The night wore on and Jordanna and Rebecca tried two more times to dance together, but thanks to the ever-persistent Scott and his usher friends, were unsuccessful. The drummer sat with Grace as the food was being served. She enjoyed the conversation, and really wanted to ask her to tell her more about Sally, but she knew Rebecca would kill her if she missed out on it. She fussily picked at her meal, which was some sort of mystery meat that they tried to pass off as chicken.

Country music filled the room for a majority of the night, but every once in a while the disc jockey would throw in a few tacky, old wedding staples like the 'Chicken Dance,' or 'Hands Up.' The drummer never thought she would say it, but she was wishing for at least one disco song to dance to. She sat and watched the guests dance most of the evening, but did accept an offer to dance from Lisa's very intimidated boyfriend, Jimmy, and another offer to dance from her favorite little girl, Cindy.

She did a double take when she thought she saw Lisa, and some other members of the Bridal Party dragging a reluctant Rebecca out onto the dance floor. Jordanna locked eyes with Rebecca, enjoying seeing another side of her lover, as she clumsily danced the steps that the rest of the crowd was dancing, to a song that the drummer would definitely consider shit kicking and twangy.

Jordanna felt a hand on her arm and she turned to look at Rebecca's aunt. "They're doing the Tush Push." The drummer arched an eyebrow at the older woman, letting her know that she basically had no clue what in the hell the Tush Push was, but she, without a doubt, absolutely, positively loved the name of the dance, and the images it made her think of.

She was too busy in her wicked thoughts to have noticed that the awful song had ended, and a less twangy, medium paced song was playing. She looked up and saw the green eyes of her lover, who was standing in front of her expectantly. "What?"

"You're a good dancer."

"I don’t know how to line dance, though, baby."

Rebecca shook her head. "This is the Electric Slide. Surely you know that?"

"No."

Rebecca crossed her arms over her chest and tapped her foot on the floor. "No, you don't know how to do it, or no, you are not going to do it?"

"No, I am not going to do it."

"C'mon?"

"No."

Rebecca decided to pull out her sure-fire tactic. She cocked her head to the side and gave the drummer her best wounded-puppy look. "Please?"

Jordanna rolled her eyes and sighed. "Aw, C'mon, Rebecca, not the damn puppy eyes!"

Rebecca held her hand out to her lover. "Please?"

"Oh, all right!" Jordanna relented and took Rebecca's offered hand, allowing the smaller woman to drag her onto the dance floor. They walked to the back and got on the very last line, joining the rest of the dancers as they were already sliding across the floor.

Rebecca, once again, clumsily followed along, going through the motions of the steps, but not feeling the rhythm of them. Jordanna, however, showed off her longs legs and smooth moves as she danced the steps flawlessly. She grabbed Rebecca to hold her up more than once, as she slid right instead of left, and smacked right into the drummer, who was dancing the correct steps. Jordanna grabbed her by the shoulders and led her off of the dance floor. "I think you've had enough to drink, Rebecca."

The reporter winked at the drummer and laughed. "I feeeel very, very tipsy, Jor."

Jordanna narrowed her eyes. "How many have you had today, baby?"

The reporter shrugged her shoulders. "I dunno." She took Jordanna's hand and tried to drag her back onto the dance floor, but was met with resistance. "I wanna dance with you, Jor," Rebecca said, pouting ever so slightly.

"And I want to dance with you, too, baby." The drummer sighed. "But I really don't feel like getting hit on again by one of Ryan's little usher friends."

"They hit on you when you were dancing?"

"Yeah," Jordanna frowned. "Each and every one of them," she said, rolling her eyes. "I'm getting kinda tired of hearing of what a waste it is that a beautiful woman like me doesn't have a man in my life, and that all I need to see the light is to be fucked by a real manly man."

"God, how clueless," Rebecca said, letting out a strangled little chuckle. "I'm sorry. I didn't realize that's what you were talking about with all of them. I just thought you were just being overly friendly."

"Rebecca, all of this comes with the territory," the drummer said, as they stood on the edge of the dance floor talking. "For some reason, I think that men just feel… threatened, I guess, or inadequate around a woman who obviously won't be impressed by their family jewels. It's almost like they feel that they have something to prove to me, which is so stupid. I'm a lesbian, for God's sake. I love women. I'm physically attracted to the female body, and to the female mindset," she said, feeling the ridiculous need to explain her self. "I have nothing to prove to anyone, so why should they?"

Rebecca blinked, and thought about what Jordanna said. "Women like you make them question their manhood, I guess."

The drummer still didn't understand it. "Why, though?"

"I don't know." The reporter shook her head, and moved out of the way of the dancers that came close to the edge of the dance floor. "All I know is that I want nothing more than to be able to dance a full song with you, without being interrupted, or cut in on."

"Seems to me that your brother and parents are going to great lengths to keep us as far apart today as possible." Jordanna looked over at the corner, where the usher mob were standing, just waiting for their next opportunity to dance.

Rebecca's eyes followed Jordanna's, as the group of ushers walked over and sat down in some of the empty seats at the table Rebecca's parents were sitting at. "That's going to change… right now," Rebecca said angrily, and turned to walk that way, but stopped and turned back around when she realized Jordanna wasn't following her. "Please come with me?"

Jordanna joined Rebecca and they held hands as they walked to the table. Rebecca cleared her throat loudly as she made her approach, letting them know she had something to say. "I would like to dance at least one full dance with my lover tonight," she said loudly, making sure that they heard her correctly. "I am asking those of you involved in this stupid little scheme to keep Jordanna and I apart to forget it, and leave us alone for the rest of the evening," she finished, first meeting her brother's green eyes, and then turned her focus onto Scott and the other ushers.

"Rebecca…"

"No, Ryan." Rebecca let go of Jordanna's hand and put her hands up, stopping her brother from further trying to explain. "I really don't want to hear it. Just what do you think you are accomplishing by playing these childish games?" She felt Jordanna take her hand again and give it a little squeeze, letting her know that she was there for support if she needed it. "Your stupid scheme may succeed in keeping us apart today, but whether you like it or not, the fact is, I will sleep in Jordanna's arms tonight, and, if I'm lucky enough, hopefully every night for the rest of our lives."

She turned around and looked into Jordanna's eyes when she felt another tug on her hand, noticing that her lover's baby blues were moist and glassy. "C'mon," Rebecca commanded, and they turned and walked hand in hand back to the side of the dance floor. "I'll be right back," the reporter said, and walked up to the disc jockey. Rebecca requested her favorite Shania Twain song, 'You've got a Way,' and the disc jockey promised her that he would play it next.

Rebecca walked over to Jordanna and held out her hand for her to take. "Dance with me, love?" she asked, right before the disc jockey made the small announcement she asked him to make.

"This next song was requested by the groom's oldest sister, Rebecca, and she wants to dedicate it to the love of her life. You know who you are."

Jordanna smiled and held back the tears that threatened to fall, accepting Rebecca's offer by taking her hand and walking with her to the center of the dance floor. She slipped her hands around Rebecca's waist as the soft acoustic guitar chords opened up the song.

Rebecca relaxed and slipped her arms around Jordanna, leaning her head against the dark-haired woman's chest as they swayed together to the slow music. She shivered as Jordanna pulled her closer, and the dark-haired woman buried her head in her golden hair. The drummer took a deep breath, and the soft scent of Rebecca and jasmine tickled her senses.

"Pretty lyrics," the drummer whispered, thinking about what the disc jockey said when he announced the song. "Have I told you how breathtaking you look today, baby?"

Rebecca looked down at her dress and laughed.

"Even in that dress, Rebecca," the drummer added, making Rebecca wonder if Jordanna really could read minds. "You must have been a beautiful bride."

Rebecca laughed again, making Jordanna wonder what was so funny about what she said. "I wore a denim skirt at my wedding, Jor."

The drummer's eyebrow rose in question. "Huh?"

"I didn't tell you that David and I got married by a judge?"

Jordanna raised her eyebrow even higher, only Rebecca couldn't see her doing it. "No, you didn't tell me that, baby."

"Well, we did."

The drummer lifted Rebecca's chin up so that she was looking into green eyes. "You will make some lucky person a beautiful wife someday, Rebecca."

Tears streamed down the reporter's face as she struggled to speak. "I hope so, Jordanna. I really hope so," she whispered, trying to convey her true feelings to her lover.

The drummer wiped the tears away with her thumb, and bent down slightly, placing a light kiss on Rebecca's lips. "You will," she whispered, and ran her hand through Rebecca's hair, guiding the reporter's head back to her chest. Rebecca could feel the drummer's elevated heart rate under her, and smiled brightly, knowing that she was the cause of it. The song ended, and the two women reluctantly pulled out of each other's embrace, quietly making their way back to Jordanna's table, ignoring all of the eyes that were directly on them.

