CHAPTER 13
Hailey was hanging out in Belinda's bedroom on Tuesday as she packed for trip. She would be gone from Wednesday until Tuesday. For the most part, Belinda was able to tune Hailey out, but then she noticed she was talking about Chip, more specifically complaining about Chip. They had been together three years and he wasn't talking about marriage. He had her over to the house, but she never was invited along on any other family excursions. He stopped by the vet's office to bring her lunch some days, but he didn't allow her to visit him at work as her girlfriends did with their boyfriends. Although she wasn't Hailey's biggest fan, especially since the stealing incident, Belinda didn't like another woman to be treated the way she knew Chip was treating Hailey.
"Look, Hailey," she said. "This is really between you and Chip, but I'll give you the same advice I would give to any of my friends. You have every right to tell Chip what you want from the relationship. If he can't or won't deliver, it's in your best interest to move on and find someone who will." She hoped Hailey would take it to heart, but doubted she would. Chip did just enough—dinners out, occasional gifts—to keep her happy and on the hook. What bothered Belinda the most, unless she read her brother totally wrong, was that he gave Hailey hope that they had a future...just enough hope to keep her around and taking care of his needs until he decided to move on.
Belinda headed off early the next morning. The drive would take three hours and she wanted to get back to school in time to have lunch with her sorority sister Liza before checking out her new apartment. The two girls hugged fiercely when they met at their favorite restaurant. Liza Powell was her favorite sister. Witty and bright, she was the house's treasurer and did a great job. She was disappointed when Belinda had emailed her letting her know she was giving up her room at the house. It wasn't a matter of money; private rooms were at a premium and Belinda's room was spoken for less than five minutes after she gave it up.
"Who is going have the guts to stand up to Jenny Tidwell with you out of the house? That girl is meaner than a sack of rattlesnakes, even though she goes around acting like butter wouldn't melt in her mouth," Liza said, when they had finished with the hugs and greetings.
That reminded Belinda of how she and Liza had become close friends. At the beginning of all three girls' sophomore year, Jenny already had her eye on being president of the Pi Phi house, aiming to the first junior to do so. She was playing her own game of Survivor, forming alliances and undermining anyone who looked like a threat. Belinda wasn't. Jenny knew she was just there because she was a legacy; Mrs. Sutter's senior group picture hung on a wall in the house. But Liza was using the Greek system to build her resume and her contacts for life after college, and she had been asked to serve as assistant treasurer. At breakfast one morning shortly after Liza took on the job, she heard Jenny whispering to the girls sitting near her that she thought Liza and her roommate Dahleen were "that way."
"I was walking past their room last night and I'm sure I heard some moaning, if you know what I mean," she said, her head leaning toward her little cabal.
Belinda spoke up loudly, loud enough for the whole dining room to hear, "Jenny, I have a really good ear doctor I can recommend." Jenny, who hadn't realized Belinda could hear her, looked perplexed. Belinda continued in full voice. "For your hearing problem, I mean. I was in Liza's room last night doing pedicures with her and Dahleen. If you can't tell the difference between lesbian sex and nail polish, you really need to have your ears checked, and maybe take a biology class." Everyone at the table burst out laughing.
Jenny was steamed, but was wily enough not to take on Belinda. Kind and generous about lending her things, as well as a good listener who didn't spread gossip and didn't get involved in cliques, Belinda was universally liked in the house.
"You'll be fine," Belinda assured Liza. "Just watch your back." Truth was, she hadn't been in Liza and Dahleen's room that night; she had been down the hall studying in her own room. But what people did in private wasn't any of her business, and she didn't much like the way Jenny always seemed on the lookout for everyone else's weakness. Quickly, the girls turned to happier subjects. After finishing their lunch and leaving the restaurant, the girls made plans to have a look at some upholstery shops on Thursday. Liza had a fabulous sense of style and Belinda was happy to get her input on the chair coverings.
Belinda loved her new apartment, which would be ready for her to move some things in starting Monday. She had thought taking a lease so early was silly, but her father had insisted so she wouldn't lose out on it otherwise. She was glad now she hadn't argued. The place was bright and airy, with a master bath with double sinks and a huge shower. The bedroom had an enormous walk-in closet, the kitchen was up to date and the combination living/dining room was cozy. The modern décor wasn't really Belinda's style, but she thought she would get used to it.
Best of all, it was far enough from the campus and priced high enough that there were no other students in the building—Belinda asked—which would give her more privacy than she could have hoped for. It also had an underground garage, which meant no one would see Sam's car when he parked there. He could even stay overnight. She still wasn't sure how things were going to work out in the fall. She had tried to figure out how she could afford to get through her last semester on her own steam, but she just couldn't see a way to make it financially. She knew wouldn't qualify for any student aid because her parents had too much money, and there was no way they would cosign for student loans. That meant keeping things with Sam a secret until she could finish school and get a job. Enough people from her area went to State that if they went public at breakfast, her parents would know by lunchtime. As she got back into her car to drive to the family friend she would be staying with for the night, she thought of how much she was looking forward to spending two nights with Sam. She had packed some special surprises in her bag. She wanted the weekend to be unforgettable.
