Life was good, my past was all sorted out and behind me, I was in a relationship with a wonderful person, and settled in my new life with what promised to be a successful little business, what could go wrong?

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Winter soon passed and spring arrived, the days were becoming longer and brighter, the snowdrops had been and gone and early daffodils were beginning to break through, and this brought out the early tourists too. Hardy souls going out on the boats to the Farnes to look for the puffins arriving for their breeding season and watching the new seal pups enjoying their first season playing in the surf.

Spring also started to bring in visitors and customers to the studio and business was building up. I had built up a decent level of stock over the dark winter months, sales were going well, and I was able to fill the time between customers replenishing any stock that had been sold. I was much happier and more content than I had been for years.

Grace and I were rarely apart, except during working hours, to all intents and purposes we were now a couple and most of our friends and the crew at the lifeboat station accepted us as we were. Seahouses is a small community, those that knew us just treated us as they would any other couple, and we were the butt of as many jokes and saucy comments as anyone else, to those that didn’t know us we were just nice pleasant people living in the village.

When we both had time off together we enjoyed sailing out around the Farnes or up the coast to Bamburgh or down to Alnmouth. Grace had a 4.2m Laser dinghy, that she had learned in when living as a boy, and then used to sail up and down the coast or out to the Farne Islands or over to Holy island (Lindisfarne). It was an easy boat to handle single-handedly and it became her escape from the world where she could forget her worries and cares, and become the girl she knew she really was, and live out some of her fantasies covering the waters that her heroine Grace Darling had travelled.

She had now got over her obsession with Grace Darling, but still enjoyed the freedom that sailing gave her, the wind through her hair and sea spray on her face, and the playful and inquisitive seals and the occasional dolphins swimming up to the boat. She regularly went out by herself, but whenever I could I joined her. She was the sailor and I was just a passenger enjoying the ride.

It was a nice calm day, there was a moderate wind and the seas were a bit choppy, but not too rough. We were sailing out between Brownsman and South Wamses islands in the outer Farnes being escorted by a school of dolphins enjoying the thrill of nature. One of the dolphins came in too close and bumped and rocked the boat, and Grace let go off the tiller to steady herself, just at the same time as there was a sudden gust of wind which caught the sail, the boom swung over hit her head and knocked her into the water.

I started to panic, I had only a little knowledge of controlling the boat, and turning it around to get close in to Grace was beyond my capabilities, although I did manage to stay not too far away by dropping the sail. She was wearing a life jacket and staying afloat, but appeared unconscious and not moving. I found a line and threw it out to her, but she made no attempt to catch it or grab for it.

I did the only thing I could think of, I tied a line to the boat and around me , dived in, and swam out to her and somehow hauled us back to the boat. She was still unconscious, but with difficulty I managed to get us both back on board. We were out of immediate danger but the Spring sea had been extremely cold and we were both wet and shivering and she had still not recovered consciousness.

Although I was not part of the lifeboat crew, i had been to some of the training nights with them and knew that the most important thing was to keep warm. The Laser was only a small dinghy really, and meant for short trips, there was no storage space for any equipment other than needed for sailing, so my only choice was to take off my waterproof anorak and put it on Grace. I was very cold and wet but was in much better condition than Grace and if I wanted to get her back alive I had no other choice.

Luckily my phone was in a waterproof pouch and I was able to call 999 , get through to the Coastguard service and request lifeboat help. While we waited for the lifeboat to arrive, I cuddled Grace tightly to share what body warmth we had, and the boat just drifted and bobbed on the light swell. This made me realise how much Grace meant to me and I was determined that if and when we got out of all this trouble that she was the one for me. I also determined that if Grace wanted to continue sailing after this that I needed to learn how to operate and control the dinghy, it is always best to have backup in case of an emergency

We were drifting very close to the shore of South Wamses and were in danger of ending up on the rocks when the lifeboat appeared on the horizon and it was soon with us, it was the crew from Seahouses. It manoeuvred close to us and Andy jumped over to help. He wrapped a thermal blanket around the still unconscious Grace, grabbed the line that the crew had thrown over and pulled us in close enough to transfer Grace across. She was in a really bad way, other than shivering totally immobile, and as soon as I jumped across the lifeboat raced back at full speed to base, leaving Andy to bring in the Laser.

I was checked out in the station and, other than being extremely cold and wet, was unhurt and not in any danger. Grace was rushed off in an ambulance, and I was taken home by Chloe to get cleaned off , warmed up, and changed into dry clothes before going into the hospital to check on Grace. While I was getting changed Chloe checked that Andy was OK and that he had managed to bring in the dinghy safely.

When we arrived, Grace was still unconscious, the blow to the head had been severe, and as she had been in the water for some time the was a worry about secondary drowning, where water has got into the lungs, and although not apparent as a problem, can still cause death.

While we were sitting at her bedside, I called the station to let them know what was happening, and whilst being congratulated on saving Grace, I was given a lecture on the foolhardiness of diving in after her, it could easily have led to both of us drowning, but it was an automatic reaction to save the woman I loved.

