Chapter 37

Bette pulled out of the parking lot and signaled to turn onto the main street and begin the journey back to Tina’s house for the remainder of the night. Tina inched her hand over and rested it comfortably on Bette’s thigh.

“This night was amazing Babe,” Tina said watching Bette intently as she attempted to concentrate on driving Helena’s car.

“I’m glad you’re enjoying yourself.”

“As in present tense?”

“As in present tense,” Bette said smiling as a look of shock crossed Tina’s face. “There’s still a bit more.”

“Do I get a hint of where we’re going?”

“I’ll do better then that, I’ll just tell you. We’re going home.”

“Home?” Tina asked confused. “As in your house?”

“As in yours,” Bette said casually as she maneuvered through traffic and onto the freeway. “God this car is sensitive.”

Bette barely pushed the pedal down as the Aston Martin breezed ahead of the numerous cars to the sides of them.

“She drives it better then you do,” Tina said teasing as she inched her hand up on Bette’s thigh.

The car sped up slightly causing Tina to laugh.

“I’m sure she does since it’s her car.”

“It was a nice touch to make yourself into a Belena.”

“Thanks,” Bette smiled, proud of herself for orchestrating a witty joke.

“You know,” Tina said seductively as she unbuckled her seatbelt and leaned over to kiss Bette’s neck. “If we go home, Angelica is there. But you’ve got a nice, big bed at your house that I remember loving for so many years. We can make some new memories to go with our old ones.”

Tina gently rubbed between Bette’s legs and smiled when she felt evidence of Bette’s arousal.

“God Tina,” Bette moaned as she grabbed the steering wheel tight. “I’m trying to drive.”

“I know and you’re so good at it.”

Tina rubbed harder as Bette instinctively opened her legs wider.

“Tina you’ve got to stop if we’re going to get home in one piece.”

“Your body isn’t telling me to stop,” Tina said with a smile on her face.

Bette leaned her head back as Tina’s finger began rubbing her in a circular motion. Bette’s eyes rolled back slightly and then she closed them to concentrate on the feel of Tina’s finger touching her intimately.

“Babe,” Tina whispered close to her ear. “Keep your eyes open and on the road so we at least have a fighting chance at making it in one piece.”

“God,” Bette moaned as she opened her eyes and looked at the road ahead of them. She took one hand off the wheel to remove Tina’s hand. “You’re going to get us killed.”

“Let’s go back to your house,” Tina purred.

“No, we’re going to yours.”

Bette bit down on her lower lip to contain the urge to pull off the freeway and park in the nearest parking lot to free her hands to explore Tina’s body. Bette looked over and saw Tina’s patented pout cross her face.

“That’s not playing fair,” Bette said, knowing that Tina knew she couldn’t resist when Tina pouted.

“I never said I played fair,” Tina smiled.

“All in due time Tina, all in due time.”



Angelica stared out the window in silence as Shane pulled onto Tina’s street.

“You’ve got to make this quick PJ. OK?”

“Yep,” Angelica said cheerfully.

“Do you need me to help you find what you need?”

“No,” Angelica answered quickly. “I think I know exactly where it is.”

Shane pulled into the driveway and checked her watch, nervous that whatever surprise Bette had for Tina would be ruined if they pulled up while Angelica was at the house. Angelica jumped out of the car and shut the door quickly, running to the front door and opening it with her key. She sprinted to Tina’s bedroom, turning on minimal lights along the way to save time when turning them off. She opened the closet doors and saw, perched on the top shelf, a small decorative box. She jumped, with her arms extended, to try to reach it in a futile effort.

“Ugh,” Angelica grunted in frustration.

She looked around the room and saw a chair in front of Tina’s vanity mirror where she typically sat to expertly apply her make up. Angelica ran over to the chair and picked it up, carrying it back to the closet entrance. She jumped up on it and easily grabbed the box.

