Accidental Love

by BL Miller

  ….washcloth between her legs, removing any trace her activities. Her task finished, she set it back in the small basin on the night stand. Rose settled back under the covers and waited for Ronnie to return. In the darkness, she thought about what had happened. Never in her wildest dreams had she thought about having sex with another woman. Now, her body still tingling from the intense orgasm, Rose tried to sort out her conflicting feelings. She cared very deeply for Ronnie, but that way? Still, all it took was her thinking of the executive speaking low and sexy to her and Rose began to warm up again. She tried to think of two women having sex. Nothing. There was no interest at all. The visions in her mind were just sex, bodies and limbs mingling together for physical pleasure. She thought about Ronnie again. Long, never ending legs led to a graceful swelling at the hip then narrowed to a slim waist. Breasts that seemed neither too large nor too small for her tall frame. A slender neck led to a square jaw and high cheekbones, all accented by full lips and expressive blue eyes. But the mental review couldn't stay on the physical. The rich voice played in her ear while the sweet scent lingering on the nearby pillow filled her nostrils. Rose suddenly became aware of her own hand moving against her breast. The sudden silence as the stereo was shut off jolted the young woman out of her new fantasy. Her hands went straight to her sides and she waited as the basement door closed and the one to her room opened.

  "You awake?" Ronnie whispered as she entered the darkened room. She waited a few seconds before repeating her question. Satisfied that Rose was sleeping, she carefully slipped into bed. Their bodies were barely touching. She tried one more time. "Rose?" She waited several seconds before settling down and wiggling in close. Her face buried in golden hair, her arm resting across the small waist, Ronnie gave a contented sigh and drifted off.

  Long after Ronnie's breathing gave way to soft snores, Rose lay awake, her fingertips idly twirling across the back of the hand resting on her stomach. It's too bad that Chris hurt you so much, using your love against you, threatening to tell everyone about… Her eyes popped open as the question took shape. Why would it be so terrible for you to be involved with a fellow student?

  It's not like you were sleeping with a professor or anything. Unless… her eyes grew wide.

  Unless Chris is a Christine.

  part 9

  "Good morning, Maria." Rose wheeled her way into the kitchen, following the scent of fresh baked cinnamon rolls.

  "And a good morning to you too, Rose. Would you like some coffee?"

  "I'd love a cup, thank you."

  "I'll bring it over to the table." The housekeeper reached into the cupboard and removed a mug without looking at it. By the time she realized which one she had grabbed, she'd already added the cream and sugar. "Well, I guess Ronnie will have to use another mug."

  "You gave me her favorite again, didn't you?" Rose asked with a smile. It was another one of Ronnie's little quirks. Her morning coffee was always served in a black mug with the words "The Boss" across it.

  "I'm afraid I did. I'll dump it out and give you another one."

  "No, don't bother. Ronnie can live without her Boss mug for one day." It actually amused Rose that with the dozens of mugs that filled the cupboard, her friend was so attached to that particular one.

  "Now you know she likes her coffee in that cup," Maria admonished.

  "It's good for her to change her routine from time to time," came the playful reply as she took the mug from the older woman.

  "And what are you two up to?" Ronnie asked as she entered the room. She picked the newspaper up and glanced at the headline before she noticed. "Stealing my favorite mug?" She crossed behind the young woman and sat down in the chair next to her.

  "Don't worry, I know who is really the boss around here," Rose replied as she took a sip.

  "Sometimes I wonder," Ronnie joked back. "Think you'll try to send me an email today?"

  "Yeah, you wrote down what to do, didn't you?"

  "It's next to the computer." She looked up to see Maria coming over with her coffee. She looked at the mug quizzically. "Where'd this one come from?" It was a Far Side cartoon mug with two deer on it. One had a bright red bulls-eye on its chest. The caption underneath said 'Hell of a birthmark, Hal.' Ronnie chuckled and drank from it.

  "See, change is good," Rose said over the lip of her mug. Maria brought their breakfast over along with a carafe of coffee.

  "If you ladies will excuse me, I'm going to get started on the laundry."

  "Okay, thanks Maria."

  "Yeah, thanks."

  Now alone, both women began to eat their breakfast. Ronnie had the fork in one hand and the newspaper in the other. Although she scanned the business section, the paper also had the added benefit of allowing her to peek over and study Rose unnoticed. The broken legs were hidden under the round table. With the soft blonde hair tucked behind her ears, Ronnie had an unobstructed view of the soft curve of Rose's cheek, the slight upturn at the end of her nose, the rust colored eyebrows that rested above far too green eyes. Suddenly those eyes turned and caught her. Ruffling the pages and looking down at the paper, Ronnie hoped that the blush she felt wasn't too visible. "Um…I'm thinking about easing some of the workload off of Laura. I have some letters that need to be updated. It's not that hard to do but it is time consuming. You said you learned how to use the mail merge, didn't you?" Her eyes never left the newsprint, although she had no idea what the words on the paper were.