"That was beautiful," Grace said, as soon as they sat down. "You make a beautiful couple. The contrast of her darkness and your light, Rebecca, is absolutely stunning," the older woman mused out loud. "Your chemistry radiates."

Both women blushed. "Thank you for the support, Aunt Grace," the reporter said, realizing then and there why she always considered Grace her favorite aunt, even though most of the family treated her like an outsider, especially her father. "Please continue telling us about meeting Sally," the reporter said, and sat back down on the empty chair next to her aunt. Rebecca rolled her eyes when she heard the disc jockey make another announcement. "Will all the single women please make their way onto the dance floor?"

Grace smiled at her and gave her a little push. "You two run along. I'll tell you the story later."

Jordanna shook her head. "I'm not going out there. Every time I do I end up catching the bouquet because I'm so tall."

"Yeah, just how tall are you, Jordanna?" the older woman asked, noticing that aside from the disc jockey, the drummer was the tallest person in the room.

"Without shoes on I'm just shy of 6'1." But with these heels on, 6'4" is more like it."

They watched all of the single women as they made their way out onto the dance floor, hoping to be the one to catch the bouquet, so they would be the fabled next in line to get married. Rebecca heard the bride calling out her name, and shook her head when she saw Catherine waving her out to the floor. The bride shrugged her shoulders and turned around, giving the flowers a good toss, landing right into Lisa's hands.

"Fixed!" Quite a few of the single women screamed, and then walked off the dance floor. Catherine then walked over to the chair they had sitting on the floor, and waited for her new husband to approach her. The disc jockey put on raunchy striptease music, and Ryan thought he was being original, smiling brightly as he pulled a pair of bright red boxers out from under her dress. He handed the boxers to his new wife, and tried again, taking his time as he worked the white and blue lace garter off of her leg.

"It's your turn, men, so all you single studs get out there on the dance floor," the disc jockey announced.

The men lined up on the floor, and stood there like they were waiting for the football team's quarterback to snap the ball to them. Ryan turned around and tossed the garter back. It strayed off course, and landed right in Jordanna's lap.

"How fitting," Rebecca's mother said sarcastically, and Jordanna stood up, much to Rebecca's amazement, and started to walk across the dance floor with the garter in her hand. She winked at Lisa, who didn't know what to think, and then handed the garter back to Ryan. "You throw like a girl, Ryan," the tall woman teased playfully, and then walked back to her seat. The blushing groom tried again, this time almost making his mark, as Jimmy lunged across the dance floor to catch it.

Again came the cries. "Fixed!"

Rebecca watched a very embarrassed Jimmy put the garter on her sister, before turning her attention back to the table. She gave her lover a little smack on the arm. "I can't believe you did that!"

Jordanna raised a brow. "Did what?"

"I thought you were actually going to put that thing on Lisa, love," Rebecca said, her eyes laughing.

The drummer shrugged. "I thought about it, and probably should've done it, just to piss Ryan and your parents off. Did you hear the comment your mother made when the thing landed in my lap?"

"Yeah, I did," Rebecca said, and turned to look at her mother, who turned her head away quickly when Rebecca locked eyes with her. "Bitch."

Jordanna suddenly grabbed her by the chin, and made her look into her blue eyes. "No, Rebecca, don't."

"No, don't what?"

Jordanna narrowed her sad eyes. "Don't cop an attitude with your parents because of me, baby. Everything that they are doing and saying is simple human reaction to the situation we've put them in."

Rebecca leaned forward, not caring who was watching them, and gave Jordanna a hug and a brief kiss on the lips. "I love you so damn much, Jordanna Fox."

"And I love you, too, Rebecca Hurley," the drummer said quietly, and returned the hug and kiss in response. Rebecca felt a gentle tug at the hem of her dress and looked into the sleepy eyes of her daughter, who had just walked to the table. She ran her hands through Cindy's dark curls. "Tired, sweetie?"

The young girl nodded her answer, and Jordanna scooped her up into her strong arms and placed her on her lap. Cindy leaned her head on the drummer's chest, and closed her eyes. Jordanna leaned down and placed a gentle kiss on the young girl's forehead. "We'll be leaving soon, okay, kiddo?"

"Okay," the child answered quietly.

At Rebecca's request, Grace tried, once again, to tell them about Sally just as the bride and the groom got up to cut the cake. Rebecca decided she really wasn't needed at the Bridal Party table, preferring to stay and listen. Cindy fell soundly asleep in Jordanna's arms, as the two women waited for the older woman to speak.

"We got along really well right from the start," Grace began her tale. "Since I was new at the job, she let me tag along with her because I didn't know anyone. We would take our lunch breaks at the same time and just sit and talk. After a while, we started socializing after work and then on the weekends." The older woman paused in thought. "I noticed that the other women at the job kind of avoided her, and I wondered why because she was so nice to me, you know?" She paused briefly, waiting to see if they were still interested.

"It was around the holiday time, and I was invited by one of my other co-workers to her annual Christmas gathering that she always held," the older woman continued. "I asked Sally if she was going, and her eyes got all sad. She just shook her head, telling me that she wasn't going. When I asked her why, she just said that it was nothing and she didn't want to talk about it."

"It was because she was a lesbian, wasn't it?" Rebecca interjected.

"Yes." Grace nodded. "But I didn't know that at the time. It wasn't until the night of the party when one of the women asked me if I felt threatened when I was around Sally that it all started coming together. She was the only one that didn't have a husband over in Korea."

"Apparently you didn't feel threatened by her," Jordanna stated, in a questioning sort of way.

"No," Grace answered and smiled. "She never made me feel uncomfortable. But I did get angry. Angry at my co-workers for treating her that way, and angry at her for not trusting me enough to tell me."

"Even now, it's not easy to just come out and tell someone that you are gay, Grace," Jordanna said, thinking back to when she was younger. "I'm sure it was completely unheard of back then."

"No, you're right," Grace said, and blinked. "But it didn't stop me from confronting her the first chance I got." She looked down, feeling the shame all over again. "She told me that it was none of my business and to just leave her alone. I felt so terrible."

Cindy began to snore softly, still cradled on Jordanna's lap, and all three women looked at her. "I think we need to tuck her into bed soon, Rebecca."

"Mm," the reporter agreed, and ran her fingers through her daughter's bangs. "But not until I find out if Aunt Grace and Sally did the wild thing, Jor."

"Rebecca!" The drummer burst out laughing. "Is sex all you ever think about?"

Rebecca turned red and winked at her lover. "Since I met you… uh, yeah, it is."

The drummer met Grace's amused smile and grinned shyly. "So, did you and Sally ever do the wild thing?" she teased, urging Rebecca's aunt to continue on.

"We didn't talk for a while after the Christmas party. She thought that I was just like the rest of the women at the job." Grace took a moment to finish off her drink, which was basically melted ice at the bottom of her glass. "What she didn't know was that I had a secret, also. By then I had a developed a serious crush on her, but I was far too scared to say anything."

"So what happened?" Rebecca asked.

"Her brother was killed in the war," the older woman said, remembering the day they found out like it was just yesterday. "They were very close."

"Oh, God, how sad," Rebecca said, and unconsciously leaned up against her lover again just to feel her warmth.

"I take it she didn't take the news very well," Jordanna commented, and then shifted in her seat to make herself more comfortable, with Rebecca leaning up against her, and the sleeping Cindy spread out across her lap.

"No, she didn't. She showed up on my doorstep the night she found out in tears. She said that she didn't know where to go but something led her to me."

Jordanna narrowed her eyes. "Fate?"

"I don't know." Rebecca's aunt shook her head. "But I'm thankful for whatever it was, and I am just glad that I was there to help her get through it."

"Is that when you got close?" Jordanna asked, extremely interested.

"Oh, no, not that night. But we did renew our friendship again. Since my husband was away, and her brother was gone and not coming back, we found comfort just by being in each other's company."

Rebecca took Jordanna's hand in hers, needing to feel as close to her lover as possible. "Mm, I can imagine," Rebecca mumbled.

"I knew I had deeper feelings for her, but I was confused by them. I'd never been attracted to another woman before in my life and didn't know what to make of it."

"That sounds very familiar, too," Rebecca admitted. "That's exactly how I felt about Jordanna at first."

"Then one night I invited Sally over for dinner," Grace continued. "I don't know what came over me, but I found myself making sure that I looked real good for the evening, and I even set out a romantic dinner setting."

Rebecca smirked. "Ooh, is that the night you got lucky?"

