Piper drove to Kennebunkport alone that afternoon, and Polly would transport four other girls a couple of hours later. She blared 80s music with the windows down in her blue BMW and sang along to Duran Duran, Madonna and Prince. As she turned down Sand Point Road, Piper took in the beauty surrounding her. She switched the radio off in favor of listening to birds chirping overhead as the waves crashed along the shore. She pulled into the driveway and noticed that the front door was open, which was strange to some degree, but it wasn't uncommon to have the house opened up for her family's arrival.
She flung her duffle bag over a shoulder and walked inside. "Hello? Anybody here?"
"Fuck!" came from upstairs as if someone had stubbed their toe or hit their head.
"Who's there?" Piper clutched her cell phone, wondering if she should call 9-1-1.
A few seconds later, a woman clad in a sports bra and faded jeans peeked over the bannister.
"Who are you?" Piper squinted. "Wait…No way," she mumbled.
The woman grabbed a white tank top that was draped over the railing and walked downstairs. "I'm Alex. Who the fuck are you?"
The blonde's mouth hung open. "You're Alex?"
She nodded as she tossed her hair over her shoulders with the flick of her neck. "Did you get lost or something? This is the Chapman home."
Piper's eyes were drawn to the definition in her arms. "No, I mean yes, I…" she stuttered. "I'm Piper Chapman. This is my family's home. They're, um, they're on their way here…" she cleared her throat. "…from Connecticut."
Alex licked her lips and smirked. "I see."
Piper stared her up and down, eyes drawn to the woman's breasts and toned stomach. She quickly averted her eyes. "I just…I always thought Alex was a guy."
"I get that a lot." The brunette shrugged into the tank top. "You're the one who e-mailed me."
Piper nodded, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear and trying to come up with anything to change the subject.
"I'm trying to fix the air conditioner. It's hot as Hell upstairs." She walked into the living room, hands on her hips as if surveying the room. "It's not that bad down here."
Piper watched her confident gait and realized that the reason Alex was clad only in a sports bra earlier was most likely due to the heat in the attic.
"Anyway, I'll just be a few more minutes." She walked back into the hallway, close enough for Piper to smell the work on Alex, masked by baby powder.
"Take your time." She gulped. "I'm just going to…" Piper hooked her thumb over her shoulder, not knowing where in the fuck she was gesturing. She climbed up the stairs before Alex and could almost feel the dark haired woman's stare. She stopped halfway up. "Where are you going?"
Alex pointed up. "Attic."
"Oh, yeah. Right." She climbed the last few steps and entered her room, closing the door behind her. Piper plopped on her bed and felt her heart pounding. So that was Alex—the same woman Piper had seen Memorial Day weekend at the picnic tables in the Square and later that night with the other women around the firepit.
She stood and glanced at her reflection in the mirror, flattening her messy, wind-blown hair and smacking her lips together to try to massage the little lip gloss she had left on her mouth. Piper looked down at her outfit—cut off jean shorts and a blue t-shirt that she'd cut the sleeves out of so one could easily see her tropical bikini top underneath.
She didn't know if she should stay put in her room until Alex left or offer the sweaty woman a glass of water. She paced in her bedroom until deciding that she should use her manners and ask Alex if she was thirsty.
"Alex?" She called.
"Yeah?" came as an echo.
Piper stood at the base of the rickety wooden stairs leading up to the attic. "Do you need anything?"
"I'll need a shower and a six pack after this." The brunette poked her head through the small opening in the ceiling. "You offering to help with either?"
Piper quickly looked away. "Uh, no, I meant water or something."
She disappeared, voice trailing off. "No thanks, kid. I'm just about done anyway."
The blonde didn't know exactly why she waited at the base of the attic stairs for Alex to come down, but she seemed rooted to the spot.
"That should just about do it." Alex climbed down the narrow stairs. "I wouldn't want you to get too warm up here."
"Yeah, I mean, no…" She scratched her head.
