By Leigh Ellwood (Guest Blogger)
Hello, everybody. I am Leigh Ellwood,
and I thank Lisabet for hosting me today. Lisabet is one of many
authors included in the latest Coming Together volume, Girl on
Girl, which I have edited. I have contributed work to Coming
Together in the past, but this particular work is special to
me…naturally because I was responsible for acquiring and editing
all the great stories, but there’s more to the story.
Many years ago, I watched an HBO film
called If These Walls Could Talk 2. You might have seen it or
heard of it – it is an anthology of sorts, as it’s really three
short films, all of which are set in the same house over three
different time periods. In the first segment, set in the early 1960s,
an older lesbian couple has returned home from a movie date when one
of them suffers a stroke. The community is unaware that these two
women are more than just roommates, and therefore the partner is
unable to sit with her love in the hospital. When the woman dies, her
partner must deal with losing her companion…and so much more.
It should anger people to know that
things like this happen today, in 2013. I see petitions pushed
through social media and read e-mails from human rights groups that
tell horror stories of same-sex couples separated in medical
situations because they are not recognized as married. Can you
imagine being told you can’t visit your partner in the hospital,
even as they are dying, or having property taken from you because the
city or state doesn’t recognize you as a legal guardian or heir?
This is why the
National Center for Lesbian Rights takes action on
behalf of LGBT couples and individuals every day – they help
amplify their voices in legal situations where they may be otherwise
ignored.
I have donated to causes spearheaded by
the NCLR in the past, but I wanted to do more. Coming Together
publishes books and shorts designed to benefit a variety of
charities, and I proposed an all-lesbian anthology with royalties
going to the NCLR. It pleased me greatly when Alessia Brio gave me
the thumbs up. The rest is history.
To give you a quick taste, here’s an excerpt
from “A Taste of Vanilla,” my short story from the book. Enjoy!
Hailie knew little
about the Bijou Theater, other than it rarely offered the studio
blockbuster films. People came here for the limited-run indies and
documentaries, and Hailie recalled Thea mentioning once that her
college rented out the theater for student film festivals. This
afternoon, it appeared she and Cecile had the place to themselves for
the late morning showing of a French import, Je
t’aime, Veronique. She
didn’t recognize any of the names on the poster and wondered what
to expect, but realized this beat making awkward conversation for the
next two hours.
She could do a movie
with Cecile. Why not? It made for a decent first date, and if they
decided to extend the day they could return to the coffee shop and
discuss the adventures of Veronique. She’d also know how her body
would react while sitting close to this lovely woman.
Hailie followed her
companion up to the balcony seating, where they took the middle seats
in the front row. Here they enjoyed ample legroom and an excellent
view of the screen, though Hailie wished more people would join them.
She began to crave the intimacy, but when Cecile lifted the arm rest
between their seats she gasped out loud.
“These seats are
so narrow, you think?” Cecile asked with a grimace. “You’d
think only supermodels and children go to the movies nowadays.”
“That’s why I
like the Coliseum Mall multi-plex. It’s one step away from sitting
in a recliner.” Hailie laughed softly, and settled in to watch a
slideshow of advertisements flashing on the screen. Cecile folded her
arms in her lap, clearly acknowledging Hailie’s reticence and
setting a boundary. Her soft smile, visible in the dimming light,
told Hailie of some reluctance to maintain distance and invited her
to make the first move.
Hailie chose to
believe that, anyway. Her heart softened and her pussy gave a squeeze
at the thought of a mere half-hug in the front row while the credits
rolled.
The Bijou clearly
meant business in terms of punctuality—no previews monopolized
their time. Following brief studio introductions, Je
t’aime, Veronique opened
with a panoramic view of Paris that closed in slowly toward the
right, no doubt tracking down the film’s subject.
Cecile leaned close.
Sweet vanilla and peppermint exploded around Hailie. “Thanks for
coming. I’ve wanted to see this and I hate going to movies alone.
Nobody I knew wanted to go.”
Hailie’s voice
shook. “Don’t mention it.” Especially
to my friend Thea.
Peanuts rolled
loudly against thin cardboard. “Just tap me if you want some.”
“Huh?”
Cecile rattled the
box of peanuts, and Hailie chuckled. “Oh, right,” she said.
The camera finally
found Veronique after panning down multiple streets in an area
revealed in subtitles as Le
Marais.
Through an open hotel window they watched a slender woman with long
blond hair, nude but for a garter belt and black stockings, writhing
on a bed. The next scene revealed another woman partaking of the
carnal pleasure.
“Oh, my,”
whispered Hailie. Next to her, Cecile snickered, and Hailie couldn’t
help the upturn of her lip as she considered Cecile’s eagerness to
attend the showing. She understood if Cecile held an interest in
foreign cinema—and Hailie had gleaned as much in her e-mail
exchanges with the woman—but she had to wonder if this wasn’t a
calculated move on the other woman’s part, an arranged meeting near
this theater to ensure an indirect, seduction by film.
Hailie watched the
onscreen couple embrace and kiss, and swallowed back a catch in her
throat. She’d seen her share of love scenes in her favorite soaps
and movies, but never two women together, and this looked damn near
pornographic by comparison. When Veronique—Hailie assumed she was
the blond-haired one—sat back on her heels and slid a hand up the
other woman’s thigh, Hailie felt the touch in her heart, then down
to her pussy. She knew they were actors, but the emotion appeared
genuine, and it certainly moved Hailie.
Veronique edged
closer to her lover, pushing out her shadowed pussy to connect with
the other woman’s thigh. The camera zeroed in just as their mounds
pressed together and began a slow grind. Light moaning and breathing
accompanied their rhythmic lovemaking, drawing Hailie deeper into
this world of grainy black and white sin.
Something pressed
against her knee. Hailie looked down at Cecile’s fingers tracing a
circle on Hailie’s slacks.
About Leigh
Leigh Ellwood is an award-winning author of erotica and erotic romance fiction. Following the release of her first novel, Truth or Dare,
in 2004, Leigh has since written several novels, novella, and short
stories. She is an EPIC Award winner and has been nominated for many
reviewers awards for her works. Leigh welcomes reader mail at
kspatwriter (at) yahoo (dot) com.
Visit Leigh online:
[Lisabet here! Leave a comment on this post, with your email address. I'll give away a copy of my romantic F/F short Velvet to one person who does!]
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