Soccer Women Ch 04

Soccer Women Ch. 4

"YES!"

Melanie Smith raised her arms in triumph. It wasn't that she had actually 'won' anything. But she saw Carol Rogers in her mother's bedroom, wearing her mother's t-shirt and the same short skirt she had on the previous evening. Granted, this wasn't absolute proof of anything. But Melanie, who had been desperately trying to find a way to get her mother and Carol together was willing to take certain things for granted.

After raising her arms in triumph, Melanie next started another celebratory move. She was running in place, her knees coming up very high and her arms pumping like she was running a 100-meter dash. It looked as if she was sprinting in place.

With the bathroom door closed, Jen had not recognized the shout as her daughter's. She had been expecting a breakfast tray and now the shout, followed by the lack of noise of a cart entering the room left her confused. She popped her head out of the bathroom door (and only her head since she was about to get into the shower and was naked and maybe it was the person bringing the breakfast) and said, "Carol, is that breakfast."

Carol was at the room door with her back to Jen. When Jen had asked her question, Melanie stepped around Carol and into the room. Smiling like the proverbial cat who had swallowed the proverbial canary, Melanie said, "Good morning, mom. And isn't it a lovely morning?"

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

Katie and Melanie had turned in a little early the previous night. They were both very tired but a bit wound up after the Bachelorette Party. They got naked and got into their bed together. The used their hands to bring each other to orgasm while they kissed passionately. Then they had gone to sleep in each other's arms.

When they woke up, they got dressed and then decided they would see what everyone else was planning for the morning. Melanie was the first out the door and she was heading down to her mother's room. Katie went to Jo and Margaret's room first.

Katie was coming out her door when she heard the knocking that must have been Melanie. The hallway was curved a bit and so even though Melanie was only three doors down, Katie did not have a line of sight to her. Katie then knocked on Jo's door. When she got no answer, she knocked a bit louder and called out "Jo." "Margaret." Then she heard Melanie scream what sounded like "Yes!"

The yell had seemed "positive" for lack of a better word and Katie was not alarmed by the yell, just curious. With no one answering at Jo and Margaret's door, Katie continued down the hall. When she got to her mother's door, she could see enough around the bend that Melanie was not in the hallway and must have entered her mother's room.

Katie knocked on her mother's door and Jo answered it. Katie was shocked and said with a somewhat combative tone, "What are you doing here?"

"Until about 15 seconds ago I was in bed. What's all the commotion?"

Katie looked past Jo and into the room. "Where's my mother?"

"Actually, she's next door."

"Was she in there with you?" Katie asked still with an unfriendly tone in her voice.

"No." Jo responded now getting her back up a little at Katie's tone. "She slept

there

last night too." She emphasized the location reacting to Katie's less than friendly inquiry.

At that moment from inside the room Katie heard Margaret call out, "Jo, come back to bed. We want you back in here."

Katie looked back at Jo and asked "We?"

"I'll tell you later. I have to go back to bed and you need to go next door. Don't call us, we'll call you." And with that Jo closed the door.

As Katie was walking toward the door to Jen's room, there was a room service cart coming from the opposite direction. Katie slipped up against the door to give more room for the cart to pass, but it turned out it was going to Jen's room as well. Katie knocked and Carol answered the door.

"Oh Katie, hi. Oh, and the breakfast is here too. If you can please bring the food in, that would be fine." The young man wheeled the cart into the room.

He knew he would be in trouble if he was caught gawking at the guests in their rooms, but this wasn't really fair for him. Two very attractive young women in casual clothing, an older redhead who had a blouse over a t-shirt that seemed a little small and was accentuating her breasts and an older blonde who was wrapped only in a towel, showing a lot of bare leg and shoulder.

"Hi." his voice cracked as he said it. He coughed and said "My name is Robert. Here is your breakfast. He set the food out as quickly as he could and then asked, "Who is Ms. Smith."

"That would be me." said Jen.

"Should I just charge this to the room, Ma'am?" He looked at her to ask his question but immediately looked down at the floor.

"That will be fine." As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Robert turned toward the door. "But what about your tip, Robert."

"Oh, thank you ma'am, no. We're really slammed down in the kitchen. I have to go." as he practically ran out the door.

