It was 4.30pm on an unseasonably warm Wednesday when Caroline stumbled out of the clinic onto the footpath yelling, "Oh, fuck off!" very loudly to the dental assistant charging after her. The young woman was trying valiantly to get her charge back under some sort of control and failing miserably. That Caroline was tottering precariously in her heels — suit jacket and bag dragging along the ground — did little to staunch the furious language spewing forth as the blonde fought off the unfortunate worker.
Kate, out for her afternoon jog along the high street, spotted her boss in the middle of the fracas and came to an ankle jarring stop not far from the action.
"Caroline!" Kate yelled over the blonde's stream of abuse in the hopes of getting her attention.
Caroline's flapping arm slowed and she swayed like she was a little tipsy before turning towards Kate. Her face like thunder, she peered at Kate for several seconds before her expression metamorphosed into one of delight. "Kaaaaate!" She lurched towards her friend as fast as her dubious balance would allow and threw her arms around her colleague as though she hadn't seen her in an age. "Kaaaate!"
"You know Dr. Elliot?" the frustrated dental assistant asked pointlessly, trying to ascertain how well this stranger knew her patient and just how quickly she might be able to offload the cranky old bat.
"We're colleagues. Friends." Kate leaned back to see Caroline's face but Caroline's body followed her and Kate took several steps backwards before she could stabilise them both. "What's going on?"
"She's had a root canal and, well, some people have a weird response to the pain-killing and anti-anxiety medications." She pointed accusingly at Caroline. "She's one; reduced motor skills, thinking, that sort of thing. It's temporary. Dentist says she'll be right as rain in hour or so." She sighed. "At worst it reduces inhibitions and who knows what that'll mean." She thought the blonde was a right stroppy cow, but she was cautiously optimistic about dumping her on the jogger who fortuitously appeared out of nowhere.
"Oh. Okay. Want me to take her home? Is she finished here?"
"Nowt we can do wit' her. You take her; we've other patients to see to." The young woman almost skipped in delight as she vanished back inside the doors of the clinic before the poor sod running past at just the right time had a chance to change her mind.
"No flies on her," muttered Kate, wondering if duty of care had evaporated as fast as that dental assistant, as Caroline started to wobble in her heels and Kate wrapped her arms more tightly around her boss. "Well, Caroline, what are we going to do with you? Where's your car?"
"Mmmm. You feel nice." Caroline, uninhibited thanks to the drugs, started to nestle into Kate's embrace as one of her hands headed south to less prudent territory, leaving an embarrassed Kate with the unenviable task of trying to get some sense out of her boss. It would be even better if she could unclamp Caroline's hand from her bottom and a brief wrestling match erupted. Kate thanked the gods that it was a quiet afternoon as only two people stopped to witness the entertainment — which didn't end until Kate captured both of Caroline's hands firmly with her own. Caroline, eyes unfocused, pitched slowly forward until her blonde head came to rest on Kate's shoulder, the extra point of contact required for some semblance of stability.
Kate momentarily thought about calling John before deciding to head straight into the storm. "Where's the car, Caroline? Where do you live?"
"Oh... Are you taking me home? That's a good idea."
Kate closed her eyes, wondering how the hell she was going to manage this. She turned her head to look up and down the street and spotted the large black Jeep not too far away. One problem solved. Next, car keys.
"Caroline, I need your car keys. Do you mind if I look in your bag?"
"Mmmm. You smell lovely." She snuggled in closer. "Why didn't I know that?"
"Bollocks." Kate's blood, cooling after she'd stopped running, was starting to warm again for an entirely different reason. This was not good. Good, but so not good. After their chance meeting in the cafe a month ago they'd gone out for coffee, attempting to bridge the awkwardness of becoming friends when one was in a position of authority over the other. There had been the odd rumour about Caroline's marriage, but there had never been any suggestions from Caroline or anyone else that she was anything other than heterosexual. Until now. Kate swallowed hard in an effort to steel her nerves to keep her emotions in check.
"Caroline, I'm going to get your car keys out of your bag and take you home. Okay?" It felt like she was back in teacher training when she'd first had to deal with drunk housemates. Worried more about the reaction of her boss than her friend, Kate wondered what she was in for when the drugs wore off, or if Caroline would remember any of the afternoon.
Kate reached into Caroline's handbag and started ferreting around, thankful the large collection of keys was obvious. "Right. We're moving. Come on." Kate swung them around and in the process firmly grabbed Caroline by the waist to stabilise the swaying blonde as they weaved their way towards the car.
