always did, she managed to hang up the phone and then take it off
the hook. She had taken to screening her calls ever since—nearly
two months. She was sure Leona, tired of being ignored, would just
eventually show up at the front door to make sure her opinion was
heard, but that hadn’t happened yet. She lived a good forty-five
minutes from the lake and she didn’t like to drive, so with winter
settling in, the chances of her popping in grew slim, much to Alex’s
relief. Still, she felt like she was constantly bracing herself for the
showdown. It would be ugly, that was a certainty, but Jennifer by
her side gave Alex strength and she was almost sure she’d survive it.
Jennifer’s mother was much bolder than Alex’s. Alex sat in the
car, shaking her head, still amazed by the audacity of the woman.
Upon hearing things from Dawn, Kathleen Wainwright had driven
straight to the lake house, busted right in, and spent over an hour
screaming at her daughter, telling her how worthless she was, what
a terrible choice she’d made, what an awful thing she’d done to
Eric, never once mentioning that Eric had also been unfaithful.
Apparently, that wasn’t the same thing, Alex thought bitterly as she
recalled the harsh words. She’d stayed at her own house for as long
as she could, trying to respect their space, knowing that this was
Thy Neighbor’s Wife 181
something that had to be aired. But it was a warm, fall afternoon
and Jennifer’s windows were open. After hearing nothing but
vicious insults being hurled at the woman she loved, Alex couldn’t
take it any more. She’d stomped across the yard, entered through
the sliding glass door, much to the surprise of both women, and
simply stood behind Jennifer, trying not to show alarm at the red-
ness of her face. Jennifer seemed to take strength in Alex’s pres-
ence. She stood a little taller, stuck out her chin, and took a deep
breath. She stepped back so she was side by side with her partner,
and took Alex’s hand, tightly entwining their fingers together.
“I’d like you to leave now, Mom.” Her voice had only shaken
slightly.
“Excuse me?” Kathleen was simultaneously sickened by the
sight of their hand-holding and astonished that her daughter was
actually throwing her out.
“Get out.”
She blinked at the pair, stunned, then got in a good parting
shot as she turned the knob on the front door. “Your father would
be so disappointed in you, Jennifer.” Alex felt her lover stiffen,
heard her swallow as they watched Kathleen depart.
Alex had spent the next two hours holding Jennifer in her arms
while she sobbed like a child.
The only bright spot from Jennifer’s former life was Kayla.
She’d stopped by a few days after Kathleen and though things were
initially tense between the two of them, the former roommates
lightened up quickly and were soon giggling like school girls. Alex
chuckled as she reminisced. She had left them alone, but got the
scoop from Jennifer in bed later that night. It seemed that Kayla,
too, suffered from the Do The Thing Expected Of You disease. It
was expected that she’d drop Jennifer like a hot potato, just like the
rest of her friends and family. Bless her heart, though, she had trou-
ble doing that, Alex recalled with a grin. She had told Jennifer that
their friendship was too old and meant too much and that, though it
was hard, she was trying to pull away from the stifling grasp of her
family and to think for herself for a change. Jennifer was elated
when telling Alex the story and Alex knew they’d be seeing more of
Kayla in the future.
Early fall had turned quietly to mid-fall, much to the surprise
of the couple. Alex had started teaching on a part time basis, but
just as her principal had warned her it might, the position went
quickly full time. Alex had forgotten just how much she loved
teaching. It gave her such energy and confidence that she actually
wrote faster and more often than she had when she wasn’t working.
It was very, very difficult for her, but Jennifer finally convinced
Alex to change her main character, Paul, to Paula and to write what
182 Georgia Beers
she knew. It turned out Jennifer had known what she was talking
about. The story was so much better and Alex felt better writing it
and she made sure that Paula got the girl—without killing the hus-
band.
Alex’s friends were becoming more comfortable with the rela-
tionship. They were all wary, and Alex understood that it was for
her own protection. As time went on, though, her friends started to
understand that maybe it wasn’t just a fling; maybe Alex wasn’t sim-
ply an experiment for Jennifer. David threw a Halloween party—a
costume party.
“Of course,” Alex had said to Jennifer when they’d received the
invitation. “Because every gay man I know has to have a theme
when he hosts a gathering.”
“Why?” Jennifer had asked innocently.
“I have no idea. I just roll my eyes and go along.”
With their coloring and height difference, it was a no-brainer
for the two women to go as Xena and Gabrielle. They’d been a big
hit. Plus, Alex had found Jennifer so incredibly sexy in her costume
that when they returned home, it was as though the warrior and her
sidekick had finally consummated the relationship so many fans of
the TV show believed existed, right on Alex’s living room floor.
November had rolled around in a flurry of blowing red leaves.
