Chapter 72: An Ordinary Reception

-- SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2009 --

I did my level best to give Adrienne a baby right then and there, cramming my cock as far as I could go into her ultra-snug pussy before I basted her womb with every drop of pent-up sperm I had in my balls. Dawn and Summer even held Adrienne’s legs back a little farther just to help me get an extra quarter-inch deeper.

“We’re a team,” Summer pronounced quite proudly after I’d finished saturating my wife’s womb. “We’re The Quad.”

Nobody went to slurp out any creampies, although Adrienne did finally put on some thong panties to help trap my semen inside her after going commando throughout the ceremony.

My other two wives, on the other hand, did not.

Yummy.

The three girls then took over the cottage’s two bathrooms to fix their makeup and freshen up. Meanwhile, I checked my phone and found a message from June telling us that the remaining bridesmaids and “groomsmen” had stopped by the cottage with our wedding planner and then turned around when it became quite clear from the noises emanating from the cottage that my wives and I were a little ... uhhh... busy.

I suppose they didn’t make houses very soundproof back in 1889.

In any case, June’s message told me to let her know when we were ready to take pictures. Fifteen minutes later my three wives and I returned to the chapel, met up with our wedding party and direct relatives, and we spent over an hour getting into a variety of poses and snapping shot after shot after shot.

For the record, there was not a single picture taken of me and Adrienne alone. It was either all four of us or not at all.

Scratch that: the three sister-wives took a few photos alone together. Most were traditional poses, but Summer suggested the karate Charlie’s Angels pose from the 2000 movie and they had a few other kooky poses. I also had photos with my three “groomsmen”: Dawn, Bert, and June. And Adrienne had photos with her three bridesmaids: Summer, Sasha, and Candy.

We also took family photos with the four parentals: both of my parents, and Jack and Deanna Evans. We took photos with just me, Adrienne, Brandi, Brooke, and the twins. Dawn took photos with Dayna, DJ, and the twins. Summer, of course, had no family members present. But she didn’t give a crap about her dad or brother not being here, saying we were all the family she really needed. And she was of course more than happy to be included in the massive combined family photos.

There was a rather touching moment, however, when Summer took a photo with just the four parentals all reaching out to hold her shoulders. As both my wife and Dawn’s sister-wife, Summer could reasonably start referring to the four of them as “Mom” or “Dad” now!

We all started dragging by the time the photo shoot passed the one-hour mark, except for our resident supermodel, of course.

“Holy crap, Adrienne,” Dawn groaned. “I don’t know how you do it! My cheek muscles are sore from smiling so much!”

“That’s because Miss Grumpypanties doesn’t smile enough in general,” Summer quipped with glittering eyes. “Your cheek muscles don’t get enough practice!”

“That’s Mrs. Grumpypanties!” Dawn shot back with a grin. She smirked, leaned in to nuzzle Summer’s nose, and then gave her sister-wife a quick kiss.

My cheek muscles felt pretty sore as well, but I didn’t invite further ridicule by saying so. Instead I kept my mouth shut, drank a bunch of water, and sighed a great sigh of relief when Adrienne and the wedding planner finally announced that the photo shoot was done. We were given another ten minutes to chillax while the guests at The Presidio Officers’ Club were informed to start taking their seats upstairs in the second-floor ballroom.

After a quick break to freshen up, we all walked over to start the reception. We didn’t have a receiving line - nothing could’ve ever topped the “receiving line” of girls offering us their congratulations at the engagement party, anyways. Instead, we went straight to the Wedding Party entrance - although we did pause to remove Adrienne’s Cathedral train to make it easier for her to move around in her wedding gown.

And then it was time for our grand introduction.

// It’s you, and me / Movin’ at the speed of light into eternity, yeah / Tonight, is the night / To join me in the middle of ecstasy / Feel the melody and the rhythm of the music around you, around you

To the bubbly pop tunes, the reception’s emcee announced our sisters first: starting with the twins, and then Brooke and DJ, and then Brandi and Dayna.

