Chapter 19: A COUPLE?

Roz gave her a brief, unfriendly look as Lee closed them into the elevator and pressed the controls.

Although it wasn't normally Tory's nature she couldn't help but to get in the other woman's face just a little. "I suppose since Lee and I are a couple now I should probably learn all of the things that you do for him—so that you won't have to do it anymore." Lee squeezed her, and the way he did it, she could tell that he knew exactly what she was doing and was giving his approval.

"A couple?" Roz's voice was low. "I thought you just met..."

The elevator stopped at the first floor and Lee opened the doors and ushered them out.

"I watched her for a while. And I know for a fact that she's a keeper. Tory is the perfect mix of sweetness, innocence and woman. I was really lucky to have met her and I won't be letting her get away." Tory forgot about Roz then as she looked up at her man...Mmmm...her man. She put her hand through his arm and became his cane. Roz looked on stiffly.

She finally plastered on a fake smile as they walked to where her car was parked at the curb. "Well, I should show her the ropes of leading the blind."

"Well, she's pretty damn good. She's been my cane for a couple days now."

"Well that's places that you already know. She hasn't helped you in a new place." Roz spoke defensively.

"My place is new." He looked at her and smiled.

Back at her home, Tory led Lee into her apartment while Roz trailed them--checking out everything with a critical eye. Well, she knew that she was a bit quirky. She liked vintage movie posters, and antique furniture that didn't match but had beautiful fabric or great texture. She had knickknacks that weren't all-together cute, but that meant something special to her; like the cloth voodoo doll that sat on her bookshelf, given to her by her paternal grandmother. There was the elaborate candelabra that looked straight out of a Frankenstein movie, but a piece that she absolutely had not been able to take her eyes from when she saw it in an antique shop. It was huge and overbearing in her small dining area but she didn't care because she loved it!

Lee removed his cane from one of the pockets of his cargo pants. She hadn't even seen him stow it there. She looked around quickly, eyes darting at the likely hazards in his path. He might bump into the CD/DVD holder, the arms of the entertainment center stuck out and would need to be folded back, you had to squeeze past the couch and chair in order to get into the dining room..."Go and get changed." Roz said while taking Lee's other arm. "I'll take it from here." Tory hesitated and then leaned in quickly to kiss Lee's cheek. She hurriedly changed into jeans and a casual blouse. Lastly she laced up tennis shoes and hurried back into the living room after checking herself in the mirror. She didn't look too bad considering that she had just recently resembled a drowned rat.

As she re-entered the room, she overheard Roz talking. "Be careful here. There's a rug. It's old and curled on the ends." Tory blushed in embarrassment. It was an old rug but it was a clean one. She cleared her throat.

"Okay, I'm ready. Shall we go?"

Lee was touching a small metal bell, running his fingers over its surface. He quickly returned it to the mantle.

"I like your apartment." He said breathlessly. "There's a lot to see. I can't wait until you show me everything." Tory was about to smile when Roz decided to open her mouth.

"Yeah, well this place is an accident waiting to happen."

Lee tilted his head, turning in her direction. "Rosalind."

"It's a...cute apartment but this clutter is going to cause you to trip over something and break your neck! This place is é uma bagun?a. And that's being nice." She gave a distasteful look around. "N?o é lá muito limpo!"

"Rosalind!" Lee spoke sharply.

Tory looked from one to the other. "What did you?" Rosalind crossed her arms in front of her without responding. Tory turned to Lee. "Lee, what did she just say?"

"Tory...nothing. Let's just-"

"I want to know what she said!" She snapped finally reaching her breaking point with the two of them speaking secretly to each other just because they knew a different language and she didn't.

Lee turned to Rosalind. "Roz...you need to just leave."

Tory stomped her foot and brought her hands together sharply. "No! I'm not having this. You two are not going to be speaking over my head. I want to know what she said and I want to know NOW!"

Roz was breathing hard. It was obvious that she wanted to do battle with the younger, woman. And yet she wouldn't until she got some indication from Lee what would happen next.

Lee scowled. "She said that your house is dirty. Tens que pedir desculpa!" He seemed to suddenly remember to speak English and amended. "Rosalind, you're going to apologize to her this instant and then you're going to leave!"

Tory was speechless. Her apartment was cluttered, maybe a bit dusty but it was not dirty! She felt like defending herself but wouldn't. She wasn't dirty. She rubbed her elbows. She was not a dirty person.

"Lee, don't be silly. I'm not going to just leave you here. I've never left you someplace in my entire life and I'm not going to star-"

"I don't know what your damn problem is! But you've gone out of your way to be rude to my girlfriend." His voice was so angry that it shook. "What is wrong with you?"

Tory finally found her voice "I can't...believe what you just said." Her eyes narrowed. "How dare you call my apartment dirty!" She had never been so insulted! She'd had to fight for years to feel clean and here was some woman implying that she wasn't. She started shaking with sudden rage.