In the morning while Kate was in the shower Betsy made coffee, but there was nothing for breakfast.

"That’s okay," Kate said. "I’ll grab a bite downtown and you can go to the grocery today and stock up." And with that, she kissed Betsy and dashed out the door.

Go to the grocery. It sounded so simple, but how could she possibly do that naked? She had put off thinking about the inevitable, but now she would have to face it. She was naked and had no clothing and was expected to-- but wait. The box. She suddenly remembered the little box labeled "Betsy’s things." Taking a sharp knife from the kitchen, Betsy unearthed the box from a stack in the bedroom and slit it open hopefully. After all, here had to be something in it. And there was -- shoes, a couple of hats and two pairs of the little ankle socks she wore with her tennis shoes. Those little socks were the only clothes Betsy had left.

But Kate had clothes, lots of them. Very carefully Betsy opened the closet and looked at them. Gently, she caressed a maroon silk blouse that she had never once seen Kate wear. And there was box after box of Kate’s other things -- shorts, jeans, tshirts all neatly folded and packed just so. But Betsy didn’t dare open the boxes. Kate would know. Even if Betsy took something from the closet and later hung it back exactly where she found it, Kate would know. She was obsessive about order. Everything had to be in exactly the right place, positioned just so and if anything was out of order in the slightest she would notice. Betsy had learned this the hard way. It would be bad enough to disturb one of Kate’s possessions, but if Kate caught Betsy wearing her clothes it would be an act of betrayal and the end of everything. It was just too risky.

Betsy put the thought out of her mind. She had plenty of work to do in their new house. The grocery shopping could wait a while anyway. So for the next few hours Betsy cleaned and unpacked and made mental notes of decorating ideas she wanted to try -- though all of those would require trips to the hardware store for supplies.

Lunchtime came and Betsy had still not eaten breakfast. She was hungry. She stood at the doorway and imagined herself walking out to her car and driving to the grocery. She even knew where one was; they’d passed a Kroger’s on the way into town.

But she had to shower first, of course. She took her time at this, washing and conditioning her hair and carefully washing her body. Then, after she toweled dry she had to put on her body lotion and dry her hair. All of this took time, of course, but longer somehow than usual.

And now it was 2 p.m. and there was nothing else to do but go to the grocery. She made it as far as the front porch, but darted back inside the door when she heard a car coming down the street.

She went back to the Q&A from the Huron Nudists Association and read it over again. Yes, it really did say that she could go nude anywhere in the province, which presumably included the Kroger store on Main Street. But wait, now she noticed a phone number at the bottom of the page. It was a "help and support" line for nudists.

Betsy called it immediately. A guy answered, around her age she could tell. His name was Steve.

"I really need advice," Betsy said, emotion thick in her voice. "I just moved here and I registered as a nudist because . . . well, because I’ve been living as a home nudist for a while before I moved here. And I didn’t realize when I signed it that this would mean I’d HAVE to go nude everywhere. I just thought it meant I COULD when I wanted to, you know?"

"Oh totally," he said. "We get that a lot. So, like, you didn’t actually read the thing you signed, right?"

Betsy stifled a sob. "I was in a hurry," she said. "It’s a long story."

"No, that’s okay," he said cheerfully. "I’m not here to, like, judge you or anything. I just answer questions about nudism and the law and stuff.

He was a couple of years younger, Betsy decided. "Well is it true" Betsy pleaded. "Does this mean I HAVE to be nude."

"No, not really. Not, like, you know, ultimately."

"I don’t understand."

"It’s a free country," he said. "You can unregister yourself the same way you registered. But then you can’t go nude in public at all because you wouldn't be a protected nudist anymore."

"So my choice is just to be a total fulltime nudist or not do it in public at all."

"Basically."

"Okay . . . Thank you."

"No prob."

Now it was 3:00 and Betsy was starving. Worse, she had only two hours or so before Kate came home. What had she done with the day?

