Turning Point

"Right," I agreed.

Jim found something mindless on television to watch. All I remember is people jumping onto big inflated balls and falling into a lake, but it was distracting. I'm sure the wine helped some too, but I just had the one glass. I still had to drive tonight.

Two hours before I was supposed to meet Charlie, I started getting ready. My usual process for going out is throwing on a dress along with some foundation, some lipstick, and, maybe, some eyeliner. Forty-five minutes on the outside if I didn't have to take a shower and dry my hair. That night I fretted over every little thing like I was back in college.

In the end, I wore one of my older little black dresses that was slightly more risqué than my newer one. A slightly higher hemline and a slightly lower neckline. I was happy that I could still fit into it; I was probably Charlie's age the last time I wore it. I paired that with some black high-heel pumps.

I got a whistle from Jim as I stepped into the living room.

"She's going to be putty in your hands, babe," he assured me.

I wasn't so sure about that but I appreciated his comments and lecherous looks.

"Are you sure you're okay with this, Jim?" I asked one final time.

"Absolutely, babe! I think this will be great for us," my husband assured me.

Even if I wasn't as confident as he seemed to be, I no longer felt like I was betraying or cheating on him. I kissed him goodbye and drove to the restaurant. As always, I arrived five minutes early. I felt a little uneasy standing in the waiting area alone.

Ten minutes later, Charlie finally walked in wearing an ivory, ruched dress that left a large tear-drop of cleavage showing under crisscrossing straps. It came to mid-thigh and was completely backless. She showed off her legs with matching high-heel sandals. I knew I was looking good, but I suddenly felt like I was wearing a burlap sack.

She spotted me immediately and walked over reaching out to lock hands. She held our arms wide apart and looked me up and down.

"To think that was what was under all those scrubs!" Charlie complimented, giving me a very pleased look.

I blushed and tried desperately to think of what I could say to appropriately return the compliment.

"You...look amazing," was the best I could come up with.

The blonde tilted her head down and looked at me with those incredible eyes.

"All for you," she said and bit one side of her lower lip.

I squeezed my legs together as I melted under that gaze. Then she was smiling and letting go of one hand. She kept the other one firmly in hers, however, and pulled me towards the greeter.

It wasn't that far of a walk, but I had time to notice that I was holding hands with another woman in the middle of a restaurant and it felt...good. More importantly, it didn't feel wrong. I was happy to be there and happy to be seen with this woman. I felt desired. Not that my husband didn't make me feel that way, but there was something more to it with Charlie. This beautiful woman wanted to be seen with me, wanted everyone in this restaurant to know we were together.

When we stepped in front of the podium, Charlie let go of my hand and put her arm around my waist resting her hand on my hip. More than just being wanted, the blonde woman was claiming me as her date for the evening.

"Reservation for..." Charlie started to say when an older gentleman approached from behind the greeter.

"Ah, Ms. Charlie! It's so nice to see you again, right this way."

With that, the man grabbed a couple of menus and started walking deeper into the building. I looked at the blonde curiously but she just grabbed my hand again and we followed. After being seated and the man leaving, she finally answered my unverbalized question.

"One of my dad's best friends owns this place and I was the same age as his son," she began. "We were good friends and I would come here with him after school every day until my dad came to get me in the afternoons. They were sure that his son and I would get married someday." She just laughed.

"Were they disappointed?" I asked.

"It was worse," she snickered. "Turns out he was gay too."

She gestured with her head toward the man who had shown us to our table.

"That man that led us in was a waiter back then and, probably, is the only one left here other than the owner who remembers the shit we went through," she continued, her voice getting a tinge of sadness. "I think that's why he always treats me really well when I come here."

Then her attention was turned completely on me. She leaned forward and rested her elbows on the table cradling her face in both hands.

"Let's talk about you!" she said, her perkiness back.

My unease quickly evaporated as we began to really talk for the first time. I learned that she was twenty-five and some sort of tech worker. She asked about my job, my college days, and my husband.

"He seems surprisingly open to your extramarital activities," Charlie observed.

