Tina had sat quietly watching, not sure what was bothering Bette, but wanting to make her feel better. She wanted to see Bette smile, that smile that was so sincere and infectious. When Bette gave that beaming smile it was like a drug and Tina wanted a fix.

Tina reached across the table and poured the last of the wine in each of their glasses, after a long pause she said, ”Penny for your thoughts?”

Bette looked over giving her a small smile. I was just thinking about all that has happened in the last year.  It has been quite a roller coaster ride,” Bette said as she took a slow sip of her wine. ”And Kelly’s appearance,” Bette paused getting lost in her thoughts again as she turned back to staring out across the setting sky. 

”Bette?” Tina softly said with concern.

 ”I know we have talked it to death, but some of the stuff she told our clients was pretty bad. I’ve not really said much about those details,” Bette paused and took a deep breath. She slowly turned her gaze revealing her welled up eyes.  Bette let out a long breath as if she was making a decision.  ”Kelly told people to watch out for my aggressive sexual advances.  She called me a predatory Lesbian.”  Bette took in another long breath trying to contain her anger.  ”She even brought our marriage into it, saying that I was a serial cheater.  A typical homosexual who was only interested in sex and… that you were naïve.”  Bette shook her head as she continued, ”Kelly spread it around that we were married in name only and that fidelity has always been just a word to me.  She used our separation in Los Angeles… and people believed her… That idiot in the White House empowered her to spread lies and it was so hard to bring a defamation case to court… But there I was filing a lawsuit.”  Bette looked out over the horizon as tears made their way down her face. ”Candace was probably the biggest mistake of my life and I keep paying for it.” Bette looked at Tina with sorrow and regret in her eyes. ”I have worked so hard to stop being so self-centered and my fidelity to you never wavered after Candace, even in the difficult times.  After we put the affair behind us, I attempted to make space for you.  I tried and tried and tried but being empathetic to other’s needs was definitely not one of my strengths.  And fucking crazy shit just kept happening… and then… I lost you.”