Hero Worship Pt. 08

***

The drive to Boise was spectacular. Flying over everything all the time, you never really get to appreciate the beauty of this incredible country. We went through mountains and deserts, spent an hour riding along a huge lake, it was amazing. We started out on Friday at six, well before the sun came up, and spent the early morning in the valley between the Inyo Mountains and the Sierra Nevadas before making our way into Nevada proper. We skirted Walker lake and headed through Nevada's stunning Great Basin Desert before heading into the mountains of Idaho.

Luckily the weather was perfect the entire way. We switched off driving every three hours or so, and I fell asleep as we neared our destination. When Taylor gently shook me awake it was dark, and I could see the hotel's brightly lit sign shining through the window.

We entered the lobby, rolling our luggage behind us. The pretty brunette behind the counter smiled as we approached.

"Reservation under Winterberg?"

"Yes ma'am, two nights, two occupants. One of our hot tub rooms, I see, very nice. You'll be in room 106."

Taylor's eyes went wide, staring at me. "Hot tub?"

I grinned up at her. "It was a long drive."

When we got into our room I wrapped my arms around Taylor. I was going to do my best to keep her relaxed tonight. "Want to order some dinner? We could have it delivered. Just relax."

Taylor returned my embrace. "I am not going to be able to keep my clothes on long enough to have something delivered. I'm going to order, and I'll run and get it. And you," she kissed me on the forehead, "have that tub filled and ready when I get back."

My cheeks stretched into a grin. "Yes, My Lady."

She slipped back out of the room while I turned on the hot water.

By the time Taylor returned I was luxuriating in the hot tub. She set a bag down on the wooden desk. It had 'Diablo and Sons' written on it in a fancy, old timey script with a jackrabbit above. I rose up on my knees, letting the water run off my breasts and tummy.

"The water is ready for you, My Lady."

I saw Taylor's pupil's dilate as she saw me. "Baby, you look amazing. Hungry?"

"Yes, My Lady."

For the next hour we relaxed in the tub, enjoying the water and munching on specialty tacos and this incredible, potato side thing she'd ordered. I think it was called patatas or something like that. Anyway, it was yummy. And so were My Lady's arms around me in the warm water.

When we finally got out I dried her off slowly before laying her down and making love to her from head to toe. It was lovely, so intimate and tender. She set the pace, guiding me to where she wanted me, and she didn't try to reciprocate. Somehow she knew I hoped it would be all about her tonight. I wanted her to draw all the strength she might need tomorrow from my love. And when we fell asleep in each other's arms, we both knew the most important thing was that no matter what the morning held, we would end the day like this tomorrow night. Together.

- Taylor -

I didn't sleep well. That probably goes without saying, but still. I spent the few hours before dawn just holding Aly, feeling her skin against mine, watching her breathe. My body was still humming from the incredible things she'd done for me last night. How could someone's presence be so exciting and so calming at the same time? She was a wonder, my Aly, and I was going to need her today.

I didn't want her to wake up, because that would mean the day was really starting, but eventually she stirred in my arms, opening those lovely, soft brown eyes.

"Mmm, good morning."

"Morning, baby. How'd you sleep?"

"Okay. You?"

I grimaced. "I've slept better. Couldn't shut my brain off. Again"

Aly frowned. "I didn't relax you enough last night? I'm sorry."

I smiled and kissed her forehead, running my fingers through her soft hair. "Baby, you are the only reason I got any sleep at all."

Our lips found each other, and we kissed long and deep. I began to roll Aly onto her back when her tummy rumbled, making me break off laughing.

Aly put her hand over her eyes. "I'm sorry."

"That's okay. You're hungry, I take it?" She nodded. "Me, too. Let's get cleaned up and go get some breakfast."

As we got out of bed I indicated that she did have chores to do before she was allowed to eat, and I led her into the shower so she could accomplish them.

I let Aly pamper me under the hot water. Her presence was so soothing, but when she was done and I regained some semblance of a normal breath rate I washed her as well before bringing her to a well deserved orgasm.

I took a moment as I held her against me to wonder why the outside world had to exist at all. Why couldn't it just be Aly and me together forever, just like this?

When we went back into the room it was only a little after ten, and the wedding didn't start until half past two. We decided on another dip in our tub, Aly putting some silly cooking show on the T.V. After we got out she tried to get me to play some cards, but I was too high strung to concentrate.

