“Everything okay?” Deanna said at her window and Madison jumped. She’d been so careful about locking everything up, she hadn’t noticed the blonde walking up. “You okay?” she asked with a laugh, seeing the redhead jump.
“You’re gonna give me a heart attack,” she told her, her hand splayed against her chest.
“Well, good thing I’m a doctor then,” she said with a grin. Deanna helped her make sure everything was locked up. She handed Madison a vest to put on over her swimsuit and t-shirt. They were both wearing shorts. “Do you have something for your feet?” Deanna asked.
“I couldn’t find those socks you suggested,” she didn’t mention how expensive the ones she had found were. She simply couldn’t justify putting that into her budget this last week.
Deanna wasn’t fooled. “I brought an old pair of mine, just in case. They may be a bit large on you, but they grip well.” She handed her a set of booties that Madison slipped on. They felt funny, the neoprene trying to act like a second skin.
“You got sunblock?” Madison asked as she showed the spray she’d used on her arms and legs. She was so much paler than Deanna.
“I used something at home, but I’m sure we will need more,” she answered and allowed Madison to spray her down as she turned. “Let’s leave the rest of this stuff in the car until we need it.” She put her car keys, her license, and some cash in a neat little canister that could be put around her neck and would float if it was tossed off or came off. She had small floats attached to the spiral key chain for the Waverunners too. “Come on, we’ll use the same one until you feel confident enough to use one on your own.”
Madison gulped. She hadn’t anticipated sharing one of those things. She envisioned her arms around the blonde’s waist and then in the same instance envisioned Deanna’s arms around her. Neither prospect upset her and she could feel her heart beating hard in her chest.
Deanna, not realizing why Madison was being reluctant, spoke up, “Come on, it’s as easy as driving a car, and twice as much fun.” She seemed oblivious to how Madison was feeling, but she wasn’t. She had seen how sexy Madison looked in her swimsuit. It was darker than the t-shirt she was wearing over it and she hoped at some point Madison would remove the t-shirt, and maybe the shorts, so she could enjoy the view of the swimsuit. Meanwhile, she would have to be patient.
Deanna showed Madison the basic safety features of the Waverunner. The keys were attached to her wrist on the plastic spiral key chain so that if she, as the driver, were thrown from the boat, it would turn the Waverunner off. These Waverunners would turn in a circle, so you could swim to the back and pull yourself up on it, even in deep water.
“You do know how to swim, right?” Deanna asked, teasing her.
“Of course I do!” she returned, mock-indignant.
“Well, I never saw you swim in Africa. How could I know?”
“Just be glad there are no crocodiles to feed you to here!”
Deanna joined in on the laugh. They had found talking about Africa a lot easier since the first meal they had shared at Madison’s. They still hadn’t spoken about why Madison had left or what happened after she left, but they were making progress, sharing stories about it now and then with the children.
Deanna started up the Waverunner and Madison got on behind her. She found that there were handles on the vest that could pop out and she could hold instead of wrapping her hands around Deanna’s torso like she had envisioned. She was slightly disappointed, but the fun of their first lap around the lake soon soothed any problems that could have come up. Deanna took it easy so that Madison could feel how the waves chopped at the hull of the runner and how it affected driving. She slowed as she came back to the boat ramp so they could change places and Madison could drive.
“This is such fun!” Madison called over her shoulder as she now drove carefully back out. Deanna had warned her to take it slow until they got out beyond a certain point that was marked by buoys. They didn’t need anyone to yell at them for hot-dogging it.
“Let ‘er rip,” Deanna yelled back as she hung onto the handles on either side of Madison’s vest.
“Are you sure?”
“Can you handle it?”
Madison rose to the challenge as she opened up the throttle. It felt different as she sped up and she could feel how easy it would be to lose control. As she began to take a turn, she pulled a little too quickly and the Waverunner flung them both sideways and off its seat. They both went into the air, her wrist connection to the key was released, the machine turned off, and by the time they were in the water it was turning in a circle back towards them. They both came up sputtering.
“Oh, my gosh, that was great. Are you okay?” Madison called as she looked to see a smiling Deanna.
“That was funny,” she responded as she began to swim towards the circling machine to get to the back of the seat. Madison followed, using clean, strong strokes as she swam. Together they arrived at the machine, which had stopped after its first circle and was floating in the lake. The waves had caught up to them and made climbing on the back of the machine hard. One by one they pulled themselves up onto it, breathing hard at their exertions. “Wow, that’s a workout,” Deanna commented as they both finally got back on.
“I thought I was in shape,” Madison commented as she too was panting.
“You’re in great shape,” Deanna said before she could stop herself and then blushed.
Madison turned away, but not before a smile lit up her face at the unintended compliment. She carefully pulled the connector at her wrist, the Slinky-like wristband holding it there. She connected the key once again and started up the machine like she had seen Deanna do. It started like a charm.
“Head back to the landing. I want to race you on these things,” Deanna called in her ear.
Madison was still smiling as she dropped Deanna off.
“You hungry or thirsty yet?”
“No. You?”
“A little thirsty, but I can wait a few rounds. I want you to see what these things can do!”
