[K][T] and Family Ch. 07

Sheila:

I hate being late, but the crowd was not too put out. Our group made it to the boathouse in reasonable order, then went out to the raft. It is a measure of how much Francine had been effected, that she had nothing to say about Siobhan and Christine crossing the catwalk. They held their arms out as if fighting for balance. The walk was moving, but that seemed excessive.

Once on the raft, I hoped things would be better. There are sayings about unfulfilled wishes. The butterflies were back, in force. I kept my eyes on Sean and paced to the music. It seemed to work. I gave my hand to Sean and turned to the altar. There was a man there.

The fact that I did not recognize Pastor Mueller says all that needs saying about my mental state. Thinking back, I am glad the others had their scene. It kept me from worrying a hole in my stomach. I used the homily for that. It was short, but long enough for some serious fretting. When the time came for the oaths, I was shocked that my voice was steady. So was Sean's. When he kissed me, it came as a surprise. I have watched the video several times, but that kiss is the only thing I remember with clarity.

The exit went better. Sean was nervous on the catwalk, but not as bad as Siobhan or Christine. Curtis made up for it. I had a chance to do some breathing exercises while Curtis and Christine edged across. Siobhan came last, while Francine did her best not to smile. Francine can tap dance on a rope. A bobbing walk is nothing.

Once everyone was in place, we marched out to form the reception line. It had been years, but the old feelings were back. I always hated this part of performance. Some like it more than others, but even the biggest attention junkies eventually tire of it. I was the star of our show, so everyone wanted to get their bit in. Worse, some were current or past clients, often attending with family. If getting married was this much trouble, I could do without a repeat.

That thought brought my attention back to Sean. His demeanor gave me the assurance I needed. He could provide the stability I needed, both at that moment and onward. Sean has the oddest inferiority complex. He thinks of himself as plodding and wonders what I see in him. I can never explain it so he understands, but his calm assurance that evening is all I need to recall. Oddly, Christine says the same of me.

Nothing takes forever. After the reception line thinned, Sean wanted to get some pictures. For a supposed plodder, Sean can make some very good off-the-cuff decisions. He suggested we use the carousal. As soon as we heard it, everyone knew it would be ideal.

We made our way through the crowd. Along the way, we picked up Jason, Lars Gunter and Curtis' wife, Madeline. Sean and I sat in the swan chair. Curtis and Madeline took horses behind us. Lars and Siobhan were behind them. Around the bend was a triangle of Francine, Jason and Christine. For some reason the words menage a troi popped into my head. Sean shocked me by speaking.

"Ten dollars for your thoughts." Oops.

"You were thinking about all your girls and their sex lives." Guilty as charged.

"I can fix that." Oh shit. "We are going to start a public scene, right now, in front of the cameras." Suddenly Francine's bedroom arrangements were a million miles away. It got worse. "I don't suppose you could get your panties off?"

Blushing while laughing is the oddest sensation. I wondered if I would ever manage it again. My expression broke Sean's train of thought. "What?" I leaned over and kissed him. In his ear, "I left them in the bureau. Try not to get me too wet; this dress will show." It was Sean's turn to blush.

Curtis quipped, "Get a room you two." Sean blushed even more and my pussy twitched. What was interesting was Siobhan's reaction. I could not see it at the time, but I do video for a living. Siobhan went red, then white, then even redder. Lars said, "Gut. Ihr Blut ist rot." I think everyone spoke that much German, so we all cracked up. I pulled some great candid shots.

When the laughter died down, Sean signaled to end the ride. We all formed up outside the rope. Sean looked at Curtis and Lars, "They're going to need to change for the dance." Curtis laughed, and got swatted by Madeline, who winked at me. Lars had to figure it out, so he only smiled. Unfortunately, Sean was more right than he knew. We had not sprung Siobhan's gown on her yet.

I leaned over and whispered, "This may take a while. I need to get Siobhan into an actual dress. Negotiations could be lengthy." Sean barked a laugh, then whispered back, "Don't put on any panties. I intend to take you someplace public." Then he pinched my ass to explain the blood in my face.

