Chapter 08 CAM
One thing was for sure—I hadn’t had a first kiss like that in years, and I wanted more.
After our kiss concluded, Sadie literally hopped up and down. “I never expect a kiss to happen during these sessions, but I was really hoping one would happen with you two!”
“More than happy to oblige,“
I said as I threw Bella a wink. Her cheeks blazed with heat, and I imagined I was a bit flushed myself.
We finally made our way to the gazebo, where Sadie got some pictures of us sitting on the benches. At one point, I draped my legs over Bella’s lap and we shared another tiny kiss. Her lips tasted like vanilla lip gloss, and it was safe to say that I was a little obsessed.
After taking our photos in the gazebo, we began walking back in the direction of the mansion. Our photo session had flown by, and though it wasn’t totally over yet, a part of me was a little bummed it was already coming to a close.
As we walked along the perimeter of the pond, I stopped in my tracks to ask Bella a very important question. “Will you splash around in the water with me?”
Bella looked down at her old pair of Vans and shrugged. “What the hell? Let’s do it.”
I grabbed her hand and yanked her toward the water right as a light drizzle of rain started to come down. “I have a feeling we’re going to be drenched by the end of this.”
“I guess getting dirty just means we’re having fun.”
Together, we played in the water. The clouds above us grew darker, but Sadie didn’t say anything about it, so we stayed there for a while, kicking and dancing around without a care in the world. At one point, I grabbed Bella and dipped her down. She squealed in delight. I wanted to kiss her again, but I figured I’d save that for later.
The light flecks of rain steadily increased, so we decided it was time to actually go back to the mansion where we could find some cover under the porch. Once we were halfway back, the rain poured down in heavy sheets. All three of us shrieked and ran back to our destination, but even when my vision became blurry from the water running down my face, I couldn’t stop laughing and grinning, totally high on life and that moment alone.
The three of us let out a collective sigh as soon as we found shelter underneath the porch. Our soaked clothes dripped down to the wooden panels underneath our feet as we caught our breath. Bella wrung out her blouse and I did the same to my clothes and my hair. It wasn’t very chilly outside, but the rain left my skin cold to the touch.
“Well, that was exciting! And cold!“
Sadie said with a laugh. She crouched down on the ground to inspect her gear and began packing up. “I hope you two don’t mind that I’ve got to get out of here. My fiancé is waiting for me back at our hotel so we can go to dinner, and I don’t want to keep her waiting.”
“That’s totally fine, Sadie!“
I said. “This has been so much fun. Thank you for giving us this opportunity.”
Bella nodded in agreement. “Yes, thank you. I never thought I’d ever do something like this, and I’m so glad I did.”
Sadie grinned up at us from where she squatted on the floor. “Yay! I am traveling all over, as you guys know, but you can expect a download link from me with a few complimentary photos in your inboxes in a few months.“
Sadie stood up and shouldered her camera bag. “There will be more photos, but those will have to be purchased.”
“Of course,“
I said with a nod. Sadie had to make a living somehow, and she was such a pleasure to work with. Not to mention, she was a very talented photographer from what I’d seen of the photos she showed us throughout the shoot. I’d be more than happy to buy pictures from her.
“I would give both of you hugs, but I think we’re all pretty soaked,“
Sadie said. “If you guys want to hang out here and dry off for a bit, I don’t think anyone will mind.“
She waved a hand at the weather. “The park is technically closed, but no one’s here.”
“Thanks, Sadie!”
Bella and I said our goodbyes as Sadie darted down the porch steps and back to where she had parked her car, which was next to mine near the tree line on the right side of the mansion. Right as she left, the rain came down even harder than before, and landed like hard pellets on the roof.
“I’m thinking maybe we should wait this out for a bit,“
Bella said loudly so that I could hear her words over the downpour. “Hopefully Sadie will be careful. This kind of rain is a beast to drive in.”
“Yeah. I don’t want to drive in this, especially now that it’s dark,” I agreed.
Bella moved some wet hair out of her eyes. “Well. Shall we sit?”
I snorted. “This is such a strange first date. I love it.”
“Would you count this as our first date?”
I shrugged. “Why not?”
Bella sat down on the floor and leaned against the wall near the front door. “I like it. It’s way better than having your first date be at a coffee shop or something. Or meeting on one of the dating apps.”
I sat down next to Bella. Our thighs touched slightly, and suddenly I didn’t feel as cold as I did before. When I arrived earlier today, the sky was clear as day and I could see all of the beautiful features of McIntyre Park. Now, all I could see was the porch and the blur that was the rain coming down on all sides of us. There wasn’t a porch light on or any lights on in the distance, but I kind of liked that for a change. It almost felt like we were camping.
“Can I ask you something kind of personal?“
Bella asked after a quiet moment.
“Hmm? Of course.”
She hesitated. My mouth popped open to reassure her that whatever it was, I wouldn’t mind, but I decided to give her time to gather herself first. Instead, I placed my hand on her thigh, with my palm facing up. She took my hand and then asked, “Have you always been with women? Have you ever been with a man?”
I exhaled a sigh of relief. If that’s all she wanted to talk about, it was no big deal to me. Ever since I came out to my parents when I was sixteen, I’d always been very open about who I was and my sexuality when meeting new people. “No. I mean, I kissed a couple of boys just to feel things out when I was a freshman in high school, but at that point, I was already ninety eight percent sure I was a lesbian. I only kissed them to make sure I wasn’t bisexual or something.”
“So, just women?”
Bella squeezed my hand. I squeezed hers back. “Just women. But don’t worry about that, okay? If you’ve never been with a woman, that doesn’t make you any less bisexual, you know? I’m not worried about it.”
She sighed in relief, then leaned her head on my shoulder. “Yeah. I’ve never been with a woman.“
Bella paused. “You were my first kiss with another woman.”
“How was it?”
Bella laughed. “Better than any man I’ve ever been with.”
“No way. For real?“
I asked as if I was surprised, but who was I kidding? Women were always superior in my book. In every way.
Bella sat back up so she could face me. “For real.”