Beautiful Pt. 04

She brushed it away. "Someone does, you know. She's just enamored with you." A smile spread across my face as she closed the distance between us, and I luxuriated in the soft, tender kiss that followed. It was one of many we shared before Sandy had to go. I walked her out onto the porch, arm around her.

"So I can't come over Friday, I have a meeting with a drug rep."

"You can't just blow them off?"

Sandy smiled. "They bring lunch for the whole office, so I wouldn't just be canceling on them. I'll see you after the game though?"

"Yeah, when you win maybe we can celebrate by you taking me with the strap-on?"

Sandy grinned. "And if we lose?"

"Well, then we can commiserate by you taking me with the strap-on."

That made Sandy laugh and kiss me again, and I waved as she drove away.

***

We had a lovely weekend. The girls won Friday night, although the tension from the Perry's was still there in spades. The team we were playing double teamed Adrienne almost constantly, but she played very well, tallying assists on all four goals the team scored.

Sandy and I celebrated late into the night. Unfortunately nature had kept me from doing much for my lover, but that hadn't abated her own enthusiasm, and my pussy was feeling well and deliciously used by the time Sandy left for work Monday morning.

I picked Will up from debate and headed straight out to Charlie's robotics competition. We didn't make it home until almost eight. As I waited for a car pulling away from in front of the neighbor's I noticed the Jeep Wrangler in the driveway.

The boys and I were greeted by the smell of garlic and oregano when we entered the kitchen. Paige was standing at the counter, slicing a loaf of French garlic bread while Sandy pulled a tray of meatballs out of the oven.

Sandy smiled at us as we entered. "Hey guys, welcome home. Hungry?"

I was grinning ear to ear. "What did you guys do?" I gave my daughter a hug as she answered.

"Coach and I made dinner."

Sandy shrugged as I stepped closer. "Just spaghetti and meatballs."

"Homemade meatballs." Paige chipped in as I kissed my girlfriend while all my children watched. God, that felt amazing.

I looked up at her, my eyes shining. "Really?"

"Yeah, half pork, half beef, just like my grandpa Roselli taught me. Didn't know I was one quarter Italian, did you?" I shook my head.

"Will, Charlie, set the table?"

"Yeah, Mom." They answered together, and I headed over and sat down, watching the whole scene unfold before me. Sandy carried in the huge pasta bowl, and we all took our places. None of my kids were shy at all about digging in.

"This is really good, Coach Dalton."

I looked over at Will, who'd spoken, a little surprised, but pleased with the politeness in his voice. I sat back, taking a sip of wine as Sandy thanked Will for the compliment before asking Charlie about how his competition went. God I wanted this. She was amazing with the kids, and I'd love to raise a child with her.

Paige and Will got in a little, good natured argument, and Sandy looked across at me as they went back and forth, giving me one of her little smiles that told me she was trying not to laugh. I couldn't help but smile back, and imagine what could be.

I walked Sandy out to the car after sending the kids up to get ready for bed. "I thought that went really well."

She grinned at me. "Yeah, what got into Will? He was almost civil to me."

I shrugged. "He's a good boy. I just hope his grandmother and his father don't beat it out of him before he solidifies into a good man."

Sandy stepped closer to me. "Well, with the mom he has, I think he's got a really good chance. They all do."

I smiled up at her, feeling very warm inside. Her mouth closed the distance between us, and we kissed, passion firing through my veins at the closeness of her.

"Yeah, Mom!" I broke away, looking up at Charlie's room, where he and Paige were looking out his open window. Paige slapped her brother on the shoulder and pulled him back inside.

Sandy and I both laughed and turned back to each other, slipping our arms around each other's waists. I looked up at her. "Where were we?"

She pulled me close. "I think, here." She kissed me, soft and tender. No tongue, in case the kids were still watching. We parted, and I longed for the day that she wouldn't have to go home, that when we finished dinner and put the kids to bed we'd already be home, the both of us.

I lay in bed that night and thought about that. Would I ever be strong enough to stand up to my family so I could give us a chance? I thought so. I was working that way. What I didn't know was that I was going to have to make that choice a lot sooner than I was comfortable.

***

"Oh, god, Melanie, that was amazing."

I leaned my cheek against Sandy's inner thigh, licking her nectar off my lips. "It helps that I'm getting a lot of practice recently."

