Left at the Altar

"Something's wrong, Lacey. What is it?"

She had always respected Rita's intuition. "What do you mean?"

"The wedding's in four days," Rita reminded her. "I know I'm just a regular bridesmaid and not the maid of honor, but there's something ... off about how you're acting."

"Crap. Did I turn into a bridezilla? I was really trying not to. Did I snap at you? If I did, I don't remember, but I'm really sorry."

"No, just the opposite, and that's what worries me. Either you're bottling it up and you're just going to explode, or you just ... no."

"What?"

"You're giving me the same vibe as you did when you knew you were gonna get fired soon." This had happened a couple years ago, when Lacey and Rita were roommates.

"And I was right," Lacey reminded her.

"That's not the point," Rita continued. "You weren't mad. You weren't even panicked. You were so in control that you got your unemployment claim started before you even got the word. Elisabeth Kübler-Ross would say you'd reached the acceptance stage. Does Rod hit you?"

Lacey tried to be offended, but she understood why Rita asked. "No, never. We wouldn't be having this conversation if he did."

"How's the sex?"

"Rita!" After a moment, she said, "I knew I could count on you to ask the important questions. But that's not it. Without oversharing, he's big enough where it counts-length

and

thickness, before you ask. He doesn't force himself on me, but I never have to go so long without it that I have to initiate it. Again, not too much detail, but he really knows how to screw."

"What about oral?"

Lacey laughed. "You never let up, do you? Better than some, not as good as others. The important thing is, he's not one of those guys who only give it 'cause he wants to get it."

"You mean he eats you without you having to ask?"

"Well, yeah," she said.

"I don't know what's wrong with you. You should've married him yesterday. If you don't, I will."

That night, Lacey was at Shelley's house. Lacey asked, "Have you noticed anything about my behavior this week?"

"No, but I'm so nervous and self-centered that I probably wouldn't notice unless I saw you carrying a violin case and asking for directions to the book depository. Why?"

"I didn't know this till recently, but the best man is supposed to help the groom get the marriage started well. I think Reverend Gould called it 'guidance.' I figure that goes for you too, since you're the maid of honor. Anyway, Rita said there was something 'off.' Her actual words. Of course, she had to ask about our sex life."

Shelley held her hand up. "Don't tell me. I don't wanna hear about it."

Lacey laughed. "I know you don't like dick for yourself, but I didn't know it was that much of a trigger."

Shelley tried to correct her. "No, I just mean I don't like hearing about-"

"I know what you mean," Lacey said. "You know, Rod asked me once if I thought you'd be up for a threesome."

"You never told me that. What'd you say?"

"I told him he should have started by asking if *I* was up for it!"

"Good for you!" Shelley told her. "Maybe that's what's been bothering you. Did you tell him he probably wouldn't enjoy it unless he just wanted to sit back and watch us?"

"No, but it worked out okay. I knew you wouldn't go for it, but I had another friend that I figured would, and I was right."

"I thought you didn't want to overshare," Shelley said.

"It's not like I'm telling you whose tongue went where first, or which toys we used."

Shelley imagined Lacey's tongue on an unfamiliar vulva. She, Lauren and Rod were all WASP's, but they were part of a diverse social circle, so who knew what exotic flavor, literal or figurative, Lacey had tasted that night. Shelley pictured black, Asian and a green space babe from a cheesy sci-fi movie before she came back to reality. "I think I know what Rita meant," she said. "Just now, that was the most animated you've been in the past week." Shelley was pretty sure she was telling the truth, but wondered if her memory was clouded at the thought of her best friend doing with a stranger what she wished they were doing together.

"What are you saying?" Lacey asked.

"You're not scared. You're just not ... invested. Did Rita ask the usual safety questions?"

"Sex and abuse, yes. Drugs and closet gay she didn't ask."

"And?"

"No to drugs, and if he were bi, he wouldn't have to hide it."

"Fine for bi, but what about just plain gay?"

"I can guarantee that's not it."

Shelley seemed satisfied, so she changed the subject. "How'd you choose your church? Do you like it?"

"Rod was going there before we met. I don't know how he chose it. One Saturday I was out shopping, and the Men's Club was having a barbecue in the parking lot. I was so happy to see someone close to my age at one of these things that I gave him my phone number. I like it better than the one I grew up in, 'cause they do missions, but they don't spend half the worship service with heartbreaking pictures of starving kids standing by broken water pumps. Are you looking?"

