Chapter 62

Carol arrived home for Christmas break on the 19^th, and we finished up our Christmas shopping on Saturday. We were really done anyway, and this was mostly just an excuse to do some shopping while people were too preoccupied to notice me. By the end of the day, we had filled the trunk of the BMW with things for ourselves, and a few gifts.

*****

On Sunday we began decorating the tree that had been delivered a few days earlier. This was the first year since moving to California that we had the tree decorations that we had grown up with. It may sound silly to some people, but we cherished each of the little ornaments and had really missed them last year when they were still back at the old house. Also, over the past couple of months Mom had put up the pictures and decorations that she had brought from the old house.

The den was now decorated with memorabilia that we found in the house when we purchased it, and there was an entire wall of signed celebrity photos. Mr. Lampert had told us that he sent Miss LaBarre's scrapbooks and family photos back to her heirs, so I guess that he, or they, didn't want the old celebrity photos. I thought that they were wonderful and I had selected the ones that we would mount on the wall in the den. Mom had had a wonderful display case refinished and my two awards from the Community Theatre now resided there. Additionally, I had received half a dozen other awards for the pictures that I had been in and they were in there also. I had been working and didn't attend the awards ceremonies, so one of the picture's executives, or the director, had attended and accepted the award for me. I had only made time to attend the Academy Awards until now.

*****

Now that the filming of 'Weep for the Lonely Hearts' was done, I swam every morning in the indoor pool. It was too cool to swim in the lagoon unless we kept it heated all the time. After my swim, I went to the dining room for breakfast. Carol was sleeping in but Mom was up.

"Good morning, dear. Enjoy your swim?"

"Yes, it was great," I said as I buttered a hot croissant. "Is Aunt Jess coming today?"

"She'll be in this afternoon. I'm leaving here around two o'clock to pick her up. We should be back by dinnertime."

"What about Dad?"

"He's coming in Wednesday. George will pick him up at the airport for us."

"Who's coming in Wednesday?" Carol asked as she entered the family dining room. "Daddy?"

"Yes, I was just telling your sister that Aunt Jessica is coming today and your father in two days."

"Oh. Is Oliver coming for Christmas dinner, sis?"

"Yes, I told him that he has a standing invitation for all the major holidays. He'll be up around noon on Christmas."

"How about Sharon and the babies?"

"No, Roy is in town and they’re spending the day at home, so it'll just be the six of us."

"Samantha will be stopping over on Saturday, and I invited Vinnie DeMarco to come for a visit next month since we're both off from school. Are you going to be around?"

"I'll be here until February, then I'm going to the Caribbean to start shooting the new picture. This will be my last break for a long while."

"You're off all summer, aren't you?"

"No, I agreed to do another movie starting in June, then I have the other movie in Virginia. It will be a year and three months before I get a vacation."

"I thought that you were going to insist on two months off between pictures, now you're saying that you're doing three movies in a row without any breaks."

"I thought that I'd have the whole summer off this year, but this other picture came up."

"Why did you agree to do a movie this summer?"

"It's mainly to help out Cole Griffith. His career has been sagging and he needs a break. They think that I can help. He helped me when I needed a break getting my first movie role. He told the producer and director that he thought that my performance was the best of the actresses that he had met at the try-outs for the part in 'A Promise of Spring'. I called him before I agreed to do this, to make sure that he really wanted me in the movie, and he was very enthusiastic about my being in the picture. Also the script is great. It's a romantic-comedy-adventure set in Europe."

"Europe? Can I go?" Carol asked enthusiastically.

"Of course. We'd love to have you. We'll be staying in England for the most part because that's where much of the shooting will be done, but we'll be traveling to various locations on the continent where they'll shoot the outdoor scenes. You'll be done with college so you can stay until the end of the shooting if you want. We should wrap up by the end of September."

"Kewl. I'll be looking forward to it. I missed out on the last trip because of school."

"Just five more months to go and you'll be done with school for good."

