"Sheridan and Keefer, sitting in a tree..."

"I said cut it out Steven!" The blonde took a hand off the steering wheel and smacked him in the stomach.

"K.I.S.S.I.N.G."

"I'm gonna fuck you up."

"You and what army?" Steven teased, sticking his tongue out at his sister.

"Why do you keep singing that song anyway? I told you we're not like that," Sheridan rolled her eyes.

"I'm not blind, you like her a lot, I can tell. You were holding her hand," Steven said smugly.

I was, wasn't I. I think I even initiated that, didn't I? Sheridan stopped the car in front of her dad's house. She didn't seem to mind that at all, though. One eyebrow rose with the thought of Keefer's hand in hers.

"See? You have nothing to say. Ha! I'm right!" he gloated.

"I never said I don't like her, I just said we weren't fucking," Sheridan countered defensively.

"You want to fuck her, you can tell Stevie boy, Sher."

"See, there's the problem Steven, I don't want to fuck her," she said sadly.

"You don't? Shit, Sheridan, she's gorgeous! Are you crazy? Why not?"

"Ah, I'm thinking I may just be a little crazy. I think I like her too much to just fuck her."

"Well, what the hell else would you do?" Steven asked in confusion.

"There's having sex, and then there's making love..." Sheridan started to explain before she scared herself.

"Which one is fucking?"

"Stevie, is that all that's on your mind?" the blonde laughed.

"Well, yeah! Have you really looked at Keefer?"

Great, my brother has a woody for my woman, Sheridan shook her head and then her eyes widened. MY WOMAN?

"She's so pretty... and she's got great legs."

"We definitely are of the same blood, baby brother, those are some fine looking legs."

"Are you going to have sex... or make love with her?" he asked expectantly.

Yeah, answer him, Sher, she thought sarcastically. "I don't know. Go on, get outta my car, I gotta get home and shower," she said with a phony smile.

**********************

When she got home, Keefer ran through the house and grabbed the black sports bra, thrilled that its owner had held her hand. She held it to her face and smelled it, giggling like a teenager, remembering the warmth and the feeling of Sheridan's fingers against hers.

After eating quickly, the tall woman retired to the den to watch television. Flipping through the channels only proved what she already knew, there was nothing worth watching on her 75 cable channels. Looking around the room shyly, she punched in channel 46 and looked up at the screen through her eyelashes. What is this, the lesbian porno channel? she wondered as again, the image of two women appeared. I shouldn't complain now, should I? she scolded herself and leaned back on the futon more comfortably. While the women were touching, kissing and caressing, she was able to handle that very well. In fact, she felt pretty good about it when she didn't even blush. One of the women reached off camera and when her hand appeared again, it was holding a large dildo. Keefer did blush now and her eyes widened in fascination. Danni didn't have one of those... she thought fleetingly. The woman holding the dildo leaned over and started licking and biting the other woman's nipples and Keefer felt hers perk up in empathy. She watched intently, her brain soaking up the information like a sponge. The woman began strapping the dildo to her body with a leather harness and Keefer sat straight up. I wonder if Sheridan has one of those. The errant thought made her blush deeply. Why would you want to know that? she wondered and then chuckled at her own internal question. You know damned well why you want to know that.She looked back to the screen and shook her head rapidly, attempting to dispel the image of Sheridan lying on top of her wearing the dildo.

Hours later, Keefer was completely frazzled. Every new position the women took up brought a different image of her and the blonde into her head. She watched it all, sometimes gasping, other times blushing, but stuck through the whole thing. She found herself feeling sympathetic for the woman on the bottom as the second woman paid close attention to her breasts. Keefer even rubbed her own nipples every so often, enjoying the feeling it sent between her legs. The things I've been missing... she thought.