It wasn’t until she turned around to empty the box on the bed that she saw some of the results of Shane’s earlier efforts. Beside the bed were candles waiting to be lit when her mothers got home. The bed was turned down with a few flower petals accenting the sheets.

“That’s just wrong,” Angelica muttered with a horrified look on her face.

She looked over at an empty cd case that sat on Tina’s dresser. It had Bette’s handwriting on it so Angelica could only assume it was a mix that Bette put together and gave to Shane.

“Really wrong,” Angelica muttered as she dumped the box out on Tina’s bed. “Like acid in my eyes wrong.”

There were two wine glasses on the table beside Tina’s bed, waiting to be filled with what Angelica assumed was either an expensive bottle of wine or champagne to celebrate the occasion.

Angelica thumbed through the contents of the box. She had to chastise herself to go quickly before she lost herself in the box full of memories celebrating the relationship between Bette and Tina. She teared up as she saw photo after photo of them together. Each photo captured a smile on both Bette and Tina’s faces. During certain moments over the years, Tina would display a photo from this box somewhere in the house because she missed Bette. The photo somehow comforted her mother as her and Bette eased into a comfortable friendship. Angelica saw some letters that Bette had written Tina, cards that accompanied flowers, and various greeting cards for occasions such as birthdays or ‘just because’ moments.

Angelica smiled as she saw what she was looking for and quickly moved everything else aside to grab it. She quickly shoved her discovery in her pocket.

“Got ya!”

Angelica threw everything back into the box, and quickly placed the box back on the shelf where she got it. She moved the chair back where she had gotten it, as to not alert Tina that her room was disturbed.

“Seriously this is wrong on so many levels,” Angelica said as she fought a wave of nausea at the thought of her parents enjoying the romantic set up that appeared before her eyes. She shut the lights off and ran back to the living room to look around at what was done in that room to set a romantic scene. There was hardly a sign that anyone had even been there that night, the only indication being the two Playstation controllers perched on the table instead of being put away. Angelica quickly gathered them and placed them in the entertainment center, closing the doors, and wiping her nervous hands on her jeans.

She went into the kitchen to look at the set up there. It remained, for the most part, untouched. It was as if her mothers hadn’t planned on leaving Tina’s bedroom, which once again made her shudder.

“Think Angie, think like Mama B.”

Angelica nervously played with her bracelet, turning it back and forth around her wrist, deep in thought. She realized what she was doing and began to laugh.

“You’re just like her,” Angelica muttered, again laughing, just harder this time. “You also talk to yourself like she does. It should be easy to think like Mama B.”

Angelica looked from the door to the hallway that led to Tina’s bedroom. She bit her lower lip, now resembling Tina, as she planned out the likely events that would take place that evening.

“I got it!” Angelica said as she ran to the kitchen to execute her own plan for the evening.



Bette pulled into Tina’s empty driveway and quickly threw the Aston Martin in park. The engine remained running as she unbuckled her seatbelt, thankful that Tina hadn’t bothered to fasten hers once again. Her breathing was labored causing Tina to smile, she recognized the signs of Bette’s sexual frustration.

Tina lunged forward at her as Bette snaked her hand behind Tina’s neck to hold her steady for a kiss. There wasn’t gentleness in it, rather it was filled with desire and pure need. Bette snaked her tongue into Tina’s mouth as Tina grabbed Bette’s free hand and placed it outside of her dress on her breast. Bette massaged Tina’s breast through her dress until her patience wore out. She slipped her hand inside and found Tina’s aroused nipple begging for her attention.

As Bette tweaked Tina’s nipple, Tina put her palm on Bette’s shoulder and pushed her back up against the driver’s seat to gain some control over the situation.

“God I want you,” Tina breathed into Bette’s ear as her own hand found it’s way into Bette’s shirt and squeezed her nipple hard causing her to jump. “It’s not too late to go to your house.”

