Write Your Own Script

by A. L. Brooks

  “How close are you?” Maggie rasped.

  “Oh, God, so close.”

  “Give me…a little…room.” Maggie squirmed her free arm between them and Tamsyn rolled slightly so her hips opened up, pulling her hand away from Maggie’s pussy but allowing Maggie to easily slip her hand onto Tamsyn’s belly and down inside the wisp of a G-string Tamsyn was wearing.

  “Oh, Maggie…yes.”

  Tamsyn thought for a moment she might come from just that first touch upon her clit but then Maggie moved down, into her wetness, and thrust inside her. White light splashed across Tamsyn’s closed eyelids, and pleasure rippled through her body. Maggie stroked her much the same way she herself had been stroked moments before, and it was wonderful, experiencing what her lover must have felt. Tamsyn rocked against Maggie’s hand, making sounds that might have been words; she couldn’t be sure. Maggie’s fingers were firm in their touch, and perfect in their rhythm, and oh dear God this wasn’t going to take long. In the next moment, all thought stopped, her brain shut down, and pleasure took over. The orgasm rolled over her and through her like a tidal wave. She pressed against Maggie, holding that warm body close, as pulse after pulse of intense sensation thrummed through her entire body, centred on her clit but throbbing over every inch of her. She stopped breathing for a few moments, her mouth open in a silent cry as even the power of sound deserted her.

  When it had finally run its course, finally let her loose from its grip, she flopped back on the bed beside Maggie, her heart pounding, her breathing a mess, her eyes shut tight. Maggie wrapped her arms around her and held her, kissing her shoulder, her neck, then nuzzling her nose into that soft spot below Tamsyn’s ear.

  “That was…” Tamsyn gasped out, her mind still lost behind a wall of white noise.

  “Yes,” Maggie replied, “it was.” She snuggled even closer, and Tamsyn wrapped her arms around Maggie, and they lay quietly, listening to each other breathe.

  They were eating fish pie, naked, in bed. Maggie was sure there was dirty joke in there somewhere, but she didn’t have the energy to conjure it up. Instead she concentrated on forking more of the delicious food into her waiting mouth, humming in happiness every time she did so.

  “You okay there?” Tamsyn asked, in between mouthfuls.

  “This,” Maggie said, pointing at the plate she held in her left hand with the fork she held in her right, “is bloody amazing.”

  “Why, thank you.” Tamsyn made a small bow of acknowledgement with her head.

  “Seriously, you’re a fabulous cook. I sort of knew that from Norfolk but this just vindicates it.” She loaded up her fork again with the seafood and potato mix, its deliciously rich sauce coating the entire little package, and popped it into her mouth. The flavours exploded on her tongue and she closed her eyes, knowing that right now, eating this food, sitting in this bed with this woman beside her, having just spent two hours making spectacular love to each other, she was as close to heaven on Earth as she was likely to get. Who’d have thought that would ever happen with the woman she’d crushed on all these years? Life sure was strange.

  “I’m just so glad it didn’t burn or dry out in the time it sat in the oven waiting for us,” Tamsyn said with a grin. “Because, I mean, we did rather keep it waiting.”

  “Oh, yeah,” Maggie murmured. “And it was so worth it.”

  “I’ll say!”

  They munched on in comfortable silence until both their plates were clear. Maggie was tempted to literally lick hers clean but wasn’t sure if Tamsyn was ready to see that side of her yet, then laughed out loud as Tamsyn cast her a sly glance and promptly ran her tongue over her own plate. Maggie picked up hers and they raced each other to see who could lick her plate clean the fastest. By the time they’d finished, they were laughing so hard there were tears running down their faces and remnants of fish pie smearing their lips and chins.

  “You’re insane,” Maggie said, using her thumb to divest Tamsyn’s chin of a piece of potato.

  “Huh, like you’re not.” Tamsyn grinned and dived forward to lick Maggie’s chin clean too.

  “Ugh, that reminds me of one of Gizmo’s tongue baths.” Maggie dragged the back of her hand across her face to wipe away the wetness Tamsyn had left behind.

  “Talking of my favourite dog, where is he tonight? Not home alone, surely?”

