Maddy's New World Pt. 05

This series is a sequel to "Maddy on the Move," so it might be best to read that series first, to get some background. It's the latest in a suite of stories about horny lesbian cyclists, which began with "Riding with Dirty Girls."

This is a work of fiction. A figment of the author's imagination. It is not meant to be big on realism. It's a fantasy. The culture around world-class women's cycling probably isn't a hotbed of lesbian lust, but wouldn't it be fun if it were?

All characters are fictitious, and any that are involved in sexual activities are over 18.

***

Maddy's New World Pt. 05

Tour de Suisse Stage 4 -- The last, last gasp.

One more stage. One more chance to bid for a win.

I lay in bed, staring at the ceiling and wondering. What was the best way to try to win the stage? Where should I attack? Would another break go early? If they did, should I join them, or keep my powder dry until later, in the hope that the bunch would bring them back?

Anna was already in the shower as I lay pondering. She had no such decisions to make. She had already virtually won the race with that blistering time-trial. All she needed to do was stay on the bike, and make sure she didn't lose time to any of her rivals, although, with a lead of 2.07 over Linna Strauss, and 3.14 over Juliette Le Comte of Protime Femmes, she had a nice cushion.

By the time Anna turned off the shower, I'd decided that, if an early break formed I'd go with them, thinking, 'What's the worst that can happen?'

She emerged from the en suite, wearing just a pair of those Odlo sports knickers again. In white this time, which was a lovely contrast to her tanned skin. She was towelling her hair, and her boobs jiggled a little as she walked around the end of my bed. Ohhh, my.

'Morning, chérie,' she said, giving me one of her room-brightening smiles. Hmm. Serious head not on today. Maybe she was hoping for an "easy day out."

'Come here and lie with me a while,' I said, and I pushed the bed-covers down so we could lie to skin-to-skin. She crawled on top of me and we smooched, with her damp hair tickling my face and my neck. So bloody sensuous.

We weren't going to have sex - we had little time before breakfast -- but it was nice to share a little closeness to start the day. It was emotionally nourishing, though it did mean I had to figuratively beat my libido into submission with a stick to stop myself masturbating in the shower. God, she makes me so HOT.

We shared a few minutes of priceless intimacy, then I said, 'Better get ready for breakfast, darlin,' and started to get up, but she held onto my hand.

'Thank you, chérie,' she said, 'for all the little things you do. You make me feel adoré.'

'You ARE adored, Anna. 'Je t'adore,' and I lay down again for another kiss and cuddle.

'You are getting better at French,' she said with a misty-eyed smile.

'We need to get ready, we only have 15 minutes,' I said, tearing myself away and getting up again.

I nipped into the bathroom for a very quick shower, tying my hair up in a mad bunch on top of my head to keep it dry.

Unlike Anna, I rarely wash my hair in the shower. With hair like mine, washing it is a major operation, and drying it can take an age, so I try to keep it dry when I shower, and keep the "the hair wash" as a totally separate process.

So, I was in and out of the bathroom tout suite, threw on some baggy shorts, a tee shirt, and a pair of sandals, and we went to breakfast.

There wasn't much tactical talk over breakfast, everyone knew what they were doing, even me, so the chatter was mainly about the previous stages, and even the weather, which was looking a bit dull and threatening, though there was no rain forecast.

I think, maybe, there was a bit of complacency creeping in, like Stage 4 was a mere formality. It was a dangerous mindset, and I thought they needed reminding, so I said, 'Don't forget how unpredictable this game can be. We still need to be "prudente," as Jo-Jo has already reminded us. La Mission is not complete until the finish line.' How true that was.

We boarded the team bus for the 20 minute hop to Mutrux, the start and finish venue, and I spent the trip imprinting the stage route and profile on my memory. Later, in the heat of battle, I wanted to be able to race tactically, based on sound route knowledge, rather than just reacting to the course as it arrived under my wheels.

The route had three categorised climbs; the first one was quite early and the second one quite late in the stage, and then there was the final 6.7km uphill to the finish. All three climbs were cat 2, so not super tough, but hard enough if taken at race pace, which they would be.

I also noticed that the middle of the stage, between the two main climbs, also looked quite challenging. Although it didn't have categorised climbs, it did have a few gnarly little humps and bumps, which would work against a small breakaway's efforts to stay together and work as a unit. It would also disrupt the peloton's chase though, so I guess it was swings and roundabouts, really.

It was a tough stage overall, 132km long, with almost 2500 metres of ascent.

With the second and third climbs so close to the finish, I expected the day's main break would go on the first climb, to the Col de la Vue des Alps, and I was resolved that, If I could, I would go with them.

In Mutrux, the entire town had been taken over by the Tour and its entourage, and the place was thronged with buses, cars, bikes, and people. A loudspeaker was blaring out announcements, and there was even a DJ playing music. It was like a huge cycling fiesta, and it was impossible to imagine how sleepy this little hill village must be, normally.

I was standing with my team mates, the purple posse (although one of us was in yellow), near the sign-on boards, when a very north of England voice behind me said 'Ey up, here she is.'

I turned around to see Chloe and Licia, standing there, beaming at me! And Molly and Fanny, too!

'Hiya Maddy, how you doin?' said Chloe in her bright, breezy way.

My jaw dropped. I hadn't even considered that they might make a detour on the way home from the Giro, and it took me a moment to process it. Then I grabbed her in a hug, followed by Licia, Molly and Fanny.

'Oh my God, I... I didn't expect... expect to see you here!' I fumbled.

'Yeah, well, it's almost on our way back to Belgium really, and you seem to be having fun, so we thought we'd come and be a part of it.'

All the team had turned around now, and all were gawping in amazement. Molly, of course, is one of the legends of the sport, and Chloe already had the aura of a multiple grand-tour champion. We were in the presence of greatness.

'Come here, you lot,' said Chloe grabbing Anna for a hug. 'Any friend of Maddy's is a friend of mine.'

A big round of hugs and continental cheek kisses broke out, as all ten of us tried to make sure we hadn't missed anyone, and our gawping faces were replaced by beaming smiles.

Everyone close by was bemused by this sudden outburst of affection and camaraderie. We were the centre of attention, especially when they recognised Chloe and Molly, but Chloe said 'Shhh, play it cool. Don't let the press see,' and she put on an air of casual coolness.