Jordanna raised an eyebrow, wondering what on earth had gotten into Rebecca. "Baby, this is your aunt we are talking about here."

"I know." Rebecca shrugged. "I just find it fascinating that I'm not the only one in the family who has experienced feelings like this, you know?"

Grace smiled and thought about how cute her niece and the tall drummer were together. "The answer to your question, Rebecca, is yes," Grace admitted, blushing shyly. "We made love for the first time that night."

Rebecca smiled. "Oh, how romantic."

"Romantic?" Grace laughed wickedly and shook her head. "It was the most awkward thing I have ever done in my life. Here I was, married to Al for a hundred years, feeling like such a inexperienced oaf in the sack!"

"But Sally was experienced, wasn't she?" the drummer asked, comparing Grace and Sally to Rebecca and herself. "Didn't she um… explain, um… show you what to do?"

The older woman broke out into a smile as the memory flashed through her mind. "Yes, she did guide me, Jordanna. And once I got the hang of it," she said, pausing to grin at the two lovers. "It was the best damn sex that I ever had!"

The other three couples at the table, who had ignored them the whole night, suddenly turned and listened to what Grace was saying. Jordanna shot them the look and they turned away quickly, suddenly finding much more interesting things on their empty cake plates.

"What about Uncle Al?" Rebecca asked curiously. "Did he ever find out about it?"

"No," the older woman shook her head. "Sally and I continued our affair for two years after your uncle came back from Korea."

"So, what happened?"

"Your father found out about us."

Rebecca's eyes opened wide. "My father?"

Grace nodded. "Yes, your father caught us one night. Al was out drinking with his buddies so we figured we were safe. In the heat of the moment, we got careless and your father walked in on us."

Jordanna rolled her eyes, thinking back to her first futile effort with Laura Erickson and the complete mess that had made of her life. "I can relate to that," the drummer said, feeling a touch of sadness wash over her at the memory.

Rebecca took a big bite of the cake that was just placed in front of her. "Is that why Dad treats you like he does?" she asked, after she finished chewing.

"Like I'm a low class outsider shoved at a table in the back of the room at my own nephew's wedding?" the older woman questioned. "Yes, I would say so."

"Wow. I'm sorry for the way everyone treats you, Aunt Grace. There's no reason for them to be rude. So what if you slept with a woman?"

Grace put her hand on her niece's, noticing that the reception was beginning to wrap up. "You are such a special young woman, Rebecca. Don't let them get to you, please." She turned her attention to the drummer. "And you, promise you will take good care of my beautiful niece here?"

Jordanna smiled and kissed the reporter on her head. "That, I promise I will do," she said, and got up, still holding Cindy in her arms, and gave the older woman a one-arm hug. "It was very nice meeting you, Grace."

**

"Promise me you'll come to Long Island and visit us," Rebecca said as she gave her sister and her boyfriend, Jimmy, a big hug.

Jordanna came down the steps with the last of the suitcases and loaded them into the back of the Pathfinder. "You ready to go, baby?" she asked, squinting into the bright sun that was shining in the sky behind Rebecca.

Lisa nodded her promise to Rebecca, after she stepped away from her sister after their hug. "We will, Becky. I sure could use a little rest and relaxation, lying on a sandy beach. Away from Mom and Dad."

Rebecca chuckled at the comment just as Jordanna and Cindy joined them. "Rebecca invited you both to come stay with us at our house, right?" the drummer asked.

Rebecca wrapped her arm around Jordanna's waist. "Yes, that's what we were just discussing, love."

"We are definitely going to take you up on that offer, Jordanna. Thank you so much," Lisa said, and then awkwardly stepped forward to give the tall woman a hug. "I'm glad we got the chance to meet you. Thank you for making Rebecca happy."

"That… is all my pleasure," the drummer said, and smiled as she climbed into the driver's seat. She started the engine after Rebecca had Cindy buckled safely in the back seat, waited for Rebecca to buckle up herself, and then slowly pulled out of the parking lot, happy and relieved to be heading home.

All three band members felt a sense of nostalgia as they walked through the front door of Acoustic Sound Studios, the small, Freeport, Long Island studio that they spent countless hours in years ago, recording their first album.

Jordanna was still stripping at the club at that point in their career, and remembered dividing her time between working at the Dollhouse, and drumming with the band. Things soon became too much for her when her schedules started clashing. She tried to keep them both up, but knew that she had to make a decision when she began showing up at the studio in the mornings exhausted, fall-down drunk, or stoned. That's if she showed up at all.

The choice she had to make wasn't a hard one for her. Drumming in a rock and roll band with a recording contract or stripping in front of a bunch of horny, drooling men?

There was no choice.

She kept her ties with the thriving club, remaining silent partner on the financial side of the business, a position she took over when Dre, her boss/sometimes lover, and the club's former financial backer, met his untimely death at her hand.

Jordanna realized that her connection to the club was the one and only thing that she had yet to tell Rebecca about. She personally hadn't been there for years, opting to leave the day-to-day management to Louie Faresi, the club's founding owner. Every once in a while she would get a call from him, asking for a little extra cash flow, looking to build on to the extremely popular club. She sometimes wondered if the money went up his nose but certainly couldn't prove it, so she just kept her mouth shut. She didn't need the aggravation.

The hallway in the recording studio was lined with all of the gold and platinum albums that the studio produced, and Rachel ran her finger along the frame of their first platinum album. "Do you guys remember this?" she asked, snapping Jordanna out of her thoughts, and bringing her back to the present. "I remember the day we all autographed it and gave it to JohnnyC. God, that was almost ten years ago," Rachel added.

"I don't remember much about that time period at all, Rach," the drummer commented, reminding them of what she was like back then.

"Yeah," Rachel snorted. "I remember having to go out looking for you," she said, pointing her finger at Jordanna. "When you didn't come back from the breaks we would take from recording. I always knew I'd find you at the same place, though."

Jordanna blushed. "Yeah, the good old Freeport Boatel," she answered, remembering how she pretty much left no bed undone at the local pay by the hour motel that was made famous, months later, as the rendezvous place for Joey Buttafuoco and Amy Fisher during their sordid affair. "That seems like so long ago."

They walked further down the hallway, and past the first studio, which they knew was already in use by the red light lit up above the door. They walked into Studio B, which had "PON" written on a small marker board next to the door, signifying that the studio was booked for their use.

Jordanna immediately noticed that the drums in the studio were set up for a left handed drummer, and went right to work shifting the drum set completely around to the way she liked it. Kelly and Rachel both brought their own instruments, and pulled them out of their cases to be tuned. "I hope one of these two women work out," Kelly mumbled as she slipped her guitar strap over her head, still antsy about the uncertainty of the band.

"I hope so, too," Jordanna said into the microphone she just turned on, and her voice echoed around the sound proof room. "Which one is due first?"

"Vicky McGuire," Rachel answered, and looked at her watch. "She's due in a few minutes, as a matter of fact."

Jordanna slipped out from behind the drums and walked over to a table that had food, soda and bottles of water set up on it. "She's the one from here or Atlanta?" she asked, screwing open the cap on the bottle of Poland Spring she grabbed from the table.

A male voice answered her question. "Atlanta." Jordanna looked up and saw Jerry Baker, their manager, standing in the doorway. "Hello, ladies."

Rachel gave him a friendly slap on the back. "Hey, Jer. When did you get in?"

"Early this morning," he said, as he wrapped his arm around Rachel's shoulder and then walked into the studio with her. "Took the red eye in."

Jerry walked to the table that Jordanna was standing next to, and leaned up against the wall. "How's Rebecca?"

"Fine."

He shook his head at her usual one word response. "You know I don't really approve of your relationship with her, Jordanna. It could be very dangerous for the band."

The drummer rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest. "You know I don't really give a fuck how you feel about my relationship with Rebecca, Jerry."

"I just hope you are not using her like you used all of the others."

"Go fuck yourself," the drummer snarled, and then walked away. He followed her to the other side of the room and put his hand on her arm. She turned and looked him in the eye. "You don't think I'm capable of falling in love, do you?" she asked, her voice a hoarse whisper.

Jerry ran his hands through his unruly, dark hair. "You've never shown any signs of that capability, Jordanna, and I've known you a very long time."

"I'm trying to change, Jerry," she said seriously, and took another sip of her water. "I love Rebecca with all of my heart, and I don't know what I'd do if I lost her." She blinked, feeling sad over the realization that she would probably never lose her reputation. "Not that it's any of your business, but I haven't slept with another woman since I met her. Only her."

