Refreshments

Jack drove the three of them the short distance to "the Atoll" it was a somewhere between a chain theme restaurant and taco stand on the beach. Jack, ever the gentleman, jogged ahead to get the door. "Lisa" and "Sharon" followed behind him. Jack stood to the side holding the door with a self satisfied grin. The former Lisa passed him nodding and said, "Thank you." the former James was close behind her. Close enough for the current Sharon to see Jack's grin bloom into a full smile. "Sharon" felt a stab of Jealousy followed by sadness. whatever else she felt, she missed the days when he had looked at her like that.
"Good afternoon. Three?" asked the pretty hostess. she had a freckled face and red hair cut in a page boy style, but the overall effect was that of someone's kid sister trying to sneak into an R rated movie.
Jack glanced around quickly and said, "Yes please."
the Hostess nodded and asked, "Would you prefer a table or a booth?"
Jack quickly said, "A table please."
the Hostess glanced down at her chart then back up and said, "follow me please." she stopped to collect three menus from the hopper next to the podium and walked toward the Bar area. Jack and Lisa followed closely with "Sharon" a little behind. they stood close together and briefly held hands, but by then they had reached the table.
They split apart as they approached the table each of them taking a side. they sit down and the hostess puts a menu before each of them. "Your server will be right over."
A few seconds later a pretty blonde who looked 16, but given the requirements imposed by the liquor license was probably 21, approached their table. "good afternoon my name is Tammy and I'll be your server." she took a pad and pen from her apron, "Can I start you off with some drinks?" her voice had just the tiniest hint of a southern accent. she was dressed in a short pair of beach shorts with tight white Tshirt and what looked light a floral Bikini top on underneath it. the outfit straddled the line between titillating and professional.
Jack nodded and said, "I'll have a bud light please." Lisa was contemplating the drinks menu. As James she would have order a beer as well, but she felt compelled to try something different. her eyes drifted over to the cocktails and stopped why not she thought. "I'll have a long island ice tea."
Sharon's head snapped up at that. the Long Island Ice Tea was Lisa's favorite drink, but she didn't think that James knew that. She turned to the waitress and said, "strawberry daiquiri please."
Lisa was watching the waitress and had a peculiar feeling. the waitress is fresh faced with perfect skin. she looks like she just came from filming a neutrogena commercial. in a different outfit she would be the spitting image of a disney princess at the epcot parade, but she doesn't feel any attraction. she recognized the girl's beauty, but didn't enjoy it. instead she felt aggressive. it was like the girl's presence was an invasion. Lisa looked down to see she had pulled her shoulders back emphasising her chest and she had put her hand on Jack's "marking her territory."
across the table Sharon is laughing to herself. I couldn't have done it better myself she thought. Sharon glanced down at her own chest. very few people would call sharon's breasts small; unless they were comparing them to Lisa's awesome rack. She looked up at Lisa's beauty. She recognized the defensiveness in Lisa's movements, but for the first time she truly understood how absurd it was. Lisa's only competition was in her own mind.
Jack lifted his beer and the movement caught Sharon's and Lisa's attention. he looked at Sharon and said, "Its great to see you Sharon." he took a sip and set the glass down. "do you have any plans for the rest of the day?"
Sharon was floored that Jack just came out and asked like that. he must be feeling confident she thought. "Sure," she started to reply, pausing at the moue on Lisa's face, "I'm free" she continued. Lisa's face cleared and she smiled, but a glance at her eyes said the smile was fake.
she leaned forward and put her hand on Sharon's "I'm glad. we're going to have so much fun." at that moment the waitress returned with their drinks.
The new Lisa picked up hers and took a sip. she was distracted. when Jack his coded threeway inquiry; she had felt a spike of jealousy similar to when the waitress had first come by. she was possessive of Jack in a deeper more visceral way. it wasn't play acting. he "felt" like her husband. At the same time and more disturbing, she got a flash of the "last time" the three of them got together. It was indistinct, similar to the memories of a drunken night after waking up hungover. this wasn't the first such flash. she remembered looking at her wedding ring when she put it on in the hotel yesterday and flashing back to the ceremony.
she looked down at the ring now and closed her eyes. she was trying to picture the church. Yes! It hadn't been a church. It was the banquet hall at the hotel where she'd been working at the time. as quickly as the memory came it also left. she couldn't hold onto the memory, but she remembered remembering it. it was almost like a dream that faded after you woke up, but she was convinced that everything in them had actually happened.
Jack pushed his luck and broke the silence, "If you're not hungry, we could " both Sharon and Lisa, simultaneously, said, "I'm not ready to head back yet." the girls smiled at each other and clasped hands briefly before ostentatiously lifting their menus.