"I know. It's hard to believe, but I'm looking forward to being done with it. How about you? Any thoughts about going back now that you're an established movie star?"

"I still think about it all the time. I think that I missed out by not going, but I also know that I've had wonderful experiences and that I'll be set for life after these next three pictures."

"How much will you be getting?"

"I get twelve for the next one, then fifteen for the two after that."

"My God, sis, that's forty-two million dollars for fifteen months work."

"It's more like two years work crammed into fifteen months, and only about sixteen million after taxes, agency fees, and Jennifer's percentage, but I think that I can afford to take a nice vacation after that. Maybe even six months."

"Come on, sis, what would you do with yourself for six months. You're not really working for the money anymore, and you'd be climbing the walls after a month."

"I am working for the money. Buying this house, fixing it up, and furnishing it really drained the bank accounts of everything that I earned up through 'Morning Mist'. But we have the money for 'Princess' and soon the money for 'Weep' so we're fine. And the next three projects will restore the accounts so that money shouldn't ever be a problem again. I did make a decision to get as much work as I could before I reached twenty-six, so I probably won't take much time off. Still, it's a long way off and I'll have plenty of time to think about it."

Mom, who had been quietly listening as Carol and I talked, said, "Honey, you have to make some time for yourself. You can't keep driving your self to make one picture after another. Even though you're young and strong, it will take a heavy toll if you're not careful."

"I know, Mom. I really feel drained when we wrap a picture, but within two weeks I'm ready to start working again. Carol's right about my climbing the walls if I had to 'relax' for too long."

"What about getting the horses? Have you dropped that idea?"

"No, but I think that we should postpone it. I'm not even going to be here for over a year, except for a few brief stays. I originally thought that we'd be here a lot more."

"It's just as well then. Horses need a lot of care and exercise."

*****

Mom left just after two o'clock to pick-up Aunt Jess at the airport. Carol spent most of the afternoon talking on the phone and I spent some time talking with Sharon and then studied the script for the next movie. Mom arrived back with Aunt Jess just before Mrs. McGuire came to tell us that dinner would be ready in ten minutes. We spent several minutes greeting Aunt Jessica and helping to carry her bags up to her bedroom. As soon as she had unpacked her things we all went down to the family dining room to eat.

Over dinner we caught up on news with Aunt Jess and filled her in on our lives. She broke the news that her company was closing the office where she had worked for almost twenty years.

"What? How can they?" Mom exclaimed.

"The company was bought out and the parent already has the territory covered by adequate staff. They've offered me a position in Alabama."

"And you said?" Mom asked.

"That I'd let them know after the holidays," she said sadly. I don't know about starting over in a new place where I don't know anyone. I'm not seeing anyone right now and I've been feeling sorry for myself since this came up a couple of weeks ago. I've considered moving out to California so that I can be closer to you guys. We don't have any relations back in the Mid-west anymore, and I'm sure that I can find a job out here. The company will credit me with five more years and two months for the retirement fund so that I have twenty-five years, but I can't collect until I reach sixty-five."

"Come live with us, Aunt Jess," I said. "We have more than enough room here and we'd all love to have you."

Aunt Jessica's face lit up. "Are you serious? Come stay here? Permanently?"

"Of course. For as long as you want to. I'm sure that Mom and Carol agree."

Both Mom and Carol endorsed the idea enthusiastically and we spent the rest of the meal planning Aunt Jess's move to the estate. She would return home after the holidays and complete her work with her company. Mom would travel with her and help her pack her things for the move. They would sell most of her furniture and then they would return while the moving company transported her remaining belongings.

After dinner we all went into the living room to relax and talk. Aunt Jess wanted to know about my work so I wound up talking about the three movies that I was set to do and discussing them filled our time until it was time for bed.

*****

On Tuesday we finished decorating the tree and house interior. Mrs. McGuire put up with us invading her kitchen so that we could make some cookies and deserts, and the day was over before we realized the hour. Mom and Aunt Jess stayed up to watch the late night shows as Carol and I went up to bed.