"I was thinking about it. Are they accepting?"

"You mean, would they have a problem with you 'cause you're a lesbian? I've never heard anyone in the congregation say anything that would make me think so, and Reverend Gould definitely wouldn't."

The rehearsal and the dinner were Friday. Everything went as planned. Lacey overheard the wedding planner whisper to Rita, "This has been so smooth. Why can't it be this way when I have a bride who gives a damn?" What was telling is that Rita seemed to know what she meant.

Now Lacey had to figure out why it was so. She looked at the tables. The best man, Greg, was good-looking but married. He looked up as if he were going to repeat his constant joke about stealing her from Greg to be his side piece. The prospect didn't seem any less disgusting at this moment than it had the other dozen times. A couple of the other groomsmen were good-looking, too, but she didn't want to pull any of them into a broom closet and tell them, "Fuck my brains out before that loser figures it out." Her parents were there. Rod's parents were there too, and his mom and stepmom got along like sisters. Everyone was happy to be there except her. Shelley was the only one who wasn't happy, but she had already lamented the fact that she couldn't find a date, so that was probably why.

An hour before the wedding, Rita, Dee and another bridesmaid helped Lacey get her gown on. Rita and Dee seemed put off by Shelley's absence, but Lacey was more worried than angry about her. She pictured Shelley being T-boned, and then she imagined that a piano fell on her as she was leaving her apartment. Once Rita and Dee were finished, Lacey found her cell phone and sent Shelley a text. "You okay? I'm already in my dress." Rita and Dee left to go to the hallway where they'd rehearsed.

Shelley texted back, "I just passed you in the hall, and you seemed to have everything under control."

"Where are you?"

A few minutes passed, and Shelley replied. "106. It's next to the children's bathroom."

"Don't go anywhere," Lacey replied. Why did it seem so urgent to her?

When Lacey got to the room, Shelley was down to her bra and panties and had put her slip on. They ran together and hugged, and then they kissed. Lacey felt Shelley's breasts against her own. Shelley's arms were holding her tight. "I just figured it out," Lacey said.

"That's okay, I didn't figure it out till last night, and I didn't have a wedding and two families as an excuse," Shelley answered.

"I hate hurting Rod," Lacey said.

Shelley tried to make light of it. "Maybe if you'd asked me about the threesome, we would've figured it out sooner." When Lacey didn't laugh, Shelley told her, "Take your dress off."

"Oh, no. It took twenty minutes to get this done up, and I'm gonna get some use out of it. Put yours on!" Shelley was so happy to have this breakthrough that she didn't care. Fortunately, her dress didn't require the effort that Lacey's did. "I've got a hotel room that's paid for through Tuesday and a threshold, and someone's getting carried. In the meantime, I'm writing Rod a note." Luckily, they had stationery available for the Sunday school teachers.

The guests were in place. The wedding party went in as planned, except for Lacey and Shelley. Rita came in with the last groomsman and handed Rod an envelope. "I've been asked to give this to you," she told him, her voice cracking.

Rod opened it and read it out loud. "My Darling Rod, I'm sorry it took me so long to realize that you're not the one I want to be with. The other person who's missing is that person. Please have a good life and find all the happiness you can. You deserve it." He stopped. "There's more, but it's a more private nature. Well, the food's already paid for, so everyone eat up. And drink up. I know I will be."

Across town, Lacey and Shelley walked up to the clerk's desk at the hotel. Lacey had two suitcases; Shelley had quickly filled an overnight bag. "Mrs. Avalon?" he asked.

"Lacey Green," she corrected him.

"Oh, there you are. I assumed you'd be using your husband's name."

"So did I," Lacey replied without a bit of regret in her voice.

The clerk handed her a door card and said, "413, all the way in that direction." He was pointing behind them.

"That reservation's for two," she pointed out. "We'll need another card."

He looked again and tried to act like nothing unusual was happening. "Of course," he said, and he handed her a second card, which she handed to Shelley.

Lacey and Shelley found the elevator and stepped in. It had just started moving when Lacey hit the "stop" button. "What's-" Shelley asked. Lacey turned to her and kissed her. Shelley opened her mouth.

"I don't know what I was afraid of," Lacey said.

"Afraid of spoiling the friendship? Don't feel bad," Shelley said between kisses.

"It's not that my family would have had a problem with it."

