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Going to Cynthia's (unfinished)

Cynthia leaned her left shoulder against the door jam of Bob's office,
casually crossing her right leg over her left. Bob was intent on the
screen in front of him and had not noticed her perch there. She gently
rapped on the door with the back of her hand to get his attention.

"Oh. Hi, Cynthia. I didn't see you standing there. Come on in." Bob
quickly hit a few key strokes as she took two steps into the room. He
looked up and wondered if she had seen the Internet porn which had been
on his screen moments earlier. Scanning her face, he couldn't tell one
way or the other. "Typical Cynthia," he thought to himself, "always the
perfect poker face."

"Have a seat," he said extending his arm across the desk to refer to one
of the chairs on the other side.

Grabbing the back of the closest chair, Cynthia pulled it a bit further
from his desk and in a single motion moved her body around the arm of
the chair and sat down. "How's it goin', Robert?" she asked, putting on
a pleasant smile. Not overtly friendly or fake, just enough to make Bob
wonder what was on her mind. It was the way to play her boss and she
knew the routine well.

"Fine. Fine." Bob's eyes narrowed slightly trying to read her. "What can
I do for you?"

"I planned on using some of my comp time to take the afternoon off this
Friday, and I wanted to run it by you. You know, make sure you didn't
have anything special going on which I shouldn't miss."

Cynthia's tone was casual enough, but there was a hint of something
hidden in it. Bob decided to pry further. "Hot date?"

The smile on Cynthia's face broadened betraying her thoughts of Jo's
impending visit. "Well what if it was? Does my sex life have any
bearing on my employment here, Bob?" The question was pointed and there
was no mistaking its intent.

"Not any more," Bob responded curtly and just slightly under his breath.
She had hit that spot where he knew he should not pursue further.

"Well, that's a relief." The sarcasm in Cynthia's voice put an edge on
the words as she held back a chuckle. She had him under her thumb and
he was squirming, so she let off the pressure just a bit.

"I have a friend coming to town to visit for the week. She's a teacher
and I think she forgets the rest of us have to work normal hours in the
summer." Cynthia paused a moment, just long enough to notice Bob was
starting to relax, so she continued. "She invited herself to stay with
me, which is fine, but she's going to be here around four and I thought
I would take the earlier part of the afternoon to pick up some stuff at
the grocery and tidy the house a bit. I've kind of let it fall apart
some with the hours I've been working to get our latest AVS system
going for our site." Indeed, Cynthia had been working a lot of hours.
Bob had noticed her still at her desk every evening for the past week
when he was headed out. He allowed himself to think back to the days he
would stay late, making up any reason to have time alone with her. Now
she made it too uncomfortable, so he stopped trying. "Well, you
certainly do deserve the comp time. You probably have several days
coming to you."

Not one to let the opportunity pass lightly, Cynthia took the
opportunity to get the rest of what she wanted. "Now that you mention
it, I have somewhere around eight days of comp time from just the past
month. Things are going smoothly now with Merchant Services on our
site. As a matter of fact, I hoped I might also get to use some more
comp time next week while she's around. We don't get to see each other
often."

"Well, if the AVS system is all set and you could be available by phone,
I don't see why you can't catch up on some R and R. Take what you need.
I have nothing new planned for the next couple weeks."

"I'll definitely keep that in mind. I suspect her classes will not run
all day so I might make my schedule here match hers. Even if I take
time off during the week, I'll be around home or town. Customer service
knows my cell." Cynthia started thinking about what she and Jo might do
with extra time in the afternoon and possibly of a few extra hours of
sleeping in for herself after Jo left for class.

"You have any particular plans for your friend's visit?" Bob asked,
trying to keep the conversation going.

"Not much to do around here. If the weather's nice we might go for a
ride or a hike or something. I haven't seen her in ages, so we'll
probably spend time catching up and talking. You know, girl stuff."

"Girl stuff." Bob echoed. He tried to imagine Cynthia, the
quintessential tom boy, doing girl stuff.

"What? Is there a problem with that?"

"Problem?" The question startled him. "No not a problem. I was just
trying to picture what you would be like doing girl stuff."

Cynthia shrugged and started to get out of the chair to head back to
work. The conversation was deteriorating and she realized she had
probably missed a more ideal time to leave.

"Whatever happened to us, Cynthia?"

Bob's question made Cynthia turn sharply and sit back down in the chair.
" Us?" she asked incredulously.

"Yeah. You and me. We had something really great going for a while.
Whatever happened to that?"

"Well, Bob," Cynthia drew out his name, "I think it might have had
something to do with that marriage counselor."

"Marriage coun..." Bob trailed off. "Oh, you mean Molly's counselor." He
chuckled at Cynthia's ‘joke' even though he knew it was at his own
expense. His wife, Molly, had gone to a marriage counselor because she
had suspected he was seeing someone else. The day she confronted him
was the worst day of his life.

"Yeah. Molly's counselor. Look, Bob," Cynthia tried to let him go easy,
" the sex was great, but you can't lie to everyone in your life and
think it will work for long. If you really need to go through this
again, I'll close the door and we can talk. Otherwise, I have work to
do before Friday and I should get back to it." She looked at him as
sincerely as she could. It was hard not to pity the guy. Since Molly
left him, he could be downright pathetic. The porn on his monitor
minutes ago had not escaped her notice. Bob was good with the
commercial clients the company needed though, and as long as she had a
regular paycheck and he behaved, she didn't see any reason to care what
he did to stay occupied in the office.

Bob dropped his head in shame. He had told her he and his wife had an
open marriage and she was fine with whomever he wanted to date. Cynthia
had fallen for it and he truly felt bad for lying to her. Since then
she had made it clear it was too late for apologies. "No, don't worry
about it. You should get back to work," he consented. He put on his
best "please don't go" eyes and pout and looked back up.

She was out of her chair and headed for the door before he got up the
nerve to look back into her eyes. It was clear from his tone he really
wanted to talk, but Cynthia didn't want to give him a second chance.
Her arm reached back and started to close the door. She stopped a
moment and thought about trying to say something to console him, maybe
say something about accepting his apology and moving on, then thought
better of it. The door shut tight behind her as she walked back to her
office.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

The single-lane, dirt road was shaded with a canopy of hardwoods. Only
the slightest arrows of sunlight slipped between the leaves. In her
rearview mirror the same road extended behind until it disappeared at
the top of a hill. Jo rolled to a stop by a leaning cedar pole with a
large rural mailbox perched on top Box 290 - Davids
hand-lettered on the side. Putting her car in park, she let the engine
idle and looked around to make sure no one would see her as she psyched
herself up for this visit. "I guess she does live in the middle of
nowhere," Jo thought to herself.

Cynthia's house was not visible from the road, but her presence was
already palpable to Jo. "This is a good place to prepare," she thought.
" Like taking those ten minutes just before class, away from the
students, to empty my mind, review the plan, and be ready for whatever
comes my way. I know when I'm on how well class goes. I can be strong,
and get through this."

Her shoulders slumped as she released her breath. "But what am I even
preparing for? I have no idea what it will be like to be with Cynthia
again? Will it pick up where we left off...? I don't even know where
that was."

Jo hadn't seen Cynthia in over a year, not since the road trip to the
Lilith Festival in Syracuse. "Now that was an interesting trip," Jo
thought as she recalled rediscovering her physical attraction to
Cynthia. She hadn't told Cynthia of the physical responses her body had
to seeing her come out of the hotel bathroom in just a towel, or how
she continued to fantasize about holding on to Cynthia on the long
motorcycle ride home. "But why not?" Jo chastised herself. It seemed
Cynthia knew, but Jo just couldn't be sure. Just the remembrance of the
trip brought a swell of heat between her legs. She gripped the steering
wheel with both hands and looked down at her lap. She squeezed until
the sweat practically extruded from her palms. How could her body
betray her like this? It wasn't right to feel this way. "I love
Mitchell," Jo muttered out loud, as if to tell this other self, this
stranger, it did not belong in her body. She dropped her forehead to
the steering wheel between her clenched hands and closed her eyes.