The lake seemed deserted. Alex and Jennifer had spent Thanksgiv-
ing with Jackie and Rita, who were finally understanding what the
relationship meant to Alex. Once they saw how happy she was, they
embraced Jennifer, pulling her lovingly into their fold. Aside from a
pumpkin pie, some new coloring books for Hannah, and a couple
bottles of wine, Alex and Jennifer had brought two other, important
items to their house. Alex brought the first draft of her book, hand-
ing it over to Rita proudly for a thorough run-through, smiling as
her proofreader’s face lit up, impressed. Jennifer brought paint
swatches so the three of them could pick a color scheme for the new
baby’s room. The couple had decided that after the holidays, they
were going to try for baby number two and they’d been so impressed
with the way Jennifer had decorated her place, they’d asked her to
help with theirs. Though she balked at it, they insisted on paying
her as they’d pay any other interior designer. They also gave her
two phone numbers of friends who needed some decorating advice.
Alex recalled how Jennifer had looked at her with such glee in her
eyes that it warmed her heart. She’d shot a grateful look to her best
friend, Jackie, who simply winked at her and popped the cork on
the Chardonnay.
Spending Turkey Day with their friends had been wonderful
and it had helped take the sting out of the rejection of their fami-
lies, but Jackie and Rita went away to spend Christmas with Rita’s
Thy Neighbor’s Wife 183
family downstate and Alex and Jennifer were left to fend for them-
selves. That wasn’t necessarily a bad thing; they loved spending
time together, just the two of them. The hard part was, despite their
messed up home lives, they’d always been with their families for
Christmas and the fact that it wouldn’t be that way this time was a
difficult fact for them to absorb. Alex realized that it was why ask-
ing Carol to join them was such an easy thing to do. If their families
didn’t want them, then they’d make their own.
Neither one of them said much of anything about the half
dozen presents that sprinkled Jennifer’s guest bed, all with tags to
their mothers.
Alex blew on her mittened hands, gazing out the window at the
swirling, sporadic snowflakes falling from the stone-colored sky. It
was strange to her to feel so content in a relationship; she’d never
experienced the feeling before. There had always been some sort of
cloud hanging over her and whomever she was with. She realized
then that it was a cloud of her own making and that somehow, she’d
managed to grow up and reach some understanding. She now recog-
nized what it meant to simply accept the love of her partner, to
know in her heart that it was something she deserved, not some
fluke, and that it wouldn’t be ripped away as soon as the gods dis-
covered that she didn’t really merit it. She had a quick flashback of
the previous night, of her and Jennifer making love in her bed. She
remembered how perfectly they’d fit together, how well they knew
each other’s bodies, the sounds, the smells, the tastes. She swal-
lowed down a sudden rush of adrenaline, smirking at the now-
familiar quiver in her belly and marveling over the fact that after
nearly four months together, their sex life had grown stronger rather
than waning as in her previous relationships. Jennifer knew Alex’s
looks and Alex knew hers. Often, they didn’t even have to say any-
thing. They would catch one another’s eye and thirty seconds later,
they’d be naked. They were completely in tune, totally in sync with
each other.
It’s like we were meant to be.
Alex rolled that around a little bit, liking the way it sounded
despite its corniness. She liked the way it felt.
She was still smirking out the window when she caught a
glimpse of Jennifer’s green coat as she came into view on the path
from the parking lot into the cemetery. A tall, sophisticated,
friendly-looking woman walked next to her and judging by the way
Jennifer’s hands were moving, she was talking animatedly with her.
The infamous Carol, I presume, Alex thought.
When Jennifer looked toward the car and met Alex’s eyes, the
brilliant smile on her face told Alex that all was good. Santa Claus
had come early.
184 Georgia Beers
Alex couldn’t remember the last time she’d so looked forward
to Christmas.
THE END
Another Georgia Beers book available from
Yellow Rose Books
Turning The Page
Melanie Larson is an attractive, extremely successful business
executive who shocks herself by resigning from her job when
her company merges with another and relocates. While trying
to decide what to do with her life next and at the urging of her
uncle, Melanie heads to Rochester, New York, to stay tempo-
rarily with her cousin Samantha. She hopes to use her business
savvy in an attempt to help Sam sort out the financial woes of
her small bookstore. During her stay, Melanie meets and
becomes close to the family that owns the property on which
Samantha lives, the charming Benjamin Rhodes, a distin-
guished, successful businessman, as well as his beautiful and
intriguing daughter Taylor. Surprised by what and how she feels
for each of them,
Melanie is soon forced to face the facts and re-examine what's
really important to her in life, career and love.
ISBN: 1-930928-51-3
Georgia Beers lives in Rochester, New York, with Bonnie, her
partner of nine years, and their two dogs. Visit her web site at
www.georgiabeers.com.
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