In their meandering fashion they eventually made it to the Jeep. Not trusting Caroline to stand by herself, Kate propped her up against the side of the car, one hand on her midriff while she opened the door. That's when Caroline exclaimed, "We're going on a trip!" and started singing with gusto, "We're all going on a summer holiday," which wouldn't have been so bad if she could hit either the timing or the notes.
Kate snorted. She was trying to push Caroline into the car, which was more difficult than she'd first imagined. For a start it was a long way up and this version of Caroline wasn't that coordinated or helpful. And secondly, Kate was trying not to touch Caroline's body any more than she had too; she hated the possibility of anyone they knew seeing Caroline's misfortune. The thought struck Kate that the human body really needed some convenient handles as she finally gritted her teeth and shoved Caroline up into the car. She shook her head, chuckling, wondering which dubious god had tricked fate and she'd been lumbered with the sweary, handsy, tipsy boss she was strapping into the seat.
Leaning over Caroline's body to buckle her seatbelt, Kate caught a whiff of Caroline's scent and found herself in sudden close proximity with Caroline's chest. She closed her eyes, trying to tamp down the sharp pull of Caroline's physical presence — although Caroline wasn't helping by continuing to belt out, "So we're going on a summer holiday, To make our dreams come truuuue, For me and you-oo-oo."
Kate shut the passenger side door and tried to stifle a laugh. She loped casually around the back of the car and as she leant against the driver's door, trying to wipe the smirk off her face, the thought flashed through her mind that a video of this would be a social media hit in Harrogate. Best get her boss safely home before that happens.
"Right. Caroline," Kate said, as she climbed into the driver's seat and turned to Caroline. "Where's home? What's your address?" She was thinking of calling Beverley, always a good last-chance option, when Caroline substituted her address into the chorus. Kate grinned. Clever Caroline, even when smashed. As she navigated Caroline's Jeep into the stream of traffic, Kate grew silent, her nervousness about driving the new car forcing her to concentrate more on the road than the woman beside her. By the time they were half way there, Caroline had run out of steam and was snoring quietly. In more ways than one, it made it a simpler ride for Kate and she was relieved when she turned into the drive of a large Georgian house with a well-maintained garden. She was even more relieved she didn't have to parallel-park the black behemoth, which was gigantic compared to her Fiat.
She turned off the engine and turned to Caroline, wondering if it would be better to let her sleep. She sighed. No, Caroline would want to go inside, out of sight while she was like this. After more delicate manoeuvring on Kate's part, she managed to get her inside and seated in an armchair in the kitchen.
Kate was disconcerted to see Caroline like this. Caroline had always been careful and considerate. When they'd met outside work, she talked about the boys and her mum, her garden and how much William enjoyed being in Kate's choir. John was never discussed; he seemed to be out of the picture and Kate didn't enquire because Caroline was so obviously avoiding the topic. But in this moment, unsure of what to do since it was clear Caroline shouldn't be left alone, Kate felt obliged to ask, "Will John be home soon or should I call him?"
"God no. I'll be fine on my own. I've been fine for weeks now."
In that instant, all the missing pieces fell into place for Kate as her suspicions that there had been a major shift in Caroline's life were confirmed.
Now, with her tongue loosened by the Triazolam, Caroline launched into a diatribe about John. It all made Kate very uncomfortable, like she was stepping into Caroline's psyche for a rare glimpse behind the scenes of the official Performance de Caroline.
"Bloody Idiot. What the hell was I thinking. That's right. I wasn't. Just wanted kids." Caroline screwed up her mouth and mimicked someone Kate presumed was Caroline's mum, "Get married, settle down, be a good daughter, don't rock the boat." She sat up and slammed her palm against the arm of chair. "Well sod that! I won't be doing that again."
"Caroline," not sure how to respond, Kate took the safest tack, wondering how long before the medication wore off, "Would you like some tea?"
"Yep." Caroline waved a finger at Kate, having trouble keeping it steady. "D'you know what? I thought it was all going okay and then the little shit starts screwing around on me. Lying, cheating bastard. And I thought we had a good marriage..." Caroline slumps further into the chair, the breath stolen from her lungs as the depressing thought of all the times she'd been hoodwinked during those five months caught up with her again.
"How long has he been gone?" Keeping Caroline occupied, Kate resumed opening cupboards and drawers until she found everything she needed for the tea.
Caroline tilted her head nodded mournfully. "Not long enough. I don't miss him." She took some time rearranging herself on the chair, eventually placing her elbow on the armrest and propping her head on her hand until her head slipped off it with a jerk. "The boys miss him. Well, Lawrence mostly. William thinks he's a—"
Kate distracted her with a mug only half full with luke-warm tea. Trying to act more together than she was, Caroline said, "Thank you," as she diligently turned the mug in her hands with the focus of a toddler running a lunar landing, trying not to spill any on her outfit.