// Imma take you there, Imma take you there / So don’t be scared, I’m right here, baby / We can go anywhere, go anywhere / But first, it’s your chance, take my hand, come with me

This time, as parents of one of the brides, Jack and Deanna Evans got to formally be announced as part of the processional as well. Finally, my mom and dad were introduced and waved as they entered the ballroom and made their way to the four-person table they shared with the Evanses. Bridesmaids Candy and Sasha were announced, and “groomsmen” June and Bert followed after them.

// It’s like I waited my whole life / For this one night / It’s gon’ be me you and the dance floor / ‘Cause we only got one night / Double your pleasure, double your fun

My three wives and I then made our grand entrance to thunderous applause, hoots, and cheers. The lyrics, “Double your pleasure, double your fun” held extra meaning for me, and even managed to shortchange the fact that I’d gone from one wife to three. I almost wanted to sing over the song that I was getting triple my pleasure and triple my fun.

// And dance forever ever ever...

Forever.

And Always.

The original plan had been to have a small table for the bride and groom centrally located along a bank of floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the bay. When we arrived, thankfully, we found a mid-size circular table in its place with four chairs. But rather than head over to the table, my three brides and I went straight to the middle of the dance floor.

The room burst into cheers as our guests realized we were setting up for our first dance, which gave the four of us time to settle into our places. Having only planned a choreographed first dance for me and Adrienne, I initially wondered if we shouldn’t scrap the tradition. But both Dawn and Summer had encouraged us to continue, so we formed two couples in closed-dance positions, with me in the lead position with Adrienne and Dawn naturally in the lead with Summer. The crowd hushed as the music started. And I gazed into my Tigress’s eyes as Leigh Nash began to sing.

// Been running from these feelings for so long / Telling my heart I didn’t need you / Pretending I was better off alone / But I know that it’s just a lie / So afraid to take a chance again / So afraid of what I feel inside

For the record, I really do mean that Leigh Nash of Sixpence None The Richer fame began to sing. ‘Need To Be Next To You’ was one of Adrienne’s favorite songs, saying that it held a special place in her heart in representing her love for me, and she’d gone and hired the singer to come perform at our wedding. I’d actually wondered if Kelly Clarkson might be available to sing ‘A Moment Like This’, but Adrienne shot me down. She really did want Leigh Nash. As the singer’s sweet melody washed over us, I gazed into my wife’s golden eyes and lost myself in the brilliance of her happy smile. And I knew that once again, Adrienne was totally right.

We swayed together as my steady arms guided our movements, and as the song kicked into the chorus we took a dramatic step to my right and began spinning in our own version of Beauty and the Beast’s ballroom dance scene.

// But I need to be next to you, oh I, oh I / I need to share every breath with you, oh I, oh I / I need to know I can see your smile each morning / Look into your eyes each night / For the rest of my life / Here with you, near with you, oh I / I need to be next to you

The world went quiet around us and shrunk, the walls of the ballroom and the dance floor melting away into inky blackness. The people around us faded away until there was nothing left but the four of us in a circular spotlight like paired Yin-Yang symbols circling around each other with the music all around. The air became still as I focused on my gorgeous bride, on the softness of her skin beneath my fingers, and the batting of her eyelashes.

// Right here with you is where I belong / I’ll lose my mind if I can’t see you / Without you there is nothing in this life / That would make my life worth living for / I can’t bear the thought of you not there / I can’t fight what I feel anymore

Adrienne’s eyes were large and luminous, reaching into the back of my mind, delving into the depths of my heart, and seeking the center of my soul just inches away. Her face was a priceless work of art, enchanting in its beauty. And as I stared down at her, feeling happier than I ever had in my entire life, she sang along to the song in a melodic, sensual tone.

// I need to be next to you / I need to have your heart next to mine / For all time / Oh, love you for all of my life / I need to be next to you!

Adrienne and I had choreographed the first three minutes of a special routine, aided by Sasha and Jessie, our dance class instructor. It wasn’t anything super fancy (I really didn’t want to get compared to Ross and Monica), but had a few flourishes that got our guests to cheer. After the first three minutes I was supposed to just start freestyling whatever I wanted to do, which seemed a perfect time to start switching partners. I drew Dawn into my arms first while Adrienne twirled away with Summer. A minute later I switched to Summer. And as the song came to a close I drew all three of my brides together so we could join hands and dance in a circle together before finishing with one big hug.