When the door closed, Carol looked at Jen and with a bit of a laugh said "What was he, 12? I think you gave him a heart attack in that towel Jen."

"Well, he seemed to be staring at your chest when he wasn't staring at the floor." They both started to giggle at this.

That was until Katie cleared her throat. "A-hem!"

Carol said, "Ah. Yes. Good morning, Katie. Would you like some breakfast?

"I want answers. Why are you in Jen's room?"

"Isn't it obvious." chimed in Melanie.

"No, it isn't obvious." said Carol. There are a number of reasons why I could be here."

"Jo just told me you slept here last night."

"Yes Katie, I did."

"Did you just sleep?"

"Katie Marie Rogers. That is inappropriate for you to ask that question. That's none of your business!"

"No mom, it is. We're all about to be family in three months. And anything that could affect my wife or me is my business. Anything that affects you two, affects us. So, I want to know if you just slept here last night?"

Carol looked at Jen. A nod from Jen let Carol know it was okay to answer Katie's question. "No Katie. We didn't just sleep."

"WOOOOOOOOOHOO. That's what I'm talking about!" shouted Melanie.

"Lighten up, Francis." Jen said to Melanie. [Obscure movie quote for anyone who get's it, not an editing mistake. Author's note]. Then she turned to Katie and said, "Katie, I understand the concern you're expressing. But the fact is that your mother and I don't even know what all this means for us yet. We haven't had a chance to talk about it. And that conversation is not one that we will be having with you or Ms. Happy Dance over here." Jen gestured over to Melanie. "It's not really my place to say anything to you, your mother will do that. But I think I am not out of line to say that if there is anything between us that affects you and Melanie, you will be the first people we tell."

Jen looked back at Carol and this time it was her head nod that showed she agreed with what Jen had said. "Is that going to be enough for now, Katie?"

"Yes, Jen. Thank you."

"You're welcome, sweetie. Do you want some breakfast."

"Sure."

"And thank you Katie."

"For what?"

"For calling me Jen instead of Ms. Smith. You guys eat and I am going to take that shower I went in for a while ago."

Carol's daughters Abigail and Brianna went to breakfast at the hotel restaurant. When they finished, Abi texted her mother who told her to meet them in Jen's room. The six of them were all talking about the events of the previous evening, although everyone stayed away from anything that might have been embarrassing.

Around 11:30, Carol got a text from Jessica. "

Jo and M went back to their room to clean up. You can come back to change, but please send anyone who can do so to help them."

Carol passed the word along and while she went back to her room, the rest of them all went down to Jo and Margaret's room to help put it back in order.

When Carol entered the room, Jessica was waiting for her with a big grin on her face. She asked, "Weeellllll?"

Carol blushed and looked at the floor but muttered "Well, what?"

"Oh, come on Carol. I want details."

"Katie just demanded the same thing. Since you are asking nicely, I will try to give you the broad strokes." Jessica laughed at Carol's unintended pun.

Carol went on. "Yes, we were intimate. Yes, I hope we can do it again. No, I don't know if Jen wants to or even exactly what she wants. Yes, we do plan to talk about this but I am not sure when we will get a chance. And to be honest, with the wedding and all and the potential fallout, I am thinking maybe it should wait until at least after that."

"Carol, it's up to you, but as your friend, I would say you should not wait. I would go try to talk her into driving back with you. If you guys need to talk, you'll have plenty of time as you drive home."

"But I was planning to go to the Grand Canyon first and then head back."

"Bring her with you. That will be a wonderful, shared memory for the both of you and something you will have even if this does not go the way I know you want it to go."

"Well, what is this going to do to us, to our relationship?"

"Probably going to take the sex out of it." Jessica said this so matter-of-factly that Carol chuckled. Then Jessica continued, "Carol, I seriously doubt she is going to make you give up your friends. And I love the intimacy we share. You are a passionate and considerate lover. But to be honest, we only get together sexually once in a while. However, we talk to each other at least once a week. That is the aspect of our relationship that is the most vital to me. I don't want to lose our physical part, but if I have to lose it because you are going to be with Jen, I make that trade-off in a heartbeat. You are too important to me not to do so."

