breath, she exhaled as she began her swing.
She and her father watched as the ball sailed towards the green and she started muttering “Lay up, just lay up!”
Much to her delighted surprise, the shot was perfect. The ball landed just past the pin and started rolling down the slight incline towards the cup. She jumped when she saw the ball nudge into the cup, between the pin and the side of the cup. Her father high-fived her, and they headed towards his ball. His shot hit the sand trap and they both groaned. When they approached the green, Jay recognized Riley among the group watching the 18th green from the verandah of the clubs dining area. After they finished the hole, they dropped off their golf bags with the pro shop, and Jay headed to the locker room to shower and change.
Jay hurried through her preparations, suddenly feeling nervous about her lunch date. What has gotten in to me? she wondered. This was so unlike her, especially at her parents’ club. Granted they had never acted ashamed of her or asked her to be anything but exactly who she was, so Jay wondered when she had gotten so uptight. Maybe I’ve been around Sharon too much at work. Her and that that giant closet she lives in. She ran a brush quickly through her hair and pulled it up into a ponytail, not taking the time for her usual French braid. She took a deep breath as she headed for the dining room to look for Riley.
Spotting her sitting on the verandah Jay walked over to her and smiled. “Is this seat taken?”
Grinning up at her Riley motioned for her to sit down and remarked, “Nice shot on the 18th. I guess you might not need lessons after all.”
“Lessons?” queried Jay. “Oh right, lessons. I might not, since I don’t plan on joining the LPGA anytime soon.” They both chuckled and Riley started to speak as the waiter approached their table. She hesitated while he filled their water glasses, informed them of the specials, and left with their drink orders.
“I may be presuming, but I didn’t accept your invitation to lunch because I thought you needed lessons,” admitted Riley.
Jay chuckled, “Good, that isn’t why I asked you to lunch. I think we’re on the same page.”
Riley smiled and Jay noticed her dimples for the first time. She figured Riley stood about five ten, and she hadn’t failed to notice the reddish gold hair caught back into a ponytail, the grey eyes, or the athletic build of her lunch companion. They both relaxed a little and started discussing the menu and specials. After giving the waiter their orders, they lapsed into silence for a moment and both started to speak at once. Laughing, Jay motioned for Riley to go first.
“I was just going to ask why I haven’t seen you here before. You obviously love golf.”
“My parents are the regulars, though we’re all members. I just don’t have a lot of time to come out and play. I’m hoping that things change so that I can enjoy more time out here with my folks.”
Jay sipped her water, then asked, “I understand from my father that you were a touring Pro. What made you give that up to teach amateurs who just use this as another place to do business?”
“Truth?”
Jay nodded at her.
“I hate being mediocre! I was a middle of the pack finisher more of the time. Good enough to make a decent living, but not good enough to place and get the big endorsements or paychecks. Pretty soon, I was worn down by all that travel and I was starting to miss out on things that were important to me.”
Jay responded, “I can understand the first part, but what were you missing out on?”
“I have a sister with a son who lives near here, and I didn’t want to miss him growing up,” said Riley. “I wasn’t good enough to make it to the top of the tour, but I am very good at watching people and breaking down their swings. I can help others understand how they can improve their game and their enjoyment of the game. I really enjoy my work here. And,” she said with a note of pride in her voice, “I’m one of the best instructors in the area now.”
They started discussing their families, growing up, and exchanged their coming out stories. Jay didn’t like to mention her past with Bailey, but for some reason she felt comfortable with Riley.
“I guess the real reason I came out to my parents was that I was in love with my best friend and she left me.”
Riley looked at her with an understanding expression, “You were lovers then?”
“Not exactly, let’s just say that she left the state to get away from me, and I was drunk when I came out to my Dad.”
“Ouch! I guess it all worked out though. You and your father are obviously close now.”
“Yeah, I’m lucky. Both of my parents are very supportive. I’m not exactly a spokesperson for GLBT rights at work, and they don’t understand it since they have no problems with my lesbianism.”
Riley looked at her with a steady gaze. “What do you do for a living that you would need a spokesperson?”
“I’m in a conservative financial institution and they aren’t all that fond of anything they don’t understand. My boss is a woman, hiding deep in her closet and it makes it hard to be around her sometimes since I know about her but no one else does.” Jay explained what her boss had done at that concert long ago, and how she dealt with it since.
“Doesn’t that make having any friends at work difficult?” asked Riley.
”Well, I don’t really have a lot of time right now anyway, with our department being short handed. I have some friends there and I’m open about who I am, just not obvious about it. I’m busy trying to expand our portfolio at the same time, so you can imagine the hours I put in. So, I’m not exactly hiding my life. I just don’t have much of one.” Jay gave a rueful smile and added, “I’m hoping things change soon, but for now, I do what I have to do.”
As they ate their lunch, they continued to talk and discovered they had similar interests in theatre and music. However, Riley was shocked at Jay’s lack of knowledge of current lesbian fiction.
“It isn’t like I have a lot of personal reading time,” protested Jay. “I read, but mostly current affairs and business related studies. I can’t even recall the last time I made a trip to the gayborhood.”
Riley said in a mock stern voice, “That’s it young lady, no more of this nonsense. Next week I’m personally going to guide you back into the world of lesbians!” Her face paled as she realized what she had said, she backpedaled a little, “Uh, I mean if you’re free. I was thinking we could have a casual dinner and hit the bookstore.” Riley blushed as she talked, half-afraid to look Jay in the eyes. Jay just sat there until she was done, and answered by writing down her cell phone number and giving it to Riley.
