Chapter 8

Our baby was born three weeks later.

We named her Maureen Rene and gave her my last name, Goin. We toyed with the idea of naming her Christa or Talya (the female equivalent of Jesus, meaning "lamb of God") because of her "immaculate" conception to two lesbians, but instead decided to name her Maureen, a derivative of Mary (as in the Virgin), and Rene after my mother. She was healthy and the most beautiful thing either of us had ever seen. I toyed with the idea of quitting my job, but my boss talked me out of it.

He knew I was involved with another woman, but that didn't matter to him.

"You're a good employee, Amberle," he told me. "You get your work done, the guys in the warehouse like you and I don't have to tell you anything twice. I don't care who you're sleeping with anything like that. If any of the guys give you any shit about it, let me know and I'll get rid of them."

And that was that. I know a couple of the guys were uncomfortable having a full-blown lesbian working in their office, but that was their problem.

"Listen, Amberle," my boss said one afternoon. "They liked you before they knew you were a lesbian. Now that they know, a couple of them are questioning whether what their preachers have told them is wrong. After all, you're not a monster who's trying to turn their children gay. Having a face to put on 'the enemy' really puts a crimp in some of these fundy Christians. I think a couple of the guys are also pissed that you won't go out with them now, but a few of the others are thinking about how hot you and your girlfriend are together."

I wished I had told him earlier because it would have saved me a whole lot of stress. He hired an assistant for me and even let me work some from home when I went back.

Why did I go back?

Part of it was because I needed something to do. I love my daughter but I wanted an identity that was more than just as "Maureen's Mom". But I also wanted to give McKayla a chance to be the mommy, too. That had been her dream since she had been little and I wasn't about to take that away from her.

After I recovered and felt up to going back to work, McKayla took her maternity time off under the Family and Medical Leave Act. I don't know if she was entitled to the leave, but her boss gave it to her anyway. She did all the mommy things around the house, and almost never called me wondering what to do with the baby. The only thing she couldn't do was nurse; in every other way, it was as if Maureen was her very own.

We promised one another that the little girl was our daughter, not mine. We knew that one day we'd have to explain to her why she had two mommies, but we'd cross that bridge when we got to it. When I look back now, I realise that the 12 weeks she took off were the happiest I had ever seen her. McKayla worked a little bit with some of her high-profile clients, but most of the time, she just stayed home. She glowed and only grew more beautiful in my eyes.

When the baby was six months old, McKayla and I got married. Not actually married, but it was close enough for us.

Once the baby had settled into a regular sleep schedule, McKayla and I spent the next several months planning the wedding. Let me say this: if you can plan a wedding with another woman and don't want to strangle her by the time it's all over, your relationship is in very good shape.

At dawn on a warm September morning, we stood on the beach behind our house and said our vows as the sun rose. All of our family came in. Brin stood by my side and Uncle Bill gave me away. Allyson was McKayla's maid of honour and Don escorted her to my side.

We both wore elegant wedding dresses that were just short enough that they didn't get wet as the ocean washed over our toes.

Each of us wrote our own vows. We promised to love and cherish each other forever. I think McKayla wanted to get married in the Church, but we knew that would never happen, so we settled for the next best thing: right in the midst of God's glorious creation, just before daybreak, with the sounds of the ocean around us and surrounded by the people who loved us the most.

After saying our vows, exchanging rings and taking some pictures, we went inside and began an all-day party. We had brunch for everyone who got up before dawn and then things got cooking later. Using the baby as an excuse, we had a little bit of time to catch a quick nap (read: post-nuptial nookie) around noon and then went out.

We spent the day with our families; we had an afternoon tea, then Brin and Ander snuck me away before dinner. McKayla and the baby were off with Don and Suzie.

When we arrived at the country club, I saw McKayla holding Maureen in her arms. She was back in her wedding dress because she thought I was putting mine back on. She looked radiant. Her smile stretched from ear to ear. I stared at her for a minute. She hadn't seen me yet. I watched her move around the room, greeting each of our guests.

My lover ... my best friend ... my wife ... she looked so alive. So animated. So vibrant.

Bretlynn was with McKayla and pointed over towards me. Our eyes met. Time seemed to stand still for a moment. Everyone else in the room faded away and all I could see was my wife and my daughter, the two people I loved more than life itself.

McKayla walked over to me and we stood there for a second. The room fell silent.

In unplanned unison, we each curtsied, holding our skirts out and bowing our heads slightly. McKayla's eyes twinkled.

I was wearing one of my mother's old SCA outfits. It was a two-piece skirt set that had a double-lacing bodice with elegant silver and black jacquard trim over a long-sleeve white cotton blouse. The skirt had alternate panels of kelly green and royal blue that matched the bodice, and it flared out from the waist.

