Awakenings - SF1 (72 page)

Some women do
, Jamie thought as she quickly scrambled to the bed to avoid falling down.

After Ryan had methodically counted her booty they got ready for bed and hopped in together. "What's up?" Jamie finally said after she felt Ryan toss and turn for long minutes.

"I don't know. I guess I'm just a little worked up after tonight. I've having a hard time relaxing," she admitted.

"Let me help you out for a change," Jamie said as she reached down on her side of the bed and found the massage lotion.

Ryan smiled in the darkness and willingly rolled over onto her stomach. Jamie began to push her t-shirt up, but Ryan just reached down and yanked it off. There was no moon and the light in the room was too dim to make out anything but rough shapes, but Jamie was still a bit excited at the thought of Ryan's half naked form lying right before her.

When Ryan rubbed Jamie's back she usually straddled her waist. But she had always had sweats on. Jamie was only wearing a long t-shirt and her underwear. She considered her options; get up and put sweats on, sit next to Ryan on the bed, or jump on and hope for the best. She threw caution to the wind and hopped on. Thankfully, Ryan was still wearing her sweatpants, so when Jamie straddled her hips there was an adequate layer of fabric between them. Nonetheless, she found herself feeling a bit weak at the sensation of sitting on those softly muscled buttocks.

She hadn't given many massages, but she had received hundreds during their travels in Europe. She knew what she liked and she assumed that Ryan would like a similar touch. She did her best to rub the strong back in a clinical, professional manner. But she failed miserably. She found that her hands were guided by an unseen force. They lightly and gently touched and rubbed and prodded the tense muscles. Her hands began to dig deeper into the tissue, eliciting a hiss of pleasure from Ryan. After that sensuous verbal cue she really got into the experience. After a while she had a difficult time feeling where her hands ended and Ryan's back began. She felt so connected and close to her friend.

She was rewarded with occasional grunts of satisfaction when she hit a particularly tense spot, but her toes nearly curled when she touched a spot low on her back and Ryan let out a low, pleasure filled moan.
Focus, damn it
, she shouted to herself. After working for a long while the muscles felt smooth and pliable under her fingers. Ryan hadn't made a sound for several minutes and her body was still and loose. Jamie finished up by touching her entire back lightly with just the tips of her fingers. She slid off the strong hips and was surprised when she felt no movement from her friend. She leaned over and heard rhythmic deep breathing and realized that she was sound asleep.

Oh, this is not good. Definitely not good. I don't want to wake her to get dressed, but I can't sleep next to her naked chest.

She fretted about the situation for a few minutes, finally deciding to be brave and try to get to sleep. She lay right next to her deeply sleeping friend, occasionally trailing her fingers down her lovely bare back. When her fingers strayed too far to the side she could make out a very sexy bulge where Ryan's generous breasts had compressed. Try as she might she had a very tough time keeping that hand away from that gentle curve. Every nerve in her hand itched in anticipation but she clamped down on her raging impulses and forced herself to close her eyes. Eventually she succeeded and she fell into a deep, sound sleep.

Ryan woke just before 7. She was puzzled by several sensations. One was that she was in exactly the same position that she had been in for her massage.
I never sleep on my stomach
, she thought. Secondly, she was naked from the waist up.
Did I take off my shirt? Oh, yeah, I took it off for my massage. Oooh, what a massage. I had no idea Jamie was that good.
Thirdly was the warm hand of her masseuse resting low on her back, with a couple of fingers slid under the waistband of her sweats.
God, this is a pleasant way to wake up.
She wanted to just lie there and feel the connection.
Why does it feel so good to have her touch me in such an innocent way?
Geez! I don't know if I can keep my wits about me this morning
. Finally her good sense got in the way and she slowly extricated herself from the contact. As she rolled over she pulled the shirt on over her head.

Jamie was still just inches away. Ryan lay back and regarded her sleeping face in the morning light. The sun was just beginning to touch the pillow where her head rested. Her golden hair was mussed from sleep and tumbled in an attractive fashion around her face. The tips of her long dark blonde eyelashes were lightly brushed by the sun's rays. Her smooth skin was beginning to take on a golden tone from all of the outdoor activity, and a few freckles dusted her nose. It was all that Ryan could do not to lean over and kiss each of those cute little freckles.

