Modern Arrangements: Complete Trilogy (Modern Arrangements #1-3)

by Sadie Grubor

  "I don’t understand why people think that the only reason we keeping have kids is to try for a boy."

  We sat on a bench after saying goodbye to our old classmate, watching the kids run around.

  I patted his shoulder.

  "I think everyone just assumes couples want both sexes and all of that."

  "Yeah, but honestly, Aidan, not once did I hope it was a boy." He seemed to be thinking long and hard. "Hell, I wouldn’t trade any of my ladies for that. I rather like having a bunch of daddy’s girls." He grinned widely.

  I nodded. "I do have to admit that my girls have a special place."

  "Exactly. I mean, if we had a boy then I would be just as happy. Each pregnancy all I can do is hope and pray she is healthy and the baby is healthy." His head snapped to me. "Shit, man, I wasn’t even thinking…I’m sorry."

  "It’s okay, I know what you mean." I did know, all too well.

  Lilli and I had gotten pregnant after Alesandra. Unfortunately, Lilli suffered a miscarriage at four months and after that she was terrified to get pregnant again. We used birth control, until I got a vasectomy. Which had been just a few short months after James got his.

  Two months after that park trip, Celia was pregnant again. And, just like her prior pregnancies, they were now awaiting the newest female addition to their family.

  Oscar and Phoebe tried to conceive again, but after three years of fertility clinics Phoebe gave up. Adeline would remain their only child. However, with Oscar progressing in his position at the hospital and Phoebe’s erratic designer schedule, one child seemed best.

  Oscar, now Chief of Surgery, worked relentless hours. At one point we all worried that Phoebe and Oscar would grow apart. The worrying was put to rest one night when Dixon and I had gone to see if Oz wanted to get out of the hospital for dinner with the guys.

  Dixon led us to Oscar’s office door and right before we were going to knock we heard obvious, but muffled, moans behind the door. Dixon's face grew red before he exploded.

  "I can’t believe that asshole is cheating on Phoebe." He growled. His massive fist slammed against the door. "Oscar Emerson, open this door!" Shuffling and the screech of furniture moving came from behind the closed door. "God damn it, Oscar, I am going to kill you!"

  Looking up and down the hall, we had grabbed the attention of some hospital staff.

  "Dixon, keep it down." I hissed.

  "Fuck that, Aidan! If he's in there with some nurse or whoever, I will beat the shit out of him for doing this to Phoebe!" He directed every annunciated word to the closed, locked door. "Oz!"

  The door swung open. We stepped back. There stood a wrinkled and ruffled, scowling Phoebe.

  "Dixon, I love your chivalry, but if you don’t let me finish fucking my very, very loyal husband, I will kill you!"

  Laughter burst out of me. Grabbing my stomach, I stumbled back until my back met the wall opposite Oscar's office.

  "Uh…um…" Dixon was a loss for words.

  "Shoo, Dixon!" Phoebe yelled.

  "For the love of God, Dixon, go away! I’m dying here!" Oscar yelled from the dark room. A wicked gleam past over Phoebe's face.

  Both Dixon and I, understanding Oscar meant he was still at full attention, quickly retreated.

  "Yes, well, carry on, you two!" Dixon grabbed my shoulder and tugged me down the hall. Still laughing, we left the hospital for dinner without Oz.

  Of course, I'd told Lilli about the incident and she bent over laughing. Two days later, Lilli talked to Phoebe and found out that these little trysts were a weekly happening for the two of them. It was the one thing they did to stay connected as a man and woman, not just husband and wife.

  Since their schedules were so crazy, Phoebe would visit Oscar, or Oscar would visit Phoebe in her studio. Sometimes it was a parking lot in a car, a restaurant bathroom, and so on. Lilli was shocked at Oscar's adventurous side. I suggested we take their example and institute our own reconnection activities.

  Having written off the idea of convincing her to reconnect, I learned one late night at work that Lilli hadn't. I still remember, sitting at my desk, going over more contracts and financial reconciliations, when I heard my door shut. Looking up, I saw Lilli with a mischievous smile on her face.

  "Hey, what are—?"