They spent the next couple of hours going round and round on the course laid out on the lake. There were buoys sticking up to show where they could drive. A couple said ‘no wake’, so if they went over toward those, they could not be racing or revving up their boats. They stayed away from those since speed was what they wanted at the moment. They stopped for lunch and put more gas and oil in the fuel tanks. Deanna kept a couple of extra plastic gas cans filled with the specially mixed fuel for just that purpose. They filled both tanks, but only after they ate a lunch of sandwiches, juice, and water to stay hydrated. It was amazing how much water they needed out in the hot sun despite being on the water.
“I’m taking this off,” Madison stated when they returned from filling the tanks with the empty gas cans.
Deanna got her wish as Madison removed her t-shirt and shorts and left them to dry out on the trailer. Deanna followed suit, but didn’t see Madison’s expression at her toned body. “Do you have any more of that sunblock? We should probably use some more.”
“Yeah, um, yeah,” she agreed and turned away to grab some.
They raced some more, sending admiring glances each other’s way as they spun around and enjoyed cavorting on the water. Finally, the course became a little boring and Deanna suggested they take it slow and explore the rest of the lake. Also, they could chat easier as they putt-putted along and looked at the lake houses along the pretty shore.
“How about that one?” Madison pointed to one particularly nice house. They’d been playing ‘what if’ about the different houses and if they owned one.
“I like that one, that gray stone is beautiful. Look at that boathouse over there,” she pointed. It was all in rich woods and couldn’t possibly be that old, it looked too pristine, and it hadn’t faded or weathered.
It was as they were coming round after going as far down as they could that they were attacked. It came out of nowhere. Neither of them had notic
ed, but they had been watched and targeted. The huge bird came at them viciously and with the intent to kill.
“Holy shit!” Deanna yelled, having gotten clipped by a wing in the head. “Look out!” she called to Madison.
The beaks of the two swans were just as deadly and just intent on them.
“Take off! Get out of here!” Deanna called to Madison when she saw that the birds were swans. She knew they could be lethal. Their wing spans alone were like seven feet. She’d heard of them attacking and killing full-grown men in the past. They both sped off, the birds hitting them twice more on the Waverunners themselves before they got far enough away.
“What the hell was that about?” Madison asked, wiping away a bit of blood trickling down the side of her face.
“Are you hurt?”
“A little. He clipped me good. Damn, what the hell?” she asked as she felt the pain of the small wound.
“Let me see that,” Deanna ordered and pulled up alongside Madison. They both cut the motors and floated there, looking furtively back to where they had been attacked for any signs of the deadly birds. The cut was superficial.
“Why would they attack us like that?” Madison wondered as she gulped at the nearness of Deanna. She looked so muscular in the form-fitting swimsuit. Her eyes had looked so intently at the wound. It was all she could do not to reach out and touch.
“We probably got too close to their nest or something,” Deanna told her. She wasn’t unaffected by their nearness. It was tempting to kiss the spot to make it better. She’d gotten a good view down Madison’s swimsuit too. Her breasts were definitely bigger for having had two children.
“Wow, they certainly knew how to organize that attack.”
“We never saw it coming,” Deanna grinned. “Are you okay? Do you want to call it a day?”
“Hell, no! I’m not going to let some swan ruin my day of fun in the sun!”
“Atta girl!”
They spent another hour doing the course, racing each other. Deanna got thrown once more when she didn’t pay attention, but to be fair, Madison had distracted her, in more ways than one, by standing up and revving her engine. Deanna had done a somersault over the water before falling into the lake and coming up sputtering. She had needed the swim back to her machine to cool off anyway.
They were finally so tired out from all the fresh air and sun that they drove the machines back and Deanna backed the trailer onto the ramp and into the water. This time, Madison drove one onto the trailer while Deanna used the lift to pull it tightly on board and clamp it down. By then Madison had driven the other one over and it was ready to be tied down. Madison fetched the covers and they both covered up the machines for the ride back to town.
“Wow, that was a fun day!” Deanna commented as she carefully pulled up the ramp and away from the lake.
“The kids are going to be so jealous.”
“We can come back.”
“Soon I hope! That was so much fun.”
“Did you want to stop and eat somewhere?”
“Like this?” Madison looked down at her t-shirt covered swimsuit, which had clung to her immediately.
Deanna had noticed the cling and didn’t mind at all. It clung in all the right places. “Well, we’ll probably be dry by the time we get back into L.A.”
“I’m not hungry yet. How about you?”
“Not yet, and I know once I eat, I’ll get sleepy.” She yawned for effect. After all that sun and exercise, she was already a bit tired and she still had to drive.
“Do you want something to drink? I can reach,” she offered as she wiggled up on the seat and reached in the back.
Deanna didn’t answer right away. She had been treated to the sight of Madison’s curvy derriere in the swimsuit bottom, practically in her face. It was a good thing she had to concentrate on her driving across the parking lot. She could imagine if that had happened on the road, they would have crashed. “Yeah, I’ll take an apple juice and a water,” she was finally able to squeak out.