*****

Dad arrived on Wednesday afternoon. George had driven down with our van to pick him up. As usual, Mom greeted him at the door to smell his breath before she would allow him in.

"I'm clean, Susan. Not even a drink on the plane. I had a cola."

"Okay, Bill, come in. Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas to you," he said as he came in and gave Mom a hug and a peck on the cheek.

As I reached him he wrapped his arms around me and said, "Merry Christmas darling, how's my little girl." Then he kissed me on the forehead.

I gave him a kiss on the cheek. "Merry Christmas, Daddy. I'm doing great. How are you?"

"Never better."

Carol had come downstairs and Dad repeated his greeting to her. Even Aunt Jess got a hug and a kiss when she got there. Dad only had one suitcase but Carol and I went upstairs with him to show him to his bedroom, then we all went back downstairs. It was like a repeat of when Aunt Jess arrived. We filled him in on what we had been doing and learned what had been going on in his life. He told us that he had rented a new apartment and that he had a spare bedroom now. He hoped that we might visit him sometime. We told him that we would if the opportunity presented itself.

We wound up sitting in the dining room for several hours while we talked, and then we moved to the living room and continued there until it was time for dinner. By the time the meal was over, Dad was caught up on our news and vice-versa. After dinner I gave Dad a complete tour of the house. It had changed quite a bit since last year's visit. Mom had completed the interior decorations and the lagoon pool had been finished. Dad was especially awed by the pool and kept shaking his head. We finished up by walking around the driveway.

"I found a place that will restore both your cars," Dad said as we approached the garages.

"Really, I thought that you had forgotten about them."

"No, I've been working on it since my last visit. I've spoken with people all over the country and gotten dozens of renovation referrals, but the place that got the best recommendations from everyone is down in Texas. They can pick up both cars at once the next time that they have a truck in this area. They say that they have a truck up here at least once a month. They can also make a special trip if you want to pay extra."

"I'm not in that much of a hurry, so a regular pickup would be okay. I just bought a new car to replace my old Subaru."

"A limo?"

"No, just a regular sedan. A BMW 750iL."

"That's hardly a regular sedan. It's a beautiful car. Can I see it?"

"Sure, it's over here," I said, leading the way to the garage where it was housed.

Dad walked around the car, looking it over carefully, and then opened the driver's side door and slid behind the wheel. After a minute of looking at the interior, he said, "It's beautiful, honey. Lots of luck with it."

"Thanks, Daddy. I was told that I should have a car that reflected a better image than my old one."

"I'm sure that they were right. Image is important. I'm sure that this house sure projects one heck of an image."

"There have been a couple of inquires from media people who want to visit the house and get a tour with film crews. Mom has put them off so far. I don't really want the publicity."

"Doesn't it go with the territory?"

"Unfortunately, yes. Oliver says that I have to stop hiding out because it invites more interest. My publicist wants me do at least one of the tours. I don't think that I really need any more publicity, though. I have more work than I can handle now. Should I sacrifice my only private place just for a little publicity?"

"You wouldn't be sacrificing your privacy. It would only be a one time event, wouldn't it?"

"I think that once I let one crew in, I'll be swamped with a flood of requests from others since I try to keep my private life so protected. Also, there would then be pictures of the house everywhere. There've already been a couple of magazine and tabloid spreads showing the house the way that it was in the thirties, and speculating about how the house looks now by interviewing the workmen who did the renovations."

"Then there's not too much to safeguard anymore. Let them come in and take their pictures and be done with it. You don't even have to be there. Maybe your Mom or sister would like to conduct the tour of the mansion."

I giggled. "I don't know if I could do that to them, but it would give them an idea of what I'm up always up against."

"Why not ask them if they'd like to be in the limelight for a change?"

"Okay, it might be interesting to see their reaction."