  "Um hmm." Rose swallowed and set the cup down. "It was difficult at first but once I got the hang of it it's really pretty easy." Inside she was excited. Ronnie is giving me real work to do, not just examples and tests in the computer programs. Real work that needs to be done and she's trusting me with it. "I'll make sure it's done right away and I promise there will be no mistakes."

  Behind the paper, the executive smiled at the enthusiastic tone. "I'll email the files to you as soon as I get to work. I'm sure you'll have no problems with it." She set the business section of the paper down and poured herself another cup of coffee. "Well, let's see who the police picked up last night," Ronnie said as she picked up the local section. She flipped through the pages until she found the police blotter report listing all the people who were arrested or appeared in court. She spotted the name of an old high school friend arrested for prostitution. "What?" She pulled the paper closer, knocking her coffee cup over in the process. "Damn." She stood up. The creamy yellow blouse was now covered down the front with the wet beige of coffee. She undid the first few buttons, confirming that it had seeped onto her half slip as well. "Maria!" She turned to see the housekeeper come out of the laundry room. "Coffee."

  "On silk," Maria tsked. "Veronica Louise, I go through more Woolite with you." She shook her head, causing Rose to smirk while sopping up the coffee on the table. "Well, get out of those wet things." Ronnie turned to head out of the room. "There is no need to be modest right now. You're not going to run upstairs with coffee dripping off your blouse. There's enough of a mess to clean right here."

  "Fine." In one quick move the blouse came off followed by the half slip. "It got the skirt too." A tug of the zipper and the garment followed the other wet clothes into Maria's hands.

  With Ronnie's back to her, Rose let her eyes travel up and down the tall body clad in only pantyhose and a lacy creme colored bra. She concentrated but didn't feel the arousal that she had experienced the prior evening. What she did feel was guilty for staring at her friend's body. This is silly. It's just Ronnie. She averted her eyes when the half-clothed body turned around, looking up only when she heard the dark-haired woman address her. "I'm going upstairs to change."

  "Oh, you know what would look really nice on you? Those gray wool slacks and that pale blue blouse." Rose thought about the last time she had seen Ronnie wear that outfit and about how it highlighted her eyes. "It looks really nice on you."

  "The gray slacks, hmm?" Ronnie remembered how much Rose liked that particular combination. Goosebumps raised on her t
highs. "I'd better go get changed before I freeze to death standing here."

  She returned a few minutes later, admitting to herself that the wool pants were a much better idea than the skirt on such a cold morning. "Okay, what do you think?" She asked, twirling around with the blazer folded over her arm.

  "Looks great," Rose said. The slacks hugged in all the right places and the top outlined her soft curves nicely. "You look…nice."

  "Thank you." Ronnie looked down into sparkling green eyes and smiled. "I'll email you those files once I get there." She fought the urge to give the young woman a peck on the cheek and settled instead for a squeeze of the shoulder. "I'd better get going before the traffic gets too bad."

  "Oh, okay. I'll make sure to have that program up so I can get started as soon as it arrives."

  "You don't have to rush, Rose. Whenever you get to them is fine." Privately it pleased her to no end to hear the eagerness in her friend's voice. Ronnie had no doubts when it came to Rose's work ethic. "I'll try and be home early." At that moment, the housekeeper exited the laundry room with the mop and bucket in hand. "I'd better get going before Maria finds a new use for that mop."

  "Sometimes," Maria said as she shook her head.

  Ronnie turned her attention to Rose. "I'll call you later."

  "Okay."

  Rose wheeled herself out of the way as the housekeeper began to clean up the mess. The bright blue Jeep disappeared from the driveway, leaving the two of them alone. It's time to get some answers, Rose thought to herself.

  "Maria, was it easy for you to learn to use email?"

  "Lords no, child. When Ronnie first gave me that computer I was afraid to turn it on. I didn't know what it would do."

  "But now you like it?"

  "I talk to my son in Arizona every night." She pushed the dry mop over the last drops of the spill.

  "You should have seen my phone bills before that."

  "I bet when Ronnie was away at college the phone bills were something." Great segue, Einstein. Why not just come right out and say let's talk about Stanford, she mentally berated herself. "I mean, she's just so close to her family and all."

  "When the children were in college it certainly was a trying time around here." Maria picked up the breakfast dishes and headed for the dishwasher. "One of them was always calling for something or another." She picked up the carafe and poured some of the steaming liquid into a cup for herself. "I swear I was down at the post office almost every day mailing something to one of them."

  "Let's sit and talk for a while," Rose said, pointing at the empty seat. "There's not much that has to be done today and I have to wait for her to send me those files."

  "Just for a little while. I do have vacuuming to do. Tabitha sheds more hair than any cat I've ever seen," She refilled the young woman's cup. She sat down in the offered chair and took a sip of her own coffee. "They certainly were quite a handful then."