  Maggie shook her head. “No, he’s at his favourite dog-sitting service.” She grinned. “Anna and Ellie. He loves them, and they adore him. Ruth loves it too because she says it’s the only time the two girls are in total agreement about something, spending the whole evening laid out in their play room with Gizmo between them. It’s completely adorable to watch.”

  “Aw, I bet it is.”

  Maggie startled herself with a crazy thought that popped into her head. It was too soon, wasn’t it? But what if…

  She cleared her throat. “So, um, here’s a question.”

  “Hmm?” Tamsyn snuggled closer, dropping a trail of small kisses on Maggie’s shoulder.

  “Well, I was wondering. What are your plans for Christmas Day?” Maggie’s heart was beating a rapid tattoo.

  Tamsyn raised her head, her eyes wide. “Christmas Day?”

  Maggie’s stomach flipped. “Yeah, you’re right, it’s too soon. It was just—”

  “No, wait! Why were you asking?” Tamsyn looked earnest, and she reached out to hold Maggie’s hand, squeezing tight.

  “Well, you know, I was wondering if you wanted to join me and my family.” Maggie’s cheeks were blazing, but she carried on, given that Tamsyn was still looking at her, somewhat expectantly. “I’m hosting this year. And, you know, if nothing else I could use the help in the kitchen. You seem to know your way around one, if that was any indication.” Maggie pointed at her empty plate, abandoned on the bed beside her, and painted a smile on her face in an attempt to quell the nerves that were dancing a frenzy in her belly.

  Tamsyn affected a haughty tone. “Oh, really? I’m good for helping out in the kitchen?” Her eyebrows rose but there was a glimmer in her eyes that immediately told Maggie this was all for show. “Do you know who I am?” Tamsyn said, in a remarkably good impression of Maggie Smith in Downton Abbey. “Double BAFTA winner, Emmy winner, numerous other awards from organisations around the entire world, and you want me to scrub your pots on Christmas Day?”

  “Well,” Maggie said, heart thudding but determined to play along until she got a straight answer, “when you put it like that, I suppose it was a tad presumptuous of me. All right, you win—you can chop vegetables, not clean pots.”

  Tamsyn burst out laughing, her plate nearly toppling off the bed as her body shook with mirth. “I am so glad,” she said, pressing closer, “that you don’t let me get away with that crap.”

  Maggie shrugged and kissed her. “I don’t because I know it’s not the real you.”

  “That is very true.” Tamsyn’s mood shifted to sombre. “And, my gorgeous woman, I would love to spend Christmas Day with you. Thank you very much for asking.”

  She gazed at Maggie, and there was heat there, yes, but underneath was tenderness and affection that set Maggie’s heart pounding with a new kind of joy: excitement for the future.

  Chapter 23

  Tamsyn was humming to herself as she made them a morning cup of tea, when her phone pinged from inside her handbag which was hanging from one of the chairs at the bistro table. She smiled ruefully as she realised just how distracted her time with Maggie had made her; she hadn’t once thought to check her phone for messages or emails. It had been wonderful waking up next to her—not like before, when Maggie would have to get up at midnight and do the walk of shame back to her own cottage. Instead, Tamsyn had pulled Maggie into her arms in the early hours and kissed her lovingly goodnight. Maggie had sleepily mumbled, “Are you sure?” which had earned her another kiss, and then they’d fallen into a
deep sleep together. Maggie’s smile this morning had been a sight to behold.

  She retrieved her phone while the kettle boiled. A message from Carmen made her blood run cold.

  Have you seen the news? Looks like your friend Lesley is back in the limelight, and not for the best of reasons in my opinion. Outing someone? Really? We may need to do some distancing here. Call me

  Tamsyn closed her eyes briefly. Oh, Jesus, what has she done?

