Chapter 25

“Hey guys, remember the girl that I know that came over and looked at your drawings for the art show?”  Traci came into the living room carrying the cordless phone.

“You mean Karen?” said Greg as he looked up from the book he was reading.

“That’s her.  She is showing some of her work at the Gay Pride Celebration that is going on down at the park this weekend.  She is asking if we would want to come down and support her?”

“Sure!”  was Mandy’s reply. “She was so nice to help me out when I was just starting.  I would love to go give her some support now.”

Traci gave them both a grin and went back to the receiver, assuring the girl on the other end that they would all be there.  As soon as she had ended the conversation, she came in to sit with the others.

“Karen is really nervous.  She hasn’t ever felt that her work was good enough to show until some of her friends finally convinced her.  She is really looking for moral support more than anything.”

Mandy could understand her completely.  Even with all the positive feedback she received for her works, she still felt insecure about it.  “I’m more than happy to help out someone else like others have for me.  I’m curious though, isn’t the Gay Pride thing an odd place to display your work for the first time?”

Traci looked at her lover for a moment.  “Didn’t you know that Karen is a lesbian?”  Mandy shook her head.  “Well she is.  She doesn’t advertise it, but she has had a female lover for as long as I have known her.”

“Wasn’t she checking out Greg when she was here?”

“I think she appreciates the human form, whether male or female.  I imagine that she was looking at Greg for the hunk he is, kinda like if you notice another woman who is sexy.  It doesn’t mean you want to run out and sleep with her.”

Greg piped up then.  “Well if you don’t want to sleep with this sexy woman you are talking about, then can I?”  Mandy didn’t hesitate to throw a pillow at him for that remark.

Mandy continued to voice her thoughts.  “In Karen’s case, it doesn’t matter in the least to me.  I’m just glad to know about it before I said something that would’ve made me look stupid.”

“And that explains why she would be showing at the festival then,” added Greg.

Heather and Adrian had asked to take Jenni for the weekend so Friday night, Mandy dropped her off at their apartment.  Then, she came home and had a nice dinner with her lovers before spending some time relaxing and playing grab-ass in the hot tub.  Of course this led to some wild and very satisfying sex, ending with Greg wilting cock still stuffed firmly into Traci’s well-used pussy.  Mandy, who was almost recovered from the orgasms she had experienced, slowly got up and grabbed washrags and towels to help clean up the other two.  Deciding that they were too tired to really clean up, they just pulled the sheet over themselves and drifted into a very satisfied sleep.

They all pulled themselves out of bed the next morning and slipped into the shower as soon as everyone had taken the time to do their personal abolitions.  By the time they ate and dressed, it was closer to mid-morning than when the Celebration opened.    They succeeded to get past the protesters that came to let their opinions be known and wandered into the area.

They were just wandering through, looking at the displays, when some guy came up to them.  The girls were looking at some literature on a table while Greg was standing to the side.  The man came up to Greg and asked if he was interested in a date later.    Greg told him that he appreciated the compliment, but that he didn’t go that way.

“What are you doing here then?” the guy asked somewhat aggressively.

“We,” and Greg pointed to his two lovers, Mandy showing her pregnancy now, “... are here to check out a friend’s artwork and lend her some moral support.”

The guy then wandered off saying something about “breeders”, continuing to look for a date for the evening.

Greg shook it off.  This was an event that he probably wouldn’t have come to except for Karen.  And that really wasn’t right to his thinking.  They all three enjoyed wandering through fairs, flea markets and special occasions.  Why should they have avoided this one?  Was it because of who put it on and who the crowd was?  He silently chided himself for thinking like that and vowed to be sure to make it to the next one as well.  

When he told the other two what he had been thinking, they agreed with him.  It was not a conscious decision to avoid them, but rather a thought that they probably wouldn’t be interested.  And they had to admit that they were wrong.  There was not much difference between this and say the Founder’s Day celebration.  Some of the displays were geared for the Gay community, naturally, but many of the other ones were just the same as they would be anywhere.

After wandering around for a while, they finally found Karen and her booth.  She worked mainly in sculpture, but her pieces were elegant in their form.  As soon as she saw the trio, she came over and gave them all a hug.  “You can’t imagine how nervous I am today,” she told them.