'So, are you going out to watch somewhere on the course?' I asked.

'No, were staying here. We've got the big screen, with live coverage, the cafe bar across the square, and a couple o hundred Swiss fans who'll all be rooting for you, Anna. This is where it's AT, baby.' She gave a little hip wiggle.

Anna had a grin from ear to ear. Well, we all did. You just can't help it around Chloe. She dazzles.

'Go... Go,' she said, 'Get on your wheels. We'll give you a shout on the last climb.'

We went to get our bikes and I felt a bit light-headed. It was fantastic to see them, of course, but I couldn't decide whether all that excitement just before the start would help me or hinder me. It was time to find out.

There were 2km of flat road out of town, which served as the neutralised start, but as soon as we passed km 0, we started to go downhill. Physically, not figuratively.

There was a long, gentle, descent of 20km, followed by the climb to the Col de la Vue des Alps, which was also 20km long. A very strange opening 40k indeed.

There were no attacks on the descent, as you'd expect, and the bunch just rolled down easily, all the way to Colombier, on the shore of Lac de Neuchâtel. It was the easiest first 20k of a race I'd ever done. Then the climb started.

In theory, this was not a tough climb, but the peloton rode it at a brisk tempo and, as the old cycling maxim goes, any climb is tough if you ride it fast enough.

Often, a fast pace is used by the sprinters' teams, to discourage breakaways and bring about a bunch sprint at the finish, but with that 6.7km climb up to Mutrux at the end, that wasn't going to happen. No sprinter was going to win this stage, so I'm not sure where the fast pace came from.

We were caught up in it though, and we had to work pretty hard as a team to keep Anna up near the front. I wondered whether anyone would be able to attack from this pace. Perhaps a break wouldn't form after all.

It was a nice climb - or would have been at an easier pace - meandering uphill at a modest gradient on wonderfully smooth asphalt. Why is Switzerland so good at asphalt?

Canyon-Zipp and Amstel-Rabo had been doing much of the work at the front so far, but then Protime Femmes took over and there was a definite respite in the pace. Suddenly, the attacks began.

I didn't jump immediately, and it proved to be a good decision, as the first couple of attempts were brought back by determined domestiques, but then, with 4km to go to the top, likely lass Letizia launched a perfectly-timed acceleration while the chief domestiques were still recovering from their previous pursuits. She was joined by a couple of others, then a third. It was time to go.

I launched, as hard as I could go, and soon there was a line of four or five of us, all pouring watts into the pedals until we had clear daylight between us and the peloton. We kept up the pressure for a kilometre or two, then eased to a sustainable tempo, and the group formed and started working together to build our lead.

Letizia looked around, and I could almost see her thinking, 'Shit, MaddyMac's here again.'

We were a group of six, and we were from six different teams, which was a good thing, because none of our teams would do much chasing, with team mates up the road, and that would weaken the peloton. A group like this had a good chance of survival.

My breakaway companions were, Letizia Marchionni, (of Team Veloviewer), Leonie Rissveld (Equipe Verso-Lab), Stella Forsberg (Team Insta-Schwalbe), Tara Zanette (Team Vista-Maxx), and Cedrine Viseaux (Team Pro-Fast). Three of the group were climbers, Stella was a strong time trialist, and Leonie and I would be regarded as puncheurs/all-rounders. It was a good mix.

We crested the summit and began a gradual, undulating 15km descent to Le Locle, almost on the border with France.

We worked well together on this stretch, rotating through and taking our turns like clockwork, and we passed through Le Locle with a lead of 1.40 over the peloton. Not a huge gap, but OK.

Just beyond Le Locle, there was a small climb, and I came through to the front to take a turn

I felt I had the measure of this group, so far, but the final climb was a bit of an unknown because Letizia, Tara, and Cedrine were all specialist climbers and it would be a tall order to out-climb them. I was seized by the thought of how galling it would be if we survived to the last climb and then I got dropped. I couldn't let that happen.

I decided I was going to have to get rid of them at some point, but how? Attacking climbers on a climb wouldn't work, and trying to ride them off my wheel on the flat then staying clear would be almost impossible; there would be five of them and one of me. I'd always get pulled back. It would have to be on a descent.

The next 20km were fairly flat and we continued to work together to keep the peloton at bay, though they were reducing our gap, steadily.

As each member of our group took their turns on the front, I was able to get a feel for who was strongest, and since we were on the flat, Stella, as expected, definitely did longer, more powerful turns than the others. Of the three climbers, Cedrine, surprisingly, seemed strongest -- she was obviously having a good day - but I sensed everyone was weakening to some extent.

My confidence grew, because I was still feeling pretty good, and I wasn't going deep to keep up with the group's pace. I started planning my escape.

Jo-Jo coming on the radio to say that the gap was now down to 1.15 only hardened my resolve.

There was a little climb coming up and it was followed by a 10km descent into the Val de Travers. The descent wasn't really technical enough for me to press home my advantage, but it would have to do.

We hit the little climb, and I waited until Letizia had just done a turn, and was thus at her weakest, then attacked.

We were nearly at the top of the little climb, and the group immediately strung out as I piled on the pressure. As we crested the hill, I was surprised to find that I had shaken off everyone except Cedrine, who was still glued to my wheel, though looking rather pained.

I flung myself into the descent, expecting to dislodge her with some maniac descending but, although I opened a gap a couple of times, she always managed to chase back on, and we reached the valley bottom together.

OK then. I called a truce, and we worked together on the false flat that followed, to hold off our erstwhile breakaway companions and the relentless peloton. I decided to wait and see what happened on the cat 2 climb to the Col des Etroits, which was now looming.

Jo-Jo came on the radio with the alarming news that Anna had crashed with a front wheel puncture. She wasn't seriously hurt, but the team car wasn't nearby and she had taken a replacement wheel from Shimano neutral service. She was now trying to chase back through the back markers and team cars. Jo-Jo didn't say how much time she'd lost, but it wouldn't be 2 minutes, surely? I just hoped she could chase back OK.

Meanwhile, Cedrine and I approached the steeper part of the Col des Etroits, which averaged 6%. Not steep, but definitely attack territory. Sure enough, as the road steepened, she threw in an attack. She obviously wanted rid of me before the final climb.