He smiled at the drummer and then winked. The hurt look on her face told him all he needed to know. "Then I think you just might be changing, Jordanna. I'm very sorry if my words hurt you."

Jordanna looked down, put her right hand behind her neck, and gave it a little rub. "Believe it or not, I do have feelings," she said quietly, and looked back up at him. "And they can be hurt."

"I know you do, Jordanna," he responded, and pulled her into an unexpected hug which she surprisingly gave in to. "I'm sorry."

She punched him gently on the arm, letting him know, in her strange way, that she accepted his apology. "Just don't do it again, okay?"

A small woman with dirty blonde hair, carrying a guitar case stood by the door. "I'm a little early," she said shyly, slightly intimidated by the presence of three extremely famous musicians that could possibly become a big part of her future.

"No, you are right on time, Vicky," Rachel responded, and waved the woman into the room. "Come on in."

Jordanna sighed, and went to the corner of the room to stretch a bit to loosen up her muscles, a ritual that she did every time she played. When she finished, she played a short drum solo while Vicky and the rest of the band set up. She became so involved in her playing that she didn't notice everyone was ready and waiting for her. She opened her eyes and looked up from her drum set. "Why didn't you tell me you were waiting for me?" she asked, when she saw everyone in the room looking at her.

Kelly gave the drummer her best fake smile. "We're ready, Jordanna."

"Okay," the drummer said, and slipped out from behind the drums. They all gathered around the mixing boards as Jordanna sloppily wrote down four copies of the set list they agreed upon for the audition. When the list was complete, they all went to their instruments, and ripped into the 15-song set.

When they finished the successful set, Jordanna wrapped a towel around her neck to wipe off the build up of sweat that she had there. She came out from behind the drums, and followed Jerry and the other three women to another room, so they could talk to Vicky personally about the band.

She answered all of their questions satisfactorily, until Jordanna hit her with the last question. The drummer leaned as close to the woman as she possibly could and spoke. "Have you ever seen one of our live shows?"

"Yes."

"How would you feel if I touched you during one of the cover songs?" the drummer asked in her usual blunt manner, and then broke out into one of her winning smiles.

The woman sat back instantly, putting as much distance between the drummer and her as she could. "T… touch me?"

"Yeah, Vicky… didn't you say you've seen our shows? You must know that we do a cover song every night, and I play around a bit with the band on stage, don't you?" Jordanna sat back and questioned, almost like she was cross-examining a criminal in a courtroom.

Vicky hesitated. "Well, yeah. I noticed that."

"It's only for show. I wouldn't be touching you to get myself off or anything, Vicky." Jordanna smiled. "I have a girlfriend for that."

"But you're…"

Jordanna leaned forward again, hoping to intimidate. "Gay?"

Vicky looked down. She knew she just blew her chance with the band, especially with Jordanna, because of her homophobia. "Yeah."

"And you're afraid that I'll come on to you?"

"Yeah," the woman answered in defeat.

Jordanna sighed and stood up. "Thank you for coming, Vicky."

**

"I think you've been watching far too much Law & Order lately, Jordanna," Kelly said, as she bit into a slice of pizza that the band had delivered to the studio. "What the hell was that form of questioning all about?"

"I sensed that she was uncomfortable with me." The drummer shook her head, and unscrewed the cap on her bottle of Michelob. "And you can never watch too much Law & Order, Kel. That Angie chick is a real babe."

"She freaking looks like you, Jordanna!"

Jordanna shrugged her shoulders, and disagreed. "No, she doesn't, Kel. Besides, I'm probably around 100 pounds heavier than she is on my lightest day. The woman is a stick." She got up from her seat, and grabbed another slice of pizza, biting into it hungrily.

"That's your third slice, Jor," Rachel pointed out.

"I know," Jordanna snorted, but kept on chewing. "I don't know why I'm so hungry today."

Kelly grabbed another beer and joined in on the conversation. "Maybe you're pregnant."

"Bite your fucking tongue, Kel!" Jordanna took an extra long pull on her beer after that comment. "Besides, don't tell Rebecca this, but I think she shoots blanks," she said jokingly.

They cleaned up the mess they made and went back into the studio to wait for Stephanie Sorensen, the second finalist, to arrive. Jordanna decided to walk around a little, and found herself heading towards the studio's office area. She found JohnnyC, the owner of the studio and an old friend of hers, sitting at his desk. "Hello, Johnny," she said, speaking in her deepest, sexiest voice. "Who is using Studio A?"

Johnny looked up at the tall woman who was leaning lazily against the door of his office, and drank in her beauty. "A new local band that just signed with Atlantic." He got up and gave Jordanna a hug. "You're looking mighty fine, Jor."

The drummer snorted. "Thanks, Johnny. You don't look half bad yourself." In that 70's, Saturday Night Fever, John Travolta sort of way.

He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her into his office. "Hey, what are you doing tonight, Jor? There's a new place that opened up around the corner. I was there on the weekend. You'd love it. Real hot dancers. Use a lot of interesting props. It would be just like old times."

Jordanna raised an interested eyebrow. "I'm sure I would love it, Johnny." Her dark side was titillated by the prospect, but she knew better than to let it control her. "But I don't frequent places like that anymore."

"You don't?"

She smiled, knowing that she was going to shock the shit out of her old friend. "My girlfriend would kill me if I did."

"What did you just say?"

"I said my girlfriend…"

He lifted his hands in the air. "I heard what you said, Jordanna! I just can't believe it. You were so wild when you first got your recording contract."

Jordanna shrugged. "I was wild 6 months ago, Johnny, but things change. Even a wild child has to grow up sometime."

"Yeah, but… remember the night you and Gary did those two cousins in the parking lot of that place we used to go to in Port Jefferson?"

"They were sisters… and yeah, I remember," Jordanna answered, a bright red blush growing on her cheeks at the memory.

He opened one of the drawers on his desk and started fishing through the files. "I think I still have those Polaroids I took of you guys that night in one of my files here somewhere."

"Burn them if you find them," Jordanna said immediately. "Please."

Johnny looked her directly in the eyes. "Does she know just how special she is to you?"

The drummer smiled at just the thought of her lover. "Yeah, I believe she does."

Johnny shook his head, stunned by the news. "I never thought I'd see the day."

"Neither did I, Johnny… neither did I."

Jordanna got up from the chair she was sitting in when she heard her named being called. She walked to the door and popped her head out of it, only to see Kelly waiting there for her. "Stephanie is here."

Jordanna nodded at her friend. "I'll be right there." She gave Johnny another hug. "Good seeing you again," she said, and walked out of his office.

**

The band was in the middle of a serious jam session when Jordanna noticed that the boom on her cymbal stand was starting to come loose. "Shit!" she cursed, as she watched the 14" crash cymbal come crashing down onto the rims of her rack toms, causing her to stop playing.

"Where are the roadies when you need them?" she said into the microphone, and slipped out from behind the drums to fix the cymbal stand, reminding her of the early days when they didn't even know what a road crew was. She performed the task quickly, and slid back behind the drums, counting them into the next song on the set list that they set up with Stephanie. The dynamic between all of them was terrific, and Jordanna couldn't remember the last time she enjoyed a jam session so much. It was obvious, by the smiles on both Rachel's and Kelly's faces, that they were just as pleased with Stephanie as the drummer was.

Following the same routine as they did with Vicky, they took Stephanie into another room to speak to her about the band. "Have you ever seen one of our live shows?" Kelly asked, relieving Jordanna of her cross-examination duties.

Stephanie nodded. "About a hundred times!"

Kelly rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "So, then you know that we always pick a provocative song to do as a cover tune every show, right?"

"Yeah, I look forward to that part of the show every time I see you perform," Stephanie answered enthusiastically. "I loved the way you did the AC/DC song last tour. It rocked!"

Jordanna leaned forward and spoke quietly. "I usually play around with the audience and one band member during that part of the show. Kelly was in the hot seat last tour, so this tour it would be your turn."

Stephanie smiled, realizing that they were seriously considering her as Linda's replacement. "That's fine with me," she answered.

Jordanna pinned her with her icy blue eyes. "Sometimes it may involve me touching you in a sexual manner."

The blonde woman laughed. "If I were to want any woman touching me that way, Jordanna, it would definitely be you."

The drummer smiled wickedly, wondering if Stephanie was flirting with her. "Don't say that in front of my girlfriend, though," she said quietly, testing the woman.

"My boyfriend wouldn't be too happy hearing me say that, either, Jordanna. Believe me," Stephanie answered, catching on quickly.

"Good," the drummer said, and got up off her seat. "Would you excuse us, Stephanie?" she asked, and then Jerry and the remaining members of Plenty of Nothing walked out the door and into the next room.