  Scrolling quickly to her news app, her stomach plummeted to the floor as she read the main headline and the first few sentences of the article beneath it:

  Cabinet Minister facing calls to resign

  After the shocked revelation that he is gay and living a secret life with a man ten years younger than himself, Duncan Harewood, MP for Manchester South and married to wife Ingrid for fifteen years, is facing calls this morning to resign from the government. In a surprise move last night, the LGBT rights group SHOUT made public the details of Mr Harewood’s private life, saying it was for the good of the gay community, and the general public. Spokeswoman Lesley Jenkins-Garcia told reporters, “It’s time that the men and women who make the decisions that affect all of us do so with nothing to hide. It is no shame to be gay, not in the 21st century, yet Mr Harewood’s continued campaign to hide his sexuality undermines so many of the advances we in the LGBT community have made in recent decades. I call on all public faces in politics and the arts to make a stand, and to live proudly out!”

  Tamsyn gripped the phone so tightly she wondered vaguely if it might crack under the pressure.

  Oh, my God, is this the special campaign she was so excited about? Is this what she was hinting at the last time we spoke?

  Tamsyn scrolled down further.

  The outing of Mr Harewood has divided public opinion, with many claiming this is an unforgivable breach of Mr Harewood’s privacy, while others support what Ms Jenkins-Garcia’s group are trying to achieve.

  She switched to Twitter, where it took less than thirty seconds to see evidence of that divided opinion. Many out politicians, actors, and musicians were lambasting the move, and criticism of Lesley, in particular, was running at vitriolic levels, even while many others were applauding what she had done.

  No wonder Carmen thinks I might have to distance myself from her. Shit.

  Tamsyn slumped into the chair and dropped the phone on the table with a loud clatter.

  Fuck. What am I going to do?

  Putting the phone on speaker mode, she dialled Carmen’s number.

  “Did you know?” was all Carmen said when she answered.

  “No! God, no. Trust me, if I had I would have done everything I could to talk her out of it!”

  Carmen sighed. “I know. Shit, I don’t know why I even asked you that. What is she thinking?”

  “I have no idea. I mean, I’ve known for ages that she’s annoyed at famous people living closeted lives. In fact, when I saw her a few days ago she pretty much told me she’s always resented that I’ve never come out.”

  “Ouch.”

  “Indeed.” Tamsyn exhaled slowly. “But I never imagined she’d go this far.”

  “So, what do you want to do? I mean, she’s your friend, and that’s well known. Do you want to step back from her until this all dies down? Or see if you can talk her out of doing anything more? I’ll be honest, Tamsyn, I’m worried she’s going to ambush you now.”

  Tamsyn hesitated, but then the answer came from her gut. “No, she wouldn’t do that,” she said firmly, realising in that moment that despite their disagreement the other night, it was true. “Whatever else is going on in her brain, our friendship means far too much to her for her to do something like that.” Carmen made a disbelieving sound. “No, I trust her. I really do.” She glanced, unseeing, around her kitchen. “And I don’t want to step back. Not obviously, at least. I’ll call her, see if I can get her to see sense.”

  “Okay. If you’re sure. And I’ll talk to Tony. We’ll get a statement ready for you to sign off on in case anyone comes sniffing trying to link her views with you, okay?”

  “Sure.” She sighed loudly. “God, what a mess. Merry Christmas everyone.”

  Carmen chuckled, but it was a hollow sound.

  “Are you okay?” Maggie asked when Tamsyn finally walked back into the bedroom with the two mugs of tea in her hands. She’d been gone ages—to the point where Maggie was just thinking she should go hunting for her.

  “Not really, if I’m honest,” Tamsyn said, her voice sounding tired as she set Maggie’s mug down on her bedside table, then walked round to deposit her own.

  She clambered back into the bed and pulled Maggie close.

  “You know Lesley Jenkins-Garcia, the activist that I’m friends with?” she said quietly, her mouth close to Maggie’s forehead.

  Maggie nodded gently. “I do.”

  Tamsyn sighed. “She’s become the spokesperson for a new LGBT activist group and last night they outed Duncan Harewood, the MP.”

  Maggie blinked rapidly, trying to process the news. Outing someone was high on her shit list—but this was Tamsyn’s friend.

  “Well, I can honestly say that’s not something I can condone,” she said cautiously.

