As it turns out, James only had to wait for two hours. After I’d talked Annie out of her more glamorous ideas, we’d settled on to something more my style with my hair and makeup. As she was getting me ready, I couldn’t but wish that my parents were there. I’m not sure what my mom would have thought about the whole situation, but I’d like to think she’d be happy for me as long as I was happy. And my dad, well he practically raised James and sees him like a son so I’m not sure how he would feel. Hopefully he’d be happy for us, or at least he’d pretend to be. Either way, I still wished he was here. I never imagined I’d get married in a completely different country without even telling him. Of course I never imagined that I’d be marrying my stepbrother either, so I suppose that life is full of surprises. Annie puts a hand on my chin and gently makes me look at her, “what’s wrong?”“I just miss my dad,” I admit. “I hate hiding my life from him, and I never thought that I’d be getting
The inside of the church or spiritual center as Annie called it, was about how you’d imagine but a lot simpler. White walls, a light hardwood floor, a few pews, various small tables with candles and symbols from different religions. Large windows with flowing curtains run the length of the building and at the far end stands an older man in an orange robe and next to him is James. His hair is neatly combed and he’s wearing a form fitting black suit. Where’d he’d gotten it or when he’d had time to get it was beyond me, but as he locks eyes with me I don’t care. I don’t care about anything except James and the way he’s looking at me. Annie and Georgie stand on either side of me, each one holding an arm as we walk down the makeshift isle. That walk feels like it takes forever and at the same time like it took two steps and then I was in front of James who had a look of pure wonder on his face and tears in his eyes. “You look..” he says softly as his eyes trail over me. “The
I’m not sure what I was expecting the honeymoon suit to look like but it definitely was not a double sided sex dungeon. One side of the room looked completely normal and even homey while the other side looked like a picture from a BDSM magazine. The homey side has a large bed with a red comforter, accent pillows and large fluffy pillows. Each side had a small table with a lamp and comfortable looking chair sits a few feet from the bed. A long coffee table sits at the end of the bed with a vase of colorful flowers sitting on top of a lace doily. The BDSM side was the complete opposite of homey. A large X stands against one wall with cuffs on each corner, a row of crops and whips line the wall, bookshelves filled with various toys and bottles sit on either side of the X. A red ligh shines down on the BDSM side while a soft warm light comes from the small bedside lamps. The difference between the two is like night and day and I can’t help the laugh that escapes me. James shake
A week after our wedding, James and I are trekking through the underbrush of the Australian Outback. While Annie and Georgie seem to be having the time of their lives, James and I are sweating to death. “Is it usually this hot?” I ask, gasping for breath in the dry heat. Annie looks back at us, “Ali it’s August. We’re lucky it was a mild winter this year.” She looks to the sky and muses, “it could still snow though.” “Snow?” I deadpan. “You’ve got me out here in shorts and you’re saying that it could snow?” She laughs, “just be glad it’s not spider season.” I stop on the trail, making James bump into me, “spider season? That’s it’s, I’m going home!” Not that I really knew where home was at this point. Sure I could go back to my dad’s house, he’d love to have me home. And while I did miss my childhood house and my dad, the thought of going back to a mundane life made a pit form in my stomach. “You ok?” James asks quietly. “Aside from the snow and spider prospect.”
We finally make it to the waterfall two days into our trip, which is what I almost did right into it. I’d been staring at my feet so long, trying to shield my eyes form the blinding sun as much as possible, that I didn’t notice the others stop and step off of the trial until James grabbed my backpack and pulled me to a stop. “Careful,” he says as I come to a stop. “You almost fell in.” “Fell in what?” I grumble as I look up for the first time in hours. “This!” Annie exclaims as she throws her arms wide. Looking past her, I make out a large open area about twenty feet below us with trees, tall grass and bushes surrounding a rippling lake with a waterfall at one end. “How do we get down there?” I ask her as I take it all in. After the dry dirt of the past few days, the greenery was a nice sight. “There’s some steps carved into the cliff wall over there,” Georgie answers as he points to some steep steps. “There’s also a rope we can climb down or-.”“We jump!” Annie yells as she th
“I- what?” I stutter out in complete shock. While Annie was random at times, I did not see this question ever coming from her. “A relationship,” Annie says again as she sits up and looks at me. “Where all four of us would date each other.” I sit up and look at her in confusion, “but.. why?” She smiles softly, “because you’re beautiful and I enjoy spending time with you. And James is handsome and Georgie has had a crush on him since the second day we’ve known each other. We like being around you two and we’ve been looking for another couple to date and travel with and potentially live with us at the house. It’s too big for just the two of us.” “So,” I ask slowly. “You guys are..?” “Both bisexual,” Annie confirms. “Both into consensual polygamy. Both very keen on the idea of having a relationship with the two of you.” I breathe deeply for a moment, “I’m sorry. I just wasn’t expecting this. Just a second.” “Take your time,” Annie tells me as she lays back down. I watch her