She smiled down at me, running her fingers through my hair. "Oh, baby, you can have all the practice you want. Can I take you out to dinner Saturday? Maybe dancing afterwards?"

I kissed her outer labia before crawling up into her arms. "I have the kids this weekend. You know that."

"I do. Instead, I could bring takeout here, we could watch a movie."

"You could stay the night?"

She gave me a little sweet kiss. "That's up to you, Melanie. If you're comfortable with it.

"Let me think about it, but I want to get there. Definitely yes to the rest."

We reluctantly got dressed, and I walked Sandy out, kissing her goodbye on the patio. I told her I'd see her at the game tonight, and she drove away. I was still working through that anthology of short stories, definitely a step up from the technical stuff I had been doing. Normally I liked to do a non-intensive, casual reading of a short story before I dove into it, giving me a feel for the author's style and letting me enjoy the story, so I didn't get caught up too much while reading for mistakes.

I'd just sat down on the couch with my tablet to begin the next story when my phone rang. For a moment I hoped it was Sandy, but when I picked it up the words 'Lost Valley High School' were displayed prominently across the screen.

I sat up and hit the green 'accept' icon. "Hello?"

"Mrs. Pierson?"

"Yes?"

"Hold for Principal Harrison, please."

The woman's voice, who I recognized as Nancy Ridge, Principal Harrsion's secretary, was crisp and formal. I heard a click, followed only by a few seconds of silence before her boss picked up. That was long enough to get my heart racing, though.

"Melanie, thanks for taking my call. I'm afraid we need to talk, in person, as soon as possible."

"What's going on, Patrick?"

I heard him take a breath. "It, um, has to do with Paige. She's not in any trouble, and she's not sick or hurt or anything like that."

"Then what is it?"

"We've received some images, photos, that indicate she might be in an inappropriate relationship. I'd like you to come in, this afternoon if possible."

"What do you mean, inappropriate relationship?"

"I'd really rather discuss it in person, Melanie."

"Fine. Have you called Bill?"

"No, you have primary custody, so legally I don't have to involve him. So I'll leave that up to you."

"Legally? What the hell's going on?" I tried for a few minutes, but I wasn't able to get any more information out of him. He did tell me that he'd cleared his schedule for the afternoon, so that any time I could get there he'd see me right away. I grabbed my purse and headed out immediately. I decided not to call Bill, not until I knew what exactly was going on.

About five minutes after I left, my car's display informed me of an incoming call from Sandy.

"Hello?"

"Melanie?" Her voice sounded shocked and numb. "I just got a phone call from Tom Martin that I've been suspended, effective immediately."

"Oh, shit. I'm on my way to the school. I just got called in by Principal Harrison. He said it had something to do with Paige."

"Okay, I'm going to call Tom back and demand details. Let me know what you find out."

Well, that narrowed things down a bit. The school was less than fifteen minutes away, and I parked in the visitors lot and headed inside. I approached the front desk. "Melanie Pierson, Principal Harrison is expecting me."

"Yes, Mrs. Pierson." Brittany, the cute, young receptionist stood and opened the little half door in the counter to let me into the back. I thanked her as I stepped through, and she motioned back towards the Principal's office. I wove my way through the tight space to where Nancy was sitting at her desk, her work phone held up to her ear. I could see a shadow moving on the other side of the blinds, which blocked the view through the window into Patrick's office.

Nancy pressed the intercom. "Melanie Pierson is here."

The shadow moved towards the door. It cracked open, and Principal Harrison's arm reached through, beckoning me inside. As I entered Patrick continued to talk on the phone. "Yes, detective. Like I said, I received it the same time you did. I actually have the student's mother with me now. Yes. Go ahead and send me your information, I will inform you of anything I find out."

He motioned towards a chair, and I sat down as he completed his call. He hung up, letting go a heavy breath as he did.

"What in the world is going on, Patrick? Were you talking to the police?"

He met my eyes levelly. "Yes, I was. I'm afraid this is serious."

"You better tell me what it is."

"Yeah." He walked back to the other side of his desk. "A few hours ago I received this email." He turned his monitor, where a series of photos were thumb nailed in a window. He clicked on the first, and it clearly showed Sandy and Paige walking out of the school building together. There wasn't anything incriminating about it that I could see.