“I think I can understand,” was Mandy’s reply.  “But your work is fantastic.  I think you should enter the next Artist’s competition.  Mr. Harrington would probably love what you do.”

“You really think so?”

“I sure do.  I know I like your work more than some that I have seen in his gallery.  Matter of fact, I would like to buy that one over there.”  It was a smaller piece, a set of five different sized ‘stems’ that twisted around each other, giving the sculpture a flowing effect.

Karen looked at the one that Mandy pointed to.  “Tell you what.  I will trade it to you for a portrait of me and my partner, Dani.  Would you be interested in a trade like that?”

“That doesn’t seem fair.  You spent a lot of time and effort on that.”

“Yeah, but I love your work and want one of your originals.  And I am the one who made the offer you know.”

Mandy smiled at the other woman.  “You have got yourself a deal.  Let me know when you two can come over and we will do it.”

Karen looked a little apprehensive.  “You want us to come over, where your neighbors will see?”

Greg stepped up then.  “First of all, we don’t give a damn what the neighbors or anyone else thinks.  You and Dani are more than welcome any time you want to come by.  You are our friend and friends are always welcome.”

“Thanks Greg.  We don’t usually go anyone’s house together unless it is another gay or lesbian couple.  Some folks don’t understand.”

Traci put her hand on her friend’s arm.  “We are all in agreement.  After what has been printed about us, why should we worry if a lesbian couple comes over?”

Yeah, I guess.  I saw all that crap.  I knew you guys didn’t do all the things they said, but I couldn’t believe what they put you all through.”

Then a young woman approached them.  She was shorter than Mandy and had beautiful dark, wavy hair that fell down just past her shoulders.  She had piercing dark eyes set in a round face.  She was a little overweight, but she carried herself well.  She walked up to Karen and took her hand.

“Are you the friends that Karen has told me so much about?” she asked, looking at the trio.

“You must be Dani,” Mandy said holding out her hand in greeting.  “I’m very glad to meet you.”

Karen made the introductions.  Dani shook hands with them all while she looked intently at each.

“You don’t seem bothered at all by our orientation.”

Greg looked at her.  “Ahhh... Should we be?”

“We meet so many people who are shocked or disgusted by who we are or what they think we do.  It is just surprising to see straight people that aren’t bothered by it all.”

Karen interrupted.  “Sweety, these people are different.  I have never seen any of them judge someone for what or who they are.  It is what people do and how they act that counts.”

Dani looked abashed.  “I’m sorry.  You folks have been very nice to Karen.  I guess when I had to run the gauntlet to get back in here, it just put me in a bad mood.”

She went on to tell them all that Nicholas Wilson had gathered a bunch of his gay-hating disciples out on the edges of the gathering and was looking for his bullhorn when she managed to get through.  They were all carrying signs that accused gays and lesbians of all sorts of horrible and false things.  Looking at Mandy’s expanding belly, she said that one of the things said was that gays hate all pregnant women because the gays can’t have children and any woman pregnant should be scared that they would be dragged to an abortion clinic and their babies taken.

“Do I look scared to be here?” was Mandy’s only comment.  Then the trio told about the fiasco with Wilson they had experienced at the Founder’s Day festival.  Karen and Dani both remembered reading about it and Dani was surprised to learn that they all had been there in the middle of it.

They all heard a ruckus start at the edge of the park.  Wilson and his gang of protesters had crossed the line and come into the marked areas of the park to ‘preach’.  Greg and the rest moved over to where the confrontation was happening.

A group of gay men had formed a line and were refusing to allow the protesters to get any closer.  The protesters in return were trying to push their way into the park.  It was starting to get ugly and Greg turned to get them out of the way when one of the protesters shoved him and knocked him off balance.  He fell into a couple of the gay defenders, who kept him upright.

Wilson saw what happened, and figured that since they were outnumbered, the best plan was to stop any violence other than verbal.  Walking up he recognized the trio from before and then proceeded to try and make examples of them as being the models of sinful lifestyles.

