Finding Her Way in a Storm Ch. 13-21

"Mom?" Skyler said after a few minutes. "I need to hear what you think."

At first, it didn't seem like her mother intended to reply, but when she did, it was succinct and profound, just like always.

"Selfish."

"Huh?" Skyler replied, the implication of her mother's words not sinking in.

"Kaia is being selfish. I'm awfully disappointed in her."

And then it hit home, the reason why Skyler had given in the night before despite having serious reservations about the situation. She hadn't said no right away because the idea of having sex with two gorgeous women intrigued her. And here was Kaia offering her the chance to do just that guilt-free.

But that hadn't been what pushed her to accept. Deep down inside, Skyler thought she'd subconsciously realized that Kaia's request was purely selfish, and Skyler was afraid that by saying no, she might lose her, regardless of what Kaia had said at the time.

And as things progressed during their encounter, unconscious resentment at feeling emotionally blackmailed had risen in Skyler's throat until she was ready to gag on it. That was why she'd treated Kaia so poorly that night.

"What do I do, Mom? I mean, I can't be involved in a three-way relationship. Dad would never forgive me."

That brought a gale of laughter from Bree Ann that bordered on becoming a cackle.

"Honey, you're in love and having sex with a woman. If crossing that bridge didn't break his love for you then adding one more to the equation isn't going to do it. But that's not the real question you should be asking yourself."

"What?"

Reaching out to take her daughter's hand, Bree Ann said, "What do you want, Skyler? Could you see yourself being in a relationship with two women? Could you see yourself sharing Kaia sexually and, more importantly, emotionally? Can you see yourself ever falling in love with this Lisa woman? And you have to be one-hundred percent sure of it all, Skyler. You absolutely can't get involved in what's meant to be a permanent relationship where there's a child involved without being certain. It wouldn't be fair for that baby to become attached to you only to have you ripped away from her later on."

Skyler sat back, suddenly feeling flummoxed by her mother's words. There were questions there she'd never even considered, things that a responsible person wouldn't avoid, no matter how much anguish the answers might bring.

Later, as the pair completed the circuitous path they'd chosen, they came to Kaia's house. Skyler hadn't even consciously been thinking of the fact they'd pass it by, but once it was in sight, a thought struck her.

"Would you like to come inside and meet her and the baby?"

"You sure that you want that?" Bree Ann replied, seeming surprised.

Skyler considered the question for a second before saying, "Yeah, Mom, I do. You've always been really good at first impressions, and I'd like to hear your take on things afterward."

The two women climbed up on the porch, the late afternoon sun shining at an angle across the front door. Skyler opened the front door and stepped into the house, holding the screen door open for her mother to enter. She then let it gently close behind her. The inside was quiet, and Skyler didn't want to wake Macey if she was napping.

They found the trio in the front room. Kaia laid back in her recliner with Macey stretched out across her chest, both in a deep slumber. On the couch, Lisa slept as well but stirred as they approached, her eyes fluttering open.

"Hey, Skyler, we were wondering when you would be back," Lisa said as she wiped the sleep from her eyes. Then, for the first time, she seemed to take notice of Bree Ann's smiling face. "And who is this pretty lady?"

"Lisa, this is my mom, Bree Ann Grace. Mom, this is Lisa."

Lisa stood as Bree Ann stepped forward. The pretty brunette held a hand out in greeting and seemed surprised when the older woman bypassed it and gave her a hug.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Lisa. Skyler has told me a lot about you."

The look of surprise on Lisa's face made Skyler smile. The teen beauty knew that right now Lisa was desperately wondering precisely how much Skyler had revealed to the woman hugging her

"And you as well, Mrs. Grace."

"Oh, please, call me Bree Ann."

"Sky?" came the sound of a familiar voice, one that suddenly made Skyler's heartache with need.

All three women turned to look at where Kaia was stretched out in the recliner. She stared back up at Skyler as she reached down with her hand to grab the handle, slowly raising the seat into a sitting position to not arouse the baby.

"Hey,"

"I see you've made a new friend," Bree Ann asked, her tone sweet, though Skyler had to wonder about the subtext in her mother's words.

Kaia's eyes flashed over to Lisa with a hint of alarm, telling Skyler that her girlfriend was likely wondering the same thing.

"This must be little Miss Macey that Skyler has been telling me so much about."

