Share the Road (Challenge Book 2) Read online

  “Wait, I don’t want to do this here.” Taryn was torn, she wanted so much to be with Vanessa, but she wasn’t ready to race into another relationship that started with sex. Plus, there was the fact that they were in a bar and she was too old for this crap. She thought Vanessa was different, sweet, mature, and they were taking things slow, but this…

  “Hmm,” Vanessa said sucking Taryn’s earlobe into her mouth and pressing into her crotch with her thigh. “Let’s take this to your place?” she added flicking both of Taryn’s pert nipples that were standing erect from the torture.

  “No. I’m not ready for this. Are you drunk?” Taryn asked.

  “I’ve had a couple beers. Is that what the problem is? You need another drink. I can take care of that,” she said coolly.

  “Wait. No! I don’t want a drink and I don’t want to go back to my place. I’m just not ready.”

  Vanessa gave her an odd look and shook her head. “No problem. Sorry babe, but I’m not looking for a cuddle tonight.” With those hurtful words, she turned her back to Taryn and walked to the nearest woman that was happy to wrap her arms around the shorter blond.

  Taryn was practically in shock, tears immediately sprung to her eyes as she watched Vanessa wrap her arms around a young girl that was kissing her within seconds of meeting. Taryn ran off the dance floor, leaving Eddie behind so he didn’t find her in tears. She couldn’t face him again with another dating problem and was completely embarrassed that she had read things SO WRONG.

  When she was seated in her car, Taryn slammed the steering wheel and pulled herself together enough to text Eddie, telling him she didn’t feel well and needed to leave. She added that she must have eaten something bad and needed to go home before she lost it at the club.

  Within seconds Eddie responded. He must have been looking for her when she didn’t return from the bar. I wondered where you went. You okay? Do you need me to come with you?

  Thank you, I’ll make it. She threw her phone on the seat, slammed the wheel a second time and bolted out of the parking lot, practically swiping three cars in her haste. Twice now she was played for a fool.

  As she pulled into the garage lot, Taryn cursed herself when her phone wasn’t on the passenger seat. She got out of the car and ran around to the other side, whipping the passenger door open so hard that it flew back at her with speed and hit her in the hip. “Shit!”

  While looking under the seat for her phone, she cursed herself again for being such an idiot. She wanted to text Summer right then to let her know that she wasn’t going to be able to go on the shore tour, but thought it might look funny to do it so late, especially after leaving the club. She didn’t want to alert Summer to anything and more than likely wouldn’t tell her what happened. Her love life was a mess, and Summer had already seen the result of her last breakup.

  ****

  By Thursday morning Taryn wasn’t upset anymore, she was just plain angry. All thoughts of canceling her trip went to the wayside, having decided that she wasn’t going to let Vanessa ruin something that SHE had been planning for months. She had her own room and when they weren’t on a trail, she didn’t need to spend time with Vanessa, knowing she could slip away to do some things on her own. Summer and Myla would be otherwise occupied and probably want time to themselves anyway.

  During the morning Taryn immersed herself in her work, and then disappeared at lunch time so she wouldn’t have to speak to anyone. Later in the day, Summer knocked on Taryn’s office door, sticking her head in to tell her she was leaving and would see her tomorrow morning in St. Michaels. “Do you want to follow us?”

  “No, I’ll be fine, but thank you. Meet you at 10:00,” she said smiling. She hadn’t realized it was so late, and surprisingly the afternoon had flown by just like the morning, giving her very little time to think about Vanessa. Grabbing dinner on the way home, she threw a load of laundry in the wash and pulled her suitcase from the closet. By 9:30 p.m. all her clothes were clean, her bag was packed and she had her bike ready by the door along with her emergency kit. She did a once over of all of her equipment, including her water bottles, helmet, shoes, and a set of shorts and jersey so she was ready as soon as they arrived at the hotel.

  The following morning Taryn drove out of the city at 7:00 a.m., giving herself plenty of time to make it to St. Michaels. Traffic was heavy on the Bay Bridge, but not nearly as bad as the DC traffic she experienced less than an hour ago.