“These three are fornicators that support the killing of babies and allowing our young people to have unnatural and lustful carnal relations!  Now they are among the Sodomites giving their support to their abdominal lifestyle!  They go against God and his commandments and must be saved from the fires of hell!”  He started to put his hands on Mandy and Greg stepped in front of her.

“You touch her and you won’t have a hand left to pray with,” he growled at the older man.

Wilson stepped back, but then spotted Mandy’s pregnancy.  “Are you going to kill this one too, you vile harlot?!?”

Mandy looked horrified and Greg was about to pound this man into a pile of pious dung, but the arrival of the police saved the older man from a painful experience and Greg from time in a jail cell.

Confusion reigned as both sides tried to tell their version of what had happened.  Wilson was yelling that he had the right to preach to the sinners.  The participants in the festival yelled back that they had rented the park and he had no right to come in and harass them.  It took over a dozen officers using nightsticks and pepper spray to get the combatants apart.

As things calmed, with the arrest of the protestors, Greg was interviewed by the police.  The officer remembered him from when Olivia’s abusive boyfriend, Jerry had stabbed him.  “You always seem to be defending somebody, especially this girl,” the officer said.  Greg just blushed and admitted that he couldn’t let bullies hurt others.

“Well, you can stay out of this one.  There are more than enough people willing to press charges.  Wilson has a tendency to work him and his followers into frenzy and do very stupid things.  I’m just glad no one was seriously hurt.  Just some bruises and bloodied noses.”

Greg was glad not to have to be in any more publicity.    He thanked the officer and helped the three women to get back to Karen’s booth.  They were all shaken from the events, but getting things arranged gave them something to calm their nerves.  Mandy was soon back giving Greg hell for getting her out of the way.

“Honey, I know that you can handle yourself pretty well.  I just didn’t want that slimebag touching you, especially after the way your father was. I was seeing all the terrible things that have happened to you coming back and I wasn’t going to allow that to happen,” Greg told her as he held her.

Mandy accepted his reasoning, but still wasn’t too happy about it.  Karen, who was a very sensitive soul, was more upset about the day than she let on and decided to take down her work and head home.  Dani was definitely the more militant of the two.  She was still steaming about Wilson and his antics.

Mandy suggested that they come over for dinner that night.  She thought she would get some sketches so she could fulfill her part of the trade.  Dani wasn’t too sure, but Karen talked her into it.  They parted then, so Greg and Traci could get dinner started and Karen and Dani could get cleaned up before they came over.

The evening meal was simple but tasty; grilled chicken served over pasta with Alfredo sauce.  A quick salad and a bottle of wine finished the meal.  Karen and Dani enjoyed it and commented several times on the flavors.

After they ate, they all went to the living room so they could visit and Mandy could put some sketches down on paper.  She was watching the two lovers, drawing different poses and facial expressions while still keeping up with the conversation.

The topic was naturally about what happened that day and about lifestyles in general.  Dani explained that she had known she was gay from the time she was in middle school and her hormones started her thinking about sex.  She had dated guys in high school just to keep up appearances and to try and hide her orientation from her parents.  She had been very surprised when she had come out to her family.  After the initial shock, her parents had supported her and let her know that no matter what, she was still their daughter and they loved her.

Karen admitted that she was bi, but she was just more comfortable with women.  She had boyfriends in high school and had even had sex with a couple of guys during her freshman year.  But she had met Dani and fell in love.  They had been together for about two years and were very happy together.

Both women were interested in the dynamics of a three-way relationship.  The trio took turns explaining how they had come together and how things worked for them.  Traci assured them that she never felt like a third wheel.  “Greg and Mandy both take great pains to make sure that I know that I am a part of their relationship, and I do the same with them.”

Karen finally spoke about something that she was curious about.  “Does that mean both of you girls are bi?”

Traci answered for Mandy as well as herself.  “We both agree that we are only bi with each other.  You and Dani are both very beautiful and sexy, but I’m just not attracted to you that way.  It is different with Mandy, though.  I guess with her I don’t see her gender.  She is just someone who I love very much.”

“For me, it is a little different,” added Greg.  “I find you both attractive though I would never think to try and put the make on you.  I am devoted to both Traci and Mandy to the exclusion of all others.  It was originally Mandy’s idea that I be with Traci sexually.  I would never have done so without her being all for it.  Once Traci was in our lives, I found that I could love both women equally.”