All four of us.

Next to each other.

For all time.

After the first dance, the four of us took our seats at the head table. My mom and dad went up to the podium, and Dad gave a welcome speech, thanking everyone for taking the time to come out and celebrate such a special occasion. He was both impressed and not particularly surprised to know we had so many friends who cared so much about us. And he was especially pleased to see them all embrace such a surprising turn of events with open arms and acceptance.

Then he turned to addressing my wives one-by-one.

“Even though Adrienne had not been born into our family, she first came to live with us after the tragic loss of her own parents, and we’ve loved her as a daughter ever since. In that sense, welcoming her officially into the family today was ... a mere formality.” He paused and turned to look straight at Adrienne. “You have already been calling us ‘Mom and Dad’ for years; that’ll never change. But maybe now you’ll finally go ahead and change your last name the way I know you’ve always wanted to but would never let yourself actually do. You belong in our family, Adrienne. You always have.”

There was a round of applause and Adrienne blushed pink and dabbed at her eyes with a tissue lest she ruin her makeup.

“Dawn I’ve known since birth as the daughter of my best friends,” Dad continued. “Jack and Deanna have always talked about how our combined eight children have always been ‘like family’ as if we were in The Fast and the Furious. But today we get to remove the word ‘like’ from that phrase. You truly ARE family, Dawn. Today you truly become one of our daughters, just as today Ben truly becomes Jack and Deanna’s son.”

“FINALLY!” Deanna hollered from her seat, and the entire room burst into laughter.

Mom took over at the microphone as she turned to face our table. “Summer, we’ve only gotten the chance to know you better just recently. I still remember the little girl who was in Ben’s fifth/sixth-grade combo classroom when we first moved to Orange County, the way I memorized all of the children in his class. To think of how far you two have come since then is nothing short of astonishing. I remember your mom being very kind to me when we first met at a PTA meeting. I only wish I had made more of an effort to get to know her better in Berkeley once you and Ben started dating, before time ran out. It’ll always be one of my regrets.”

Summer pursed her lips and nodded slowly. Dawn and Adrienne both reached out to her.

“But I’d like to think your mom would be overjoyed at the family you’ve found today. To have not just one, but three special people in your life who have made solemn vows to love, cherish, and protect you. And you now have six new sisters who will always have your back.” Mom gestured across the nearby table, where our remaining family and their boyfriends sat together. Then she gestured to the Evanses, my dad, and herself, adding, “and four parents who will always love you as one of their own. Because you ARE one of our own now. Welcome to the family.”

Safe to say: Summer burst into tears.

Then she got up and went over to hug my mom and dad, and then Jack and Deanna got up to hug her, and then all six of her new sisters got up and yeah...

... it would be a massive understatement to say that a few tears were shed.

After that we went straight into dinner, and the next thirty minutes or so were spent eating and talking. Well, mostly talking and not so much eating. I mean, -I- was trying to eat. I knew I’d need the calories to properly satisfy what I assumed would be three ravenously hungry women - and I’m not talking about food - eager to celebrate their marriage. The girls let me eat and babbled like crazy with each other. One of the greatest things about marrying three women, I suppose, was that each of them always had somebody else to talk to rather than depend on her poor husband to carry the conversational load.

Meanwhile, Leigh Nash continued to sing.

// Kiss me, out of the bearded barley / Nightly, beside the green, green grass / Swing, swing, swing the spinning step / You wear those shoes and I will wear that dress

// Oh, kiss me, beneath the milky twilight / Lead me out on the moonlit floor / Lift your open hand / Strike up the band and make the fireflies dance / Silver moon’s sparkling / So kiss me...

Across the table from me, Summer was still rather stunned with the surprise turn of events, and every time she glanced over at our parentals or our sisters she got tears in her eyes. Every time she looked down at the wedding band on her finger she got tears in her eyes. And yeah, every time Summer did anything she got tears in her eyes. “Even though I’d sometimes dreamed about all four of us getting married together, I never actually thought it might be possible. And yet it actually happened! Best. Day. EVAR.”

