Testing The Waters

"Keep that up, girl, and you're going to need another shower," Evelyn admonished her reflection as she removed both hands, but not before giving herself one last pleasing touch.

She dried herself off with a large bath towel, then wrapped it around her before stepping out into the adjacent bedroom. There wasn't much on her calendar for the day, just a quick trip to the supermarket and a few phone calls to confirm appointments for later in the week. Normally, she tried to avoid business on the weekend, but these were clients that were hard to reach during the week. As it was, she thought, she should be done with all of it by noon at least.

'If I do finish up by twelve, maybe I could catch the matinee of "Apollo 13" at the Royal Vista,' Evelyn considered as she opened the top drawer of her lingerie chest and pulled out a pair of blue lace panties, followed by a matching bra from the one below it.

Evelyn really didn't like going to the movies alone, but, as she adjusted the cups of her bra around her breasts, she reminded herself that she'd hate the idea of sitting around the house all afternoon alone even more. If for no other reason than if she did so, she'd start working, if only out of boredom.

She'd just finished sliding up her panties when the ringing of the phone on the other side of the room interrupted her deliberations. Glancing at the clock, Evelyn wondered who'd be calling her this early on a Saturday morning. As she stepped around the bed to answer it, she suddenly had a horrible thought -- what if it was Tony Reed?

"Hello?" Evelyn said as she lifted the receiver to her ear, already thinking of an excuse to cut the conversation short if it indeed turned out to be Tony.

"Evelyn Parker please," said a decidedly non-masculine voice.

'No, not Tony,' Evelyn thought as she tried to place the caller before saying that she was Evelyn.

"Oh hi, I hope I'm not calling you too early," the woman on the other end said.

"No, it's not too early," Evelyn replied, still wondering who this was.

"Good," the woman said, pausing for a second as if to take a breath. "I was given your number by a mutual friend, Cathy Nelson. She suggested that I give you a call. My name is Allison Carpenter."

"Oh my God!" Evelyn gasped under her breath. "It's barely been twelve hours; when did Cathy call her?"

"You were expecting my call, weren't you?" Allison asked in response to the sudden silence.

"Oh yes, of course," Evelyn quickly replied. "I just wasn't expecting it so soon. I mean, I didn't expect Cathy to call you until after she came back from the mountains, at least."

"Well, Cathy knew I've been working the graveyard shift of late, so I guess she thought she'd take care of it before she and Jennifer left," Allison suggested. "I called your cell phone first, but I got your voicemail and, well, I didn't want to just leave a message. So, I got your house number from information; I hope you don't mind?"

Her cell phone, Evelyn remembered, was sitting out on her desk hooked up to the charger. Even if it had been in the bedroom, she normally left it off when home, especially on the weekends.

"No, not at all, it's fine," Evelyn replied, impressed by the woman's initiative. "I'm so glad you called."

"Well, I'm not really the type who likes to put things off," Allison offered. "That being said, the reason I'm calling is to ask if you might be available to have a drink this afternoon?"

"A drink... this afternoon?" Evelyn repeated.

"Yes, I figured it would give us a chance to meet, talk a little, and see if anything clicks," Allison explained, adding after a pause, "that is if you're still interested."

That addendum made Evelyn wonder if, when passing along her number, Cathy had also imparted a concern that the brunette's initial enthusiasm might have faded in the light of dawn.

"Or if you had other plans, we could..." Allison further added.

"No, this afternoon would be fine," Evelyn interrupted, having searched her resolve and, despite her misgivings a few moments before, found it still pretty solid.

"Excellent," Allison replied in a voice that almost allowed Evelyn to hear the smile behind it. "Are you familiar with the Red Lantern Inn out on Route 15?"

"Just past the Morgan Falls exit?" Evelyn asked as she pictured the red shingled longhouse that she had passed many times.

"That's the one," Allison confirmed. "How does three o'clock sound to you?"

"Three o'clock would be fine," Evelyn replied.

"Great, so I guess I'll see you then," Allison said as she brought the call to a close. "Oh, and Evelyn, I'm really looking forward to it."