Dani had some trouble on how this could happen; loving two equally.  But she had to admit that it seemed to work for them.  Karen had no problem accepting the arrangement, though she admitted that she didn’t think she could do it.

Dani did tell them that she and Karen were planning to have a marriage ceremony performed by a minister at the local Universal Unitarian church.  “Even though the state won’t recognize it, yet, we both decided we wanted to do it for us.  It is going to be a small ceremony but I would like all three of you to be present.  You seem to understand just what we are and it doesn’t bother you at all.  You can’t imagine how rare it is for us to find that.”

All three instantly agreed to be there.  They considered it an honor for the couple to trust them enough to let them into their lives like that.

After Dani and Karen left, Greg was more quiet than usual.  When Traci asked him what was wrong, he just said he had something that he wanted to work out before he said anything. 

Things were pretty quiet the next week.  The Gay Pride Celebration made the papers with Wilson and his group pictured yelling at the crowd and carrying signs.  The reporter kept to the facts that the protesters had been trespassing when they were arrested.  Public opinion ran toward the thought that while he could protest, he had no right to intrude into an event that had done all they were supposed to in permits, etc. and were quiet in their celebration.

Wilson had to slink back under his rock when the public opinion went against him, and he as well as his followers quietly paid their fines without any fuss.  He was still a loud and obnoxious voice for the anti-gay crowd however.  He made the news more than once by leading protests and bible readings in front of gay-owned businesses and ‘outing’ people who were gay.

What finally hurt him beyond all hope of recovery was when he started to expose some very influential people who were not gay.  His reasoning was that he had pictures of the community’s Gay Pride Festival and any recognizable face that showed up in those photographs were considered gay.

When Greg was accused, he laughed it off.  The local television station asked for his reaction and he just pointed to Mandy’s bulge in her tummy as well as having both Mandy and Traci with him.  But some of the others he accused were not so willing to laugh it off.  He was personally sued for defamation and slander by three wealthy businessmen who claimed that he had cost them business with his lies.  Wilson was defended at trial by a religious law firm but lost on every count.

When the judge handed down sentence, he was quoted in the paper.  “Along with the financial judgments that the jury has awarded, I wish to add into the record that this court finds that it is beyond defensible that accusing someone of being homosexual should cause a person to lose their livelihood.  A business should be judged on the merits of their product or services, not by the sexual orientation of the owner or the person who is employed there.  But such is the political and social climate of the day.  May the day come when accusing someone of being homosexual will cause them no harm, whether the accusation is true or not.”

The gallery cheered when the trial was over.  Wilson’s personal wealth as well as the assets of his chapter of Operation Rescue were seized.  The man was financially ruined and declared bankruptcy.  That was just before he left the state.

One very unexpected and unwanted side effect of the publicity for Greg was that he started to get calls from various organizations about his views on whatever subject their group was promoting.  At first it was just for his new notoriety, but word got around that he was very articulate on whatever he was talking about.

He had started by writing letters to the local papers.  The free weekly paper then contacted him to write a column on the local happenings in government and the push for “liberal” causes.  He agreed but promised that he would only do so when he had the time.  They were happy to have what he could do since they were short on news sections to go with the entertainment and food reviews.

Things didn’t slow down at home either.  The girls had full schedules of their own.  Mandy was still drawing as well as giving art lessons to the children at the Special Needs Charter School where Traci was volunteering for the remainder of the summer.  Jenni would go with them and was a delight to the staff and many of the older students.  She didn’t notice that they were any different than anyone else.  As long as someone was paying attention to her was all that mattered.

Greg called Mandy one afternoon and told her that he would be a little later than normal coming home from the gym, he had an errand to run.  Mandy was curious but Greg wouldn’t tell her what it was, but that it was to be a surprise if it all worked out.

He did come home a couple hours later, and he had a smile on his face.  He still wouldn’t tell either of his lovers what he had in the works, but did ask that they be able to talk that evening.  Mandy told him that it might have to wait a bit since she had already asked Karen and Dani to come by and get the portrait that she had finished a few days earlier.