Aroused and enlightened, Keefer took a quick, cool shower and went to bed. Her mind worked feverishly with the images that it had just absorbed, not giving her the opportunity to sleep. She wondered what Sheridan was doing at that moment, picturing her in the midst of many different sexual acts, and narrowing her eyes jealously at the faceless women. She wanted Sheridan to touch her in these ways, but knew if the blonde tried, her own first instinct would be to run away. Keefer knew she needed to be stronger, but she wasn't sure she could actually accept the blonde's advances, should it happen. I'll probably push her away; I'm such a nerd, she thought sadly. Come on, Keef! You want her so badly... you have to do something! Tell her how much you want her... The tall brunette wrestled with that idea and tried to come up with ways to tell the construction worker what she wanted from her. Oh, god... you can't say that! she thought of one particularly blunt scenario. Go back to your first plan of action, Keef, find out what she likes. With that last thought, a plan put itself in motion and Keefer went to sleep with a great big grin on her face.

*******************

Greg, Sheridan's full-time dancing partner, was thrilled to see his friend dancing with a smile and jumped on stage behind her. They danced provocatively, humping and gyrating while the rest of the dancers looked on with amusement and jealousy. By the time Sheridan peeled off her leather jacket, she had quite a crowd of female admirers offering her a drink or a napkin to wipe her face. She winked at a few women and threw her jacket at one in particular, giving that one goose bumps while the others frowned and glared at her. "Ooo, she's a cutie!" Greg yelled into Sheridan's ear.

"Yeah, she is," the blonde yelled back, barely heard over the music.

"You're in a great mood tonight, thank god. I thought you were going to self-destruct all week!" he shouted.

Sheridan shrugged, a little embarrassed by her behavior.

"Well, I'm glad you're back to your old self. The girls and I were getting worried."

"Yeah, well, I'm back -- better than ever," she joked, making a muscle.

The woman holding Sheridan's jacket nearly swooned at the display and was grateful Sheridan had picked her for the night.

Sharon and Marie watched their friend with a curious eye. Sharon, having been working all week, missed out on the angry Sheridan, but had heard all the rumors. She wasn't entirely convinced that Sheridan acted as badly as they said. She had known her a long time and she never was that much of a bear.

Dawn made her way back from the bar with their drinks and joined the others in watching the blonde. "So, what do you think?" she asked the others.

"Maybe she just decided to drop the whole Keefer thing?" Marie thought.

"Or... maybe she got lucky with her," Sharon offered.

"You think? I don't know. With the way she was going on, if she did nail Keefer, she would be in a worse mood than before," Dawn said.

"What do you mean?" Sharon asked, gulping her beer.

"I think she's falling in love with Keefer, if she hasn't already fell, and if she fucks her, she'll have to either face how she feels or drop her like a hot potato. I don't think she has the balls to do either, it would be awful for her either way."

They all contemplated what Dawn said while they watched Sheridan squat down on the stage in front of the woman holding her jacket.

"Hey, she kinda looks like Keefer," Marie noticed.

"Yeah, tall, dark and sexy," Dawn agreed.

"If her eyes are blue, ladies, then we know what Sheridan's thinking," Sharon laughed out loud.

"Twisted," Marie laughed too.

*********************

Sheridan had to turn the tall brunette to face her numerous times during their fling on the patio. Although the blonde had a thing for the tall woman's ass tonight, she had to see her face as well. She kept imagining this was Keefer; from behind, they could be identical and it was blowing her mind.

The muscular blonde backed the taller woman against the wall and pulled down the front of her shirt, attaching her mouth to a nipple. The taller woman bent her head down and her long hair tickled the back of Sheridan's neck, causing her to shiver.

In Sheridan's aroused brain, it became Keefer's hair and Keefer's breast; she began suckling in earnest. She wrapped her arms around the curvy body and pulled her close, sliding both hands down to her ass. She could see Keefer's blue eyes half closed with the pleasure she was invoking. She manhandled the flesh in her hands, drawing groans from the woman. She found herself pressing herself into the tall woman's leg, imagining Keefer's head thrown back in delight as she did.

