Promises Made And Promises Kept Pt 03

It goes without saying you should read 'Promises Made and Promises Kept Pts. 01 and 02' first before reading this story. This story picks up right after 'Promises Made and Promises Kept Pt. 01.'

Note: PM&PK needs to be told from both Points of View (PoV). To do that, I am alternating between Virginia and Judy in each part of PM&PK. Because of this, the five parts of this story will overlap each other, so you will see some scenes from both PoVs. Parts 1, 3, and 5 are written from Virginia's PoV, while parts 2 and 4 are written from Judy's PoV. For example, the first half (roughly) of this story (from Virginia's PoV) overlaps the last half (roughly) of 'PM&PK Pt. 02' (from Judy's PoV). Conversely, the last half of this story (from Virginia's PoV) will be covered in the first half of 'PM&PK Pt. 04' (from Judy's PoV). Keep in mind that each woman will also have unique experiences that will not be seen from the other woman's PoV.

© 2020 Candy_Kane54

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September 1994

"Okay," I said as I settled back down in my seat. I could see Judy was nervous and struggling to figure out what she wanted to say. My stomach churned as I hoped she wasn't about to tell me she wasn't interested in my flirtatious advances.

Judy finally started, "When you asked me about Alex at lunchtime and said you had talked to her, you caught me by surprise." Then she paused before surprising me in turn by saying, "Alex and I met in college, and we had a short but intense Sapphic relationship."

I had not expected that at all. I was shocked, and I was rocked to my core. Suddenly, the way Alex acted this morning made sense.

Judy must have seen the surprise on my face because she quickly added, "I broke off the relationship because I was scared about how intense it was. I wasn't ready to believe I was a lesbian."

When Judy said that, I reached over and took Judy's hand. I could hear the pain in her voice, and I felt sympathy toward her plight. I remembered how I felt the first time I had a relationship with another woman and how it had scared me, too. Unlike Judy, however, I knew it was something I really wanted.

Judy gathered herself and went on, "Then I met Jon, and I fell in love with him, and we got married. We had two beautiful daughters, and then last year, he was killed by a joyrider who had stolen a car and was trying to get away from the police." She paused again, and I gave her hand a squeeze in support. "Even though I was happily married to Jon, I still felt an attraction to women that I tried to ignore. I stayed faithful to Jon and pushed my Sapphic inclinations into the back of my brain."

When Judy said that, I realized she must have had a hard time with her feelings while staying faithful to Jon. I felt I needed to encourage her to continue, so I said, "That must have been a little frustrating."

"It was, but each time it happened, I just refocused it onto Jon," Judy replied, as a small, sad smile came over her face for a second. "After Jon died, and when I felt I was ready to start meeting other people again, I tried dating a couple of guys, but nothing happened. I was getting a bit frustrated. In May, I went to the Software Technology Conference in Salt Lake City and ran into Alex. I hadn't seen her since my freshman year at Georgia Tech. We reconnected and rekindled our relationship for a week. Even though it had been over 20 years since we had last met, it was as if we had always been together," Judy finished in a rush.

I was gobsmacked when I heard that. Many thoughts flew through my head as I absorbed what Judy had just said, the primary one being Judy was not available. Hoping against hope, I asked, "So, you and Alex are back together?"

I heaved a sigh of relief when Judy replied, "Oh, no, I'm here, and Alex has her career in Ohio, so we are just going to be best friends. I'm trying to say that while I was with Alex, she told me about her relationship with a woman named Virginia and her relationship with Bonnie and how that ended. She never gave me a last name or rank, so I didn't figure it out until just today that it was you she had told me about."

When Judy mentioned Bonnie, I immediately thought about how much I missed her. Thoughts about how Bonnie would feel about me pursuing Judy flashed through my head. Judy must have twigged to what I was thinking because she squeezed my hand and said, "I thought it would only be fair for you to know that I know about you through Alex."

I was touched by Judy's concern, so I smiled and squeezed her hand back. I said, "Thank you, Judy, for telling me that. I appreciate it. It's only fair that I tell you that Steve had told me that you had lost your husband but didn't give me any other details. I had no idea about you and Alex. I'm glad we had this talk. I've got a lot to think about now."