Not sure how safe it was to continue the conversation in case Caroline would be embarrassed later about it, Kate gingerly asked, "So you're looking after the boys and John has gone. Is he helping?"
Caroline snorted. "Don't be daft; too busy shagging his new mistress." She slurped noisily from the mug. "Lazy prick hasn't made the time to see the boys every weekend either. William's all right but Lawrence..." Caroline let the line hang, unwilling to go there even with the aid of medication. She examined the tea and took another gulp before looking up at Kate. Her eyes drifted from Kate's face down her torso and then stopped when they reached Kate's bare thighs, the short running shorts revealing well-toned legs that seemed a mile long. She swallowed loudly. "You're in shorts!" she exclaimed, like it was news to the wearer.
"Yes. I am." Kate tugged at the bottom of the shorts, wishing she'd chosen her leggings that afternoon. "I was running when we met this afternoon." She was a little apprehensive about the way Caroline was staring at her thighs. There was more than a hint of a lioness hunting a gazelle in her gaze. Kate moved to stand behind the kitchen bench, not wanting to encourage Caroline but a little delighted by the obvious enjoyment Caroline was taking from the sight of her legs.
Distraction gone, Caroline sighed and took another loud slurp of her tea, using both hands to manage the mug. As her arms sagged and her eyelids grew heavy, Kate watched Caroline power down — rescuing the mug before it dropped — and Caroline's body melted further into the shape of the chair like a well-dunked biscuit. It wasn't long before soft snores could be heard.
Even in sleep Caroline was attractive. Her thick blonde hair tumbled forward, disguising her visage but the curves of her breasts and hips were still lusciously apparent. Kate's eyes wandered over the snoring form and her mind tried to catch up with the fresh information. It was no surprise that Caroline had left out large chunks from her narrative with a new-found friend, but Kate had already guessed the rumours about John were true after witnessing Caroline's unusual grumpiness at work.
As Kate sipped her tea, she went over their interactions during the last couple of weeks. She'd assumed that Caroline was straight, and until recently, married, but today told her a different story. Perhaps Kate's attraction wasn't entirely one sided. A smirk crept up her face as she remembered Caroline's hand groping her bum. And then there was that revelation about Caroline liking her scent, not to forget ogling her legs. Kate fell back against the stove, thankful it wasn't on.
Unsure what to do with this new information she believed she wasn't meant to have, Kate put down her cup and headed back over to Caroline. Kate hesitated to touch her while she slept, but Caroline was likely to pull a muscle if she left her like that. She took off her shoes, trying to ignore the sensuous feel of her calves and feet in her hands, straightened her in the chair, and placed a cushion behind her head. When she was sure Caroline was more comfortable, she left her to sleep off the drugs.
Kate wandered around the rooms near the kitchen, never touching anything but getting a much clearer picture of her boss at home. The surreptitious snooping had an air of the illicit, which added a thrill to the exploration. In photos Caroline was beaming alongside young boys on holiday and in the backyard of some previous home, but there were almost none of her with John. The only one she could find was one of the whole family. Taking a closer look, she noticed Caroline's smile seemed forced and wondered if it was because John's arm was awkwardly draped over her shoulder.
Along with the immaculate kitchen, the rest of the house reeked of the order that was so evident in Caroline's professional life. It made Kate wonder why Caroline might have chosen the chaotic John in the first place.
She sat at the kitchen table where she could keep an eye on Caroline, pulled out her mobile phone and read some more of Helene Cixous's Cigüe: vieilles femmes en fleurs while she waited for sleeping beauty to wake.
Nearly an hour had passed before Caroline roused herself from her nap. She felt groggy and tired, and her jaw ached. She raised a hand to massage her cheek despite knowing the pain came from inside her mouth. She closed her eyes, her mind trawling through the afternoon's events, trying to figure out what was real and what was a fevered dream. She vaguely remembered seeing Kate that afternoon, but was valiantly hoping it had been a fiction until her memory of how she got home suddenly came back to her.
She cringed. She couldn't remember what she might have said or done. Sighing heavily she leant forward, cradling her head in her hands. It had been a month of going through the motions at work while she resolved how to live her new life at home.
"Oh good, you're awake." Caroline was brought her out of her reverie with a start. Christ. Was that Kate? She hated to open her eyes, horrified at the realisation her afternoon of dreams might actually have been witnessed by anyone. She dragged her hands down her face as she looked up, and yes, there was Kate. In her house. Waiting for a response.