Skyler couldn't help but stifle a grin at seeing the sudden relief on Kaia's face. The two women had gotten very close since she and Kaia had gotten together, and the tough former Marine had likely been sweating the possibility of losing the tough-earned battleground she'd gained.

"Yes, it is," Lisa said, seeming to read Kaia's distress. "And she needs to be waking up if she's ever going to go to bed tonight."

Lisa bent down and took the sleeping child, laying her up against her chest and allowing Macey's little head to come to rest on her shoulder, patting her back and bouncing her lightly.

"It's best to let her come out of it gradually, or she can be cranky."

Turning to look at Skyler, Bree Ann said, "Oh, she's just like you on a school morning."

That got a laugh from Lisa and a cautious smile from Kaia. Skyler merely rolled her eyes and poked her mother's shoulder, saying, "I was never that bad."

That earned Skyler a playful swat on the bottom and a chastisement for telling lies. She then relayed what a beast Skyler could be on school mornings, joking that her father had once suggested the need for an exorcism.

That got a laugh from them all, with Skyler covering her face in embarrassment. At the same time, she was thankful for her mother. The woman had managed to dissipate the uncomfortable atmosphere in that effortless way that only she seemed to possess.

The laughter finally stirred Macey from her sleep, the little girl's head rising, her eyes straining to open as she took a look around the room to see who'd dared disturb her sleep.

"There she is," Bree Ann said, her voice soft and gentle. "My, aren't you just a pretty little doll."

The baby smiled and then quickly buried her head into her mother's neck.

"Somebody is acting shy!" Lisa cooed at her little girl as she held Macey out away from her body slightly, denying her a place to hide. That caused the infant to revolt, her little face squinching up in protest as she began to kick her feet, squeals of displeasure sounding off from the little girl's mouth.

"I guess that I need to go and change her, maybe see if she wants to eat," Lisa said before turning to Bree Ann. "I certainly hope you'll be here when we get back."

The older woman reached out to run her index finger down Macey's right leg and said, "Oh, I'm not going anywhere until I get a chance to hold this little anger."

Lisa excused herself. Once she was gone, Skyler sat down across from Kaia and patted the couch next to her, encouraging her mother to sit.

Without Lisa and the baby present to act as a buffer, Skyler thought that her girlfriend suddenly looked nervous again.

"What have you guys been up to today?"

Skyler hadn't meant anything by the question, at least beyond the obvious. But the look in Skyler's eyes told her that the cocoa-skinned beauty read an entirely different implication behind her question.

"Nothing," Kaia replied with slightly more force than was necessary. "Not really, at least. We played with Macey for a while and then had a late lunch before taking her out into the backyard. Jesse, the little boy next door was outside with his dog, and they came over so that Macey could see him."

Skyler smiled, thinking of the lazy old basset hound. The dog was so lethargic acting at times, the teen was reasonably sure he was about to keel over dead at any moment. He was the perfect dog for a baby to be around as he was too unmotivated to do much more than lay there no matter what she did.

"And what did Macey think of old Gus?"

"Oh, they got along just fine. I'm not sure which of them drooled more on the other, although I think Macey might have had a slight edge."

Skyler laughed as she turned to her mother. Bree Ann was smiling as she stared across at Kaia, but there was something about the intent in her eyes that threw up a warning to Skyler. Being proactive, the teen reached out and took her mother's hand, giving it a little squeeze and an almost imperceptible shake of the head.

Lisa entered the room with a blanket thrown over her shoulder, the gentle grunts of satisfaction from a feeding Macey emanating from beneath it.

Bree Ann scooted over onto the couch and patted its surface, Lisa sitting down next to the older woman. Skyler only half-listened as the two women began to talk. Her attention was drawn to Kaia, who was watching Lisa and her mother.

When she'd be listening to her girlfriend describe their day, Skyler hadn't been able to help but feel jealous. She pictured the entire scene of them spending their day together, with it displaying on the walls of her mind like a video projected on the side of a building. Skyler could see the perfect family unit. The one Kaia and Lisa had dreamed of that day Kaia had proposed to her at the airport. Could she ever hope to crash that? And even more, did she have a right to impede on it?