"Hey, okay, let's talk through it." She put her hand on my knee, which was instantly calming. "What's the goal today?"

So we talked, Aly reminding me that I wasn't a silly kid anymore, and I so badly wanted her to be right.

Eventually it was time to get ready, and Aly went into the little sink area to do her hair while I changed. I'd just put on my blouse when she reemerged naked, holding the one of the chokers I'd bought her.

"May I wear this today, My Lady?" She placed it in my hand, looking up at me in total surrender. I kissed her forehead, my nervousness retreating as I touched her.

"Do you remember what it means, baby?"

"That I belong to My Lady. That I am hers and only hers." Her voice was breathy and pleading, and my heart was overwhelmed.

"And the heart means Your Lady loves you and only you, and she cherishes you above all things."

I blinked away a tear as I had her turn and kneel, and while I attached the choker I remembered I was doing this for us, so I could be the partner she deserved. I doubted I'd ever truly be that person, but a lifetime spent trying didn't seem like a waste.

***

We arrived at the church fifteen minutes before the service was scheduled to start. Aly looked beautiful, conservative and proper, and knowing this gorgeous creature would surrender herself to me as soon as I got her alone was the most delicious feeling. It was almost enough to quell the anxiety roiling around in my stomach.

Aly pulled into a space and put her Mini in park. "You ready?"

I took a deep breath. "No. But let's do it anyway." I got out of the car and she met me around front, holding out her hand. I took it and made my way to the front of the church.

They were getting married at Christa's church, and I was very glad that it wasn't the one in which I'd grown up. We walked into the building and were handed a program by a pretty young woman in a red dress. I didn't recognize her, so I scanned the entryway for people I did.

Despite the expanse of the room, it didn't take long for me to find the first of my family, my sisters Esther and Martha, chatting together. Martha was noticeably pregnant, something I hadn't known. A little girl, maybe three years old, was holding Esther's hand. My niece, Ellie, whom I'd never met. Mom had barely deigned to call and inform me of her birth.

It had given her the opportunity to scold and shame me for my unnaturalness, and to convey that if I'd just repent I could have a home and family like Esther. It hadn't been a pleasant conversation, but I'd been so low at the time I'd put up with it just for some semblance of contact with my family. Things were different now.

Esther's face widened in shock as her eyes fell across me. Martha turned and covered her mouth with her hand. I didn't look away. The whole point of being here was to stand tall, so no slinking off.

"Sisters?" Aly's voice hummed with resolve.

"Yep. You ready?"

Aly's hand tightened in mine, and I walked forward. Esther's face hardened from shock to cold, emotionless stone that was almost frightening.

"What are you doing here?"

"I came to watch our brother get married. You?"

I failed to keep the sarcastic contempt out of my voice, and Aly's hand gave me a little squeeze.

"Esther, Martha, this is my girlfriend, Aly. Aly, these are my sisters."

Aly said 'hello,' wearing a friendly smile. Martha managed a weak grin, but Esther's look couldn't be described any way other than ugly.

"Mommy, who's that?" Ellie tugged on her mother's dress.

"No one, honey."

Oh, no. No way she was getting away with that. I crouched down. "I'm your mommy's sister, your Aunt Ruth." I wasn't going to push anything, but I was done hiding from my family.

Esther scowled at me, but I met her gaze levelly. She took her daughter's hand and walked away.

"Nice to meet you, Aly." Martha smiled again, this time at me as well, and followed quickly after our sister.

I looked down at Aly, who heaved a sigh and shook her head.

I grinned at her. "See what I mean?"

"Martha seems nice."

I gave a wry smile and looked down the hall after my sisters. "Yeah, she's a good kid, but not real strong, opinion-wise. She kind of just does what she's told, wants everyone to get along, that sort of thing."

"Yeah. Let's go in and sit down."

My head was on a swivel as we walked, looking for my mom or dad, but Aly just slipped her arm in mine, which calmed me instantly. We made our way to the quadruple doors that lead into the sanctuary, where we were met by a smiling young man in a tux.

"Bride or Groom?"

"Groom."

"This way." We followed him inside, and I watched his eyes flick down to our interlaced arms, but he kept smiling. "So how do you know Gabe?"