I gave chase, but it was a good, strong attack, and it took me maybe 500 metres to claw my way back to her. As soon as I got to her wheel, she sat down, and we meandered upwards with her looking back over her shoulder, keeping an eye on me.

I spent a minute or two recovering, then, in a tit-for-tat move I counter-attacked.

Even though she was ready for it, I still managed to open a gap, and I stayed out of the saddle trying to press it home, but I felt the build up of lactate flooding my muscles and snatching my legs away, and I had to sit down again. A kilometre from the col, she rejoined me.

We looked at each other, grinned, and fist-bumped. What a strange pas de deux... The two of us probing and testing each other, taking turns to dance our bikes up the hill. To put each other on the torture rack. Excruciating, but strangely fun.

It was a crazy waste of energy really, especially with the peloton so close behind, but sometimes you have to race with your heart, not your head.

As we approached the summit, Jo-Jo informed me that the first chasing group was now just 36 seconds behind. Letizia, Leonie, Stella, and Tara had been swept up, and it was the elite group of GC favourites that was chasing us down again.

We knew we were going to be caught, but we hurled ourselves into the descent anyway, just for the sheer hell of it.

Cedrine was not just a formidable climber, she was also a pretty awesome descender, and I couldn't have wished for a better companion on that descent.

It was exhilarating. We swapped the lead back and forth as we swooped through the bends, even giving the camera motorbike some trouble keeping up with us.

I realised that Chloe, Licia, Molly, and Fanny would be watching this on the big screen in Mutrux, and that only added to the thrill. I knew they'd be loving every second of it.

The final crazy flight of 10 hairpin bends, down to Vuiteboeuf was a mad helter-skelter, carving through turns, using every centimetre of road, then standing up to sprint back up to top speed.

Having Cedrine with me made it even better; letting her have a turn in front, watching her taking racing lines through the bends, kissing the apex, knee cranked outward for balance, body crouched low over the bars. Then taking over and doing the same. I was on cloud nine. Better than sex? Now, come on, let's not go too far.

The elite chase group had been stretched out into single file trying to catch us. A long line of individual riders, strung out along the whole descent. The nearest of them was only a handful of seconds behind us as we ripped through Vuiteboeuf though, and we knew the catch was imminent, but we were about to have an extraordinary stroke of luck.

Just southeast of the town is a level crossing over the Yverdon-St-Croix railway, and just a couple of seconds after we barrelled across it, the bells and flashing lights started.

It was an open crossing (no gates or barriers) but we knew that everyone behind us would have to stop. To cross the rails when the warnings were activated would mean instant disqualification.

We looked at each other with 'I can't believe it' expressions on our faces, then got our heads down again. We rounded a bend and caught sight of the train approaching the crossing. It looked quite long, and it was going nice and slowly...

This turned out to be a double stroke of luck, because it also enabled Anna to rejoin the bunch and make her way to the front again. There was even time for Mikel, one of our mechanics, to run to her and swap the Shimano front wheel for one of her own spare ones.

We drove on, trying to maximise our good fortune. We had 21km to go; the first bit slightly downhill, then 7km on the flat, by Lac de Neuchâtel, then that final climb. Could we make it? It was a tantalising question, which really depended on how much the chasers were delayed by the train.

Turned out, it wasn't as much as I'd hoped. Only just over a minute. We were still very catchable.

We descended to the lake and began the 7km of flat, which was unbelievably scenic. The lake was exquisitely blue-green, and we passed the oddly-named Chateau de Grandson, which was like a fairytale castle with conical-roofed towers at each corner. Despite the pressures of competition, I had an extraordinary feeling of wellbeing. No matter what happened, this was going to be remembered as a great day on the bike.

The bunch were coming after us like a swarm of angry bees now though. They'd had their little breather, sitting there, champing at the bit while the train crawled by, and now they were on a MISSION.

The leading group was flying. They were riding like they were on a team time-trial, but in a team with 25 members. When I looked at the highlights later, I saw that their speed at this point was almost 10km/hour faster than ours; 50km/hour to our 41.5. They were munching into our lead. Despite our little stroke of luck, we were still going to be caught.

We shared the lead, and worked our socks off, but we didn't even reach the climb. As we approached a place called Concise, they had us in sight, and we both looked around and knew it was over.

Before we were swept up, we hand-clasped each other. I would have hugged her if I could have. We'd had a fantastic ride together. A real roller-coaster of an adventure, and sharing an escapade like this generates a lot of bonding. In less than two hours of riding and racing together, we had become like sisters in arms. Sisters of the road.

As the first riders of the bunch passed me. I felt a hand on my bum. Anna. But it wasn't a brief touch this time. She left it there. There was a camera motorbike behind, of course, it was staying close to the maillot jaune, and we both turned around and stuck our tongues out, cheekily, playing up to the cameras. Of course it became a clip that went viral.

I took a little breather before we hit the climb, and all the momentum went out of the group now that they'd caught us.

I rode along with Anna for a while. She had the GC virtually wrapped up now. Any chance her rivals had of overturning her lead had been and gone earlier in the stage. Now, all they could aim to gain, even with an attack, was a few seconds. Crumbs really.

The group knew that, and there was a feeling that there wasn't much left to race for. Yes, there was the stage win, of course, and QOM (Queen of the Mountains) points, but I had the impression that they were tired after their fierce chase and were happy to ride conservatively to the finish.

Why HAD they chased so hard? Usually, it's difficult to get a group like this to work together, but being stopped by the train had clearly irked them and they'd had a common goal afterwards; to redress the balance, make up the lost time, and pull us back.

Well, they'd done that, and they didn't seem to know what to do anymore. Some of them had clearly paid a price, and I noticed a few grimaces around me, even though the road was meandering pleasantly upwards at a mere 5% gradient.

I looked around the group. It was all GC riders and their domestiques. There were no sprinters, no breakaway merchants and no puncheurs, and I really thought they might just ride steadily to the finish in a bunch.

That wouldn't be a fitting climax to the Tour de Suisse though, would it?

I assessed my legs: Still OK. My power numbers: Moderate. My heart rate: Normal. I saw that Cedrine was still in the group and looking good. She was actually having a chat with her team mate, Jenny Lenet, who was lying 5th overall but over 4 minutes behind Anna.

We'd had a great day together. Did we still have a final fling in us? The idea grabbed ahold of me. 'What's the worst that can happen?' I thought.