Greg had no problem with that and cheerfully went to set up an easel in the living room so Mandy could display the painting.  Before she put a cover over it, Traci and Greg both got a first look at the finished product.  It depicted the two women in profile gazing into each other’s eyes.  They were close enough together to have their hands together, palms touching.  Mandy had captured the look of deep devotion and love the two had for each other.  After admiring his lover’s handiwork, he had to admit that it was one of her best.

“I agree.  Except this is one that will never be copied and sold.  I hate to think of the money I am losing by only allowing this one never to be printed.”  Mandy gave a sigh.  “But it is worth it.”

Karen and Dani both were in agreement with Greg.  When they had arrived at the house, he had invited them in and served them both a glass of wine.  They all chatted a bit about different things until the suspense started to weigh on them.  Mandy finally relented and pulled the shroud off of the easel.  Both of the women were speechless.  Then Karen, who was more emotional of the two started to cry.  Between the tears, she continued to tell Mandy just how wonderful she thought the painting was.

Dani just stared for a long time at the canvas.  Then she shifted her gaze over to Mandy and asked in an awed voice, “Do we really look that much in love when we are looking at each other?”

Mandy assured her that they did.  “There is something special about you two when you are together.  I not only paint what I see, but what I feel.  And that is what I feel is between you two.”

There was some leaking around the eyes of all four of the women.  Karen and Dani were very appreciative of the effort that Mandy had put into the work and in turn, Mandy was very pleased by the feedback that the other two gave her.

They all continued to talk even after Mandy took Jenni up for her bath and to bed.  A second bottle of wine was opened and the conversation again centered on the problems that couples (and trios) experienced in the world.

Dani talked about having to hide their sexuality from most people and that kept the total of real friends to a very small number.  Karen joined in that there were very few people that they were comfortable around that knew about them being together.  She felt that others were judging them all the time.  “With the exception of you three.  We talked before and Dani and I agree that you all don’t seem like you care what we are or what we do.”

“That’s very true,” answered Greg.  “Being gay is part of who you are, but it isn’t all.  I find you both very warm and personable.  Loving another woman doesn’t cause that, it is just who you are.  Look at our situation.  The majority of the “moral” crowd calls us immoral and sinful.  But we just happen to love each other.  On our own we are all separate forces, but when we are together we are much more than just three individuals.  We become almost a combined entity.  It isn’t our fault that others can’t understand or accept that.”

Karen agreed with him.  “Dani and I seem to be able to take on things together that neither one of us would be able to alone.”

“That’s a sign of true love and devotion.  You two just seem to fit together.”  This was from Traci.

Karen blushed.  Dani answered for them.  “Thank you.  We feel that way and just wish others would as well.”  Then she leaned over to give her lover a kiss.

The evening finally broke up.  Mandy wrapped paper around the painting and Dani took possession of it, holding it against her chest.  The trio all received kisses from the two, chaste, but lovingly done.  Then they were out the door and on their way home to decide what frame and where they would put the painting.

It was late enough when they left that Mandy and Traci headed on up to the bedroom while Greg checked the doors and windows before he joined them.  Once in the bedroom, he quickly stripped down and joined the women in bed, taking the center position.

Before he could get comfortable and settle down to sleep, Mandy remembered that he was supposed to talk to them about something.  He tried to get her to put it off until tomorrow, but Mandy’s curiosity was aroused and he knew she wouldn’t let it go until he told them.

Propping himself up to a sitting position, he began.  “I had been thinking about what that idiot Wilson had said to Mandy at the festival, about being a single mother again.  While I still think he is full of shit, I also thought that perhaps that Mandy might want to get married before this baby is born.”  Mandy gave him a resounding “YES!” before wrapping him in a hug.

“Now that isn’t all,” he told her as he got her to sit back for a moment.  He looked over at Traci who looked just a little sad.  “You know that I love you as much as I do Mandy and I had been looking for a way to marry you too, if you were willing.  I know that you have kinda given up on finding anyone else and I feel like that maybe my fault.  Anyway, I think I have found a way for all of us to marry each other.  That is if you are wanting to do that.”

Traci had tears of joy in her eyes as she hugged him first then included Mandy into the embrace.  “If we could do that, I would be the happiest woman in the world.”