"I think we have a winner," Jordanna said, as soon as they shut the door behind them. "What do you guys think?"

Kelly let her vote be known. "I would have to agree with you on that one."

Rachel nodded her head. "I third that vote." She turned and looked at Jerry. "Jerry?"

He stood up, and acted very solemn, getting a charge out of the dirty looks the three women were giving him. "Let me draw up a contract for her."

A hand scribbled fast and furious notes on a yellow sheet of legal paper, trying to capture all the words that were being said. Rebecca felt something itchy on her neck and swatted it away, making her miss some of the interview that she was doing. "Thank you for your time, Mariah," she said nicely, and then hung up the phone. "Bitch."

She slapped her pen down on the desk when she felt the itchy sensation on her neck again, and this time caught a piece of the offending object in her hand. She turned around quickly, and laughed when she saw Jordanna standing behind her, with a smile on her face and what was left of a mangled yellow rose in her hand. "Do you have something against yellow roses?" Jordanna asked, and then handed Rebecca the rose, watching as the stem toppled over in the reporter's hand.

Rebecca stood up and wrapped her arms around her lover, laughing gently as she did. "Thank you, love. It's beautiful and so thoughtful of you."

Jordanna looked at the pad that Rebecca was writing on when she walked in. "Who were you just on the phone with? Mariah Carey?"

Rebecca put her broken rose down on the desk and frowned. "Yeah."

"I guess you don't like her very much?"

"Gee, how'd you guess?" the reporter answered, a little sarcasm in her voice. "She's so damn… damn…"

"Conceited?" the drummer offered.

"Yeah! How'd you know that?"

Jordanna shrugged. "Common knowledge industry rumor, Rebecca. Plus, I met her at last year's awards and thought the same thing." She took Rebecca by the hands and pulled her up from her seat, leading her into the kitchen where she grabbed a bottle of chilled champagne, and two flutes. "C'mon, we have a little celebrating to do."

Rebecca's blonde eyebrow rose, mimicking her lover's habitual trait. "We do?"

"Yeah, we do." She grabbed a blanket and handed it to Rebecca to hold, opened the sliding glass doors, and led her lover out into the dark night. "Let's go outside."

They walked down the deck and onto the boardwalk silently, just looking up at the stars. Jordanna stopped when they were only a few feet away from the shore, and asked Rebecca to put the blanket down on the damp sand. Once she did, they both settled onto the blanket, with Rebecca firmly leaning up against her lover's body. "What are we celebrating, Jor?"

The drummer popped open the champagne bottle, and poured some into both flutes. "Plenty of Nothing's newest band member," she answered, and then handed Rebecca her glass of champagne. "Stephanie Sorensen."

"You found a replacement?" Rebecca asked, oozing excitement.

"Yeah," the drummer answered, and then leaned down to nuzzle Rebecca's neck. "Finally."

Just then, a shooting star painted a white streak across the dark sky, catching the attention of the two destined lovers. "Did you see that, Jor?"

"Mm, yeah, I did. You see a lot of them out here this time of the year." She finished off her glass of champagne, and pulled Rebecca into her arms. "Did you make a wish, baby?"

"I didn't have to. All my wishes in life have already come true." Rebecca crawled up Jordanna's body and kissed her on the lips. "Except one."

"Well, what are you waiting for?" the drummer asked, and returned Rebecca's kiss. "Wish for it now."

"Mm, okay." Rebecca closed her eyes and made her wish, hoping that somehow and in some way, her lover could hear it. "Done."

**********

Perfect.

The hazy, hot and humid weather so early in June couldn't have been more perfect for Jordanna's secret plan.

Her lycra shorts and cotton tank top were soaked with sweat, sticking to her body like glue, as she ran the home stretch of her morning run along the sandy south shore of Long Island. She slowed her pace to a fast walk when their oceanfront home came into view, and walked the rest of the way. She stomped her feet on the deck as she walked across it, knocking the clinging sand off of her sneakers.

The house was quiet when she walked into the kitchen, and felt an immediate chill as her overheated skin hit the cool air. "Ooops," she said, as she accidentally shut the central air conditioner off, knowing that, in the humid, 90 plus degree weather, the whole house would be a complete sauna within a couple of hours.

She took the steps two at a time, and already had her soaking wet tank top off by the time she walked into the bedroom.

"Mmm, what a wonderful way to be greeted in the morning," Rebecca said sleepily, as her eyes focused on Jordanna's topless form standing in the sunlight streaming in from the window, and openly admired her lover's tanned skin that was glistening with sweat. "I guess it's hot out?"

"Yeah," the drummer confirmed, and sauntered over to the bed to give Rebecca her early morning kiss. "It's going to be a real scorcher today. I'm gonna hop in the shower, okay?"

Rebecca ran her fingers up and down Jordanna's wet biceps, enjoying the feel of her heated skin under her fingertips. "Gimme another kiss before you hop in the shower my sweaty, stinky, smelly drummer."

The drummer climbed on the bed, straddled her lover's sheet covered legs, leaned forward and placed a kiss on Rebecca's waiting lips, a kiss so soft and gentle that it was worth repeating again and again. Jordanna reluctantly pulled away, slightly out of breath. "Shower," she said breathlessly, and climbed off the bed and went into the bathroom.

Rebecca licked her lips, still tasting the saltiness of Jordanna's skin on them, and closed her eyes. "Hey, what do you want to do today?" she asked as an afterthought, hoping that Jordanna could hear her through the closed door. She looked up when the door opened again, and smiled when she saw the drummer standing there completely unclothed. "Did you say something, baby?"

"Yeah." Rebecca cleared her suddenly dry throat, and spoke. "I was just wondering what you wanted to do today."

"I have to go have blood work done, but then I'm free for the rest of the day."

"Blood work?"

Jordanna sighed. "Um, yeah. Remember I told you that I have to get tested every four months?"

"Oh." The reporter sat up, pulling the sheets up and around her body as she did so. "You want some company when you go?"

The drummer shook her head. "Nah, it doesn't take very long. I should be back within an hour." She looked at the way Rebecca had the sheet wrapped protectively around her. "You don't have to be modest with me, baby," she teased, her blue eyes twinkling with mischief. "Nothing I haven't seen," she said and walked back into the bedroom, only continuing when she was right in front of her lover.

"…Or touched," she whispered, running her hands up and down her own naked body.

"...Or tasted," she finished her tease, wiggling her tongue provocatively at her lover.

"I get your point, Jor." Rebecca laughed and let the sheet drop to prove her point. "I'm not being modest. I'm just a little chilled. I guess my body has to get used to the air conditioning again."

'You won't be chilled much longer,' the drummer thought to herself, and went back in the bathroom to take her shower.

"Damn, it's hot in here," the reporter muttered to herself, as she stepped out of the bathroom after her shower. She hated days like this; humid days when even a shower couldn't cool her down, and sweat began to pour off of her before she could even wrap a towel around her wet body.

She walked to her dresser, pulled out a pair of shorts, and one of her sleeveless shirts to wear for the day. She walked back into the steam filled bathroom, and decided there was no way in hell she was going to stand under a hot blow dryer to dry her hair. She found a band, and pulled her wet hair up in a ponytail.

She descended the stairs slowly, and made her way into the kitchen, where she found Rosa, Jordanna's long time housekeeper, sitting at the kitchen table fanning her face with a magazine. "Good morning, Rosa," she said, greeting the woman that she was trying her very best not to dislike.

"The air conditioner is on the fritz," Rosa said quietly, and then went back to fanning herself again. "I called the repair man. He said he'd be here late in the afternoon."

"Late in the afternoon?" Rebecca grabbed a few pastries, put them on a plate, and made a cup of coffee. She put it all on a tray to take with her out back to sit on the deck. "Why don't you join me outside, Rosa? I'm sure it's much cooler out there."

"No, thank you. I have things to do around the house."

"Suit yourself," Rebecca answered, feeling only minutely irritated at the woman. She picked up the tray she prepared, and walked out onto the deck. She sat down in one of the white wooden, salt-water resistant deck chairs, tucking her right foot under the weight of her body. She picked up the morning paper and started to read it, but she was far too hot to care what was going on locally, or around the world for that matter.

The slight ocean breeze supplied only a tiny bit of relief from the sweltering heat, but that didn't stop her from having a hot cup of coffee. Cursing her painful need for hot caffeine in the morning with each sip that she took, she vowed to herself that she would give up the stuff some day.

Her eyes focused on the waves crashing against the shore, it's tranquil motion relaxing her to the point of almost falling asleep. She jerked awake at the sound of her lover's voice, not expecting Jordanna to be back so quickly.