Carol was on the verge of tears as she looked at Jessica and said, "I know I say this a lot to you and I always worry that it will sound patronizing. But I am so proud of you."

"And I will say again as I do every time, it means the world to me that you feel that way."

Jessica crossed the room and wrapped her arms around Carol, who returned the huge hug she was receiving. As they pulled back to look at each other, Jessica asked "Since you have not had your talk with Jen yet and thus have made no promises, can I have one last passionate kiss, just in case it is my last."

Carol did not say anything, but she leaned back in and tilted her head a bit so they could share on last moment as lovers. The kiss was strong and passionate. But as it started to get more heated, they both pulled back as if by an unspoken mutual consent.

When they separated Carol said, "I do love you, you know?"

"I know. And I love you too. That is not going to change. But I also know that your feelings for Jen are on a different plane of existence. So regardless of any impact to us I hope you know I am rooting for it to work out for your two."

When Carol and Jessica got to Jo and Margaret's room, most everything was in order. Carol did ask Jen if she would come out in the hall for a minute. After about five minutes they returned. Jen went into the bedroom doing something on her phone. Carol made eye contact with Jessica and gave her a thumbs up.

Carol crossed the room and said quietly to Jessica "

Jen is checking with someone at work to see if they can cover her for an extra two days and, if so, she is going to drive with me to the Grand Canyon and then back home."

Carol was practically giddy as she said it and Jessica gave her a hug.

"Hey! Hey! No shenanigans. We just got the room clean." said Jo. Carol gave Jo a motherly scowl but everyone else laughed, except Melanie.

Jen came out of the bedroom. "We're all set Carol. Since we're going to get back so late on Monday I got Tuesday off as well. So Grand Canyon here we come."

"What's this about?" asked Melanie, her face quickly changing to a very big grin.

"Your mother and I are going to drive home together and we are going to go to the Grand Canyon first. It's out of the way, but we are this close and who knows if we'll get another chance and it is something we both want to see. We'll only get to see part of it, but some is better than none."

Jo interjected, "Well, that's nice. But we told everyone to check out by 11:30 and we have a lunch at noon. It's already 11:30 and we all have to grab our stuff. Hopefully by the time we get down, they'll all be done and out of our way so we can make lunch."

Everyone went back to their respective rooms to get their baggage, leave a tip for the cleaning staff, and headed to the elevator. As Carol and Jessica left their room Jessica said, "I know you won't get back until late Monday, but I want a full report Tuesday morning."

"Sure thing sweetie. And thank you for being here for me."

"Always a pleasure, Ms. Rogers." and they headed to the elevator.

At the lunch, Jo stood up and first made a brief toast to Katie and Melanie. Then she said "I just want to put the icing on this cake. The rule is what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas. And to that end if anyone asks; we did some dancing, played some games had some fun, but nothing too wild or crazy. It was a good time. But despite what we say to everyone, I hope you all take away your own memories of this weekend and that you always think back on them as some of your fondest memories. Thank you all for coming to my shindig and I do hope you really enjoyed it."

Katie said "Three cheers for our Cruise Director, Hip. Hip."

"Hurray."

"Hip. Hip."

"Hurray."

"Hip. Hip."

"Hurray."

Everyone was saying goodbye to everyone else. A number of the group were heading over to the airport on the hotel shuttle. The rest would be going down to the garage to get their cars. When Jessica and Margaret went to say goodbye, Jessica looked down at her and said "You're gonna be strong and you're gonna be fine, right?"

"Yes, absolutely. Thank you so much. I feel so much better and just so much more at peace with it all. You were a tremendous help." Carol heard this and smiled and thought (not for the last time) just how proud she was of Jessica.

Jo came up to Jessica and also gave her a hug. She got in close so she could whisper "

Thanks so much. She means the world to me and she has been very upset about all this. She tries to hide it and she always acts so bubbly. But I could tell. You really helped her a lot."

Jessica replied "

Hey, what are friends for. If you want to thank me, take care of her. She is a very special person. She's strong but she still needs you.

"

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

Carol and Jen set out for the West Rim section of the Grand Canyon mainly because it was the closest and they were a little pressed for time. Once they were on the highway Carol said, "So what do you want to talk about?"