Madison was aware her backside was exposed, she only wished she had really planned it. She was wondering what Deanna might be thinking about it. She almost wished she could ask her as she came back to the front seat with two waters and two apple juices. She quickly shimmied into her seat belt before they got on the road.
“All set?” Deanna asked to cover up for her momentary lapse.
“All set,” Madison agreed.
Deanna set out after checking everything one more time. She even stopped the SUV to check the trailer, the covers, and the ties. She slipped off her booties and slipped on sandals to drive in.
“Do you want these back?” Madison asked, rolling off the booties she had been wearing. She wiggled her pruney toes appreciatively.
“Eventually,” Deanna answered and threw her own in the backseat next to the vests they had stowed there.
They slowly made their way back to Los Angeles and away from Puddingstone Lake. They vowed to return sometime soon, the kids would demand it. “Hey, they have hot tubs up here. Doesn’t that sound wonderful under the stars?” Madison pointed at the sign.
“I have a hot tub at my house,” Deanna mentioned before she could think.
“You’ll have to show me some time,” Madison answered before she could think.
The drive was a little quieter after that, each lost in the meaning of what they had said and what it could mean, neither asking the other. Finally, an uneasy conversation started over a billboard they saw, distracting them both from their thoughts.
“Do you want to come in and eat something?” Madison offered when they got to her place.
“No, thank you. I think the sun kept me from really being hungry. I just want to go home and sleep,” Deanna grouched in a teasing way.
“I think I got more sun than you did!” she answered back, showing off her reddish skin. They had both gotten sunburned, but not too badly thanks to the sunblock.
“You put some lotion on that, young lady,” the doctor teased as she put the last of Madison’s things on her porch for her.
“Do you have someone to help you with all that?” she indicated the trailer and the Waverunners as well as the cooler and other things in the back of the Rover.
“Yeah, but I like to do things myself,” Deanna said with a self-deprecating grin.
“Thank you for a really wonderful day out,” the redhead told her appreciatively. She really wanted to kiss the blonde, but didn’t know if that would be appropriate. They were, after all, just friends. Was she reading too much into this?
“I had a good time too. Now we know what to do for when we take the kids,” she smiled. She was glad that Madison couldn’t see her eyes boring into her, hungering for the body under that t-shirt and swimsuit. “I’ll call you tomorrow to see how you’re faring,” she promised as she began to back away.
“Drive safe,” she called as she watched her walk towards the Rover and Waverunners. Deanna went around to the driver’s side and quickly got in. Waving madly, she slowly drove away from the curb.
Madison waved until Deanna was out of sight. Almost like a kid who didn’t want their best friend to leave. It was more than that…she knew it was more. She wasn’t sure how to make it more though. Sighing, she began to take her things inside.
Deanna was wondering if she should say something. She didn’t want to ruin what they had. She’d had so much fun, but she wanted more…she needed more. She had so much more to share with Madison when she was ready. It was going to be hard to share with her; she hadn’t told her everything.
CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX
“Are you going to the party for the opening of the new children’s wing?” Deanna asked Madison as she looked over the chart on an operation they had just finished.
“Uh, I’m sure I’m not invited,” Madison laughed as she waited for any further directions from the doctor.
Deanna looked up. “Why wouldn’t you be invited? You’re a member of this hospital.”
“You don’t see the class distinctions around here, do you? Nurses are good for scutt work, for dating, or for boinking, but they aren’t on an equal level with the doctors, much less the surgeons.”
Deanna looked at her as though she had sprouted antennae. “What are you talking about?”
“Remember when you were an intern and the doctors treated you like a servant?” Madison waited until Deanna nodded. It took a moment, after all Deanna was a teen when she was an intern. “That’s how they treat nurses around here…all the time.”
“I don’t do…” she began defensively.
“No, you don’t, but many do,” she was quick to reassure.
“So, are you going to go?” she dismissed the unpleasant part of the conversation they had just had.
“I don’t think so. There is no point and it’s too expensive to get an invitation…” she began and then was interrupted by Deanna.
“Look, I have to go. Let’s just say it was a mandatory suggestion,” she sighed. “I’d kinda like someone there I can laugh with and make fun of the other doctors with,” she lowered her voice and they shared a girlish giggle.
“What? As your date?” she asked, flippantly, her heart beating hard from the implication and her audacity.
Deanna frowned, imagining what it might do to Madison’s stellar reputation as a trauma nurse. “No, as my friend,” she clarified.
Madison felt a bit disappointed, but didn’t let it show. “I don’t know if I have anything to wear and then I have to get a babysitter…” she began. The kids had been disappointed to find out about the excursion on the Waverunners and had been acting up, asking when Deanna was coming over again and when they got to go.
“C’mon, those are just excuses. I’ll pay for the damn tickets and I’ll pick you up. All you have to do is put on somethin’ purty,” she changed her voice to sound like a redneck and the two of them shared a laugh.
“Okay, okay, I’ll go,” she promised, and then immediately regretted it. She’d have to find a nice dress and she didn’t own one. She wanted to look nice for the party, at least that was what she told herself. She almost convinced herself she would be dressing up for the party.
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