"She must feel the same way. I can see it in her eyes. That time with
the towel... I swore she caught me looking. I can feel it when I'm
holding on to her on the bike, but she never has to just hold on to me.
Why does that woman drive me so crazy?"

Jo looked up expecting the windshield might answer her. She waited a
moment. Maybe it needed time to think about what she said. "But you
know, Jo," wagging her index finger in the air, "she was your first
love. The one who taught you to love yourself -- the one you didn't
realize you had a crush on until it was years past -- the one that
happened in an impossible time and impossible place."

Jo snorted. "Impossible alright. Back then it was the stuff we whispered
about after lights out." She could remember how mysterious the word
" lesbian" sounded in the middle of that Girl Scout camper gossip ring.
The other girls were talking about the two directors who lived the
whole summer in a tent down near the mess hall. Someone's sister had a
friend who had a tent mate from two years ago that snuck down with
another camper... then their voices would get even quieter, but in
hindsight they didn't seem to know much of anything, really.

"I am not a lesbian," Jo forcefully told her windshield. It didn't seem
to care. "Shit, I don't even know what that means." Jo reached over to
her purse and grabbed the e-mail with the directions to Cynthia's
house. She unfolded the well worn papers she had printed off and
stapled. "I swear half the girls in my classes these days are dating
other women. I don't even think they know what it means to be a
lesbian. Good argument, Jo. That helps. Not."

Having each replied to the preceding e-mail, the paper contained a
recorded dialog which Jo read again, the same words she had obsessed
over a hundred times before.

>>>>>>From: Jacobs, Belinda J.
>>>>>>To: Cynthia Davids
>>>>>>I'm coming down to XXXXX College for a ten day seminar on Women
>>>>>>in Leadership. Since I was going to be in your neck of the
>>>>>>woods, I thought it might
>>>>>>be more fun to hang out at your place than stay in some hotel.
>>>>>>Will you be around July 7 - 17?
>>>>>>Jo
>>>>>
>>>>>From: Cynthia Davids
>>>>>To: Jacobs, Belinda J.
>>>>>That sounds awesome!! Guess I'll need to go out and buy a guest
>>>>>bed. Unless you
>>>>>don't mind sharing with me. Not making any promises how
>>>>>comfortable that will
>>>>>be.
>>>>>Cynthia
>>>>
>>>>From: Jacobs, Belinda J.
>>>>To: Cynthia Davids
>>>>Hmmm. I've never slept with a woman before. ;)
>>>>I don't want to make you spend money or put you out for my visit.
>>>>I could stay at a
>>>>hotel and visit with you for some meals and a couple evenings. \
>>>>Maybe we could
>>>>rent a movie or something.
>>>>Jo
>>>
>>>From: Cynthia Davids
>>>To: Jacobs, Belinda J.
>>>Never slept with a woman before, huh? Me either. But I do wonder
>>>what it would be
>>>like. Do you ever think about it?
>>>Cynthia
>>
>>From: Jacobs, Belinda J.
>>To: Cynthia Davids
>>I'll get a hotel and we'll catch up while I'm there.
>>Jo
>
>From: Cynthia Davids
>To: Jacobs, Belinda J.
>Nonsense. If you are that worried about it, I have mats from hiking
>and a
>pretty comfortable couch. I promise I won't go out and spend money.
>Take route 9 west out of downtown. You'll see Tori Lane fork off to
>the
>right. Take Tori Lane for two miles. It turns to dirt just before
>County Road
>is on your left. I'm 1.25 miles out County Road. You'll see my
>mailbox,
>Box 290 on the right. Can't wait to see you again!
>Cynthia
From: Jacobs, Belinda J. To: Cynthia Davids
I'll leave after lunch here and see you Friday about four. Let me know
if there's any problem with that. Thanks for having me.

Jo

"There you go, Jo, slick move on dropping the subject. How many chances
did you miss, girl? You could have asked her if she wondered what it
would be like to be with you. You can lecture a hundred students and
get high off the adrenaline, but try to say one thing that might be out
of line with Cynthia and you trip over your words because your mouth is
parched. You're such a fucking flirt, Jo. You wouldn't even know what
to do if she came right out and told you she was attracted to you."

Jo stuffed the e-mail back in her purse and looked out her passenger
window at nothing in particular. "How would we even get started?" Jo
thought hard to put a daydream in her head but none came. "I wish I
could clear my mind this much before class. Okay, forget that. What
would we do if we ever got past that?" She started envisioning herself
and Cynthia in various situations but invariably she could not get past
more than holding and kissing. It wasn't that it was gross, she just
couldn't think of any real models for what her body seemed to want.

"I don't even know what I mean when I say I'm attracted to her," Jo
mumbled before dropping her head back to the steering wheel. "I can't
even get past first base in a daydream." A deep sigh heaved from her
chest.

The sound of a car crunching along the dirt road ahead saved Jo from her
failed pep talk. As she lifted her head and opened her eyes she could
see it slowly rounding the bend in the road ahead. She stretched to
look at her face in the rearview mirror, pushed her hair back into
place, and came back to reality. Reaching down she put her car in gear
and slowly turned into Cynthia's driveway so the oncoming car could
pass comfortably. As she drove along Cynthia's winding dirt driveway,
Jo thought about the letters Cynthia would write while the house
project was underway.

"I finally have electricity," Cynthia wrote. "Three years of living on
gas lights... it is amazing how I once took the light switch for
granted. I spent an entire 40 minutes this afternoon turning the light
switch in my kitchen on and off, on and off. It was as though
electricity was invented right there. I had control of it. When I
wanted light, I only had to move a small lever up. On my will I could
make it dark again, as though I controlled the sun and the way the
Earth moved to demand it rise and set on my command."

Yes, Jo thought to herself, Cynthia had that way about her; a way of
turning on the sun, even on the most overcast days and starless nights.
Jo was always amazed with all the things Cynthia seemed to be able to
accomplish. They seemed extraordinary compared to her own, more
traditional, accomplishments. So, when Cynthia's house came into sight,
it was not so much a surprise, but Jo was awestruck at this testimony
to her friend's creativity and ability.

It was a small house, compared the two story homes in Jo's suburban
neighborhood. Unlike her own house, a cookie cutter design used for all
the homes on her street, this house was unique. It wasn't a rectangle,
but had parts which stuck out at angles and roof lines which went
different directions. The natural siding was stained gray and a wide
wooden deck hugged the house on all sides. The angles of the exterior
walls worked with the deck as it wound around the house, up and down,
following the natural contours of the earth. The house seemed a part of
the land around it, almost as thought it was meant to be there.

Jo parked her car next to Cynthia's pick-up in the driveway and turned
off the ignition. She gathered her jacket and purse from the passenger
seat of the car and opened her door, stepping out onto the gravel of
Cynthia's driveway. Closing the door behind her she walked up the
winding steps to the front door. Before she had a chance to knock, the
door swung open and Cynthia was standing before her.

"Looks like you found me alright." Cynthia stepped through the door way
and wrapped her arms around her friend then took a step back to take in
the sight of her friend. Jo always looked so together. She always wore
neatly pressed shirts and slacks. Her hair was always styled around her
face just so without a single hair astray.