"Need anything else while I'm here?" The brunette folded the stairs and shoved the panel into the ceiling with the help of a dangling string.
"I don't think so." Piper looked up at her. Sure enough, Alex's eyes were the color of sea foam—green with flecks of brown. Hazel.
"You have my number. Text if you need me." The dark haired woman proceeded downstairs, and Piper was right behind her. "For anything."
The blonde blushed at Alex's smirk. "I will."
Just before leaving the house, Alex spun around. "Oh, one more thing: you're a terrible liar."
"I never lied to you." She could feel her cheeks getting hot.
"Your parents aren't coming this weekend." The brunette adjusted her glasses. "I've seen it a million times around here, kid. Just don't do anything stupid."
She bit her lower lip. "I won't."
"I'll check on you tomorrow." She walked up the driveway, and Piper admired her broad, muscular shoulders.
"I'll be 20 tomorrow," Piper yelled. "I'm not a kid!"
Alex turned around, walking backwards and smiling at the blonde. "Good to know."
Piper shut the door behind her and closed her eyes. "Holy shit."
She tried to busy herself for the next couple of hours with things to set up for the party that night, but there wasn't much to do. Polly had all of the decorations and alcohol, so Piper was left counting red Solo cups and paper plates. She'd bought a couple of salad kits and hot dogs to grill, figuring that would be simple. She unloaded the groceries, and then decided to sit on the deck overlooking the ocean, trying not to think about Alex.
She started reading The Dry Grass of August, but with every turn of the page, her mind drifted to the tall, dark haired woman. If she had to guess, she'd assume the brunette was in her late 20s—she carried herself much differently than a college student. Piper found it hard to believe that Alex was the caretaker for the homes on Sand Point Road—she looked more sophisticated and certainly more beautiful than any caretaker Piper had ever seen. She tried to think of an excuse to have Alex come over, but her mind was blank. Now that the air conditioner was repaired, there was nothing that needed fixing. She could simply invite Alex over for a beer, but the older woman might think that was lame.
Maybe that had been Piper's problem with her lack of attraction to the girls at Smith—they were all her age. Perhaps she was attracted to older women…dark haired, mysterious, sexy as hell older women in secretary glasses.
"Hello? Piper?" She recognized Polly's voice.
"I'm out here!" she called.
Her friends ran in to hug her and wish her a happy birthday. The blonde reminded them that her actual birthday wasn't until the next day, but she accepted the gifts they offered anyway.
"Let's get this party started!" Polly popped open a bottle of Prosecco.
The girls started drinking the minute they walked in the door and didn't stop until nearly 3 a.m. They sang, danced and tried (unsuccessfully) to bake a cake while getting high. Bryn made pot brownies, and they consumed the entire pan at midnight. Piper needed the night to go exactly as it had so that she wouldn't think about Alex. That plan didn't work entirely.
What puzzled her was why she was so drawn to Alex. Sure, she was captivatingly beautiful, but she was a glorified custodian. Not that Piper thought she'd end up with someone in a more professional role…well, she kind of did. Maybe not a doctor or a lawyer, but someone who put his college degree to good use. (She wasn't ready to consider changing the pronoun to her.) She wondered if she was simply intrigued that Alex was possibly a lesbian—the first lesbian that she was attracted to. Maybe that was what drew her to the enigmatic dark haired woman.
The next morning, Piper was awakened by the shrill buzz of a weed eater that sounded like it was coming from inside the house. She rubbed her eyes, got out of bed and glanced out of the window. She immediately spotted Alex in the yard.
Piper opened the window and yelled, "What the fuck?"
Alex looked up and turned off the power tool. "Good morning, Rapunzel."
Piper tamed her messy, blonde hair with her palms as she blinked rapidly at the invasive sunlight. "What are you doing here this early?"
"Working," she announced with a slight chuckle. "It's 10 o'clock, Piper. Time to get out of bed."
She glanced at the digital clock, confirming the time. "We had a late night." Her hangover began with an aching head, and she hoped to God that she'd remembered to pack Ibuprofen.