God, I wish she were a lesbian! It's so frustrating to feel this way about her but not be able to do anything about it.
But she knew that she could never do anything about it. It was one thing to take a lesbian friend and try to make her into a lover. But it was quite another to take a straight friend and try to turn her into a lesbian.
Thanks Conor, thanks a lot! I've never thought of the possibility, but you had to put the idea in my head!
She shifted a bit in frustration as she gazed at the peaceful face resting so close to her
. God, I would love to touch her. She just looks so delectable lying there, all soft and smooth. And she smells so good,
she thought.
It can't hurt to take a little sniff can it?
she thought as she leaned over to inhale.

And was greeted by sleepy green eyes, smiling up at her sweetly. "Is it time to get up?" she asked through a yawn as she stretched slowly and thoroughly.

Ryan was having a hard time ordering her thoughts, but she finally replied, "Only if you want to. We're not in a rush today." With that she tousled the golden hair a bit and hopped out of bed.
Definitely time for a cold shower thanks to you
,
Conor
, she muttered to herself as she closed the bathroom door.

After going for a brisk run with Duffy she stopped at her favorite coffee shop, 'Martha & Brothers', for a pair of giant lattés. She didn't expect Jamie to be up for a while but knew that her friend would be in a much better mood if she had a big cup of coffee waiting for her.

As expected, the house was completely still when she entered. Since the morning was cool and her pace had been slower than usual she didn't really need another shower. Sneaking back down to her room she grabbed a pair of sweat pants and a hooded sweatshirt and tiptoed back upstairs. She had to get dressed in the kitchen since every room was occupied but when she was finished she briskly towel dried her hair and went out to the front deck.

The fog showed no sign of dissipating but that fact didn't bother her in the least. She actually had to admit that she preferred a cool, gray morning, a nice soft day as her Granny would say, to a bright, sunny dawn. Given her habit of running nearly every morning she welcomed the heavy damp air that the fog brought, and she always found that her times were better and she was more rested after a run in the fog. Her coffee was nearly finished and her perusal of the 'Comical', San Francisco's daily joke of a newspaper was just about complete when a still sleepy tousled blonde head poked out of the front door.

"It's freezing out here!" the grumpy little mole face groused.

Oh
,
oh
, Ryan privately thought.
Somebody's hung over.
"It's not too bad," Ryan said as she rose to greet her friend. "Sit down and I'll bring you a nice cup of latté and a blanket."

Jamie didn't reply to this thoughtful offer, she merely flopped down on Ryan's now empty chair and waited for her delivery.

Well, I've become pretty adept at getting Caitlin out of her cranky moods. Now I'll see how my skills work with a bigger baby.
She dashed into the linen closet next to her father's room and got out a soft cotton quilt that her grandmother's sewing circle had made for her when she was a baby. Even though she was tiny the women had let practicality dictate and they had made the quilt fit a full sized bed so it was plenty big to wrap her grumpy friend up in. Trotting back to her charge she gently tucked the blanket around the shivering woman, receiving only a grunt of thanks.

Next came the coffee which she warmed in the microwave while she took out a big earthenware mug and ran some hot water through it so it wouldn't chill the coffee. By the time she returned Jamie looked warmer but even grumpier as she waited for her caffeine boost.
Hmm, this calls for drastic action
, she decided.

Ryan sat down on the roomy padded chaise lounge and said, "If you come sit by me I can make your headache go away."

"Who said I have a headache?" she muttered, staring into her cup.

"No one," Ryan hastened to agree. "But sometimes I get one when I'm up late at night."
Especially when I've had too much Guinness
, she silently added.

"Where do you want me?" she replied, none too happily as she tried to hold on to her coffee and her blanket.

Ryan spread her legs wide, placing her feet on the floor. She patted the seat in front of her crotch and said, "Come sit between my legs. I'll hold your coffee until you're settled."

Jamie handed her the cup and climbed onto the chaise with her back to her friend. She settled the comforter over her body and held her hand out silently, indicating that she wished the return of her beverage. When Ryan was sure she was settled she brought her hands up and began a very light massage of her shoulders. "Tell me where it hurts," she cooed into the nearby pink ear. "Here?" she asked as her fingers climbed the throbbing head and settled just above the neck. "Here?" she asked again as her hands moved to the area just behind her ears. "Or here?" as they moved to her temples.

"Yes," her patient replied with a sigh. "Everywhere."

"Okay," Ryan soothed. "First I'm going to massage your shoulders and neck to get the blood flowing. Then, when you're nice and loose I'm going to apply some acupressure points on your head. I guarantee that you'll feel better in no time," she announced confidently.

"Prove it," the grouchy skeptic demanded.