"It wasn't that hard. Your directions were perfect." Jo followed
Cynthia's lead and returned the embrace then stayed on the deck while
Cynthia stepped back into the doorway. As always, Cynthia looked at
ease in her jeans and tee shirt. "Moto Guzzi" was printed in big gold
letters with a red outline across her chest. A broad bird emblem
hovered over the letters. It looked just like the logo on Cynthia's
motorcycle. A wide black leather belt tucked her jeans in at her waist.
In her bare feet, her green eyes were exactly even with Jo's. Her hair
was pulled back in a simple pony tail with a barrette at the base of
her neck.

"Well come on in, I'll show you around." Cynthia gestured broadly and Jo
followed her friend inside.

As Jo's eyes adjusted to the level of the interior light she looked
around at the great open expanse of room in front of her. The main
living area of Cynthia's house was a wide open space. To her left was a
dining area. Past that a kitchen separated from the dining area by an
island with pots and pans hanging from a rack suspended from the
cathedral ceiling. Ahead was a sunken den with tall windows on a
southern exposure wall while skylights in the ceiling let the light
stream in on the many plants and trees situated throughout the entire
space. To her right a computer desk and exercise equipment filled the
section a step up from the entryway.

Everything was constructed with natural materials and blended as though
the space were an extension of the outdoors. The rough beams on the
ceiling and walls were wide and exposed. All the walls around the big
room were tongue-in-groove yellow pine. A rust-colored spiral staircase
in the far right of the den twisted up to a loft over the rooms behind
the doors.

"You can throw your jacket and stuff on my computer chair," Cynthia
directed when Jo finally seemed get her bearings inside the house.

"Your house is amazing!" Jo said in honest admiration.

"Thank you. It suits me." Cynthia started walking to the kitchen leaving
Jo in the entryway. "Can I get you anything to drink?"

"Uh, water would be fine." Jo stepped up to the computer space and
neatly folded her jacket over the back of the chair and set her purse
on its seat. She looked around some more, trying to take in all the
intricacies of her friend's creation.

"Suit yourself." Cynthia reached into one of the cabinets next to the
sink and produced a glass. "Would you like ice?"

"Sure. Ice is good."

"I'll give you the nickel tour in a minute. Why don't you have a seat in
the den?"

"I've been sitting for the past three hours. I think I need to stretch a
bit." Jo stepped back down into the entry way then took the steps down
into the den. A brown leather couch stretched along the side of the
room near the step. On the other side of the steps a matching brown
leather recliner nested between a twisting tree and a small table piled
high with books. Jo cocked her head to the side to read the titles.
The Wind Done Gone was perched on top and easy to read as it was
resting on its open pages. Underneath that a thick black soft cover had
a well broken binding on which Jo could just make out Five Hundred
Years of Western Civilization. There were several others whose
bindings were facing away from Jo, but on the very bottom was a small
hardcover with a white jacket, its title The Story of O was in
simple black text. Interesting selections, Jo thought, trying to
synchronize the significance of the titles with what she knew of her
friend.

Cynthia filled the glass with ice from the freezer and retrieved a
bottle of beer from the fridge for herself. "I don't have anything but
tap water here, but I've got a good well. Better than that chlorinated
town stuff you probably have."

"That's fine." Jo looked away from the books and across the den to the
kitchen. Cynthia had the glass under the spigot and was filling it with
water. Between them a stack of CDs sat on top of a stereo. Jo walked
between a glass topped coffee table and the leather couch to
investigate.

Grabbing a bottle opener from a drawer, Cynthia watched Jo looking at
the CDs. She opened her beer and tossed the cap in the trash. "Feel
free to pick out some music."

"Okay." Jo looked up and met Cynthia's eyes. "Any suggestions?"

"It's my music collection. I like everything there." Cynthia handed the
glass of water over the stereo while Jo picked up the CDs one at a time
as much to learn about her friend as to choose music. They had been
friends for so long, but Jo felt there was so much she didn't know
about her friend she wanted to learn.

Cynthia walked around the dining area and entryway then down the stairs
into the den. She watched her friend from behind as she flipped though
the CDs on top of the stereo, then bent down to look at the titles
still on the rack. She scanned Jo from her perfectly styled hair down
her back with a print blouse tucked in at her small waist, then further
down following the pressed seems of her slacks. Her ankles were covered
in a matched pair of trouser socks. The casual dress shoes she wore
didn't even have a scuff on the backs of the heels. On any other woman,
Cynthia would find that all ordinarily disgusting, but on Jo... Cynthia
didn't quite know what it was about this woman that intrigued her so.
It wasn't that she was jealous, but she did wish her life could be half
as organized as Jo's.

In Cynthia's eyes, Jo had it all. She was married to a wonderful guy.
She never seemed to have relationship troubles. After high school, Jo
went straight to college and after earning her Master's degree, she
landed an adjunct position teaching Women's studies at a small college.
Cynthia could not understand why her own fortune seemed more haphazard.
Sure, she always landed on her feet, but it would be nice to have more
certainty in her future.

"Remember this?" Jo swung around, displaying a CD in her hand.

Cynthia stepped close enough to make out the "Lilith Fair" title on the
CD. "How could I forget," she said with a wink and took the CD from Jo
to put it in the stereo.

A knot formed in Jo's throat. She had seriously debated even suggesting
the CD. How did Cynthia feel about the trip? Seventy-five miles per
hour on the Thruway and no opportunity to talk the whole ride home,
that's what Jo remembered most. That and the burning of desire and
constant wetness she had the entire trip. She remembered worrying
Cynthia would notice the spot she had left on the bitch seat. She ached
to know what went through the mind of this woman who was now putting a
hand on Jo's knee to steady herself as she squatted down to put the
shiny disc in the drawer of the player. Jo felt as though she was
melting from that point of contact up through her stomach and down to
her toes. Did it mean something, or did she just lose her balance? Jo's
mind was a swirl of emotion and anxiety.

After pushing the right buttons and turning the dials on the various
stereo components, music filled the whole house. Cynthia stood erect
and smiled at Jo. Was that red in her cheeks there before? Jo looked
kind of cute with the natural pink in her cheeks. Leaning forward, she
planted a simple kiss on one of them. "That was a fun trip," she said
as she immediately turned and walked to the middle of the den then spun
in a full circle with her arms stretch out to both sides. That trip was
so liberating. She could remember how, during that trip, Jo finally
seemed to crack through the hard, yet invisible, protective shell
surrounding her when they danced at the concert. What was it going to
take to get Jo to remember what it was like to be that little girl from
camp again? Always so prim and proper, Cynthia so wanted her childhood
friend to "come out and play."

Jo nearly fainted from the kiss, but kept her bearings and watched as
Cynthia seemed to float in the middle of the room, spinning and
dancing. Didn't she know how powerful she was? Jo felt all the will in
her body melt out of her. She found her way to the closest edge of the
couch and dropped down into the cushions.

Once she stopped spinning, Cynthia stopped and faced Jo across the
coffee table, bending to put a hand on each knee. "Ready for that
nickel tour now?"

Jo looked up and into Cynthia's eyes, her mouth agape. Just watching her
friend exhausted her. Where did this energy come from? It was as though
Cynthia was still that energetic, enigmatic girl from camp. Jo reached
to the coffee table and, sliding a magazine over to protect it from the
sweating glass, set her ice water on top. "Sure," she conceded and
stood back up.

Cynthia watched as Jo used one of her favorite magazines to protect the
glass top of the coffee table and caught herself from correcting her
friend's action. "The cover is not that important," she thought to
herself. It was nice of Jo to worry about the coffee table, but the
glass surface would clean up just fine.

