by Ford, Mia
I smile at her, trying to lighten the mood just a little. “Why are you feeling sorry for me? You’re the one who’s new husband has just been taken to jail. Right after your honeymoon. You married a felon.”
We laugh together, trying to make the best of a bad situation. This has been a mess for years, but I’m pretty sure this is rock bottom. There is only one way to go from that. Up… I hope. There isn’t any more down.
“Do you want to go inside and see your parents?” Sian asks with narrowed eyes. “Check they are okay?”
I shake my head vigorously. “God, no. You know what they are like. That’s a hard no on that one.”
She laughs and agrees with me, she’s been around for long enough to have seen it all. She was even just about on the scene when I left. “Yeah okay. I see your point. I do know what they are like. So, what do you want to do? I don’t suppose we can hang about on your parent’s lawn forever. Unless we want to get arrested as well.”
“I guess we head to the police station, see if we can sort the boys out. We might not be able to do a thing, but I don’t suppose it will make anything worse if we give it a go.” I hold my arm to her. “Shall we?”
* * *
Me and Josiah stare at one another across the reception area of a police station, questions and answers flowing between us as we do. This is not where I thought this would all happen, but here we are. Thankfully, because no one wanted to press any charges, it wasn’t easy to get either of the guys free… not that I have seen Adam yet.
I flick my eyes all over Josiah, drinking in his dark, shaggy hair, his high cheek bones, his gorgeous eyes… and the scars covering him. The small bruises and cuts that my brother caused.
“I’m so sorry,” I murmur, hoping that he can read my lips. “I’m so, so sorry.”
He takes giant strides towards me, closing the gap between us. I suck in a breath and hold it while I wait for his yelling. His reaction is bound to be a bad one, isn’t it? It has to be by this point.
“Freddie is mine?” he gushes, with tears in his eyes. “He really is?”
I nod, getting just about as emotional as him. “He really is. There has only ever been you.”
“Is that why you left?”
“Yes.” I nod slowly. “My father took me away. He wouldn’t let me stay.”
“Because you were pregnant?”
“Because of that and also because I wouldn’t tell him that the baby was yours. I thought he would kill you.”
Josiah grins and laughs a little. “Yeah, I bet he would have.”
“I’m really sorry. There are so many times when I should have told you, but I didn’t. I mean, I wanted to tell you back then, but I didn’t have my cell phone and I wasn’t sure of your number. Plus, I was at my aunt’s home in the middle of nowhere. The pregnancy was very hard on me as well, so was having a new born.”
“I get it…” he starts, but I still feel compelled to explain.
“And then when we saw each other again I thought it was too much of a bomb to just drop on you unexpectedly. I wanted to check that you were going to react well to it…”
“And then I ran away.” His hands slide up and down my arms. “I’m sorry about that.”
“No, it’s okay, and then it just got messier and messier…”
His lips connect with mine, and everything stills. All the confusion, all the stress I have experienced, all the nightmare vanishes as Josiah’s hands slide further around my waist and his lips move in harmony with mine. This is the first ever honest kiss that we have had. Now he knows everything about me, and Freddie too, and he still wants me. This isn’t the negative reaction I thought I was going to get at all.
“What are we going to do?” I ask quietly as we pull apart, but not far. I can still feel his breath tickling my lips. “What is going to happen between us now?”
“We’re going to be a family.” He nods and smiles. “If that’s what you want?”
“That is what I want.” A feeling of being complete settles over me. The gap that I didn’t even realize I had closes up. “It’s what I have always wanted.”
He leans his head down and brushes his lips against mine ever so lightly. “There are just a few things that we need to do first.”
“There is?” I groan. “I don’t like the sound of that.”
“If I’m going to love you with everything that I have, I need to make things up with Adam, sort things out with your parents, and meet Freddie properly.”
“Some of that sounds scary. But we should do it. Which one do you want to do first?”
“Freddie, of course, but since it’s two AM maybe we should focus on Adam first.”
“No more fighting though… please.”
He holds up his hands in defeat. “There will no more fighting, trust me.”
“Great, then let’s do it.”
29
Josiah
“This place is weird,” I comment as we eat out eggs and toast in a bar where others are still drinking. “I know there aren’t many other places open this late at night, but still… this is strange.”
“We need to meet Adam and Sian in a neutral location, so there isn’t any more fighting.” Paisley stuffs a fork full into her mouth. “Plus. I’m starving so this is perfect really. It’s been a long old night.”
