4A/N: Sorry that this chapter was a week late, but I was too busy last weekend to write. I'm also sorry that this chapter is short, but I have had so much going on in the past few days. Hopefully next week's chapter will be longer. Also, I just finished typing this up, so go easy. I'll go back and edit later on in the week. But for now, enjoy the new chapter!
Rhia closed her house door and locked it behind her. Tossing her purse onto the couch, she slumped to the floor and leaned her back against the door.
What have I done? What have I done?! she thought. I had sex with her again, and it was amazing. But, it's not going to happen again.
She looked over to the clock and saw that it was almost eleven in the morning. Usually, she would be up and about handling errands at this time, but today she had nothing to do. She reached behind her and pulled Terri's card out. Briefly scanning the tiny thing, she ripped it up until it resembled confetti.
It was only a momentary distraction, Rhia tried to convince herself. Her body hummed at the thought of Terri. Her mind flashed back to when she had been straddling Terri's hips with the redhead's fingers moving in and out of her. Their lips had been sealed in a sweaty kiss as Rhia's fingers toyed with Terri's clit. The orgasm that ensued had been nothing short of mind-shattering. They hadn't even stopped to catch their breaths before they went onto another round.
There was no doubt in Rhia's mind that Terri was amazing in bed. Somehow, Terri had this amazing ability of making Rhia feel like a wanton woman. She loved and craved Terri's touch, and as soon as it was gone, she desired more. It was probably a skill that Terri acquired through a lot of practice along with her gratifying love-making experience.
Unsettling emotions rumbled through her stomach as she thought of the woman that Terri had been with at the club. That must have been the "Miranda" woman that Terri's grandmother had mentioned. The two seemed quite cozy last night, and Rhia briefly wondered if they were in some type of open relationship.
As soon as she thought of it, she dismissed it quickly. It seemed highly unlikely since those types of relationships required full disclosure of all the parties involved. Since Terri hadn't mentioned her, Rhia assumed that they were occasional fuck buddies or friends with benefits.
The desire that ran through her body at the thought of Terri made Rhia tempted to present the same type of option to the young redhead. It was what her body wanted, but her mind reeled her in and kept her in check. She really didn't need any more complications in her life right now. She already had to deal with her sister dating her ex-boyfriend and bringing him along to all the family events. Dropping her head into her hands, she thought over her predicament. Fucking a youngster was definitely not the answer to her problems, and it would not help her get over that messy breakup.
Rhia winced as she thought of the bastard with her sister. At the first holiday dinner, most of the family had been polite to the happy couple even though they all disapproved of the arrangement. Her father kept his cool, even though she half expected him to bring out the shotgun and order the man out of his younger daughter's life. Instead he held onto his silverware with a white-knuckled grip. Her mom had been the most entertaining to watch with her subtle back-handed compliments to the couple. Rhia's favorite had been, "You two look so happy together for two people who hurt my daughter to be together."
Her favorite reaction had come from her older brother, Jack. Her had been on his third tour in Afghanistan and had come back last year to see his younger sister heartbroken. He had tried his best to comfort her and did not take it well when he heard the asshole was going to be at a family dinner after what he did to Rhia. He had cursed their sister Kimberley and her naiveté.
When he walked through the door and saw the happy couple blissfully ignorant of the pain they caused, he couldn't hold back from decking his sister's ex in the jaw. As soon as he fell, Jack was on him, beating the crap out of him. The rest of the family had to separate the two before Jack did some major damage to Kimberley's boyfriend. Once he cooled off somewhat, he dragged Kimberley outside and verbally berated her for what she had done until the younger woman had burst into tears.
Rhia knew it was bad to take pleasure from other's misery, but she had a permanent smile fixed onto her face for the rest of the evening as she watched her sister sniffle through dinner and her ex-boyfriend attempt to eat with a bruised up face. She silently thanked her brother as they ate their meal. Not long after the holiday break, Jack had been shipped out again for another tour.
Before he had left, he encouraged to get back out into the dating world. She considered taking his advice, but at the time she still had to deal with the whole Terri situation. But now that that whole thing was over with, she did have the time and energy to date again. It seemed a little scary going back into the dating world after being out for so long, but she knew that needed to move on with her life. Without Terri, she mentally added when an image of the tempting redhead appeared in her mind.
Rhia couldn't figure out why her thoughts kept gravitating towards Terri. She wasn't romantically interested in her, she knew that for sure. She was a nice person, but Rhia had only been interested in her sexually, which was odd. Her desire for the young woman had her questioning her own sexuality. She wasn't attracted to other women, nor did she desire to have sex with any others. Just Terri. What did that make her?
"I should forget about her," Rhia muttered to herself. It was in her best interest to let go of the woman who had given her the best orgasms she ever had.