"I'm his sister, Ruth, but my friends call me Taylor."

His eyes went wide. "The one from California! The ... um ..."

"The lesbian?"

He grinned sheepishly. "Sorry. I'm Rich, Christa's brother."

I shook his hand. "It's nice to meet you. This is my girlfriend, Aly."

They said hi, and he turned back to me. "Do you want to sit down closer to your family?"

I chuckled. "That's okay. They'll probably have a conniption when they see I'm here."

Rich grimaced. "Oh, yeah. Sorry. We're just glad Gabe isn't as uptight as the rest of his family. I mean, um, sorry." He was blushing furiously at his possible faux-pas,

"It's okay. We'll just sit here. Thanks, Rich."

He smiled and nodded, hustling back up the aisle to continue his duties.

We sat down and Aly put her hand in mine. "That was interesting."

"Well, my sister didn't order me off the church grounds, so it's going better than I expected."

"Still nervous about seeing your parents, though, huh?"

"Oh, yeah. My biggest fear is them seeing me and losing their shit while they're being seated."

"I doubt that'll happen. Do you really think your sister hasn't already told them you're here?"

"Good point."

The sanctuary gradually filled, and my sisters filed past with their husbands without a word. About five minutes past the half hour the canned music that had been playing faded and a woman in a conservative black dress walked onto the stage and sat by a huge concert style harp. She began to play, the doors opened, and I saw my parents for the first time in four years.

My mother was on Rich's arm, and my father followed solemnly behind. My stomach was churning, and my hand tightened in Aly's, drawing strength from the connection. Without her I wasn't sure I'd have kept my composure.

As they neared, it was obvious that Aly had been correct. There was no surprise evident when their sweeping gaze landed on me. My mother's eyes lingered on me for only a second before forcefully pulling away, but she kept the radiant smile she'd plastered on in place. My father wasn't nearly as subtle, his pointed disapproval clearly evident in his hard gaze. .

In childhood, that look would have withered me in place. It was exactly the way he'd look at you before ordering you to fetch the paddle. But I wasn't ten anymore, and I didn't let myself drop my eyes. There was nothing wrong with me being here, regardless of his attitude.

Once he passed I let go of the breath I was holding. I didn't recognize the first two groomsmen, but my oldest brother Michael was the best man, and I got a second dose of bile from him as he lead the maid of honor down to the front, although it didn't carry anything like the weight of my father's disapproval, of course.

The doors closed, and the minister walked out with my brother. The congregation stood as the music changed smoothly from Pachelbel's Canon in D to Wagner's traditional Wedding March.

Gabriel's eyes found mine, and he jutted his chin in greeting, a small smile appearing on his face. I grinned back as the doors opened, and his attention was justifiably pulled away.

I turned to look at my new sister-in-law for the first time. She was round faced, with dark hair standing out against her white gown and veil. Without her makeup and hair done, I doubt she'd be the prettiest girl I'd ever seen, but her face was alive with happiness and personality, and somehow I knew Gabe had made a very good choice in his partner, which knowing him was not surprising at all.

As it was, she looked beautiful, her arm linked with a smiling, older, tuxedoed man whom she definitely favored. For a moment my heart panged with jealousy. I didn't begrudge her this moment with her father, of course, but it struck me deeply that that would never happen for me. My dad wouldn't walk me down the aisle, or even help me get ready for my wedding, like he'd just done for Gabe.

I looked back at my brother, who was beaming down the aisle as his bride began to walk towards him. He looked radiantly happy. We sat back down as Christa's father raised her veil, kissed her cheek and placed her hand in that of her soon-to-be husband.

They turned toward the minister, who began to speak. Aly's hand slipped into mine and I looked down at her. She was smiling as a tear formed in her eye. She gave me a warm smile, her hand tightening in mine, and turned back toward the front. Gabe and Christa began speaking their promises to each other, and I could feel Aly next to me like a hearth, warm and homey.

When I'd been dating and living with Gillian I'd just assumed we'd be together forever. After she left, I assumed the opposite, that no one would ever want me. I was a worthless, evil abomination against nature after all. Just ask my parents.

Maybe that's why I'd been so hurt. I wanted to spend my life with someone. I needed a person to come home to, or to come home to me. And damn it, but I wanted that person to be Aly. I imagined her in a white dress, me in a white suit or tuxedo, standing in front of each other in the California sunshine.