  She cut me off by unbuttoning her wool coat and dropping it into a puddle of cloth on the office floor. My breathing hitched when she walked over in a dark blue satin and lace bra with matching panties. To top it off, she had on blue thigh-high stockings and silver heels.

  "Fuck, Lil…" I couldn’t even finish because as soon as she walked around my desk trailing one finger on the cold hard wood as she rounded it to stand in front of me, she placed her hands on my knees with a wicked smile and pushed my knees apart.

  I swallowed hard as her hands slid up my thighs to my belt buckle. She undid my pants and then my shirt from the bottom up. Once my buttons were undone, she leaned up, pressing her half naked body against me, and pressed her mouth against mine.

  Instinctually, I fisted her hair at the nape of her neck and pulled her mouth closer until our teeth clinked together for a moment. Her hands went to my hair and gently pulled on it.

  Too soon, she pulled away from the kiss. I was panting and hard like a thirteen-year-old boy with his first dirty magazine. She slid down my body and slipped her hand into my pants and underwear. Eagerly, I pushed my pants and underwear down a few inches, watching her smile up at me from under her lashes. I licked my lips as I watched her slide down so that my now free and naked cock slid between her satin and lace covered breasts.

  Then her head dropped and her tongue flicked at my tip, causing it to twitch at the contact and me to moan loudly. Next, her warm wet mouth encompassed me, her tongue swirling around the tip and then further down the shaft.

  With her hand at the base of my erection, she moved her head up and down on me like she didn’t have a gag reflex. It was so fucking hot, too hot! I could feel my balls tighten with my lower abdomen, the telltale sign that I was going to cum.

  "Lillihh….I’m…oh, fuck…I’m gonna…fuck."

  She giggled at my moans and moved her mouth quicker on me. My orgasm hit and her mouth never left as I shuddered through the release. After one last suck, she released me from her mouth with a large Cheshire grin.

  Gasping a couple of breaths, I watched her stand before me. Quickly, before she could step out of my reach, I grabbed her hips. I placed soft kisses on her bare stomach, raising my eyes to look up at her.

  "You’re proud of yourself, aren’t you?" My question muffled, since I refused remove my lips from her skin.

  "What can I say? I’m good." She smiled wickedly.

  I shoved her down onto my desk and moved her high heel clad feet on either side of my body. There was a sharp intake of breath from her when I dipped my tongue to the crevice of her thigh and hip. Grabbing the lacy underwear, I tore them at the sides. Her head popped up, looking at me. I smirked before delving between her warm, swollen lips.

  "Ohhh…Ahhh…Ahhhd…" She moaned and writhed on my large mahogany desk.

  One of the hottest sights ever, my gorgeous Lilli writhing on my desk as my tongue dove in and out of her, circled her clitoris, and sucked on her lips.

  "Fuck…Aidan…please." She moaned.

  Shoving two fingers inside of her, I rolled them as my tongue worked her until she yell out my name. As she got close to her release, I slipped one finger out of her and slid it into her ass. Her whole body arched. Her walls clench around my fingers as the evidence of her orgasm dripped down my fingers.

  "Fuck…Aidan." She lay on my desk panting.

  "What can I say? I’m good." I mimicked. However, I couldn’t gloat too long. I was hard again. "Come here." I growled.

  She sat up with a curious look on her face.

  Grabbing her by the satin connecting the cups of her bra, I pulled her to me. Turning her around, I bent her over my desk. Using my knees to part her legs, I quickl
y thrust inside of her.

  "Aidan!"

  "Call me, Mr. Iverson." I ordered.

  "Fuck me, Mr. Iverson!" She moaned pressing back into my thrusts. "Oh… yes…Mr. Iverson!"

  "Scream for me, Ms. Snowe. Scream my name." I demanded.

  "Mister Iverson!" She screamed. I drove in and out of her faster. "Harder, Iverson!"

  Holy fuck, her ordering me around by my last name was hotter than I ever imagined. The heavy mahogany desk groaned from the force of fucking her. With each drive she moaned and gripped at the edges of the wood.

  Grabbing her left thigh, I lifted her knee to rest on the desk, slamming into her a couple more times before she quivered and clenched down around me. Screaming my name, she came.