Herr Gunter said, "Sie ist sehr beeindruckend. Sie sind ein Glückspilz, Herr Richards."1 Sean replied, "Sie haben keine Ahnung."2 They both laughed. The German was too thick for my talents, but the compliment was clear. I felt warm all through as I kissed Sean to take my leave. Time to finish Siobhan's makeover.

I was almost to the house before I wondered exactly how Sean meant "take me".

1 She is quite impressive. You are a lucky guy.

2 You have no idea.

Sean:

Sheila was beautiful. Everyone knew it and Justin recorded it. So much the good part. All that had nothing to do with the situation on the houseboat. Sheila was coming to me like a Goddess out of mythology. I was only human. What was I to do?

I adopted Francine's perspective. This was a stage and we were actors. I was the groom. My part was simple for a reason. Everything assumed that I would be overwhelmed by the moment. It was a good assumption, because Sheila was that beautiful. You've seen the pictures.

Still, the masque must be played. I always found it ironic that "masque" means both play and cover for the face. That particular irony came home to roost. We reached the end of a play and it was time to exit. The married couple goes first, so I had to negotiate the bobbing walk. My bride did it without difficulty, why couldn't I? Suffice to say, I made it across and Sheila was there to meet me. What more could I ask? I could ask to be spared the reception line.

My only consolation was that I was not the worst. Except for Sheila and Francine, our crowd was a little unstable when we reached terra firma, but there was no time to linger. We had to get out to our places for the receiving line. Shit. Double Shit. We did it anyway.

I had input on the invitations, which I used to keep the size of the crowd down. It didn't work. Everyone and his sister's dog was at lakeside. This meant we had to go through them to set up the line and they had to come through our party to leave. Ouch. We did it anyway. My wife was the beauty of the generation. Fuck the rest of you.

I have a business smile. I brought it out and kept it on. Occasionally, there was someone of interest. Usually it was someone that Cynthia had as a client, though I could never tell for sure. Looking for such nuggets kept me sane. Eventually, the line ran out. One of the last ones through was Lars Gunter.

I could already tell he had designs on Jo. Her reaction made it obvious she was aware of his interest. Who would have thought? Jo put out that she was lesbian. You could cut the sexual tension with a knife. Jo had no intention of refusing, or even playing coy. The entire mating dance was laid out in front of of me, with both sides asking permission to move forward. Naturally, I said "Hell, yes.", not that either of them believed me. Sometimes obstacles are important. Gerald played that role, but that was later.

After the reception line, I wanted to show off my bride. Given the landscape, that meant the carousal. Our group jumped the line, with cameras in tow. Of all the snap decisions I made that year, pulling the old merry-go-round out of storage for a wedding had the most lasting consequences.

I envisioned an attraction, but not the photographic possibilities. Various shots cropped up in magazines for years. I think Justin made enough royalties to retire. That said, it was entirely impromptu. Sheila and I claimed a bench. Curtis and his wife claimed horses nearby. Let the shrinks make their day with the implications of the rest. Jo and Lars chose horses behind us. Christine, Francine and Jason rode horses on the far side. Justin got pictures of everyone.

Go to the lobby at Headquarters. You will see a life sized picture of Sheila in her wedding dress. Next to that, you will see a picture of the two of us, in a swan bench on the carousal. It was a good day.

Siobhan:

What is it about a high point that forces you down? After putting a major beat down on Francine, we had to move into her area of comfort. First there were the makeup gurus. Then there was the troupe down to the boathouse. In a different vein, there was the moving walk to the houseboat. It all conspired to take the buzz off.

Somehow, I'm glad. It conspired to prepare me for the reception line. This was no novelty. Over the years I have won enough awards to be familiar with the principle. Still, this was not a Doctor Richards situation. I was supporting my brother and my new best friend. It was in the reception line that I realized I thought of Sheila that way. Christine worked seamlessly with me, but she was an extension of Sheila's will.

Sheila was my friend and Sean was my brother. Thoughts like that kept me sane as I endured a succession of gawkers. The interesting ones knew me in public school. Several girls apologized for torturing me. Some of the guys, one married and with his wife, hit on me. I had a standard, "Thanks, but this is not about me." answer. Then I heard, "So Frau Doktor. We meet again."