"Oh yeah, that feels so good, Sheridan."

The high-pitched voice was not the low sexy one that she was imagining. Shit! What am I doing? Sheridan pulled away in a panic, her heart beating loudly in her chest.

"What happened?" the woman asked, noticing that Sheridan looked pale.

"Uhm, nothing. I think I'm getting a migraine or something. I gotta go." The blonde bolted from the patio and darted through the crowd to the lobby.

"Hey, Sweetie, what's wrong?" Verna asked with concern at Sheridan's apparent dismay.

The blonde leaned on the half door of the coat check and breathed deeply. "I think I'm going crazy."

Verna laughed, "Honey, you have been crazy as long as I know you. What enlightened you?"

"I can't get this woman off of my mind," Sheridan dropped her head into her hands.

"What woman?"

"It doesn't matter, she's haunting me. She invades my dreams, my fantasies, my everyday thought process and, just now, she slipped into my reality, fucking with my head."

"Well, sugar, I don't think she's aware of it, so don't take it out on her."

"No, she doesn't know anything about it!" Sheridan almost shouted in panic.

"Okay, okay, honey! I don't know her, it's alright!" Jesus H. Christ! I think she's in love!

"What am I supposed to do about this? It's cramping my style, if you know what I mean," Sheridan frowned deeply.

"How old are you?"

"Thirty-one, why?"

"How many times have you been turned down, Sheridan?"

"Never," she boasted.

"So, why haven't you told this woman how you feel about her?"

"What do you mean, how I feel? I don't know how I feel."

"Oh, I think you do. Think about it. Tell her. What is she going to do, laugh at you?"

Sheridan paled dramatically at the thought of Keefer laughing at her advances. "Oh, god."

Both Verna's eyebrows flew up. I don't think I've ever seen her so scared! Time for something she can relate to. "Sheridan! Now you stop being a pussy and do it!"

The blonde blinked a few times at Verna's outburst. "Yes, ma'am," she grinned and leaned over to kiss the older woman on the cheek.

"And remember what I said; think about it."

**********************

Keefer stared distractedly out the window, her back towards the desk, swiveling slowly from side to side in her office chair. Boss says I should take a vacation, so maybe I will. A few days off won't kill me. Maybe I'll redo the house... paint or something. Blue eyes gazed down at the people rushing quickly from one place to another and Keefer scrunched up her nose in distaste. Do I look like that too? Zipping and running like a chicken without a head. Yeah, maybe a long weekend... maybe five days or so. I always wanted to redo the bathroom, maybe put up some shower doors. The more the tall woman thought about it, the more determined she became to make it a reality. She turned to face her desk and began to make a list of things she needed to make her dream bathroom. Halfway down the list, a thought occurred to her and she smiled deviously. And I know just the woman to call to help me with this little project.

*****************

Keefer stopped by her boss' office and made sure he was okay with her taking that many days off. He was more than happy to give her paid time; she never took any before and he was afraid, after that little mishap at the construction site, that she really needed one. Not one to believe all the rumors that he heard, he couldn't help wondering if the one being spread about her and Danni from accounting was true. Keefer had been acting so funny lately; it would make sense that the tall brunette was having a personal crisis. He was more than happy to let her take some time off.

*****************

The tall woman was in an extremely good mood as she rode the crowded subway home. She even found herself standing up and giving her seat to another woman, just because she couldn't sit still. She was excited about her weekend plans, and not just about hitting the Home Depot -- she had a very big idea for tomorrow night involving the club and a dark corner. Keefer was already wishing for tomorrow to come. She would have done her spying on Sheridan tonight, but it was Friday and this was Fifi's bath night. Despite her resolve, Saturday couldn't come soon enough for Keefer.

*******************

Sheridan whistled her way through the gate this Friday morning, much to the delight of her co-workers. She tossed a box of donuts on the floor and smiled smugly.