Bette’s hand fell away from Tina’s body as Tina now controlled the sexual encounter between them. Bette threw her head back as Tina kissed her neck. Bette’s body was begging to be touched and her mind began to warn her to take control of the situation before it was too late. Ignoring her screaming mind, Bette pulled Tina’s free hand between her legs, the place that Tina teased earlier creating an almost unbearable ache. Her hips moved involuntarily against Tina’s hand to provide herself with some form of relief.

“Babe,” Tina whispered as her mouth left Bette’s neck to watch Bette react to her touch. “Angie’s home so we need to either go back to your house, which is my vote, or stay here and practically explode not being able to be with each other. If we stay out here in the car she’ll walk out here soon and catch us.”

Bette felt as if ice were thrown at her to calm her senses. Since Bette knew that Angelica wasn’t there, she opted for staying, and turned the car off to signify her response.

“Fuck,” Tina moaned in frustration as Bette began to get out of the car and stand in front of it waiting for Tina to join her.

Tina got out of the car and forced a smile as she found her footing on her shaky legs.

“For the record I voted for your house,” Tina said frustrated at her sexual needs not being met.

“I know, but in due time we’ll be together.”

“It’s Saturday,” Tina said slightly annoyed. “She has no bedtime on Saturdays so she’ll outlast us I’m sure.”

“Come on,” Bette smiled and held out her hand for Tina to hold as they walked up the sidewalk and to the front door.

The majority of the lights were off, causing Tina to look confused. She looked back at the driveway and didn’t see Shane’s car parked there as it should have been. She looked confused as she stared at Bette who now had a smile gracing her beautiful face. Tina knew, in an instant, that Bette had planned something.

“What are you up to?”

“What?” Bette said casually as she unlocked Tina’s door with her set of keys.

“You aren’t the least bit concerned that Shane’s car is gone. That tells me that you know something I don’t.”

“I know a lot of things you don’t,” Bette said smiling. “I mean in art history alone I could blow you away.”

“Funny,” Tina said sarcastically. “Stop changing the subject and tell me what you’re up to Porter.”

“Enter and find out,” Bette held the door open as Tina walked through the doorway cautiously.

She flipped the lights on and saw that her house was as she had left it, with the one exception being that Angelica and Shane were nowhere in sight. She looked around the living room slowly for a sign of Bette’s plan. When she didn’t see anything out of place, she turned back around to face a now gleaming Bette.

“What are you up to Bette?”

“Why do I need to be up to something?”

“Because our daughter isn’t here where I left her and you don’t seem to be worried about that. That tells me that you know something, relative to Angelica, that I don’t.”

“I asked Shane to take her to give us some time,” Bette smiled as she walked up to Tina and put her arms around her waist.

“So Shane knows we were on a date together?”

“Not exactly,” Bette smiled.

“What does not exactly mean?”

“It means just that, not exactly. Shane isn’t too sure what’s going on.”

“She’s not dumb,” Tina said. “She’s Yoda and can likely guess at what’s going on if you asked her for time for us.”

“Just relax and enjoy the moment,” Bette said seductively to try to coax Tina back into the mood she was in earlier.

A sexy smile spread over Tina’s face as Bette’s words registered in her mind. They were alone, with no restrictions, and no time limit. Tina responded by leaning in to kiss Bette. She brushed her lips over Bette’s, not lingering long enough for Bette to gain the upper hand. Tina gently walked Bette backward so her back was against the wall. She wasted no time in continuing what she had started in Helena’s car. She slipped her hand inside of Bette’s shirt and bra, rubbing her palm over Bette’s hardened nipple.

“Tina,” Bette said as she turned her head to give Tina access to her neck.

Bette’s senses were on overload. She knew things were escalating at an alarming rate and wanted to get Tina to the bedroom before things progressed too far.

“Let’s go to the bedroom,” Bette whispered as she fought to gain control over the situation.

“I want you here.”

Tina removed her hand from inside of Bette’s bra and brought both hands to the front of her dress pants.

