Lauren sat down in Harper"s lap on the couch. She laid her head on Harper"s shoulder and sighed deeply.
Harper hugged her tightly to her, "What"s the matter, baby?"
Lauren lay still for a moment then raised her head. She stood up suddenly and started pacing in front of Harper. Finally she said, "I am so mad at Shelby, I could kill her."
Harper sat up, "Why, what did she do?"
"She went to see my mother. She told her about our break up and you." Lauren was on a roll now, she continued pacing, "Of course she took no responsibility for our relationship falling apart and to top it all off she said and I quote, aShe"s lost her mind and run off with a twenty-three year old grad student." I hate her."
Harper stood up and stopped Lauren from pacing, "I take it your mother was not happy?"
"Oh, she was okay, by the time I left, though she"s still on Shelby"s side. I just didn"t want to discuss the reasons Shelby and I split up. Then I had to explain you and I wasn"t ready for that. It shocked me, that"s all," Lauren said, falling into Harper"s chest.
Harper could only say, "I"m sorry."
Lauren remained on Harper"s chest, but she wasn"t done, "d.a.m.n Shelby, I told you she could be a b.i.t.c.h."
"Honey, she"s just grasping at straws. She doesn"t want to lose you. I can understand that."
"No, this is spite and anger. She knows we"re done. She doesn"t want me back; she just wants to hurt me." Lauren let go of Harper and fell into the big chair in the corner.
"Lauren, you had to know she wasn"t going to just walk away from you, without a fight."
"That"s why our relationship drug on so long, when it was over a year ago. I didn"t know how she would react." Lauren stared at the floor.
"So, let"s look at the situation rationally." When Harper said this, Lauren rolled her eyes. "No, now don"t tune out on me. Shelby told your mother her bazaar version of what"s happened. You talked to your mother and she"s okay now, although still pulling for Shelby, so no harm done."
Lauren looked at Harper with her mouth hanging open.
Harper wasn"t exactly sure how to read this reaction. She was about to speak again, when Lauren said, "How did you get to be so wise at your age?"
Harper answered plainly, "I don"t know, it just doesn"t make sense to waste energy being angry over something that really doesn"t matter in the long run. It"s done, let"s move on."
Lauren stood up and put her arms around Harper"s neck, "That"s why I love you; you can make me smile no matter what."
Harper hugged Lauren close, "I missed you today."
All day Monday, Harper couldn"t get what Shelby had done out of her mind. Even though she told Lauren not to worry about Shelby"s attempts to hurt her, Harper was still angry at Shelby"s behavior. It was the act of a desperate woman. How many more desperate acts did Shelby have up her sleeve? It was like antic.i.p.ating fireworks. You know it is going to explode, but you still jump when it happens. Harper and Lauren were going to the department dinner together. Harper hoped that Shelby wasn"t going to blow up tonight.
Everyone left the lab early to get ready for the dinner. Harper saw Shelby in the parking lot, but kept going, avoiding a confrontation with her. She thought the less time she was around Shelby, the less opportunity Shelby had to go off on her. Harper wanted Shelby to face the facts and move on, but Harper was too smart to think that Shelby would walk away, without confronting her at least once. Shelby had the look of a woman scorned and it seemed to grow more prevalent every time Harper saw her.
When they walked into the party many heads turned and Harper actually saw someone point, then cover her mouth in shock. Lauren and Harper both wore their simple black dresses, Harper accessorizing with pearls and Lauren a beautiful tropically colored, silk, flowered scarf. In the parking lot, just before they went in, Harper squeezed Lauren"s hand and asked, "Are you ready for this?"
Lauren held onto Harper"s hand tightly, "Just don"t leave me alone in there."
Harper kissed her on the cheek and then gently rubbed the lipstick smudge off Lauren"s face with her thumb, "Now why would anyone leave a beautiful woman like you alone?"
So, Harper held tightly to Lauren"s hand as they entered. They mingled and drank champagne, Harper ever on the lookout for Shelby. She finally saw her, over by the champagne fountain refilling her gla.s.s. There did not seem to be anyone with her, as she moved easily through the crowd.
Shelby was striking and all the men and most of the women noticed her. Lauren knew a lot of the people there. She was charming and gracious as she introduced Harper to more of the Bio-Med faculty. No one came right out and said, why are you with Harper and not Shelby, but you could see the questions on their faces.
On one hand, the stares and questions bothered Harper only because they were the center of attention and she really didn"t like the spotlight. On the other hand, she was proud to be with Lauren. She wanted everyone to know, this lovely woman is with me. It made her feel good, not jealous, when the men checked Lauren out. Abby"s words rang in her head, "You can look, but don"t touch." Nevertheless, Harper did touch. She not only touched it, she took it and she was d.a.m.n proud of it.