I froze completely solid. I knew Lars Gunter had been invited, but had managed to forget. Seriously, who could blame me? Herr Gunter had waited to stand at the end of the line. Sean used the opportunity to keep him close. We ran through the last few, then headed for the merry-go-round.

Speaking as a cultural student, the carousal was the strangest thing I had ever heard of for any sort of reception. It is impossible to imagine Sean and Sheila's wedding without it. It is still referred to as the merry-go-round wedding. Not only was it huge and noisy, it was centrally placed. Everything revolved around it, if you will pardon the pun. We had to get pictures on it, so we did.

Sean called the party together. Curtis' wife and Jason Porter were close at hand as was Herr Gunter. The lot of us traipsed up the hill, with a gallery in tow. A string of people were waiting their turn on the ride, but we jumped the line. Odd how well I remember that detail.

Sean and Sheila settled into the bench. Curtis and his wife settled near by, as did Lars and myself. Christine and Jason were nearly out of sight, around the bend, along with Francine. I knew Christine and Jason had plans after the wedding. What the hell was Francine doing with them. My first thought was, "Kinky". My second thought was, "How is three in a bed kinky, compared to what I saw on Tuesday?" Sheila later informed me of Christine's matchmaking.

That was later. At the time I had to deal with my feelings for Lars Gunter. I did not need to be a trained cultural observer to notice the look that passed between Lars and Sean. My big brother is a pain on occasion, but he was always willing to stick up for me. That said, when I asked him to stand aside and let me fight my own battles, he did. I could see both sides of his nature at work.

My nature was at war with itself. Doctor Richards was pleased and honored by the implied compliment. Jo Richards was terrified to be close to the attractive boy. My experiences with males my own age were uniformly bad. In retrospect, having separate horses on a carousal is the perfect metaphor. We were close, but not touching. We moved together, in circles, to music, neither gaining or losing ground.

The merry-go-round was the place I first thought of Lars by his first name. Herr Gunter is so formal. Lars is much more earthy. Of course, there are a lot of pictures. I ran across my picture in a hotel lobby in Prague and again in an embassy in Indonesia. I say "my picture", but there was Lars an arm's length away. I was still in the semi-formal suit, but the relationship was obvious. I did not look forward to the reaction in Hanover.

That was me. In some ways the scary part is that both Sean and Sheila saw all that coming. Both of them swear that they did not discuss it, but both spent considerable time and effort throwing us together. This at their own wedding. There are pictures.

It pales beside what Sheila and Francine cooked up.

Francine:

I love receptions. A lot of artists do. Part of it is that people line up to flatter us, but it is also a chance to reach outside the ghetto. Performers are an isolated and insular bunch. Except for receptions, we can go weeks meeting no one but cast and crew. This one was unusual, in that I was strictly supporting. It gave me a chance to gauge the crowd's reaction to the bride. Later, Siobhan went all Doctor Richards on me. She spent an hour taking notes of my thoughts.

The most interesting one was this. Few of them thought Sheila was a gold digger. Her background was the topic of much gossip, but her stature was conceded. Her obvious poise and style admitted nothing less. The fact that she had worked as a fitness trainer was offset by the fact that she owned the building. The incognito aspect was one of the juiciest bits.

It was easy to spot one of Sheila's studio clients. Grown men turned into boys as soon as she glanced at them. Only a few others were at all familiar with her. One of them I knew by reputation - Martha Douglas, the shrink. Sheila spoke highly of her. She was attending with her husband and two children - ages 25 and 21.

I inquired if the invitations were that a tough a ticket. Her daughter rolled her eyes and told me I had no idea. I stared at her until she blushed, then we all laughed. Martha told me she was glad Sheila had a good friend. I agreed and flicked my eyes at Christine, who was watching the whole exchange. Martha cocked her head to concede the point, then frowned. After a moment, she produced a business card - Martha Douglas, PhD. Specializing in Child and Adolescent Therapy. Did everyone think I wanted children?

The line was occasionally interesting, because I would recognize someone before they recognized me. For a number of reasons, this was quite unusual. All of them were male and most were from high school. Two of the wives recognized me, when their husband didn't. Both hit their husband for not introducing them. One of them didn't remember me, even after I introduced myself. I could hear his date halfway up the hill. Computer geek. We had them even back then.