I crept up to her and touched her back, and she fell back alongside me. 'Fancy another dig?' I murmured.

'Quoi?'

'Another attack?'

She looked at me with a face that said 'Really?' or whatever the French is, but there was the crease of a smile at the corner of her mouth.

I was decided. I was going.

With 2km to go, I launched my attack. It lacked a certain explosivity -- I'd already had a pretty tough day, let's face it -- but it was enough. A few domestiques made half-hearted attempts to chase, but they were all knackered, too.

After my initial acceleration, I looked around and was pleased to see that Cedrine was indeed with me. We were in business again.

We settled into a strong climbing rhythm, taking turns and just concentrating on building a lead.

No one had expected this. Not the bunch, not Anna, or Runa, not the team car, not Cedrine, not even me but, as Runa had said, you see which way the wind blows and you take your chance. There was little will in the bunch to mount a concerted chase, and it took them a while to organise themselves and dredge up the energy for another effort. We had a gap. We had a chance.

Of course, having Cedrine with me meant I could possibly get outsprinted at the line, but I wasn't bothered. Either way, if we made it, it would be OUR win.

As we approached the Flamme Rouge (final kilometre, after which the course is confined between barriers) an excited crowd lined the road, ringing bells, shouting, cheering and waving banners. I saw those Scottish saltires again, and they made me so proud. I swear I had tears in my eyes.

The best moment though, was when, through the general cacophony, I heard Chloe's unmistakeable, strident, dulcet tones pierce the noise; 'GOOO MADDYYYY!' It gave me such a boost.

There were a lot of tired legs out there now, and as we entered the final kilometre, I was definitely flagging. I guess Cedrine was too because when I gave her an elbow flick, signalling her to take a turn, she gasped 'peu pas,' (can't ).

The group behind were making a comeback now, their number had reduced, but there were half a dozen riders making inroads into our lead. With 600 metres to go, they were only 11 seconds behind, and they were pulling us back, metre by metre.

I dug deep, then deeper still, forcing my screaming legs to work, and Cedrine clung on, grimly, to my wheel. Was it going to be a last gasp triumph, or a last minute letdown? After all we'd done, we deserved the triumph, didn't we?

The finish came into view as we crested the brow of the hill, the road levelled out, and even began to go downhill slightly, and, joy of joys, I felt my speed picking up. I was able to change up a gear, then another. The chasers were thwarted. The gap began to open again. We were going to make it!

The often-imagined sprint finish didn't materialise. I simply toiled to the line with Cedrine in my draft. In the final few metres, I sat up and raised my arms, and Cedrine, just half a bike behind, did the same. We'd done it!

I rolled to a stop and unclipped, then stood astride the top tube of the bike, collapsed over the bars, chest heaving to repay the oxygen debt. I felt a hand on my back and I managed to raise my head to see it was our soigneur, Onna.

'Oh, Onna...' she handed me a jacket and a hat to put on, and took charge of my bike, helmet and glasses. 'Thank you,' I said between gasping breaths.

'Cedrine!' She was getting the same marvellous service from her own team soigneur, and I clacked awkwardly across to her in my cycling shoes. 'Cedrine!'

We embraced, and showered each other in thank yous and congratulations. 'What a day!' 'Quelle journée!'

Onna waited patiently until we'd finished our mutual ovation, then offered me a pair of trainers and helped me change into them.

'Do you want pantalones?' (track pants)

'No, I'm OK, thanks.' It wasn't cold and I was glowing.

The finish area was filling up, and I sought Anna out in the crowd and we hugged, tightly. 'Congratulations,' 'Félicitations,' We said.

The press were hovering, eager for photos and interviews and then Chloe and Licia bounced into view. They must've run to get here so quickly. Heyyy, Maddyyy! What a way to light it up at the end there. Fantastic. Well done you!' She grabbed me for cheek kisses. 'And well done you, too' she said, also grabbing Anna.

'That was a brill ride, Maddy,' said Licia. 'You and Cedrine were on fire today.'

'Yeh, she was great,' I said. I looked around for her, but she'd disappeared into the crowd.

Finally I submitted to interviews. It was the usual struggle to understand the questions asked by the journalists of various European TV and social media channels but it got easier when I was talking to Mark Richards of TNT Sports.

'Well, that was some show you put on for us today Maddy. So much action, and I've no idea how you managed to arrange a train at exactly the right time.'

I chuckled.

So, you won "most combative rider" yesterday...

I nodded.

'Well, I'll tell you what, you've gone a step further today, haven't you? You and Cedrine. You were like the dynamic duo.'

I chuckled again. 'Oh Mark, It's been the best of days. Cedrine was just fantastic. We fought each other at first, but as the stage unfolded, we became more and more like a team. I wish we could have been joint winners really.'

'It was fascinating to watch, I can tell you, and I don't think anyone expected that final attack -- by both of you! Did you and Cedrine plan it beforehand?'

'Not beforehand, no, but I may have floated it as an idea before I took off.' I put my tongue in my cheek.

He laughed. 'You know, I have to tell you Maddy, you're a great addition to the women's pro peloton. More power to you, and I hope you keep doing what you're doing, cos it's fantastic entertainment.'

'Thanks Mark.'

The podium ceremonies were an epic event in themselves, with so many prizes to be awarded. As well as the first three on the stage and the first three on the General Classification, there was also the first three young riders, first three in the points competition and the first three in the mountains competition. Plus, a prize for first Swiss rider (obviously Anna) and the "most combative rider," which turned out to be me, again.

As if that wasn't enough, there was also a team prize, which we won easily, having won three stages and the GC.

Phew, it was exhausting, but I wouldn't have missed it for the world.

We assembled near the podium stage, and somewhere, an oompah band struck up, which seemed very appropriate for a Swiss mountain village.

The stage podium was first: Josephine Cluse (who was the first of the chasers) got up on stage, and Chloe shouted 'Yaaaay, Jose.' Well, she's a team mate. Cedrine was next, and then it was my turn:

The PA announced me: 'Et maintenant, voici le vainqueur de l'étape... Madee Makenzeee!'

I climbed onto the stage and the three of us stood side by side for a photo, then we mounted our respective steps.

Oh man, stepping onto the top step was so emotional. Even more so than when I won Ventoux. Everything that had happened, and the people who were there cheering for me, just made it something magical.

