Amber, the babysitter, Pt. 6
Moving forward in time and with us, things started changing for me. I couldn't believe the amount of lust and passion Amber had for me, and as much as I may play shy or coy, I couldn't begin to tell you the desire and lust I had for her. Each time we made love, I felt we grew closer. We had become accustomed to what each of us liked, and we were extremely close to stepping out of our secret little world and letting everyone know about us.
I fought some battles with it, but by our 6-month anniversary, I knew. Amber had just finished her junior year of college. All she had left was her fall semester, an internship, and then she'd be on her way to her career. We were so excited to get away mid-summer and celebrate a "slightly late" six-month anniversary weekend. And I must tell you, she held my hand in public throughout the weekend. She showed me what it was like to have a girlfriend who wasn't afraid to be together. To whisper in my ear at night that she loved me, and we had no problem being a lesbian couple while away. We were out and proud, and I loved it. But we'd still have to keep things secret when we got home. And I, for one, was tired of that. But I wasn't sure it was time for us to declare our relationship openly.
We were approaching nine full months as late summer was upon us. She was over one night when the kids weren't around, and we were lying in bed when she whispered to me, "I think I am ready to tell my friends about you. Would you be okay with that?"
I sat and thought for a while, and I knew if things continued with us, I would also have to cross that bridge. I was falling in love with her; she was everything I could imagine a girlfriend would be, but I was still concerned about her age. It wasn't an unrealistic concern. If she was my age, had been a lesbian her whole life, or married and had kids as I did and suddenly fell in love with a woman, I wouldn't have given her question a second thought. But knowing the rug could be pulled out from under my feet six months or a few years down the road if she met someone younger or wanted kids, where would I be?
I responded to her question by saying, "I love you. And I have fallen for you deeper than you'll ever know. And I'm not scared to tell anyone, so if you want to tell your friends, I'm okay with that. But I want to ensure we are still setting the course for the future before either of us takes that chance. Can you give me a few more months, and let's revisit this as the fall sets in?"
Amber smiled at me, shook her head up and down, and whispered, "I love you too."
We made love that night that seemed to last for eternity. Both of us had orgasm after orgasm until we were spent. When we were done, I wanted to add something special to our night, so I told her, "You know, sweetie, maybe we can slowly start letting everyone know we are dating. Why don't you start spending the night more often, even if the kids are here? We can make up some excuse why you are here, and let's see if they get accustomed to you being around more. And we'll go from there."
Ambers's eyes lit up, and she began to get excited about being here with me more.
Oddly enough, as much as I pushed for Mary and I to come out, I was the one hesitating now. But I knew it was time. I was falling in love with her. I wanted to be with her. I wanted us to be out and open. I thought it would be a perfect chance for us to let the kids see her more and realize she was here overnight, sleeping in my bed with me, and it went over well with them. Then, it would be time for family and friends. And from there, we could genuinely start a life together if that was our chosen path. Amber liked the idea and reassured me she wasn't pushing for us to be out and open and didn't want to cause problems for her or me.
We set that plan in motion, and just about every weekend, she was staying with me. Even if the kids were home, she was over. It started with Saturday nights to Sunday but turned into Friday to Sunday. Occasionally, it was Thursdays through Sundays, and I loved every minute of it. The more she was there, the more I wanted her around. I even opened two drawers in my armoire so she could leave her clothes. It became customary for her to be with me, and even though I would guess the kids had questions before we finally told them we were dating, they loved every minute of her being there, too.
That plan held us over for a couple of months, but just before Thanksgiving, we had that "coming out" conversation again, and this time, I couldn't say no. I swallowed my pride, pushed down the fears, accepted who I was and who I was dating, and said to myself about a thousand times, "I am coming out." And I did.
I started to tell very close friends first. Some who knew I was bisexual accepted it with grace. The ones who didn't were rather shocked. More shocked that it was someone 20 years younger than me. There were many long talks, text conversations, and lunches where I was questioned about my sanity. Still, in the end, after hearing about other parts of my life, my sexual identity and experiences, those who questioned just digested it, and we all went on with our lives.
But our biggest night - for my sense of acceptance - came just a few days after Thanksgiving when she came over to be with me after the kids left.
Amber's phone rang as we were sitting on the couch. As she picked it up and looked at it, she said, "Oh, it's my friend Jen from High School. I got to take this."
Amber started her conversation even though I was purposely listening to it; I surely could hear every word since she sat beside me. Turns out her friend was back in town from college and wanted to see her. I could understand that, but what she said warmed my heart. Amber said, "Well, I can't tonight; I'm with my girlfriend, but maybe we could meet for lunch tomorrow or Sunday before you leave."
I know there was a follow-up question from her friend on the phone because I heard her explain, "Yes, I have a girlfriend. I am dating a woman. I know you find that shocking; I'll tell you all about it when I see you."
Amber was upholding her end of our bargain, telling everyone about us and coming out more. More surprisingly, the words rolled off her tongue without skipping a beat, as if this was nothing new as if she had always been dating women. I got so excited hearing that. It made me feel giddy and tingly inside because it was the first time in my lesbian dating situations that someone had admitted to dating me, to dating a woman. At that moment, she made me realize how important I was to her without even saying it to me.