Eventually the line ran out. I had a front row seat as Herr Gunter surprised Siobhan. I had seen him coming, but Siobhan was busy discussing something academic. Herr Gunter's, "So Frau Doctor, we meet again." could not have been better timed. Between that and the catwalk, I decided to let the window incident go. It would be just as well. Retaliation from Siobhan was bad enough. Having Christine seeking payback was downright frightening. Besides, I still had a surprise for Siobhan, with both Sheila and Christine helping.

Soon after that, we all trouped up to the merry-go-round. I must admit, the thing made a statement. It was hell working the area around it, because there was a constant crowd. Sean cut through the crowd like a knife, then skipped the admission line. It was like getting comped by an hotel owner.

In a day of twists, Christine had another one. She picked up Jason Porter. I recognized him from his pictures. This is not the most flattering thing to mention, so I didn't. He clearly knew who I was, but was only mildly impressed. If I had mentioned some of my Hollywood contracts, it might have been different. As it was, I didn't need to.

I don't know if it was Martha Douglas, or just practice reading Christine, but the proposition hit me just as we stepped onto the carousal. I am too much of a hedonist to have my mouth fall open, but it was close. Christine was not just offering Jason's sexual services, she was offering a father for my first child. Holy Mary, Mother of God.

The first ambush, with Siobhan and the camera, had been nicely timed. This one was a work of art. Christine was making the offer in full view of the public and Sheila's cameras, but with enough privacy to consider and reject it gracefully. Damn. I was beginning to see what Sheila saw in her. I considered for an entire heartbeat before meeting her gaze. Then the two of us informed Jason of his new status. On second thought, the ambush of Jason was the real masterpiece of the day.

Several minutes later, I had a date for threesome. The merry-go-round slowed to a stop and we all disembarked. Watching Christine tell Sheila was an education. No one said a word and I doubt Sean ever had a clue. Sheila nodded and the deal was done. This non-verbal shit had its uses. I could set my sights on Siobhan and her new gown.

In that, I was disappointed. It wasn't that Siobhan refused, it was that she never put up a fight. She wanted to. It was easy to tell. Old habits are hard to erase and she is naturally contrary. That said, I could see her weighing factors and deciding to fight a different fight. Siobhan has had success in politics. I was never surprised.

The gown was lovely. It was a shade of purple 90% of the female population cannot wear. The entire 90% is jealous of those that can. Well, maybe not Christine. In this case, they would have been right. Siobhan was even more striking in it than in the dove gray suit. In fact, the two looked damn good next to each other. Once we had the details straightened out, we headed to the ball, arm in arm.

It shocked the hell out of me when, a month later, I received a framed print of the four of us. Where the hell was the camera?

Chapter 26 - Lipstick and Powder

Interlude: 25th Anniversary

Cindy:

As you might expect, Mom loved the Ball. Dad claims he endured it, then says he would do it a hundred times to make Mom happy. Read between the macho lines. Dad liked it and always takes her dancing on their anniversary. But, before the Ball, Mom had to get Aunt Jo into her ball gown. That could not have been easy, but they won't talk about it. Aunt Jo wants to talk about Uncle Lars. Mom just shrugs and smiles.

Sheila:

As much as the ride on the carousal suited us, it had to end. The video of the three relevant cameras occupied much of my time during the flight across the Pacific. Justin also managed some good shots with his film cameras. Sean had one enlarged for the lobby at the office. He's sweet that way.

As the ride slowed to a stop, I asked Sean to grab Herr Gunter, because I had business with Siobhan. I promised her father a dance and he was going to get it. Francine was in on the plan and Christine follows my lead in everything, so Siobhan had nowhere to turn. We had her moving toward the house before she could begin a protest.

It turned out that we need not have been so forceful. For Siobhan, she was remarkably compliant. She took off the frock suit without complaining and sat still for the hair stylist. She did not even protest when Jerome displayed the gown. Her only comment was that she would decide who would see it once everything was finished. It was such a mild comment that it was a moment before I understood why Christine's eyes suddenly widened. Siobhan is Sean's sister. Sometimes it shows.