Chloe went down to the station to check on Andy and to thank him for saving Grace and me, with what she said was a bit of help from the rest of the crew. It had been a fairly routine rescue and after the initial worries were over there was some amusement that two of the lifeboat crew had to be rescued, it brought home to them that a problem at sea could happen to anyone and not to be judgemental at the apparent stupidity of some people on the water.

The local paper had a lot of contact with the lifeboat station and often featured stories of our call-outs to highlight the work we do and why we needed support from both locals and visitors, and our rescue featured in the next edition, along with a photo of me working at the potters wheel in the studio.

Grace was unconscious for three more days, her body seemed fine and needed no life-support, other than the normal monitors, but her brain had switched off. Nevertheless I was in there every morning, holding her hand and talking to her. On the fourth day her eyes opened and she smiled, I was never so glad to see a smile, and called the nurses immediately. Her recovery after that was quite rapid and within a day she was talking and walking as if nothing had been wrong and was discharged. The doctors had advised that she was not to be left alone for a few days, so I moved in with her, and Chloe took over nursemaid duties during the day, running Grace’s business from her home, to allow me to keep the studio open.

A week later I was working at the wheel throwing clay for a bowl, when I heard a familiar voice.

“ Hello pervert, did you think you could escape from me for ever.?”

“ Josie, what on earth are you doing here, how did you manage to find me?”

“James dear, we live in the internet age, if you search long enough people always turn up. I had managed to trace your deed-poll name change, it is information available to the public. After that it was just a matter of searching for Jane Gibson, you have kept your head down, no social media, no publicity, then all of a sudden there you were in a story in your local newspaper about your rescue, along with your photo. You have changed a lot, but even with the longer hair and make-up you were still recognisable. I thought ‘this is my lucky day, I must buy a lottery ticket’ and here I now am.”

“ Look Josie, I don’t want any trouble, I have settled here, well away from you, and have a new life. What do you want, or have you just come here to annoy me?”

“You have ruined my life James, you ran away from me, I am a laughing stock as the story of your cross-dressing somehow became known, you almost bankrupted my father’s company with your claim for compensation for unfair dismissal, I had to sell my house to give you your settlement, and you ask if I came here to annoy you. Too bloody right I have !”

“Don’t think that you can threaten to make my details public, most people that matter already know my background, and let me tell you, you are not well-liked around here. By the way, my name is now Jane, as you well know, please use it, there is not longer a James.”

“The other thing you need to know James, is that Robert is up here with me, and right now he is looking for your sister Chloe, he almost feels as bitter about her as I do about you, and when he finds her I wouldn’t like to be in her shoes, the pair of us are going to make your lives hell.

“ Get out now, you can threaten me as much as you like, but I will not have you threatening Chloe.”

“ My oh My, aren’t you the macho one now, don’t get your panties in a twist, you can change your clothes and voice and lifestyle, but a bit of the old James is still there. I’m off now, but be assured that I’m not leaving town, I’ll see you around.”

As soon as she left, I locked the door and phoned Chloe to let her know Robert was in town looking for her, and not to answer the door, I closed the studio and raced around to Grace’s to make sure that they were both ok. I was too late, Robert was already in the house, shouting and screaming at Chloe with his hands around her throat. Grace was trying to pull him away but he was far too strong for the pair of them. Just like a scene from an old film, I picked up a chair and smashed it over his head, he stumbled and finally crumpled into a heap of the floor, not moving.

The police were at the house within minutes and Robert had still not moved, we thought he might be dead. They found that he still had a pulse, called an ambulance and took him away, still unconscious, to hospital. The three of us gave our statements to the police, Grace and Chloe describing the attack by Robert and how I had hit him to stop him strangling her, and me describing the visit from Josie and her threats.

Within a couple of days, Robert was discharged from hospital and went straight into police custody in the next cell to Josie. Robert was charged with attempted murder and GBH (Grievous Bodily Harm), Josie with Conspiracy to Murder and Threatening Behaviour, and because of their violent behaviour they were remanded in custody, in prison, until their trial.

“ Grace, all this, the accident, your coma, and now this assault, has hit home how much I love you and want to take care of you, please marry me. I know that it cannot be what you were looking for when you transitioned, and that you were probably dreaming of a tall handsome man walking you down the aisle someday, but you will never find anyone who loves you like I do.”

“Don’t be silly Jane, I’ve had my times with macho men, and they are not for me, I love you the way you are. Of course we should get married, the only problem will be who is the bride and who is the groom.” We both burst out laughing at that, hugged and kissed for what seemed like hours and were both in seventh heaven.

“ Before we get married Jane, you need to sort out what you are going to do, are you going to continue to live as you are, as a cross-dresser, or are you going to transition into a full woman, or are you thinking of going back to life as a man? I need to know who I am going to marry.”