"Then follow me," Cynthia invited. "This staircase goes up to the guest
loft." Cynthia ran her hand up the railing of the spiral staircase. "It
was a bitch to get this monstrosity into the house. I had already
finished the outside walls. Bob, from work, helped me along with the
delivery guy. We actually had to screw it in through the front door.
Then, to lift it up, we had to get some ropes and tackle to pull it
erect using the ceiling beams."

Jo studied Cynthia intently. She could feel Cynthia's pride in the words
as she spoke them. How Cynthia touched the staircase and moved her arms
as she walked through the rest of the house made it seem as though her
spirit lived in the staircase and walls and windows and beams. Being in
the house was like being inside Cynthia herself. As Cynthia's words
blended with the space around her, Jo stopped paying attention to the
individual words. The rising and falling of her tone and volume was a
song, a song about the house which blended with the light and shadows,
the colors and materials. She was so involved in this reverie, she
hadn't realized Cynthia was no longer talking about the house.

"Earth to Jo."

Jo turned to look at Cynthia who, from the look on her face, seemed to
be expecting an answer to a question Jo had not heard.

As Jo came back to reality she came to focus on Cynthia's face. "I'm
sorry. I was thinking about all the time and creativity you put into
this place, I didn't hear what you just asked."

Cynthia's face softened and she smiled a knowing smile. "Would you like
to go for a walk? I have a nice trail through the woods with some great
views."

"Uh, sure," Jo replied, looking down ad her shoes. "I don't know that I
brought much in the way of appropriate cloths for hiking."

Cynthia followed Jo's gaze down to her shoes as well. "Not the hiking
type of shoes there, huh?" she surmised. She could feel Jo becoming a
bit self conscious about her choice of clothing. Before the tension got
too much, Cynthia took a chance as she assessed her friend's shoes.
" Looks like the only thing they are good for is dancing," and she
tucked her arms in-between Jo's arms and her slim waist, pulling Jo
tight into her body.

The action was so sudden, Jo was practically swept off her feet by
Cynthia as she was turned around to the sounds from the stereo. She
felt as though she was both flying and falling and grabbed Cynthia's
shoulders to keep her balance. Her gaze went from surprise to relief in
the moment and she let her hands move down over Cynthia's arms and down
to her waist.

The tracks changed and Six Pence None the Richer's Leigh Nash vocals
filled the room. Jo started humming along to the song's melody from
deep in her chest as she continued to hold Cynthia, their movement
having slowed to a deliberate sway without moving their feet.

Cynthia closed her eyes and felt her friend singing. She thought back to
the times they had at camp when she would sit at the camp fire and stop
singing just so she could hear Jo's beautiful voice sing songs like
Barges and Today. It was a sunrise service where she got
to hold the words, handwritten in marker on a poster board, with Jo
when she first fell in love with that voice singing Today, while the
blossoms still cling to the vine...

The song approached the chorus and Jo put words to her humming "...kiss
me beneath the milky twilight, Lead me out on the moonlit floor, Lift
your open hand, Strike up the band and make the fireflies dance,
Silvermoon's sparkling..."

Jo lifted her head and her eyes locked with Cynthia's. She wispered the
last words after Leigh sang them "...so kiss me."

Cynthia brought her hands up and intertwined her fingers in the hair at
the base of Jo's neck as she stopped swaying and pulled Jo's lips into
hers. She slipped her tongue past Jo's lips which had never fully
closed after singing the last lyrics.

Jo closed her eyes and let Cynthia explore as her whole body was both
charged and exhausted by the reality of the situation. Her mouth
remained partially opened and she blinked her eyes as Cynthia leaned
back and looked questioning at Jo. Sensing the separation of their
upper bodies, while her hands were still holding Cynthia's waist close,
Jo opened her eyes.

"Maybe you didn't mean what you sang," Cynthia offered as an escape from
the tension.

"No, I meant it." Jo's eyes dropped and looked down past their chests to
where their bodies met.

Looking at the top of Jo's head now, Cynthia pulled one hand from the
back of Jo's neck forward and along the bottom of her jaw gently. With
hardly any pressure, she pulled Jo's head up so they were looking into
each other's eyes. "May I do it again then?"

Jo responded by taking Cynthia's hand from her face in her own and
bringing it down to their sides at the same time pushing in to
Cynthia's lips for a deep kiss. So many years, she knew, her body
wanted this but her brain couldn't process the act. Now she was chest
to chest, hip to hip and tongue to tongue with the woman she had loved
for all these years. Suddenly, the images of all the sexuality they
might share seemed no longer taboo or difficult to fathom. At once it
all made sense as her mind rectified with her body so her senses and
emotions, physical and sexual needs became one. She knew then she
wanted to explore everything Cynthia would allow and to share
everything she could give to her.

Cynthia sensed the changes moving through her friend. As though years of
socialization fell away with this kiss, she knew then she could explore
and share with Jo and they would never have to look back. Her hand was
still tightly clenched in Jo's hand and she moved it so Jo might let it
free.

And free it Jo did. As soon as she released Cynthia's hand, she used
both her hands to hold and stroke Cynthia's torso. Starting with her
hair, Jo reached the barrette and undid its clasp, letting Cynthia's
hair fall down her back. With one hand Jo dropped the barrette to the
coffee table while she intertwined the fingers of her other hand in
Cynthia's long light-brown tresses pulling it to the side and kissing
her way down Cynthia's neck sucking lightly at its junction with her
shoulder.

Holding Jo still tight in her arms, Cynthia let her head fall to the
side to allow Jo better access to this spot and let out a low moan. She
had dreamed of this day for years. She knew they would have each other,
and it did not matter how long it took to get there. Time slowed and
she began to live entire lives in each moment of pleasure Jo was
bringing to her body. Sensing Jo needed that time, Cynthia let her
explore at her own pace.

Jo's hands went from hair to shoulders, to sides to back then slowly
dropped down and formed around the curves of Cynthia's ass before she
stopped to assess Cynthia's face.

"If you're wondering where the limits are..." Cynthia replied to the
questioning look in Jo's face trailing off to wait for permission to
finish her sentence. Jo consented with a barely perceptible nod. "There
are none. At least not as far as what you do to me. I've wanted this
for a long time, but you never quite seemed ready."

"I don't think I was," Jo confirmed. Nearly breathless from her passion,
she continued, "my body has been wanting you since last year. But only
now have I started to realize the potential of my fantasies for the
past year."

"You're here for two weeks, no?"

"Two weeks. Right, my class is two weeks."

"Then we'll have plenty of time to explore all your fantasies and maybe
some of my fantasies as well." Cynthia leaned in and placed a kiss on
Jo's forehead. "I think I'll be learning more about ‘Women in
Leadership' than I had anticipated."

Cynthia smiled at her friend's insight.

"Oh, I hope so. We'll have to learn together. I've never done this
before myself, but I have always wanted to experience sex with a woman.
You put the idea in my head years ago. I was so wet with your arms
around my waist all those miles when we went to the concert last
year..."

"Why didn't you say so! So was I!" Jo interrupted.

"For one I wasn't sure whether I could handle the rejection if you said
‘ no,' and second, I wasn't sure I was ready to deal with the
consequences if you had said ‘yes.'"

"And now?"

"Now I want to take our time and share everything we know. I've had a
lot of lovers, but I want to be a lover with someone who is going
through this newness with me. It is like I have a clean slate with you
and get to do everything right the first time with the experience of
all the times I've had in the past. I'm worried though."

"About what? I'm ready now." Jo reached and held Cythia's hands and
leaned the two down to the big leather sofa.

"About you and Mitchell. Will you tell him."

"I don't see why not." Jo pushed a stray hair from Cynthia's face.

