Honesty - SF8 (36 page)

On Monday afternoon volleyball practice was rather sluggish, and it was obvious to Ryan that the team needed an infusion of confidence. Even though they had won the two games in Washington, their record was still two and five, not the kind of tally to be happy with when the upcoming opponent was Stanford. The Cardinal had won the recruiting sweepstakes the year before when the most heavily recruited outside hitter in the country decided to attend the university. Since they also had the NCAA player of the year on their team, they were formidable at any point in the season, even though they had barely squeaked past an unranked team from St. Mary's the week before. They were currently ranked number two nationally, and everyone on Ryan's team knew that the ranking was well deserved.

She hung around after practice and approached Coach Placer. "Hey Coach, would you mind if I tried to liven things up a little tomorrow?"

"I'd be eternally grateful if you could bring some life to this team, Ryan. We were walking around like robots out there today."

"I think a lot of the girls are scared about the game tomorrow. It's never easy to play Stanford, but with a record like ours I think a lot of the younger players feel like they're being led to slaughter."

"Well, what do you have in mind, Ryan?"

"I'm not sure yet. But I think we need to loosen up a lot to have a chance tomorrow. I want to do something playful to take some of the pressure off."

"Did you read about the Ohio State women's rugby team?" he asked, his eyes twinkling impishly

"No, I don't get the reference."

"They were at a tournament in D.C. and they posed at the Lincoln Memorial-bare-chested. It made national news and the school eventually suspended the players who participated."

"Okay," Ryan said slowly. "What's your point?"

"As long as you don't make national news or get suspended, you have my permission to stir these girls up any way you can think of," he said with a laugh as he draped his arm around Ryan's shoulders.

Ryan had been home no more than two minutes when the phone rang. "Hey, Slugger, what are you doing for dinner?" Jordan asked.

"Warming up some leftovers. We're just hanging out tonight. Why, do you want to come over?"

"I want to do something," she whined. "All we do is practice, play matches, and study. I need some excitement!"

"I can't guarantee excitement, but you're welcome to join us. Dinner will be ready in about 20 minutes."

"Okay, I'll be there. Maybe I can convince you to go out with me afterwards."

"Well, you can try, but I can't imagine that you'll succeed," she warned, feeling quite confident that she'd be in bed by ten, as usual.

The foursome had a very enjoyable time together and afterwards Jordan begged Ryan and Jamie to hit a few bars with her. "Come on, it'll be fun. We can go to the White Horse. Nobody will hit on us there."

"Isn't that a gay bar?" Mia asked, eyeing the lanky blonde carefully.

Jordan flushed slightly and cleared her throat. "Yeah, it is. Have you ever been?"

"Huh-uh." There was a moment of quiet as Mia cast a slow glance up and down Jordan's body, looking like she was really seeing her for the first time. "Are you gay?"

"Umm, no," Jordan said, the pink flush growing brighter. "Well, um...I'm gayish, but I'm not a fanatic about it."

"Hmm...gayish, huh?" Her face crinkled up in a delighted grin as she leaned slightly closer and said, "That's a really cute term. Did you make it up?"

"I guess so," Jordan smiled. "I uh...don't really consider myself gay or straight, so at the moment I feel kinda gayish." Her clear blue eyes were twinkling, the woman obviously enjoying playing with Mia. She turned towards Ryan once again and asked, "So, are you in or out?"

"I'm out," Ryan decided. "I'm just not in the mood."

"I'm not either," Jamie added, just for the record.

"I'll go," Mia piped up, a big smile on her sunny face.

"You want to go to a gay bar?" Ryan asked suspiciously.

"Yeah, it sounds like fun," she said easily. "Is that okay with you, Jordan?"

"Works for me," the blonde agreed. "Are you ready to go?"

"I'm not sure," Mia said. "Is this outfit okay?" She stood up while three pairs of thoughtful eyes assessed her. A white baby tee stopped just under her bra, and a pair of hip-hugging black denim jeans showed off her recently developed abs. A summer in Santa Monica evidenced itself by her golden tan and her new naval ring, which glinted in the lamp light.

Ryan and Jordan shot each other matching smirks as Ryan said, "That's just fine, Mia."

"Okay. I'll go put some shoes on. Be right back."

Jamie got up and said, "I'll start the dishes, Love."

When they were alone, Jordan leaned over and whispered, "Is she gay?"

"No, no, she's rabidly heterosexual. I think her thing is playing and teasing. She's always kidding me about sex and my body, so it's obvious she's very comfortable with gay people, but she's definitely straight."

"She seems like a lot of fun," Jordan speculated, looking up the stairs thoughtfully.

