When Ben felt love for the trippie Bailey – 02

This is part 2 of this story. One must read part 1 to be aware of what is going on.

Ben has just come face to face with a lightning strike of love.

I took a step back and nearly fell over. Rosalie took hold of me and held me up. It reminded me of the first time I saw the Olde Trip girl, she fell over and her other half held her up. I suppose I should call her Bailey now.

Rosalie sat me down and handed me a large Gin and Tonic, she must have had it ready. I finished it in one go, I gave her the glass back and said. “Another.” She handed me another, she must have had that ready.

She knew me.

“More.” She took the glass from my hand and walked into the kitchen.

I just sat and looked at Olde Trip Girl. Bailey.

Rosalie came back with my G&T and a bottle of wine and two glasses.

It had given me time to think, but it only raised more questions.

“What the bloody hell is going on, someone had better start talking.” I was looking at Rosalie.

“You know I felt sorry for Bailey? I have felt that loss and the pain. Do you remember when I found you hugging that woman that looked like your ex?” I opened my mouth to speak, but she held her hand up. I let her carry on.

“Yes, I know she was your cousin back for a visit from New Zealand. But I didn’t know that when I saw you, because she looked like your ex. I thought you were cheating on me and had gone back to her behind my back. What I didn’t tell you at the time was that I rushed out, I walked for hours thinking I’d lost you. I nearly walked in front of a car, not on purpose but because I wasn’t paying attention.

I almost lost the will to live, but I decided I would have to live the best life I could without you, but I felt hollow, all empty inside. Dead whilst still alive. That was when I heard you calling for me. I came back to say goodbye and you were free to go with her. That was when you introduced me to your cousin.”

“The pain Bailey is going through is 10 times worse, and I couldn’t let her do that to herself after I met her.”

I looked at them both. Shit. I loved them both, but there could only be one and it was Rosalie. The love I have for Rosalie grew from that first seaside trip. We were each other’s Rock in a stormy sea, we complemented each other. She has her strengths; I have mine and we meet in the middle. I would do nothing to endanger that love. My love for Bailey was completely different, it was almost like it was on a different level, not higher, nor lower, just different.

And it would not be consummated!

I didn’t know where to take this next, they had obviously been talking. What had they come up with, what did they want?

I was scared to ask. I went and got another large G&T to give me time to think.

“How did you find me?” I asked Bailey when I got back. I saw the wine bottle was half empty. Dutch courage?

“I asked the University for the names of the presenters, there were three presenting EMC items. So I contacted each of the companies until I found you. Your company wouldn’t give me any details, so I hung around outside your work till I saw you leave.

“It was all I could do to not rush up to you and hold you. I just followed you home, once I had your address it took a bit of digging but I got your home and mobile number.”

“Was that you phoning and hanging up about four months ago?”

She looked down into her lap. “Yes, I was going to talk, but I didn’t know what to say, I hadn’t planned what I was going to say. I chickened out. And, when I did plan it for the next time, I couldn’t get it out. The more I did it. The worse it got. Sorry.”

“What changed?”

“Rosalie answered the phone. She guessed who I was.” She giggled. “Before I could hang up she said. ‘Is this the girl from Nottingham?’. We talked after that. That was when she told me you called me the Olde Trip Girl. I like that name.” She paused. “It was something you gave me, something unique from you, mine alone.

“We’ve been meeting for the past 9 1/2 weeks. Just talking.”

I looked at Rosalie. “So this was the friend you have been going out with, what happened to no secrets?”

“Sorry sweetheart, we wanted to get some things sorted out before we came to you, not really a secret, more of just not the whole truth.”

“Get what sorted out?” I asked.

“Like finding Bailey somewhere to live, she already has a job with Smiths, the electronics company, she’s an electronics designer, that’s why she was at the university for your presentation.”

Bailey laughed, it was a gentle tinkling laughter, very attractive. “I missed your lecture because Darren insisted I go with him to one of his, he was presenting on mechanical design.”

I had a worrying thought that we had two spare bedrooms; we could turn one into a sitting room. No, that would not be good.

My face must have showed my worry, Rosalie leaned forward and said. “No, it’s not our spare room, I did think of it, but it wouldn’t be fair on either of you.”

I was thinking it wouldn’t be fair on Rosalie. She was thinking of us, not herself. That was when she got up, went to the kitchen and brought back another bottle of wine and some beer for me. They weren’t trying to get me drunk were they?

Rosalie sat on the sofa next to me, put her hand on my leg and giggled, I think she was a little tiddly.

“You nearly caught us in the restaurant the other week, Bailey saw you coming and shot to the loo. We were planning how to tell you Bailey had moved down here just to be close to you.” She took on a serious note to her voice. “Don’t worry, she knows nothing is going to happen and she has promised she won’t throw herself at you, she loves you enough to not put you in that position.”

Bailey spoke looking at Rosalie. “When I came here, I toyed with the idea of stealing him from you, but now I’ve met you, I couldn’t do that to you now, not after all the help you have given me. You’re a friend and you don’t do that to friends.”

I sort of relaxed from the high of meeting Bailey for a third time. This was the longest we’d spoken. I was less worried now. Being sat with two beautiful women and the alcohol may have helped. I wanted to know more so we talked about where Bailey was living, she had a flat about 3/4 of a mile away. Which wasn’t far from where she worked.

We talked about her job. By then we realized it was getting quite late, and we’d all had a bit to drink. I think it was me that suggested that Bailey stayed overnight. I didn’t hear any objections from the girls.

Rosalie went upstairs saying she was going to make up the bed for Bailey. That left Bailey and me alone the first time since Nottingham. We got a bit nervous around each other.

“I’m sorry.” Bailey said. “I did tell you I wasn’t that strong.”

“I didn’t know what you meant by that. I’m sorry.”

“I wasn’t strong enough not to be part of your life. Rosalie has told me what she went through and if you didn’t fall in love with her she would have carried on. That is not what I could have done. I don’t know what I would have done. But really not having you in my life wasn’t an option.”

“I think you are incredibly strong.”

She looked a bit sheepish. “I do love you, but I’ve watched you over the last couple of months. And I can see you love Rosalie and to separate you would hurt you, and I can’t do that. Sorry. I didn’t want to mess up your life, that wasn’t my intention.”

“Well, you have caused us a bit of a dilemma, but you’ve met Rosalie, I think we can work around this somehow. But you have given me some problems.”

That was when Rosalie stepped into the room, I think she had been listening to us. “Yes, my sweetheart, your problem now is that you love two people. And you don’t know how to handle it. And trust me I wouldn’t be in your shoes for all the tea in China.”

And she was right it was clear to me, I might love Bailey, but I love Rosalie more and I won’t sleep with Bailey. That would be a betrayal. And I had other worries. So how to work around it. We sat and talked well into the night with no resolution.

Rosalie seduced me that night, she wanted to show me she loved me. But we were quiet, we didn’t want Bailey to hear us.

When Ben felt love for the trippie Bailey – 02 will continue in the next page.