  When she hit the Easton bypass, she suddenly grew angry again, knowing she would have to see Vanessa far too soon. Through a clenched jaw, she uttered, “No big deal Taryn. You don’t have to talk to her. Don’t let her know that she hurt you.”

  The Eastern Shore had been a getaway place for years, but usually for exploration of the beaches and small towns in between. It was pretty, with scattered farmlands, and trees and wildlife that dotted the landscape. According to the sign, St. Michaels was just a few more miles, allowing her a few more minutes to pull herself together before pulling behind Summer’s car with two bikes hitched to the top.

  She looked around for her friends and saw Vanessa’s car down the street on the other side. “Here goes nothing. Do not let her ruin this weekend.”

  Taryn opened the door to the B&B, running straight into Myla who was all smiles. “Hey Taryn,” she said before pulling her into a hug. It’s so nice here. You did good with this one,” knowing that Taryn had chosen the lodging.

  Taryn nodded in agreement, while giving Summer a hug when she arrived right behind her. “Hey. Excited to get started?”

  “Absolutely,” she responded before seeing Vanessa headed their way. As she approached the group, Taryn walked passed her not even giving her a glance.

  Both Summer and Myla furrowed their brows expecting to see a sweet welcome between the two women. “What’s going on?” Myla whispered to Summer.

  “I have no idea.” Summer said shaking her head.

  Because Taryn had completely ignored her, Vanessa was embarrassed and puzzled to say the least. She turned back to the door to find Summer and Myla staring at her, but before she could speak, Myla took her arm. “Let’s get our bags out of the car. Thalia said they would hold our bags for us until it’s time for check in. There’s a bathroom over there, so we can change.”

  Vanessa looked back at Taryn, who was obviously ignoring her, which didn’t bode well for the next couple of days. Vanessa thought they had a nice time on Sunday during brunch, and they had spoken a couple of times during the week, with the last time being Wednesday afternoon. Taryn had invited her to have a drink with her and Eddie, but she had too much work. Was she upset that I didn’t go out that night? Did she think I was rejecting her? Vanessa scrunched her eyebrows and tried to think about their conversation. She didn’t seem upset, at least not that I could tell. Shit, maybe she met someone else.

  The three of them retrieved their bags from the cars and Taryn met them in front. She smiled, giving them a look that said she was okay, but whatever it was, she wasn’t going to talk about it. Vanessa was quiet, and seemed stressed about the situation. After changing their clothes and giving Thalia their luggage, they met in the parking lot with their bikes, ready for the day’s adventure.

  For their first ride, they were cycling from St. Michaels to Easton where they would follow the bypass to connect with Oxford Road. Taryn informed them that it would be close to 20 miles before they stopped. With everyone in agreement, they would eat in Oxford before taking the ferry across the Tred Avon River. As planned, they should enter Oxford right around lunch time.

  “Ready ladies?” Taryn asked pushing off. Without waiting for an answer, she picked up speed and was already a good distance in front of the rest of them.

  Summer just shook her head and Myla ran her hand along Summer’s arm. “Want to race?” Myla asked quietly.

  Summer gave her a smirk and nodded her head. “Winner?”

  “Gets to buy me lunch.”

  Summer laughed and picked up her spee
d just a bit. She would happily buy Myla lunch and much more. All Myla had to do was ask.

  Vanessa followed behind Taryn at a distance. Taryn still hadn’t said two words to her, and she couldn’t help but wondered if the trip had been a bad idea. She didn’t know Taryn that well, they had only spent time with one another on a few occasions. Though she had been hopeful that Taryn was someone special, especially after the kiss they shared during Sunday’s brunch. However, her behavior today made Vanessa wonder if she was bipolar.

  Taryn pushed the limits, hitting Easton in no time at all, leading them along the bypass to Oxford Road where the traffic slowed and the roadway opened up into more gorgeous scenery. It was obvious why it was considered one of the top 25 bike routes in the United States. The speed limit was only 50 mph, and the bike lane was wide and clean.