"Ooo... thanks!" Phil rubbed his hands on the back of his pants and snatched a donut out of the box.

"One of the perks of fucking the counter girl. Dig in," Sheridan chuckled.

"There's this cute girl working at the Lexus dealership..." Tony started but never finished, as he had to catch the donuts being thrown at him.

"Screw you, Tony," Sheridan laughed.

Tony blew kisses. "Come on stud," he joked.

"I'd kill you," the blonde replied with a grin.

"Well, well, well," Bobby looked his friend up and down. "What do we owe this mood to, Patch? The donut chick?"

"Nah, nothing like that. By the way, guys, thank you for dealing with me, I was a real fucker, I know it."

"No problem, Sybil," Phil said as he ducked behind a doorway.

"So you didn't get laid last night? Geez, I woulda thought you fucked goddamned Jennifer Lopez to get you outta that mood," Bobby said around a mouthful of jelly donut.

"Ooo, wait a sec while I imagine that, boys," Sheridan joked then made an overly dramatic show of looking dreamy.

"Me too," Phil stood next to her and mimicked her. "Oh man, looks fucking good from where I'm standing," he laughed.

Sheridan back handed him and snickered. "It looked just as good from my point of view."

"Jesus, welcome back, Patch. We sure missed you around here," Tony smacked her on the shoulder.

Sheridan got embarrassed and smacked him back, signaling the end of discussion.

*******************

On the way home from work, the blonde had a sudden urge to call Keefer; she even began to speed dial her number on her cell phone before realizing she had nothing to say. Putting the phone on the seat, she thought again about what Verna had said to her the night before. She still didn't get it. Sheridan had thought half the night about it, and still she couldn't figure out what she felt for the tall, sexy brunette besides the obvious... lust. Lotsa lust, she grinned. Well, I kinda like her... a lot more than I like the guys at work, so that means I like her more than I like my friends... she thought. I like her even more than the girls I fuck... that's cuz I couldn't care less about the girls I fuck... uh oh... that means I DO care about Keefer, which means... Sheridan swallowed against the nervous feeling in her stomach. So the fuck what! I care about Keefer, so what? Sheridan peeled away from the red light and turned the corner to her block. That's why you can't fuck her, Sher, you care about her... and that includes her feelings... you don't want to hurt her by treating her like the others... that's why. That's the reason... nothing else, Sheridan convinced herself of that as she walked up the stairs to her apartment. It's not like you LOVE her or anything... right? she snickered nervously at the thought. You just don't want HER falling in love with YOU. That's why you can't fuck her. Totally convinced that this was the answer, the construction worker breathed out a sigh of relief. Yeah, I hate when they fall in love; boy, that sucks. She turned her key in the lock and braced herself. "HIYA KIDS!"

*****************

Keefer stopped at the deli and got some cold cuts and beer for dinner. She didn't feel much like cooking, but she did feel like kicking back and having a few beers. She rarely indulged in this kind of behavior and felt a twinge of excitement at being able to do whatever she wanted. It had taken a while, but the tall woman was finally realizing that she was her own person and she could do whatever she wanted, without worrying about what others thought. She wasn't totally there yet, and that's why she was so excited about sitting home on Friday night, drinking beer with her dog. It was out of the ordinary for Keefer and, lately, out of the ordinary seemed to be the norm for the usually reserved woman. Her plans for Saturday night, alone, should have sent her screaming into a corner, but she was bound and determined to see her plans through. Keefer Gibson was turning over all kinds of new leaves and it was thrilling for her.