“I have been thinking about this a lot recently since your accident. As you well know, my sexual orientation is definitely towards women, I still enjoy the man/woman intimate relations we have, I have no desire to have sex as a woman and see no need to fully transition, although I would like to continue looking and dressing as I do now, I also have no wish to appear as a man again. However I think it would be more convenient if I had breast implants so at least looked more natural as a woman, rather than having hormone treatment which I think will affect my libido. Do you think you could settle with that. Please tell me if you cannot accept that, I would rather face up to things now rather than months or years down the line.”

“ As I’ve told you before, it is you as a person that I want to be with, I’ve only ever known you as Jane and she is who I love. I am happy with whatever you decide, but your compromise of implants seems a good idea, let’s go with that.”

I called round to see Amanda and have a chat with Michael for a recommendation for a surgeon to do the implants. Because he knew me so well personally he arranged for his partner Carol to talk through the choices with me, she explained the various options of filler material, shape, and size, and recommended a private cosmetic surgery in Newcastle that would be prepared to carry out the procedure on me, as some would only deal with augmentation for females.

After a specialist consultation as to which would be best for me, particularly as I had no natural breast tissue, a week later I had a general anaesthetic and went under the knife. I woke a few hours later to find Grace by my bedside holding my hand.

“ Welcome back to the world pet, we seem to be spending a lot of time in hospitals lately. Because of the amount of work they had to do to you, they will be keeping you in overnight for observation. I will be back tomorrow to collect you, they recommend that you do not drive for a while after any surgery but particularly after breast augmentation.” She stayed for a few hours generally chatting before leaving for the night.

The next morning, with my chest still heavily bandaged and dosed up with painkillers, Grace took me back to her home, where she could keep an eye on me. For the next week I took things very easy, I opened the studio for sales, but did not do any pottery work as heavy lifting and stretching was banned. I gradually reduced the painkillers and was soon suffering just mild aches. Although the bandages were now off, I was forced to wear a tight restricting sports bra, so as to have no stress on the healing tissue. Although I had been using breast forms for many months now, the feel and movement of MY breasts was totally different and took some getting used to.

Grace had now fully recovered from her accident and was back working normally, and Chloe had no lasting ill-effects from the assault by Robert, so I was the medical centre of attention and well looked after for a week or so, before life returned to normal.

The police had completed their reports and the trial of Robert and Josie soon came to court, and Grace, Chloe and i attended throughout the proceedings .

Robert’s trial was fairly straightforward. Although he tried to muddy the waters and justify his actions by his wife leaving him and taking a lot of his money and respect away from him, he was quickly found guilty of attempted murder and sentenced to several years in prison. Because he was ranting and raving at the judge, calling me all sorts of names, the judge also put a restraint order on him, forbidding him from ever coming in to the county of Northumberland or contacting Chloe or I in person, by phone, or social media and email, or for arranging for others to make contact on his behalf, and also ruled that he be subject to a psychiatric assessment before release.

Josie’s case was harder, it was difficult to prove that she knew Robert intended to murder Chloe, although she did admit to knowing that he threatened violence towards her, and to me as well. However her father, who before my dismissal had always been fair to me, admitted to the court that he had heard her talking to Robert about finding me and making us regret what we had done and that we wouldn’t live long enough to enjoy the money we had taken from them. That was the damning evidence that swung the case.

Even more so than Robert, all through the case she kept shouting and screaming that I was a pervert and people like me had no right to exist, and that I had robbed her of her home and dignity. The jury had little sympathy for her, she came across as irrational and bitter and mentally unstable, and was sentenced to confinement in a secure mental hospital until such time as she was deemed stable enough to serve her sentence in prison. The judge made a point of telling her that transgenderism was legally acceptable and a factor in modern life, even if a lot of people disagreed, and, as for Robert, he made a restraining order against any contact with us.

Because of the court case the whole village now knew all about me and my past. Most people did not care and treated me no differently to before, i was just Jane, the village potter. Some. particularly the crew down at the station, made joking references about me, but it was all just friendly banter, no worse than the comments they all made about each other. Others tended to shun me or ignore me, but there was nothing nasty. The local world just settled into its routine and I was soon just yesterday’s news.

We decided on an Autumn wedding, and although there were only a few family and friends likely to attend we decided to splash out and hold it in Grace’s home village, at the magnificent Bamburgh Castle just up the coast. The registrar agreed to come out from County Hall in Alnwick and our local vicar and friend Jill was delighted to be asked to conduct a church blessing afterwards.

Technically I was probably the groom so I arrived first dressed in a peach layered mid-length silk dress and bolero topped off with a feather fascinator and eagerly awaited the arrival of Grace and her father. She looked beautiful wearing a full length cream evening dress with a tiara and short veil, and I could not believe my luck meeting such a wonderful girl who accepted me for what I was, and with a room full of family(mainly hers) and friends from the village, and the lifeboat crew. After the formalities we left to go into the castle grounds for photos and walked under an arch of raised oars as a guard of honour from the crew, which helped to make the day special. The backdrop of the castle, and the views out to sea over to Holy Island made for some beautiful photos that we will treasure for ever.

Hopefully all the traumas and difficulties of the last couple of years were now behind us and we could settle into a contented normal life with our life-time soul-mates.