“Call me and we can set up a time and place to meet. Tuesday or Wednesday would work best for me, but we can decide when you have a chance to look over your schedule.” Jay hesitated, but decided it was only fair to be honest. “Look, I know we started out very flirtatious, and I’ve really enjoyed this time getting to know you. I would like to see you again but I’m not sure if I’m interested in, or available enough, for a romantic involvement. Can we try being friends and see what happens?”
Riley grinned at her, showing off her dimples again. “That’s cool, I appreciate the honesty. I won’t lie, I certainly find you attractive. But I think I would enjoy getting to know you better before we make any decisions about anything else. Besides, I’m the new girl in town. I need all the friends I can get!”
They parted with a hug and a promise to get together that week. Jay joined her father as they watched Riley walk back to the clubhouse.
“Have a good time, honey?”
“Yeah, Dad, she’s really nice and easy to talk to, not something I find a lot.” They gathered their belongings and headed for the parking lot.
“Well, I think you two looked good together” he stated emphatically.
Jay groaned, playfully shoving her father’s shoulder. “Don’t go sending out invitations just yet Dad. We’ve agreed to be friends and see if anything else develops. I’m not looking for anything serious and she’s cool with my choice. It’ll be nice to have a friend with no connection to work though.”
#
After a quick goodbye to her parents, Jay headed back to Philadelphia. She had a condominium in Old City, known for its artist enclaves and historical architecture. Jay loved living in her renovated warehouse condominium. She pulled into her building’s underground parking area and bounded up the stairs up to her second floor unit. Letting herself in and dropping her briefcase on the couch, she headed in to her bedroom to change clothes. Her bedroom was decorated in calming blues and greys, with a queen sized oak sleigh bed, and an antique wardrobe. She looked out of her large windows and could see the river traffic passing by.
Standing in the doorway to her walk-in closet, she tossed her clothes from the overnight bag into two bags. One was the dry-cleaning bag, the other her regular hamper. Noticing that the hamper was filling up, she emptied it into a laundry basket. After she changed into sweatpants and a tee shirt, she carried her laundry to the laundry room. As she tossed in a load of whites, she was startled by the telephone. She listened as her machine picked up and she heard her mother’s voice.
“Honey, we had a visitor this morning and—”
She grabbed the phone, “Hi Mom, I’m here, I was just starting some laundry. What’s going on, you can’t miss me already can you?” joked Jay.
“Sorry honey, I didn’t mean to interrupt, but Bailey dropped by just after you left. Apparently, she wanted to talk to you before you left and asked if we could pass along her number for you to call her. I didn’t give her your number, was that okay?” Her mother was sounding protective again, not necessarily a bad thing, but she didn’t want her folks placed in the middle of any issues she and Bailey had.
“That’s fine Mom, let me have the number and I’ll call her so she doesn’t bother you anymore.”
After writing down the number for Bailey’s cell phone, Jay hung up and went to the kitchen to get a drink. She opted for a beer after a moment of thought, pulling a Yuengling lager out and pouring it into a frosted mug she pulled from her freezer. Sitting down in her living room, she pulled out her files, laptop, and cell phone, setting up her usual weekend workspace. Turning on her digital cable music station of choice, the Retro station, she leaned back, took a few sips of beer, and made her first decision of her working time. She decided to call Bailey, but only after getting through her e-mails.
An hour later, her beer long finished, her inbox was empty, and Jay reluctantly picked up her phone. She really didn’t want to call, but she also didn’t want Bailey to go back to her parents’ house looking for her. She glanced at the number, noting that Bailey had been here long enough to get a local cell number. As the phone rang, Jay’s palms started to sweat. She berated herself for letting this woman from her past get to her this way. Of course, this wasn’t just any woman. This was the woman, the one she always thought of as “the one.” Even after all that had happened, there was no denying that the pull was as strong as ever.
She left her thoughts as she heard Bailey answer with an efficient, “This is Bailey.”
“Hi” Jay paused to gather her thoughts, “its Jay. I heard you were looking for me.”
“Jay! I’m so glad you called me, I was wondering how else to reach you since you aren’t listed, and I didn’t want to wait to call you at work.” Bailey gave a little laugh and sounded nervous as she continued, “The thing is, I know I don’t deserve this but, I was hoping we could talk, you know, outside of work or family gatherings. I don’t expect you to agree but I really would like the chance to talk, even if it’s just for an hour somewhere over coffee. I’m sorry, I’m babbling.” Bailey trailed off, her heart racing a mile a minute as she waited for a response.
“Actually, that might be a good idea. You may not have gotten it yet, but you will be receiving an offer letter from the company shortly. Before you decide, I think we should talk about the reality of working in the same department.” Bailey was a little taken aback by the quick agreement to meet but she didn’t miss the icy, all business tone of voice.
“Um, great, I’m totally wide open, when and where would you like to meet?” asked Bailey.
Jay thought for a minute, I certainly don’t want Bailey in my home. However, there aren’t too many places I’ll feel secure talking with her. She quickly decided on Fairmount Park. They could walk along Kelly Drive and be fairly anonymous. She relayed the information and they set a time for the next day at ten in the morning. After hanging up Jay tried to put the next day out of her head and deal with work. As usual, work was her solution for everything. Jay worked until early in the morning on a new training program she was developing for use in the branches before finally going to bed. She barely remembered to set her alarm and quickly fell asleep.