I reflexively darted my eyes around to see who was listening. Probably no one.

"Do you have to say that out loud?" I asked pulling my shoulders in. Then thought about it and realized I was overreacting. "Besides, we haven't done anything, this is just dinner."

"But we're going to," she said in such a matter-of-fact manner. "Aren't we?"

My blood ran cold momentarily at the thought of having to answer that question right here, but she was just looking at me waiting.

"I hope so," I answered unable to maintain eye contact.

Charlie had that predator look again and something about it excited me.

"It's completely up to you, Sherry," she insisted. "I'm not going to force you to do anything you don't want to."

I nodded my head to indicate I understood.

"Can we not talk about this here?" I urged in a quiet voice.

"What? Are you embarrassed that we're together?" Charlie pouted and reached out to take my hand and held it between both of hers.

Once again, the fact that we were on a romantic date was put on display for the world to see. My pulse quickened and I closed my eyes, momentarily focusing on the feeling of her soft skin pressing against mine. When I felt her lifting my hand, I opened my eyes and just watched as she brought my knuckles to her lips and kissed. It was slow and sensual, and I pressed my thighs together again feeling that tingle between them.

"N..no," I tried to answer her question. "I...just..."

I just...what? I had no idea what was supposed to follow that and let the words hang. She put my hand back down but continued to hold it. Despite my nervousness, I was feeling desired by this lovely woman and didn't dare remove my hand from hers.

Just then, the waiter approached to get our meal order. I started to pull my hand away but Charlie increased her grip just enough to keep me from retreating.

"So have you ladies decided what you want?" the waiter asked.

We hadn't even looked at the menu, but Charlie started rattling off a list of sushi rolls and sashimi I had never heard of along with a bottle of warm plum wine. I had been to a couple of sushi restaurants in the past, but I was far from knowledgeable in the matter. The plum wine was yet another thing I had never tried. How was it that this woman nearly ten years my junior seemed to have so much more life experience? I constantly felt like a naive girl being taken on an exciting new journey by this worldly, if younger, woman. She had everything in hand, including me, and I found myself settling comfortably into her taking the lead.

"Alright," the man started when Charlie finished. "Excellent choices ma'am. I'll bring that wine right out."

Charlie continued to hold my hand on top of the table as we talked and didn't let go until the wine arrived. She poured us both a glass and watched me carefully as I took a sip. It was sweet and fruity. The warmth made it comforting and smooth as it filled the mouth and warmed all the way down. I knew immediately that I would be ordering this the next time I was at a Japanese restaurant.

Charlie sipped at hers so I tried to follow suit only to realize I had finished the whole glass more quickly than I expected.

"You should probably slow down on that," the blonde warned. "The alcohol level is deceptive."

I knew she was right, but I couldn't not have another glass. I did manage to make it last for most of the rest of the meal, however. Nonetheless, I was feeling warm and relaxed by the end.

Over the course of the meal, I learned a lot more about Charlie and she learned more about me. I found out about her experiences growing up and knowing that she was attracted exclusively to girls even before she hit puberty. She found out about my sheltered upbringing and how I had been a virgin until marriage. How I rarely masturbated and didn't own a single sex toy.

She asked me about my experiences, or, in my case, lack of experience with having multiple orgasms, whether I squirted, which I didn't know was possible, and if I liked oral.

"Well, of course, I like receiving," I answered. "But I don't think Jim is really into it. I mean, he'll do it for me, but I can just tell he doesn't care for it, you know."

She licked her lips and leaned closer.

"I love giving oral," she said in a husky tone. "My favorite place to be is sucking on a clit and the woman I'm with is cumming so hard that I have to hold on for dear life."

My brain immediately conjured the image of Charlie's head between my legs and me having an earth-shattering orgasm. I took another swallow of wine finishing off my second glass. I tried to pour a third but the ceramic pitcher was empty.

The waiter arrived with a printout of the bill that Charlie tucked into her purse, but I hadn't seen her pay it.

"I...was going to pay for dinner," I offered.

The blonde looked at me like I was crazy.

