Bette walks slowly into her office with a straight face look on her face. Instinctively she looks back at the open door, closes her eyes briefly. Stop, her work here is done, Bette thinks to herself.

*****, Bette whispers to herself.

You have to stop thinking about her, Bette tried convincing herself.

Bette continues on to her desk, takes a breath then holds her face in the palm of her hands.

———————————————-

ON the other side of town

———————————————-
Tina is walking into an office with Oscar. They are chatting about some project before there is a knock on the on the door, interrupting them.

Come in, Tina and Oscar say simultaneously.

Uh theres a Candace Jewel outside. She says shes a contractor.

Tinas mood immediately changed any trace of peacefulness had instantaneously been sucked out of her being but she tried disguising her displeasure to the best of her abilities. Oscar looked at Tina then pointed to the door as if to say, after you but Tina didnt budge, instead she walked over to the desk and busied herself with some papers. She sifted through the sheets aimlessly, attempting at all costs to take a step out to where Candace waited. The thought alone was killing her.

Hey Tina, your girl is here.

Tina looked up at him with a serious but non-threatening look.

Shes not my girl.

Oscar smiles realizing what he had just said.

No, I didnt mean it like that. I just meant since you know her. Look, nevermind. Shall we go out?

Ummm. Listen Oscar, I think that it would be best if you dealt with Be, Tina slipped up, she was about to say Bette but before she could get it all out she realized what she had just said and stopped herself instantly. She forced a fake smile on her lips and Oscar joins her as he too recognized the slip of tongue. The smile was so phony that the corners were trembling as they struggled to hold the smile just a bit longer. She takes a deep breath before continuing.
What I was saying was that I think you should work with Candace, Tina struggles to utter the name. It sickened her and to actually hear it leave her mouth was torture.

I dont understand. Why? I mean you know her, and already spoke to her. Shes probably expecting to work directly with you.

No, its fine. I already told her about you. See the thing is that because shes worked with Bette and they already have a working relationship, Tina went on, battling herself to keep it together and keep Oscar in the dark about what was going on in her personal life. Though it wasnt about being able to trust Oscar, Tina wasnt ready to divulge to anyone how much she was hurting with what Bette had done.

Its just that I hadnt thought about it previously but it is a conflict of interest, do you understand?

Well then Ill take care of it. No problem.

I trust we can keep this conversation between the two of us. I just dont want Candace to feel caught in the middle because shes worked with both Bette and I.

Say no more, I understand but now I better get out there before she leaves us and were left looking for another carpenter, Oscar says jokingly with a smile on his face.

We dont have to worry about that, shes under contract.

Oscar nods then heads out of the office. Tina leans against the desk and places her right hand over her eyes, letting out a labored breath before walking over to the door and closing it. She leans back against the closed door and breaks down.

———————————————-

Back at the CAC

———————————————-

Bette is typing on her computer when James appears at her door.

Kit is here to see you, James says to Bette making her look up from her computer screen.

Okay, Bette says before James walks away.

Bette continues to type on her computer.

Hey girl, brought you some lunch, Kit says holding up a bag of take out.

Bette looks up and smiles, glad to see her sister.

Just give me a second, Bette says to Kit as Kit places the bag of food on the small table in the back of the room.

Bette goes on to finish what shes typing.

Okay. Done, Bette says getting up from behind her desk.

I hope youre hungry.

As a matter of fact, you couldnt have better timing.

Bette looks at Kit, then at the door.

No Ivan?

Oh come on. Its not like I spend all my time with Ivan.

Uh huh.

So I come to have lunch with my baby sister and all you asking about is Ivan.

I was just wondering since recently I dont see one without the other.

Well I didnt come to talk about him, Kit said hoping to bring and end to all of the Ivan talk.

Her, Kit. Its her.

Kit doesnt listen to Bette instead she changes the subject.

Anyway, are we going to eat or what?