Dad got out of the car and we closed the garage door as we stepped out onto the darkened driveway. The driveway was illuminated by lights that stood about a foot above the ground, their lamps aimed downward and across the pavement. We could see each other's silhouette easily enough, but facial features were obscured. As we started back towards the house he stammered, "Uh- how are you doing, honey?"

It seemed a strange question to be asking since we had spent hours discussing our lives so I figured that there must be something deeper behind it, but I answered innocently, "Great, daddy. Everything is terrific."

"Uh- I mean how is- how is Cary doing?"

I sighed. It was what I thought that he had meant. I stopped walking and he stopped and turned to face me. "Cary is still a part of me, but a very small part."

"Will he be back?"

"Would you be upset if he wasn't?"

Now it was Dad's turn to sigh. "For the longest time I thought that I would be." I waited while he paused to consider his words. "I have to admit that I'm still a little uncomfortable with the situation when I take time to think about it, but most of the time I don't think about it, and when I'm around you I tend to forget completely. You seem so much like a woman. You don't act anything like a boy pretending to be a girl."

I took a deep breath. "I'm not pretending, Daddy. This is who I am. I don't have the same abdominal makeup as Mom and Carol, but I'm like them in almost all other respects."

"Is this my fault?"

"Your fault?"

"For separating from your mother and leaving you kids without a father."

"Of course not. You've heard the story of how this came about."

"But you said that this was only until you earned enough to put you and your sister through college. You've made enough now to put yourself through a hundred thousand colleges."

"That was how it started, Daddy, but situations change. I discovered that I didn't have to go to college to be a success. I may not be good at anything else, but I seem to have a talent for acting. I probably wouldn't be as successful if I was Cary. Male leads are normally tall, with deep voices and rugged good looks. I'm short, with a high voice, and "pretty" features. I would probably be typecast as gay and wind up in dresses part of the time anyway."

I think that he smiled a little. "Then this is still just a pretense for the sake of your career?"

I studied the ground around one of the driveway lights for a minute as I thought of how I should respond. "I'm still wrestling with that decision. I've been living as a woman for more than four years and I never really think of Cary anymore. That's why I don't seem to be pretending. It may be too late to change my sex back to a male now."

"Change your sex back? You sound like you've already changed."

I didn't say anything.

"You have, haven't you? You did change."

"I haven't been Cary for a long time, Daddy. I wouldn't have been able to fool wardrobe people for very long if I hadn't done something."

I could see him nodding slightly. "I wondered how you were able to look so feminine in swimsuits and tight clothing. If I didn't know better I would have sworn that you were born a girl."

"I haven't had any plastic surgery, except for the one alteration below my waist. This body is the real me. No implants or phony anything."

He was staring at me now. "You mean that those are real breasts."

"Every last bit."

"I thought that you wore fake breasts?"

"Only at first. My real breasts started growing at about the same time and I eventually retired the false set. There was a second smaller set that I wore for a while so that no one would notice the sudden change in size."

"And you haven't had them enlarged?"

"No. There was no need. If I decide to change back to Cary I'll have to have them cut-off."

Dad shook his head. "Then maybe you weren't supposed to be a boy at all. How do you remove your facial hair?"

"I don't have any to remove."

Dad was quiet for a few moments. "I've heard of cases like this where people are actually both sexes at the same time and someone, usually a parent, makes a decision as to what sex they should be raised as. Sometimes, when they grow up, they decide that the wrong sex was picked and they switch to the other."

Dad was trying to justify my behavior in his mind. I decided to help him. "You might be right, Daddy. I'm small, with a woman's very wide hips, a high voice, and no facial hair." I didn't feel that I should mention the hormones in the breast adhesive or the herbs that I had been drinking in tea since I was very young. He was looking for reasons why I was no longer the son that he had hoped to see again.