"My choice of restaurant, my treat," she explained. "Besides, I have an account here and it gets automatically paid so I don't have to worry about it."

How does one even go about setting something like that up? Was she some wealthy heiress or something? As if she could hear my thoughts, Charlie spoke up.

"No, I'm not rich, I just get a good discount because of the family friend status. I'm still paying for this, so don't get any ideas about me becoming your sugar momma."

What? I hadn't thought of any such thing. Charlie just looked at me and couldn't hold her straight face. She laughed and put her hand on my leg under the table.

"Oh, honey, your face!"

I laughed softly even though I was not completely sure what was so funny. She squeezed my leg and let go as she started to stand up.

"Come on, let's go dancing," she announced.

"Dancing?" I asked.

"Yeah, you know, music, moving your body. How old are you again?"

"Oh, haha," I deadpanned as I rose.

Once again, Charlie was grabbing my hand and pulling me along in her wake. She waved at the manager as we left.

Exiting the restaurant, we turned away from where our cars were parked. It was a warm night and my date slowed down her pace a lot once we were on the sidewalk.

"The club is less than a block in this direction," she assured me.

I pulled alongside her and it finally felt like we were really holding hands and not like Charlie was just pulling me somewhere. After a few leisurely steps, she snaked my arm around her waist and pulled me closer. We walked that way most of the rest of the distance to the club, pressed tightly together with my arm resting on her hip and hers draped around my shoulders.

I could see a small line of people waiting to get into the club and wondered how long we would have to wait or if Charlie knew some secret way in. For that reason, I wasn't even surprised when she guided us into an alley on the side of the club. Instead of going to some hidden door, however, she turned me to face her and pressed me against the brick wall. It wasn't hard and I didn't resist.

My palms felt the rough texture of the bricks but I wasn't scared. Far from it. When her breasts pressed against mine, I was sure she would be able to feel the beating of my heart. Charlie placed her hands against the wall on either side of me like a little cage. She just looked at my face, my eyes, my lips for a long moment before talking.

"You are a very beautiful woman, Sherry," she began.

I smiled and felt my head move closer to her. She moved hers back not rising to my offer.

"When we go through that door, you are going to be approached by every guy in there and several of the women." I wasn't sure where this was going. "Stay by my side. You're my date tonight, understand?"

Maybe it was the wine, but the meaning that my brain registered was more than what she said. I nodded. I was hers tonight.

Then Charlie's face crept closer and her head tilted slightly. I didn't wait for her to come to me and moved to close the distance. Our lips met and I finally felt the reality of what I had only fantasized about before. They were so much more sensual and soft and teasing and expressive than I could have ever dreamed up. I let her push my head against the wall as my arms lifted to her sides. When she didn't stop me I slid them down her body to her hips and behind to the top of her incredible butt. I was still too shy to go any further, but my fingertips were under where the backless opening of her dress ended. Then her mouth opened and her tongue caressed the underside of my top lip. Instinctively and without hesitation, my teeth parted and my own tongue searched for hers.

I don't know how long that kiss lasted but it wasn't long enough. Charlie tilted her chin back leaving me reaching for her. She touched her forehead to mine and we just stood there for another few moments just breathing.

"We should get in there," Charlie finally said. "Before I just take you to a hotel right now."

If I had been braver, I would have voiced how much that was exactly what I wanted her to do. Instead, I just nodded again.

She stepped back and took my hand, once again pulling me to the door of the club. The bouncer saw us coming and acted like he was going to stop us, then seemed to recognize Charlie and just stood back in his previous position.

"Let me guess, another family connection?" I said as the club door closed behind us.

The music was muffled but already threatened to hinder conversation.

"Oh, no," she said having to raise her voice a bit. "I convinced this place to have a lesbian night and it's their biggest money maker now."

My eyebrows raised.

"This isn't lesbian night, is it?" I asked.

"No," Charlie laughed. "But that would have been fun." She looked back at me and winked. "Maybe next time."

We stepped through another swinging door into a room where the music accosted us like it was a physical wind that we had to push through. It was both well-lit in places and downright dark in others. We started walking through the outskirts of the room with Charlie pulling me close and putting her arm around me. A couple of times she even let her hand cup my ass. The whole time she would occasionally wave or blow a kiss at someone.