Wow, tough crowd
, Ryan mused with a smirk as she set to work. But she enjoyed few things more than a good challenge and she was determined to make her friend happy before the morning was up. She started off nice and slow and gentle, allowing time for deep sips of the steaming latté. When she could see that the cup was nearly drained she got a bit more aggressive and within minutes Jamie's head was rolling around on her shoulders like a limp rag doll's. When she had thoroughly relaxed her she started on the acupressure points. Working gently but firmly she applied pressure to all of the spots that she knew might be causing her friend pain. She compressed each of the major blood vessels for a few seconds and smiled to herself as the limp woman in her lap sighed with each release.

It took almost a half hour of determined work but she was amply rewarded when a very satisfied voice purred, "God, that felt divine. Thank you, Ryan. You're the best." She replied by beginning a very gentle head rub of the adorably mussed golden hair and within minutes Jamie was curled up against her chest, purring audibly. Watching her friend relax so thoroughly brought a wave of sleepiness over Ryan and before she knew it she felt her eyes begin to slowly close.

At 10 o'clock Conor stumbled onto the deck, stopping dead in his tracks at the sight before him. His sister and Jamie were sharing the same chaise; Ryan in the back with Jamie nestled between her legs. The smaller woman was slightly on her side with her knees drawn up and her head pillowed nicely on a plump breast. Ryan's baby quilt covered them both and Ryan's arms were loosely draped around her body in a protective embrace. Sweet smiles graced both sets of lips.
That is about the cutest damn thing I've ever seen
, he mused through his own splitting headache.
But call me narrow minded...I'd be out of my mind if my straight girlfriend was curled up like that on her best friends lap.

On the next Friday night Ryan pulled Martin's truck up a fire road on Mt. Tam and parked. She and Jamie hopped out and began to unload their mountain bikes. Jamie had to admit to a little apprehension about this ride. A group of women met every Friday to ride and she had heard that the rides were pretty intense. But she had been riding her mountain bike around Berkeley for months now and felt pretty comfortable with it.

In February Ryan had spent long hours showing her how to shift her weight to climb curbs and small rocks and tree stumps. She had spent quite some time learning how to position herself in the saddle to go down a steep incline and was beginning to feel pretty confident. But she knew she was a rank amateur compared to these women.

Since it still got dark early they each had halogen lamps on their bikes. As an extra precaution Ryan had insisted that she wear a light on her helmet also. She wore long bike pants, heavy, off road bike shoes and a light nylon jacket over her jersey. Ryan had on similar attire plus a pair of clear polycarbonate wraparound glasses. When Jamie had inquired about their purpose Ryan had mysteriously answered, "mud."

Jamie left it at that, figuring she would find out soon enough.

Ryan's bike was a serious off road machine. She had switched tires on the bike, opting for a very aggressive tread pattern, just made for dirt. She greeted several other women as they drove up in their trucks, jeeps and sport utility vehicles. When they were a group of about 20 they took off. It was a fairly normal ride until they reached a small peak. Ryan turned around and said, "Don't follow me," with a wild grin on her face. She and another woman took off, pedaling furiously until they stood on the top of a set of very large boulders. Each rock was at least 20 feet tall, and they sat atop one another to form an outcropping almost 100 feet high.

When they reached the peak she and her partner gave each other demonic smiles just as Jamie wondered what on earth she was going to do. She found out a split second later as Ryan hurled her bike straight down the rock face. Jamie was too shocked to scream or she surely would have done so. Ryan and her friend catapulted down the sheer face at incredible speeds. They crossed paths as they came down in a zig zag pattern, much the way a skier descends a steep slope.

When they reached the bottom Ryan threw her head back and howled like a wild dog. She slapped hands in the air with her friend and as they rode back to the group they were laughing uproariously. When Ryan pulled up next to Jamie she smiled an enormous grin and proclaimed, "Sweet Jesus, that rocked!"

Jamie caught her infectious happiness as they sped along down the trail. They came to a small rocky creek that still had a decent amount of water flowing after the winter rains. The descent at this point was not too steep, but some of the rocks were rather large. Another woman came up to Ryan and slapped her hard on the butt. "Tag!" she shouted as she pedaled away right down the middle of the creek.

Within a heartbeat Ryan was on her tail. The creek curved down the mountain in such a way that it was possible to stand at the top and see the path of the water for a good 1/2 mile. Jamie scrambled over to the edge to watch the pursuit. Ryan flew down the hill, seemingly with no regard for her safety. Jamie's heart nearly stopped beating when Ryan slipped dangerously at one point, but her incredible athleticism kept her from flying over the handlebars. She caught her assailant near the bottom of the creek, slapping her equally hard on the butt as she yanked her bike 180 degrees and began to climb back up the creek bed. The woman tried to keep up but Ryan had a good 10 yards on her by the time they reached the top of the hill.