Betsy knew what she had to do. She was determined not to give up on her relationship with Kate. She could deal with it because she had to. Betsy stepped out on the porch and closed the door and locked it. "I am a nudist," she said out loud in a quavering voice. Naked except for sandals, her watch, a few rings and makeup, Betsy walked to her car and got in. It was a nice day, but she did not put down the top.

As she drove, Betsy watched all of the people she saw walking along the streets or getting in and out of their cars, coming in and out of shop doorways. None of them were nude. When she arrived at the grocery story she she sat for a long time in the parking lot watching people go in and out, all fully clothed.

She looked at her watch. It was 4 p.m. and she really could not wait any longer. And so she got out of her car and walked naked through the parking lot to the entrance to the store.

The glass doors opened with a whoosh as she approached and Betsy walked past a security guard and a store manager who happened to be talking together. They both stared at her for a moment and she briefly met their gaze before looking away. She took her time selecting a shopping cart and putting her purse into the basket. She half-expected and half-welcomed them coming over to tell her she couldn't shop in the nude, but they didn't. So Betsy began pushing her cart through the store.

She tried to concentrate on her list and get it over with but she could tell by the reaction of nearly every person she passed that while it may be legal to do so, grocery shopping nude was not as common as Kate had characterized it to be. She wondered where all the other "official registered nudists" were. Didn't they need to shop?

But Betsy began to relax just a little about halfway through. See, I can do this, she told herself. People stare at me, but no one's upset. No one's arresting me. And despite her embarrassment, Betsy could not help but look at herself in the convex mirrors that were at the end of each aisle to prevent shopping cart collisions. And when she went down the frozen food aisles Betsy found herself enjoying the burst of cool air on her skin every time she opened a door. She could see her reflection in the glass doors. It was all a bit . . . erotic somehow.

At the checkout, there was one pimply-faced teenage boy running the cash register and another bagging her groceries. They both did their best to banter with her but mostly they grinned and stared. Betsy had to tell the bagger twice that no she really didn't need any assistance getting the groceries to her car.

When she was finally home again Betsy wanted to throw herself in bed and cry . . . or maybe masturbate (she had conflicting impulses). But there was no time for either. She unloaded all of the groceries and then began making dinner. When Kate came home at 5:30, Betsy was ready. She'd made progress on unpacking and had a nice chef salad with salmon ready.

"Well, you’ve been busy," Kate said as she looked around the house. "And I see you went to the grocery store. How was that?"

"It was good," Betsy said, as she busily set the table.

Kate came up behind her and held her, kissing the back of her neck and wrapping her arms around from behind. "Did you enjoy your first naked grocery shopping experience, my pretty girl?"

Betsy allowed herself to relax, leaning back against Kate’s strong body and letting Kate’s fingers work their way between her legs. She knew what Kate wanted her to say. "It was wonderful," Betsy said, closing her eyes as Kate kissed her neck. "I got to walk out in public naked, Kate, and get in my car and drive. I loved walking naked in the sun and I loved shopping naked, especially in the frozen food section."

It was all a lie, or was it? Betsy didn’t know because Kate was rubbing her clitoris and although she had been uncomfortable and embarrassed when she’d actually experienced these events, now they seemed different as she recounted them for Kate.

"And did you enjoy it? Did you love it?" Kate whispered in her ear as she quickened her movements and Betsy lifted her arms and reached behind to hold Kate’s head against her neck.

"Oh yes," Betsy moaned, nearing climax. "I loved it. I loved it. Oh god, Kate, thank you for bringing me here. Thank you for taking all of my clothes away. Oh god, Kate, I want to be naked all the time, every minute, all the time, oh god, oh god, naked all the time!"

It was, quite possibly, the most intense orgasm Betsy had ever experienced in her life. For a long time she slumped back against Kate, her eyes closed, her breathing heavy and her skin damp with sudden perspiration. And then she collected herself and found her feet. She turned around to see Kate face to face and Kate was smiling down at her.