A single tear rolled down my cheek, and Aly reached up and brushed it away.

"I knew you were a crier."

I chuckled and focused back on the ceremony, holding my baby's hand just a little tighter.

We made it out of the church without any drama, as my family had remained at the front to engage in the meticulous photographic torture that follows weddings. We had several hours to kill, so I took Aly to Delsa's for some ice cream.

"Did you come here all the time as a kid?"

I laughed and shook my head. "I've been here twice, both as a treat from a parent of one of the other girls on my swim teams. Everybody talks about it, though, and I remember it being good. Very occasionally we would get a half-gallon of ice cream from the store, which does not go far with five kids. But that was it." I took another bite of my hot fudge sundae. "Mostly what I remember about this town is anxiety. Trying to pretend I wasn't poor, or gay, basically that I was remotely normal. There was a lot of hiding here."

"You don't have to hide anymore, though, sweetheart." She took my hand and brought it up to her mouth and kissed it. I did her one better by leaning forward and pressing my lips to hers. She moaned slightly into my mouth, her body relaxing the way it always did when I kissed her. It was the sexiest thing on earth, and I was so stupidly lucky to be able to do it.

The clock ticked past four-thirty and we needed to start heading back towards the reception hall, where festivities were starting at five. After arriving we headed inside, joining a bunch of other people, some of whom were familiar, but most I'd never seen before.

No one seemed to recognize me, though, which I wasn't surprised about. We headed into the room, where a table of red and pink hearts held the names of the guests and their table assignments. I found ours, which said table three. That was an awfully low number, and sure enough it was right near the head table. No one else was there yet, even though most other tables were beginning to fill up quickly. My heart was starting to beat fast again, as I knew my parents would be arriving shortly. Aly took my hand and smiled at me just as murmur ran through the crowd.

I looked at the main entrance and sure enough, my parents came through the door with my sisters and brothers-in-law, along with several others I didn't know. I recognized Rich, who was holding the hand of a pretty young blonde in a pink dress as he made his way toward us, alongside a middle aged couple I recognized from the ceremony as Christa's parents.

"Hey, Ruth, let me introduce my parents, Mark and Darcy Devries. Mom, dad, this is Gabe's sister Ruth, from L.A., and her girlfriend, um..."

I stood and shook their hands, introducing Aly. They sat down next to us as Rich introduced his girlfriend, Hannah. An older couple joined us, who turned out to be Christa's grandparents. I was a little taken aback to be seated so familiarly with Christa's family.

"Are you okay, Ruth?" Darcy looked directly at me, her face kind.

"I'm sorry, I'm just ... wouldn't you rather have some of your family sitting here?"

She shook her head. "When Gabe told me about the situation I asked him to put you here. You're family, and you should be here, in a place of honor. Not hidden away back at table sixteen."

"You're not going to win any points with your new in-laws like that."

Christa's father snorted in derision. "I've given up with those people. Sorry." He added the last word with a sheepish grin, and I waved a dismissive hand.

"It's fine, trust me."

Darcy leaned forward. "Don't get us wrong. We love Gabe, and he's devoted to our daughter, but your parents don't think much of us."

"Then I believe," I raised my water glass in salute, "that I am in good company."

We completed our little toast just as the MC came over the speaker and began to introduce the bridal party. Dinner was served afterwards, baked chicken, mashed potatoes and green beans. Simple, but really good. The company was excellent, but everything would have been a lot better without the murmuring and pointed stares from my own family's table nearby.

The volume in the room began to increase as people finished dinner, and the frequency with which people began the annoying habit of clinking their silverware on their glasses to get the couple to kiss increased.

Eventually the newlyweds were called to the floor for their first dance, and Aly's hand slipped into mine as they began to sway to Elvis singing 'Unchained Melody'. I'd always been what Aly would likely call 'a little surly' at weddings in the past, but it felt different this time. This time I was with someone I loved with all my heart, and who felt the same way about me, so there was no jealousy based annoyance when I saw the radiant happiness in Gabe's face as he stared down into the eyes of his best friend and partner in life. I didn't have to be jealous. I had one of those, too, and I felt exactly the same way he did when I held my baby. A tear formed in my eye as I watched them, and I held Aly's hand tighter.