I threw my little posy of flowers to Anna, then stood up there, spraying champagne, while sobbing my eyes out. Emotions really are strange, aren't they?

Cedrine had to mount the podium twice more, because her second-place finish on the stage had catapulted her into third in the young rider competition, and second in the Queen of the Mountains, and each time she went up, I screamed my lungs out for her.

Then it was Anna's turn, and the tears came back again as I watched her pull on the yellow jersey with her biggest grin firmly in place. Chloe put her arm around my shoulder and squeezed me.

When Anna tried to throw her posy of flowers to me, as I had to her, her aim was slightly off, but Chloe plucked it out of the air with one hand, effortlessly, and handed it to me.

I went up one more time, to collect the combativity prize, and by the time I made my final podium appearance to collect the team prize, I had my emotions under control again, and I stood there with the whole team, my arm around Anna's waist, and I felt incredibly proud, and incredibly blessed. I looked down at Chloe in the crowd and I raised my arm and just pointed to her...

***

Hey, Anna, do you know a good place in Neuchâtel, where we can whoop it up tonight?' said Chloe.

We were walking back to the bus, and Chloe, Licia, Molly and Fanny had come along with us.

Anna grinned. 'Whoop it up?'

'Yeah, you know, get loose and lairy, wet and wild, let our hair down n stuff.'

I laughed. 'Sounds like a lot of fun.'.

'Oh it will be. I can feel it in me bones,'

'There are lots of places,' said Anna.

'Brilliant, we can do a pub crawl,' Chloe beamed.

'Let's meet at La Pinte du Buisson, at the south end of town,' said Anna.

'La Pinte du Buisson? Does that mean what think it means?' Chloe smirked.

'It means "the pint of the bush,"' said Anna, I think in all innocence.

'Ha! Excellent. See you in The Bush, later,' said Chloe, grinning at Licia, and Molly shook her head with a smirk and glanced at Fanny. 'bout half eight.'

The four of them walked off, and Anna and I boarded the bus back to the hotel.

'I never knew Chloe was so funny,' said Anna, as we took our seats.

'Oh, aye, she can be a hoot when the mood takes her, and she seems to be on a high at the moment.'

We returned to the hotel and, of course, dinner was a rowdy affair. There was lots to celebrate, and there were many toasts, and many rounds of applause as we all congratulated ourselves and each other.

The team had performed faultlessly, with everybody, riders, directeurs, soigneurs and mechanics, all playing their part in what was a roaring success. Anna had returned to her very best form, Portia had achieved her first World Tour win, and her first yellow jersey, and I had enjoyed some marvellous racing and crowned it with a literally breathtaking last-gasp stage victory. It was, in truth, Swiss perfection.

'Oh my God, we're gonna celebrate tonight,' I murmured to Anna.

We didn't have any clothes for going '"out out" with us, but we did make an effort, with shorts, team-branded vest tops, and a bit of makeup and jewellery. I put my hair up in a white buff, and touched up my va va violet nail polish.

Amazingly, we'd never seen each other with makeup on before, and even though it was only light and subtle, it made a difference. She looked fantastic, and her eye makeup made her grey-blue eyes really pop.

'Wow, Anna, you'll ha to be careful not to hypnotise me with those eyes tonight.'

She smiled. 'I love that lip shade on you... Oh là là, you have a sexy mouth, chérie.'

'Come on, we better go downstairs before we end up not going out at all.'

The whole team were in the lounge, and they were discussing where to go. 'We are starting in the Pinte du Buisson,' I announced.

I'd already looked the place up on Google Maps and found it was within walking distance of the hotel, so we all set off in a crowd to walk there.

It was a great night out. We were a big unwieldy group, with widely different drinking speeds and divergent ideas about what a pub-crawl was, so we were never going to remain together for the whole evening.

I didn't quite realise what a British thing a pub-crawl is until that night, and there were those who preferred to find a cosy corner and just stay there all evening. I like that too, sometimes, but on this occasion Chloe was determined to 'hit the town, big style,' as she called it.

Anyway, the big bunch had a good time in the first couple of pubs, especially the "pint of the bush," and it was fascinating to observe Jo-Jo's interactions with Chloe and Licia, and with Molly and Fanny. She definitely had her lesbian eye on them. Maybe they will make a point of getting together for "temps de jeu" sometime. Who knows?

I noticed Runa stayed firmly by Jo-Jo's side, and they looked every inch a couple, even though Runa maintains that they aren't. They made a great couple, so I don't know why Runa disavows it so determinedly. Maybe she thinks admitting it would be, in some way, a commitment. Anyway, they both seem happy as they are, so each to their own, I suppose.

We went from pub to pub, drinking Swiss beer, guided by Anna - ('Oh yes, I know all the beer places') -- and I discovered a new favourite, called "La Nébuleuse" (the nebula). I wondered aloud whether that was because it was slightly cloudy, but Anna just shrugged.

We must have drunk 'quite a few scoops,' as Licia said, and we were quite tipsy by the time we had made our way, bar by bar, to the north-eastern end of town.

The group had reduced, bit by bit as the night went on, especially when we passed close to the team hotel, and when we ended up in our last watering hole, there were only 6 of us left; Chloe, Licia, Molly, Fanny, Anna and me.

'Where's your hotel?' I asked Chloe.

'Ah, the hotel... It's not far from here. Down on the lakeside.'

'It wasn't easy to find anywhere,' said Molly. 'The town is very full, but we were lucky enough to get two pods at the Hotel Palafitte, but just for one night.'

'Pods?' I said, but Anna was nodding.

'Yeah, it's brill,' said Licia, 'The rooms are all in pods, like chalets, built on stilts over the water's edge. They call them "pavilions." It's a total trip.'

'Yes, it's been there about 25 years,' said Anna.' I remember my mum taking me to look at it when I was small and saying she thought it was a very strange idea.'

'Sounds interesting,' I said. 'I wanna see it now.'

'Why don't you come back with us?' said Chloe. 'You can stay over if you want. There's only one bed, but... We'll think of somethin' She gave a devilish grin. 'Come on, nobody will know.'

I looked at Anna and she gave an easy-going shrug. We were all a bit squiffy so we were feeling pretty loose and uninhibited. 'Yeah, why not,' I slurred, 'it could be fun.'