"Mine already knew. Hell, it was my mom who clued me in that you liked girls as much as I do." The elevator started again, and they found their way to their room.

Shelley swiped her card, and the door opened. Lacey picked her up and carried her to the bed. "I thought I'd be the where you are right now," she said.

"Why aren't you?" Shelley asked

"Suitcases," she answered. They both got up. Shelley pulled one of Lacey's bags. Lacey pulled the other and carried Shelley's overnight bag. Lacey turned her back to Shelley. "Now you can help me out of this," she said.

"This is the opposite of what I expected to be doing today," Shelley said, and she undid every button.

Lacey exhaled a little with each button. When Shelley was done, she said, "I never thought I'd be this happy to get out of this dress," and she let it slide to the floor. They picked it up and laid it carefully on the desk.

Shelley faced Lacey. "Let me look at you for a moment," she said. Lacey reached to the side and unhooked her slip. It fell to the floor. She reached behind herself and undid her bra. The dress was so tight that the bra didn't need to be. "They're as beautiful as I remember them being the last time we were at the gym together," Shelley observed.

"Turn around," Lacey told her. Shelley did, and Lacey undid her bridesmaid dress and bra. They fell to the ground. Lacey reached around and lifted Shelley's breasts. "When Rod and I had our first threesome, I sucked her tits and wondered what yours felt like."

Shelley turned around and said, "Wonder no more." She started to raise Lacey's hand and then stopped. "Wait. First?"

"I told you. I had no complaints in the sex department."

"And you gave that up for me. Now I know you love me," Shelley said. She raised Lacey's hand again and put it on her breast. Lacey turned her around, picked her up and placed her on the desk, pushing the dress toward the wall. She leaned down and sucked on the nipple she'd just felt, then the other nipple. Shelley pushed her back a little. She added, "And I love you, too." She sucked both of Lacey's nipples. She also tugged on the waistband of Lacey's underwear. "These are nice," she said. "A little tame."

"I didn't think I'd have them on long enough to matter. I thought about buying crotchless just for the occasion, but I was afraid he'd skip the foreplay and hop right on top of me." Lacey pulled on Shelley's arm, and she got off the desk. Lacey ran her fingers down Shelley's hips. "

You

have an excuse. You didn't think anyone would see this except the person next to you at the laundromat."

"You laugh," Shelley said. "It so happens there's a woman who keeps taking the machine next to mine and trying to start a conversation. If you hadn't had your epiphany, maybe it would've worked."

While Shelley said this, Lacey had taken the rest of her clothes off and pulled back the covers of the bed. She moved the pillow up and sat back as if to watch TV. "Come here, beautiful," she said.

Shelley got on the bed and assumed the same position. "I take it you want me to undress too," she said.

"Whenever you feel like it," Lacey said. She moved onto her side and took Shelley's hand.

Shelley kissed Lacey's hand and pulled on it. Lacey understood and moved toward her. She let go of her hand, and Shelley moved it toward Lacey's thighs. She ran it up and down her thigh, hips and back. "You're so soft and yet so firm, just the way I always imagined," she said.

Lacey put her hand on Shelley's thighs and did the same, stopping when the side of her hand ran up against the waistband. "You're soft, too, and you smell so exotic. What are you wearing?"

"If you smell anything that's not deodorant, it's because one of us is really turned on," Shelley answered.

"I've got softer parts than this," Lacey assured her. She put Shelley's hand on her pussy.

Shelley gasped but didn't look down. She let her palms graze Lacey's hair and told her, "This is even better than I'd ever imagined."

"Why, what did you imagine?"

"Nothing against Rod, but once you were engaged, I figured the only way this would ever happen is if you found out he was cheating, or maybe a serial murderer. You'd come running to me, crying, and we'd end up like this. But you came to me on your own. I didn't have to take advantage of you. You're happy to be with me instead of sad about not being with someone else." She had started tracing a line down the middle of Lacey's bush and made contact with the bottom of where Lacey's lips met.

"That is better," Lacey agreed. She put her thumb under Shelley's waistband and started pushing on it. Shelley got up on her knees so Lacey could pull it down that far, and she took them the rest of the way off herself.