I did have a lot to think about because knowing about Judy and Alex's relationship cast a whole different outlook on trying a relationship with Judy. My face must have betrayed my thoughts because Judy asked, "I hope this won't affect us working together?"

I shook myself out of my reverie and assured her, saying, "Oh, no, Judy. I think we'll be able to work together just fine."

We both let go of each other's hands and sat back. Judy asked, "I'll see you around?"

I had to smile at that because I was going to work with Judy regardless of any feelings we may have for each other, so I said, "Sure. I'll be calling on you once I assimilate everything I've learned today. Thanks again for your time."

With that, we both got up to leave and headed back to our respective offices. I was lost in thought as I headed back to my office, but I did stop at the break room to get a cup of tea before I went into my office.

After I sat down, I thought about Judy knowing Alex and having a sexual relationship with her. As much as I cared for Alex, I couldn't let it stop my pursuit of Judy. Alex and I had already determined we couldn't have a relationship, and one wasn't in the cards anytime soon. Judy had already declared there was no chance she would have a relationship with Alex, so really, nothing has changed. At least, thanks to our talk, we were on even footing going forward. We both knew the other had had a relationship with Alex, so any awkwardness about that was canceled out.

I heaved a sigh and decided to get back to work. I called Cathy in, and we went over my schedule for tomorrow. I had four more one-on-ones with my team in the morning, and then I'd start meeting with the customer team leads tomorrow afternoon. I'd already got a commitment from the customer team working with the Medium-Launch Vehicles Systems Program Office (SPO) at LAAFB. I was looking forward to that meeting because they had interacted with Col. Lyles, one of my favorite commanders, when I was in the Air Force.

Once my calendar was finished, I thanked Cathy and told her to go home if she had everything done. I was planning on getting an early start in the morning, and I wanted Cathy to be available if needed. I finished up and headed home.

Once I got home and changed, I fixed dinner for Mark and me. Grace and Kathy were gone, so it was just the two of us. Mark told me about his making the varsity soccer team this year. Their first game would be Thursday evening, and he wanted to know if I could go.

"I'd love to, Mark," I said. "I'll make sure to block out the afternoon, so nothing comes up to keep me from getting home."

"That's great, Mom. Thanks!" Mark said.

I shooed him off to his room to get his homework done. Mark was a straight 'A' student, and I was so proud of him. He was thinking about being a lawyer, so he wanted to make sure he could go to law school. Like Matthew, Mark was hoping to get either an athletic or academic scholarship to go to college. I was sure he'd accomplish it.

I spent the evening thinking about the conversation Judy and I had had today. I debated about calling Alex. Based on what Judy told me, she had talked to Alex about us, and it didn't seem like Alex was opposed to Judy and me getting together. "Even if she was, she's not here, and we are," I thought to myself. At the very least, Judy and I have one thing in common; we've both loved Alex and have been loved by her. That makes us pretty compatible.

As I prepared for bed, I started thinking about Alex. After performing my toilet and slipping into bed, I decided to relieve myself by fantasizing about Alex as I masturbated. Sometime just before I came, I realized Alex had morphed into Judy. As my orgasm crashed over me, I softly cried out, "Oh, God, Judy," over and over until I got myself back under control. I fell asleep thinking about Judy.

I got an early start in the morning. Grace had come home sometime last night and had come downstairs while I was eating my breakfast. I hugged her and gave her a kiss, and wished her a good morning. I was ready to leave by the time Mark got up, so I didn't get a chance to talk to him. I knew he was in good hands with Grace, so I left to go to work.

Despite having only three miles to commute to work, it still took me twenty minutes to get there. After exchanging "Good mornings" with Peggy on the way in, I found Cathy was already at work when I got to my desk.

I headed to the break room to get a cup of tea, stopping by Cathy's desk to see if she wanted to get a coffee. When I asked, she pointed to her steaming mug and said she was okay. I had just poured the hot water into my cup when Judy walked in. She smiled at me, and I smiled back, happy to see her. As she started filling her coffee mug, she said, "Good morning, Virginia."

"Good morning, Judy," I answered, smiling again. I wanted to make sure she was aware our conversation yesterday afternoon wouldn't affect our work relationship.

Judy finished pouring her coffee before turning to me and asking, "So, is it going to be a busy day today?"