It took almost all of Thursday to find the perfect chair fabric. Liza knew about some of the funkiest, most interesting decorators, and at one they found just what Belinda had been looking for. Brown on brown damask, it was infinitely better than what she had selected at home. The pair decided to celebrate with drinks and dinner at a nearby gastropub. They chowed down on hearty burgers topped with sautéed onions and mushrooms and split a bottle of Merlot, both joking how much time they would have to work out to make up for the evening.
After her third glass of wine, Liza blurted out, "Thanks for covering for us, that time with Jenny. You really saved Dahleen and I." It took a minute through her wine buzz for what Liza was saying to register. Belinda had always assumed Jenny was just making stuff up to undermine someone she saw as a rival. Liza kept talking, breaking a silence she had kept for since freshman year.
"It just happened, you know. I was never with a girl before Dahleen, and neither was she. We got paired up as roommates freshman year and you remember right before winter break Thad Sheffield dumped her? I was just hugging her, because she was crying so hard. And then before I knew it, I was kissing her and telling her she was beautiful and that he was a fool to leave her. And she is beautiful, and he was a fool. We had become such good friends, and I hated to see her hurting. Somehow, me taking the hurt away led to us making love, and we've been together ever since. I can't wait to get out of this town, out of this life. Having to sneak to be alone with the person you love. Having to date guys just to keep up the image and keep people from talking. I fell in love with one woman, but you know what would happen if it came out. Everyone in the house would act like Dahleen and I were out to convert them all to being lesbians—as if I would ever even look at a girl other than Dahleen. She's amazing. She's so soft and she looks so good and tastes so good. I love her." The words were coming out like gushing water, Liza's tongue loosened by the wine and the presence of her friend.
For a second, Belinda was tempted to spill her own secret, wanting to confide in someone who could understand what she was going through, but she held back. Instead, she grasped Liza's hands across the table and told her that she just had to hold on. Keep her head down and watch her back. In less than a year, she and Dahleen could leave Mississippi and move somewhere else. Somewhere they could be themselves and be open and in love, knowing as she spoke that the advice she was giving was the advice she was going to have to take herself, but knowing that it wouldn't be that easy. You can't leave just leave your whole family and your whole life behind. But that was a challenge for her to face in the future. At the moment, she had a brainstorm. She asked Liza if she would feel comfortable saying Belinda was staying with her Friday and Saturday night. She couldn't explain why, but she needed a cover story. Belinda had planned on lying to her hostess about staying with a relative, a move she knew risked detection, but Liza was happy to oblige, and didn't press for details, removing a small worry from Belinda's mind. The girls hugged in the parking lot. They had sobered up some, but were still tipsy enough that still opted to walk, leaving their cars to pick up in the morning.
Friday, Belinda packed up her bags, having explained to her hostess that she was going to be staying with a sorority sister for the next few days. Next, she did a little shopping, putting items on a one-day or two-day hold at six different stores. She had thought she would have to drive back to school both days to establish a paper trail that showed her there, but she realized she could simply call from the inn and ask them to run her credit card on Saturday and Sunday; she would pick the items up Monday. After that, she treated herself to some royal pampering. She visited her favorite spa. Starting with massage and sugar scrub that left her skin feeling softer than silk, she moved on to facial and then a deluxe manicure and pedicure. The aestheticians worked quietly, allowing her to indulge in fantasies of what that evening would hold. She tried not to squirm in her chair when her crotch grew moist as she planned and dreamed. She finished by having her hair cut and styled and dramatic, sultry makeup applied. She knew Sam liked her hair up, so she had it done in an elegant French twist.
Returning to her dressing room, she changed her clothes. Sam wasn't going to know what hit him. She was wearing a thin mesh g-string, the only underthing she could wear under her dress and have it not show through. The dress itself was a golden honey color, made of a soft silk jacquard that hugged her every curve. Like many of her favorite things, it evoked the feel of the 1940s. It had elbow-length sleeves and the skirt came to her knee, but the body of the dress was shaped like a corset, with a wide square neckline that curved above each breast. At her bust, the fabric was draped like a bra with push- up cups that made the most of her cleavage. The back was equally alluring. Cut very low, a light ivory satin inset ran up the back, and brown velvet straps crisscrossed through eyelets from top to bottom, completing the corset look. She finished off the outfit with a pair of brown heels. When she walked out of the spa and to her car, she realized both men and women were giving her the eye.
CHAPTER 14
By four o'clock she was at the small bed and breakfast Sam had reserved for the weekend. In the trendy tourist town that only Yankees and big-city folk visited, Belinda allowed herself to relax. She had called home to check in, telling her parents of her move to Liza's for the weekend and her plan to unload some extra things at the apartment and stock up on basic supplies on Monday. Now she could relax and enjoy. Sam had already checked in, and the B&B's owner led her to the detached cottage, which had been an old carriage house. As she closed the door behind herself, Sam let out a low whistle. "Girl, you are cool drink of water. I feel like I want to take you all over town and show you off."
