Chapter 4 #2
As before, the grandmothers suggested they should all enjoy a walk around the lake before the second half of the opera, but to Rory’s horror, the parents coupled up and the grandmothers toddled along together, which left her and Gemma side by side.
After a few minutes of traipsing after their families, Rory took pity on Gemma in her high heels and again offered her an arm to lean on.
She had no idea what to say to Gemma and so they walked behind the families in companionable silence until Gemma’s grandmother pointed out something in the distance that Rory and Gemma absolutely had to look at.
Reluctantly, Rory and Gemma agreed, and Rory led them off across the garden to the art installation that they were instructed to see.
It comprised several statues delicately arranged in the corner of the garden.
Now that the light was fading, spotlights lit the statues and sculptures, and the effect against the twilight of the sky was quite dramatic.
Gemma preferred to wander from sculpture to sculpture, whilst Rory wanted to read every inscription, so they drifted apart for a few moments, which gave Rory some breathing room.
Once she had looked at everything she wanted to, she found Gemma squinting at a piece that consisted of twisted and rusty metal that looked tortured.
“What’s that meant to be?” Rory stood behind Gemma and spoke gently into her ear so as not to disturb the reverent quiet that most people seemed to feel necessary around the pieces of artwork.
“It’s called ‘Torment’ and represents the conflicting emotions within the sculpture.”
Rory hummed and looked at the piece again.
It certainly spoke to her on some level as she thought about her own identity issues.
She had been introspective ever since the character of Cherubino had burst onto the stage.
Recently, she had been thinking about how she presented herself to the world and, if she was honest with herself, that had been a big part of her split from Darcy.
She had been thinking about it through the first two acts of the opera but couldn’t yet find the words to explain it more to either herself or her family.
This piece of art, however, gave a glimpse of the turmoil she was feeling.
She was about to look at the information card next to the piece when Gemma spoke again.
“Do you feel like we’re being thrown at each other?” Gemma turned in front of Rory and, because of their closeness, Rory felt their breasts rub against each other. All thoughts of the artwork and her inner turmoil were completely forgotten at the sensation of having Gemma pressed against her.
“Well, I don’t mind if you don’t.” She flipped an eyebrow up and shot her best smile at Gemma.
She was beyond the point of trying to hide her attraction to the other woman.
No one had looked at her the way Gemma did for a long time, and Rory loved how it made her feel.
As the sun had gone down, the cool summer evening air had wrapped itself around them and provided an air of intimacy that had not been so evident in the full sun and blazing glare of their families during the afternoon.
Gemma pushed at Rory’s chest as if to indicate that they should move somewhere a bit more private for the talk that was about to happen.
Not for the first time that evening, Rory felt butterflies tickling in her tummy and a sickening feeling settling over her.
What if her attraction to Gemma was not reciprocated?
Had she behaved in a way that made Gemma feel uncomfortable?
She took a quick look around the gardens and spotted a bench under a tree that was unoccupied and steered Gemma towards it.
She sat and fiddled nervously with her cufflinks and waited for Gemma to speak.
“I just feel…” Gemma began and then halted, her eyes locked on something in the distance, and Rory chose not to interrupt her train of thought.
“It’s almost like…” Gemma stopped herself again and huffed in annoyance.
“You’re fucking gorgeous, you know that.
” Gemma fixed her with a glare. “And I thought I was completely over you and my attraction to you and then you turn up looking like this,” Gemma waved a hand across Rory’s torso, “and obviously the families would like nothing better than for us to leap into marriage and start making babies, and the grandmothers are pushy and… fuck I’ve had too much wine! ”
Gemma slouched against the back of the bench, her entire posture one of defeat and exhaustion.
Rory was stunned. She’d only ever heard Gemma swear once before, and that was the night they had been together.
Rory had fixed her lips around a very willing and responsive nipple and buried her fingers into Gemma when the other woman had gripped hold of Rory’s shoulder, thrust her head back in ecstasy and screamed every swear word she knew into the room they had found.
Hearing the words dropping from Gemma’s mouth now not only was a contrast to the refined elegance of their surroundings but put Rory’s brain back to that wonderful night and dreadful morning when everything had changed for them.
“Does it help that I’m pretty attracted to you too?
” Rory gulped down a nervous swallow as she spoke.
Her earlier swaggering bravado, which was mostly an act, was slipping away at the realisation that not only was Gemma still bloody gorgeous, but that a repeat of their night together may well be on the cards.
“You are?”
“Of course I am, you look amazing.” Rory reached a hand out and took hold of Gemma’s fingers. “And it doesn’t help that my wretched brain remembers every moment of our night together and has been playing it on repeat for me ever since you arrived.”
Rory searched for Gemma’s eyes with her own and when they locked, the fire that flashed between them was undeniable.
Just as Rory was about to speak again, the bell rang round the gardens to warn that the next act was about to start.
Both women jumped up from the bench, having been schooled by their respective grandmothers throughout the years to be on time, especially at the theatre.
Rory smoothed her suit back into place and offered a hand to Gemma.
This time, instead of hooking her hand through her arm as she had done before, she intertwined their fingers and gave Gemma’s hand a gentle squeeze.
She didn’t know where this night was heading.
She wasn’t ready for another relationship and she absolutely didn’t want another drunken tryst with Gemma – that would surely ruin their friendship forever – but the pull of this woman was like nothing she had felt for any other woman in her life and she needed her right now like she needed air to breathe.
They joined the crowds of people gently making their way back into the opera house.
This was something she enjoyed about being here, nothing was rushed or frenetic.
It was easy and relaxed and a complete contrast to her busy life in London, which was full of meetings and talking and rushing around the city.
She felt Gemma stumble slightly on the uneven ground and pulled her close.
Reluctantly, she released Gemma’s hand and linked her arm with hers as it was much easier for walking.
She desperately wanted to wrap an arm around Gemma’s waist not only to keep her safe and support her but also to show to the wandering eyes that kept giving Gemma the once over that this was her woman.
But Gemma wasn’t. Rory had blown that chance when she left her sleeping all those years ago.