"Holy shit, baby, it's hotter than a witch's ass in there!" the drummer announced.

Rebecca's eyes fluttered open and she looked at the tall woman standing in front of her. "The central air is down," she answered sleepily. "Rosa said she called the repairman, and he'll be here sometime later today."

"I told Rosa to go home," Jordanna said, as she sat down in the chair next to Rebecca. "She just left."

"That was nice of you," Rebecca replied absently. Her eyes instantly focused on the Band-Aid that her lover sported on the bend of her right arm, and realized that one little Band-Aid represented a big part of Jordanna's past. Her mind reeled at the thought of all of the women and men that Jordanna engaged with sexually in the past and that she was only one person in a count of hundreds, maybe even thousands of people if she wanted to sit down and do the math.

Which she didn't.

But that was in the past, and the reporter consoled herself with the knowledge that she was the dark woman's one and only in the future. She unconsciously ran her fingertip over the Band-Aid, causing the relaxed drummer to jump. "When do you get the results?"

Jordanna turned and looked at Rebecca, revealing so much of her emotion in her blue eyes. "In a couple days," she answered quietly, and gave Rebecca's hand a little squeeze. "I was thinking; why don't we change into our suits, pack a picnic lunch, and cool down on the beach today?"

The reporter turned sideways in her chair, leaned close to Jordanna and planted a gentle kiss on her lips. "Sounds great, Jor."

*****

"Can you get my back?" Jordanna asked, handing Rebecca the bottle of sun block. Rebecca happily accepted the bottle, crawled across the blanket and kneeled behind her lover. She popped the top open and squeezed a small amount of the lotion into the palm of her hand, and began applying it to the drummer's muscled back. Rebecca felt the tall woman relax immediately at the touch, and let her eyes, and her hands wander down to Jordanna's thong-covered bottom.

"Mmm, that's nice," the drummer said in between moans of satisfied pleasure. "I knew there was a good reason I bought these black pieces of string I call a bathing suit."

"Don't want these gorgeous cheeks to get burnt," Rebecca mumbled, as she applied more lotion on Jordanna's perfect, but very white globes. "The rest of your body is pretty tan already, so you should be okay."

Jordanna took the bottle of coconut scented lotion out of Rebecca's hand. "Now let me get you." They switched positions on the blanket, and Jordanna started out by rubbing a generous amount of lotion onto Rebecca's shoulders, before she slowly and precisely made her way down her lover's back. Rebecca didn't get out in the sun as often as Jordanna, so the drummer was a little nervous that her lover's fair Irish skin would burn. "All done, baby," she announced, after she finished up by putting lotion on the bottom of Rebecca's muscled calves.

Rebecca pulled out the book that she brought with her to read, smoothed the sand under the blanket that they were sharing, and finally settled down on her stomach to read. Jordanna lay on her back just looking up into the clouds, as her stomach did enough flips to make her feel like she was going to throw up her breakfast. She pulled out the watch she put in the picnic basket and looked at the time, and knew that there were only a few minutes left before she had to start carrying out her plan. She pulled something else out of the basket, and buried it in the sand next to her, so it was ready and waiting when the right time came.

"Check out that cloud, Rebecca," the dark haired woman said a few minutes later. Rebecca turned over and sat up straight, her eyes narrowing quickly as she squinted into the sunny sky, looking to see what her lover was talking about. "Which cloud?"

"Right up there, to your right," Jordanna said, and pointed into the very blue sky.

"Yeah, what about it?"

"It looks like a shark eating a fish, doesn't it?"

"Um, no," the reporter answered, followed by a shake of her head and a little laugh.

"C'mon, look." Jordanna pointed to the cloud she was talking about again. "There's the fin, and its mouth is open. See the tiny little cloud inside the mouth? That's the fish."

Rebecca moved closer to her lover, cocked her head to the side and looked at the clouds again from Jordanna's angle. "Oh, yeah, it kinda does now, looking at it from this angle."

"I used to lie in the grass and look at the clouds a lot when I was growing up," the drummer reflected. "Did a lot of dreaming doing that. Funny how my life turned out so different from how I wanted it to be back then."

Rebecca took her lover's hand in her own. "My sister and I used to do that back on the farm, but more at night and with the stars. I did a lot of dreaming, too, except mine weren't really that far off." Rebecca paused in thought and gave Jordanna's hand a little kiss. "I always knew the love of my life would be tall, dark and handsome. I just didn't know that he would actually turn out to be a she."

Jordanna chuckled and squeezed Rebecca's hand. "I'm very glad that your dreams have come true, baby."

"Mmm, me, too," Rebecca mumbled quietly, and then noticed some skywriting appearing.

M* A* R* R*

"Look, Jor, they are writing something in the sky," Rebecca pointed out.

Jordanna looked up and squinted, shielding her eyes from the glare. "Yeah, probably another one of those radio contests or something."

M* A* R* R* Y* M* E*

"No, Jor, look, someone is being proposed to," the reporter exclaimed, excited and dreamy eyed. "Isn't that just so romantic?"

The dark-haired woman smirked. "Yeah, if you say so," she said dryly, with a little snort for good measure.

M* A* R* R* Y* M* E* R* E* B* E* C* C* A*

The reporter's mouth suddenly went dry, and she thought that she was seeing things. Couldn't possibly be me, could it? She turned to the side to look at her lover and her question was answered. Jordanna handed her a single red rose and got down on her knee in front of the reporter.

Jordanna swallowed a few times, and took her lover's hands in her own. "You are, without a doubt, the best thing to ever happen in my life, Rebecca. You know that I never thought that I would find love, especially a love like ours, but now that I have I don't ever want to give it up. I want you in my life always." She cleared her throat nervously, and noticed the tears forming in Rebecca's eyes. "Rebecca McCarthy Hurley, would you do me the honor of marrying me?"

'She did hear my wish the other night,' Rebecca thought happily. She got up and jumped into Jordanna's arms, knocking the stunned woman into the sand.

"I take it that's a yes?" the drummer asked, looking at Rebecca expectantly, needing to hear her confirmation. "Or did you just want to tackle me into the sand?"

Rebecca straddled the drummer's stomach, and looked down into her sparkling blue eyes. "Yes, Jordanna Fox, I will marry you and love you always and forever, and yes, I also want to roll with you in the sand."

Jordanna sat up and looked into Rebecca's wet green eyes, and leaned forward to kiss her fiancée. Their lips met passionately, each saying how they felt for the other in the one kiss. Once they broke apart, Jordanna smacked herself on the forehead, pulled the ring box out of the sand and handed it to Rebecca.

The young woman opened the box, gasping when she saw the ring. New tears began to fall as she asked Jordanna to slip it on her finger.

"Read the inscription first," the drummer said, and handed the ring back to her lover. Rebecca took it and looked at the inside of the ring, smiling as she read the word that was printed in it- eternity.

"You've made me the happiest woman in the world," the drummer confessed, and then slipped the ring on Rebecca's finger. Rebecca looked down at the teardrop shaped diamond that couldn't have looked more perfect on her hand, and gave the drummer a hug and a kiss. "It's beautiful, Jor. I love it, and I love you."

Jordanna took a deep, relieved breath of fresh, ocean air and smiled. "I'm so glad that you like it," she finally said, and pulled the reporter on top of her for another kiss. She quickly and easily flipped the two of them over so that she was now on top of Rebecca. "Jordanna!" the reporter screamed, feeling the sand cling automatically to her back.

Sparkling blue eyes looked down at her, and Jordanna lifted an eyebrow. "Well, you're the one that said that you wanted to roll around in the sand, baby," she said, her blue eyes now turning mischievous. "Sand feel good on your greasy body?" She leaned down and kissed Rebecca once more. "Hmm?" she asked, rewarding her with yet another passionate kiss.

Rebecca sighed. "It feels… heavenly."

Jordanna lifted herself up and off of the smaller woman, and Rebecca caught a glimpse of the layer of sand caked on the drummer's back and smirked big time.

"What's the smirk for?" Jordanna asked. "You're gonna look the same when you get up, too."

Rebecca laughed. "Yeah, but…" She bit her lip to control herself. "My ass cheeks aren't hanging out in this suit. You'll be removing sand for days."

Jordanna stood up, turned around and wiped the sand that was on her backside onto the reporter's feet, which were still planted in the sand. "I wasn't planning on wearing this suit today, but someone… someone talked me into wearing it."

Rebecca smiled innocently and looked around the empty expanse of beach on Jordanna's property for the guilty party. "Wasn't me."

"Uh huh, wasn't me, my ass," Jordanna replied, as she held out her hand for Rebecca to take. "Okay, Miss pure and innocent, let's take a little swim and wash some of this off of us."