Patrick clicked on his keyboard, and another photo popped up. Sandy had her keys out, and Paige was looking up at her with a smile on her face. The next showed them getting into Sandy's Jeep, and then driving away. The slide show advanced, now showing Sandy and Paige sitting in the coach's SUV, this time in my driveway. Several followed, in similar positions, before one had both occupants leaning forward and embracing.

The next was the two of them out of the car, followed by several of them walking into the house.

"The private investigator these came from confirmed they were in the house, alone as far as he could tell, for approximately an hour. I know this is probably upsetting to you." His voice was kind, and he completely misread my befuddled expression. He crossed back to my side of the desk, putting a hand on my shoulder. "I want you to know there'll be no repercussions for Paige, but we will need to talk to her."

I finally found my voice. "Repercussions? What are you talking about? That doesn't show them doing anything improper. And I was fully aware that they were together."

"You were aware? That they were together, alone, for an entire hour? And you weren't worried about what was happening?"

"Nothing was happening. I got home with Will and Charlie and they were making dinner."

"And before that?"

"Paige was doing her homework. Paige and Sandy are not sleeping together."

"And how can you be sure about that?" He gestured toward the pictures.

"I'm sure. You don't have to take my word for it, Paige will tell you the same thing."

"We have your permission to talk to her?"

"Of course, although I'll be present anytime you do. I realize she's eighteen, but I know you'll respect my wishes on that."

Patrick nodded. "Of course. I just," he stopped speaking and moved back so he could sit down in his desk chair. "I have to admit I'm confused. I thought you'd be shattered, or angry, or, well anything else."

"I take it this is why you suspended Sandy from coaching tonight?"

Patrick's mouth opened in shock. "How?"

I felt a spike of fear. How could I explain why Sandy would call me? Now, writing this, I can come up with a couple of believable stories, but at the time, no chance. Should I admit to what was going on between Sandy and me? Would that get Sandy into trouble, too?

I mean, it'd be illegal to fire her just because she's gay, wasn't it? I thought so, but honestly I wasn't sure. "Do you mind if I make a call?" I held up my cell phone. I hoped he would assume that I needed to call Bill.

He didn't argue, just nodding. "I'll go have them send Paige down."

I thanked him, and he left the office, closing the door behind him. As soon as I heard it click shut I hit Sandy's icon.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Sweetie."

"Hey, I just got off the phone with Tom Martin. He wouldn't tell me anything."

"Well, don't worry, I've got it figured out. Remember taking Paige home on Monday?"

"Sure."

"Well, apparently someone was taking pictures of you. They caught you hugging in your car and then going inside the house."

"Oh, god. Seriously? That's it? So they think..."

"Yeah."

"What do you want to do?"

I didn't have to ask her what she meant. Looking from Principal Harrison's perspective, those pictures were suspicious to say the least. A coach taking a player to her house, and then inside her home, without her parents being present, yeah, suspicious is the least of it. But a parent's significant other picking up their child and taking her home? Nothing suspicious about that at all. The only question was did I have the courage to give that explanation?

"Melanie?"

"God, sorry, just things running through my head."

"I know. I could hear you thinking. I'm so sorry about this."

My brow crinkled. "You? You didn't do anything. You're not sleeping with Paige."

She laughed, "No, I'm not." She heaved a sigh. "Okay, I'll be there in ten minutes. Hopefully we can clear these things up."

We disconnected, and I sat back in the chair for a few seconds. Could I trust Patrick Harrison with something like this? I don't think so. Especially if those pictures came from where I thought they did, he'd have to give answers as to why nothing was being done.

There was a knock on the door, and Principal Harrison poked his head back into the office. "Can we come in, Mrs. Pierson?"

I sat forward. "Yeah, of course."

Patrick entered, with Paige following close behind. Her face, already worried, went into shocked terror when she saw me sitting there. "Mom? What's going on? Is everyone okay? Is Dad okay?"

"Yes, Honey, everyone is fine, it's not like that."

Her body language relaxed for a brief moment, before realizing she was still in the principal's office and tightening again.

"Paige, go ahead and have a seat."

She did so, shooting me a look that asked what the hell was going on, as Principal Harrison crossed to the other side of the desk and sat in his office chair. "So Paige, the reason that your mom is here, and that we called you down, is well, um, I just want to say you're not in trouble," he held up his hands in a defensive posture. "But, well."

I sighed and turned to Paige. "Honey, are you having sex with Coach Dalton?"