Alex grinned. "I can tell."
The blonde looked down at her clothing and realized she was wearing the same outfit that she'd been in the day before when she'd met Alex.
"And it smells like a pot shop out here, so you might want to get that under control before your parents arrive."
She sniffed the air, and even in the upstairs bedroom, there was a faint scent of marijuana. "Wait…my parents aren't coming."
"You sure about that?" Alex smirked as she cranked the weed eater back to life.
Piper put her hands on her hips and glared at the top of the brunette's head as she trimmed the weeds around an Azalea bush. She marched downstairs, paying only half attention to two of her friends, sound asleep on the Oriental rug in the living room. Piper flung the front door open and proceeded barefoot down the path on the North side of the house.
She must've startled Alex, because she jumped slightly upon seeing the blonde.
"What do you mean, my parents are coming?" Piper asked without preamble, hands firmly on hips.
"Didn't you tell me they were coming, and that's why I had to get the house ready?" Alex asked over the buzz of the weed eater.
The blonde scratched her head. "I thought you knew I was ly…that I wasn't being exactly honest?"
"Yeah, I did." Alex smirked. "But they are coming. Your dad texted me this morning." She pushed her glasses higher on her nose. "Let me guess, they think you're celebrating your birthday at a friend's house anywhere but here?"
Piper averted her eyes.
"Good luck with that, kid," she snickered, and then went back to the yard work.
The blonde walked away, frustrated that Alex found the situation amusing and panicked about her family arriving later that day. "Ow! Fuck!" Piper immediately bent down and looked at the bottom of her foot.
Alex glanced at her and turned off the weed whacker. "What happened?"
"I got a splinter." She grimaced.
"Let me see." Alex helped the blonde stand and gently grabbed her foot. She tucked a chunk of black hair behind her ear as she examined the sole of Piper's foot. "Where did that even come from? There's no wood around here."
It was true—the path along the North side of the house was paved.
"I have no idea." Piper caught herself staring at Alex's porcelain-like face and almost lost her balance.
The brunette looked at her, and Piper quickly returned her gaze to her foot. "Can you walk?"
"If I want the splinter to sink further in my skin."
Alex stood more fully, releasing the blonde's foot. "Get on my back."
"What?" She creased her eyebrows.
"I'll take you over to my truck. I think I have tweezers in the glove box." She bent over as if waiting for Piper to hop on.
She climbed onto the other woman's back and took in a big whiff of freshly cut grass and baby powder. There was also a trace of Hawaiian Tropic sunscreen. She put her arms around Alex's neck and felt the heat from the brunette's body, causing something to stir within her.
"Am I hurting you?" Piper asked, pushing dark hair over one shoulder so she wouldn't yank it with her arms wrapped tightly around Alex's neck.
"No," she replied, placing her hands on Piper's calves. "You're light as a feather."
The blonde didn't know if she imagined it or not, but it felt like Alex was caressing her right calf.
"You're strong," Alex commented, squeezing her leg. "Runner?"
Piper leaned closer. "Yeah. Do you run?"
"No," she chuckled. "But I do a lot of manual labor; that's my exercise."
She set Piper down on the tailgate of her old, blue truck that had clearly been renovated. Immediately, Piper missed the feeling of Alex's body under hers. She rubbed her arms that almost burned from the lack of contact.
"Be right back." Alex disappeared, and Piper watched her walk away with purpose.
She smiled at Alex's wardrobe—old, ripped Levis that seemed to have been made exclusively for her and a green John Deere t-shirt with a small hole on the left shoulder and a faded yellow tractor on the front.
The dark haired woman returned with a pair of tweezers. "This ought to do the trick."
"How long have you worked for my parents?" Piper raised her leg, giving the other woman access to her foot.
"I don't just work for them." Alex gazed up at her before focusing on the splinter. "I take care of all of the homes on Sand Point Road."
"That's a lot." Piper flipped her foot so that the sunshine provided a spotlight on the troubled area.
