“… so I said, ‘Hell, just give me the bottle!’” Toni McDonald burst into laughter, along with Michelle and Toni’s partner, Carol Williams. Kelly tried to join, not sure what was so funny about Toni’s latest exploits with drinking and her favorite bartender.
The four women were lounging in the back yard of Toni and Carol’s house, while the nearby grill smoked and flamed, waiting for Toni to put the burgers on it. In the just over an hour they had been there, Michelle had put away six bottles of beer. Kelly was trying to make her wine last, but with Carol refilling her glass every time she turned around, she couldn’t be certain how much she had actually consumed. All she knew was that there was a humming in her ears and a very comfortable warm fog weaving rapidly around her thoughts.
“Time for the burgers,” Toni announced, looking over at the grill. “Everyone likes theirs slightly burned, right?”
“Does it matter,” Michelle replied. “You burn them anyway.”
“Asshole.” Toni laughed. “I’ll be right back.”
“I’ll come with you.” Michelle stood. “I have to hit the can again.”
When the two women had disappeared inside, Carol looked into her cup before turning her attention to Kelly. “How’s it going,” she asked. “Did Kaitlan get settled ok?”
“Yes.” Kelly took a long drink and bit her lip. “Things are going to take some getting used to, with her gone.”
“I’ll bet. She’s turned out a good kid, you know. Ya’ll did a great job.”
I did a great job. Michelle just brought home the paychecks and stayed out of the way. Feeling uncharitable for the thought, Kelly drank again. Finally, she spoke. “She’s got a good head on her shoulders.”
“Can’t imagine where she gets it from.” Carol laughed. “You’re such a flake.”
Kelly grimaced at the sarcasm, knowing full well that her friends considered her anything but a flake. Too serious, most of them would say if pressed on the matter. It was only after a few drinks that she really felt out of her shell enough to be social. “That’s me, the flake,” she said quietly.
“Come on, lighten up.” Carol’s voice chided gently. “She’s only three hours away. She’ll be back home on break before you know it.”
“It’s just strange, knowing there’s only Michelle and me in the house now,” Kelly admitted. “I’m not sure what to do with my time.”
“Have you thought any more about taking on more hours at work?”
For the past three years, Kelly had worked mornings at Byrnum and Touche, while doing research work at home. It was a schedule that allowed her to indulge in her wine starting early in the day. With Kaitlan gone, however, there was no need to be home and available by three o’clock.
“I don’t know yet.” Kelly sighed. “I’m not sure what I want to do.”
“You’re so lucky Michelle got that raise and you don’t have to worry about it,” Carol responded. “We’re both working overtime and still up to our necks in bills.”
The first years after taking Kaitlan in had been difficult, with both Michelle and Kelly working long hours to support the household. Then Michelle was offered a position in management, and Kelly had been able to become a stay-at-home mom. The promotions kept coming, and eventually Michelle got to the point that she didn’t want Kelly to work; somehow being the breadwinner for wife and family, as unconventional a family as it might be, held a payoff that Michelle liked. Kelly had never analyzed it; it was just another thing Michelle wanted and got. Her job with the law firm was part time, and that was all Michelle had been willing to hear talk of.
Their conversation was halted by the return of the second half of the foursome. Michelle held a fresh beer and Toni a platter of hamburgers, which she carefully placed one by one on the grill, giving a list of the ingredients she had added as she did so: oregano, parmesan, garlic, onion powder.
“And the Secret Ingredient that I’ll never reveal,” she finished with a chuckle.
Kelly knew the secret ingredient was a mixture of Worcestershire and tequila, but she let Toni have her fun. Michelle sat beside her and slid an arm around her shoulders.
“How’s my beautiful woman?” Her voice was a purr that suggested she was still looking for something special when they got home.
“Fine,” Kelly replied, wondering why it was that voice made her uncomfortable. Even at forty-six, Michelle was a beautiful woman, her dark wavy hair barely speckled with grey, the tiny lines at the corners of her chocolate eyes merely adding to an aura of self assuredness she exuded. But beautiful or not, Kelly hadn’t felt the pull of raw sexual need from her for a lot longer than she liked to admit to herself.
“Oh, your wine’s empty.” Carol’s voice broke into her thoughts. “I’m a horrible hostess.”
Noting in the back of her mind that getting her guests drunk wasn’t probably being the best of hostesses, Kelly held up her cup for a refill. At least the alcohol would serve one purpose; if nothing else it did act as an aphrodisiac. Pushing the thought away, Kelly forced her attention to Toni, who was launching into yet another tale of softball triumph.
It was nearly five before they finally said their goodbyes. By that time, Michelle’s voice had taken on a distinct slur, and Kelly was seeing not-quite-double of her. As they walked to the car, Michelle stumbled and cursed.
“Let me drive,” Kelly said, holding out her hand, not to steady her partner, but for the keys.
“I’m fine.”
“No, you’re not.”
Michelle glared at her. “I said, I’m fine. It’s only a couple of miles.”
“It’s twenty miles and you aren’t fine.” Neither was she, but she was much better on auto-pilot than Michelle.
“Just because you don’t have Kaitlan to Mommy doesn’t mean you can start treating me like a child,” Michelle snapped.
“What? Are you serious? You’re drunk, Michelle.”
“So are you. It’s my car, I’m fucking driving.”
Kelly glanced over her shoulder as she realized their voices had risen enough to bring Carol to the front door of the house. Fortunately, they were in the country and no other houses were close enough for anyone to hear them. “Please, give me the keys.” She spoke lowly, her gaze probing Michelle’s face.
Michelle stared at her defiantly for a long moment, then huffed a sigh and tossed the keys at her before staggering to the passenger door and yanking it open. Kelly sighed as well and went to get into the driver’s seat, wishing that Michelle would simply pass out when they got home and be done with it. She knew, however, as she started the car and backed out of the driveway, that any nap would be short-lived and that Michelle, when she got into the mean sort of demanding mood she seemed to be in, wouldn’t be satisfied with a simple kiss on the cheek and promise of later passion.
She was glad she had finished her work earlier that morning; it was going to be a long night.
No comments:
Post a Comment