Dawn sat on my immediate right, looking thoughtful and not talking as much as the others. But I sensed no closed-off emotions from her tonight. Her shoulders were relaxed, and while she looked weary, she also looked ... relieved. Unburdened.

“Unclenched,” Dawn muttered to me with a rueful smile. “I’m less worried about ‘Perfect Dawn’ now. Nowhere in my grand plans for a perfect future did I ever think of getting married to you with two sister-wives. Never before did I consider ever getting pregnant first. Life is messy. Life doesn’t go according to plan.”

“It certainly doesn’t,” I agreed.

“The trick is to be flexible, adaptable. I’m learning, and I’d like to learn from all of you. We’ve finally put the whole marriage question in the rear-view mirror, which certainly helps remove a lot of angst from our lives. Next up: I gotta have a baby. Like ... holy crap! And then I’ve got to finish my MBA! And then I’ll need to find a job! And oh my GAWD I don’t think I can think that far ahead anymore. None of my old plans make sense anymore. But maybe they don’t need to. Maybe I don’t need plans at all. I’ve got you guys, right? Maybe I don’t need to take the wheel for a while. For the first time in my life, I think I’m good with taking a back seat for a while and just seeing where our life together takes us.”

I grinned and squeezed her leg beneath the table. “I’m really, really glad about that.”

She arched an eyebrow at me. “I’m not gonna magically transform into a completely different person or anything. At my core, I’m still the same obsessive-compulsive perfectionist with imposter syndrome you’ve been trying to deal with all these years. I’m still gonna have the same internal drive to do my best, to be the best, at everything I do.”

“And I love that about you.”

“And I love that you’re finally ‘my husband’. I enjoyed calling you that for a brief while, and I love I’ll be able to say it again. You’re my husband. Ben’s my husband. Ben’s my husband. Like ... holy crap!”

Summer laughed. “I’ve been saying that over and over and over again in my head for the past hour!”

“No more trying to make myself ‘perfect enough’ to get you to marry me,” Dawn continued. “You already married me. No more angst forcing myself to accept you marrying someone else. You already did marry two someone elses. In the end we didn’t exactly go with Option One, Two, Three, or Four. This is kinda ... all of them? At the same time? Okay well maybe not Option Three, but still.”

“‘Til death do us part,” I told her sincerely. “We’d said the vows together so many times before, but this time was for real. As real as we could make it without a government piece of paper.”

“It’s on camera!” Adrienne proclaimed enthusiastically from my immediate left. “You two said ‘I do’! No take-backsies!”

“You’re still his legal wife,” Dawn stated seriously. “I’m thrilled you decided to include us, but you’re still his true Number One.”

Adrienne leaned forward with both elbows on the table and stared at Dawn with a quiet intensity. “I’m Number One, right? I’m the leader, the Queen Bee. We’ll make decisions collectively, but I get final say. Is that what you’re telling me?”

Dawn and Summer both narrowed their eyes and exchanged glances that clearly seemed to say, ‘-I- don’t recall signing up for that.’

But Adrienne was already laughing. “Hypothetically, if that was what you were telling me, here would be my first decree: None of us. None of us ... will ever use the phrase ‘Number One’ ever again. I don’t want it anymore. I don’t need it anymore. In the same way you’ve been trying to free yourself from the shackles of pursuing ‘Perfect Dawn’, this whole four-person wedding is in part my attempt to free myself from ‘Number One’.”

My eyebrows went up in surprise and I paused in mid-chew.

Adrienne reached both hands out across the table to either side. I took her right hand, Summer took her left hand, and then Dawn extended both hands out to me and Summer to complete the circle on the other side. “Ben was right: we are ALL irreplaceable, and there’s no place for ranking in our lives. The only reason I asked to be Number One in the first place was in desperation to put myself above you, Dawn, because I feared you taking him away from me. But that’s not happening anymore. Love cannot be measured in a graduated cylinder, and there’s room in his heart - and in each other’s hearts - for all of us to be together.”