"I am too," Evelyn echoed just as she heard the click of the call being disconnected.

A very long minute passed as Evelyn sat on the edge of the bed and stared at the phone. This was really happening, she said to herself. Then, as she thought about it a bit more, she realized that Allison's choice of a time and place for their introduction couldn't have been better picked.

The Inn was just about halfway between Oak Hill and Brookdale, close enough that neither one of them had to travel far, yet distant enough that it was unlikely that either would run into anyone they knew. Although she had nothing to base it on, Evelyn had the feeling that might be more of a concern for her than the deputy sheriff. Also, drinks in the afternoon left no further obligations if things didn't click, as Allison had termed it. Or as her grandmother used to put it, no harm, no foul.

-=-=-=-

Evelyn spent the rest of the morning taking care of her To Do list, thankful that nothing on it required her full attention. Try as she might, all she could think of was meeting Allison, even if it was just for a drink. Among those thoughts was the question of what she would wear, a decision she found herself spending more time on than what to wear for dinner the night before.

Believing a reserved appearance would be better than one that might make her appear too eager, Evelyn finally settled on a button down long-sleeved green blouse and a dark denim skirt. A step up from what she might wear to meet a new client, but still short of what she would've worn to impress a date. Almost incongruously, however, she stopped by her favorite salon to have her shoulder length tresses trimmed, even though they really didn't need it.

When she pulled into the parking lot of the Red Lantern a few hours later, the parking lot was far fuller than Evelyn expected at this time of day. A condition she found duplicated inside the restaurant, once she stepped into the vestibule. She would later learn that a local women's group, the Sisters of Carson County, had their monthly lunches at the Inn on the last Saturday of the month -- which was today.

Surveying the scattered tables in the dining area, as well as the crowd lined up at the bar in the adjacent room, Evelyn found a varied collection of women, covering just about all ages and races. What she didn't see was Allison.

'Well, I am a few minutes early,' Evelyn thought as she moved off to the left and into the bar proper, discovering that here too the female patrons outnumbered the men by at least two to one, causing her to add that at least two more women having drinks with each other wasn't going to draw any attention.

Her line of sight traversed the bar a second time, only to be disappointed again as she failed to find anyone who resembled the woman she'd come here to meet. A disconcerting thought flashed through her mind; what if she couldn't recognize her?

After all, it wasn't like she was going to be in uniform, she reminded herself, although that would have certainly made it easier. Looking back on the mental image Evelyn had of Allison, formed out of an all too brief encounter, the brunette was dismayed to realize that it was hardly helpful. Oh, she was sure she would recognize her if she saw her, but right now the clearest part of her image was the brimmed officer cap and the reflective sunglasses beneath it. That and the way she had filled out the male oriented uniform, which had drawn attention away from the deputy sheriff's face.

She was about to head back and wait by the front door when a tall, broad-shouldered man at the bar, who had been partially blocking Evelyn's view, moved enough for her to catch a flash of red hair. Moving to get a better look, she found a buxom redhead who looked to be the right height, wearing a low-cut white tank top that really put her breasts, which also looked to be the right size, on display. Even from a distance, Evelyn could see that there wasn't a bra beneath it, causing the nipples of her areolae to be prominently displayed.

'Is that her?' Evelyn asked herself before deciding that it had to be. After all, what are the odds of finding two stacked redheads in an out of the way country inn like this.

"So much for dressing conservatively," she said under her breath as she approached the provocatively dressed woman.

Suddenly aware of someone sliding in between her and the man to her right with whom she was conversing, the woman began to turn toward Evelyn, a look of irritation on her face. Now close enough to really see her face, the brunette realized that the odds evidently weren't as great as she had surmised. Frantically, she tried to think of something to say to explain her mistake; "I thought you were someone else" somehow didn't seem like enough.

"Evelyn?" a voice from behind her asked, causing the brunette to turn in that direction, disregarding the woman now glaring at her from the front.

There, wearing a pair of white capris and a freckled black and white blouse, with the top few buttons open, stood Allison Carpenter. A broad smile filled her face, a visage Evelyn instantly recognized.

