"No, all we have is a few bruises," Jamie a.s.sured her. "Although I do feel like a truck hit me."

"You were fighting with every ounce of power you have, honey. That was a tremendous strain on your body!"

"Yeah, I guess it was, but you guys have to feel worse than we do! You were getting pummeled!"

"Nah," Ryan a.s.sured her, "just a few sc.r.a.pes. It takes more than a bunch of hooligans to get the best of us."

"Well I think we should head home and soak in the tub for a while," Jamie said. "I hate to miss Sunday dinner, but I've gotta soak!"

"I've got a better idea," Ryan intoned.

An hour later found Jamie and Ryan at the Olympic Club, lounging in the ma.s.sive whirlpool. The O'Flaherty men were in their separate locker room, waiting to take Ryan up on her offer of ma.s.sages for everyone. Jordan, Mia and Maggie were already undergoing their treatments, and Ryan and Jamie were patiently waiting their turn. "Feels good, doesn't it?" Ryan asked lazily as she allowed her arms to float to the surface of the bubbling water.

"Divine," Jamie agreed. "Get used to this, babe," she instructed. "Until cla.s.ses start again, you're allowed to do four things: play basketball, relax, sleep and have wild, pa.s.sionate s.e.x."

"Gosh," she said reflectively, "I'm trying to think of who on earth would argue with that? Only one thing you missed, honey. I've got to get my grad school applications in soon, or I might as well not bother."

"Okay," the smaller woman allowed. "By the time school starts you're going to be very well rested, weigh at least five pounds more, have all of your applications in, and be absolutely sick of my constant s.e.xual attentions," she said with a wry laugh.

"Well then, school had better not start for many, many years, 'cause that last requirement is gonna take a very long time to fulfill," Ryan predicted.

Jordan relaxed against the headboard of Mia's bed, several fluffy pillows supporting her back. Mia lay sprawled against her body, her head resting on her lover's chest. "You know, I bet that when most people say they're gonna make love all night long, they're exaggerating slightly," Jordan mused.

Mia laughed softly, and said, "We haven't been making love all night long. We had some very long breaks."

"You're right," Jordan agreed. "But when I think of this night, I'll always remember it as the first night we made love 'til dawn."

Something about the way Jordan's voice sounded made Mia look up quickly. What she saw made her heart melt and, with a trembling voice, she asked, "Will you think of this night?"

"Of course!" Jordan shifted so that Mia fell into her strong right arm. She cradled her like a child, pressing Mia's head against her breast. "Of course I will," she whispered roughly.

Throwing her arms around Jordan's back, Mia hugged her with every ounce of strength that she possessed. She fought valiantly to keep her emotions in check, but when she heard a great, wracking sob and felt hot tears drop onto her back, she lost her battle and cried piteously.

They cried until neither had tears left to shed. Both were weak from the outpouring of emotion, and Jordan slowly loosened her grip. Mia lay back and looked up at her with a face full of sorrow, and before she had a chance to second-guess herself Jordan made a shocking offer. "I don't have to go," she whispered. "I can stay... stay here with you."

In a flash, Mia was sitting up, staring at her with alarm. "Jordan! This is what you've worked for your whole life! How can you even speak of giving up your dream?"

The broad shoulders shrugged, and the vivid blue eyes shifted to stare, unfocused, at the rumpled sheets.

Mia held her tightly and said, "I can't let you even think of such a thing. You'd never forgive yourself for letting this opportunity pa.s.s you by." She held her lover at arm's length, and forced her to look into her eyes. "Promise me that you'll give this tryout your all, Jordan." Shaking her lightly, she demanded, "Promise me!"

"I will," she muttered, her darting eyes having a tough time remaining on Mia's face. "I promise I will."

Holding her close once again, Mia a.s.sured her. "You have to do this, Jordan. You have to try your best. This is your only chance to achieve your dream, sweetheart."