Greg waited for them both to calm down before he continued.  “Something that Dani said about the UU church being willing to perform the ceremony for them that got me to thinking.  I talked to the pastor there and while she is willing to do a ceremony for the three of us, she does want to meet us all to make sure in her mind that it is what we want.”

Mandy spoke up then.  “Will it be legal and all that?”

“What would happen is that one of you would be registered with the state as my legal wife.  The other would be married to me in the spiritual sense only because of the stupid laws.  In addition, you two would be married to each other at the same time.  I have already made sure that the other one will have all the rights to make decisions for us and the kids.  The lawyers have drawn up the papers giving you visitation rights in the event either one of us are in the hospital, inheritance rights, etc.  All that is needed are signatures.”  

“The only thing that we have to decide is which one of you will become my ‘legal’ wife.  I’ve grown to love you both so much that I can’t stand choosing one of you over the other.  I don’t want either one to be left out.  I know that when I gave you both the rings and just a little while ago I referred to Mandy at the legal wife.  But when it comes down to it, I just can’t do that to Traci.”

Traci looked them both in the eye.  “I can make the decision easy enough.  Mandy was your first love and you two were a couple before I ever came into the picture.  I know that you both love me as much as I love you, so I won’t be the ‘other’ wife.”

Mandy gave her lover another hug with tears in her eyes.  “You are right about us both loving you as much.  I would have said that you should be the one, but I promise that you will never be the second one.  We all share equally.”

He couldn’t continue to tell them any more of what he thought, because both women were now crying and hugging each other and him.  He finally told them they could work out the rest of the details in the morning.  That was the last word on the subject for the night since there were two very happy and very aroused women that wanted his attention.  By the time they were exhausted from pleasing each other, it was early in the morning.

When they all woke up the next morning, the conversation was the continuance of the night before.  Greg told them that he hadn’t gone any farther than to just check if it was possible; so all the preparations were going to be their doing.    The women decided that the best time for the ceremony would be just before the start of the semester at college.  That gave them a little more than six weeks to get everything done.  It would be close, but they figured that they could make it.

Greg was assigned to make the call to the pastor at the church to arrange the interviews that she wanted with them and to make sure the date they selected would be open.  He got off the phone and assured the two ladies that the last Saturday in August would be fine and that she wanted to meet with them on three consecutive evenings the following week.  Mandy would be first and Traci would get the second one.  The third evening was for Greg and then the other two would come in and meet with her all together.  

They decided that even if she didn’t want to do the ceremony, they would find someone, so the plans were once more going on.  Heather and Adrian said that they would be glad to come over that evening when Greg called and told them they had something they wanted to talk to them about.  The girls were looking on the internet for ideas for dresses, what kind of invitations they wanted and the flowers they thought would be right for the ceremony.  

Jenni and Greg went out on the back lawn to get out of the whirlwind that was happening in the house.  He always enjoyed the time he got to spend with the little girl alone, so this was more than all right with him.  She toddled around in the grass chasing grasshoppers and butterflies while he watched her and thinking about how much he loved her.

When the light of the day was fading into twilight, he picked Jenni up and gave her a tickle before heading back into the house.  The two women were deep into making lists of things that needed to be taken care of, so Greg went ahead and started dinner.  It was a simple meal of fried potatoes with onions and green pepper, green beans (Jenni’s favorite food for the time being) and chicken breasts made on the stovetop grill.  Already a fair cook in his own right, the lessons that he was taught by the women improved his skills tremendously.

They had finished dinner and Traci had cleaned up the dishes and started the dishwasher when the doorbell rang.  She came out of the kitchen as Greg led his mother and her husband into the living room.  They took the loveseat while she took her place next to Greg.

Greg started the news off.  “Remember the last time you had asked us all to meet you here?  Your announcement that you two were getting married shocked us.  Now we get to return the favor.”

Heather looked at the three of them for a moment.  Mandy couldn’t stand to keep them guessing any longer.  “The three of us are getting married the last of August!”