We drank up and set off walking. It was a lovely balmy evening and, as we turned onto the lakeside path the air was filled with the unmistakeable scent of cedar. I had a fuzzy feeling of wellbeing, and a slight thrum of excited anticipation.

I took Anna's hand and looked at her. If Chloe had something sexual in mind, this would be Anna's first free girl experience and I wanted to gauge how she felt, but she was just smiling serenely. There was no sign of any angst or nervousness.

It became very dark along the path, but we turned our phones onto torch mode to light our way, and soon we reached the lit area around the "Pavilions."

They looked a little surreal, jutting out over the water in a bluff, angular way, like some military installation. They were not outwardly attractive, but I could tell their location was something special.

After we'd walked past about half a dozen of them, Molly stopped and said, 'Fanny and I will say goodnight now, and leave you girls to your fun.' Aw, shame, I could have quite fancied a bit of fun with Molly, and Fanny, too, was quite fanciable in that mature kind of way. Mustn't be greedy, Maddy, I reminded myself.

There was a flurry of cheek kisses, and we bade them goodnight as they disappeared into their pavilion.

Chloe and Licia were next door, and she let us in and turned on the lights.

It was very nicely appointed and comfortable. Compact but not cramped. There was an open-plan lounge and kitchen, a separate bathroom adjoining the bedroom, and an open terrace on the front looking out over the lake.

The bedroom had a door leading to a ladder giving direct access to the lake for swimming.

'Wow,' I said. 'Anna, when we come to Neuchâtel for a holiday, we HAVE to stay here.' She was nodding with a look of wonder on her face.

'Cool, innit?' said Chloe.

'Let's watch some porn. Liss and I often watch porn when we come back from the pub. It's a good way to relax and it's amazing how quick you sober up when you get horny.'

This wasn't quite what I expected, but that's Chloe for you. She's full of naughty surprises. 'Come on,' she said, 'bottoms and pants OFF.'

I kicked off my trainers and pulled down my shorts and knickers, and the four of us sat in a row, on the sofa, with our legs apart and intermingled. Chloe got up a lesbian film on her phone on one of the free sites and cast it to the big TV, and we settled back for a bit of thoroughly dissolute mutual masturbation. Bad, bad girls.

'We often wank off together, don't we Liss?' said Chloe. 'It's a brilliant hors d'oeuvre...'

Anna looked at me with a smirk.

We spread our petals open and toyed with our clits as the action on the screen began hotting up.

'Oh, she's so fucking hot,' said Chloe. 'Look at those tits.'

One of the women on the screen certainly had an awesome pair; full and round, with impressively erect nipples. They were in complete contrast to the other girl, who was almost flat-chested.

I'd say the busty one was about 10 years older than the other girl, and much more curvy, and she also had pubes, while the second girl was shaven.

'Do you have a thing for big tits, Chloe?' I asked.

'Maybe,' she smirked.

'And an older/younger thing?'

'Maybe,' she chuckled.

'Well there's no younger/older thing going on between the four of us,' I said, 'and no big boobs thing either.' We were all in our twenties, and none of us exactly busty, though I think we all have nice tits.

'She also has a big pussy-lips thing,' said Licia. 'Mine are barely adequate to keep her satisfied.'

'Don't be daft,' Chloe scoffed, 'I love your lips.' She made a "mwa" sound and mimed a lusty kiss.

On the screen, there was a startling close-up of the younger girl tonguing the older woman's labia. 'Are those fleshy enough for you?' I said, nodding at the screen.

'Mm, but I'm looking at yours, Maddy,' she said, peering over at my sex. I deliberately stretched my outer lips open so that my inner ones were fully exposed and pouting rudely. Chloe groaned.

Anna was in between us and she was also looking at my little pussy lips show. I know she loves it when I do that, and she was unconsciously copying me. I couldn't help noticing how shiny and pink her clit was. A sure sign of her raging arousal.

Licia was on the other side of Chloe, and she looked over and said, 'Wow, Anna, your pussy looks fucking succulent.' It did, too. I wanted to eat it, but Licia beat me to it.

'Can I taste it?' she asked, and Anna breathed a quiet 'Mm, yeah.'

Licia slipped off the sofa and came to kneel between Anna's open legs and I saw the the muscles in those marvellous thighs tense momentarily as she shuffled her bum forward to the edge of the cushion. Ohhh, so hot.

Licia placed her arms on Anna's legs and bent her head for a taste of honey. Her long tongue came out for a little flick of Anna's clit, and then a long slow lick from bottom to top of her slit. Anna groaned.

I was fascinated, watching Licia's tongue parting Anna's fleshy labia as it travelled up to her clit, then back down to dip into her well of hot sauce, and I noticed Chloe's hand going faster and faster.

'Ohh, that tongue, Licia...' I groaned. I wanted it inside me, curling, writhing, teasing the threshold of my spot, but Anna was going to get that experience first.

Licia's tongue was a wild thing, dipping into Anna's honey and carrying it up to slurp it all over her clit, and spreading it all over her hairy outer lips until everything glistened.

The women on the screen were completely forgotten, now that things had become live, and all eyes were focussed on Anna's pussy and what Licia was doing with that weapon of a tongue.

She knows full well that her tongue is something special, and I think she was enjoying us watching her. She was putting on a show and we were all in thrall.

She pulled back, momentarily, and extended her tongue to its full extraordinary length, then waggled it from side to side. I felt Anna give a little shudder, or shiver, then Licia hissed, almost menacingly, 'You want me to tongue-fuck you?'

'Mm mm,' Anna whimpered.

OMG I could feel an orgasm already stirring in me just from my fingers and what I was watching. Porn? Pah. This was real, and I was immersed in it. Lucky me.

With her tongue held rigid again, and her mouth wide open, Licia dipped the tip of her tongue into Anna's entrance, bringing a little intake of breath from her, then she slowly pushed it all the way home, until her top teeth pressed up against her swollen clit. Fucking hell, so hot.

Anna let out a plaintive little cry as Licia began her inimitable lingual gyrations, and Chloe and I were both diddling our clits like crazy. Three orgasms coming right up.