Kaia's eyes fluttered her way, the look on her face changing from one of amusement to one much more serious. There were pain and uncertainty present in her eyes, making Skyler want to reach for the woman she loved in reassurance. Her hand actually flinched before Skyler made herself stop. She knew her assurances would be false until she'd made up her mind for sure, and she wouldn't lie to Kaia.

But she could be honest with her.

"Can I borrow Kaia for a minute?" Skyler said, standing and holding her hand out towards the sexy former Marine.

Replies of "Sure, and "Yeah, of course." sounded almost simultaneously as Skyler felt Kaia's warm hand take hers. She pulled the taller woman up, their eyes locking together and their lips just inches apart. Skyler craved to feel those lips on hers but resisted the urge, turning to lead Kaia out onto the front porch.

When they were seated on the front porch swing, Skyler turned to Kaia, unable to wait any longer. Her lips found her girlfriends, both of their mouths opening simultaneously, tongue searching and clashing together. It was a kiss that begged for forgiveness on both their parts.

"I'm sorry about last night," Skyler said the instant their lips parted. "I love you so much, Kaia. I was just scared...no, I'm still scared of losing you."

Kaia's warm hands enveloped her cheeks, pulling Skyler in for another kiss, this one much softer. A kiss that spoke less of passion and more of love.

"You are a part of my future, Sky. I'd die if I thought for even a second that wasn't true. I love you more than you'll ever know."

Skyler leaned her forehead to Kaia's, a whimper escaping her throat. She wanted so much to make the woman she loved happy, but her mother's words rang in her head.

What about her happiness?

"I know you do, baby. I want that too. But you want both of us, and I'm not sure how that would work."

Kaia gently grabbed Kaia's chin, forcing her eyes up to hers.

"Sky, I don't want you separately; I want us all together. Why can't we make a family together?"

"Because it would be selfish," Skyler said, tears starting to slowly leak from her eyes. "I love you will all my being, but I'm not in love with Lisa. She's smart, sexy, and seems like a great mother. I really like her and think we could be friends, but I don't love her. What happens if we give this a try and two years from now it just doesn't work? Who gets hurt then? Is it me? Is it Lisa? Either way, Macey loses out because suddenly somebody she's gotten really used to is not there, maybe two someones. You have to take more into account than just your heart."

Skyler emphasized her final few words by poking Kaia's chest after each one. The effect was instantaneous. Kaia's shoulders sank, and she slumped back against the backrest, her eyes going out towards the street.

"That's why I got so upset last night. I just couldn't verbalize it. I don't want to lose you, Kaia. I can't tell you how bad I don't want that to happen. It would just devastate me. But I can't be selfish because this affects more people than just me."

Skyler leaned back into the swing, allowing her head to lay against Kaia's broad shoulder, not knowing what else to say. What could she do to alleviate their conundrum? There was no guarantee she'd ever fall in love with Lisa, and without knowing that going in, Skyler would be ashamed to even risk playing chicken with her heart, much less anyone else's.

And that's when it hit her.

Skyler didn't have to take that risk. None of them did.

Sitting up quickly in the chair and dropping to her knees, Skyler grabbed Kaia's hands and squeezed them between hers. Kaia looked at her with a deep sadness that spoke of how trapped she felt.

"Do you trust me, baby?"

Confusion dawned on the caramel-skinned beauty's face, her countenance hardening slightly before the tension seemed to drain away at the look Skyler offered her.

"Of course I do, Sky, with my life."

"I think I know of a way that we might be able to figure this out. I'll need to spend the night working on the details, but I promise that I will sit down with you two and go over it tomorrow after lunch at mom and dad's house."

Kaia's eyes went big.

"God, church, and your parent's house? What is your Dad going to make of all of this? Do we have to go this time?"

Skyler couldn't help but laugh at the look on her girlfriend's face. Kaia suddenly looked like an animal with her foot caught in a trap.

"You KNOW that my mother is in there right now inviting Lisa to both. And that, my love, is an insurmountable fact of life. There's no way we can't go, but don't worry about my dad. You have to realize by now that my mom will have him wrapped around her little finger by tomorrow morning. He'll either support what I want to do or he'll remain silent. There won't be any in-between."

"And what is it you want to do?"

"To you? All sorts of naughty and depraved things, but that will have to wait for now," Skyler said, her voice low and throaty.