"Oh, she's fun, all right. She has a tendency to have fun by getting wasted, so keep an eye on her, will you? The last thing I want is for her to end up in some woman's bed and not know how she got there."

"Well, you know I don't drink much, so I'll look out for her. We'll just have a couple of beers and hang out."

Mia came trotting back downstairs after applying some lipstick and a little perfume. After both women gave Ryan a kiss goodbye, she led the way out the door with Jordan trotting after her, nose twitching like a beagle's to catch a whiff of her perfume.

After the unlikely pair left, Ryan went into the kitchen to help her partner with the cleanup. "I'm glad Jordan's with Mia tonight. She can keep an eye on her drinking."

"Who's gonna keep an eye on Jordan?" Jamie asked, thinking that the tall beauty wouldn't need much motivation to make a play for her friend.

"I don't know what Jordan's deal is," Ryan mused. "Near as I can tell, she hasn't had a date since I've known her. Who knows? Maybe she's just not interested in sex at this point of her life."

"Mmm-hmm," Jamie thought, reasoning that her roommate could help just about anyone spark their sexual interest if she chose.

Ryan obviously didn't detect the tone of concern in Jamie's voice. She was still focused on her earlier discussion with Coach Placer, and she finally asked for help in her motivation plan. "Do you have any ideas on how to loosen up the team for tomorrow? This is a really big game, but they're so stiff I don't think there's any chance of playing well."

Jamie thought of her own mental preparation before a big golf match and asked, "What do you do as a team to get psyched?"

"Umm, nothing that I know of. I mean we grasp hands and give a 'Go Bears' yell, but we really don't have any traditions that I know of." She looked at Jamie carefully for a minute. "That's a good idea, Hon. We need to institute a playful tradition."

"I know one thing you could do," she suggested. "What time do you get dressed?"

"We start warm ups at 6:30, so I'd say most people will be dressed by 6:15 or so. Why?"

"I want to come over and give you all a little team spirit. Can I come in the locker room?"

"Umm, what do you want to do?" Ryan asked with a waggling brow. "I know how you lift my spirits, but that could get us expelled."

"It's a secret," she said smugly.

"Okay, you're the boss," Ryan said happily.

"I'm glad you've finally seen the light," she said with a satisfied smile.

The next morning dawned bright and clear, and Ryan decided to go for a quick run just to get her blood flowing. She had nearly stopped running, the exhausting volleyball practices taking so much of the pop from her legs that she knew it was unwise to put any more strain on her body, but every once in a while she just needed to feel the reassuring pounding of the pavement beneath her feet, and today was such a morning.

Dashing into the kitchen for a bottle of sports drink, she almost swallowed her teeth when she found Jordan sitting on a chair with Mia firmly ensconced in her lap, giving her mouth a very thorough inspection with her tongue. Jamie came in the room right behind her and literally ran into Ryan’s back. They both stood and stared at the twosome who finally came up for air. Mia blithely remarked, "Haven’t you ever seen people kiss before?"

Ryan walked over to the cabinet and grabbed a bottle of Gatorade, turning and walking right back out of the kitchen without a word. Jamie was still rooted in place, so Mia got up and came over to pat her on the cheek. "It’s okay, Jamie. It happens in the best of families!"

Jordan came running down the stairs after Ryan, calling, "Hey! Wait up! Can I have a ride home?"

"I’m not taking my car, Jordan. I’m going for a run. If you want to join me, I’ll wait until you go slip into some of my running clothes."

The lanky blonde considered the proposition for a moment, then shrugged and asked, "Where’s your stuff?"

"I’ll get you something," Ryan offered, not really happy at having to wait, but mildly interested in what was going on. Jordan followed her upstairs where Ryan pulled out a T-shirt and a pair of nylon shorts, the type of outfit that Jordan normally wore to run in.

Jordan started to strip as soon as they entered the room, and she shimmied into the shorts as Ryan tossed them to her. "I could really use a shower first," she muttered.

Making a mental note to wash the clothes as soon as they returned, Ryan joked, "So…you have sex all night long, don’t take a shower, and
then
you ask to borrow clothes. Sweet."

"I didn’t have sex," Jordan averred. "I just want to shower to wake up after being up all night."

"What in the heck were you doing all night? The night before a big game, I might add!"

Jordan was dressed now and they went back outside, starting off nice and slow to let their muscles loosen up. "I don’t really know where the time went, Ryan," she said thoughtfully. "We just hit it off really well, you know? We started talking, and we danced a little, and before I knew it, the place was closing."

"That was four hours ago," Ryan reminded her with a scowl.

"I know. It was funny. I uh…wasn’t the least bit tired, and neither was she. We came back here and got her car and went up into the hills just to watch the lights of the city." A fond, winsome look covered her face as she said, "It was a beautiful night."

