“It’s OK, sweetheart,” I said, “I already know, and as I said, I’m happy for you. I’m surprised, a little, but I’ve watched you two, and you seem to belong…not together, but to each other. Do you understand?”
“There’s only one thing I ask,” I continued, “and that’s that we seriously consider getting you on some form of birth control. I know you haven’t had your period yet, but making love with your brother is bound to get you pregnant.”
She softened a little in my arms and said, “But mom, we’re careful.”
“How so?” I asked.
“Oh, mom, I don’t know if we should talk about this,” she said.
She tried to pull away from me, but I held on.
“Listen, baby,” I said, “trust that I will never, ever do anything to come between you and your brother. But if you truly love him, you need to listen.”
“But mom, we’re careful,” she repeated.
Again, I asked, “How so?”
“Mom…”
“How are you being careful?” I asked once again.
I got a little unusual petulance from her when she replied “Well, weren’t you watching us?”
Now it was time for me to freeze up a little.
Very carefully, I responded, “That’s not what I meant when I said I’ve watched you two.” “For something like three years you two have been sharing this secret.” “I could tell by the way you looked at each other.” “How you touched each other.” “And, yes, though you didn’t see me, I saw you an hour ago with him.” “And you know I didn’t try to stop you two.” “It looked to me like you were both so happy.” “And I heard you and your brother.” “I heard him tell you that he wanted you for his wife, ‘now and forever.'”
“But until you’re old enough to take on the responsibility of raising your own children, we absolutely have to find some form of birth control for you. I saw where you had him inside of you, but that’s only marginally safe.”
She slowly raised her eyes to meet mine.
“How do you mean?” she asked. “We’ve never tried to put it inside of me where babies could happen.”
“This is why he was…you know…in…you know…?” I asked.
“In my anus, mommy.” “At least, if we have to talk about this, let’s really talk,” she said.
“Was this your brother’s idea?” I asked.
“No, mom, I put him there…it seems it was months ago,” she replied. “I wanted him to be inside me there because he always made me feel so good there. I held him and put him there myself…I think he might have been scared the first time.”
Talk about a discussion you never expect to have with your daughter.
“Sweetheart,” I said, “unless you really feel the need to ‘tell me everything,’ I don’t need to know how you two make love. I’m not really even sure if I need to know ‘who started this’…except…he never forced anything on you, did he?”
“Mom, how could you think that?” she asked. “We’ve been ‘making love,’ as you called it, for a year or so, and we both wanted it…we both needed it.”
Again, I kissed her forehead and said, “Of course you did. You two are in love. I don’t want to come between you, hell, you both seem like the happiest couple I’ve ever seen. In some sense, I envy you. But I also need to protect you.”