Rebecca got up, and they walked down to the water hand in hand. The reporter backed away quickly when her feet hit the cold water. "Holy shit, that's cold."

Jordanna let go of her hand and went in without hesitation, and was already riding the waves in when Rebecca got up the nerve to try and get in. "Hey, this is great, baby. Come join me," Jordanna yelled over the sound of the crashing waves hitting the shore.

Rebecca slowly eased herself into the water, and made her way over to where Jordanna was. With one quick jump, she dove under the water, and grabbed the floating woman's exposed cheeks. "Hey!" The dark haired woman was standing within seconds, pulling Rebecca's body up from under the water. "What was that for?"

"Just checking for sand," the reporter said, grinning wickedly. "All clean."

Jordanna shook her head. "Do you have any idea how much I love you, Rebecca?"

"Yeah, I believe I do," Rebecca said, and looked at her new ring. "As much as I love you, Jordanna."

The reporter stood on the tips of her toes and kissed the dark haired woman right there in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. They both felt the strong pull of the ocean's undertow, but neither of them was willing to give in to it. Jordanna wrapped her long arms around the reporter and slowly began to untie the strings on Rebecca's bikini. "Have you ever made love on the beach?" the drummer asked in a pure sensual purr, whispering into Rebecca's ear.

The reporter felt her face beginning to blush, and she knew it wasn't from the sun's hot rays that were beating down on them. "Uh… um… no." She cleared her throat. "No, I haven't."

"I want to make love to you, right here, and right now, Rebecca," the drummer said, her voice deep with desire.

Rebecca's knees turned weak at the sound of her lover's sexy voice. "Don't you think we should wait until after the wedding?" she teased. "The least you could do is make an honest woman out of me, Jordanna."

Jordanna laughed. "I think it's far too late for me to make an honest woman out of you, baby."

Rebecca gasped when she felt her bikini top come off and Jordanna's hands began caressing her breasts under the water.

"Besides," Jordanna said, as she nibbled on Rebecca's bare shoulder from behind. "Where's the fun in that?"

"What if people see us?"

The drummer nibbled her way to Rebecca's neck, making sure that she was marking the young woman as her own… again. "This is a private beach, who is going to see us?"

Rebecca leaned her head to the side, giving Jordanna better access to her neck. "You said the same thing a couple months ago. The night we, um, played strip pool… and those people walked by, remember?"

"If anyone decides to walk this area of the beach today." Jordanna picked the young woman up in her arms, walked to the shore and laid her down on the sand, and eased her own body on top of her lover's. "Then they can just walk around us," she said, as she gently placed a kiss on Rebecca's lips. She slowly began placing soft kisses down Rebecca's neck and chest, finally making her way to her lover's attentive breasts. She kissed and licked her way around the curves, and then took one of Rebecca's nipples into her mouth just as the water rushed over them.

She lifted her head up and laughed. "Maybe we better move a little further back," she suggested, as the next set of waves crashed over them.

"No," Rebecca said, feeling a pent up desire for her lover that was only intensified by the feeling of the cool water caressing her very warm, very exposed flesh. "Make love to me right here."

"Okay," Jordanna said and winked, and crawled further down Rebecca's body, placing kisses as she went. She slowly pulled her lover's bikini bottom off and sat up to look down at the beautiful sight, as the sun's rays reflected rainbows in the sand around Rebecca's outline, making the day all the more beautiful for her. "Why don't we turn around?" Jordanna suggested, since they were lying on the sand with their feet facing the shore. "The water hitting us just the right way will make this a lot more stimulating."

She stood up, and Rebecca did the same, feeling only slightly self-conscious about being naked out doors. "These have got to come off," she said to Jordanna, as she gave a quick pull to the tie on Jordanna's black bikini top. The top fell off and onto the sand, and the drummer just stood there smirking while Rebecca pulled the thong down and off of her long legs. "Ooh la la," Rebecca said, and whistled like a construction worker inspecting a nice piece of female meat walking by.

Jordanna kneeled down on her knees and kissed her way down Rebecca's stomach, stopping at the blonde patch of hair above her center. Rebecca looked down at her with pleading eyes, and Jordanna smiled back at her. She pushed Rebecca's legs open slightly, and ran her tongue down the side of Rebecca's legs to tease her. "Lay down," the drummer commanded, and Rebecca took Jordanna's hand as she bent down and made herself as comfortable as she could in the sand.

"Spread your legs for me, baby," the drummer asked, her voice dripping with raw desire. Rebecca did as she was told and watched as Jordanna lowered her body between her legs, and began nipping and placing soft kisses on the skin around Rebecca's throbbing center. They could both feel the pull of the ocean from their position in the sand, and Jordanna waited for the right moment to enter Rebecca's waiting sex with her tongue. Rebecca immediately arched her back at the incredible sensation of having her lover's tongue inside her, and the intensity of rushing water against her center at the same time. "Oh, Gods!" she screamed out loud on the top of her lungs. "That feels fucking wonderful, Jor!"

Jordanna spread her own legs slightly to enjoy the feel of the water against her own throbbing center, as she ran her tongue along the length of her lover's sex, tasting the salt from the water combined with Rebecca's own salty, yet sweet taste.

Rebecca felt like she wanted to burst between the pressure of the water, and Jordanna's loving touch. She looked down at the drummer, and gave her hair a little tug. "Fingers?"

Only needing to hear that one word, Jordanna immediately complied to the reporter's request, sliding two fingers into Rebecca as she kept up the difficult, yet satisfying pace with her tongue.

Jordanna felt Rebecca's walls start to tense around her as soon as she slid the third finger in, and Rebecca exploded at that very moment, coating her lover with her essence, which Jordanna made sure she cleaned every ounce of before Rebecca pulled her up for a passionate kiss.

The waves crashed around them, and they both sat up straight, propping themselves up with their hands behind their backs. "Wow… that was absolutely incredible, Jor," Rebecca said, reveling in the afterglow. "I take it you've done that before?"

"Yeah," the drummer answered, taking the time for her breathing to return to normal. "I've had sex on the beach before." Where haven't I had sex?

Rebecca sensed the change in the drummer, leaned over and placed a kiss on Jordanna's shoulder, tasting the salt water mixed with her lover's personal scent. "I've always wanted to do that, you know."

"Mm?" Jordanna asked lazily. "You did?"

"Isn't that just about everyone's fantasy, to make love with the person they love on the beach?"

Jordanna looked into Rebecca's sincere green eyes. "Yeah, I guess it is, isn't it?" She stood up, and picked up both hers and Rebecca's bathing suits from the sand. "We probably better go take a shower now."

"The house is a sauna, love. Why don't we wait for the repairman?" Rebecca asked, as she followed her naked drummer back to their blanket.

"The repairman is not coming," Jordanna answered dryly, holding in a smirk.

Rebecca's eyes opened wide. "Why isn't he coming? What are we supposed to do, sweat to death in that house?"

"No." Jordanna picked up a towel and handed it to Rebecca. "All I have to do is turn the unit back on," she said, her smile turning into a wicked grin.

"We've discussed the 12 steps in great detail. You've pinpointed your occupation as the trigger point for your addiction, Jordanna," Dr. Rosen said and paused. "I think you are more than ready for group therapy."

The drummer's eyebrow rose slowly. "Group therapy?"

"Yes." The doctor put her pencil down on the desk, stood up, and sat on the edge of her desk right in front of the drummer. "You've come a long way in such a short time, Jordanna. Group therapy will show you that you are not alone in your addiction, and you'll hear how your peers have coped with it."

Jordanna sat back in her chair and sighed. "You mean something like an AA meeting?"

The doctor nodded. "Yes, like an AA meeting."

"Um, I don't think so, Dr. Rosen," Jordanna replied, shaking her head.

"Why not?"

"I won't feel comfortable discussing my sexual habits with other people besides Rebecca or you." She got up and walked to the window in the office, and looked out at the small playground behind it. "People know who I am. I'd be embarrassed."

"Yes, I thought about that when I first thought of sending you to group therapy," the doctor commented. "My husband is the one who runs the program, and he and I discussed it. Most of the members in the group are men, but there are a few women. He thought your presence may cause temptation for some of the men in the group."

"Temptation? Why?" Jordanna asked from her place in front of the window, slightly puzzled.

Dr. Rosen leaned forward and spoke to the dark-haired woman softly. "Let's face it, Jordanna. You are an incredibly beautiful woman, with a sexual history that… well, shall I say hearing about it would turn even me on in my weakest moment. How do you think men like you would handle it?"