"Yes, it is," I replied. "I'll be finishing up my one-on-ones with my team, and then I'll start meeting with the customer team leads. How's your day going to be?"

Judy smiled after taking a sip from her mug before saying, "Sounds like fun. I know the customer team leads are all happy we have a new configuration manager. I'm working out the schedule for the upgrade to our e-PUT tool."

My tea had steeped enough, so I discarded my teabag before saying, "Yes, I'm sure they are. As the Simon and Garfunkel song goes, we've got to 'keep the customer satisfied.' After all, they pay the bills."

"That they do," Judy said. "Well, I'll see you around."

"Okay," I said, smiling at Judy again. "Have fun with your scheduling." We both headed out and headed to our respective offices. As I sat down to get to work, I couldn't help but smile, glad that Judy was still willing to interact with me. With that to buoy me up, I got ready for my meetings.

I had saved Sally as my last one-on-one because I had a plan for her. I knew she had applied for the Configuration Manager position but had not been deemed qualified enough for the job. I was going to make her my second-in-command and groom her to replace me. I didn't plan to be the Configuration Manager forever, so when I did move on, I wanted to make sure there was someone ready to step in and take my place.

When the time came for our meeting, Sally appeared at my door. I got up and met her at the door and said, "Please, Sally, come on in."

I indicated for her to sit as I went around my desk and sat down. Sally seemed a bit nervous, so I wanted to put her at ease. I said, "Sally, I've heard nothing but good things about you, and I want you to know I am aware you had applied for this position. I think you are capable of being the configuration manager, and I'd like to make a proposal to you."

Sally looked at me in surprise as I continued, "I'd like to make you my second-in-command. If something happens to me, or I'm not here when something comes up, I want you to be able to step in and take over. We can't let something like what just happened for the last nine months occur again."

Sally smiled and nodded as she said, "Yes, Ms. Hanratty. I'd love to do that. I'm impressed by your achievements, and I'd be honored to be your second."

"Okay," I said, smiling at Sally's enthusiasm. "First of all, it's only appropriate that my second call me Virginia. We're going to be working closely together, so first names are appropriate."

"Of course, Virginia," Sally said.

"I can't get you an office right now, but I'll talk to Steve about moving you closer to my office until then," I said. "You'll probably be spending a lot of time with me in here, so maybe I can work on getting you a laptop so you can move back and forth and still be able to get some work done."

"That'd be great, Virginia," Sally enthused. "I'm looking forward to working with you."

"Great," I replied.

With that, we sat and talked for the rest of our half-hour scheduled meeting, getting to know each other better. By the time we were done, I was sure I had made an appropriate choice. After Sally left, I started preparing for my first customer team meeting this afternoon.

Just before lunch, I received a phone call. The Caller ID didn't identify the number, so I knew it was not an internal call. I picked up the phone and said, "This is Virginia Hanratty. How may I help you?"

"Mom?" I heard. "I did it!"

I recognized Matthew's voice and how happy he sounded. "Matthew, how are you? I'm glad to hear from you! What did you do?"

"I made the team!" Matthew exclaimed.

"That's wonderful!" I replied. "I'm so proud of you!"

"Yes, they just announced the last cut, and I wasn't on it," he explained. "I won't be a starter, but at least I'm on the team."

"So, when's your first game?" I asked. "I want to come down and watch."

"It's this Friday, but it's an away game. Our first home game is next week," Matthew said.

"Okay, Matthew, that's great. I'll make sure I can get there to watch," I said. "By the way, Mark told me last night he's going to be starting for his team this week."

"I knew Mark could do it," he replied. "Let me call him tonight and tell him?" Matthew asked.

"Sure, I won't say a word to Mark. He's got practice tonight, so he won't be home until after 7 PM," I told him.

"Okay," Matthew said. "Well, I've got to go. I'll call tonight. Love you, Mom."

"I love you, too, Matthew," I said, nearly tearing up. "Goodbye."

"Goodbye, Mom," he finished, hanging up.

I sat there for a minute, collecting myself. I was so proud of Matthew and Mark, and they continue to make me proud of them. I looked over at our family picture. I reached out and brushed my fingertips on Bonnie's face as I thought how incredibly fortunate I was to have met her. "Oh, how I miss you, Bonnie," I whispered as I teared up. I quickly wiped my tears away and went back to work, preparing for my meeting.