Dad suddenly began to talk as if he had had a spiritual revelation. "That must be it then. You were never really supposed to be a boy at all. That's how you could be such a convincing girl. You really are a girl, so you're only doing what’s natural. Your body has developed the way that it was supposed to all along and has shown us the way that you should be." He paused for a minute and then pulled me to him and hugged me. "I'm sorry for trying to force you into being a boy, honey. You be the girl that nature intended you to be all along. I'll never mention Cary again. As far as I'm concerned my children were both daughters at birth. We just mislabeled you for a few years."

I had long dreaded the day when Dad would learn that I had had surgery to hide my maleness and that I no longer wore false breasts. The original breast forms had been so good that it was almost impossible to tell that they were fake without fondling them and I knew that Dad thought that I still used them. Now the day and come and the confrontation had passed without problem. Even better than that, he had embraced my change as a natural event and believed that I was meant to be a female all along. Should I feel guilty about not giving him all the facts? What if I decided to become Cary again? Was fate giving me another shove down a path that it had picked for me?

Dad released me and turned towards the house. He put his elbow out towards me and I put my hand through his arm and walked along with him. We were each lost in our own thoughts and didn't talk until we got back to the house.

"So what now, sweetheart. Marriage? Children?"

"I can't have children, Daddy. I learned that a long time ago. It made no difference which life I lived."

Dad was silent for a few seconds. "I'm sorry, baby. I know that most women want to have kids. Do you like children?"

"Yes, I do. But I don't really have time for them at this time in my life. Maybe in ten years or so I can adopt."

"You're going to make me wait that long before I can become a grandfather?"

I laughed. "You're too young to be a grandfather anyway."

"Am not. I'm forty-four now."

"And you'll only be fifty-four in ten years. Daddy, that's not even old enough to retire."

"I guess," he said smiling, "although some days I feel a whole lot older."

We were laughing as we entered the house through the kitchen door. Mom and Aunt Jess were helping Mrs. McGuire prepare the food for tomorrow's big meal and they turned their heads to look at us as we entered.

"It likes like you two are having a good time," Mom remarked. "What do you think of the pool, Bill?"

"I'm impressed. I've never seen anything like it, in person. It looks like something made for a movie set to look like Hawaii."

"Too bad that it's too cold to use this time of year," I said. "We have to wait until about March or April when it warms up, but you can use the indoor pool if you want to take a swim."

"Thanks, but not tonight. I'll feeling a bit tired. I'm still running on Central Time. It's two hours later for me. I think that I'll turn in. Goodnight, everyone."

"Goodnight, Daddy," I said as I leaned over to give him a goodnight kiss. Instead of turning his face so that I could kiss his cheek, as I had always done, he kissed me on the lips. I noticed Mom's expression as I pulled away. Everyone else said 'goodnight' and Dad left for his room.

Aunt Jess was cutting apples for a pie so I sat down and helped her, as Mom made the turkey stuffing. Mrs. McGuire sliced mushrooms and onions. In two hours the pies were cooked and all the preparation work was done. Tomorrow, Mrs. McGuire would get up early and stuff the turkey before putting it in the oven to cook. We all said goodnight and went to bed.

*****

I awoke early the next morning. I had slept peacefully and deep and was well rested. After doing a few stretching exercises I took off my nightgown and went to take a bath. I filled the tub with warm water and poured in some bubble-bath and fragrance crystals. The tub was so warm and delicious that I could have stayed there for hours. As it was I must have been in for more than an hour and my fingers were 'pruned' when I finally climbed out and patted myself dry. I wrapped a towel around my torso and walked back into the bedroom.

As I approached the bed I was brought up short by what I saw lying on it. It was a red velvet dress with fake fur trimming the neck, wrists, and hem. I walked over and picked it up. It looked like the same dress that I had worn at Christmas several years ago. Underneath the dress I found a pair of knee high red leather boots with stiletto heels higher than four-inches, a fur trimmed hat and a wide black vinyl belt. One look told me that I would never get into the dress without wearing the corset.

I removed the towel and went to examine my body in the mirror as I powdered. As I finished and was about to put on my panties, Carol burst into my room, naked.