Cynthia leaned into Jo for another kiss. Jo leaned back and let the kiss
lead Cynthia over her body so they were stretched out on the sofa
together, their breasts pressed against each other and their legs half
on the floor, half on the sofa. Cynthia let each of her hands graze
across Jo's clothed breasts as she moved to hold her body over Jo
beneath her on the couch. Jo moved her hands back to Cynthia's ass an
caressed down her thigh, pulling her up into their kiss while Cynthia's
other leg pushed harder in-between Jo's legs, the pressure on her clit
almost bringing her to orgasm on the spot.

Cynthia kissed down the front of Jo's neck, being especially gentle on
the lump which was her friend's voice box. That beautiful voice, the
siren which held her interest all these years, how she loved that voice
and knew from here forward it would never sound quite the same to her
ears.

Cynthia?" Jo queried as Cynthia had kissed as far down her bare chest
as possible without unbuttoning her shirt.

"Yes?"

"Do I have to sleep in the guest loft tonight?" "No, dear. I hope you'll
sleep with me, if you sleep at all."

"Good," Jo replied as she began to unbutton her blouse.

As each button was undone, Cynthia nuzzled her face inside the fabric of
Jo's shirt and paid kisses on Jo's skin. Jo took her time unbuttoning
each button, letting Cynthia fully explore each inch as she worked her
way down.

Cynthia could smell Jo's excitement as she reached where the blouse
neatly tucked into Jo's slacks. She stopped there for a moment,
breathing slowly and inhaling slightly deeper and longer than normal,
resting her nose on Jo's navel. The experience of the moment making her
heady with love for her friend.

Jo's hands had run out of buttons. With one hand she returned to gently
stroking Cynthia's hair. Everything was so new, her mind overloaded
reading her senses. She could feel Cynthia's soft breath on the skin of
her abdomen, hear the leather of the sofa groaning under the weight of
her friend's knee planted between her legs and where Cynthia's hands
held the cushions, keeping all but her face off Jo's body. The CD still
played on, and Jo could smell her own arousal and what she guessed was
Cynthia's as well. Curling her head up to see why Cynthia may have
stopped, she found her friend lifting her head up as well and their
eyes locked.

With her eyes fixed on Jo's gaze, Cynthia shifted all her weight to one
arm and slowly untucked Jo's blouse from her pants. She unbuttoned the
last button and pushed the material to both sides up Jo's body, even
pushing the collar off Jo's shoulders.

Jo worked her way up on her elbows and kissed Cynthia again. The deep
passionate kiss had their tongues exploring every part of the others'
mouth. Cynthia pulled back from the kiss with her teeth tugging on Jo's
lower lip. She worked one arm around Jo's back inside her shirt and
pulled her up to sitting, their legs intertwined. Slowly she ran her
hands down Jo's shoulders and arms taking her feminine blouse off and
draping it on the back of the sofa.

"You are so beautiful," Cynthia breathed, looking into Jo's dark brown
eyes.

Jo had to turn her eyes away. Why was it so hard to hear and believe
this from her friend? She watched as Cynthia moved a hand to cup her
right breast through her bra, her thumb rubbing gently across its
nipple. Jo sucked in her breath and closed her eyes.

Cynthia started and almost pulled her hand away, worried she had done
something wrong, but the look on Jo's face told her it couldn't be
further from the truth. So she went back to watching the work her hand
was doing and how both of Jo's nipples were pushing at the fabric
holding them in. Jo's breasts were full, and filled the cups of her
undergarment to nearly overflowing. Cynthia thought about how many
times she envied Jo's full chest and the attraction it must have
received from many men.

"Hmmm," escaped Cynthia's voice before she realized it.

Jo awoke from her reverie. "What?"

Cynthia looked up at Jo. "I actually said something didn't I?"

"Yeah, like you had just realized something."

"I guess, in a way I did." Cynthia looked back at Jo's chest and put
both her hands on those beautiful orbs. "I have always envied your
chest. You know, wondered what it would be like to have my chest be the
size of your's."

"You're not missing much. Trust me."

"I was thinking the guys must love them."

"What guys? Mitch likes them, but he's more of a ‘flat abs and round
ass' kind of guy. Besides, they get in the way during Yoga classes," Jo
gave in explanation has she put her own hands on the back of Cynthia's
rubbing her thumb over the backs of the hands massaging so pleasurably
her bosom.

"Y'know," Cynthia continued, "I was also realizing that women must love
them too. I'll bet you've had more than one female student in your
classes wish they could be in the position I'm in right now."

Jo thought about Cynthia's assessment. "You're probably right. They have
it a lot easier than we did. My impression of the campus culture is
that many women become four year lesbians. I know I thought about
kissing you back in camp, but I dismissed it as silly."

"It wasn't silly," countered Cynthia. "I felt the same way too," and she
stole another kiss from Jo's lips to prove it. "Anyway, I was just
marveling in the discovery that not only have I been envious of your
tits, but that at this very moment, I might likely be the envy of many
people who have looked at you."

Jo snorted. "Yeah, like your not knock down gorgeous yourself."

"Right." Cynthia chided.

"C'mon. You are so strong too. And that bike of yours has to turn more
than a few heads. I know seeing you on it is one of the sexiest things
I have every laid eyes on. These strong legs..." Jo ran a hand down
Cynthia's thigh and pulled her by the back of the knee closer then
moving her body so it straddled Cynthia's leg still bent and on the
sofa. In doing so, Jo's knee pushed up against the fly of Cynthia's
jeans. "...wrapped tight around an internal combustion engine,
vibrating back and forth. I would have envied your seat, but instead
I've just sat on the back and wrapped my arms around you - holding on
and feeling I was sharing in that sexiness."

Jo's nipples, still held in by her bra touched against the wings of the
bird on Cynthia's shirt. Their faces an inch apart and holding on to
each other they both recalled their last trip.

"I'm hungry." Cynthia said and something in her voice let Jo know it
wasn't for sex.

"Well what did you want to eat?" Jo prodded, hoping she might be on the
menu.

Cynthia untangled herself from Jo and, grabbing Jo's blouse from the
back of the sofa, draped it over her friend's shoulders.

"I kind of want pizza." Noting the disappointment which came across Jo's
face, she continued, "I want you for desert, but first I want to put
you back on the back of the bike, go into town for a pizza, pick up a
couple bottles of wine, bring the wine back here and drink ‘till we're
silly. Then we can both have dessert."

As Cynthia laid out her plans, Jo started realizing just how hungry she
was for food as well. Besides, she couldn't imagine turning down the
opportunity to hold Cynthia while sitting on the back of her big, wide,
Moto Guzzi. She was still wet, but the conversations had really let the
mood dissipate, and she could only imagine what a glass or two of wine
would do to the two of them later, especially now they both had
permission to explore.

"I should probably call Mitch to let him know I'm here fine. He should
be home by now."

Cynthia felt a pang of envy for the man who had her friends heart - and
other things - to himself. Not wanting to witness their relationship
longer than necessary she instructed Jo to use the phone in the kitchen
or office while she went and got helmets and the bike out of the shed.

Jo finished buttoning up her shirt, but left the button just at her bra
undone as well as all the ones above it. "Just want to keep our dessert
on Cythia's mind during dinner," she told herself.

The door closed behind Cynthia, and Jo walked up by the computer to
retrieve her calling card out of her purse. She sat down in the chair
and pressed the numbers to dial home.

"Hello."

"Hi, sweetie. It's me," Jo responded to Mitchell's voice.

"How was your trip?"

"Uneventful," Jo was truthful about her trip, but in the back of her
mind she couldn't help but think how eventful, indeed, her short time
at Cynthia's had been.