Kaia gave her a grimacing look, grasping Skyler's chin and saying, "Don't play with me, Sky. I've been wicked horny for you since that little exhibition you put on last night. Tease me any more and I might take you right here on the front porch in front of the neighbors, your mother, and the rest of the town."

Skyler felt her face and chest flush, her nipples hardening at the thought. She adored it when Kaia forcefully took charge of her during their sexual play. And the mental image of having the cocoa-skinned blonde take her in such a way made Skyler's pussy tingle dramatically.

"I promise you, baby, that I will tell you and Lisa both tomorrow after lunch. I need to talk to my parents first, and maybe Becka. She can at least give me a laugh about what I'm thinking, if not offering applicable advice."

Kaia laughed and said, "Can Becks even spell applicable?"

Skyler slapped at her girlfriend's arm and told her to behave herself. But Kaia grabbed Skyler and pulled her into a forceful kiss that made the auburn-haired beauty melt.

The two returned back into the house arm in arm to the sound of Macey giggling incessantly. Bree Ann had her raised into the air, pulling the baby in and blowing against her bare belly. She had to periodically stop to allow the child a chance to breathe. But it was apparent from Macey's reaction that the anticipation was almost as exciting as the tickling itself.

Both women looked up to see Kaia and Skyler watching, and it was apparent from the look on their faces that they were glad to see the more relaxed nature between them.

"Guess what? Your mom invited Macey and me to go to church with you guys in the morning. And she wants us to come to lunch with you guys after services tomorrow morning!"

Skyler gave Kaia her best, "I told you so." look, Kaia doing her best to stifle a laugh in response.

Chapter Seventeen

Skyler ran the outline of the plan she'd devised so far by her mother on their walk home, Bree Ann listening without comment until her daughter had finished speaking. Even then, the older woman walked along for almost a block before speaking again.

"Won't that be cruel to Kaia? I mean, I'm certainly not happy with the way that she sprang all of this on you, but I still love her. Are you doing this because you're still mad?"

"No! That's not it at all. I know this will be hard on her, but intentionally hurting Kaia isn't really in me, Mom. Not when I'm thinking clearly, and I am. I've gone round and round in my head considering this crazy situation, and it's the only solution I can come up with."

The two continued walking until they were standing in front of the Grace home. There, Bree Ann turned to her daughter, taking the young woman's hand.

"And what if your plan doesn't work, honey? What then?"

Skyler thought about the potential implications of what her mother was suggesting. She knew that what Bree Ann Grace was really asking was if Skyler had considered the potential of having her heart broken in two.

That prospect was unthinkable right now. But Skyler knew that there was a real chance that she could end up alone. But that might happen eventually, regardless of what she did.

"Then, at least I know I did everything I could to make things work. Ten years from now, I won't be sitting alone, wondering why I didn't do everything I could to make this work. I have to do this, Mom. I love Kaia with all my heart and soul, but I have to figure out whether it's possible for me to feel the same way about Lisa."

Her mother reached up and used a thumb to wipe away tears that Skyler hadn't even realized were running down her cheeks. The older woman then leaned over and tenderly kissed her daughter's cheek.

"Okay, honey, I'll do everything I can to help then, including wrangling your father."

Jonathan Grace was quiet at the supper table that night. If he'd been speculative about Skyler spending the night with Kaia, he didn't ask. Skyler figured he had to know they were having sex, but never before had she flaunted it at him by openly sleeping with her girlfriend.

On edge herself, Skyler let her mother lead the conversation and direct the flow of things towards safe subjects. Skyler was thankful as always, the buffer her mother offered between the teen and her more staunchly conservative father a blessing as always.

She helped her mother clear the table and do the dishes, the pair chatting away quietly about Skyler's plan while Jonathan retreated to the privacy of his office. Skyler knew the longtime pastor was likely putting the finishing touches on the sermon he intended to deliver in the morning.

"Dad was quiet tonight."

That got a little chuckle out of Skyler's mother, who then smiled and said, " Your daddy knows there's something up with you but is afraid to ask. Your life has taken a drastically different path than what he had planned for you. He's still struggling to come to terms with all of that."

Skyler dried the dish in her hand, putting it into one of the open cabinets overhead. She had a hard time imagining the self-assured man who'd raised her being intimidated to discuss anything. Skyler felt the rot of insecurity embrace her heart at the thought he might be disappointed with her.