"So you sat in her car and made out all night?" This seemed a strange way to Ryan to spend the evening when a nice soft bed was easily attainable.

Jordan looked a little taken aback. "No, we didn’t ‘make out’ as you so eloquently put it. We didn’t kiss until just a minute or two before you came down. Good timing, by the way," she added, shooting a teasing look Ryan’s way.

"Sorry about that," Ryan grinned. "I just had no idea. I was certain that Mia was as straight as I am gay."

Jordan gave her a puzzled look and commented, "You ought to spend some time talking to her, Ryan. She’s really fascinating when you get past the airhead façade."

That’s a façade?

When Ryan got home from her run she noticed that Mia’s door was open. She walked in and started looking around the room, eventually poking her head in the closet. "What are you looking for, Ryan?"

"You’re not hiding any of my other teammates or any of my brothers in here, are you?"

Mia looked at her carefully for a moment. Her face broke into a wide grin as she said, "Hey, Jamie’s right. Your eyes do twinkle when you’re kidding!"

True to her word, Jamie came barreling into the locker room at 5:30 that evening bearing a small gray plastic box. She wasn’t surprised to find that Ryan was the only one present, since she knew her partner would feel calmer at the gym than at home. "Hi," Ryan said happily upon glimpsing her face.

"Oh, my," Jamie murmured as she caught sight of her lanky lover in her uniform. "You certainly fill those shorts out," she said softly as she trailed just the tips of her fingers up her strong quadriceps and then down her firm cheeks. The uniform certainly did flatter Ryan’s build. The short-sleeved white nylon jersey with the bold "Cal" in gold outlined in navy blue emphasized her strong, broad shoulders. The shirt was tucked into the tiniest, tightest shorts that Jamie had ever had the pleasure to see her lover in. Even though Ryan often wore compression shorts, she usually chose the nine-inch inseam to keep her thighs warm. But these little navy blue Lycra shorts with the tiny "Cal" logo on the thigh were no more than three inches long, and Jamie quickly decided that three inches was the perfect length for her long legged lover.

"Can you tell I’m not wearing anything under my shorts?" Ryan asked as she bent over a little.

"Not with my eyes," Jamie purred as she snuggled up behind her and ran her hands all over her muscled rear, and then dragged a fingernail right up the rear seam of the shorts.

"Jamie!" Ryan shouted standing up abruptly. "The rest of the team will be here any minute! I don’t want you feeling me up in public!"

"They all know we’re lovers," she reminded her.

"But that doesn’t mean they want to
see
us be lovers!" Ryan was still flustered, and Jamie found her expression endearingly adorable.

"Why, Ryan O’Flaherty, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you worry about anyone’s reaction to us. Do you think it makes your teammates uncomfortable to have me around?"

"No, no, that’s not it," she said with a blush. "It’s just—I don’t know—it’s like too personal or something. I’d feel the same way if you were a guy. Athletes just tease each other a lot and I know I’d be harassed if anyone saw you grabbing my ass."

"Okay, I promise to keep my hands to myself. But that’s asking a lot when you prance around in that adorable uniform!"

"Do you like it?" Ryan asked a little shyly, looking down at her body.

"I love it," Jamie replied sincerely.

"I thought maybe I’d look too skinny in it," Ryan considered, showing more of her vanity than Jamie had ever noticed. She was staring at herself in the mirror, running her hand over her now concave stomach.

"Uh-uh," Jamie insisted. She braced herself against the door to prohibit it from swinging open and said, "Come over here so I can show you how much I like your outfit." Ryan gave her an indulgent grin and walked over to receive a very hot kiss. Jamie’s hands ran all over her body, sending delightful shivers down Ryan’s spine. "Even though I like you with a little more bulk, you look fabulous in this. Your weight loss got rid of that nice soft layer I love, and now all that’s left is muscle." She gave Ryan a devastatingly sexy smile as she reminded her, "You know how I feel about your muscles." She grasped two hands full of butt and whispered, "For hugging, and touching, and making love, I like a little softness. But from a purely visual perspective you look as hot as I’ve ever seen you—or anyone else for that matter," she added, meaning every word.

She spent a few minutes kissing Ryan with a quiet passion, knowing that being slightly aroused always relaxed her partner. As she released her, Ryan shook her head to clear it as Jamie added, "Now I have to give you my good luck wish." She wrapped Ryan in a massive hug as she said, "I know you’ll do well tonight, Baby. I’m so proud of how hard you’ve worked to be able to play."

"Thank, Jamie," she softly replied. "It’s only because of your support that I got this chance. I appreciate this more than I can say."