"Sixteen main homes, five guest cottages," she said, poking at the splinter. "Does that hurt?"
She shook her head, enjoying the feel of Alex's other hand on the crook of her knee. "No." She leaned forward to watch Alex's handiwork. "Do you live around here?"
"Harvey Bankston lets me stay in his guest cottage. It's a pretty sweet deal—right on the water, plenty of shade, my own vegetable garden..." She yanked the tweezers back. "Got it!" She lifted the tweezers to show Piper the sliver of wood.
The blonde covered Alex's hand with her own and pulled it closer so she could get a good look at the splinter. "Wow, it's big."
She felt Alex's eyes on her and glanced up. The dark haired woman's smile was all confidence, and Piper smiled back, knowing hers was far less self-assured.
"Thank you," Piper whispered, finally letting go of the other woman's hand.
"Anytime." She hopped on the tailgate next to the blonde. "It was time for me to take a break anyway."
"It's only 10 o'clock, and you're already taking a break?" Once again, Piper could feel the heat radiating off of Alex's body.
"I've been working since six," she replied, pulling an orange Gatorade out of a cooler. "Want a sip?"
She popped the cap, and Piper grabbed the bottle from her, their fingers briefly touching. It was almost like an electric shock. "Thanks." She took two gulps, then wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, never taking her eyes off of the brunette.
Alex grabbed the Gatorade and took three long sips. "So, what's your story?"
"My grandmother lived here before she passed away about 10 years ago. We only come up in the summer," she offered as she watched an orange droplet fall off Alex's chin. It took everything in her power not to reach out to catch it.
"I remember your grandmother. She used to give me candy necklaces." Alex handed the Gatorade back to the blonde. "But I meant your personal story."
"Oh." Piper sat a little taller, trying to put a mental bookmark on finding out how Alex knew her grandma. "I'm going into my senior year at Smith College in Massachusetts, and I have an internship in Kennebunkport at a public relations firm starting in a little more than a week."
"Is that your major?" Alex brushed a dragonfly off Piper's shoulder, and the blonde followed her motion intently.
"No, English with a minor in theater."
Alex let out a short laugh. "Not a ton of jobs out there for those degrees, I would imagine."
"It's better than working in people's yards." Piper immediately regretted the jibe. "I'm sorry…I didn't mean…"
Alex raised her eyebrows, and the blonde could sense that she'd offended her companion if only for half a second.
"It's fine, kid." She hopped off the tailgate and dusted her butt off. "But just so you know, each homeowner pays me $5,000 a year-$7,000 if they have a guest house, plus I get a stipend for larger jobs that require more than just upkeep, like painting a shed or building a fence." She removed her glasses and cleaned the lenses with the hem of her shirt. "I rake in close to $150,000 a year, not to mention the fact that I get all the seafood and vegetables I could possibly eat, pretty much for free, on any given day."
"Alex, I…" She felt awful for offending the other woman and was astonished at the amount of money the brunette made. "I have a disease."
Alex creased her forehead. "I'm sorry, what?"
"It's called foot-in-mouth disease." Piper nodded with a solemn expression. "And there's no cure."
"You know; I've heard of it." Alex gave her a tight smile. "But I've never seen someone with such a severe case."
"Yeah, it's pretty bad."
The brunette reached to help Piper off the lip of the truck. "But you're wrong about there being no cure."
She held onto Alex as she hopped down and felt the strength in her forearms. "Oh?"
"There's a certain kind of lobster that has medicinal qualities, and only I know where to find these creatures." She waited for Piper to join her as they walked back towards the house.
"I see." Piper grinned. "Would you be willing to share these special lobsters?"
"I would." She looked down at the blonde with a grin of her own. "Come to my place tonight, and I'll see what I can do."
They reached the front door.
"Ok." Piper bit her lower lip.
"See you then, kid." Alex touched the back of her hand. "Hope your foot feels better."
"It already does."
With that, Alex turned down the path on the side of the house and revved up the weed eater again.
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