We sit there awkwardly for a long moment before James finally asks, “so what do you think about it?” “I’m not sure,” I admit. “I love you and being with you so the idea of being another person is weird.” “But?” “But,” I say slowly. “I kinda of want to know what it’s like to kiss Annie.” I glance over at him as I wait for his response, hoping he wouldn’t be mad or weirded out by my answer. But as always, James just shrugs and says, “if you want to kiss her then you can.” “What?” I ask in surprise. “You want me to kiss her?” “I love you,” he starts seriously. “And I’ll support whatever it is that you want to do. If that’s traveling the world or making out with girls, I’m happy if you’re happy. But,” he adds. “I don’t like the idea of you kissing Georgie.” “Baby I don’t want to kiss Georgie,” I tell him quickly. “You’re the only man for me and I don’t even know if I really want to kiss Annie or if it was just because she brought it up.” “I kinda feel the same way,” he adm
By the time we made it up to camp, Annie and Georgie had both tents set up, a fire going and dinner cooking. I recognize the smell of Annie’s homemade pasta sauce as we get closer, “I thought you were saving that?” I ask her. She’d only dehydrated one jar for this trip, saying that her sauce was so complicated to make she only did it once a year and this was one of her last jars. She looks up from the pot she’s stirring, “I figured tonight was as good a night as any. Besides,” she grins. “Given how long you two were gone I thought you’d need some refueling.” I match her grin, “like you and Georgie didn’t do the same. Don’t think I don’t see that new hickey on your neck.” Annie’s free hand goes to her neck, “that’s a bug bite.” “Yeah if the bugs name is Georgie,” I snort. “Speaking of, where is he?” Annie rolls her eyes, “playing jungle explorer.” She waves her hand towards a nearly invisible trail, “he disappeared down there a few minutes ago.” “Ooh babe?” James asks
A week later and we are back in Kenya at the Reteti Elephant Sanctuary. Our van bounces along the familiar road, the scenery the same as the last time we were here. The children stare excitedly out the window, calling out all the animals that they see. I’m snuggled into James’s side, his arm around me as I doze. It had been a long flight, made even longer by the two bored kids that had refused to sleep on the flight. How they weren’t passed out right now I’ll never know. I’m almost asleep when the van comes to a sudden stop, letting a herd of elephants walk across the road in front of us. “Look at those!” JD exclaims, moving to get a better look. “Let me see!” Cleo demands, trying to shove her brother out of the way. Our driver smiles at them and points to the largest one at the head of the group, “see that one? How she is watching us? That is the leader. She protects the herd.” He lowers his voice, “she watches us to make sure we aren’t a threat.” “How does she
“I can’t believe they still have this shower,” I laugh as I strip. James grins from the bed, “it’s a good shower. I personally love it.” “Oh I know you do,” I tease, going and starting it. I secretly loved the shower too, the glass tube giving a perfect 360 view of whoever was in it. I’m under the water when a rush of cold air hits me and then James’s arms are around me, his head nuzzling in my neck. “James,” I groan as he nibbles my skin. “Baby,” he replies, his hands wandering lower and grazing over my pussy. “Not in the shower,” I tell him. “Doctor said.. no more.. water.. activities.” My words come out in gasps as James strokes me and it takes everything I have to pull away from his hands. “I’m serious,” I tell him. “You almost shattered your knee, James. No more shower sex.”“Technically,” James says with a smirk. “The doctor said no more standing shower sex.” He motions to the bench that’s presumably been in the shower since Annie’s aunt was alive, “he didn’t say anythin
“I don’t know how the hell you do it,” Annie sighs as she falls onto the couch. “What do you mean?” I ask, handing her a drink and sitting next to her. She takes a large swig and sets it on the table, “all of it. The kids, the husband, making it all look effortless. I’m fucking exhausted and I only have one kid. I don’t know how you do it with two.” “Annie,” I say softly, putting my hand on hers. “I’m fucking exhausted too.” She looks surprised, “really? You hide it well.” “I love my kids,” I tell her. “I love my life and I wouldn’t trade it for the world, but being a mom is exhausting. It’s ok to feel overwhelmed, to need some time to yourself.” “I just,” she sighs. “I just feel like I should be better at this. I’m not one to run away from a challenge, but sometimes.. sometimes I feel so trapped. I love Max and Georgie, but I’m not one to sit still. I feel like my body is vibrating with all this pent up energy but I’m too exhausted to use it.” “I know how you feel,” I