Terri barely had the energy to make it to her apartment after her lunch with her grandmother. She thought it would be a simple congratulatory lunch, but it turned out to be a legal matter in Terri's favor. Her grandmother decided to give Terri her trust fund now that she was a university graduate and twenty-one years of age. Her jaw dropped when she looked at how many zeros had been on the check. She knew that her grandmother was well-off, but not this well off. Her grandmother had been actively putting away a lot of money for Terri, and had increased the amount after Terri's parents disowned her. The bright side was that she would never have to work again if that's what she wanted. The down side was that she had to sign so many forms, including one that made Terri her grandmother's sole heir and beneficiary.
She would have the same lawyer and accountant that her grandmother did and full access to her accounts to make sure nobody tampered with her funds. Terri collapsed onto her couch and pulled out all the forms and paperwork that her grandmother had given her.
She went through the papers until she found the ones that detailed how much overall money she had. Stapled to the back of the form were recommended investments for her lifestyle. Buying a house was number one, and she understood why. It was a good way to start how to manage finances and upkeep. If she did buy a house with cash, she would never have to worry about rent again. The only bills she would have to deal with were utilities and maintenance. She made a mental note to find a real estate agent. There were other suggested investments, but she decided to put those off for the moment.
Her grandmother had also suggested that she go on a one-time shopping spree. It was a tactic usually recommended to lottery winners, so that they wouldn't go crazy with their winnings and end up bankrupt. Her grandmother had said that she needed to decide on a modest amount and go crazy with that money only. It would fulfill the need to buy the things that she wanted, and still leave her with a lot of money. Her grandmother's suggested figure, however, was not modest at all to most people, but compared to her new bank account, it was extremely modest.
Terri took out a pen and paper and made a list of everything she wanted to spend her shopping spree money on. A house was at the top of the list, followed by new clothes, kitchen gadgets and other trivial things. Then she spent the next half hour planning her life for the next year or so. She knew she wanted a career in writing, so finding a job at a publishing and/or editing company were on there. She also wanted to travel to different countries, and write a novel at some point. Her list was small, but it satisfied her for the moment. She would be finding about her graduate school application results in a month or two and that was a major decider in what the next few years of her life looked like. But for now, she wanted to go shopping.
She pulled out her cell-phone and called Maria and Miranda. I need a new phone too, she thought as she looked at her first generation smart-phone.
"You never told us what prompted this huge shopping spree," Miranda said while holding a good portion of Terri's bags. Maria also had quite a few. The three of them walked over to the food court for a break.
"Well, since I trust you two, I'll let you in on the little secret. My grandmother gave me a huge trust fund, and I get to use a small portion of that on personal luxuries," Terri said and sat down next to the two women.
"That's really sweet of her, and you deserve it. You have been so focused on school and work that you haven't had time to enjoy your 20s," Miranda said and placed a hand on Terri's thigh. She took delight in the flirty look adorning her friend's face. She inched her hand higher and heard Terri inhale sharply.
"You two need to get a room!" Maria said watching the sexual tension rise between her two friends. She knew it wasn't a good idea for the two of them to be screwing around, but they were insistent on keeping their physical relationship.
"Oh shut up, Maria. It's harmless," Terri said and stared into Miranda's eyes.
"Oh, really?" Maria huffed. "So where do you two plan on going with this? Relationship or just long-term friends with benefits?"
Miranda tore her eyes away from Terri and looked at Miranda in shock. "Maria! What's wrong with you? Why would you ask that?" she asked clutching her bags tightly in her hands. Terri laid a comforting hand on her shoulder.
"Because that was the reaction I was looking for. You guys are adults, and you need to address this thing that you guys have. You act like a couple, but you guys aren't. Normally that would be fine, but, Miranda, you've had to deal with some heartbreak recently, and screwing Terri isn't going to make the pain go away," Maria urged on.
She had no clue when she became a relationship guru, but she was the only one to have had a long stable relationship. She briefly looked down at her engagement and smiled at the thought of Leslie. Then, she looked back up at her two friends.
"I'm not trying to cause trouble, but you two need to face the facts. Terri, you are not interested in a relationship whatsoever with anybody. Miranda, you fall in way too easily and then get upset when it doesn't work. With the both of you screwing at the rate that you have been, somebody's going to get hurt. You can take my suggestion, or you can continue doing what it is you're doing and hope for the best," she continued.
Miranda and Terri looked at each other for a brief moment and then looked back at Maria.
"What's your suggestion?" Terri asked and made sure to avoid Miranda's questioning gaze.
"Terri, we don't need to do anything. We're fine. We have sex when we feel like it and date other people. Well, I date other people," Miranda pointed out. She wasn't interested in anything Maria had to say. There was nothing wrong with her and Terri's arrangement.
"I suggest that you guys take a break from the sex," Maria began.
"Well, now that's just ridiculous," Terri objected. Miranda was her only current way of getting sex since Rhia was no longer in the picture.
"Let me finish!" Maria commanded. "You guys need to make sure that you have a strong friendship that cannot be broken. Take a break and learn how to be friends without the sex. You never know. New opportunities might open up for both of you."