Harper could see that Shelby was getting closer to them. She tried to move Lauren along, but she was engrossed in some woman"s baby pictures. Lauren had known these people a long time and had many friends among them. She kept stopping to talk to people on the way to their table and Shelby was coming up right behind them. Harper had called to request a seat far away from Dr. West, but she was certainly walking their way.
Shelby stopped three feet away from Harper to talk to one of the people Lauren had just introduced Harper to. It was a Dr. somebody who worked with Shelby. To Harper"s dismay, Shelby walked past them to her table, located only three tables away from where Harper and Lauren were seated. The seating was arranged in such a way that it put Shelby looking straight at their table. Could it get any worse?
Harper tried to listen to the conversation at her table. Lauren knew everyone there, so she talked with ease amongst them. You would never have known she was in a tight situation, if you didn"t know the score. What Harper began to notice was the number of times Shelby had the server bring her mixed drinks from the bar. Harper could tell she was drinking martinis by the shape of the gla.s.s. Shelby was becoming more animated as she talked to the other diners at her table.
Lauren turned to Harper, "You"re not listening, are you?"
Harper snapped back to the table, "I"m sorry, what did you say?"
Lauren indicated a man in a tux with a plaid bow tie, "Bill asked how you liked Chapman"s Mill so far."
Lauren squeezed Harper"s knee under the table. Harper smiled broadly, "I think I"ve found a new home. I really like it here. Everybody has been so welcoming."
Lauren slid her hand a little bit further up Harper"s leg. She leaned over and whispered in Harper"s ear, so no one else could hear, "Do I have your attention now?"
Harper trembled a little. This kind of s.e.xual seduction in public was stimulating in ways Harper had never felt before. She stopped Lauren"s hand from rising any higher. "Yes m"am you have my full attention," Harper whispered back.
Lauren was talking with only Harper now, in hushed tones, while the others at the table continued their own conversations. "Where were you? I had to touch you to get your attention."
"You never told me Shelby was a big drinker," Harper said quietly.
"She isn"t. Her mother is an alcoholic so she"s very careful about how she drinks. Why?" Lauren looked over at Shelby"s table.
"Because she"s putting away Martinis like there is no tomorrow." Harper looked back over at Shelby, "I saw her drunk on bourbon and it wasn"t pretty."
"Let"s just get your award and excuse ourselves. She won"t come after us. It would make a scene. She won"t do that at work. Just relax." Now, Lauren was the calm one and Harper wanted to get up and pace.
Dinner was finally served and the speeches got started. There were lots of grant recipients to recognize. Shelby was mentioned many times. As part of her new job, Shelby had helped quite a few grant recipients complete the grant process. Shelby had been very busy. Lauren and Harper clapped politely when Shelby was asked to stand up. Harper did notice Shelby had a little trouble sitting back down. As the evening wore on, Harper noticed that Shelby had begun to glare at them occasionally and a few times she was just sitting there blatantly staring at them, when Harper looked over at her.
Harper heard her name being called and she walked up to the head table to receive a worthless piece of paper that confirmed what she already knew, her grant was the largest corporate grant received, thus far, in this academic year. The speaker went on to praise Harper"s academic record and honors, telling the room full of her colleagues how lucky they were that Harper chose UC over that school in Durham. It had been a tight race, but UC won out.
Harper was completely embarra.s.sed by all the attention. She was a good student, because her parents expected it of her and she enjoyed school. She chose UC because they offered her a better salary and benefits package. There had been no luck involved. As far as the grant went, once she approached the corporation about branching out into sports medicine, it was a done deal. Sports medicine is one of the few investments still rising in profits. It was a no brainer. The government even pitched in some research money from the stimulus package. Harper thought that was ridiculous, but took the money anyway.
So here she was in front of this applauding crowd expected to say something, which n.o.body warned her she might have to do. "Thank you. Thank you for your hospitality and warm response. I"m truly honored by my reception here. As you can tell, by my accent, I am not a native of North Carolina." The audience chuckled. "I really appreciate the way you all have made me feel welcome here. I look forward to many years in my new home in Chapman"s Mill."
Then it was over. Her pounding heart began to slow down as she exited the podium. She shook a few hands and accepted a few kisses on the cheek, on the way back to the table. Harper was looking at Lauren, as she approached her seat. Lauren was beaming with pride, which swelled Harper"s heart with delight. She was going to walk pa.s.sed Shelby"s table and not make eye contact. She was almost home free, when Harper felt someone grab her arm.