Five Years LaterThe park in Paris was exactly as it had been the first time- curly slides, dozens of swings, sandboxes and dozens of kids. The only difference was now our kids join in on the fun. James and I sit on the same bench we did the first time we were here, eating our ice cream as we watch our kids play. JD runs around with a group of boys playing tag, while his sister Cleo plays with another little girl in the sandbox. When we’d first gotten to Paris a week ago, the kids had been curious but shy about the other kids, the language barrier making it hard for them to communicate. We’d tried our best to teach them some phrases before we’d flown over, but it was hard to get a six and five year old to focus on what they call ‘funny talk.’ But after a week of watching French cartoons, they’d started picking it up like a sponge and by the time we leave, I think they’ll know more than we will. We’d decided on Paris as our first international trip as a family because it was where
One Year Later“Ali!” Annie yells as she walks into my house, her arms loaded down with brightly wrapped packages. Georgie follows close behind, even more packages in his arms. “Annie,” I greet warmly as I go and take the packages from her. “Jesus,” I grunt as the weight of them settles in my arms. “What do you have in here?” Annie laughs, “you’ll see. Just promise you won’t be mad.” Setting them in the gift table I give her a suspicious look, “and why exactly would I be mad at my son’s godmother?” “Well, I may have bought him a few things that aren’t technically suitable for a one year old,” she admits sheepishly. “That’s why these are from me,” Georgie says as he puts his packages on the table. “Someone had to buy gifts the little man could actually play with.” Annie claps her hands, “speaking of! Where is my godson?” “He’s out back with..” I don’t even get to finish before she’s racing out the back door, my sons name being shouted so loudly it echos through the house. Even
“Drive faster!” James yells at my dad who is already speeding and swerving through traffic. “Why couldn’t we have just called an ambulance?” Mary asks, hanging onto the panic bar for dear life. “In this economy?” James and I both answer. I groan as another contraction hits me, squeezing James’s hand so hard I’m sure I’ll break it. He doesn’t complain, even though I’m sure it hurts. It seems to take an eternity to reach the hospital but we only live twenty minutes away and with my dad speeding, we made it in ten. Dad screeches to a halt at the ambulance doors, honking his horn rapidly as Mary jumps out of the truck and runs inside, coming back out with a nurse and a wheelchair. James lifts me from the truck, setting me into the wheelchair and rushing me inside, nearly leaving the nurse behind. She follows us, a mixture of confusion and amusement on her face. “First time?” She asks when we finally stop at the front desk. “We need Dr Jones!” James all but yells at
The next few weeks are full of shopping, painting and furniture building. Mary and dad are truly a godsend. Mary knows everything there is to know about babies and what they need, while dad can build a crib in twenty minutes flat. Before I know it, our house is full of everything we need, and a week before I’m due, our house looks like a home. Especially since Mary insisted that we needed to have a baby shower. So, here I was, just days away from giving birth, sitting in my living room surrounded by paper storks, gifts and people. Most of whom were my parents friends since I didn’t keep in contact with anyone from my school days. I did invite Annie and Georgie but when I called them, it went straight to voicemail, Annie’s chipper voice saying that they were off the grid for the foreseeable future. They must have been checking their messages though, because a small package showed up at the house, postage from Zimbabwe and Annie’s handwriting on the label. While I wouldn’t t
The next day, dad and Mary come by the house. The boys immediately say something about power tools and building furniture before disappearing, leaving Mary and I in the kitchen. “So, what are we doing with the nursery?” Mary asks, sitting down her large bag and pulling out containers of leftover food. “Do you know what you’re having yet? Also, we should do a baby shower in a few weeks.” She glances up at me, “hungry? I can make you a plate.” I sigh, “honestly, just give me that bowl of coleslaw and a fork.” Mary laughs, “I was the same way with James. Couldn’t get enough of the stuff.” She pops the lid off the bowl and grabs a fork, sticking it in the bowl and sliding it over to me. “Nursery?” She asks again. “There’s a room next to ours that’s connected by a bathroom that we were thinking about using as the nursery,” I tell her as I take a large bite. “But I’m not sure if I want to do a theme or just paint it.” Mary nods, “we can make a trip to the baby store and look a
By the time we made it home and unloaded all our things, several hours had passed since the incident with Samantha. And even though nobody had called us and we hadn’t seen anyone else we knew, I couldn’t shake the feeling that everyone in town already knew about James and I. Rationally I knew that everyone would find out about us eventually. It wasn’t like James and I were keeping our relationship a secret anymore, but I did hope we would have more time before the entire town found out about us. And maybe I could have handled it better if I wasn’t pregnant, but I was, and somehow that made the thought of facing the town much harder. The ride from our home to our parents house is a silent few blocks as I stare out the window, my mind running wild with all the things that people are probably saying about us. James holds my hand the entire way, his thumb running over my knuckles soothingly and I’m so lost in my mind that I don’t notice we’ve arrived until James lets go of my hand.