"I am so in love with you," Kate said, kissing her gently.

"Oh Kate!" Betsy cried, tears suddenly in her eyes. "All I want is to make you happy!"

After some while, Kate and Betsy finally sat down to eat. Kate did most of the talking, about her first day in her new job. Betsy concentrated on paying close attention because she had learned from experience that Kate would be irritated if Betsy forgot some detail had Kate told her. But part of Betsy’s mind was busy reliving her experiences of the past 24 hours: the realization that she would be required to go nude all the time; her experience at the grocery store; and her experience having an orgasm while telling Kate about the grocery store. It was almost surreal, as if it happened twice to two very different people.

"Doesn’t that seem a bit odd to you," Kate asked, and the fact that it was a question startled Betsy back to attention.

"Um," she said as her brain scrambled to retrieve the memory of the conversation. But it was there. Betsy had been paying enough attention to recall Kate’s long description of how her office at work had been missing several necessities such as a computer and a working telephone. "After all, you said they were’nt very well organized. I guess that’s why they need you."

"Well they certainly need more discipline," Kate went on. "You wouldn’t believe how sloppy their accounts payable department is. Here’s an interesting example."

Betsy did not find the example particularly interesting, nor did she quite understand Kate’s point about accounting, but she listened attentively and sipped her wine.

The next day, Betsy kept herself busy cleaning and unpacking and did not have any need to go anywhere. But Kate seemed disappointed that Betsy had no new experiences to tell.

"You shouldn’t spend all your time working on the house, honey. You need to get out and explore."

"I will," Betsy promised. "I just wanted to get us settled in first. I know you like things to be neat and orderly."

"Oh, I don’t expect that instantly, sweetheart. It’ll get done."

As they went to bed, Betsy resolved to go on at least one errand the next day so she’d have something to say to Kate in the evening. But the next morning she again found herself busy working on the house and when Kate called at lunchtime she still had not been out.

"I plan to go to the . . . the hardware store this afternoon," Betsy offered. "I want to get some paint swatches for the kitchen." She winced as she said this into the phone, knowing it wasn’t good enough.

"Tell you what ," Kate said. "Don’t cook tonight. I’m taking you out for a change."

"But I . . . I really like cooking for you--"

"Not tonight. You need a break."

Betsy knew better than to push it farther, so she pretended to be excited. "Thank you, Kate. I’m looking forward to it."

And now Betsy was also stuck going to the hardware store because Kate would surely ask about it. Outside, the day was gorgeous and Betsy regretted not being able to spend more time just walking around outdoors. She knew she could, of course, but she had not been able to bring herself to go anywhere naked except when she absolutely had to.

At the hardware store, Betsy felt the eyes of all of the men who worked there and the customers who were also mostly men. But she did her best to act as though she were wearing clothes as she made her way down the paint aisle and selected several shades of yellow for the kitchen.

That evening when Kate got home she embraced Betsy as she always did, kissing her mouth and neck as with her fingers she stroked Betsy’s exposed vagina. Betsy had come to expect this and enjoyed it immensely. Often, of course, these encounters continued until Betsy had an orgasm but this time Kate stopped after a few minutes.

"Mmmmm," I could just eat you up right here and now," Kate said, "but we should get going so we don’t have to wait for a table. Make me a quick drink while I get ready."

Kate dashed off to the bedroom. Betsy hurried into the kitchen to make Kate her vodka tonic. She felt wonderfully aroused by Kate’s attention, but a bit frustrated at how quickly it stopped. But mostly she was nervous about going out to dinner naked in public. As she made Kate’s drink she gulped half of it down herself and then topped it out again and brought it to Kate, who was just changing her clothes.

Kate polished off the drink pretty quickly as she finished getting ready while Betsy told her about the hardware store.