"What?!No!Of course not!" Paige's face was beyond incredulous. I just nodded and turned back to a spluttering Patrick Harrison. I gave him an innocent, wide-eyed look that asked if there's anything else.

"Well, I think that clears things up." I made to stand up.

"Unfortunately, even if I believe that," he held his hand to cut off my protest, "and I'm not saying I don't, that doesn't change the fact that this is inappropriate." He pointed at his monitor

Paige turned to me. "What's he talking about, Mom?"

I sighed. "Apparently someone was taking pictures of you when Sandy, I mean, Coach Dalton brought you home after practice Monday."

"What? Why?"

"Think about it, Honey." I turned back to Principal Harrison. "Patrick, if I told you that Sandra Dalton was a family friend, would that suffice?"

"It might, but I don't know how much pressure I'm going to get from the top. And those photos weren't sent only to me. They were sent to the police as well. And the Raleigh chief of police plays golf with Senator Perry."

I gave him an incredulous look. "Why does that matter? Even if something were going on, they're both adults."

Patrick shook his head. "In North Carolina it's a felony for any school employee to engage in sexual relations with a student. Age doesn't play into it."

I let that sink in for a second before a buzzer sounded on Patrick's desk. He pressed a button and answered. "Yes?"

"Mr. Harrison, Sandra Dalton is here."

Patrick looked at me. "Do you want me to put her in a conference room while you leave?"

Paige shot me a wide-eyed look that asked why I wasn't just telling the Principal what was going on. I shook my head. "No, she can come in. I think we need to clear this up."

Sandy entered when summoned, and I smiled at her as she sat next to me. "Okay, Patrick, show her the pictures."

Principal Harrison went through another round of show and tell, and Sandy laughed it off. "That's all? That's what this fuss is about? I promise you there are far more damning pictures of me out there from my youth."

"Your youth isn't a concern, Coach Dalton, but you have to understand how this looks." He thumbed towards the screen.

"It looks like I gave a player a ride home. And if giving a hug to one of my players is a crime, well, that's a rule I'll probably break on a regular basis."

"But then you went into her home with her. I know, Mrs. Pierson told me you're an old family friend. How long have you known each other? Bill never said anything that would indicate that had been the case."

Sandy looked at me, and I sighed. "I never said she was an 'old' family friend, Patrick." His look was concerned, and I glanced at Sandy, my eyes questioning.

She just shrugged. "It's up to you."

Patrick crossed his arms. "Ladies, what is going on?"

I sighed and looked down. I felt a hand slip into mine. Funnily enough, it was Paige's. She just nodded, and I looked up at Patrick.

"We didn't meet until the welcome dinner. But then we ran into each other at that new Ramen Noodle place and had a nice lunch." I took a deep breath. "After that she asked me out to dinner, and we've been seeing each other ever since."

Patrick's mouth dropped open. "You mean like, seeing each other seeing each other?"

Sandy was looking at me with that soft smile, the one someone who'd only watched her play or coach probably wouldn't have believed possible. But I'd seen it plenty of times. It was my smile, the one she gave only to me. Our fingers entwined, and Sandy turned back to Principal Harrison. "Yes. We were planning on keeping it quiet until at least the end of the season." She quirked half a smile. "Didn't want to be accused of favoritism. I guess that ship has sailed, huh?"

"I guess that would explain the other times your automobile has been placed at the Pierson house."

I leaned forward. "Other times?"

Patrick shook his head. "It's in the text portion of the email." He buried his face in his hands for a moment. "Okay. I'll let Tom Martin know that I'm lifting the suspension. I never told him what it was really about anyway. But I'm sorry to say that this likely isn't over."

Paige piped in. "Why not? You can't fire Coach Dalton for being gay. It's illegal, we learned about that in Civics."

"I know that, young lady. I wouldn't even if I could. But, unfortunately, it's not always that simple." He looked up at the clock. "Paige, have Ms. Ridge give you a note, you should be able to get back for most of last period. Mrs. Pierson, Coach Dalton, if you'll hang on for a moment."

He saw Paige out and spoke to his secretary for a moment before coming back inside and sat beside his desk. "Look, what I told Paige was true. I have family that are gay, an aunt, well, two aunts, I guess, and at least one nephew. I'll keep this as quiet as I can, but you may have to come out to more than just me to eliminate any suspicion, and that will cause its own set of issues. Just think about it, and what you're willing to do. I'll see you at the match tonight."