Caroline and Kate fell asleep and spent the next morning catching up on the rest they needed. Caroline woke first hearing the noises from Lawrence and Grace's cooking in the kitchen.

Caroline slowly removed Kate's arm from across her chest in trying to let her sleep. She watched Kate stir and then turn over. She put on her dressing gown and went down stairs to find Grace singing The Lady is a Tramp and Lawrence cooking sausages.

"Hi mum. Are you hungry?" Caroline smiled at the sight of her son wearing Kate's flowered piny with frilly edges.

"Morning Grace. Did you dress him or is he responsible for his presentation?"

Grace boomed a loud belly laugh. "Oh my word. This young man is such a sweet and beautiful boy. I like his sense of fun Caroline. He makes me laugh so."

Caroline returned to look at her soon with arched eyebrows. Lawrence was smirking broadly at Grace's delight. His charm had worked wonders on Grace and he knew it. He tried a little on his own mother who by now had years of experience to resist. "Want some frills on your sausages mum!"

"Leave the frills thank you. Lawrence, I have to go into work today to speak with The Chair of the Board of Governors. Do you mind being on your own for a couple of hours?"

"Mum. I won't be on my own. Grace and I will be having round two of Super Mario Tournament to the death, where I intend to plot my revenge and whoop her a….!"

Caroline looked at her son with a disapproving face stopping him in his tracks.

"Never mind whooping anyone. Have you cleaned your Rugby kit?"

"All done and dry ready for next week's game."

Caroline looked a little taken aback and the look on her face suggested she wasn't totally convinced. "Ah mum. Come on you must believe me. Grace was there to witness my toil. These budding professional Rugby hands will never recover!"

Caroline looked at Grace who nodded in agreement. "I taught him how to iron and he even did the rest of the clothes. He is a good boy. You should be very proud."

Caroline was speechless. "Right."

She turned around and walked back up the stairs to the bathroom to get a shower. She met a sleepy Kate on the landing. "Morning gorgeous. Why didn't you wake me?"

Caroline kissed Kate and carried on walking past and into the bathroom. "I wanted you to catch up on your rest and I need to go into work and see Gavin."

Kate followed Caroline into the bathroom and watched her undress. Caroline saw the look on Kate's face and felt the heat rising inside. "Kate. I haven't got time for any …. fancy business."

Kate stripped off her dressing gown revealing her naked and beautiful coffee coloured skin. Caroline melted at the glorious sight. Taking in her full body from top to toe Caroline saw the beautiful shapely breasts of her lover. She took Kate into her arms and they walked under the flow of hot, steaming water. Kate placed needing and rough kisses on Caroline's shoulders and neck. She rubbed the pert and swollen nipple on Caroline's breasts eliciting a cry of pleasure from her girlfriend's lips. Caroline's eyes shot open when she felt Kate's lips tasting her breasts. "Kate please. You're going to make me late for my meeting."

Kate responded by tracing her hands down Caroline's back to seek out her hot and needing want. Caroline's legs opened in readiness for her girlfriends dancing fingers and the two women melted into one another.

Half an hour later Caroline was putting the finishing touches to her make up being watched by Kate who was laid out across the bed. "I like watching you get ready. You look so beautiful with your hair up."

Caroline finished putting on her lipstick and looked at Kate in the mirror. "You're just biased."

A few minutes later Caroline was kissing Kate goodbye on the doorstep. "Wish me luck."

"You don't need any luck Caroline. I'm sure Gavin will be supportive. I can't see that there will be any problem. It's just a bunch of out of date busy bodies stuck in the last century."

Caroline sighed heavily. "I wish I had your confidence but I think the bunch of out of date busy bodies can sway the views of those with less courage."

"I'll see you later. Love you." Kate kissed Caroline one last time and waved her girlfriend off down the driveway to her car in the street.

Caroline arrived at Sulgrave Heath to see Gavin's BMW already parked in the drive outside the main entrance. She also noted Beverley's little Fiesta parked in her usual spot. The school was otherwise empty. Pupils weren't due back for a few more days and most of the staff had taken opportunity of the nice weather to miss out on work.

"Morning Caroline. How is Helena doing?" Beverley was busy in her office and had a pot of tea ready on the table for her.

"Morning Beverley. Helena is doing really well. Thank you. We hope to bring her home very soon." Caroline took a breath. "Is Gavin here?"

Beverley mouthed to her whilst pointing into her office. "He's waiting for you. I'll bring the tea in."

Caroline walked into her office greeting the Chair of the Board of Governors with a bright smile that belied her unease at the reason for their chat today. "Morning Gavin. How are you?"