"So you're at Cynthia's now?"

"Yeah. We're about to head out for some pizza."

"Sounds like fun. How's Cynthia doing?" Mitchell's voice was casual,
keeping the conversation going.

"She's fine. She hasn't changed too much since last year. We're taking
the bike into town for the pizza." Jo could almost hear Mitchell
smiling on the other end of the line. She had told him how much she
enjoyed the ride. Since last year they talked about buying their own
bike, but money or time always seemed to get in the way.

"Well, keep your sunny side up, rubber side down, y'hear?"

"Will do," Jo promised. "I love you."

"I love you too."

The grumble outside indicated Cynthia had her motorcycle out of the shed
and running in the driveway. "I guess Cynthia just started her bike. I
should probably be going. I'll call you again tomorrow."

"You two have fun."

Images of minutes ago flashed through Jo's head and she fought to
suppress them. "I'm sure we will," she said and the floodgate of
fantasies for what might come later burst open forcing Jo to work hard
not to moan into the receiver at her unsuspecting husband.

"Love ya," Mitchell said in goodbye.

"Love ya, too."

Jo stared for a minute at the phone on the desk after hanging up the
receiver. "What was that?" she asked herself. Before she could think
about it more, Cynthia came back through the front door with a helmet
on her elbow and one in her hand. "Ready to go, biker babe?"

Cynthia sized up Jo's attire again. "Hmm. Then again, maybe not. Those
wouldn't be the best shoes, but they'll do. You will need a jacket. How
butch can I dress you?"

"Whatever you have is fine," Jo replied.

Cynthia walked across the office and opened one of the doors into a
rather spacious closet. She donned a stylish, black leather jacket for
herself. From another hanger she pulled a classic biker jacket with
waist buckles and studs. It had obviously been well worn.

"Left over from David," she explained. "Like three boyfriends ago now.
He rode too, but was an asshole about it. After totaling his third bike
in as many years he hung it up, about the same time he hung me up too.
Too bad he wasn't wearing this the last time he went down."

Jo cringed at the thought. Taking the jacket from Cynthia, she was
surprised how heavy it was, but put it on anyway. David was probably an
average build guy, but the leather hung halfway down Jo's thighs and
only the tips of her fingers stuck out the ends of the well worn
leather cuffs. She looked up at Cynthia to find a smirk across her
face.

"You look both sexy and lost in that thing," she said, trying to
suppress the grin coming across her face. To no avail. The more she
tried, the more she just wanted to start laughing. When Jo declared a
defiant "What!?" moments later, Cynthia just let the laugh out.
Snorting through her nose she tried to talk while holding back her
laughter. "Nothing. Really. No. I was thinking how different you are
from that asshole David anyway, then I was thinking how much better you
would look with ONLY the jacket on. But if we try that now, we'll never
get dinner."

"So?" Jo pulled open the front of the jacket and held it back with her
hands on her hips.

Cynthia became suddenly serious.

"Ung. So, nothing. I'm hungry," but her eyes were obviously undressing
everything but the jacket off Jo. "Besides, my bike's warmed up now.
Let's cool off on that for a bit, then I promise we can dress up as
Babes on Bikes later."

The two walked out to the driveway. Cynthia mounted the bike and got it
off the stand. "Hop on,"came muffled from inside the helmet as she held
out her hand to Jo.

Jo took the hand, but Cynthia's bike was so wide in the back with the
two big saddle bags on either side, it was a stretch to swing her leg
up and over. "Good thing I go to Yoga regularly or I'd never be limber
enough to get onto this thing," she thought to herself.

"All set?" Cynthia asked of her passenger.

"Yep." Jo replied.

"I didn't get you any gloves, so if your hands get cold, put them in my
pockets or where ever to keep them warm."

"Okay,"said Jo, but what she was really thinking about was all the
places other than Cynthia's pockets where she could warm her hands.

Cynthia dropped the bike in gear and steered it around and out her
driveway, signaling to turn on to the dirt road. Once on the road she
dropped her left hand down and held Jo's leg just below her knees. Jo
had already been wet and turned on getting on the bike, but Cynthia's
hand rubbing her lower leg as they slowly rode down the road pushed her
over the edge. She wrapped her arms even tighter around Cynthia's waist
as her body shook.

Once Jo stopped shaking Cynthia flipped up her face shield and turned
her head to ask, "Are you okay? Warm enough?"

With her helmet resting on Cynthia's as she recovered, Jo could only
muster an "I'm fine. I missed riding with you." Then she moved her
hands from around Cynthia's waist and slowly stroked down the fly of
her jeans. When her hand found the wet spot where Cynthia's jeans met
the seat, Jo decided to play a little more. "What can it hurt. She did
it to me.

With her right hand, she unbuttoned Cynthia's fly and started to pull
down the zipper - just to the point she could get some fingers between
the jeans and her panties. Her other hand found its way inside
Cynthia's shirt and began to explore her thin but strong abdomen. She
was lost in the thought of comparing her own body to her friend when
she felt Cynthia roll her hips forward, locking her hand between her
wet panties and the seat of the bike, then shuddering and making the
spot on her pants and panties wetter than it was before.

"Are you cold?" Jo asked with a bit of sarcasm in her voice.

"No. I'm not cold. I have never orgasmed on this bike before, though."
Cynthia confessed, realizing now the reason Jo shuddered earlier and
mentally kicking herself for not figuring it out earlier. "I am sorry
to say this but..." Cynthia rolled the bike to a slow stop so she could
turn around in the seat and not have to shout over the noise of the air
and the engine. "...we are not going to make it to the pizza place if
you keep that up. But, I don't want you to think I'm ungrateful. You
are just going to have to at least keep your hands above the belt until
after dinner or I'm liable to drop both of us."

"Okay," Jo replied, trying to sound rejected but not quite stifling the
giggle inside from being ‘scolded' by Cynthia.

Cynthia didn't move the bike but sat a moment letting it idle.

"Permission to put my hands below the belt to zip you back up, Ma'am?"
Jo asked.

Cynthia looked back at her friend. "Permission granted."

As soon as Jo finished her task and put her arms back around Cynthia's
waist, Cynthia put the bike in gear and headed towards town. Whenever
possible, Cynthia kept her left hand on Jo's leg or knee, and Jo kept
her manual exploration of Cynthia outside the shirt, above the waist
and tried not to tickle the woman who held her life in her hands.

Before she knew it, Cynthia pulled up in front of Alex's Pizza. She
backed the bike up to the curb, shut her off, put down the kickstand
and dismounted - giving Jo her hand again to assist her off the wide
bike.

"They have the best white pizza here," Cynthia told Jo as she slipped
one helmet over each of the two rear view mirrors and took the keys
from the ignition. Grabbing Jo's hand, she led her into the restaurant.

Jo took in the surroundings. Cheap paneling covered the bottom half of
the walls, and the small dining area was filled with booths covered in
dark red vinyl. Most of the seats had been repaired with duct tape.
Over each table was some sort of kitschy Greek picture hung over each
table along a wall. The menu board was covered with selections written
on circular pieces of cardboard and other parts of pizza boxes. A wall
display for Genessee beer had images of two brunettes - apparently from
the early 1980's with big hairdos smiling and holding up mugs of beer.
A juke box sat silently in the corner. Cynthia let go of Jo's hand and
moved her arm across the leather jacket on Jo's shoulders. From the
back of the kitchen, Jo saw a man look up and throw down the kitchen
cloth in his hands.

"Miss Davids!" He shouted in a thick Greek accent over the kitchen din,
obviously happy to see Cynthia.

"Alex!" She smiled and waved back with the hand not around Jo's
shoulder. "How's the white pizza here?"

