The Meadowlark Sings by Helen Ruth Schwartz

Author:Helen Ruth Schwartz [Schwartz, Helen Ruth]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Lesbian, Gay, Fiction, Lesbians, General, Exiles, Science Fiction, Political, United States, Fantasy, Feminist Fiction, Gays
ISBN: 9781560235750
Google: fQvkAAAACAAJ
Amazon: 1560235756
Publisher: Harrington Park Pr
Published: 2006-03-30T00:00:00+00:00

Seventeen

For the next three days the two women of contrasting beauty were inseparable, almost all of their waking hours spent in each other's company.

They swam, talked, felt the sun on their backs, smiled incessantly, walked endless hours on the beach, and listened to the sound of the meadowlark. Picnics at Jessica's Lair, a daily afternoon activity, extended into the sunset hour when they would finally wander back, exhausted, two silhouettes against a darkening sky.

After dinner, Cara would sit in the kitchen in an old-fashioned caned chair with her feet propped up on the stove while Jessica washed the evening dishes that Mrs. Anderson never finished. They spoke and laughed, but mainly they felt—the deep saturated feelings of a friendship being born.

Ellyn Hargreaves, whose music they both loved, became their constant companion. They programmed her old compact discs onto Cara's watch and brought them to the pool and the Lair and on their walks. At night, they sat together on the surround-sound couch in the entertainment room, filling the air with Ellyn's renditions of the old-fashioned love songs. Sometimes Jessica would lay her head on Cara's shoulder and Cara's heart would swell to infinite proportions. Will I ever again know such happiness? she asked herself.

On Monday afternoon, their routine changed when Jessica asked her to help her shop for clothes in one of the local boutiques. "I'm so envious every time I think of you in that wonderful Calian outfit. You have such a good sense of style."

Waiting in the sitting room, Cara commented enthusiastically on each of the eight outfits she modeled. A short pale pink dress garnered particular applause, inspiring Jessica to curtsy. "You are so good for my ego. Now, if you will do me the favor of unzipping me, I will end your torture and reward you with an ice cream cone."

Behind them, two saleswomen who had obviously recognized Cara, stood with their heads together whispering feverishly.

"Oh, don't worry about them," laughed Jessica, arching her left eyebrow in the expression that tickled the hairs on the back of Cara's neck. "They've seen my body before and they won't be the least bit jealous."

"You are so bad," whispered Cara, as her trembling hands grazed the silky skin.

After a short stroll while eating an ice cream cone, they returned to the estate, Jessica baffled by her feelings of disappointment that they wouldn't be taking an afternoon outdoor shower together.

"Dinner at the same time?" asked Cara when they reached the stairs.

"Not for me. I almost forgot to tell you. I'll be having dinner with my fiancé tonight. There's a museum benefit and I promised weeks ago that I'd go with him." She hesitated before speaking again in a soft voice that threatened to become a whisper. "But I'd really much rather stay here with you." And she turned around and walked up the stairs as though nothing unusual had been said.

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