Finally, it was time for lunch. I was hungry, so I hurried down to the cafeteria. I made myself a nice salad and found a table to sit down at. As I ate, I reflected back on my conversation with Matthew. He's really growing into a man any woman would want to be with. I knew he always had girls hitting on him, and he was always polite and charming with them.

Just then, I felt a touch on my shoulder, causing me to start as I heard, "Mind if I sit with you?"

I recognized the voice, and I smiled as I looked up to see Judy standing there. I said, "Yes, please. I'd be glad to share my table with you, Judy."

"Thank you, Virginia," Judy said as she sat down. She reached over and touched the back of my hand as she said, "Sorry to have startled you." When she touched me, I felt a shock, and my breath hitched.

"Oh, that's okay," I said after a brief pause to get myself under control. "I was just thinking about my son Matthew. Well, he's not my biological son. He's Bonnie's son, but ...," I had to stop as my emotions got the best of me. I hated having to qualify my relationship with Matthew and Mark.

Judy took my hand in hers and held it while I struggled to get my emotions back under control. Finally, I was able to say, "I'm sorry, Judy. Even after all this time, I still get upset that I can't legally call Matthew and Mark my sons because Bonnie and I couldn't get married."

I saw a look of sympathy flash across her face. Judy said, "I couldn't even begin to imagine how I'd feel if Amy and Emily weren't considered my daughters." I could tell she was sincere as she let go of my hand and said, "I'm sure the boys consider you to be their mother, regardless of what the law says."

At that moment, I felt I could open up to Judy as she gave me a sympathetic ear. "Yes, they do consider me to be their mother," I started. "I've treated them like my sons ever since I first met them. I had to commit to loving them before Bonnie would commit to loving me. Ever since, I've considered them to be my sons, helping to raise them, hoping Bonnie would approve of how I'm doing it. Their grandmother is their legal guardian. Their father is out of the picture and wants nothing to do with them."

My emotions were threatening to overcome me again, and I think Judy twigged to it. She switched to other topics to lighten the mood. We talked about how we try to cope with the stress of work. Judy mentioned she liked to do yoga when she felt stressed out. She reminded me we have a place to do yoga down on the first floor. When I heard that, I perked up. I had always loved doing yoga with Bonnie, and while I still do yoga by myself, it's always more fun to do it with someone else. I said, "I love to do yoga, too, especially when I get stressed."

"Well, if you ever want to do some, just let me know, and I'll be glad to join you," Judy said, a tentative smile on her face.

Realizing Judy was making a pass at me, I smiled and said, "Yes, I'd like to do that. I'll make sure to pack my yoga gear in my trunk."

We continued chatting, getting more at ease with each other. I mentioned how I liked to run for exercise and how I loved to run along the beach. Judy brightened at that and said she enjoyed running too. She said, "It's nice to have a running partner. I find that when I run with someone, it's easier to run farther."

I agreed with her, saying, "Yes, although I usually run alone, it can be fun having someone running alongside you."

Our conversation soon petered out, and we finished eating in silence. Once we were done, I mentioned that I needed to get back and prepare for my customer team meeting. We said our goodbyes, and we parted, each of us going off to do what we needed to do.

The meeting with the Medium-Launch Vehicles customer team went well. They were a great group of people who gave me a detailed look at their development schedule and configuration management needs. I took detailed notes about their CM needs, especially since their needs corresponded with some of the ideas I was working on to improve the e-ConFig tool.

I did ask if anyone remembered working with Col. Lyles. Several members of the group said they had worked with him and they had enjoyed it. I smiled when I heard that because I knew he was a good man. When the meeting ended, I headed back to my office with an armload of documents. I thought these documents should be put in the e-File tool, so they didn't need to be lugged around.

I had made sure I didn't schedule anything Thursday afternoon, so I headed out a little early to go home and change before heading to the soccer field. The game started at 5:30 PM, and I wanted to make sure I got there on time. I hurried home and changed into jeans and an athletic shirt with Mark's last name and his number '9' on the back of the shirt. I wore low-rise sneakers and an El Segundo High School cap. Since the high school was only four blocks away, I decided to walk since parking would be non-existent. I said goodbye to Grace on the way out. I made it to the entrance to the athletic field with five minutes to spare.