"Carol let's just talk about the weekend for now. Then we can go see some of the Grand Canyon and then tonight we can do more serious talking, okay?"

So, they talked about the shows and some of the craziness in Jo and Margaret's room and even if they were going to keep their belly button piercings (they were).

They got to the Grand Canyon and had a few hours to look around. They got to go out on the famed skywalk and had fantastic views of one of the amazing, majestic sights of natural beauty in the world. They took a number of incredible pictures of the scenery. They each got pictures of the other with the glory of the Canyon behind them. They even managed to get pictures together as some friendly passersby offered to do so. Naturally, they returned the favor.

With the sun getting low in the sky, it was just about time to go. They each spent several minutes just looking out and contemplating the view and making a permanent imprint in their minds. They had both seen pictures before, but they could not do justice and paled in comparison to what their eyes beheld.

They left and drove a little while. They stopped at a roadside diner and while they ate, they found a motel to stay for the night. When the clerk at the reception desk asked if they wanted a single queen size bed or two double beds, Carol quickly said "Two doubles."

They went to the room and got ready for bed. They did both change in the room, in front of each other. They laid down but left the lights on for now. Jen said, "Carol, it will be a lot easier to talk if we're next to each other than talking between beds. Would it be alright if I can over by you?"

Carol, a broad smile on her face said, "Yes Jen, that would be nice."

Jen climbed into the bed and they lay close to each other. Their feet entwined and they held each other's hand. These were on the bed between their torsos. They each had their head on a pillow and were looking into each other's eyes.

They just looked at each other and smiled for a while before Jen finally broke the silence. "So, judging by that game the other night, you've been pretty busy these last few years."

Carol laughed. Then she said, "Yes, you could say that. And don't get me wrong, it has been a lot of fun. But most nights I have been alone in my bed since Paul died. I missed this very much. Having someone in bed with me."

"Have you missed having someone in bed or have you missed having me in bed with you?"

"Both."

"Yeah, well, having someone in bed with you is not always all it's cracked up to be."

"Jen, if you don't mind my asking, what was the story with you and Susan?"

"Carol, as wonderful and intense as last night was, the thing I missed most about our past relationship was you were my best friend. And honestly, Susan never was. So as my re-best friend, I don't mind telling you all about it."

"You have to go back to where we were five years ago. We were already starting to have little fights and we were trying to keep things from going too far. I don't want to speak for you but it was like, if you're holding two magnets that want to attract and you have to fight to keep them apart. That's what it felt like to me. And remember, back then I was the one who was going to bed alone. You had Paul. And while I thought you might have feelings for me, you were not going to ever leave Paul. And what is that the kids call it, a throuple?"

"I'm guessing that's a three-person couple?" inquired Carol.

"Yes." said Jen. "Well, I just never even thought of that at all, let alone if it would have ever been possible. That's just not our generation. And then here comes Susan. And remember, I already knew her. She was in the paralegal program so we have that in common and we had other shared interests. Plus, I was alone and I was trying to fight with myself over how I was feeling for you. Plus, for the first time, I was the older one in the relationship. Colleen, John, even you were older than me."

"Hey?" Carol protested but did so with a big grin on her face.

"I didn't say old, I just said older than me." Jen added. "So, I went out with her and we went back to her place. And I know maybe this might seem a little superficial, but the sex was phenomenal. And so, I wanted to do that again. We were together for over four and a half years. It wasn't just about the sex. She has her good qualities and we shared some good times. But we weren't ever a good fit."

"Her and Melanie always had issues and she had no desire to be a parent. I think she thought that because Melanie was a year away from school, that would be the end of the parent thing. She never realized that being a mother doesn't ever really end. The irony is that it probably lasted longer than it should have because of the sex but it ended sooner than it was going to because of the sex." At that point, Jen gave a little laugh, but it was not humor, but a mix or regret and anger.

Carol squeezed Jen's hand and said, "Well, I am sorry that it ended on such a sour note. That one time in Chicago, I really was trying to give her a chance and get to know her better and she was engaging. We were getting along okay enough. Then I had to go and wear that stupid dress. I am sorry for any of the trouble that caused."