"Sis, did you get- yes, I see that you got one also. Mom's at it again."

I smiled. "What's the matter. We had fun when we did it last time. Remember the picture that we took with Dad. He told me that he still has that on his desk at work. It was fun wasn't it?"

"Yeah, kinda, but I can't fit into the dress. I already held it up against me."

"You'll just have to wear a corset again. It's only for one day."

"I still haven't gotten over the last time that I let you talk me into wearing one and that was for my high-school prom three and a half years ago. I had to wear it for three weeks so that I'd be used to it for prom night."

"And you looked absolutely terrific in your prom dress. You were the envy of every other girl there and every guy wished that you were with them."

Carol got a dreamy look in her eyes. "I guess- stop it!"

"What?"

"Stop trying to convince me to wear the dress. I'm just going to tell Mom that I can't fit into it."

"Okay, but you'll be the only one."

"What do you mean."

"If I know Mom, both she and Aunt Jess will be dressed like this, and Dad will be wearing a Santa suit."

Carol looked at me funny. "I hate it when you do that."

"Do what?" I said innocently.

"Use logic on me and make me feel guilty."

I giggled as I stepped into my panties and pulled them up. "I know that you don't really want to be left out of the fun, even if the corset is a little uncomfortable. Just be glad that you're not me. I have a movie starting in the fall that will probably require me to wear one all day for six months."

"I'd be happy to wear one for fifteen million dollars."

"You say that now," I said as I put on my bra, "but after the first week you'd be wondering if it was worth it."

"Sis, for almost half a million dollars each week, I'd suffer in silence."

I went into my closet, retrieved two corsets and a chemise, and came out to stand next to Carol. I tossed her one of the corsets. "Here, in case you don't have one." I slipped the chemise on over my head and pulled the corset around me. "Lace me down, will you please".

Carol stood behind me and tightened the laces. It had been a while since I had worn a corset and I wasn't used to it at all. When I could barely breathe, Carol tied off the laces. "Okay, you win. I'll wear the darn thing." She picked up the corset from where she had put it down in order to lace me, and headed for the door.

"Carol?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't forget. Dad's in the house."

Her faced reflected her surprise and she looked down at her naked body. "Oh, God, I forgot. I need a towel." She retrieved a large bath towel from my bathroom and wrapped it around herself. She looked at me, giggled, and said, "Thanks, sis."

"Do you want me to come lace you down?"

"I'll bring my stuff in here when I'm ready and we can get dressed together."

"Okay."

Carol left, after checking the hallway first. I smiled to myself. I knew that she really wanted to wear the Christmas dress. She just wanted to be convinced a little because it would be uncomfortable. I spent the next fifteen minutes walking around the room trying to get used to the corset. I was still walking around when Carol came back in.

"Ready to be laced down the rest of the way, sis?"

"No yet. It's been a while. Let's start on you."

Carol had already put the corset around her body and pulled the laces as tight as she could. I tugged on them until she pleaded with me to stop, then I tied them off.

"I'm dying," she moaned.

"You can't die yet, it's Christmas. You'll have to wait until tomorrow."

She giggled. "Tomorrow I won't have to wear the corset so I won't feel like dying."

"If you think that you feel bad now, wait until tonight after you've been wearing the boots all day."

"I know. My feet will be killing me. I don't know if it will be more uncomfortable standing on those heels or sitting with this corset."

"At least we won't eat too much and then have to diet next week."

We helped each other put our stockings on because we couldn't bend very well and then Carol tightened me down again. As I struggled to control my breathing, I put a slip on and Carol helped me step in the dress. It was so tight that I could barely get it up to my hips, but once there I was able to slip my arms into the sleeves and pull it on the rest of the way. Carol stepped behind me and worked to zip the dress up. It was tight but the corset was closed just enough to let the zipper ride to the top. Carol managed to reach under the dress and pull my slip down. It had ridden up as I pulled the dress up.