*******************

Sheridan dressed slowly for the club, changing her outfit a few times before settling on plain, old Levi's and a white T-shirt. She felt almost lazy about going out; it didn't seem as exciting as it usually did and it was bugging her. The blonde looked herself over in the mirror and didn't like what she saw. It wasn't the clothes, her hair or her boots. What the fuck? She put on her leather jacket and had to admit, she looked damned good, but still she wasn't satisfied with herself. She felt a small sense of longing in the pit of her stomach and chalked it up to her abrupt exit from the club the previous night. Yeah, that's why I feel so weird. I'm totally out of whack. I need to get laid tonight and I'll be just like new.

Sheridan plunked herself down on the sofa, jacket and all still on, and sighed heavily. The dogs lifted their heads at the sound; Pharaoh raised an eyebrow, causing a tiny grin to appear on the blonde's face. "We're not going anywhere, guys... I'm just thinking." This satisfied the Pit Bull and he dropped his head back onto his paws. Zeus took a little more convincing and he walked over to his mommy and laid his head on her thigh. Sheridan scratched his head then bent down and kissed his nose. "I'm good, baby," she told him and he seemed to buy it. How come they always know when something's not quite right? The blonde wandered into the kitchen; she was hungry, but didn't feel like eating anything in the house. Looking at the clock, she saw it was too early to go to the club, but too late to bother her pop, so she decided to grab a slice or two of pizza at the shop on the corner. Yeah, pizza... no garlic. She ran her fingers through her short, blonde hair before heading out the door.

******************

After a shared dinner of ham and turkey, Keefer and her dog began their Friday night bath ritual. Fifi waited patiently as her mommy attached the special hose to the tub faucet and readied the medicated shampoo. Once the water temperature was suitable, Keefer patted the inside of the tub and her dog climbed in obediently. The tall woman stripped off her shirt and bra and knelt down beside the tub, spraying the water all over her baby. As usual, Fifi shook off the excess water as soon as it touched her body, making Keefer laugh at the predictable action. "That's why I take my shirt off, Feefs. Here you go, this is probably cold," she said as she squeezed the shampoo onto Fifi's back.

****************

Sheridan stood in the middle of the stage and scanned the club, restlessly. She couldn't seem to find what she was looking for and it was beginning to annoy her. There were plenty of great-looking women dotting the club, but she didn't find any of them to her liking. She began dancing again, the frustration easing a bit as she moved to the music, sidling up behind Greg to work off her unusually nervous energy.

"Hey, gorgeous, you're going to make ugly wrinkles with a frown like that," Greg said into her ear.

"I just don't feel right tonight, Greg. Maybe I'm getting sick," she said, her frown deepening.

Greg nodded silently and studied his friend. She had been acting so out of character lately. He wondered briefly if maybe the rumors were true, maybe she was falling for a certain tall, black-haired woman. Sheridan in love? It couldn't happen. Then again, she has been acting so strangely. Marie said that Dawn said that Sheridan cared for this woman, even respected her, which was wonderful, but a whole new concept for his friend. Dawn also said the Sheridan said that this woman wanted her badly too. This woman supposedly wanted Sheridan from the get go. So, what's the big problem? His eyebrows furrowed in thought.

"Hey, you're gonna make ugly wrinkles," Sheridan teased him.

"I'm worried about you. You haven't been acting right. You wanna talk about it?"

Sheridan thought for a second and nodded, grabbing his hand and pulling him from the stage. They settled on the patio and sat at a table.

"What's up, Sher?"

"I feel like I'm waiting for something to happen. I feel kinda anxious," she started.

"Maybe you forgot to do something?" Greg had an idea, but wanted to work up to it slowly.

"I don't think so. I even felt weird about coming out tonight. That's never happened to me before."

"Can't you find a woman tonight?" he asked innocently.

"There's plenty here, believe me, I'd do at least ten of them in a heartbeat, but I get this feeling like I shouldn't be here... with them."

No, you'd rather be playing house with a tall, blue-eyed woman wouldn't you? "Hmmm." Greg narrowed his eyes. "Maybe you'd rather be somewhere else? Perhaps with someone else?" Sheridan raised her eyebrows at him. "You know, like maybe you should be visiting a sick aunt or something," he blurted out. Blonde eyebrows rose higher. "Or maybe you should be visiting a sick friend, maybe?"