  “Oh, God, me neither, obviously! I’m so mad at her. I don’t know what she thought would come of it!” Tamsyn sounded exasperated. “She’s in all the news, of course, and getting slammed on Twitter and Facebook.” Tamsyn rubbed at her face. “I need to call her but I’m so angry I can’t do it now, otherwise I’ll just end up screaming at her.”

  The thought rose up, and she had to ask, even if it upset Tamsyn. “Would she ever do that to you? Out you?”

  Tamsyn swallowed. “No, I really don’t think she would. But it’s bad enough pondering the whole how-to-come-out situation without finding out your best friend thinks this is a great way for it to happen.” Tamsyn’s eyes widened in shock. “God, is that why she was so irritated the other night? Does it annoy her that she knows this about me and can’t use it?”

  Maggie had never seen her so riled up. Before she could respond, however, a ringing phone interrupted them. The sound came from the pocket of Tamsyn’s robe and she grimaced as she pulled it out and looked at the caller display.

  “It’s her,” she whispered, holding the phone as if it were a live snake.

  “You don’t have to answer. You said yourself you’re too angry right now.”

  Tamsyn pursed her lips as the phone continued to ring, then hit the ‘Decline’ icon and exhaled heavily.

  Maggie had no idea what to say. She wanted to support Tamsyn in whatever she chose to do, and yes, she wanted Tamsyn to be out publicly because she couldn’t see how their relationship would work otherwise. But never in a million years would she want Tamsyn to be outed, or to feel pressured to come out before someone could out her.

  “Can I be honest?” Maggie asked quietly.

  “Of course!” Tamsyn looked puzzled. “Always.”

  “Okay.” Maggie took a deep breath. “I’m worried if you confront her about this, it will go bad for you. That she’ll out you. And as much as I want you to be out and free, I don’t want her doing it for you. I’ll wait, Tamsyn, is what I’m saying. Not forever, but for as long as it takes for you to feel truly comfortable. So don’t rock the boat on my behalf, okay?”

  “Oh, Maggie.” Tamsyn gently cupped Maggie’s face in her hands. “Don’t you see? I do feel comfortable. I do feel ready. This crap has nothing to do with my own decision, and it won’t sway me one way or another. I promise.” She kissed the end of Maggie’s nose. “I see why you’re worried about what Lesley might do, but despite all of this, despite her bad judgement on this, I trust her. She won’t do this to me. What she has done may damage our friendship, I can’t deny that. But it won’t make her do something that stupid.”

  Maggie wished she had the
same conviction, but she didn’t know this Lesley woman at all. Tamsyn did, though, and Maggie would have to trust her judgement.

  “I’m very happy to hear you talk so strongly about all this, you know. You seem to have worked through your concerns about being openly gay, and it’s lovely to see. Not for me, although that’s a nice side effect, but for you, in yourself.”

  Tamsyn’s smile lit up her face. “I have worked it all through, and yes, I am very happy with what I’ve decided.” She chuckled. “Doesn’t necessarily mean it will be easy or that I’ll enjoy it, but I will do it. I can’t live the life I want now without doing it.”

  She kissed Maggie then, properly, and sweetly, and Maggie knew their tea was going to go cold.

  “We still on for tomorrow?” Maggie asked, and Tamsyn hated seeing the doubt in her eyes.

  She pulled Maggie close, wrapped her arms around her, and kissed her chin. “We are. Nothing would keep me away.”

  “Good.” Maggie’s voice was muffled against her cheek where her warm breath teased at Tamsyn’s skin. “I hope everything goes okay.”

  Tamsyn had decided she couldn’t put Lesley off beyond today. She’d already called once more, and again Tamsyn had sent it to voicemail. Lesley hadn’t left a message.

  “It will be fine. Messy, but fine. Don’t worry, please. Although it’s lovely that you do.”

  Maggie smiled and kissed Tamsyn softly on the lips. “See you tomorrow.”

  She pulled away and Tamsyn opened the door for her. Maggie slipped out, gave her a cute wave, and then was gone.

  Tamsyn shut the door behind her, inhaled slowly, and exhaled even slower.

  Now or never. I can’t, and don’t want to, put this off any longer.

  She made herself a coffee first, feeling lethargic from the morning in bed with Maggie.