"Its-a the best-a white pizza this side the Atlantic!" he returned. Jo
was amused by their apparent rapport. "Will you be wanting your regular
order, Miss Davids."

"Yes, Alex, my regular pizza. We need an antipasto salad and a bottle of
Chianti to go with that."

"Ah, Miss Davids, Chianti? What is the special occasion? And why have
you not introduced me to your beautiful friend?"

By this time, Alex had worked his way out of the kitchen so they were no
longer shouting, but he was in front of Cynthia and Jo. Alex reached
down and picked up Jo's hand, placing a kiss on the back of it.

"As always, I was so taken by your charm and the anticipation of my
wonderful pizza, I forgot to introduce you." Cynthia winked at Jo as
she said the words. "The special occasion is the honor I have of
bringing my oldest friend here to enjoy the best pizza this side of the
Atlantic. This is Mrs. Belinda Jacobs visiting from the big city."

"I wish only that I could stay and enjoy the company of two such
beautiful women, but, if you will excuse me, I must get back to the
kitchen to make pizza for all the hungry people in town." With that,
Alex turned and yelled at the kitchen, "What are you doing, John!? That
gyro goes with the Witten order."

"I'm so sorry," Alex turned to apologize in a quieter tone. "I must be
going. Please... make yourselves comfortable, I'll bring your wine and
salad out in a moment." He motioned broadly with his arm around the
empty dining room and scurried off into the kitchen.

Cynthia, with her arm still around Jo's shoulders leaned in and
whispered, "he's such a sweetheart. See this picture?" Cynthia pointed
at a photo of a much younger Alex taped to the wall near the kitchen -
among a dozen or so other family pictures. "That woman in the waitress
outfit he is goosing at the grill is his wife."

"That's so sweet," Jo replied.

"Yeah," said Cynthia, "but she wasn't his wife when this picture was
taken." The two exchanged a knowing look and smiled as Cynthia led them
to a table by the juke box. She took off her coat and threw it against
the wall, then helped Jo take off the big leather jacket from her
ex-boyfriend.

"So," Jo started, sliding into the booth, "do you take all your new
dates here to meet Alex?"

"No. Only the ones I plan to sleep with."

Jo blushed three shades of red at Cynthia's boldness. "Better be careful
how much you let out of this tiger," she thought to herself.

The two sat and talked about life and the mundane things about work and
money. Cynthia told Jo about volunteering at the library while Jo
shared stories of being faculty advisor for the college newspaper.

"Bottle of Chianit. Two glasses. Antipasto salad and two plates." The
women looked up to see a handsome, young, olive-skinned man with dark
eyes placing their request on the table.

"Thanks, John," offered Cynthia.

"You're welcome, Cynthia. Dad says this bottle of wine is on him. Your
pizza will be over in just a few minutes."

"Please give Alex my love and thanks."

"I will. Who's your friend?"

"Jo, this is Alex's son John. John, this is Belinda Jacobs. But her
friends call her Jo."

John wrinkled his forehead. "How do you get ‘Jo' from Belinda?"

Cynthia laughed. Not too many people heard both names. "Jo's middle name
is Johanna. When she was little, her family called her Billy Jo. You'll
have to ask her when she dropped the ‘Billy' part, but not too many
girls up her have two names, y'know."

John nodded in understanding. Then, hearing his father yelling from the
kitchen he left saying, "your pizza will be out soon."

By the time they finished their pizza, they had also managed to polish
off the bottle of Chianti.

"I am so full. That was great pizza. What was on that?"

"The Cynthia Special here has feta, eggplant, spinach and tomatoes,"
Cynthia explained, wiping her mouth from the grease of th pizza.

Cynthia picked up the bill and headed for the register.

"How much do I owe you," Jo asked, digging in her pockets for the cash
she brought along.

"Leave a few dollars for the tip, I got this one."

Jo watched Cynthia talk in low voices with Alex as he rung up her check.
He disappeared only for a moment and returned with a brown paper bag
filled with something.

Cynthia returned to the table and reached across the booth for her
jacket. "All set?"

"Yeah. What's in the bag."

"I'll tell you outside," Cynthia replied as she watched Jo lug the big
jacket over her shoulders and slip her slender arms into the sleeves.
Having watched Cynthia's exchange with Alex, she decided to trust her
friend and followed her as she made haste back to the bike.

Once there, Cynthia handed Jo her helmet and unlocked one of the saddle
bags, placing the paper bag inside. "The night is getting late and I
asked Alex if he would sell me three bottles of Chianti for back at
home. He's not supposed to do that kind of thing, but no one needs to
know and he gets to make a few extra bucks. I don't know why, but I'm
kind of in a hurry to get home so I ca slow down and spend as much time
as I can with you before my eyes won't stay open."

The effects of the first bottle were already warming Jo and getting back
to Cynthia's house was her first priority too. She had so many
questions to answer, and finally she was going to get those answers.

Back on the bike, Cynthia's hand went back to rubbing Jo's left leg and
knee. Once they were off the main road, Jo let her hands wander under
Cynthia's leather jacket. She ran her hands around Cynthia's smooth,
tight abdomen, warming her hands and finding the restrictions caused by
the leather jacket. Slowly she worked her way up so her elbows crooked
the bottom on the jacket and her hands were teasing Cynthia's nipples.
It had taken a while of exploring, but Jo realized Cynthia didn't have
a bra on. Her nipples were hard and long. Jo's thumbs played over
Cynthia's nipples, lightly pinching and pulling while she caressed her
chest. The only response from Cynthia was a slight slowing of the bike
as they cruised down the back dirt road to Cynthia's home.

As Cynthia turned off the road, Jo realized it wasn't the right
direction for them to be on Cynthia's driveway. She brought her hands
down and wrapped her arms as tight as she could around Cynthia's waist
as the motorcycle rumbled at a crawl down one of two tire ruts worn in
a moonlit field.

The trail came to an end at a small clearing. Cynthia let the bike idle
just a moment, putting her feet down on the grass on either side of the
running boards - sensing the loving, trusting, grip of Jo and
suppressing another orgasm so she could speak.

She reached down and turned off the ignition. A choked whisper was all
she could mutter as she opened the visor of her helmet. "Okay to get
off, love?"

Jo looked around her from the perch on the back of the bike, loosening
her hold on Cynthia and twisting in every direction. She lifted the
visor of her own helmet. "I don't know where we are, but I don't see
your house anywhere."

"No, you don't see my house. And you won't see any houses. This is one
of my neighbor's fields and he won't be bothering us. I cross-country
ski out here and take walks around here all the time. I was thinking
back to when we were at camp, and we decided to sneak out of our tents
one night to sleep under the stars." She took her helmet off and shook
her long hair loose, hanging the helmet over one of the bike's mirrors.

Jo smiled at the remembrance. "We got in so much trouble!!" Still on
the bike, she followed suit with removing her helmet and handed it to
Cynthia who hung it over the other mirror.

"Yeah, and the bugs ate your sleeping bag!" she said as se took the keys
from the ignition.

Jo chuckled. "I got to call my mom, and she mailed me a new one. For two
days I slept with sheets and blankets borrowed from the infirmary."

"That's right! I forgot about that part." Cynthia became silent, flipped
the kick stand down and dismounted the motorcycle. Reaching around Jo,
she pulled Jo's leg. Jo, getting the cue, swung her leg over the seat
so she was facing Cynthia. At that moment, Cynthia wrapped her arms
tight around Jo's waist and lifted her off the back seat. Still holding
her tight but bringing her hand up to push Jo's head into her shoulder
and snuggling her head on Jo's shoulder, her lips grazed Jo's neck as
she whispered in her ear, "I'd like to start with the kiss I've
regretted not taking twenty years ago, and see where it goes from
there."