Lacey raised her hands. Shelley took them in her own hands, and Lacey lay back, pulling Shelley on top of her. She put her arms around her new love and kissed her again. Shelley ground her hips into Lacey's while they shared a continuous open-mouth kiss. When Shelley ran out of breath, she broke the kiss and moved up. Lacey could feel Shelley's bush rubbing against her skin. Shelley propped herself up and waited. Lacey started licking and sucking Shelley's breasts, which is what Shelley wanted, but she also put her hands on Shelley's butt, which was a bonus. When Shelley couldn't take the suckling any more, she said, "Your turn." Lacey's pussy felt as good against Shelley's skin as Shelley's had against Lacey's. She sucked on Lacey's left breast for a couple minutes and added, "I bet you thought you'd be doing this for real one day."

"Rod told me he literally dreamed about getting in on it," Lacey said with a laugh. "It could still happen. Just not with Rod."

"I hate to tell you, my sperm count's really low," Shelley said. "I'll get awfully suspicious it if it happens."

Lacey's hands started at Shelley's lower back, then went over her butt to her thighs. She put both hands between Shelley's thighs and started moving back up. She reached up with her right index finger. "It's not your antiperspirant I smelled," she said.

"I knew it wasn't," Shelley said. She spread her legs and moved her knees up so Lacey would be more comfortable. Lacey put two fingers Shelley's pussy and moved them up and down slowly, recalling what felt good when it was done to her. When her pussy opened up, Lacey inserted her index finger. Once Shelley arched her back, Lacey added her middle finger and tried to suck her breasts again. "Forget the breasts, just do my pussy," she panted.

Lacey moved Shelley onto her back. She added a third finger and finished her with abandon, but she kissed Shelley's neck at the same time. "I want you so bad," she said.

"Me too, me too," Shelley told her. "Oh, God ..." When she finished coming, she got back on top of Lacey. She kissed her briefly on the lips, then the chin and both sides of her neck. She kissed her chest and tits, moving down her stomach. She stopped when she got to Lacey's clit. She rubbed it with her fingertip for a little bit and then licked it.

"Oh, yes," Lacey sighed. Encouraged, Shelley licked the nub, then the surrounding area. Finally she put her mouth over it and sucked the flesh to the roof of her mouth. Lacey spread her legs a little further. Shelley took that as a sign. She left the clit behind. She used her fingers to separate Lacey's pussy lips and darted in and out with her tongue. "More," Lacey pleaded. Shelley licked the sides of her pussy and put her fingers in. "Shit, yes. Fingers and tongue."

Shelley started to ask if Rod was this good but thought better of it. "You have a wonderful aroma down here, too," she told Lacey. She moved her head down and sniffed Lacey's arousal. "And I wish my lips were as beautiful as yours. I can see each fold, and I can see your sweat coming out from between them."

"All of that's your doing," Lacey assured her. "As long as you're here to love me, I'll do those exercises I read about. Now give me more tongue."

Shelley said, "I haven't even had a date in so long. It's nice to know I still know how to please you."

"When I said more tongue, I wasn't talking about talking, darling."

"Sorry," Shelley said. "I've created a monster," she thought. She ran her tongue around the folds and then probed deeply. She hadn't seen anyone's pussy but her own up this close in a year. Was that why it was so beautiful? Of course not. It was beautiful because it belonged to the woman she loved. She put her hands on Lacey's hips so she could go that last eighth of an inch, and she was rewarded for her efforts.

"Oh, God, Shelley. Oh, God, Shelley, I'm coming!"

"I noticed," Shelley said.

"Oh, Shelley, I love you so much. Why'd it take me so long to realize it?"

Shelley tried to speak, but Lacey was holding her head down too firmly. She gurgled something. It got her attention, and she took her hands back. Shelley came back up and lay next to Lacey. "I just realized something," Shelley said. "At your wedding, the something blue was the groom."

"Don't be so sure," Lacey said.

***

Contrary to what Rod had told their guests, he had only had one drink, and only because he'd never tasted champagne before. After an hour or two, though, he found Greg hitting on Rita, even though his wife was in attendance. Rod interrupted them. "Rita, since you're the acting maid of honor, there's something that requires your attention." He turned to Greg and said, "Later, dude."

Rita followed Greg into the hallway. "Thanks for rescuing me, Rod. I'm so sorry about what happened. Lacey was in such a hurry that I didn't have a chance to ask her what was going on. I didn't even see Shelley with her."

"You did what you had to do," Rod said. "I stopped reading the note out loud because I said it was private. What she said is that you, you personally, Rita, would probably want to make me feel better. I don't know what she meant, but I'm sure she had a reason."