She turned to see it was Shelby, pulling her down to say something in her ear. Shelby smiled so no one at the table would suspect what she was really about to say, "Are you enjoying f.u.c.king my wife?"
Harper stood up and smiled at Shelby. Harper could play this game too. "Why, yes I am. Thank you so much for asking. I"m really enjoying it."
She patted Shelby"s hand, the one still gripping her arm. Shelby was seething, but remained smiling and composed, as she said, "Well, you can use it a little longer, but I"m going to want it back pretty soon."
Harper pulled away gently, so it wouldn"t show how much force Shelby was using on her arm. She backed away from the table, smiling, leaving Shelby with this to chew on, "I"m sorry. I thought you said you were through with it. I"ve already written in the margins and I really don"t think I can give it back. I"ll keep this one and see about finding you a new one."
Harper turned around to see Lauren standing up. Shock projected from her whole body. She had grown quite pale and could not take her eyes off Harper. Harper kept smiling, as though nothing had happened. She signaled Lauren to meet her at the end of the table. Lauren read her mind, grabbed their purses, excused herself from the table and joined Harper in the crowded walkway. Harper indicated for Lauren to go ahead of her.
Harper whispered through clinched teeth and her aisn"t this great" smile, "Just keep moving. I"ll explain when we get in the car."
When they reached the parking garage, they thought they had escaped. Suddenly, Harper heard the clicking of high heels on the concrete behind them. Shelby was bearing down on them with a look of pure loathing. For some reason Lauren stepped in front of Harper, shielding her from this crazy woman coming at her, with a full head of steam.
Lauren put her hand up in an attempt to stop Shelby. It didn"t work. Shelby slapped Lauren"s hand out of the way, her anger aimed at Harper. This enraged Harper. She wasn"t going to duke it out in the parking garage, that was such childish and typical lesbian behavior, but she wasn"t going to stand by and let Shelby get physical with Lauren either. There was no doubt in Harper"s mind that she could whip Shelby"s a.s.s, because among the things she did, before she lost her parents, was taekwondo. She was a blue belt about to test for her brown, but she lost interest after her father died, because they took cla.s.ses together.
She stepped around Lauren and faced off with Shelby. Harper tried to keep Lauren behind her, but Lauren kept trying to get back in front, she kept saying, "Shelby, what"s wrong with you?"
Shelby glared into Harper"s eyes and the glare was returned in kind. Harper was not easily intimidated by anyone.
"How dare you?" Shelby finally screeched at Harper.
Harper was ready, "How dare you? I believe you"re the one that wanted to know if I enjoyed f.u.c.king your wife. I just answered you truthfully. And by the way, I don"t see a ring on her hand do you?"
Lauren pulled on Harper"s arm, "Let"s go. Don"t bait her. She"s obviously drunk."
Harper held her ground. No way do you turn your back on an enemy, especially when they"re angry. She watched as Shelby groped for something to say. Shelby switched her attention to Lauren.
"Lauren, what are you doing with this twenty-three-year-old grad student? You know you are just doing this to hurt me, to get back at me. I left you alone too much. I know that now. We can start over, forget this ever happened."
Lauren continued to pull Harper back toward the Tahoe. "Come on Harper, please let"s just go."
Harper complied, but did not turn her back on Shelby until she was a safe distance away. They left Shelby where she was. Just as they drove away, Harper looked in the side mirror, back to where Shelby was standing. She saw Shelby fall to her knees.
Shelby screamed, "Lauren, please!"
Lauren acted as if she did not hear her. When they were safely on the road, Lauren asked, "What did she say to you when she whispered in your ear?"
Harper related the whole story word for word. Lauren was quiet for a moment. Harper was worried Lauren would be mad at her for f.u.c.king with Shelby like that. She didn"t have to worry long. Lauren burst out laughing.
"You know, you had better be careful that mouth of yours doesn"t write out a check, your a.s.s can"t cash," Lauren said, between bouts of laughter.
Harper kissed Lauren on the cheek, "I"m not worried. You"ve got my back, right?"
Chapter Nineteen.
Tuesday went by smoothly. There were no confrontations with Shelby at work. In fact, Harper never saw Shelby and by the end of the day she and Lauren had ceased to be the topic of conversation everywhere she went. Many people commented on how happy Lauren looked. Harper swelled with pride each time.