My brother, sister and I had gone through our parents's things and found the outfit. It must have been one of Mom's favourite outfits because Dad kept several pictures of her in it around the house.

Flowers were woven into my hair, which was pulled back into a tight braid.

McKayla shifted Maureen out of the way and pulled me into her embrace. I put my arms around her and we kissed. It was a long, hard, sloppy kiss. Her tongue entered my mouth and for a moment we were oblivious to everyone else around us, even our daughter. Finally, I pulled away, worried that either our friends would tell us to get a room or I would give in to the temptation to tear her clothes off and take her right there.

"You look stunning, Elven Princess," McKayla said softly. There was an edge to her voice, part amused, part longing. Her hand caressed my cheek. I turned my head so she could get a good look.

On the tips of my ears, under gobs of glue and flesh-coloured make-up were movie-quality latex points. Ander had found them on the internet at some Lord of the Rings costume site. Brin put them on and made sure they looked like they were my real ears.

"As do you, m'lady," I replied gently. I kissed her again, this time for just a moment, but I could taste the hunger on her lips.

I slipped my hand into the crook of her arm and we continued to mingle about the room.

We sat down for dinner a little bit later and after that, things got crazy. There was a lot of drinking involved (not by me; I was still nursing), some dancing, some karaoke and some more drinking. Allyson and McKayla ended up singing some gawd-awful rendition of "Don't Come Home a Drinkin' With Lovin' On Your Mind" that was fall-on-the-floor hilarious. Allyson was blitzed and my wife was on her way. Suzie wouldn't put Maureen down so we made her the front of the congo line.

Everyone had a good time and that's what we wanted more than anything. For our friends and family, the people we loved most in this world, to be together. The fact that it was to celebrate the commitment McKayla and I were making was just the icing on the cake.

Oh yeah, there was lots of cake, too. We did the bouquet toss and the garter belt thing (twice). And McKayla found out that somewhere along the way, my panties had mysteriously disappeared...

I dragged McKayla out of the banquet room a little after 9:30. Don and Suzie were keeping the baby at our house and I wanted to have my bride on our wedding night before she passed out.

We went back to the Breakers, and this time we had the honeymoon suite. We already had our keys and went straight up to the room. The night bellhops gave us a couple of raised eyebrows, but we didn't care.

Right after Maureen was born, I decided I didn't give a damn what other people thought about McKayla and I. If they didn't like seeing two women in love holding hands, then they can go to Hell. Life is too short to not have the person you love at your side at all times. I wasn't going to worry about how other people looked at us.

McKayla's disease was going to take her from me. I knew that, and I dreaded thinking about it. I dreaded the talks we had about living wills and institutional care once she got to the point when I could not longer care for her at home. I dreaded thinking about the day when I would have to explain to our daughter why her mommy doesn't remember her name. I dreaded thinking about the day when the most beautiful woman in the world wouldn't know that she was the center of my life.

All I thought about was being in that moment. Being a bride and having a dream wedding. Knowing that the person in my arms would fight for me, would die for me, would love me no matter what.

We held hands and raced down the hallway.

McKayla was trying to get the magnetic strip key into the slot and I was already trying to get her out of her dress.

We stumbled through the door. McKayla kicked her shoes off into some corner of the room. I groped at her perfect breasts as her strapless wedding dress came unzipped and fell to the floor.

She steered me towards the bed. There were no lights on. Instead the room was filled with candles. Rose petals were on the floor and bed. The sheets were turned down.

Underneath her dress, McKayla wore a white corset with garters holding up a pair of thigh-highs and some white lace panties.

I pulled her to me, my hands under her shapely backside. She started to grind against me.

Our tongues were dueling. My teeth raked her lips. Her hands cupped my swollen breasts.

"Have I told you how much I love you, Elven Princess?" my wife asked.

"Only about a zillion times today," I smiled back.

"Well make that a zillion and one." She kissed me but had made no move to undress me. I think the whole medieval elfmaid thing was turning her on. At least that was the message her nipples sent me.

If I had been wearing panties, they would have been soaked. As it was, my excitement was almost dripping down my legs.

I tried to maneuver her on to the bed, but she was stronger than me.

Spinning me around, McKayla pushed me face down on the comforter and then she pounced on top of me. I felt her hand push my hair to the side and then her lips were on the back of my neck.

Had I been standing up, my knees would have turned to jelly, so it was a good thing I was already down. I half-heartedly tried to roll over, but she kept me pinned down.

Lately, McKayla had become very aggressive in bed. I didn't mind. In fact, I really liked it.