Jamie was shocked when she saw her. She was dripping wet from heat to toe. Mud covered her legs and ran halfway up her back. But she wore the most blissful smile that Jamie had ever seen on a human being. "I won," she said proudly.

The rest of the ride was a bit more sedate. Since it was now fully dark they stayed on the trail, although the dust from the dry earth stuck to Ryan's wet body like glue. The ride was entirely uphill and by the time they made it back to the car they were all sweating heavily. Jamie had never felt so grimy, but she could only imagine how Ryan felt.

One of the riders called Ryan over and Jamie surreptitiously watched them speak. Jamie wasn't sure which of the riders this was since it was so dark. But as some of the other cars turned their headlights on the pair was illuminated for a few seconds. The woman was a particularly striking Latina that Jamie had noticed immediately upon their arrival. She was very dark skinned, and had gorgeous jet black hair that went half way down her back. She had put it into a loose braid for the ride but she had shaken it loose while they spoke and it now framed her beautiful face. They were obviously well acquainted and they stood very close together as they spoke softly. The woman put her hand on Ryan's cheek and she turned her head slightly and kissed her palm. It was unclear what the woman was asking but Ryan was gently shaking her head 'no'. She reached into the woman's SUV and pulled out a couple of wet wipes. She quickly wiped her own face and then delicately cleaned all around the woman's mouth, trying to remove the caked on mud and dirt. When she was satisfied she leaned in for a few very friendly kisses. As she pulled away she started to turn but whirled around for another more passionate kiss. She reached up and gently touched the woman's cheek, and then she turned and crossed back over the road to the truck where Jamie waited.

Most of the women were going out for a few beers. Ryan was tempted but she finally decided that she needed dry clothes more than a cold beer. "I've got to remember to bring a change of clothes next time," she said as they pulled off down the fire road.

"Who were you speaking with?" she inquired as casually as she could muster.

"One of my friends. I should have introduced you," she said quickly.

"That's okay."

When Ryan didn't elaborate, Jamie persisted. "Are you close friends?"

"Pretty close," she said noncommittally.

Jamie couldn't take any more of this cat and mouse game so she blurted out, "Who the hell was that!?"

Ryan let out a deep laugh that rumbled through the cab of the truck. "I'm sorry, Jamie. I'm just playing with you. That was Alisa Guerra. She's an assistant district attorney in The City and I've known her for about 3 years."

"Were you an item?" she asked delicately.

"We still are," she said smoothly. "Or at least as much of an item as we ever have been. She's one of my long term buddies," she explained.

"Oh, well, I'm not stopping you from seeing her, am I? I can easily head on home if you want to go out."

"Nope. She wanted me to come over but I'm not in the mood. I'm really too tired for anything other than a warm shower and a soft bed."

"Well, I should think so," she agreed. Jamie studied her filthy form for a few minutes. Ryan still had an energized glow about her that Jamie found mesmerizing. "I don't think I've ever seen you be that wild," she finally said.

"I don't do it very often, but every once in a while I just need to blow off some steam. Riding up here is the easiest way I know to really clean out the pipes," she said happily.

"You just seem so full of joy when you're doing something crazy like that sprint down that huge hill," she said with a shake of her head. "Aren't you afraid to try something like that?"

"That's the whole point, Jamie," she replied with a confused little look on her mud spattered face. "It's the fear that makes it hot. If you knew you were safe you wouldn't get off on it."

"Get off on it..." she mused, unconvinced of the sentiment. "Do you need that kind of excitement?" she asked with a bit of concern.

"Yeah, I guess I do. I've always been an adrenaline junkie. I was just like this almost every day when I was a kid. If some other kid dared me to do something I did it, no matter the consequences."

"Is that what you mean by blowing off steam? Do your need to do this kind of thing or it just builds up until you can release it?" she inquired.

"Yeah, I guess it does. I've never thought of it in quite than fashion, but that's a good analogy. If I don't have some excitement in my life I get kind of anxious and I have to find an outlet," she admitted. "It's almost like a sexual release. As a matter of fact this is the first time I've been on a ride that I didn't go home with Alisa. We don't see each other a lot but we both get kind of hot after a really good ride."