I felt a little jealous, to be honest. Of both of them. Not only was Anna getting one of Licia's transcendent tongue-fucks but Licia was getting to tongue MY girlfriend. I even wondered if my cunnilingus would be good enough for her after this... I turned to kiss her and pulled her head towards me for a little smooch. Just reminding her I was still there.

Anna, even with Licia's tongue working its magic, started rubbing her clit again, rolling it round and round and occasionally rubbing it against Licia's top lip, and I could sense her orgasm rushing up on her. Her body tensed, then went rigid, and she drew a huge breath before letting out an almighty hoarse cry of ecstasy.

Chloe and I finger-fucked ourselves to almost immediate climaxes as our empathy with Anna's come overwhelmed us and our howls merged with hers.

Licia sat back, licking her lips, then she leaned forward again and kissed Anna's hairy mons. 'Mmm, you're tasty,' she murmured, and Anna drew a huge sigh of satisfaction.

Chloe's fingers were still toying with her clit, keeping herself on the high plateau of arousal, and she said, 'Must be my turn now babe.'

'Er, I think it must be MY turn,' said Licia.

'Oh you'll get your chance soon enough, but right now my pussy is hungry for your tongue.'

Licia looked at me with an exasperated expression, and I said. 'Well, with a tongue like that, you have to expect to be in demand.'

She moved over to Chloe, and Anna and I turned towards each other for a proper smooch. We played with each other's wet folds, and occasionally brought our hands up and shared our creamy fingers, to the background of Chloe's moans of pleasure.

It didn't take Licia long to take Chloe to a second little climax and, as Licia sat back again, with a self-satisfied look on her face, Chloe clamped her legs together on her hands, saying Oooh baby, that tongue of yours... Mm mmm.'

Now I was definitely jealous. I NEEDED some of that. 'Do I get a taste of the titanic tongue, or what?' I said, boldly. I'm feeling a little left out.'

'Bloody Nora,' said Licia, anyone would think I was only here as a pussy servant.'

'Ah, you love it,' said Chloe.

'She knows me so well,' Licia murmured as she moved between my legs. 'Mmm, I remember your pussy, Maddy. Look at that clit hood. So fleshy and delicious.' She pulled up on it with a finger, exposing my almost purplish clit -- God I was so turned on -- and she made exaggerated slurpy noises as she sucked it between her lips.

I nearly jumped off the sofa when her tongue suddenly flicked the underside of it, and I involuntary let out a few wee noises. 'Oo, ah, oh.' I was so sensitive.

'Put it in me,' I gasped, and she slipped it into my dribbling hole until her face was mashed into my mushy flesh, her nose squishing my tender clit hood. We both groaned.

Instead of doing her amazing twirling, whirling thing with her tongue, as she had with Anna (and me in the past) she just kept it stiff and pulled back until the full, creamy length of it was visible, then drove it firmly in again. And again. And again. A straightforward, no nonsense tongue-fuck.

Each time she plunged in, my vaginal muscles gave a little squeeze, as if trying to hold onto it, and my clit was twitching like it had a life of its own as her nose bumped against it repeatedly. OMG this was a feeling like no other.

Anna had leaned over and was watching from a few inches away now. Her mouth was hanging open, and her fingers were churning in her pussy again. 'Ohhh, that is so hot to watch,' she shivered, and I agreed. I was also watching avidly.

Even after having my pussy eaten dozens of times since I came out, it still seemed almost surreal, and impossibly thrilling, to see a pretty female face down there, tonguing me.

Chloe had by now joined the audience, kneeling next to Licia and watching with a look of salacious pleasure. It was a pretty wild situation, to be the epicentre of all this lewd, lascivious attention, and I soon felt the rising surge of my orgasmic rush beginning.

Licia kept up her rhythm, and she was also fingering herself like crazy at the same time. As were Anna and Chloe, and we were all groaning and moaning our pleasure. Four dulcet voices mingling in a quartet of lesbian joy. What a soundtrack. I should have recorded it. I think I could make myself come just listening to it.

My cries became more and more urgent and plaintive as my orgasmic wave gathered momentum, and Licia suddenly switched from the rhythmic thrusting to something divine. She pressed her face hard into my flesh and bent her head back until her tongue could tease the very edge of my spot, then she rubbed her nose side to side, just a couple of millimetres, against my swollen clit.

'Ohhh fuuuuuuuuuckkkkk!'

She had timed it perfectly, and my orgasm was a seismic eruption. My arms and legs flailed, and my head rolled from side to side, as the most intense waves of pleasure swept over me, again and again.

Licia choked and gasped and made a gurgly exclamation as I produced a sizeable squirt, straight into her throat, and Anna and Chloe went 'Ah, ah ah,' in a wonderfully empathic reaction. I don't know if they came, but they felt ME come. It's a lesbian thing.

When I regained my senses, and control of my limbs, I looked down at Chloe and Licia, kissing and sharing my lubricious come, and I said to Chloe, 'Your girlfriend is a sorceress.' They both giggled and Chloe just nodded, knowingly.

Instinctively, I pulled Anna to me for a kiss and, perhaps oddly, I felt a surge of love for her. We kissed for a long time, and I reached my arm around her to pull her tighter to me. I think she felt the same way. Far from being a divisive thing, sharing sex with others had actually intensified our bond. How strange.

'Let's go to bed,' said Chloe, but bed didn't mean sleep. We were on the high plateau of arousal now, and for at least another hour we went on, indulging ourselves in the most prurient yet beautiful sex acts.

Only lesbians can do this. With very few exceptions in my experience, men come just once (sometimes ridiculously quickly) and then need a long gap before they can go again, by which time you're probably asleep -- he definitely is. I often feel sorry for straight women who never discover The Better Path. Sex is such a horrible compromise for them.

We went to bed, and explored many, many fabulous connections and combinations. Of course, we pampered Licia. After she'd favoured us with that extraordinary tongue of hers, she deserved it. At one point, she had Chloe eating her, and Anna and me sucking on a nipple each, and she was mewing like a cat.

Her tits are amazingly rude and firm. Totally unlike Anna's, which are so soft and jiggly. I love both. Vive la difference!

Eventually, exhaustion (or perhaps just a deep, deep satisfaction) overcame us, and we slept the blissful sleep of gratified bodies and minds, all jumbled together in one double bed.

In the morning, I woke with a small start. I was on the very edge of the bed, with one leg hanging out. The room was filled with joyful light, and I recalled the previous day, and all that had happened. I smiled to myself. That was some day.

