Free Romeo Fails by Amy Briant Page B

stomach as she walked past her to the hot tub. Dorsey stared after her for a second, taking in the very nice rear view, then hastily shed her boots and jeans, leaving them in a pile on the deck. Sarah was delicately dipping a toe in the water. Dorsey joined her after grabbing both their beers, the smaller of the two coolers and the bottle opener.
    “How’s the temperature?” Dorsey asked, handing Sarah her beer and setting the cooler and opener down at the side of the tub.
    “Very nice,” Sarah declared judiciously. “After you,” she gestured with a graceful sweep of her arm.
    Dorsey stepped in and waded to the far side. Sarah serenely sat down opposite her. To Dorsey, it felt like they were a mile apart. She tried to relax, leaning back against the side of the tub and stretching both arms out at shoulder level along the top. Now that she and Sarah were finally, totally alone, they could both speak freely. She hoped. She looked up at the first evening stars in the vast sky above them and took a big breath.
    “So…you were saying?” she prompted Sarah.
    “About being out?”
    Dorsey nodded and took a sip of her beer.
    “Aunt Viv is my mother’s older sister,” Sarah began slowly. “My mom moved away from Romeo Falls a long time ago, before I was born. She and Viv are not alike in a lot of ways, but my mom is very conservative. Like Viv.”
    There was a long pause while Sarah took a drink of her beer and seemed to be marshaling her thoughts.
    “Anyhow,” she continued, “let’s just say it was difficult for her when I came out to my parents. My dad was pretty cool with it, once he got over the initial shock, but my mom…well, it’s been a hard road for her. And me.”
    She looked down. Dorsey thought she looked like she might be blinking away tears. Compassion welled inside her.
    Sarah shook her head as if to shake away unwelcome thoughts and went on.
    “Anyway,” she said, “she made me promise not to tell anyone else in the family. Not yet, at least. Not until she’s ready. And I’ve been honoring that promise, although it’s getting harder and harder.” She laughed mirthlessly. “It’s been five years, so far.”
    “Five years!” Dorsey exclaimed.
    “Yeah. I told you she was having a hard time with it.”
    “That sucks,” Dorsey said.
    “Yeah, it does. Especially with Maggie. I hate having to lie to her, or hold things back from her. She probably thinks I’m here because I broke up with my boyfriend.” She laughed her cheerless laugh again. “Although…I know from what Maggie’s told me that she’s had no problem with you being gay, but I don’t know how she’ll react when she eventually finds out I am. She’s such a devout churchgoer, you know? Which is weird for me, because usually I can’t stand religious people. They’re such hypocrites. But Maggie’s like a little sister to me. And when she finds out I’ve been keeping this from her all these years, I don’t know what she’ll do…”
    They both contemplated this while drinking more beer. Dorsey was ready for a new one. But the cooler was on the other side, off behind Sarah’s right shoulder on the deck. She cursed herself for not thinking ahead. If she stood up now, would Sarah think she was making a move on her? Should she make a move on her? Why did she always have to make things so complicated? Fuck, she thought and looked at the empty beer bottle in her hand again. She stood up abruptly, causing Sarah to look up at her questioningly.
    “I, uh, need another beer,” she said, simultaneously realizing that “wade” and “graceful” were two words that cannot be put together, but trying anyhow as she maneuvered across to the cooler. “How about you?”
    “Thanks,” Sarah murmured.
    Dorsey put the two empties in the cooler, opened two new ones and passed one over to Sarah. She stood there for a moment while she tried to decide on what to say next. There was so much more Dorsey wanted to talk about with her,