Heather suddenly got a huge smile on her face as what Mandy had said sank in.  Adrian came over and shook Greg’s hand and gave both girls a hug in congratulations.  Heather joined in, with hugs for each of them.  Greg went to the kitchen and returned with a bottle of champagne and five glasses.  He popped the cork and filled each glass.  Adrian raised his glass.  “A toast.  To the happy trio and may they continue to find the love and happiness together that they have so far.”

They all made the toast and took a sip.  “Just how will that work, Greg?  You can’t marry them both.  That’s Bigamy,” said Heather.

“We have it all figured out, Mom,” was Greg’s reply.  “Traci decided that Mandy will be my ‘legal’ wife and the Universalist pastor agreed to perform a ceremony that makes Traci our ‘spiritual’ wife.  The pastor knows that I am a skeptic about religion and she told me that her church welcomes everyone.  Who knows, we may like her and the people so much that we may start going once in a while.”

“But Honey, what about all the legal things that come along with a marriage?”

“That’s taken care of too.  I have already talked to Mr. O’Malley, your attorney.  He has drawn up all the paperwork for us to sign that gives Traci all the rights of a legal wife.  It wasn’t cheap, but it is worth it.  Granddad suggested it when we were there last.  The marriage thing came about just a few weeks ago.”

Heather started to ask something else, but was stopped by a look from Adrian.  “You sound like you have thought this through pretty well.  If anything else comes up, I am sure you will handle it,” Adrian told them.

“Well there is one thing you could help with,” Greg told the other man.  “I would really appreciate it if you would stand in as my best man.”

Adrian gave him a big smile as he clapped him on the back.  “I would be honored, Greg.”

Mandy was looking thoughtful before she finally asked Heather if Nick would consider coming here for the wedding.  “I no longer have anyone to walk me down the aisle and I would love for him to do it.  I know that he will not leave the villa except on business, but we all would love for him to be there.”

Heather checked the time and after a quick calculation, decided that her father would still be in bed even though his habit was to get up early.  “Call him tomorrow right after you get up in the morning.  It will be early afternoon and you are sure to get hold of him.”

Mandy made a big note to put on the refrigerator so she wouldn’t forget in the continuing confusion.  They all talked for another couple hours before Heather and Adrian left with Heather promising to come back tomorrow to help them go pick out dresses.  Greg wanted to watch the baseball game and said he would watch Jenni for them.  Adrian decided that the game sounded like a good idea, so he would be back with his wife.

It was later still when they all finally headed to bed.  It had been a long and exciting day with another one due tomorrow, so they didn’t do more than a few kisses and gropes before they turned out the lights and snuggled up together.

Mandy called Nick just like the note reminded her to.  His secretary answered and when she found out who it was put her straight through to him.

“Amanda, what do I owe this pleasure?” he asked.

“Nick, I have some important news to share.  Greg, Traci, and I are going to get married to each other at the end of August.  I don’t have a father anymore who wants anything to do with me and I wanted to know if you think you could come and walk me down the aisle.  I am closer to you than I am any of my own family and it would mean an awful lot to me, and all of us if you could do it.”

Mandy waited for Nick to say something, getting more nervous when he didn’t answer right away. It was a good two minutes before he said anything.

“Mandy, I would be more than honored to do that for you.  I got to walk with Heather just this last time.  I would be very proud to be able to do the same for my Granddaughter.”

Mandy thought she could hear a quiver of emotion in the older man’s voice.  She was almost in tears herself.  “Thank you, Nick.  I don’t think I can tell you just how much it will mean to me... to all of us.”

She gave him the date and then let him go.  Heather and Adrian showed up then and she hurried to get ready for the shopping bonanza that was planned.  Greg took Jenni outside to let her enjoy the sun while he and Adrian sat on the back deck.  The neighbor’s six month-old puppy popped through the hole he had dug under the fence and ran up to lick on Jenni who was squealing in excitement.  

Ever since the pup had first come in their yard and Jenni had discovered someone her size, the two had been best friends.  Greg and the neighbor had talked about trying to keep the pup in his own yard, but Greg had told him that he had no problem with the dog coming over and since he never tried to go anywhere else, that it was fine.