I thought about the race, and Cedrine, and I wondered if she were gay, or could be, then I turned to look at Anna, looking beautiful in her slumber, as she always does.

All three of my companions were still sound asleep, so I slipped quietly out of bed and went for a pee, then crept through into the lounge. I looked at the sofa, and a little frisson of excitement went through me as I recalled the previous night's debauchery, and Licia's tongue. Quite extraordinary.

My phone was lying carelessly abandoned on the coffee table, so I picked it up and checked the time. It was 7:53am. Phew. Still enough time to get back to the team hotel for breakfast.

The curtains across the glass doors leading to the terrace were wide open (we'd never closed them) and the lake looked stunning, so I quietly opened the sliding door and stepped out. The wooden floor of the balcony was sun-warmed under my bare feet, and I stood for a moment looking out across the lake, squinting against the blinding sunlight glinting off the limpid blue-green water.

It was a liberating feeling, standing there, naked in the life-giving sunshine, with a zephyr of a breeze caressing my bare skin, and I threw my head back and exposed myself to it. What a beautiful world.

I would have loved to linger, but breakfast was calling. I vowed to return here with Anna, very soon.

I slipped back inside, and I could hear someone in the bathroom, so I knew my companions were rousing themselves. I returned to the bedroom to find Chloe and Anna, just waking, both with ruffled dawn faces which were adorable.

Chloe looked at me and said 'Oo, a vision of naked loveliness to wake up to,' and the sun broke out all over Anna's face as she gazed at me.

I crawled onto the bed, above Anna, and gave her a big smacker on the lips, and Chloe folded her arms and said. 'Hmph, don't mind me, will you?' in her mock-indignant way.

'LICIA!' I shouted, 'Come here and give Chloe a kiss, she's feeling left out.'

She appeared, and bounced onto the bed with a grin. Straddling Chloe, she pinned her arms down and kissed her aggressively, while I had another smooch with Anna.

'Oh, swoon,' said Chloe when she was released. 'I love it when she wrassles me.'

'Heh heh,' laughed Licia, 'You're such a sub sometimes.'

We both climbed off the bed and I said to Anna, 'Will you call a taxi for us, darlin'? We need to get back for breakfast.'

She called, then we started collecting our clothes to get dressed. We had no overnight bags with us, so not even clean knickers, so we borrowed some from Chloe and Licia. One pair were yellow so I gave them to Anna. 'I think you should wear the yellow ones,' I said.

We dressed, the taxi arrived, and there was a flurry of cheek kisses and hugs, then we were borne off to the team hotel and a scrumptious breakfast. I was bloody starvin.

I don't think the team was even aware that we'd been out for the whole night, and the chatter around the table was the usual post-race stuff, much of it focussed on upcoming races, like the Tour of Britain (which I definitely didn't want to do) the Alps Gletchen Classic, and of course the Tour de France Femmes, which Anna was almost certain to be selected for, and I probably was not.

We went back up to our room and gathered our things, then prepared to leave, and there was the usual tinge of sadness - of bonds and connections affirmed and then broken - but I was sure we'd be back together again before long.

Some of the team were off to the airport, but Jo-Jo, Runa, and Francine were travelling back to Zurich with Letty on the team bus.

As for Anna and I, you may recall we left her car parked in Aigle, which is over 100km from Neuchâtel, and in the opposite direction from Zurich. At Anna's suggestion, we'd elected to take the train back there to collect it. So, we hugged all our team mates, shouldered our little rucksacks, grabbed our draggy suitcases, and set off to walk to the station.

The Swiss are famous for their trains, and I was quite looking forward to it, actually. I like travelling by train occasionally, and if you were going to choose the best countries to travel through, Switzerland would have to be high on the list.

It's an amazingly easy and efficient way to travel too. We didn't even need to book, and thanks to Anna's travel card, boarding the train was simple. She swiped the card in a machine at the station, selected the destination and the number of people travelling, and the machine spat out two tickets. Easy peasy.

Of course, the train departed spot on time and, unlike the main road, the railway did give some views of the lakes as we rolled first along the shore of Lac de Neuchâtel, and then Lac Léman (Lake Geneva).

I sat holding Anna's hand as she sat with her eyes closed, dozing, but I was wide awake and gazing out of the window as we passed places that were familiar from the previous few days of sublime bike racing; Champagne, Grandson with its fairytale castle, Bavois, where I'd battled with Letizia, and Vevey, where Stage 3 had started. Memories came flooding back, and they all made me smile.

We arrived back in Aigle, and there was Anna's little Audi, right where we'd left it.

We didn't set off 'home' immediately though. Instead, we went for a coffee and a snack -- "bündner nusstorte," which is a combination of nuts, honey and sugar wrapped up in a crumbly tart, and simply transcendent.

As we were finishing our coffees, Anna took my hand across the table. 'I've had a wonderful time, this week, and it's mostly because of you, chérie.' I began to scoff, but then thought better of it.

I squeezed her hand and said. 'You make my life better too, Anna. In so many ways. Even when we were with Chloe and Licia... I mean, it was hot, and fun, and all that, but I knew, all the time, it was you I really wanted.'

'I didn't like it...' she said.

'Did you not??'

No, I didn't mean that...' She was clearly fumbling to explain herself. 'I did like it... I mean, Chloe and Licia are hot, and it was fun... fucking them...' (I sniggered) '... but I didn't like it when you were with Chloe, or Licia... I was, a little jalouse.'

I didn't respond immediately, and she went on, 'Don't worry, I am not going to become all possessive, like Greta... It was just a feeling that surprised me.'

I smiled at her. 'I had that feeling as well, some of the time.'

'You did?'

I nodded. 'Yeah. Chloe has said that it can be difficult sometimes, the free girl thing. There are a lot of powerful feelings flying around... It was fun though, wasn't it?'

'Oh ouais. I would like to try it again sometime. It's different than sex between two. More lascif. Less intime.'

'Yes, exactly. It feels deliciously naughty, and I like naughty... It doesn't affect us though... You and me.'

'Non.'

We walked hand in hand back to the car, and there was that tinge of sadness again. I had one more night of bliss with her to look forward to, and then, tomorrow I would fly back to Scotland. I knew I would return though, and it would be soon.

(To be continued)