My Tigress wife turned to smile at me, but she still spoke to the others.

“I don’t need him to love me more than he loves either of you. I only need him to love me as much as he loves me. So no more Number Ones. No more ranking.” Adrienne caught herself and winced before once again focusing entirely on me. “Okay wait, that’s not totally true. I will totally expect you to rank us - your three wives - above all others. Fair enough? We’re the ones with wedding rings. Got it?”

I smiled and squeezed her hand. “Got it.”

Adrienne sighed and turned her attention to the other two. “I owe you all an apology for springing this on you as a surprise. Dawn, I honestly thought this would be the best way to go about it to avoid you overthinking it harder than it needed to be. Summer, I’d like to think you’d have been onboard with the idea from the beginning, but I didn’t want to ask you to keep it a secret from Dawn.”

“What about me?” I interjected. “You still kept it a secret from me.”

Adrienne snorted. “I couldn’t let Dawn know, remember? And you are the worst at keeping secrets, especially from a soulmate who can freaking read your mind.”

“Point taken.”

“Besides,” Adrienne continued with a grin. “I already knew you’d love this outcome. The ‘Perfect Ben’ inside you wouldn’t want to appear like a greedy bastard claiming all three of us, but we all knew that deep down you wanted to marry ALL of us. I’m your fish. Dawn’s your cow. Summer’s your ... We don’t need to invent some other animal reference, do we?”

“I didn’t actually mind the houseplant jokes,” Summer volunteered.

“You’re my Sunshine and Master’s Plaything and I think we have MORE than enough nicknames to try and keep track of, huh?” I insisted.

“I can be your honey-bunny, Thumper,” Summer said brightly, her royal-blue eyes shining. “I rather like the idea of being your bunny.”

I blinked and briefly imagined Summer in a Playboy outfit complete with ears and a white cotton tail. It was pretty hot. “I stand corrected. I guess we’ll add one more animal to the list.”

“Admit it, Tiger,” Adrienne said to me with a smile. “After all the back-and-forth drama wondering if you’d have to pick me or pick Dawn or pick Summer or anybody else, getting all THREE of us to declare that we belong to you, that you own us, and that we WANT you to own us is everything you’d always dreamed of. THIS is your super-duper Happily Ever After.”

I smiled broadly at my three wives. “It is.”

After dinner, the band took a break and it was time for the toasts. As best woman and maid of honor, Dawn and Summer had both prepared speeches, but we skipped those entirely and kept the girls with us at the head table.

Fortunately, Bert and Sasha were more than ready to rise to the occasion. Good thing too, because I really didn’t want to see June put on the spot in front of a microphone making an impromptu speech about love and commitment.

Bert gave me a good-natured, off-the-cuff ribbing that more or less expressed his dumbfounded incredulity that ANY girl would be willing to settle down with a clueless idiot such as me, let alone THREE. He stated quite truthfully that relationship drama had dogged me for the entire time he’d known me. And he spun a tale about spending six hours watching me run around the Cal Berkeley campus holding a ring asking literally every girl I ran into if she’d marry me.

“True story,” he insisted with a wink.

Bert argued to all of our guests that there were thousands of better catches in the Bay Area, and that if any of my three wives came to their senses over the next few days, he’d be happy to help them find other guys instead.

“Forget the other guys, ladies!” Kady hooted. “We can set you up with other girls!”

“And after you hook up with other girls, I’ll take Ben if you don’t want him!” Cassidy hollered from her seat.

“I’ll take him!” one of the Tri-Delts yelled next, although I didn’t immediately spot which one. She was followed by another, “I’ll take him!”

Emma slapped tipsy Eden’s hand before it could go up. And it took at least two minutes to get all of our guests to settle back down from their laughter.

“But seriously,” Bert began as he turned to face me. “Ben ... buddy ... All jokes aside, you are an amazing guy. I’ve never met a man more understanding or forgiving of those he cares about. I’ve never met anyone else so committed to making the lives of everyone around him better at each and every moment of each and every day. There’s no one else in the world I could ever imagine trying to keep up with just one of those women, let alone all three. I already know the four of you are gonna have an incredible life together. To the brides and groom!”