  Every once in a while Myla and Summer stopped to take pictures and soon Vanessa was stopping too. Under normal circumstances she would do the same as Taryn, pushing her body to the limits, but she had time to do that when the others were gone. Oxford Road opened up into gorgeous forests, acres and acres of farmland, charming Cape styled homes and picturesque landscapes. She was ahead of Myla and Summer for most of the ride, but it wasn’t long before they caught up with her when she stopped to look out over the field of sunflowers.

  “It might be a slower way of life, but I could totally vacation here again. This is beyond gorgeous.”

  “Isn’t it. Every time I visit I think twice about giving up the city life,” Myla said with a smile. “But there are just too many things that I like about the city.” She gave Summer a grin and took her hand. They kissed one another and turned back to the field of golden yellow.

  “Let me take a picture of you two.”

  “Would you mind?” Myla asked excitedly.

  “My pleasure ladies.” Vanessa smiled, seeing the love in their eyes as they looked at one another before turning their attention back to her. She clicked several pictures with both phones and then pulled hers out for a landscape photo, opting to not do a selfie.

  Taryn reached Oxford five minutes in front of the others, finally stopping when she reached the Oxford Community Center. There were kids playing soccer in a large field on the left, and boats heading out for a sail on the right. She looked back to see that Myla and Summer were coming in to town at a high speed, with Vanessa following behind laughing at their antics.

  “God she’s beautiful. What the fuck, maybe I should have just had sex with her,” she said to herself as Summer stopped her bike directly in front of her.

  “We need to talk,” Summer said to Taryn before pushing off and leading the way to the restaurant. She and Myla had scoped out the restaurants in the area and knew exactly where they wanted to eat.

  Summer lead the short distance from the community center to Pier Street, pleased when they were seated and given menus outside where they could sit with their bikes. It might be a friendly area, but she wasn’t leaving her $2500.00 bike alone. After all, she was a city girl.

  “Would you mind ordering a water for me?” Vanessa said directing her question to Myla. “I need to use the restroom and wash my hands. I also need to make a quick call to Vic to let her know where I am.”

  Myla smiled up at her and nodded her head. “Absolutely.”

  As soon as Vanessa was out of sight, Summer gave Taryn a hard stare. “What is wrong with you? Did something happen between you two?”

  Taryn gritted her teeth and wondered if she should tell them. Summer tilted her head and waited her out, letting her know that she was not going to let it go. “Fine. I’ll tell you, but you can’t say anything. I’m already embarrassed enough.”

  “Do you want me to leave, give you two time to talk?” Myla looked to Taryn and then Summer for an answer.

  “No, you can stay. You’re her friend after all,” she said snippily.

  Myla sat quietly, taking Summer’s hand in her own under the table.

  “Wednesday night I went to the club with Eddie. We were having a great time dancing, until I got thirsty and returned to the bar. To my surprise, I saw Vanessa sitting at the bar, even though she told me clubs weren’t really her scene. Anyway, I said hi and before I knew it I was on the dance floor making out with her.”

  Summer wasn’t understanding at all, but knew there must be a point. It was very uncharacteristic of Taryn to act so mean – to anyone. And it wasn’t as if she herself had never gotten carried away on the dance floor.

  Taryn shook her head and continued. “She was all over me, which just seems so different from the way she usually acts. We danced for a couple of songs before things became too heated and she ended up pushing me up against the wall, wanting to go at it right there in the club. She must have been drunk or on something, because I’ve never seen her so aggressive. Anyway, she didn’t like that I said no, and decided that I wasn’t worth the wait.”

  “You mean?” Summer asked without stating the obvious.

  “Yes. She left me standing there and found the next warm body that would have her.” Taryn finished, letting her words settle in. She was angry again and wasn’t sure that she would even be able to sit through lunch with the shorter blond.

  Summer looked angry herself, until Myla held up her hand, smiling. “I’m not positive, but I think I understand what happened. If I’m right… you are completely wrong about Vanessa, but I need for her to be the one to explain.” Just as she finished, Vanessa returned to the table and everyone was looking at her for an explanation. She placed her phone back in her bag and sat down waiting for them to explain the sudden silence. Myla was grinning slyly and Taryn and Summer were obviously angry about something.