After several heartfelt kisses Jamie pulled back and said, "How did you get your hair up that tightly?" Ryan’s shoulder length hair was pulled up into a very snug ponytail, and it sat much higher on her head than she normally wore it.

"I had to have it this high to keep my bangs pulled back," she said. "And I still had to put clips in to hold it in place. It took me longer to get my hair tamed than it did to get dressed!"

"Well you look very cute. Although I would prefer to have that dark mane flying around, your ponytail is quite neat. Now let’s get down to business. You get to be my first victim. Where do you want your tattoo?"

"Tattoo?"

"Well, it’s a fake one, but I can make it look pretty real," she promised. She opened her art supply case and showed Ryan her nontoxic body paint and the other implements of her craft. "Now what do you want and where do you want it?" she asked with eyes dancing.

"Can you do a volleyball?"

"Sure. Do you want the logo on it?"

"No, how about the gold script ‘Cal’ in the middle of the ball."

"I can do that easily," she said confidently. "Now where do you want it?"

"How about the side of my arm, right by the bicep."

"That would be my recommendation," she agreed.

By the time Jordan and Michelle sauntered in Ryan was flexing her colorful new tat. Jamie was extremely pleased with her work and within a few moments everyone was lined up to receive their choice. Jordan chose the ‘Oski Bear’ head but she wanted it on her cheek so the Stanford players would have to see it when she was at the net. Michelle wanted a big ‘Cal’ script just above her sock. Jamie smirked to herself when shy little Heather Clark asked for Ryan’s advice on what she should choose. It was all Jamie could do to not chuckle when the young woman approached and asked Jamie to give her one just like Ryan’s. Within a few minutes everyone was decorated, and even Jamie noticed the mood in the locker room lighten perceptibly as everyone stood around voicing their opinions on the style and placement of each new tattoo.

Jamie noticed that everyone wore their hair pulled up severely and it took quite a while for the entire team to be satisfied with their ‘dos. But by 6:20 they were ready to take the court, and Ryan surprised her partner when she gave her a big kiss for luck as they wandered out to begin warm-ups.

When Jamie emerged from the locker room there were no more than 30 people in the stands, but as she expected at least 20 of them were O’Flahertys. She made her way to the section that they were claiming and spent a few minutes greeting each relative. Just as she finished, Tommy and Caitlin came in with Maeve and Kevin, and a few more warm greetings were exchanged. "Oh my," Maeve said when she got a look at her niece, "doesn’t she look big and strong in that little outfit."

"She gets annoyed when you call it an outfit, Maeve," Jamie knowledgeably informed her. "It’s a uniform." Caitlin was fidgeting to get to Jamie so she set her painting supplies down and took the gurgling infant in her arms. Things went smoothly for a few minutes, but when the baby caught sight of Ryan she vocally demanded access to her favorite cousin. Since there were so few people in the gym Ryan paused in her stretching routine and trotted up into the stands for a sloppy kiss. As long as she was there she stopped to give every aunt, uncle, cousin, and brother a kiss and a hug. But when she tried to return to the court, Caitlin put up a whale of a fuss. She hadn’t been seeing as much of Ryan as usual because of Ryan’s illness and her hectic schedule. So when she got her hands on her cousin she did not want to let go. Since it was early, and Stanford was still in their dressing room, Ryan ran down the stairs holding the baby so she could meet the other players. Everyone made over her for a few minutes, and Caitlin delighted the women by kissing each of them on command. The fun was over much too soon, but when the coaching staff came onto the court it was time to get busy. Ryan raced back up the stairs and deposited a cranky baby with Jamie and gave her a small shoulder shrug as she raced back down.

The stands began to fill quickly, and then Jamie noticed the members of the band begin to straggle in. Soon there were a good fifty members of the group squeezed into the stands, and as they began to tune their instruments, Jamie realized this was going to be a very noisy experience.

She had never watched a women’s college-level game, and as they began their drills, she realized that the game she had played in elementary school and high school gym class had nothing in common with this sport. This one was all about speed and quickness and jumping ability and athleticism. The women threw their bodies around with little regard for their safety, but Jamie was somewhat heartened by the resilient surface that had been put in place over the hardwood floor.
That might keep Ryan from a few trips to the emergency room
, she mused as she watched her partner hit the floor hard and do a little somersault to bleed off some of the force.

Catherine arrived to the great pleasure of Caitlin, who was fully placated by the arrival of her new friend. The happy baby climbed into her lap immediately to play with Catherine’s face and her heavy gold necklace. Warm greetings were extended from all of the O’Flahertys with Maeve leading the way. "I’m glad you could make it, Mom," Jamie said as she placed a kiss on her cheek. "Ryan will really appreciate it."

"I wouldn’t have missed this for the world," she said sincerely. "I can go to the symphony any night."