“To the brides and groom!” everyone exclaimed as they raised their glasses in toast.

Sasha’s speech was effervescent with joy at seeing her favorite people in the world take this final step together. And although Dawn’s pregnancy had not yet been revealed, she finished by saying, “I look forward to someday being ‘Auntie Sosh’ to more adorable babies soon! So get on that, will ya, girls?”

Everyone laughed, cheered, and clapped at that.

I simply smiled and rubbed Dawn’s leg beneath the table.

After that, the band went through their final songs while we paired up for special dances. Dad got three father-daughter dances, as did Jack Evans. I danced with my own mom and Deanna Evans, the former simply beaming with pride, while the latter reminded me of her offer to ‘help’ when the baby was born. And I danced with each of my sisters, including Dayna and DJ.

// There she goes / There she goes again / Racing through my brain / And I just can’t contain / This feeling that remains

// There she goes / There she goes again / Pulsing through my veins / And I just can’t contain / This feeling that remains...

DJ was absolutely gorgeous today, and I couldn’t take my eyes off her.

You had your chance, dude. You had your chance.

More right than I want to admit. [sigh]

By then, other guests had started to join us on the dance floor. I sought out Kim and took my hanamuguri for a twirl. Meanwhile, BJ spent time spinning in a circle with April and Gabrielle holding his hands and revolving around him, at least until he got dizzy and plopped down on his butt. As part of the wedding party, June, Sasha, and Candy came to me next.

The band finished up their set with an encore of ‘Need To Be Next To You’, after which it was time to cut the cake. My brides and I took turns cutting slices and drank champagne sips with our arms entwined. A DJ (the disc jockey kind) set up shop on the stage, started blaring dance music, and then it was time to party.

More guests flooded onto the dance floor. An actual line formed at the open bar. And I went to sit down for a minute, taking advantage of my first real chance to pause, catch my breath, and look around the room at all the special people who had made time to come and bear witness to this special day.

My parents and the Evanses were chatting at their table, but they were not alone: Viktoriya Isakova, my Ice Queen former professor, and Mila Visser, my boss at JKE, sat with them in amiable conversation. I found myself wondering if any of them might’ve connected with Yvaine, bless her soul, if given the chance. My heart ached for a moment at the realization that Yvaine never got to see her daughter get married.

Yes I did, Yvaine told me. Not even death could keep me from coming to see this!

I whipped my head around, searching in futility for the origin of that voice. Instead I found Summer beaming straight at me, eyes wet and her heart aglow, and I knew in that moment her mom was talking to her as well.

Just because it can’t be explained doesn’t mean it isn’t real, Brooke’s voice from memory echoed in my mind as I stood up and circled around the table to give my redheaded bride a sweet kiss. And Summer gave me a radiant smile in return and nuzzled her nose against mine.

Eventually I turned my attention back out across the room, and as I did so, it occurred to me that not many weddings featured a groom who had been intimate with more than half of the guests, but this was no ordinary wedding.

Tri-Delts both past and present filled several tables: Jayden and Jordyn Schenke, Nora and Whitney, Neera, Zahri, Quinn, Tova, Mi-young, Aline, Chanthavy, and Paloma. Jocelyn, Lakhi, Tonya, Misa, Madison, Lupe, Arika, and Alani. Bridget, Kelly, Leighton, Natalee, and Annette were nearby. Peyton sent her regards but had been unable to attend. And my heart was aglow at the sight of my lovely Jamie Miano and the cutie Holland sisters, both Andie and Kirstie. Adrienne and I got up together, joined Sasha, and went to socialize for a little while.

Meanwhile, Dawn met up with Gwen, Robin, Dayna, Brandi, and a couple of other friends from my early college years: Tracy McMillan and Monique St. Claire. Jared was nearby chatting with Nick Campbell and his girlfriend Deedee. Also with them were Kenny Doyle and his girlfriend Heidi. Small world: Nick and Kenny actually worked at the same company together in LA.