  Still pumping furiously, she moaned her release. When the massaging clench of her walls pulled my orgasm from me, I gripped her hips and pounded through my release.

  Both of us finished and breathless, I sat back into my chair, pulling her with me.

  "That was fantastic." I rasped.

  "Mmm hmm." Lilli settled into my lap.

  After a few moments, she looked up at me with a smile.

  "What?" I asked.

  "Mr. Iverson?" She smirked.

  "What can I say? You just fulfilled a fantasy for me. A fantasy I’ve had for a long, long time."

  "Oh, so you’ve fantasize about fucking an assistant or some woman frequently?" She raised her brow playfully.

  "Nope, only you." I kissed her lips.

  "Yeah right." She laughed. "Ms. Snowe?"

  "How else can I fantasize you are my all too willing assistant whom is staying late to work with the boss?" She rolled her eyes, giggling. "So, what do I have to do to get you to do this every night?"

  She laughed and stood, though I whined when she got up. Slipping her coat back on, she tied it shut and turned to look at me.

  "I’ll see you at home." She smirked.

  "You’re not wearing underwear." I stated, holding up the torn lace.

  "Oh, I know." She smirked. "That’s just something for you to think about while you work."

  Lilli left, shutting the door behind her.

  "Fuck." I'd dropped my head to my messy desk.

  Loud laughter from where my now fifteen year old twins sat with their cousins pulled me from the naughty memory. A naughty memory that repeated many times since then.

  "What are you smiling about?" James asked, with a small grin on his face.

  "Just some great memories." Taking a quick look at Lilli, I gave James my full attention.

  ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

  Lilli

  Standing on the other side of the room, watching my husband look at our family and friends, I could tell he was thinking about the past. Smiles, furrowed brows, and frowns were passing of his face. Though the one face, the sad one, I knew exactly what he was thinking about.

  Losing the baby was one of the hardest experiences I had ever been through. Even with all of the crazy soap opera like events we had experienced, losing that baby crushed something inside of me. It took so much strength to come back from that. If it hadn’t been for Aidan’s strength and understanding, I probably wouldn’t have been able to return to my life. A life that we had built on possibility, heartache, loss, family, and love.

  Aidan and I attended Demitri and Lorna’s wedding six months after we lost the baby. It was a small wedding compared to Iverson standards, but it was intimate and beautiful. They had written their own vows and both cried when they read them. When the priest asked if anyone objected to the marriage, I decided to tease Aidan.

  "If there is anyone who feels these two should not be united in front of God, please speak now." The words echoed through the church.

  Looking to Aiden, I caught his eye.

  "I guess this is my last chance to get Demitri." I whispered, pretending to wipe a tear from my eye, and went to put my hand up.

  Aidan growled and wrapped his arms around mine, securely holding me in place. I quietly giggled and leaned in to kiss his cheek.

  "Not funny, Mrs. Iverson." He grumbled.

  "Yes, it was." I lay my head on his shoulder for the rest of the ceremony.

  Surprisingly, we became good friends with Lorna and Demitri. Lorna wasn’t able to have children because of severe diabetes. So, Viola and I had helped them adopt three times from the children’s homes we funded through the foundation.

  Unfortunately, we lost Uncle Henry two years ago to a heart attack. That was a hard hit for Anne, Liam and James. Even though Uncle Henry and Aunt Anne had been snobs and Uncle Henry had made some bad choices, we'd grown closer. Anne had become much warmer towards her family, especially where her grandchildren were concerned. Henry had returned to AIS, working under James. Aidan had been hesitant with Uncle Henry, but tried to trust him as much as he could.

  My father was still going strong and was about to celebrate his third year of marriage with Millie. During one visit to see him, when the twins were ten, I discovered that their relationship was much more than nurse and patient.

  The kids and I were in the back yard at my father’s house. They were playing kickball while I was reading on the back porch when I noticed the time and headed in to make lunch.

  Before making lunch, I decided to go wash my hands in the bathroom. On my way, I heard my father chuckle and then Millie’s laughter coming from his bedroom. Smirking, I washed my hands and headed back down to the kitchen.