Bette surrenders and accepts to put a ceasefire on the Ivan chat with a smile. Bette looks at her watch as Kit takes a seat in the back.

Just let me make a phone call, Ill be right back.

Kit nods her head granting approval to Bettes request as she begins to set up the food in the back of the office. Bette steps out of the office to make her call. Bette walks down the hall, away from her office in efforts to keep her conversation as private as possible. She dials.

Hello, answered Alice.

Hey, its me.

Bette?

Yeah.

You know shes not here right now, Alice said to Bette before Bette even asked about Tina.

Yeah. I know. I just wanted to ask you how she was doing.

Well if I were to judge by the way she looks, then I would say shes doing better. At first, she looked like ***** run over twice but now I can honestly say that shes starting to come to. This doesnt mean that inside shes not a mess.

Bette lowers her head in disappointment at herself. She knew Tina didnt deserve what she had done and if she could turn back the hands of timedamnshe wasnt sure if she would have done it differently. Bette was obviously conflicted. Her thoughts drifted and while Alice kept talking, Bettes head was somewhere else. Her head was spinning. Her thoughts went back and forth and then she realized that she would have done something differently had she been certain about her feelings, but how could she be certain about anything at this point. She had put her seven-year relationship with Tina on the line for who knows what with Candace. She had never acted on any attraction in the past but with Candace it was different. She felt the heat between her and Candace the moment she met her. It had nothing to do with Slim Daddy and what he said. She was attracted to her and was frightened that it just might be more than physical.

Bette still held the phone in her hand and snapped out of her thoughts as she saw one of her co-workers passing by. Alice was still talking. Bette couldnt tell you what Alice was saying but last thing she thought she heard was Alice mentioning something to do with Dana.

Hey Al, I have Kit waiting for me in my office so I have to go but Ill call back.

Okay, Alice responded. She knew Bette had only heard half of what she had said but she understood. She knew Bette too well.

Back in the office, Bette and Kit hand started on their lunch. The mood had been refreshingly nice and fun as Kit told Bette about playing some party that a bunch of teenagers had crashed. In her humorous tone Kit embellished and Bette couldnt help but to laugh. When they were all laughed out, they each took a moment before speaking.

So howd it go with Ms. Candace, Kit asked in a lighthearted tone.

Bette took a breath before speaking. Any evidence of fun and laughter had been erased from Bettes face.

It didnt, Bette said, quickly stuffing a spoonful of food in her mouth.

Kit clears her throat before continuing.

What do you mean, it didnt

Bette swallows her food, looks at Kit.

Its complicated.

Kit turns completely around to look at her sister. Bette stares down in front of her almost childlike.

Are you telling me that you werent able to settle things with Candace.

I couldnt, Bette says as she looks at Kit.

Bette, Please. Tell me whats going on in that head of yours. I know that most of the time, Im the one that needs your help but you are definitely going through it and you need someone to talk to. Now tell me, who better than your big sister to unload all of your ***** on.

A small smile appears on Bettes face.

Ive been with Tina for seven years. I feel the obligation to be loyal and loving and supportive and everything and dont get me wrong, there is love there but for a while now weve been drifting apart. Truth is I dont know how to deal with it. I know I should stick it out and work on the relationship, Bette says before taking a long pensive pause.

So whats the problem, baby girl?

I cant stop thinking about Candace. When I come into work I hope to see her working. I want to walk into my office and feel that at any given time shes going to walk in. Im losing myself, knowing that I cant be with her.

What are you saying, Bette, Kits voice is filled with concern. She knows her sister is in serious trouble. She thought that with their previous talk, Bette would end everything with Candace and patch things up with Tina but it hadnt worked out that way.

Kit, I dont know. Ive never been so tempted to go against everything I believe in for one person. Me? Im not the type to cheat. Im not one to have a fling. Im committed to Tina but at the same time I cant fight my yearning for Candace. I long for her touch, to hear the sound of her voice, to., Bette stops herself. She knew that she had revealed too much to Kit. Her true feelings had only lived within her but to actually speak about her desire to be with another woman that was not Tina had never come into play, until now.