"I'm afraid I had to answer a nature call and I didn't see you come in," Allison said as she glanced to the right and directly at the woman Evelyn had mistaken for her. The woman also seemed to recognize Allison, or at least knew who she was, as she abruptly turned back toward the bar, the look of confrontation on her face quickly fading.

'God, how could I have mistaken her for Allison,' Evelyn asked herself as the two of them stepped back from the crowd, 'all they really have in common are red hair and big boobs.'

Which of course, had been the most prominent features that Evelyn had remembered, although she would hate for Allison to think that. Thankfully, if she did, it didn't seem to bother her.

"This place is a lot more crowded than I thought it would be," Evelyn segued, hoping to draw attention away from her faux pax. "Did you know that the club was having their gathering?"

"Actually, that's one of the reasons I picked this place," Allison said as they reached an open space. "I thought you might feel more comfortable in a crowd."

Evelyn glanced to her right and left, thinking that she did feel better with people around her when she met someone new. Yet, at the same time, there didn't seem any place where they could sit and talk, at least not confidentially.

"Not to worry, I reserved a booth for us in the back," Allison said, having picked up on the concern in her guest's expression, gently laying her hand on Evelyn's shoulder to guide her in that direction.

A simple touch that sent a surprising yet pleasing spark down and across Evelyn's body, which could only be taken as an encouraging sign.

Passing a nearly a dozen occupied booths, half of which were filled with women, Allison led Evelyn to the last one in the row. A small cardboard reserved sign sat on the center of the table, which the redhead lifted to the side as she offered the brunette her choice of seats. Evelyn took the one facing the wall as Allison waited until she was fully seated before taking the other. As she did, Evelyn glanced over her shoulder at the empty booth behind her, and its own reserved card.

"If you're worried about someone sitting behind us listening in, don't," Allison offered, again having caught the brief look of concern. "It's not really reserved; I just had them close it off so that we could talk."

The deputy sheriff must be on pretty good terms with the owners of the restaurant to have arranged that, Evelyn thought, even as she also considered that this was all too well orchestrated to have been improvised. How many other women had Allison played out this scene with? Before she could even try to imagine an answer, Evelyn pushed the question aside with a more important one -- why should she care?

"I took the liberty of pre-ordering for us," Allison said as she raised her hand and gained the attention of a waitress about a dozen feet away. "Cathy said you were a wine drinker, so I ordered a Red Cabernet; is that okay?"

Evelyn replied that was fine, which was a good thing because barely had the words left her mouth when the waitress Allison had signaled appeared tableside with a tray carrying two half-filled glasses and a carafe. As she transferred them to the table, Evelyn looked at the braided blonde and was surprised to find herself more aware of her physical attributes that she might have been only a week before. A few inches shorter than her, the waitress had long hair that had been single braided and hung down along the left side of her chest. A chest only partially covered by a low-cut ruffled blouse; one that looked to be putting considerable strain on the top's buttons.

"Is there anything else I can get you?" the girl asked, totally ignoring Evelyn as she directed the question only at Allison.

"No, I think we're good here," Allison replied, returning the warm smile that had accompanied the waitress's inquiry.

The answer seemed to disappoint her as she stood there for a few moments longer before turning away. Interactions between women, at least on a sexual level, were obviously new to Evelyn, yet she felt that the girl had been trying to make an impression on Allison, perhaps even a connection. If that had been the case, then she had at least partially succeeded as, if only for a few seconds, Allison's gaze followed her as she walked back up the aisle, her eyes evidently fixed on the way her ass swayed as she moved.

Not wanting to draw attention to the fact that she had been watching Allison watch the waitress, Evelyn lifted the glass in front of her and took a taste. Finding it pleasing, she took a second, longer one.

"This is very good," she said, drawing Allison's attention back to her.

"I'm glad you like it," Allison replied. "I'm not really much of a wine drinker myself, so I just asked the owner to pick out something good."

"Well, you can tell them they did a great job," Evelyn smiled, not sure if the owner she was referring to was a man or a woman.

"So," Allison said after taking a taste of her own and also finding it to her liking, "tell me about yourself, Evelyn."

"How much did Cathy tell you?" Evelyn asked.