Dilbert was a mixed breed that nobody could really tell just what the parents had been.  He was kind of a golden color with big floppy ears and a tail that was constantly wagging.  His mission in life was to give licks to Jenni at every opportunity and to play with an old tennis ball that Greg kept in the back yard for him.  Jenni couldn’t throw it very far, but she didn’t mind doing it often and ‘Bert (as she called him) was just as happy with that.

After a couple of hours, Greg brought Jenni in over her objections to feed her some lunch.  Then, Grandpa Adrian would read her a story before her nap.  By the time the story was finished, she was nodding off and Greg took her to her room for some well-deserved rest.

Jenni was still asleep when the three women returned from shopping.  They took their bounty upstairs and stashed their wedding dresses in the spare bedroom.  Greg complained that he should get to see what they had spent the money on, but Traci reminded him that to see the brides in their dresses before the wedding was bad luck.  He tried to act hurt, but the grin on his face gave him away and he conceded the point.

They all had dinner together and Heather spent some time with her granddaughter.  She brought up Greg adopting Jenni and was told that he was going to start proceedings as soon as the ink was dry on the marriage license.  “With us being married makes the whole process go faster,” added Greg.

Mandy was nervous about the meeting with the Pastor.  She still held the fear and loathing from her past experiences with Reverend Campol, something that she had trouble shaking.  But when she first met Reverend Rebecca Smith, she felt very at ease with her.  They proceeded into her office where instead of sitting across the desk from one another, they each took an end of the couch.

“I have to say that this is the first triple wedding that I have ever presided over,” Rebecca started off with.  “I talked to Greg earlier and know a little bit about the background, but I would like to hear what you think and feel.  Start by telling me how you all got together.”

Mandy cleared her throat.  “Greg and I have known each other for years.  My parents were very strict and we didn’t get to play much after we were half way through grammar school.  I was put into the church school and we were not supposed to hang around any ‘non-believers’.  We got back together when he found me crying under some bleachers after my boyfriend from school had raped me.  When I found out I was pregnant from that rape, my parents blamed me for it and tossed me out.  Greg took me in and took care of me, first as a friend.  I guess I was the one who started our relationship.  We did fall in love during that time.

“Traci is a year older than both Greg and me.  She started out being my tutor when I went into the school for pregnant teens.  She became a very trusted friend.  I started finding my talent for drawing then and she agreed to pose for me.  Anyway, she came to stay with us after she had gone home and found her parents had no time for her during her break from college.  She became involved with us when I initiated it.  Greg was too much of a gentleman to say anything even though I could tell he loved her.  I did too and wanted her to feel like part of the family.  She is the only woman I have ever thought of that way, and we found she loved us just as much.”

With the background established, Rebecca went on with other questions, all designed to see if they were all truly devoted to each other.  They talked for more than two hours and by the end, Rebecca was convinced that Mandy very much wanted the wedding and for the right reasons.

Traci was the next one to go in.  She told more or less the same story about how they had all come together, telling her feelings and thoughts along the way.  She told about trying to date others, but was never satisfied with what she had discovered.  “I know that I probably would never be as fulfilled in a normal relationship as I am with those two.  They give me more love and understanding than I have ever felt before.  I love them both so much that I can’t imagine being without them in my life.”

By the time that Greg talked to her, Rebecca was already sure that the wedding should take place and for the right reasons.  She got Greg’s feelings about the two women and she was impressed with how much they all loved and cared for each other.  Then she called Mandy and Traci into the office to join Greg.

“I want you three to know that while this arrangement is most unusual, I have yet to find a regular couple who are more in love than you three.  The religious sector of society, for the most part, would frown on this arrangement, but they don’t know you all.  I will be honored to preside over your nuptials.  Furthermore, the main hall in the church is free for that day and we would love to host your reception.”

Mandy and Traci hugged each other while Greg just sat there and smiled.  This was what they wanted and now it would be as official as they could make it.  He shook hands with the Reverend and gathered the women up to get home.  Heather had taken Jenni, but needed to get a report ready so they had to drop by her apartment and collect their daughter.  Once they were home and Jenni was sound asleep, they celebrated in their bed until they were exhausted and very sated.

Early the next morning, Traci had a call from her brother Charlie.  “Sis, things are really bad here.  You think I could come and stay until the semester starts at the college?”