Jo nuzzled her nose inside the collar of Cynthia's jacket. Her head swam
in the warmth and love which was boiling over inside her. They found
each other's lips and shared a deep, long passionate kiss. Tongues
probed deep. Teeth were rubbed and hands held and pulled the two close.
Jo felt her whole body wanted to be inside Cynthia's. On breaking the
kiss they both gasped for air, breathing heavily.

Cynthia's eyes looked lost and dreamy, but she shook it off with her
head and broke the embrace with a promise, "Just a moment. Let me get a
blanket out of my saddle bags. I'll be right back to that."

Reluctantly, Jo let go, but ran her hands over Cynthia's leather covered
back, down to her ass held in her jeans, then her thighs and back up,
and everywhere she could find to keep contact. Cynthia took her keys
and, opening one of the big side bags on the bike, produced a bottle of
Chianti and a picnic blanket. She removed the machine's seat and took a
Gerber out of the tool bag.

Handing Jo the blanket she instructed, "Why don't you find a comfortable
place for this while I get the beverage open."

Jo took the blanket and walked into the tall grass a bit. She stomped an
area down and spread the blanket, dropping down on it on her back and
gazing up at the stars with her hand folded behind her head.

Cynthia watched with the eyes of an excited teenager as Jo primped their
bed and she used the Gerber to extract the cork from the bottle.

"I forget some times how bright the stars are out here where there are
no lights for miles. Living in the ‘burbs you get used to the blinding
of the street lights and the noise of traffic. This is just like camp -
so peaceful and wonderful and simple." She paused a moment to take it
all in, the constellations, the crickets chirping in the fields, and
the smell of the fresh grass around them. For a moment, she forgot even
Cynthia was there, watching her take in the sensations of the isolated
field. "I don't know that I knew how amazing this was when I was a
girl."

Cynthia could only smile in admiration as she watched her friend, now a
woman, remember and explore the simple things they shared all those
years ago and she knelt down next to Jo and ran her hand up Jo's leg
from her ankle, past her knee and up to grazing the junction which was
wet even through Jo's dress slacks.

"Wine?" Cynthia asked, holding out the freshly opened bottle.

Jo rose to her elbows, took the offering and, hesitating only a moment,
put the neck to her lips and took a swig from the heavy bottle. Wiping
her lips with the back of her hand, she handed the bottle back to
Cynthia who also tipped it up taking a deep drink and trying to calm
the excitement of her nerves. She set the bottle at their heads just
off the blanket as she stretched down along side Jo.

"Sometimes I stare at those stars for so long, I get lost and forget how
small they can make us all feel." Cynthia mimicked her friend's
previous star gazing pose. "Guess sometimes you don't know what you've
got right here at home until you watch someone else's fascination with
it."

There was silence between the two as though, without words, they both
agreed to take a moment to pay homage to the stars in the sky and the
green grass that was their private, solemn resting place. With the same
unspoken agreement, their hands met and they held each other's - as
though they were once again the two young girls sneaking out of their
tent after lights out, running through the fields, holding back their
laughter until they dropped out of sight in the tall grass and - like
this night - lay back, exhausted but feeling freer than free, as they
giggled and whispered the secrets only young girls could share.

The moment of sharing and remembering was soon replaced and neither knew
who started or received as hands explored and undressed, feeling every
inch of the other and at the same time, experiencing the exploring
being done by the other.

As Cynthia pulled Jo's now soaked underpants off, slowly and gently, she
set them aside with the rest of the cloths and Jo shivered. Cynthia
reached for the oversized leather jacket and put it back on her friend
then gently pushed her back to her back.

Jo looked up past Cynthia's beaming face, shadowed by the now rising
moon and saw nothing but love and respect in her eyes and pulled her
head down for another kiss.

Leaving the kiss, Cynthia worked her way down Jo's body. First, paying
respect with kisses and sucking on each nipple as she worshiped the
breasts she once envied. They were just inside the sides of the leather
jacket, and Cynthia worked at keeping Jo covered from the elements as
much as possible while exploring this new territory. Jo's body reacted
with a constant wave of small orgasms shuddering through her body.
While she sucked on Jo's nipples and nudged her friends heavy globes
with her nose and tongue, Cynthia let a free hand reach down between
them to Jo's navel, and with a full, flat hand pushed down to cup her
wet sex.

As her hands reached where Jo's pubic hair should have started, Cynthia
was expecting to catch her fingers in her friend's curly hair, but felt
nothing. Stopping her worship of Jo's breast she rocked back on her
knees to look at where her hand was. Instead of a wild bush, Jo only
had a small patch of neatly trimmed hair while the rest of her
glistening pussy was bare.

Jo looked up to see what had caused Cynthia to stop. The moon gave a
soft light to Cynthia's face which was staring between Jo's legs in
awe. "Mitch and I have been shaving for a couple years. We like doing
it for each other, but it also makes oral sex so much more pleasant."

Cynthia looked up an locked into Jo's eyes. She heard the words, and for
a moment, the thought crossed her mind that this woman below her
belonged to another and maybe it wasn't her place. She wondered how she
had missed this during their mad undressing. Then all the words Jo had
just said congealed in her head. "I bet it does," she agreed as she
moved her body down and, opening her mouth, took into her mouth all of
Jo's mound she could.

Jo moaned and arched her back as she felt the strength and wetness of
Cynthia's mouth meet with the wetness of her throbbing cunt. As
Cynthia's tongue took long strokes from her entrance up to her clit,
waves of pure sexual pleasure passed across Jo. She closed her eyes and
tried as hard as she could to relax and enjoy every moment of this
reverie.

Cynthia instantly tasted the sweetness of the wine they had both drank
in Jo's juices. What a wonderful, new sweet taste!. The more she ate
and licked at what Jo offered, the sweeter and lighter it became. Back
and forth between sucking Jo's clit now and strongly licking up the
juices spilling forth, Cynthia lost track of time and what she was
doing and could only focus on wanting more and more and more.

Jo, meanwhile, was racked with wave after wave of pleasure through her
body. Constant, small orgasms erupted until, finally, her senses could
not take it any more. She grabbed Cynthia's head and held her tongue on
her pussy as the most crushing orgasm made Jo's back arch and every,
tiny muscle in her body tense. She felt her conscious leave her body
and run out into the tall grass around them.

Cynthia rode out the last waves, gently lapping at Jo, trying not to
tickle, but just to bring her friend down. When Jo's body finally
collapsed, limp underneath her, Cynthia looked up along her body. Jo
looked as though she was in a deep sleep, breaths coming deeply and
slowly. In a daze herself, from the newness and excitement of it all,
all Cynthia could do was watch in absolute fascination and awe not only
for how she was feeling, but at what had transpired between them.

Slowly, Cynthia rocked back and sat in between Jo's spread legs, her own
legs curled underneath her. She stroked Jo's thigh tenderly, breathing
in the spring air, and looking between the rising moon, the empty field
around them and Jo's face. Jo had now definitely fallen to sleep, a
contented smile on her face. All these years had gone by, feelings
shared between them without word, and now they had shared something
between their bodies as Cynthia had never imagined possible.

The evening was getting late. Cynthia reached over Jo to pick up the
bottle of Chianti. "Where did that bottle go?" she wondered. She
debated over waking Jo so they could go back to her house. Instead, she
stretched out along side her friend and wrapped her arm over the
relaxed body. The sun and the dew would wake them in time for whatever
was in store for them in the morning.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

To be continued...

© 2003 Dale H. West. All rights reserved.