"Do you think your need for excitement is why you like to um...
date lots of different women?" she asked, just a bit afraid of the answer.

"I guess that is part of it. I get bored easily and I need to have a different kind of stimulation, if you'll excuse the double entendre," she grinned.

"Do I ever bore you?" she asked hesitantly.

Ryan pulled the car over to the side of the road. She turned fully in the big bench seat and looked directly into Jamie's eyes. "Never," she said firmly. "I don't know what it is about you, Jamie, but every time I'm with you it feels fresh. Sara was the only other person I've ever felt that way about. It's funny but I was with Ally for a few days a couple of weeks ago. She is the most amazing lover," she said appreciatively. "I mean truly amazing," she repeated just in case Jamie missed it the first time. "But after being with her for 3 days in one week I had enough. It's not that I don't like her; I really do. And she is so totally hot in bed!"

"You mentioned that," Jamie said dryly.

"Oh, right," she said with a smirk. "Anyway, I was thinking about that since I had just broken up with Tracy. I thought, 'Maybe I could make it work with Ally'. Conor had just given me this big talk about how he thought I should date a friend rather than a stranger and I mulled that over when we were together. But I had just seen enough of her after those 3 days." She turned again to fully face Jamie. "That has never happened with you. Never. Other than my family, you're the only person I don't get tired of."

Jamie was outrageously pleased to hear this information. She gave her friend a luminous smile and simply patted her leg as she said, "I've never gotten bored with you around either, you wild woman."

When they arrived home Martin came out to the front porch to greet them. He laughed at the sight of Ryan and told Jamie, "She's just lucky you're here, Jamie. I used to take her out in the back yard and hit her with the garden hose to clean her off before I'd let her in the house."

After a short lecture about contracting pneumonia Martin ordered them to enter the house through the door next to the garage to avoid tracking mud through the living room. Jamie was so exhausted that she gladly accepted Ryan's invitation to sleep over. After two long showers they relaxed on the bed. "Thanks for showing me your wild child, Ryan."

"Anytime, Jamie, anytime."

As they settled down Jamie heard a sharp grunt as Ryan rolled onto her side. "What's wrong?" she asked with concern.

"When I was going down that creek I almost lost it," she admitted. "I yanked it out at the last second, but I felt something pop in my leg. It just pulls a little when I roll over."

"Let me see," she demanded as she switched the bedside light on. Ryan was wearing thin Royal Stewart plaid flannel pajama bottoms and a dark blue T-shirt. Turning her face to gaze at her friend for a moment she gently demurred.

"I think it'll be okay, you don't have to do anything."

Jamie leaned over just a bit until she was able to face Ryan fully. She placed her hand on her shoulder and asked, "Why won't you let me help if I can? You're always so solicitous of me, and I've got to tell you, it feels great to be pampered a little."

"I know it does," she admitted as she obviously found it difficult to maintain eye contact. "It's just that you might be uncomfortable with the location of the problem." She quirked her mouth into a lopsided grin and rolled her big blue eyes just a bit when Jamie looked a little stumped.

Ryan was lying on her side facing her friend, who was lying in a mirrored position. She reached over and gently took her hand, bringing it behind herself and placing it on the abrupt swell of her right buttock. "It's my hamstring," she needlessly informed her. "And it's really high, almost in my glute."

Smacking her lips together to increase the flow of saliva the smaller woman took a deep breath and found the courage to say, "The offer still holds, Pal. A sore muscle is a sore muscle, no matter where it is. If it would help I'd be glad to work on it for you."

With a dubious tilt of her head Ryan decided to take her friend at her word. She rolled over in the other direction until she was fully on her belly, arms stretched out above her head. "It's right around here," she said, indicating the general area.

She was terribly grateful that Ryan could not see her face, but she sucked it up and allowed her hand to explore the area. As she probed gently she heard a sharp intake of air pass through Ryan's lips as she touched the spot. "Does it hurt a lot?" she asked as she gingerly touched the swollen muscle.

"It's just tweaked a bit. I'm sure it's nothing serious," she assured her. "Start a few inches below the swelling and slowly work up to actually touching the tweaked muscle."

"Okay, I can do that," Jamie replied firmly as she tried to figure out how to position herself. Making a quick decision she patted Ryan's left leg to indicate she wished her to move it away from her right. Once she did that Jamie was able to straddle the injured leg and work on the hamstring with a pretty good position. The pants were going to be an impediment but Ryan made no move to remove them to Jamie's concurrent relief and disappointment. So she did her best despite the obstacles.