  “What’s going on? Why are you staring at me so angrily?” Vanessa whispered to Taryn.

  “Vanessa, may I see your phone. I think there’s been a misunderstanding,” Myla said placing her hand on the table. When she saw that Summer was about to respond, she held up her hand for both Summer AND Taryn to be quiet.

  “Okay?” Vanessa said drawing out the word, not at all understanding what was going on. She pulled her phone from her small back pack and handed it to Myla who had finally gotten serious. Myla looked to her for a code and Vanessa confessed it was bike. Myla swiped the phone, entered the four digit code, and then handed it to Taryn who looked at her and then down at the screen.

  At first she was speechless, with Myla giving her a grin and Summer finally understanding what was going on. “Oh my god, you must hate me,” Taryn squeaked out. She put her face in her hands and shook her head.

  Vanessa took the phone and looked at the picture of her and her twin sister. She then looked up at Myla and Summer who were grinning at her. “I think we’re going to give you two a few minutes to talk.” Summer stood from the table and held out her hand to help Myla up from her seat. We’re going to take a short walk.”

  “Great idea,” Myla said jumping up from the bench.

  When both were out of hearing distance, Taryn finally looked up at Vanessa who still didn’t understand what was going on, nor was she sure she wanted to listen to what Taryn had to tell her.

  “Were you at The Club on Wednesday night?” Taryn asked in a whisper.

  “No, I told you I had too much work to do before vacation. And I know I’ve told you that it’s not really my scene. I’m sorry if you were upset, but I really was busy.”

  “Yes you did tell me that. But…you didn’t tell me that your sister is your identical twin.”

  Vanessa looked into Taryn’s eyes and tilted her head. “Have you met her?” she asked in surprise.

  “I can only assume that we met on Wednesday night. I thought she was you… and oh my God… I’m so sorry.”

  Vanessa gave her a concerned look and then it quickly changed to anger. “What did you do? Did you have sex with her?”

  “No! God no. But we did kiss. Shit I thought she was you; of course, I wanted to kiss her.”

  Vanessa rubbed her temples and propped her elbow
s on the table. “Please tell me exactly what happened. Do not leave out even the tiniest detail.”

  “May I,” Taryn said indicating that she wanted to hold Vanessa’s hand. When Vanessa didn’t answer she returned her hand to her lap and nervously began. She told Vanessa the entire story, from the beginning when she and Eddie were dancing, to when she ran out of the club and almost knocked herself out with her own car door. By the end, Vanessa had inched closer and had taken her hand. She was extremely thankful that Taryn had not done any more than kiss Victoria.

  “You didn’t tell me that you had a twin. Thankfully, something just didn’t seem right. You just weren’t you.”

  Vanessa smiled at Taryn’s cuteness, but then her lips returned to a straight line. “I’m sorry that you went through that. You must have been so upset.” Vanessa really did understand how Taryn probably felt. She had seen her sister go through women like they were popsicles. Some understood what she was after, and others … others wanted more.

  Taryn looked into Vanessa’s sincere blue eyes and gave a small smile. “I’m sorry that I was mean to you. Will you please forgive me?”

  “Hey, you don’t need to apologize. I completely understand and would have been angry too.”

  Taryn looked down at their hands. “Can we start over?”

  “I’d like that very much,” Vanessa said giving Taryn’s hand a soft squeeze. Taryn laughed and leaned in for hug.

  “I’m glad we got that out of the way,” Taryn said holding tight to Vanessa, feeling her own body warm instantly.

  “Me too. During the ride I was contemplating getting another hotel. One some hundred miles from here.” Vanessa pulled back and gave her a crooked smile.

  “I am so sorry. I was horrible to you.”

  “You weren’t that bad. Victoria on the other hand was horrible to you, but believe me when I say I’m glad she was an ass.” Taryn knew exactly what she meant and agreed completely. Both knew what could have happened, and decided not to bother discussing what the consequences might have been.