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“I think she’ll do it, too,” Christine said. “She’s been looking for reasons to kill you since she got to Iowa.”

Izzy knocked an ant off her hand while her face twisted in disgust. “This state is cursed!”

“We’re a bunch of bored hawkeyes trying to make the most out of life. Food is what we got. Welcome to the corn capital of America.” Caitlyn was already thinking about the next beer she wanted to try.I’ll make it a Light for you, Izzy.“Actually, I think we’re technically the pork capital.”

“We should get ribs next time,” Christine said. “Pork’s cheap.”

Izzy sighed, but it didn’t stop her from drinking beer.Then again, she’d say it’s because she’s not the one going on stage, so she can eat and drink whatever she wants!At least Izzy was a coach who showed solidarity. Anything thatsuckedthat her clients went through, she did as well – from bland diets to personal training and abstaining from alcohol.

Still didn’t stop Caitlyn from giving her a hard time this far into her training in Iowa.

“It’s too bad Becca isn’t here yet,” Christine said, interrupting her daughter’s thoughts. “She would love this place.”

“She’ll love getting to wear a T-shirt every day while she’s here.”And getting to sleep withmeevery night.Caitlyn knew that Rebecca must be getting bored of Jane’s snoring and early morning twitching. Why did Jane think Caitlyn insisted on having separate rooms when they got back together after their divorce? “And pajama bottoms. You can’t tell by looking at her, but she would walk around in pajama bottoms all day if she could get away with it.”

“Oh, honey, wouldn’t we all?”

While Caitlyn laughed it up with her mother, Izzy stared at them as if she had landed on another planet. “Hey, waiter?” shesaid, sticking up her finger to get someone’s attention. “Another round of three beers, please.”

Caitlyn clapped her barbecue-covered hands together. “That’s the spirit, Iz. Let’s get good and buzzed.”

Christine didn’t drink anymore, but Caitlyn and Izzy split her round of beer so they were too drunk to drive home without Christine behind the wheel. While Izzy dragged herself to bed – lightweight that she was – Caitlyn hugged her mother while singing her praises and exclaiming that she couldn’t wait to get on stage and sayfuckon national TV.

“Oh, honey.” Christine patted her daughter’s shoulders. “No, you won’t. You’re drunk right now.”

She wasn’t as drunk as Christine thought, but Caitlyn played along, happy to let loose for the first time in what felt like much too long. After sobering up some more with water and an episode of her favorite show that year, she followed her mother to the back of the house where they went their separate ways to bed.

The night still felt young, though. Caitlyn confirmed that Izzy wasoutbefore locking herself in her bedroom and deciding to take a bath.

Did anyone think I’d buy a vacation home without a badass bathtub?This one didn’t have the jets like the one back in New England, but it was big enough to drown in if she wasn’t careful.Good thing I’m not actually drunk.Staying on the safe side, she only filled up the tub about ¾ of the way she liked it, sprinkling in some bubble bath and securely wrapping her hair on top of her head before taking off her clothes and stepping in. The hot water was exactly what she needed.

Instead of her usual book, she had brought her phone with her. She took a few tasteful selfies with her in the bubble bath before sending them to the group chat she shared with Jane andRebecca. When neither of them responded within the next few minutes, Caitlyn took matters into her own hands.

Are they asleep?It was only an hour ahead back in New England. What had happened that day to knock them out by ten?

“You are lucky I bloody love you!” Jane finally answered her phone, spitting the kind of nighttime fire that made Caitlyn roll her eyes. “Because I ambusy!”

“Uh-huh.” The water was slightly displaced as Caitlyn shifted the way she sat. Her phone was perched between her chin and shoulder, focus divided between grabbing her washcloth and listening to Jane’s heavy breathing on the other end of the line. “How busy is Becca?”

“If you would like, I could put her on for you. But you are correct, Cait, she is busy!”

“Yeah, I’m busy!” said Rebecca in the distance.

“Let me guess.” Caitlyn flicked a drop of bathwater off her chest. “You guys are getting it on without me.”

Jane couldn’t sound more put out if she damn well tried. “What gave it away, huh? Impeccable timing, love. I was about to treat our Becca to five inches of bliss over here! A squeal of surprise in the distance could have been Jane stimulating their dear Becca, or it could have been Becca actingshythat someone wanted her to themselves.No, definitely not the latter.Rebecca was the least shy person since becoming embroiled in Jane and Caitlyn’s games five years ago. “Do you have a sensor to figure out when we are about to shag, love?”

“Five inches? Since when do you use the imperial system?”

“That is what the package says, therefore that is the unit of measurement I apply to my strap-on, Cait.”

“Hmph, fuck me for interrupting your happy couple time, I suppose. Meanwhile, I am naked in the bath. How does that make you feel, Lin?”

“How does it make mefeel?Bloody randy!”

A thump indicated that the phone was either dropped or passed between hands. The mystery was solved when Rebecca’s voice came through, husky but clear. “Normally I wouldn’t tell you to hang up,” she said, half-breathless, “but I was about to get this shit out of my system.”

Jane’s voice echoed in the distance. “That’s right! She is the one who asked me to do it! Was honest to God begging for it when we finally had time to ourselves!”