“Bette,  it’s ok baby.  We both have a past..please please let me love you…?”  Tina held Bette tight.  Tina was fearful due to her past with men.  Yes she was a lesbian, but she feared that Bette had reservations due to her past. 

“T, you are mine and always will be.  I know that you were with men before and that is your past.  I know this is real..I do baby.  I wouldn’t have gotten this for you today if I didn’t feel that way…so please let us both love each other…I love you so much…what a fucking day…T…”  Bette pulled out a Cartier vintage filgaree diamond ring and placed it on Tina’s ring finger.

“I love you Tina, you are my present, my future, and my forever…wear my ring?”  Bette kissed Tina softly on the lips.   They both started to laugh.

“Nice Monday huh?  I swear I go to lunch to get your ring and this is what I come back to is my ex that tore my heart out.  What a day..and you…you baby come and rescue me.  I was going to tell you more about her, just didn’t feel like going through the dark shadows of my life…it’s so over and the past.”  Tina nodded.

“Babe you didn’t know she was going to come back and this would happen…”

“Bette are you and Tina alright?”  James poked his head in.

“Yea James we are fine, thanks for calling Tina.  You can go and I will lock up.”

“Ok, Bette, there is a letter here as well..here ya go.”  James handed the letter to her and Bette’s face knew it was from Betsy.

“Ok, thanks.”  Bette looked at it and just got her things together.

“Bette, you ok?”  Tina walked over to see what was brooding.

“Yea I am fine, look she needed closure and well it was there.  I was able to tell her how I felt and she wasn’t so, may be this is all it was.  I will read it with you when we get home?  We still doing our last work out?”  Tina nodded and they agreed to meet at home and head to the beach for the run training and swim transition.

Bette left with a heavy heart and was happy that Tina had her ring on now..she was just bewildered by the fact that she was going to read something from Betsy and feel some stormy memories that she was still hurting from.  More of betrayal from her friend than anything and as she began to read the letter she started to cry again.  Tina could see the tears start again from her car on her love’s face.  Tina was paralyzed at what to do.  Tina knew this was a battle that Bette had to go through for her own heart’s sake and for Bette to let go of her past.  She knew that Bette did love her and only her, just her pain was not freeing of her of her past.  It would come…Tina had to hope for that.