"None of my friends are sick, Greg," she narrowed her eyes at him, not knowing what he was up to.

"Oh, well, my mistake then," he sat there grinning at her like a fool.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" she asked in irritation.

"Nothing. If none of your friends are sick, then there's no reason to visit them, is there? It's much too late in the evening to just drop by unannounced anyway, unless they were expecting you. Or maybe they wanted to see you, but didn't want to impose on you, it being Friday night and all... you know, big night at the club for you."

Go on Sher, go get laid, Keefer's voice popped into her head. She winced.

"Just a thought. Oooo! Is that Randy? He's sooo hot!"

Greg was gone in a second, leaving Sheridan alone with her thoughts.

**********************

Keefer was just about to grab a towel and wrap Fifi in it when her doorbell rang. "Who in the hell?" The possibility that it was Danni outside her door frightened her. She grabbed her T-shirt off the floor of the bathroom and threw it on, took Fifi and her towel and deposited them both in the heated den. The doorbell rang again and she hesitated at the front window, peeking through the curtain. When she saw the little black sports car in her driveway, her heart leapt into her throat and she flung open the door.

Sheridan stood riveted on Keefer's soaked T-shirt, more specifically at her nipples that were entirely visible through the wet material. Her mouth went dry and she was totally embarrassed when a hand lifted her chin up.

Keefer was too excited to think about her attire, once she saw Sheridan's car she lost her mind. Now she was blushing as red as she'd ever been while the construction worker stared open mouthed at her breasts. Somewhere amongst the mortification was a feeling of excitement, knowing that Sheridan was so interested in her breasts. Looking down, Keefer's eyes went wide, noticing that her T-shirt was not leaving anything to the imagination. Feeling the need to divert Sheridan's eyes, she lifted her face up to meet her eyes.

Green eyes lingered at the spot even after her chin was lifted but she finally made eye contact and a slow smile spread across her face. Keefer looked adorable. Her hair was all disheveled, her shirt was inside out, and she was soaking wet, not to mention the sexy flush that covered her face and neck. Say something, you idiot. "Hi."

"Hi. Do you want to come in?" Keefer asked, sweeping her arm into the room for Sheridan to follow.

"Yeah, if it's okay. It's not too late or anything is it?" The blonde practically ran into the living room.

Keefer watched with a curious eye. Wonder what's going on with her? "Hey are you alright? Is something wrong?"

"No, I'm okay, I was just in the neighborhood..."

"It's Friday night, Sher, why aren't you at the club?" Keefer asked skeptically.

"Nothing appealed to me," she admitted.

Keefer stood there digesting that bit of information. Nothing appealed to her at the club so she came here? Does this mean I am what she finds appealing tonight? Oh, Lord! Keefer panicked. Okay, no panicking. Take a deep breath, that's better. Offer her a beer or something... and for god sakes, cover your breasts, Keefer, before her eyes fall out. The tall woman folded her arms over her chest, forcing Sheridan to make eye contact again. "Do you want a beer?"

"Yeah, sure."Can't you control yourself?

She seems mighty uncomfortable. Something's wrong. "Are you going to take off your jacket or what?" Keefer asked from the kitchen.

"Uh, yeah." Geez, Sher, you didn't come here to sit and stare at her, talk already! "Um, what were you doing, if you don't mind me asking?"

Keefer appeared with two beers and stood there with one hand across her chest. "I was washing Fifi; she needs a medicated bath once a week for her skin. I actually have to go into the den to dry her, it's pretty warm in there, but you're more than welcome."

"Sure, why not? So, what happened to her, how'd she get burned?" Sheridan felt a ton better than she did when she walked in the house and followed Keefer into the den, wearing a great big happy smile.

To be continued...in Part 15