"Enough that we're here sharing this wine," Allison said, raising the glass in her hand a little higher before taking another drink from it. "But I'd really rather hear your story from you."

Evelyn again took a sip of wine and then proceeded to give a capsule sized story of her life, one not that much different than she'd given the night before. What was different this time, however, was that, unlike Tony, Allison seemed to be genuinely interested in what she was saying.

"I hope this doesn't offend," Allison said once Evelyn was done, "but your husband sounds like a real asshole. He'd have to have been, to walk out on a beautiful woman like you."

Evelyn blushed slightly at the compliment, thinking that the best Tony had come up with was that he thought she was still hot for her age.

"But that's a problem with a lot of men," Allison added. "They let the little head do their thinking and they get distracted by something new and shiny."

Evelyn wasn't sure how to react, not wanting to get into a discussion around the idea that all men are idiots and women were better off without them. She needn't have worried as, with her next words, Allison showed that wasn't where she was going.

"Not to say that there aren't a lot of good men out there as well," she said. "In fact, some of my best friends are men, trite as that might sound. Still, at the end of the day, I just prefer a woman in my bed."

The last of her statements brought a small smile to the corner of Evelyn's mouth. Allison was just stating what she already knew, but actually hearing it said out loud brought a certain excitement.

"Is there anything you'd like to ask me?" Allison asked once she was sure Evelyn was finished.

"How long have you been with the sheriff's office?" Evelyn asked, thinking that was a safe enough topic to start with.

"Coming up on six years now," Allison replied, "and before that I was in the Army -- Military Police."

"You were in the army?" the brunette asked, clearly surprised.

"Eight years," Allison related, "but I grew up on military bases all over the world -- my dad was a full bird colonel -- so it sometimes feels like I was in the Army most of my life."

"Why did you leave the army?" Evelyn asked, thinking of her uncle, who'd done his twenty and retired as a Staff Sergeant.

"As much as I enjoyed what I did, I finally grew tired of the double standard," Allison answered; the vagueness of her answer indicated it wasn't something she wanted to elaborate on.

Much later, however, Evelyn would learn exactly what Allison meant by double standard. A straight woman in her position could be bedding down any number of men and, as long as they weren't of a subordinate rank, little would be said. However, she could've lost everything if she was caught with just one woman. A policy which was ludicrous, given the number of gay men and women who had honorably served their country throughout its history. Things had improved with recent changes, notably "don't ask, don't tell," but by the time that had been implemented, Allison had put military life behind her.

Thinking it best to change the subject, Evelyn asked Allison how she knew Cathy, pouring a second glass of wine for herself as she did.

"We were introduced by a common friend," Allison said, "but to answer the question that I'm sure you're really wondering about, no; I haven't slept with her, not to say I haven't tried. She and I are, well, let's just say looking for different things."

Evelyn found Allison's candor both refreshing and even a bit stimulating. Which was strange in a way, because she was certain that she wouldn't have appreciated it if a man had been that direct. Later, she would learn that the common friend had been a woman that both women had slept with, something that seemed to be more common that it might have been among male friends.

"Do you have a girlfriend?" Evelyn asked, realizing as she did that not only was it a stupid question, she found that she really didn't care if Allison did or not.

"I guess it depends on how you define a girlfriend," Allison smiled. "If you mean women who I date and sometimes bed, well then, the answer would be lots of them. If, however, you mean girlfriend in the sense that Cathy and Jennifer are girlfriends, well, as I'm sure Cathy warned you, I don't do relationships, at least not exclusive ones. Some might say that makes me as bad as some men, always looking for the new and shiny, but if it does, then at least I'm up front about it."

'Yeah, a 'fuck 'em and leave 'em' kind of girl,' Evelyn thought, recalling her exchange with Cathy last night, adding to herself, as she had also said, that this might just be what she needed right now.

Further conversation was interrupted, temporarily at least, by the reappearance of the waitress, whose name Evelyn now learned was Carol. She had taken it upon herself to make up a plate of complimentary snacks and bring it to their table. After again exchanging smiles with Allison, Carol returned to other customers.