Finally focusing on the warm, brown eyes, Jordan nodded again, wishing she could say what was in her breaking heart. This might be the only chance I ever have with you, too. And you mean more to me than volleyball ever could.

Ryan was scheduled to take Jordan to the airport, since Mia had an early final. It was just 6:30 when Ryan headed for the kitchen, looking for some breakfast. She hadn't seen Jordan since late afternoon, so they hadn't worked out a timetable for when they would leave. They had to allow at least an hour to get to SFO, and since Jordan hadn't packed, she knew they should get moving immediately, but she dreaded the fight she knew she would have getting her friend out of Mia's bed.

When she pushed the swinging door open, she nearly gasped in shock to see both Jordan and Mia standing in the kitchen. My G.o.d, she thought, how did they get up before I did? It was unclear whether they didn't know she was in the room, or they didn't care. Jordan was leaning against the built-in baking counter, with Mia leaning heavily against her. The taller woman was murmuring quiet little 'shushing' sounds as she ran her fingers through Mia's curly brown hair. It was obvious that Mia was quietly crying, and Jordan's eyes were red-rimmed also. She rotated her head slowly, and made eye contact with Ryan, nodding her head and holding up a finger to indicate she needed another minute.

Ryan granted her the privacy she requested, rea.s.suring herself that they could stop for breakfast on the way to Jordan's house. Jamie came down the stairs just as the kitchen door swung open. Mia ran through the parlor and scampered up the stairs past her, tears rolling down her cheeks. Jordan slowly walked up to Jamie and wrapped her in a fierce hug, holding on for a long time. As she pulled away, she placed a gentle kiss on her lips and patted her cheek, still without a word. Turning to Ryan she nodded briefly and went to the door and exited quickly. "Is she okay?" Jamie asked quietly.

"I don't know," Ryan said, "but I'm sure Mia isn't. We'd better get going, babe. Good luck today."

"Thanks, hon. I should be home by noon. Wanna have lunch?"

"Sounds great. I'll stop at the store on my way back from the airport."

Jordan was leaning against the Lexus, wiping furiously at her eyes as Ryan approached. The doors unlocked remotely, and Ryan reached into the back seat to grab some tissues for her friend. Jordan dabbed at her eyes and blew her nose as Ryan started up the car and drove to Sufficient Grounds for coffee and m.u.f.fins. She pulled up right in front and said, "I'll run. Triple latte?"

"Yeah," Jordan said gratefully, "and something to eat."

"Did you have anything last night?" Ryan asked.

"Not a bite," she said as she shook her head.

"Be right back," Ryan promised, squeezing her shoulder.

When they got to her apartment, it became obvious that Jordan was not in the proper mind frame to pack. She took a big nylon duffel and went through her drawers, hurling in all of her bras, panties and socks. Another drawer surrendered a few T-shirts, and a third gave up some sweat pants and two pairs of jeans. Jordan looked up and said, "I have to take a quick shower, Boomer. They'll throw me off the plane smelling like this."

"Go ahead," she said. "We've got 20 minutes before we have to leave."

Jordan gave her a grateful look as she made for the shower, and emerged ten minutes later, rubbing her long blonde hair energetically with a towel. She dropped the towel onto the bed, then broke into helpless tears when she saw what Ryan had done in her absence. Her friend had removed everything from her bag, and had neatly folded and organized every single item. She had also laid out Jordan's favorite black jeans and a thin black turtleneck that she looked particularly good in. A bra, panties and a pair of black socks were placed on top of the sweater, and Jordan's short black boots were lying neatly on the floor in front of the clothing.

Wordlessly, Jordan collapsed into Ryan's arms, sobbing pathetically. "I don't want to leave," she wailed. "I'm so happy here, Ryan. I feel so close to having just what I've always wanted," she croaked out. "I'm giving up so much!"