  "I guess the independence that comes with being away from home must have been too much, huh?" She tucked a stray lock of blonde hair behind her ear. "Ronnie sure had a rough time of it." She saw the flicker in the older woman's eyes and knew she had to tread carefully. "She told me about Chris."

  "That was a very sad thing and not something I care to talk about." Maria said, looking down at the table. She drank several swallows of coffee. "Some people are just trash, Rose. Plain and simple."

  "Maria, may I ask you a question?" At the reluctant nod, she took a deep breath and continued.

  "Do you think I'm using Ronnie?"

  "It doesn't matter what I think. What matters is what she thinks." She drained her mug and gave Rose a serious look. "I would hate to see her get hurt like that again."

  "I don't know how anyone can know Ronnie for any length of time and want to use her," Rose said softly, her gaze flickering from Maria to the table and back again. "She has the kindest heart of anyone I know and I don't mean just being generous. It must have been devastating for her to trust someone and have that trust shattered." She had no idea that the housekeeper's thoughts immediately went to the fully repaired Porsche tucked away in the garage. "To be at that age, to have something so private exposed to her parents…" Rose shook her head. "I just can't imagine why anyone would be so cruel to her. Did you ever meet Chris?"

  "No, the gold digger never showed up here," Maria said. "I only spoke with her on the phone."

  Bingo. The big question was answered.

  *************************

  Delores Bickering drove her rusted out station wagon into the public parking garage and pulled into the first empty spot, not caring that it was reserved for the handicapped. If she received a ticket, it would end up in the glove box with the rest of the ones she had received. Tickets and insurance were not things she chose to spend on her money on. The empty cigarette pack hit the ground as she lit the last one and walked away from her car. If things went the way she planned, she would have plenty of money for cigarettes before the day was over.

  The Cartwrights had always liked things big. When the Wellington Hotel was erected in the late 1920's, it towered over the smaller Cartwright building next door. Ronnie's great grandfather took it as a challenge and the result was the construction of one of Albany's largest buildings, more than thirty stories high. Delores stood in front of it and sneered at the large logo carved into the reddish-brown granite above the doors. She pushed her way through the revolving door and into the spacious lobby. On the wall was a brass plaque welcoming her to the Cartwright Corporate Offices. Below it was a directory of departments along with the floors on which they were located.

  Ronnie was just finishing off a fruit cup when the buzzer sounded. "Yes, Laura?"

  "Um…there's someone here to see you," the hesitant voice said.

  "Who?" A quick glance at her calendar showed no appointments scheduled for that afternoon. She heard her secretary ask the visitor's name and clenched her jaw as soon as she recognized the voice. "Keep her out there for a minute." She hung up the phone and tapped the mechanical pencil against the desk. Damn, what's that bitch doing here?

  The answer came to her instantly. Her first instinct was to throw Delores out but as she opened her mouth to speak, Ronnie noticed something that changed her mind. Swiveling around in her seat, she reached for the mouse and clicked on the security icon. Her password and a few clicks later, a small red light lit up on the security camera tucked discreetly in the upper corner of her office. It was time to expose Delores Bickering for what she really was. "Send her in."

  "Nice office," the large woman nodded approvingly as she looked around. "You hiring?"

  "No." Ronnie could not believe she had the nerve to even ask such a question. "You're not here to ask me about a job."

  "I came to talk to you about Rose." She unzipped her dirty yellow jacket and pulled her knit cap off, sending flakes of wet snow onto the thick burgundy rug. "You know I'm the closest thing to a mother she's ever had."

  "So you say." Oops, wouldn't want Rose to see me being hostile to the bitch. Forcing a polite smile to her face, she said in her most solicitous voice, "So what is it you wished to see me about? Please, have a seat."

  Delores flopped down on the couch and tossed her coat on the far cushion. "I would have thought someone like you would have coffee for your visitors." She looked pointedly at the empty coffeepot on the side table. "Especially those who are relatives to your friends."

  Ronnie's eyes narrowed but she kept her tongue. "You said you wanted to talk to me about Rose?"

  "I've found a way to help her out."

  "Help her out?"

  "Yeah." The large woman sat up. "I've found her a job in Cobleskill. She can start on Monday. It pays six dollars an hour."

  "Why would she want to work in Cobleskill? That's an hour away. Besides, didn't you notice that she has two broken legs? She's in no condition to work."

  "It's in a telemarketing office. She won't have to stand up, just talk on the phone. Of course that means she'll h
ave to move back with me."

  "She already told you she wants to live with me. Why would she change her mind now?" What stunt are you trying to pull? Make Rose choose between us? I'll be damned if I'll let you take her away from me.

  Delores shook her head. "You don't understand. Rose and I have a deal. She owes me for taking care of her and promised to help out in any way she could."

  "Let me get this straight. You want her to move back with you and work at this telemarketing job so she can give you money?"

  "I think that's only fair. She lived under my roof and ate my food for years without paying anything and now it's time for her to pay me back." Delores crossed her arms and leaned back.