Carol and I both walked around the room getting used to our clothes and practicing our breathing with slow steady breaths. When she felt able to go on I tightened her laces for the second time. It was difficult on me because I couldn't take a deep breath but I managed to get her closed down enough for the dress. All she did was moan. I knew that she would moan more loudly once she had the dress on.

"If we're going to do this again next year, we should practice in advance," Carol said.

"I won't have to. Next year I'll already have been wearing a corset every day for more than two months. They'll probably have my waist back down to nineteen inches. I feel like I'm there right now."

"Where did Mom get these dresses? From Barbara?"

"Probably. I don't think that anyone else would make them this tight. I don't know if she did it on purposes, or because she's just using old measurements. Mom probably told her that we haven't changed. I know that I have. My fanny has spread out a bit and my waist has resumed a normal size after not wearing the corset for so long. I just hope that the seams are triple stitched."

Carol giggled. "She'll get new measurements when you go for your Academy dress in a couple of months."

I giggled also. "Do you think that I'll need one?"

"You have during the past two years and you had two movies released this year."

"I don't think that 'Morning Mist' will get any nominations. It did okay at the box office, but didn't get any special notice from the critics. 'Princess to the Mob' might have a chance for a nomination according to Mr. Daniels, but I don't know. There were a few great movies released this year."

"Princess was every bit as great. You're just down on it because you didn't enjoy making it, but that doesn't affect the nominating committee. They're only concerned with your performance and you were really great. I think that the misery that you were feeling worked well in the movie because you were supposed to be miserable. Your character's father had been murdered and you were running for your life. That would make anyone scared, angry, and miserable. If it was a comedy and you were miserable then it might have been a problem."

"I guess that we’ll see in a couple of months. Are you ready to try on the boots?"

"Might as well. You first."

"Okay. You'll have to do it. I can't bend over."

I sat on the bed and raised each leg as Carol put the boots on my feet. When I was done I put her boots on her feet. We left the caps off for now but put on the belts.

"Let's do our nails like we did last time," I said. "I have something close to this color."

An hour later our nails were dry and we were ready to head downstairs. We had fixed our hair and made up our faces. We used bobbi-pins to hold the hats on, and then held onto each other as we struggled, giggling, to descend to the first floor in the extremely tight skirts and high-heeled boots. We found Mom and Aunt Jess in the kitchen. Both were wearing outfits that matched ours. Even Mrs. McGuire was dressed in a similar outfit, although her dress wasn't tight like ours and she wore her regular shoes. We wished each a Merry Christmas followed by a little hug.

"Breakfast is almost ready, girls," Mom said. "Carol, bring the orange juice and milk into the dining room, please. Crystal, take this plate of breakfast sausage and that dish of applesauce."

"Okay, Mom," we both said. I added, "The turkey smells wonderful, Mrs. McGuire."

"Yes, Miss. It should be ready about half past noon."

"Wonderful. I can hardly wait."

The family dining room table was all set and ready for breakfast, except for the main food items. We put our things down and took our regular places. Aunt Jess came in shortly carrying a plate of eggs and then Mom showed up with French Toast. We were all set to dig in when Dad arrived.

"Ho, ho, ho," he said as he walked through the doorway. "Wow, you all look great. Merry Christmas."

We all got up and went to greet Santa and give him a hug and a kiss. He wasn't wearing the beard or the pillow of course. Then we sat down to eat breakfast. I didn't take very much even though I had been starving when I woke up. I knew from experience that the corset would insure that I filled up quickly.

When we finished breakfast it was still only 8:20. We talked for a few minutes and then went into the living room to open gifts.

As we had done for years, Carol and I took the presents from beneath the tree and distributed them to the gift recipients. Dad's pile was as large as anyone else's this year. When the presents were all handed out, Carol and I sat down and everyone began to open his or her gifts.

We all oohed and ahhed as we opened our gifts. Mom, Aunt Jess, Carol, and I received mostly clothes and jewelry but I had also gotten Carol some computer software packages, and games for her laptop. I had recently purchased a top of the line computer for the den and she would be able to work on her student film projects in there now instead of scheduling time at the school's lab.