"Oh, Jordan, I'm so sorry this is so hard for you," she sympathized. "But you can come back when you're done. You aren't losing anything. We'll all be waiting for you."

"You can't guarantee Mia will wait for me," she sobbed. "G.o.d! I don't want to lose her!"

"Jordan, she didn't look like someone who didn't care this morning. She was awfully upset."

"I know," she sniffed. "I know she cares for me. And if I were staying, I think we could make a go of it. I just don't think she's ready to commit to a long distance relationship. I think she's most upset by the loss of our unrealized potential."

"I don't know, Jordan. I've known Mia for a while, and I've rarely seen her cry. She's not easily upset."

The blonde shook her head as she started to dress. "I think we're both afraid to stick our necks out right now," she admitted. "This couldn't have come at a worse time, Ryan. If we had another month, or even a few more weeks, I think we'd have more certainty. But it's still so new that neither of us has much confidence."

"I can see that," Ryan sympathized, "but don't give up. Promise me that you'll try to stay connected with her."

"I will try, Ryan," she said firmly. "I really don't have any choice."

"I know that feeling," Ryan empathized as she gave her another hug.

She had Jordan settled at her gate when she asked, "I'm going to go get another cup of coffee. Join me?"

She barked out a laugh as she said, "I'll take all you've got."

"You didn't get much sleep did you?"

"I got exactly zero sleep," she admitted. "We were either crying or making love all night long. And we have our first run through today at four. They're going to think I'm some sort of zombie!"

"I'll fix you right up," Ryan promised. "And I'll get you another little snack."

"I won't move a muscle," Jordan vowed.

By the time Ryan returned, Jordan was pacing furiously back and forth in front of her seat. "Jeez, where have you been?" she cried when she caught sight of her coffee-bearing friend.

"Long line," she replied. "But you can take it on with you."

"They already called us to board, so I'd better scoot," she said as her lower lip started to tremble again.

Ryan handed her the coffee and a scone, after Jordan lifted her carry-on onto her shoulder. Once her hands were full, Ryan folded up some papers and slipped them into Jordan's back pocket. "What's that?" Jordan asked as she jerked her head around.

"You'll find out when you sit down," she a.s.sured her with a grin. "Just don't throw it away before you look at it."

"Okay," she said with a dubious look, "but it better not be anything to make me cry," she warned.

"No guarantees," Ryan said as she wrapped her in a hug. "You've become rather emotional lately. I'm not sure what might set you off."

"That's the truth," she conceded wryly. "I've lost a quart of fluid in the last 24 hours."

"Well, you could have lost a few teeth at the Raider game," Ryan teased. "Count your blessings!"

"I do count them, Ryan," she said soberly. "And you're one of the ones I count every day."

Ryan beamed a smile at her and leaned in for a kiss. Jordan gave her several, then turned and purposefully strode away.

It took her until they had been in the air for 20 minutes to compose herself enough to pull the packet of paper from her pocket. She carefully unfolded it and had to hold back tears once again as she looked at the round trip ticket from Denver to San Francisco leaving on December the twenty-fourth and returning on the twenty-sixth. A hastily written note in Ryan's bold hand stated, You're the gift I want for Christmas! Love, Boomer.

When Ryan returned home, groceries in hand, Jamie came bounding out of the house to greet her. "Another one finished!" she cried jubilantly.

Ryan caught her in a hug, managing to maintain her control of the groceries at the same time. "Good thing for you I'm coordinated, or we'd have a dozen eggs on the ground," she chided.

"But you are coordinated," she reminded her happily, "And strong, and soft and beautiful and..."

"Hmm, what's on your mind, as if I couldn't tell?" Ryan asked with an indulgent grin.

"Well, we've got almost three hours until your practice, n.o.body's home, and you're the prettiest girl I've ever laid eyes on..." she teased seductively as she took Ryan's hand and led her into the house.

"Only too glad to perform my spousal obligations," she a.s.sured her, "but I need to have some lunch first, or I won't have my normal stamina."