Lauren sent Harper a text. Jane had called and asked her to play in the game tonight. Shelby would not be there. This made Harper extremely happy. A whole day with no Shelby would be a good day. Harper felt for Shelby. She knew the pain of loss all too well. Harper saw it in Shelby"s face when she fell on her knees last night. You couldn"t be human and not feel some empathy. Harper never intended to be a part of hurting Shelby, but it was clear Shelby was still blaming Harper for her predicament. Lauren also made it clear there was no going back.
The softball game was so much fun. The whole team seemed to have a cloud lifted from them. Harper hadn"t realized how much the tension between she and Shelby had affected the whole team. They won handily. Abby, Julie, Alicia, Lauren and Harper decided to go to the Tarr Barr for food, before going home.
On the way to the bar, Lauren called Harper from the Tahoe trailing the Hummer. "If I"m going to keep playing, I might have to move to right field," Lauren was saying.
"Why?" Harper asked.
"Because, I can"t concentrate on the batter with you shaking your a.s.s in my face the whole game," Lauren laughed.
"I can"t help that you can"t keep your hands off me, you know," Harper said, playing along.
"Maybe you should get baggier pants." Lauren teased.
They joined the girls in the back room. When they sat down, Lauren nonchalantly kissed Harper on the cheek.
"Oh, please! Get a room," Julie commented.
Lauren didn"t miss a beat, smiling at Julie, "Get over it Julie. It"s not like I"m the first person, at this table, to get a divorce and find someone else. At least I didn"t have an affair before the divorce."
The arrow hit home. Julie, who was never at a loss for words, was speechless. The table sat quietly for a moment then Alicia and Abby burst into laughter.
"She got you on that one," Abby said.
Julie regained her voice, "Don"t you feel like we owe Shelby some loyalty?"
Abby replied, "Yes, as her friend, I feel I should support her while she gets back on her feet, but Lauren is our friend, too. You don"t think Lauren deserves loyalty, because she"s happy now?"
Julie stared at Abby, but conceded, "I guess you"re right, it just feels wrong to me."
Lauren tilted her head and scrunched up her brow, "Would you feel the same if Shelby was the one sitting here and not me?"
Alicia finally spoke up, "It"s always sad when a relationship comes to an end. I see it every day in the divorces I deal with. You end up dividing everything including your friends. I hope that doesn"t happen here."
Lauren was still looking at Julie, waiting for her to answer, "Well, Julie, what"s it going to be? Do we sit here and have a nice friendly meal or are you going to be the hard a.s.s you usually are, standing your ground, even though you know you are wrong?"
"I just want to know, were you sleeping with Harper before you left Shelby?" Julie was undeterred.
Harper and Lauren answered at the same time, "No!"
Lauren added, "But what if I was, who are you to judge?"
"I"m not judging you," Julie finally smiled, "I just wanted you not to be so G.o.d d.a.m.ned perfect."
They all laughed and enjoyed the rest of the evening. The conversation never drifted back to Shelby. Lauren talked about how she was really enjoying her art again. Abby asked how Harper was getting along at work and Alicia intrigued them with talk of her latest political activism on the part of homeless women. They all promised to come to the women"s center on Sat.u.r.day to help paint. All in all, it was a very pleasant evening and Harper left feeling at ease with her new friends.
Lauren had basically moved in with Harper and Jasper. Harper cleared out s.p.a.ce in a few drawers and made room in the closet for Lauren"s things. They never really talked about it, but since Harper had Jasper, most nights were spent at her house to begin with and then they just fell into a routine. Lauren, true to her word, rose every morning with Harper to run and work out. While Harper was at work, Lauren would go to her studio to paint and often took Jasper. Lauren was always at the house, waiting when Harper got home from work.
They cooked together usually, unless Lauren made something special that day. Then they would crawl on the couch, Harper usually reading or working on something from work, while Lauren laid her head in Harper"s lap and sketched or wrote in her journal. Harper always checked with Lauren before she got things out of her briefcase to work on. She didn"t want to make the same mistakes Shelby had. Harper gave her plenty of rea.s.suring pats and kisses to let Lauren know she was never far from her mind. Lauren appeared to be fine with the way things were going.
They still couldn"t keep their hands off each other and often went from sitting quietly on the couch to having pa.s.sionate s.e.x all over the house. They were young and in love and totally infatuated with each other"s bodies. Lauren"s tongue did things to Harper"s body no one else had ever done. Sometimes Harper was afraid when she o.r.g.a.s.med her t.w.a.t was going to blow off. Harper"s favorite time was after the s.e.x, when Lauren would lie on top of her and close her eyes, not moving, not speaking, just lying as one with Harper. To Harper, this was the way it was supposed to be, her missing piece was missing no more.