"I’ll bet those men in the store were pretty excited by you," Kate said. "I’ll bet they imagined they could do this." Here, Kate suddenly knelt in front of Betsy, put her hands on Betsy’s butt and deeply kissed her pussy.

Betsy leaned back against the bedroom wall, expecting this to go on until she climaxed. But Kate popped up again after only about 15 seconds, glanced at her watch and said, "Ooh, let’s hurry."

Betsy was terribly aroused and feeling the buzz of the alcohol on an empty stomach. She was expecting them to go to Kate’s car and she hoped they’d drive to a nice dark restaurant, but Kate had her arm around Betsy’s waist and led her in another direction.

"Aren’t we taking the car," Betsy asked, realizing the answer as she said it.

"Let’s walk," Kate said. "It’s only a few blocks to that cute little street of shops and restaurants near the university. "I want to try one of them."

Betsy was not ready for this. Very soon they were walking among other people along a busy street. People were everywhere. Most of them looked at her and smiled, especially the men. She knew she was safe and that her nudity was accepted, and yet she felt intensely exposed.

There were several little restaurants with tables out on the sidewalk. Kate picked one of them and they were soon sitting together at a little white table on the sidewalk. A waiter came and brought them wine. Betsy did her best to seem totally relaxed. She looked around at all of the people passing by and sitting at other tabled. Every single one of them was fully dressed.

"Have you noticed," Betsy said carefully, "that there don't seem to be many other people . . . taking advantage of the . . . freedom to be nude? I seem to be the only one."

"I know," Kate said. "There's a reason for that."

"Oh?"

"Yes. There's a nudist community in the southern portion of the province, about 300 kilometers from here I think. That's where the court ruling originated, but it affected the entire province. Apparently there don't happen to be many nudists in this region because the weather is more temperate down there."

"Oh," Betsy said uncertainly.

Kate put her hand on Betsy's bare leg under the table. "But I like it this way, sweetie. You're so special. You're like a jewel that stands out brightly among all the ordinariness around you."

When Kate spoke to her that way it made everything seem perfect, no matter how exposed Betsy felt to the eyes around her.

After dinner Kate wanted to keep exploring the little shopping district near the entrance to the university. "Oh look, honey," she said stopping. "This is just what we need."

They were in front of a photography studio where the photographer was set up out on the sidewalk taking portraits in natural light against a stone wall covered with ivy. "I need a new picture of you to put on my desk at work."

Betsy was alarmed. "What's wrong with the one you have? It's almost new and you said you really liked it."

"I do, silly, but it's outdated now. You're wearing clothing in it. After all, I've told everyone at work that you're a nudist. I need a picture that shows you that way."

"But I can't . . . I mean I'm not prepared to have my picture taken. My hair must be--"

"You're hair is fine," Kate said, running her fingernails through Betsy's hair to poof it out a bit. "And your face is perfect as always. I don't think you're even capable of taking a bad picture because you're so beautiful."

Betsy blushed, smitten by Kate's attention. There was nothing she could do but allow herself to be posed and photographed against the stone wall as dozens of people walked past them.

Next, Kate led them to a garden shop. "We need something for those flower boxes along the sidewalk," she announced. "I love that picket fence, but it looks so starkly naked."

Betsy giggled. "I thought you were into having things starkly naked."

"Just you, my love," Kate said and kissed her in front of everyone. Betsy felt a rush of joy and arousal mixed in one emotion. And somehow the flowers lined in their little plastic starter containers were part of Betsy's emotional reaction. She wanted to buy all of them and plant them in the fertile soil of their new home for Kate. She picked out dozens of petunias for the long flower beds that ran between the picket fence and the sidewalk in front of their house and she bought bags of compost to work into the soil and new shovels and trowels. They had to walk back to the house and return with a car to carry it all.

When they got home, Betsy was happily aroused and expecting Kate to initiate a nice bout of lovemaking. But Kate was preoccupied with preparing for something at work the next day and afterwards they just went to sleep.