"Hi," Caroline croaked. She cleared her throat. "What are you doing here?"
"I drove you home." Kate arose, putting her phone in her pocket and sauntered over to stand in the kitchen. "You were at the dentist and had a bad reaction to some medication. Do you remember?"
"No. No, well... bits. Why were you there?"
"I was out for a run and bumped into you debating some of the finer points of patient care with the dental assistant. Hope you don't mind that I drove you home in your new car. What do you remember?"
There were snippets she remembered. It was a kaleidoscope of fragmented embarrassments, which included her singing. "Did I sing?" The grin on Kate's face told her enough about that. She groaned and dropped her head into her hands again. "Did... did I say, or... or, or do... anything, I shouldn't have done?" Caroline asked, mortified that she couldn't fully remember the last few hours.
"Let's just say that you were very entertaining. It was good to see you cutting loose," Kate offered.
Caroline groaned, closing her eyes tight, wishing it would all go away. It took a few breaths, but eventually she sat up straight and looked at Kate, nervousness betrayed by the whiteness of her knuckles on the edge of the chair.
"I do apologise if I said, or did something, I shouldn't have. I hope you can forgive me," Caroline said, before trying to casually look at her watch to determine how long she'd been out of it.
Kate chuckled again. "You're forgiven. Don't give it another thought. You had a bad reaction to some medication. Have you had a problem before at the dentist?" Her instincts told her to keep it short to let Caroline retain some dignity.
"No. Not before. Nothing like this. I still feel groggy. I'll call them in the morning and find out what it was." Caroline shifted in the chair, needing time to understand what had prompted the problem, and why her response had been so... well, just so. Then it dawned on her and she sighed. "Perhaps I shouldn't have skipped lunch."
"Would you like a cup of tea?" she asked Kate, covering her discomfort just before noticing the tea cups on the counter.
"I'm good," she replied, missing the relaxed and free Caroline. She recognised her boss' prim and proper persona quickly returning. "I think I should get going. Will you be all right until the kids get home?"
Despite Caroline's groggy state, she realised Kate mentioned the kids and not John coming home. She frowned, searching her patchy memory to confirm if she let her marital status slip when Kate came to her rescue yet again.
"It's okay, Caroline. Your secrets are safe with me." Kate said in her most reassuring voice. She could see the relief in Caroline's eyes that were suddenly as wide as saucers.
Standing up, to properly thank her, Caroline noticed for the first time how warm and inviting Kate's soft brown eyes were as they sparkled in the late afternoon light, causing her words to catch in her throat.
"I remember how hard it was when my husband and I first split," Kate continued. "It took me a long time until I was ready to talk about it with my family and friends. If you need someone to talk with, I promise I can be discreet."
"If you're not careful, I just might take you up on that," Caroline said, relieved that she had survived the initial embarrassment of someone outside her little family knowing John was gone. She wondered exactly how much she'd shared about it. She knew she'd spend the night piecing it all together; anything to avoid having another mortifying conversation. Then it dawned on Caroline that Kate didn't have her car. "Do you need a lift somewhere?" she asked before realising that driving probably wasn't the best idea just yet.
Kate politely declined, insisting on continuing her interrupted run. She wanted to leave before Caroline remembered any more, and she wanted to be on her own to ponder all the unexpected events of her afternoon and what it might mean for their budding friendship.
Caroline stood, a little shaky at first, and then found her balance. She followed Kate to the front door and they said their goodbyes, each one knowing they had some thinking to do before they'd see each other at work in the morning.
Kate sauntered down the drive, using the pronounced roll of her walk to stretch her back muscles. It caused a ripple from her neck to her feet, and much to Caroline's delight, the tightening and releasing of firm buttock muscles in tight shorts. It was a joy to behold and Caroline leant against the door jamb, appreciating the sheer beauty of such well-conditioned form. Kate turned and waved to Caroline who returned the gesture. As Kate started to jog towards home, her gait springy, an exquisite flashback crashed through Caroline's head.
"Shit!" She gasped, remembering pressing herself up against Kate, the captivating scent of Kate's perfume mixing with her sweat. And even worse, Caroline's palm tingled as she recalled sliding her hand over those silky shorts, Kate's muscular arse firm and round underneath. Caroline wailed, "Christ! Ohhhh, kill me now!"
"So we're going on a summer holiday,
To make our dreams come true,
For me and you"
Summer Holiday, lyrics and vocals by Cliff Richard, music & , 1959
Cigüe: vieilles femmes en fleurs (Hemlock: old women in bloom) byHelene Cixous, 2008