I received perfume and new luggage in addition to the clothes and jewelry. Dad got a pair of his favorite kinds of slippers and a new bathrobe, in addition to numerous shirts, slacks, and socks. I also gave him a new DVD player and a dozen movies.

Afterwards we all thanked everyone for the gifts and hugged and kissed. We couldn't try on the clothes because of the special outfits, so we cleaned up the mess and talked for a while before Mom dragged out her camera. We spent about an hour being posed and photographed. Mom used the self-timer a lot so that she could get into the pictures. Dad was in the center of every picture and loved all of the attention that was heaped upon him.

It was after eleven when Mom finally had all the pictures that she wanted. I hurried to the nearest bathroom to repair my makeup and then I went to the den and called Sharon to wish her a Merry Christmas. George had dropped off a pile of gifts from me when he went down to LAX to pickup Dad. I could hear the twins screaming in excitement as Sharon and I tried to talk.

"They love all the toys that you sent, hon. I'm going to have my hands full dragging them away to eat dinner. And the clothes that you gave me are beautiful. You have such great taste. Thanks."

"You're most welcome. I'm glad that you like them. How's Roy doing?"

"He's still in bed. He stayed up late putting the bikes and toys together. I was just going to wake him when you called. Dinner will be ready soon and I know that he'll want to shave and take a shower first. Did everyone make it in to your place?"

Dad arrived yesterday and Oliver should be here any minute. I already told you about Aunt Jess arriving Monday."

"You told me that your Mom had gone to get her. Oops, there goes the timer for the sweet potato pie. I have to go hon. Thanks again for everything and Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas. Give my love to the twins and Roy. Goodbye."

"I will. Bye."

I put the phone down and stood to go to the kitchen, just as the chime sounded that indicated that a car was coming up the driveway. Since the gate had to be opened by one of the security people I knew that it had to be Oliver. I turned around and walked to the front door.

Oliver was just parking in front of the house as I stepped out onto the front porch. He got out of the car and stopped in his tracks as he saw me. He was wearing a Santa cap on his head.

"Like wow," he said. "Look at you. I love it. You look great."

I curtseyed as much as I was able and said, "Elf Crystal wishes you a Merry Christmas and welcomes you to Santa's California Refuge Of Outrageously Gleeful Exuberance. 'S.C.R.O.O.G.E.' for short."

Oliver smiled. "Bah, humbug."

I smiled back. "Humbugs are two for a dollar, but bahs are only a nickel."

Oliver finished walking over to me. Pointing to the Santa cap on my head he said, "And I thought that I would be the only one with a Santa hat."

"This is a Santa's Helper hat, but Daddy has a Santa hat on."

"I bet that his doesn't have what mine has."

I looked closer and noticed the small sprig of mistletoe pinned to the front of his hat. I opened my mouth to speak, but before I had a chance to say anything, Oliver was pulling me towards him and pressing his lips to mine. A few seconds later his tongue was exploring my mouth. I relaxed in his arms and let him enjoy his Christmas kiss.

When he was done and had pulled away, I smiled and said, "I dare you to show your mistletoe to Mrs. McGuire."

Oliver returned my smile and said, "I just might, but the kiss won't have the same- depth, shall we say."

"I can believe that. You'd probably give her a heart attack. Well, come on in and get your meeting with my father over."

"Is he that bad?"

"No, he's a pussycat- except when he's meeting boyfriends. Then he's a tiger."

"Boyfriends?"

"Yes, he'll probably try to give you the third degree. You know how fathers are. They want to make sure that a boy is good enough for their little girls."

"Thanks. I wasn't nervous before."

I giggled. "Sorry. Just pretend that I never said a thing."

"Oh, sure. That helps," Oliver said facetiously, causing me to giggle again.

 

(continued in chapter 63)

 

 

 

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