"I'm only too happy to oblige," Jamie relented. As they went into the kitchen she asked, "Did everything go okay at the airport?"

"Yeah, I suppose it did," she said reflectively. "But Jordan was just devastated. You know, I think she felt like she belonged with Mia and us more than she ever has anywhere else in her life. This is really going to be hard for her."

"G.o.d, you should have seen Mia. I've known her for eight years, and this is the most upset she's ever been. The poor thing had to take a final first thing this morning, and her eyes were nearly swollen shut from crying."

"Well, I hope you don't mind my spending our money without asking first, but I got an idea when I was at Jordan's this morning. I called the training site in Colorado Springs when she was in the shower, and found out when their practice was over on Christmas Eve and when they had to be back on the twenty-sixth. Then, when we were waiting for her plane, I ran back to the ticket window and bought her a ticket to come home for Christmas."

"Ryan, honey, I want you to understand something," Jamie said earnestly. "You never have to explain where the money you spend goes, and you never have to ask my permission to spend it. This is our money, babe, and your decisions are just as valid as mine. But just for the record, I think it was a scathingly brilliant idea. Especially since Mia's birthday is the twenty-sixth.

"If Jordan gives me a hard time, I'm going to tell her the tickets are really Mia's birthday present," Ryan chuckled.

"Huh? Why would she give you a hard time later?"

"Oh, I just snuck the tickets in her pocket. Her hands were both full and she was late getting on the plane, so we didn't have time to discuss them."

"Are you gonna tell Mia?"

"No, let's surprise her," Ryan suggested.

"Aren't you going to compliment me on sticking to your agenda for my free time?" Ryan asked her partner as they slowly woke from a long nap.

"What's that, sweetie?"

"I'm due at basketball in twenty minutes, so that's one item I'm allowed. I had nearly a two-hour nap, a very good lunch, and very pa.s.sionate, very satisfying s.e.x," she added with a waggling eyebrow. "If I'd been able to squeeze in a little work on my applications, I'd be golden."

"You're a very compliant patient," Jamie agreed. "Now you scoot while I get some studying done. When you come home, I'll have a nice dinner ready for you and take you to bed nice and early."

"I'll rush home as quick as I'm able," she promised as she hopped out of bed for a speedy shower. "Dallying is not allowed on my rigid schedule!"

"How ya doing, buddy?" Jamie asked her roommate as she came trudging in the front door just after noon on Friday.

"I'm done!" she declared as she let out a breath. "As soon as I burn those books," she pointed at the texts lying on the floor, "I can flush everything that I learned this term from my mind so it's nice and empty again!"

"How about some lunch?" Jamie asked, aware that Mia had hardly eaten a thing since Jordan had left.

"Mmm, I don't really care," she said. "Any calls?"

"She has practice from eight until noon, honey," Jamie reminded her.

"I know," she muttered. "I just thought she might call as soon as she was done."

"She's probably a little hungry," Jamie offered, but she was interrupted by the ringing phone.

Mia jumped for it, showing more energy than she had all week. A blissful smile covered her face as she said, "Hi," in a wistful, breathy voice.

That's my cue, Jamie thought to herself as she went into the kitchen to make lunch.

When Ryan returned home from practice, Jamie was waiting to leave for the city. "I'm done! I'm done! I'm done! I'm done!" the blonde cried as she leapt into her lover's arms.

Ryan just smirked down at her, blowing away the long strands of her own hair that had settled onto Jamie's face. "If I ever hurt an arm or a hand, I've got to remember to call and tell you before I get home. I just never know when a substantial weight is unexpectedly going to be hurled at me with a great deal of force."

"Hey, whose weight are you calling substantial?" the feisty woman glowered.

"At this point in the day - yours," Ryan admitted, just about exhausted from a very intense afternoon of practice. "As the day goes on, Caitlin starts to look like more than I can handle."