"Seriously? That's your suggestion? That is ridiculous, right Terri?" Miranda turned to Terri only to see her in deep contemplation.
"While I don't agree with the whole "no sex" part, she has a point. That's the reason why I never kept up an arrangement like ours for long. Somebody would end up developing feelings, and it wouldn't work out. I think we probably should take a break. I don't like this anymore than you, but I value our friendship," Terri explained after a moment of silence.
"Well, you guys can keep planning my life all you want. I'm going to leave," Miranda said and dropped the bags to the floor. "Bye."
"Miranda!" Terri called out, but the woman didn't even pay her any attention. She left the two women in the food court.
Terri turned back on Maria. "Thanks, Maria. You helped out a lot," she said sarcastically.
"I was just trying to help," Maria said and shrugged.
Terri scrolled through the open house listing online. Her new HD laptop brought all the failings of the houses. She sighed in defeat.
"There has to be one that I like somewhere," she said as she clicked on the next page. The new list of houses did not appease her one bit.
She switched sites and started browsing more contemporary homes in West Hollywood. She found a few that interested her, so she wrote down the information and left a message for the realtor that her grandmother her recommended.
As she looked through more houses, her cell phone rang. "Hello, this Terri."
"Hello, Terri. This is Diana from Silver Rose Publishing House. I was calling regarding your paid internship application," the voice on the other line said.
Terri's eyes went wide and her back straightened. "Yes, I'm listening," she said in her most calm voice, even though she was freaking out on the inside.
"Well, according to our records, you recently graduated from the University of Southern California with a B.A. in Psychology and a B.A. in English with an Emphasis in Creative Writing. Is this correct?"
"Yes, it is," Terri said and silently cleared her throat.
"Well, I was wondering if you would be interested in coming down to our Southern California branch for an interview regarding the internship," Diana said.
"Yes, I would," Terri said and then began dancing silently in her apartment.
"Would Friday at eight in the morning workout for you?"
"Yes, it's perfect. Thank you so much for the opportunity," Terri said, trying to keep her excitement at bay.
She heard a slight chuckle on the line. "No problem. See you Friday." The line disconnected, and Terri threw her phone on her couch and completed her happy dance.
"I have an interview! Yay!" she yelled as she danced in her spot. She applied for the scholarship earlier in the year, but she recently sent them an update notifying them of her graduation, which was a requirement for the internship. She also had to submit a piece of work to prove her dedication to fiction writing, which was what the company focused on. She sent them her NaNoWriMo novel that she had been polishing at the time. Now, she had an interview for an internship that would help her get started in creative writing career.
She called up her friends to relay the good news. She couldn't believe that her week was going so well.
Skipping to her closet, she eyed her new clothes and started sifting through them. Presentation was key, and she was going to need to wow them. Black was safest, so Terri figured that she'd start there.
She found a new black dress that was appropriate enough. It had three-quarter sleeves and ended a few inches below her knees. It had a small v-neck, and a piece of fabric sewn behind it so that her cleavage wouldn't show. It was professional, but cute as well. She really wanted to go all out on a new outfit for the interview, but it was probably best that she play it safe and stick to professional.
"Well, I have more time to think about it," she said. "It's only Tuesday."
A ringing sound filled her apartment, and Terri ran back to the living room.
She lunged for her phone and answered it on the last ring.
"Hello, this is Terri," she said breathlessly.
"Hi, this is Tiffany, your realtor. You were referred to me by your grandmother," the melodious voice said from the other line.
"Oh, hi yes. So you got my message," Terri asked and tried to picture what her realtor looked like.
"Yes, I did. I am ready to book the viewings, just let me know when you would like to see them."
Terri chewed her lip and thought about her schedule. She wasn't busy until Friday morning, and even then, it was only a morning thing.
"How about tomorrow at noon? We could get lunch first to get to know each other, and then we could go look at the houses," Terri suggested and kept her fingers crossed.
"That works for me. I'll go ahead and schedule the first showing for 1:30 pm. Would you like to meet me at my office, or should I pick you up?" Tiffany asked.
"I can meet you at your office," Terri said.
"Do you have my address?"
Terri dug through her purse to find the realtor's card. "Yes, I do."
"Alrighty then, I will see you tomorrow."
"I look forward to it," Terri replied and hung up. She lay back on her couch and closed her eyes.
As she tried to figure out what she wanted to do for the rest of the week, an image of Miranda popped into her head. Terri groaned in frustration. After Miranda had calmed down, she agreed to try just being friends. Miranda seemed to be doing well, but Terri was frustrated as hell.
Rhia was only a one-time thing, and Miranda was no longer her back up. Plainly, Terri had nobody to take care of her urges. She thought about picking up some stranger, but that option no longer had any appeal for her. Especially, not after that last time.
"Well, atleast I have tomorrow and Friday to look forward to," she muttered and drifted off into a nap.
A/N: Please review!