Finally, through some circuitously meandering path, we sat down in an empty round booth with a low table. I leaned over close to her ear so that she could hear me.

"What was the meaning of all that? Why didn't we just come here and sit down in the first place?" I asked.

"Just claiming my territory," she responded.

"Territory?"

"That little walk told all of the important people here that you are with me," she explained. "And saved me from spending the night fighting them off you."

She leaned back and relaxed, crossing her legs. No sooner had she gotten comfortable than a waiter showed up with two cocktails I couldn't identify. Charlie sat up and looked where the waiter pointed. At that, she picked up one of the glasses and thanked someone in the distance.

"That was the owner of the club," she explained. "He approves of you!"

"How do you know that?"

"Because he gave us one of my favorite drinks. If he didn't like you, he would have sent over a martini or some other horrible concoction."

Charlie sipped at hers but I needed a little more courage and took bigger gulps.

We talked a bit more about life and our jobs. I told her about being an OR nurse and she told me about testing software for large retail companies. She convinced me to dance for a while and, when we returned, another set of drinks was brought to us by the server. He whispered to Charlie who caught the eye of another woman across the room. The other woman was a slightly taller, impeccably dressed older lady. By older, I mean that she was probably in her late 30s. She had shoulder-length brown hair and a trim figure.

"Who's that?" I asked.

Charlie sucked on her lip for a moment before answering.

"Nobody important," she responded as though that was an answer.

She raised her glass to the other woman then sat back with her drink and turned her attention back to me. She crooked her finger beckoning me to get closer. I looked back at the untouched new drink, grabbed it, and downed it in a few gulps. Then I looked back at my beautiful date and scootched over as close as I could get. She lifted one knee to cross her legs, I thought, then swung them both over my lap. One arm went around my shoulders and the other came up and gently took my own. Our fingers intertwined momentarily, then Charlie guided my hand to her leg. My palm felt the skin of her knee with her hand gently gripping my wrist and urging me to run my hand up her leg. I let my hand skim down the outside of her thigh until my fingertips breached the hem of her dress. Still, Charlie urged me further.

With every inch further down her leg my hand traveled, I thought I would pass out. My hand forced her dress up her leg as well and I absently suspected that a lot of eyes were watching us. At the time, though, I didn't care. Alcohol and the sensation of her smooth leg combined to make me swoon and forget about everything else around us.

My hand was on her bare hip by the time she let go of my wrist and moved up to tuck a stray lock of my dark brown hair behind my ear. The position of my hand had forced me to turn and lean toward her. Our noses almost touched as Charlie cradled my face against her warm palm.

"So," she started. "How are you enjoying your first girl-girl date?"

I smiled and looked into those gorgeous eyes. No words came to mind. Instead, I just lifted my chin and edged my face forward offering her my lips. She accepted and we met in the middle. Again, it was soft and searching at first. Her lips seemed to meld with mine in a way that was so sensual. It was only moments before our tongues got involved and Charlie's grip on my neck increased.

With one hand already all the way up my date's dress and caressing her hip, I let my other hand move up her other side until I felt the underside of her breast against my thumb. I wanted to feel those amazing breasts, but that might be one step too far in the middle of a club. I took my cue from Charlie who let her free hand roam over my body but avoided anything obviously sexual.

I lost track of how long we made out. I was lost in the erotic haze of her lips and the feel of her body. Vaguely, I started hearing some jeers and exclamations from my left, but I was too preoccupied to care. Charlie let go of my head long enough to flip our audience the bird, but never stopped kissing me. There was a bit of laughter, but the external encouragement died down, nonetheless.

When her hand came back, her lips let go of mine and moved to my jaw and then to my neck just below my ear. Her lips on my neck were a new sensation that I wasn't expecting. I loved when Jim kissed my neck, but this was so much different. Unlike my husband's ruff chin and upper lip, Charlie was all soft and smooth and seemed to know exactly where to kiss or lick or nibble to make me melt.