  I was in the middle of making sandwiches when my father entered with a large smile. Looking up at him, I smiled and lightly chuckled.

  "What’s so funny?" I heard the kitchen chair screech across the linoleum flooring.

  "Oh, nothing." I said exaggerated.

  "I see…" he trailed off.

  "So, when do you plan on telling me?" I turned around, smiling, and leaned against the counter behind me.

  "Tell you what?" He looked confused.

  For a moment, I questioned my assumption. Swallowing hard, I took the chance. "About you and a certain nurse?"

  Donald’s face paled and his eyes became large. "Um…uh…I…It’s…"

  "Calm down, Dad." I rolled my eyes. "I wish you would’ve just told me about it. If you are happy then that is all that matters." I finished the sandwiches and started placing them out on the table.

  "So, you don’t think that it’s weird?" He kept his face to the table, fidgeting with his fingers.

  I had walked over to him and put my hand on his shoulder. "If you're happy, then I'm happy for you."

  He grabbed my hand tightly. "Thank you, Lilli."

  I patted him and then went to yell for the children.

  It took two years for him to get the courage to ask her to marry him. When he finally did and she excitedly accepted, they planned a small civil ceremony that Aidan, the kids, Viola and I flew to Winter Harbor to attend. Phoebe and Adeline, along with Celia, Dixon, and the girls all attended with us.

  The biggest surprise was my mother’s attendance and her date. Her date was only a year older than me and for the rest of the trip I had to deal with Dixon referring to my mother as a cougar. When I got her alone to talk to her about her new boy, she said she was having fun, enjoying life, and that they both cared for each other.

  Viola had summed it all up after she squeezed every last breath from my mother in one long hug and exclaimed.

  "Damn girl, you went and got you a young stud. I bet he has great stamina. He has great stamina, doesn’t he?" As my mother and Viola began that conversation, I quickly excused myself from the gory details.

  Returning to the present, my teenage children's birthday party, my eyes landed on Viola. She stood next to Liam with a champagne flute in one hand, while the other slipped onto Liam's butt with a pat. Oh no.

  Obviously, Viola hasn’t changed and I don't think any of us ever want her to. Her naughty side often appeared and seemed to do so more often with each passing year. It was evident, by the things Viola would say, that she and Liam were still as ac
tive as they had always been, though she did mention Viagra a few times.

  Liam still worked with Aidan at AIS and was very much the man he had always been; a leader and a loyal friend. Aidan still looked to him as his father figure and his opinion only seemed to come second to mine. Liam was also extremely happy these days that they had Ryan. He finally had another boy in the house with him and he felt this evened out the estrogen levels.

  Glancing back over to my husband, I caught him looking at me. A sly smile crept over his lips and a gleam of the kinky boy deep inside him flashed in his eyes. When I smiled, his face lit up in a brilliant smile. His smile made me wonder if he was planning another getaway for us.

  On our seventh wedding anniversary we went back to the cottage Aidan had given me for our first anniversary. Aidan had made prior arrangements before we arrived. I walked into the large open room lit and warmed by fire and candlelight. There were seven dozen roses in different colors placed all around the cabin.

  "Aidan." I gasped, then smiled.

  His arms wrapped around me from behind.

  "You like?" I could feel his breath against the back of my right ear. I nodded. He kissed my right cheek quickly. "Good." He walked us to the center of the room and that’s when I saw the pillows and blankets strewn about the floor in front of the fireplace.

  We sat down with a bottle of champagne and chocolate covered strawberries. I sat to the right of Aidan, who was facing the fireplace, with my legs stretched out in front of me, my feet resting on his thighs.

  "I have one more surprise for you." He smiled and stretched back to reach into his black leather bag.

  He pulled out a manila envelope and pulled a stack of white papers from it. I wrinkled my forehead in confusion.

  "What is all of that?"

  Chuckling, he answered me.

  "The Agreement." His eyes met mine and I half smiled over my champagne flute.

  "What are you doing with that?" I laughed out after I took my sip.

  "Well, I was thinking that we should officially rid ourselves of this." He leaned forward and aimed the papers for the fireplace. I grabbed his wrist quickly. The expression on his face when he quickly looked at me was confusion and shock. "What?"