Winnie wasn’t surprised when she’d spoken to the kids the evening before to learn that they had a Nanny and that Mummy had a new girlfriend. She knew Helena would hire a Nanny as she always did whenever the kids were with her, and she certainly never lacked female companionship. Winnie would cringe at the thought of what Helena exposed their children to while in her care. Helena knew no bounds when she had the opportunity to gratify her deviant sexual proclivities and this caused Winnie much distress. She hated to be apart from the children and that had prompted the early morning phone call to Helena to confirm that she would see them that afternoon for lunch. As usual any contact between them even something as mundane as setting a lunch date always escalated into an argument.

***

Tina heard Helena slam the cordless phone into the cradle and pretended to be asleep when her girlfriend entered the bedroom. She really wasn’t in the mood to deal with Helena’s anger but she knew it would dissipate within a few minutes if she let her be. As expected the tension left Helena’s body as she glanced over to the bed where the blonde was beginning to stir awake. She admired Tina’s natural beauty and to the extent that she allowed herself she’d actually become fond of the woman she’d only ever intended to use to hurt Bette Porter.

When Helena met Bette months before in New York she’d sensed vulnerability whenever Bette spoke of Tina Kennard which suggested that Bette could be subjugated by her weakness for Tina and the love that still lingered just below the surface. In her demented mind Helena had thought to incorporate using the WeHo Family and Youth Center Director into her scheme to hurt Bette, but Tina’s usefulness had diminished significantly since Emma Rothman’s entrance into Bette’s life had shifted the tide.

Helena could tell that Bette still cared for Tina but they didn’t share that special connection that was still evident only weeks after the breakup. By the same token even though Bette and Tina’s relationship was fragile there wasn’t enough antagonism between the two ex-lovers for Helena to turn Tina completely against Bette nor was there enough love for Bette to be jealous of Tina’s affair with Helena. Tina had lost her prominence as a pawn in Helena’s little power play but Helena was never one to pass up on an opportunity to spend time with a beautiful desirable woman. She quickly changed course in the way she would use Tina. It was now for her own pleasure and she delighted in Tina’s willingness to explore aspects of her sexuality that were foreign to her and to push boundaries that she’d never dared to before.