"Morning Caroline. I'm very well thank you. How is Helena doing?"

Caroline was a little taken aback by Gavin's enquiry about her daughter but she covered it with her usual panache. "Helena is doing really well. Thank you. We hope to bring her home in a few days. The doctors are pleased with her progress."

Gavin smiled. "Good. I'm pleased. We had a similar situation when Mark was born. It was really worrying for a couple of weeks. You wouldn't know anything had happened looking at him playing rugby the other day."

Caroline smiled and relaxed at Gavin's attempts to show he knew how she felt and was supportive. "So you asked to meet with me. I assume it's prompted by events at the rugby match."

Gavin smiled again and Caroline took a seat next to him at the conference table in her office. She placed her bag down by the side of her seat.

"Caroline. I wanted to meet with you face to face rather than discuss this on the telephone because I wanted you to see that you and Kate have my genuine support. I think we both have respect for one another and realise that whilst this is an issue it is not something which is going to be a problem for me, you or the school."

Caroline smiled. "Thank you Gavin. Your support means a great deal to me… and Kate. However, we wouldn't be here now if the 'issue' as you call it was nothing to be worrying about. Clearly there are some on the board who are not so supportive."

Gavin laughed. "You're right. There are members who are still living in the wrong era and think that the ethics of the school are still there too. The reason for our meeting today was to discuss how we are going to deal with this. I want us to agree a joint strategy, to show a united front in order to counter the board members who will undoubtedly try to persuade the more affluent, bigoted and influential parents otherwise."

Caroline smiled for a minute before replying. "Gavin, Kate and I are in a relationship in the same way you and your wife are. I do realise that ours isn't conventional but it is very special. I would never ask you to justify your relationship. In the same way I don't intend to make a formal statement, send out a letter or answer to any prejudices the members may have."

Gavin smiled at Caroline's air of authority and defiance. He knew that this would be the reaction Caroline would give. "Caroline. I would never ask you to prove what you and Kate have. This is not about that. This is about ensuring that rumours of things which happen are not blown out of proportion to dishonour the name of the school."

Caroline's anger was firing up now. She was raring to go and Gavin was going to get all four guns.

"Gavin are you seriously asking me to put out some kind of statement every time someone reports they have seen Kate and me holding hands, kissing or god forbid hugging one another? If you are, then I'm going to disappoint you."

Caroline's voice rose dramatically and she was sure Beverley could hear her but she didn't care. She was on a role and she was going to give Gavin a piece of her mind about the prejudices of the world.

"I am extremely proud of what I have with Kate and I have been through too much in the last year to jeopardise that now. Kate and I will continue as we are and if the board members have any issues they can stick them where the sun doesn't shine. I'm a bloody good Head Teacher and I have put my heart and soul into this school. The results are outstanding and we have a waiting list of children wishing to attend here. In fact a number of the children who attend here will almost certainly be gay and I know for a fact that a number of their parents are gay too."

Gavin smiled at Caroline's fearsome determination. Caroline caught his look out of the corner of her eye and started laughing. "You did this on purpose didn't you?"

Gavin nodded in confirmation and smirked.

"You bastard."

Gavin started laughing. "Caroline. I'm sorry but I had to test the water and make sure you would fight and stand up. I'm told you and Kate have travelled to work in separate cars. I didn't know if this was because you were somehow reticent about revealing your relationship."

Caroline blushed. "Well… Yes. To begin with I wasn't really comfortable and I had my own issues to deal with. However, these have been resolved and when Kate returns to work we'll most certainly be travelling together."

Gavin smiled at Caroline. "Good to hear it. Now where is that tea?"

An on queue Beverley knocked on the door and entered the room with a tray. "I've got you some biscuits. Bourbons like to you asked Gavin."

Caroline looked stunned and turned to look at Gavin. She mouthed in a questioning way, "Gavin?"

Gavin blushed. "Thank you Beverley. You are kind."

Beverley stood smiling, staring at Gavin with puppy dog eyes. It became clear the candle she held in her fragile heart was for Gavin and no-one else. Caroline recognise the look as being the same one that Kate had shown her during their first few months of discovering what they had.

Caroline coughed loudly trying to distract her Secretary. "Thank you Beverley."

Beverley immediately blushed realising she had been caught out. "Well… erm….. if that's all then I'll be … erm getting off."

Gavin and Caroline held onto their laughter long enough for Beverley to close her office door. The loud bang broke their release and they burst out laughing hoping that Beverley couldn't hear them.

Caroline smiled at Gavin when they had recovered enough. "You're such a tease."