“Babe,” Bette moaned as she felt her button being undone. “Let’s go to the bedroom.”

“Not a chance I’m stopping this now.”

Tina undid Bette’s zipper and tickled the area above her waistband with her fingertips. Bette struggled to gain control and stilled Tina’s hands by holding her wrists.

“Bette, you want this as much as I do,” Tina whispered against Bette’s lips. The act alone sent shivers down Bette’s spine when she felt Tina’s breath against her own lips. “Why are you stopping this?”

“I want to take it to the bedroom.”

“Why bother when I can take care of you here?” Tina asked as she kicked Bette’s legs further apart with her own foot. She snaked her arm around Bette’s waist to support some of her weight as her free hand dipped inside Bette’s pants.

Tina’s middle finger rubbed seductively over Bette’s aroused clit causing Bette to steady herself with her hands placed on Tina’s shoulder. While Bette’s body screamed out for release, her mind was just as loud telling her to get Tina to the bedroom so she could propose and celebrate the night through their love making.

“Babe,” Bette begged as her knees began to buckle and she felt her arousal building inside her. “Bedroom, please.”

Tina smiled as Bette’s sentences came in fragments accompanied by moans each time Tina allowed her finger to graze Bette’s clit. Tina was slightly taken aback when Bette grabbed her wrist and slowed her actions.

“Tina,” Bette said looking serious and not the playful Bette from earlier.

“Babe?”

“God,” Bette moaned. “Can we please go to the bedroom?”

“Why, when we can stay right here?” Tina slowly licked Bette’s lower lip before sucking it into her mouth and holding it with her teeth while she smiled at her lover.

Bette struggled to free her lip and step out of Tina’s grasp in order to slow the night’s events down. Tina looked confused as Bette ran her frustrated fingers through her own hair to settle her nerves.

“Babe?” Tina asked hesitantly seeing Bette’s frustration and need for room away from her. “I didn’t mean to push you if you weren’t ready.”

“Oh believe me I am more then ready,” Bette said smiling to ease Tina’s concern. “I have champagne.”

“What?”

“Champagne,” Bette repeated.

“How did you get champagne in here?” Tina asked.

“Shane,” Bette said still breathless as evident from the rise and fall of her chest. “Shall we?”

“You seem like you could use something else other then champagne,” Tina smiled.

“That much is true.”

Bette walked into the kitchen as her eyes remained focused on Tina standing in the living room. She opened the refrigerator door and allowed a look of shock to cross her face. Her mouth dropped open slightly and her hand instinctively covered it as she gasped.

“Babe?” Tina questioned as she slowly walked to where Bette was standing in the kitchen. “Bette what’s wrong?”

Tina became alarmed when she saw tears form in Bette’s eyes. As Bette tried to blink them back, they fell freely. Tina placed her hand on her shoulder in comfort as she allowed her gaze to follow Bette’s into the refrigerator.

There, in a lone shelf, was the bottle of Cuvee Dom Perignon. The vintage, true to form for the night, was symbolic as it was the year that Bette and Tina had their previous commitment ceremony. The label alone was not what shocked Bette, Tina could see that this part of the date was planned down to each detail. What surrounded the neck of the bottle was what clearly caught Bette’s attention.

Tina looked back from the bottle to Bette’s face where tears streamed freely down her cheeks, wetting her dress shirt. Tina grabbed the bottle and pulled it out of the refrigerator looking into Bette’s eyes.

“Babe?” Tina said quietly. “What is this?”

Bette shook her head in awe as her fingers played with the bracelet around the bottle.

“Isn’t that Angelica’s bracelet that we got her for her birthday?”

Bette just shook her head, still in awe.

“Why is it wrapped around this bottle with our old commitment rings on it?” Tina asked still confused.

“Because Angelica knows something you don’t as well.”

“What’s that?”

“That I am going to ask you to marry me tonight,” Bette said as she held Tina in her arms, thankful for the sign her daughter left her to show her support.