Youre in bigger trouble than I thought, was all Kit could say.

Bette has a look of relief on her face. She had been holding on to her true feelings and hadnt expected to let them be known but Kit had managed to get it out of her and Bette was actually happy that she had someone that she could talk to.

———————————————-

Tina had been keeping herself busy all morning, it was almost time to go home and she had avoided running into Candace at all costs. Oscar had come back and forth to ask her about some details but other than that she hadnt seen much of Oscar all day either. She was pleased to stay busy but her curiosity was killing her. If she hadnt asked herself the questions before, she was definitely asking herself now. What was it about Candace? She understood that she and Bette were going through difficult times but Bette had never gone outside of their relationship before, at least not that she had known of. Tina kept thinking. Her head was a mess of questions, thoughts, doubts, and ultimately curiosity. She needed the satisfaction of knowing. If she could only have one question answered, it would be WHY? Why had Bette been disloyal and why had she chosen Candace to be the one she would cheat on her with. What did Candace have that she didnt?

It was time to go home and Tina was ready. She was on her way out, when she sees Oscar. He is helping to carry some pieces of wood. Candace walks back in and picks up some tools that are lying on the floor. The sight of Bettes other woman slowly made Tinas heart heavy. She pain was unbearable but she continued to watch. She needed to see something, anything that would justify her heartache. Could it be her eyes? Candace had dark eyes that were deep. She had the type of look that seemed to burn into your skin. Tina had noticed Candaces eyes the first time she met her at the police department. That could have been what attracted Bette, Tina thought. Then again, maybe it had been Candaces lips that caught Bettes attention. She had full lips, unlike her own which were small and thin. She shuddered at the thought of Bettes lips on Candaces. Tina kept watching Candace, attempting to put the puzzle pieces together. She contemplated it all but couldnt put her finger on it. Flashes of Bettes hands all over Candace haunted Tina. Even worst, the thought of another woman touching Bette was what brought tears to Tina every night before she fell asleep. She knew she had to pull herself together and come to grips with the possibility that Bette had developed feelings for this woman.

———————————————-

A week had passed and Bette finally decided to step up and confront the situation with Candace. She had called Alice everyday to find out about Tina and Alice would tell her the same thing. Most days Bette would leave the house during the day and went for long drives just to think. She also didnt want to be in the house if Tina went by to pick up her belongings. Bette wouldnt know what to say or how to act. That last night they had been together was filled with confusion, guilt and pain. Bette was not ready to confront Tina, but she did care. In fact, she cared very much about how Tina must be feeling and it tore her apart. At the same time, her feelings for Candace had not subsided, on the contrary, she had thought about her all week long and she told herself that if she was going to settle things with Candace she would not let another week go by without doing just that.

Once again Bette was in the same place, this time up close and ready to follow through with whatever came her way. She stood, uncertain and looking as professional as possible. Even though she had not gone for work-related issues, she maintained a professional demeanor but that was just on the outside. Inside she knew that she could lose herself the moment she saw Candace.

She stood out, in front of the beautifully understated house. She knew that every detail had been personally been constructed or retouched by Candace. The fact pleased her. She loved how self sufficient Candace was, a huge turn-on, to say the least. She rang the bell, this time she was certain it wasnt a fantasy, although it certainly was a great fantasy, this time it was real. She was really waiting for Candace to open the door and they could finally have their talk. Finally, Bette thought to herself. She could hear footsteps inside the house. Bettes nerves became obvious. She took a deep breath and prepared herself. The door opened slowly.

Hi, a soft voice answered at the door. It wasnt Candace but Bette recognized the beautiful black woman in front of her. It was Mikela, the woman Candace had taken to Provocations with her.

To be continued