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huh?” Dylan asked, smirking.

Cat’s eyes were shining as she looked up at her partner. “Thank you.” Her tone was solemn and heartfelt.

“Thank you back,” Dylan replied, squeezing Cat close in a seemingly casual one-armed hug. “You made it easy.”

Cat’s smile was as radiant as the sunrise, and it was an image Dylan carried with her as they were suddenly mobbed by teammates, reporters, and fans

pouring down out of the stands.

Part 4

Dylan watched across the small table, in a secluded corner of her favorite restaurant. Her normally bubbly and talkative companion was unusually quiet,

taking more interest in her food than her dining partner.

“Cat, what’s wrong?”

The blonde looked up quickly, it was clear she hadn’t really heard the words. “Huh?”

Smiling, Dylan reached across the table and took the player’s hand. “I asked what was wrong.” She gave a gentle, reassuring squeeze to the fingers she

held.

Cat sighed and nodded, she knew it wouldn’t do any good to try and lie her way out of this one. “I’m worried.”

“About?”

“Us.”

This was not the answer Dylan had been expecting and the expression on her face showed it as she sat back and considered her friend. “Why are you

worried?”

“You’re not going to believe this.”

“Try me.”

“I’m worried that being with me could hurt you.”

“Catherine…”

Cat shook her head and looked directly into her lover’s eyes. “Hear me out.”

“All right. I’m listening, go ahead.” Dylan hadn’t released the hand she had been holding and began running her thumb over tender skin. “Tell me what’s

bothering you.”

“What if we’re found out?”

Dylan considered the question and her next words very carefully before speaking. “We’ll deal with it.”

Cat steeled herself by taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly. “If Horace finds out about us, he’ll fire you.”

“He’ll fire you too,” the tall woman offered, logically.

“I don’t care about that. There are other teams that will take me.”

Dylan grinned and winked. “You don’t think there are other teams that will take me too?”

“That’s not what I meant. I’m out; it’s no big secret. But you…you’re…”

“Hiding?”

“No, you’re careful and I understand why. You’re a huge commodity and if you were outted it could hurt you. You’d lose your job, all your endorsements…”

“Cat, I have more money than I know what to do with. I could lose my job tomorrow and I’d be fine. I have a good financial planner, and he’s made very

wise investments for me.”

The blonde gestured with her hands, not quite sure what to say. “Do you worry about anything?”

“Yes.”

“What?”

“You.” Dylan leaned across the table, taking Cat gently under the chin. “Don’t you worry about me. I care for you Cat and I enjoy being with you. We’ll deal

with what comes down, if anything at all and, we’ll make future decisions together. So don’t think you’re going to get all noble on me and end this

relationship. If we decide to end it, it will be a choice we make together. Get it?”

“Got it.” The blonde felt happy tears in her eyes but managed to blink them back.

“Good.” Dylan sat back in her chair and smiled, gesturing to Cat’s untouched food. “Now eat because I have plans for you tonight that will require you to

have an abundance of energy.”

“Oooo do tell!”

“Nope. It’s a surprise. Now eat. They killed a cow so you could have that steak.”

“Did you have to say that?”

Dylan smirked and brought her mineral water to her lips.

“Where are we going?” Cat watched as the scenery of the city passed by through the car window.

“Someplace very special.”

“I got that, can I have a clue?”

“It’s exclusive.”

“Anyone ever told you that you give truly lousy clues?”

“Very few people in my life are as straight forward with me as you are.” She glanced across the car and smiled at her companion. “That’s one of the things

I really love about you. You treat me like a real person, not the ‘Goddess’.”

“Now I do, before it was definitely not the case. But I must admit the real article is much better than the fantasy I had.”

Now Dylan sported a full-fledged unrepentant grin. “You fantasized about me?”

“Me and every other woman with active brain cells and hormones.” Cat turned in her seat so she could watch her lover. “You have no idea how many nights

I went to sleep, staring at your poster and dreaming of being with you.

Even in the dim light of the city streets lamps they passed by, Cat could see Dylan was sporting a slight blush. “Oh please,” the blonde rolled her eyes.

“Don’t even try to tell me this is news to you. You must know that women fantasize about you.”

“Well, there’s a difference between ‘wondering’ and ‘knowing’. You’re the first person to tell me to my face.”

“Maybe later I’ll tell you about the fantasies.” Cat teased as she wriggled her brows. “Some of them were really hot.”

Dylan groaned and made a left turn into a parking garage.

As they began walking down the alley, Dylan reached over and took Cat’s hand. Feeling her tense slightly she pulled the smaller woman close and wrapped

her arm around her shoulders. “Relax. We’re safe here, no one will see us.”

She guided them to a non descript building, stopping under a blue awning. Cat watched as Dylan removed a key card from her jacket pocket and inserted it

into a slot next to a black steel door. The light above the slot blinked from red to green and Dylan pulled the handle.

Once inside, Cat could hear loud music and what sounded like a pretty happy crowd. She held tight to the tall woman’s hand as they wound there way

through a series of walls and curtains. After passing through the last curtain, Cat found herself standing on the edge of a dance floor, in a very well

appointed and lush dance club.

“Wow.” Her eyes grew wide as she saw many female couples, some of them on the dance floor taking advantage of the loud, heart pounding music. Others

were lined along the bar, watching the action on the floor or trying to get the attention of one of the many bartenders. Looking up she saw even more

people on the second floor balcony behind glass, looking down on the crowd. “This is amazing.”

Dylan leaned down to she could speak in a volume Cat could hear that wouldn’t require her yelling over the music. “Come upstairs with me.”

“Gladly.”

Cat continued to watch the crowd, trusting Dylan completely to lead her upstairs and not to lose her in the crowd. Once they climbed the stairs and entered

the second floor, the din of the music was muffled by what was apparently soundproof glass, it could still be heard, but a person wouldn’t have to scream

to be heard over it.

“This place is great!”

“I thought you’d like it.” Dylan continued to lead her through the room until they had arrived at the back were there were a few empty booths. They settled

down together in one side of it and Dylan pulled Cat close. “It’s a private club, for those of us who want discretion. I pay a healthy membership fee to be

assured I can come here without problems. A lot of those people,” she gestured to the crowd around the balcony railing, “are people who would rather not

be out either, but they want someplace to go so they can relax and be themselves.”

“I had no idea places like this existed. I assumed that people just went to the local lesbian bars and took their chances.”