Nervously, I swallowed the fear down and curled up at her side. She wrapped her arm around me and slid down, so we were face to face. I couldn't recall a time I'd ever been this close to a woman, and I could feel my heart pounding, but the excitement that normally filled me and overrode my anxiety when I was body deep with a man wasn't there. Staring into her eyes, I witnessed her admiration. I'd observed that same gaze time after time just before hooking up with a guy. And when she leaned in, she hesitated for a fraction of a second, and I closed my eyes. Her lips met mine, they were soft and supple. Without sight, the kiss was no different than hundreds of others I'd experienced in my adult life. She gently turned and gradually opened her mouth. I followed her lead, and our tongues met in a gentle exchange. With each swipe, my mind drifted further from the reality that I was French kissing a woman and focused on the sensation alone. My hands drifted from the safety of her jean-cla

One of the guys I'd met the day before, whose name I couldn't remember, greeted us at the door. "Hey, Giselle." He smiled warmly at me before noticing the two bombshells behind me. "Who are your friends?""Veronica and Trish." Before he could remind me of his name, or I had to admit I couldn't remember it, Beck came bounding into the foyer in nothing other than a skimpy, string bikini. She would have done just as well to wear pasties and a pad, it would have provided more coverage."Giselle! You brought friends." Beck was a ray of sunshine today. I could only assume it meant things were going well with Stella. She stopped just in front of the guy, but close enough to lean in for a friendly side kiss on the cheek.With the introductions completed-thankfully Beck introduced Mark-we made our way out back. There was music playing through the speakers, the outdoor kitchen had a chef working in front of it, and people mingled around the edge with drinks. I felt sorry for the hired h

None of them had been better than either of my previous dates. Arielle-pronounced Airy-Elle, not Ariel, which she had to remind me no less than fifteen times in twelve minutes-didn't make it past coffee. We'd met at a locally owned café after work on Wednesday. My day had been boring, but I would have welcomed the monotony back in a heartbeat to escape that girl's crazy. Within minutes, she had pulled two little pink, bear-shaped pills from her pocket and offered me a good time. I wasn't stupid enough to try ecstasy in my twenties, I sure as hell wasn't doing it in my late-thirties-I didn't care how desperate I was or how "great it made the sex." Airy-Elle wouldn't be making the friend zone, she was lucky I didn't have her committed. But no matter how hard I tried to close down the conversation, end the date, she wasn't having it. I managed to escape to the bathroom but couldn't bring myself to listen to Ronnie's "I told you so" if I called her to rescue me. Instead, I opted to push

My dating debacles seemed to bring all the women in my life together. Somehow, through no fault of my own, Veronica, Trish, Beck, Stella, and Roxie had all formed an alliance against my sexuality. One would think lesbians would welcome other women into their tribe, encourage them to explore the nether lips, embrace the love of estrogen-not my friends. The more time I spent with them, the closer we all became, which was great, except they'd united in a plight to return me to the heterosexual dating pool. I felt cheated, unwanted. I threatened to call the LGBTQ Human Alliance about their discrimination, to which they all found great humor. As the weeks went by, I quit discussing my dating gaffes with any of them. There was no point-they just made fun of me. It hadn't mattered who I'd gone out with-and at this point, there had been a plethora of female companions-I couldn't get past the first kiss. The instant the foreplay got to be too much, I totally flaked out. I couldn't get past t

"Goddammit, Beck. How many times do I have to tell you not to use my fucking credit cards for stupid shit?"I'd heard this argument before, and it hadn't gone well the last time. I didn't expect any better this time. "Oh, lighten up, West. It was just dinner. It was less than a hundred bucks." She waved him off in dismissal, which only served to rile him further."If it's only a hundred dollars, then why don't you get off your lazy ass and make the money you so freely spend and stop blowing mine? Wasn't that your deal with Stella? You were going to get a job and start acting like an adult. When does that adult part happen?"Beck's feelings were hurt, and she was embarrassed. Stella turned all shades of red, and the others didn't have a clue what to do as West, Brutus, whoever he currently was, stood there brooding. When his sister started to cry, he threw his hands in the air. Stella tended to her girlfriend, and the others hadn't moved. I was taking a chance by trying to soot