"Not very well," the drummer answered, hoping that the doctor would talk herself out of sending her to this group therapy thing. "Maybe it's not such a good idea then, Dr. Rosen."

The doctor handed Jordanna a sheet with the name and address of the group and the dates and times that they meet. "Just go once. If you are uncomfortable, then you don't have to go back, but just try it once, okay?"

The drummer folded the sheet up and stuffed it into the back pocket of her white cutoff jean shorts. "I'll try," she said, and frowned.

Dr. Rosen got up from her desk and walked with Jordanna towards the door. "Same time next week, then?"

"Yeah, same time next week."

**

Rebecca ran her hand across her irate lover's back, hoping to sooth her frayed nerves. "Calm down, Jor!"

"She wants me to fucking go to group therapy, Rebecca!" Jordanna walked to the window in the sunroom and looked out at the sky, where she noticed a wall of dark clouds rolling in from the west. "Looks like there's gonna be a storm soon," she said quietly, as she started to relax.

Rebecca walked over to the window and stood next to her lover. "Just try it once, like she said. If you don't like it then don't go back. What nights are they on?"

"The first one is tomorrow night," Jordanna said. She wrapped her arm around Rebecca's shoulder and kissed her on the top of her golden hair. "I know, I'm just being a baby, aren't I?"

"Yeah," Rebecca admitted. "But you are my baby. Speaking of that, we need to pick a date, love."

Jordanna raised a brow in question. "A date?"

"For the wedding, knucklehead! Unless you've changed your mind about wanting to marry me."

They both jumped as a flash of lightening cracked over the ocean. "Change my mind about marrying the most beautiful woman in the world? I most certainly don't think so," the drummer answered after the accompanying thunder rock and rolled throughout the house. "I can't wait to marry you, Rebecca. The sooner the better, as far as I'm concerned."

"Well, we are in complete agreement then," Rebecca said, and slid her arm around the drummer's waist. "Let's go sit down and decide on a date." Jordanna grabbed a calendar from the desk in the den and they walked together over to the couch and sat down. Rebecca, as usual, slid into the crook of Jordanna's arm when they settled themselves.

Rebecca ran her finger down the calendar and stopped on a date. "How about June 20^th?"

Jordanna looked up from the calendar. "That's Father's Day."

The reporter looked at the drummer and laughed. "Yeah, so?"

"Rebecca, just because you aren't speaking to your parents and I haven't seen my father in over fifteen years doesn't mean everyone else is in the same situation." She tapped her finger on the edge of the calendar. "Unless you want to have a private wedding, just the two of us? I figured since you really didn't have a formal wedding with what's his name," she paused and smiled. "You would want a big wedding."

"I do want a big, formal wedding, Jor. You know, invitations and all of the normal wedding stuff." Rebecca grabbed Jordanna's hand and kissed it. "As long as that is what you want, love."

"I want what you want, baby. So that settles that." An idea popped into Jordanna's head, and she turned to the side to look directly at her lover. "You know, when we are not touring I usually throw a big 4^th of July bash here at the house. Maybe we could kind of combine the two and have the wedding out on the beach? July 4^th is on the weekend this year."

"Hmm," Rebecca said, and put her finger up to her lip. "A wedding ceremony by the ocean? I certainly can't think of anything more romantic than that."

"We can have the actual ceremony in the white gazebo out on the deck," Jordanna said, in an uncharacteristically excited voice. "And then have the reception/4^th of July party on the beach. I know that we can rent some portable bars, a dance floor, plus get some tents for the guests to sit under." She stopped speaking, only long enough to take a breath. "We'll put up the volleyball net like I do every year on 4^th of July. It'll have to be casual, obviously. Very casual."

Rebecca smiled at her lover's enthusiasm. "God, Jor. Slow down."

"As for the invitations. We will probably have to go somewhere in the city to have them done, as far as finding something that will fit our lifestyle, unless we want to go with the typical foo foo flowery type ones. Not that there's anything wrong with those. We can find them anywhere."

"You really are excited about this, aren't you?"

Jordanna rubbed her head and started to laugh. "I never thought that any of this was possible for me, Rebecca. I figured I'd be alone for the rest of my life."

Rebecca snorted. "You, alone?"

Jordanna looked down at the floor and spoke quietly. "You know what I mean. The life I led was a very lacking and lonely existence. I just… well, I know now that I just used sex as a substitute for all of the things I didn't have emotionally."

"I'm sorry," Rebecca said, and placed a kiss on Jordanna's cheek. "I didn't mean to make you sad."

"It didn't make me sad, baby." Jordanna ran her fingers through Rebecca's hair. "I couldn't be happier knowing that is definitely not my future anymore."

Jordanna stood at the door of the building, ran her fingers down the braid in her hair and sighed.

She took a deep breath, and opened the door. She walked down the hall, and looked into each of the open classroom-like rooms in the building as she walked by. She stalled in front of the room marked 19 on the door, put her hand on the knob to open it, but lost her nerve.

She stood there for quite some time, fighting with herself whether she should stay or she should just leave, and decided she liked the leaving idea better. She was just about ready to turn around and leave when a middle-aged man, with sandy blond hair and blue eyes stepped in her path. "Jordanna, right?" he asked, and took a sip from the steaming cup of 7-11 coffee he had in his hand.

"Uh, yeah. I'm Jordanna."

He held out his empty hand for her to shake. "Dr. Larry Rosen. My wife said you would be coming."

"Yeah," she said shyly. "I guess."

"I know this must not be very easy for you, so why don't you just sit in the back and observe this one time, okay?" he suggested. "This is a good group with a lot of different backgrounds. You should gain a lot of insight from them."

"Okay."

He opened the door and allowed her to walk in before him. She kept her eyes focused on the floor to avoid the stares of the people in the room, and slipped into the last seat in the back. She looked up and into the brown eyes of the woman that was sitting sideways in the chair directly in front of her, and strained a smile at her when she greeted her with a friendly hello.

Dr. Rosen settled himself and stood up in front of a small desk in the front of the room, and addressed the group like they were all old friends of his. "We have some new members here tonight, who are just going to sit and listen to get a feel of what kind of crazy stuff goes on behind these doors," he said for Jordanna's benefit, and smiled at the dark-haired woman.

Jordanna sat fidgeting nervously and listened half-heartedly; still annoyed at the fact that it was her own uncontrollable actions that led her to the group. She absentmindedly tapped out a drum pattern with her fingers on her thigh as a few members of the group got up in front of the room and spoke about their addiction.

"The doctor helped me realize that my career is my trigger point," the man standing in front of the podium said sadly. "I need to support my family, so it's not like I could just up and quit my job."

Jordanna looked up at the man that was speaking, suddenly interested in what was being said.

"Thanks to Dr. Rosen and the support of this group, I've been sexually sober for 9 years now," he continued, and the group all clapped at the words. "This addiction almost ruined my life, my marriage to my beautiful wife, and my relationship with my children." He looked up and out to the crowd, his eyes suddenly locking with Jordanna's. She could feel the strange connection between them immediately. "It almost killed me," he said and paused. "I almost killed me."

**

Jordanna nonchalantly tried to slip out of the room unnoticed and almost made it to the door when she felt a strong hand on her shoulder. She spun around quickly; ready to lash out at whomever was stupid enough to cross her personal line.

She stopped short, and looked right into the emerald eyes of the man that spoke last. He smiled, and held out his hand for her to shake. "I'm Mark."

The drummer hesitantly took his offered hand, pleasantly pleased that he had a firm handshake, unlike most of the men she encountered. "Jordanna," she responded quietly, hoping that he didn't know who she was.

"You're a musician, aren't you?"

"Yes."

"And you're a lesbian," he said bluntly, not a question in his tone. "That must be really rough for someone with a sexual addiction."

Her lips curled into a small smile. She couldn't believe she was actually thinking of answering his questions, but the sincerity in his green eyes, eyes that reminded her so much of Rebecca; made her feel safe. "Yes, I am a lesbian, and no, it isn't easy being a musician… a lesbian musician… with a sexual addiction. Not in the least."

He leaned his arm up against the wall next to where they were standing. "How long have you been sober?"

'How long have you been so damn nosy?' Jordanna thought right away, but controlled herself from saying it to the man. "Sober?" Jordanna arched a brow and shrugged her shoulders. She never thought of her addiction, or her recovery, like that. "You mean how long has it been since I last lost control of myself with someone other than my fiancée?"

"No… well, yeah," he answered and paused. "Actually, that's not exactly what I mean, Jordanna," he finally stuttered.

"Three months," she said with a sigh. "I admitted that I had this addiction three months ago. I've been… sober, as you call it… ever since."

Continued in Part 6