“I’m starting to doubt myself,” I admit. “I’m wondering if I should have let the dust settle before calling Adam. He might still be really furious at me and I don’t know how much anger I can take.”
Paisley nods, agreeing with me more than she probably should. “Yeah, he might be, but then the longer you leave it to stew the worse it could get. At least this time, we are facing it together, nowhere near any of my parents, and the fist flying is done. I’m hoping that you both have the stupid male pride bit out of your system.”
I laugh and roll my eyes. “That was a bit nuts, wasn’t it? I don’t quite know what happened?”
“Are you both going to be okay? I mean, you said some really mean things to one another.”
Now, with a much calmer head on, I know that Adam didn’t mean any of those things he said to me, just like I didn’t mean anything that I said either. It was just heat of the moment bullshit, we were both pissed off at other things and took it out on one another. Adam would never say anything horrible about my parents under normal circumstances. He just isn’t that sort of person. I know that with such clarity.
“I’m pretty sure that if we can get passed today, then we will be fine.”
Paisley’s phone bleeps and she pulls it out. “Oh, that was Sian, they are on the way.”
A small cold bolt of panic trickles through me but I do what I can to swallow it down. I can’t back down now, it’s too late. I nod along and act like everything is okay, but I push my food away, no longer hungry enough to eat a single bite. My eyes fix on the door and I wait for him to come in.
“Great, how far away are they?” My voice shakes as I speak.
“I think it will be any minute now.” Paisley darts her eyes my way. I can see just as much panic racing through her as there is in me. Her worry only freaks me out more. I suppose she hasn’t yet had her confrontation with her brother yet, so it’s going to get worse before it gets better. “Are you ready for it?”
The door swings open and in walks Sian with a sheepish looking Adam behind her. At least he hasn’t come in hot and heavy, that’s a good start. Maybe this will be okay after all.
I rise to my feet and wait for them to reach us. I feel like I might have the same sheepish look on my face that Adam does. I hold out my hand to him waiting for him to take it and shake it. Which thankfully he does.
“Sorry, Adam,” I say seriously, dragging his eyes up to meet mine. “That got out of hand.”
“Yeah, it did. And I’m sorry too. I didn’t mean to… react like that. It was all just a huge shock. I always suspected, but to hear that it’s true and you are Freddie’s dad… I don’t know, I’m sorry.”
/>
We both look to Paisley and she shrugs with a smile. “I am sorry too. I didn’t mean for any of this to happen. If dad hadn’t sent me away, then I would have been able to tell you all in the first place.”
Adam’s eyes light up with a realization. “Yeah, you were put in an awkward situation. If Dad could just relax when it comes to this sort of thing, then none of us would be in a mess.” He darts his eyes around at all of us. “So, where do we go from here? What are we all going to do now? We’re all good now, right?” I nod encouragingly. I don’t want this fight to go on any longer than it needs to. “So, what happens next?”
“You two are going to be together, right?” Sian asks, pointing between me and Paisley. I do like the girl, but she really could be making this awkward right now if we hadn’t already discussed this. “You’re going to be a family, right? For little Freddie’s sake? That’s where all of this is heading.”
I glance at Paisley and she grins at me too. I slip my hand in hers and her soft delicious fingers lace through mine. It’s so weird to be so public about this, holding hands in front of Adam, yet here we are. She looks so beautiful, despite being clearly tired and a little scruffy, especially since she completely belongs to me now.
Oh God, Paisley is mine, Finally, at last. After all this time we have finally found a way for us to be together and I do not intend to screw it up. I want this to be the first day of the rest of my life. Our lives together.
“We’re going to be together.” I nod at Adam. “We’re going to give it a try.”
“Yeah.” Paisley leans in closer to me, practically purring with joy. “We are.”
“Oh, God.” Adam’s head falls into his hands. I think seeing us together is too much for him. I almost snatch my hand away from Paisley’s to make it easier for him to be around us, but she won’t let me. I guess we really are all in now no matter what. “How are you going to lay this out to Mom and Dad? It won’t be easy.”
Paisley falls back into her seat and the rest of us follow suit. Sian calls over a waiter and places an order for food for her and Adam which gives Paisley time to think about what she’s going to say next… but there’s no answer. She opens and closes her mouth a few times before she finally speaks again.
“Adam, what am I going to tell Mom and Dad? They aren’t going to take it well.”
“I know,” Adam agrees. “And I can’t even wail on you and say that it would have been easier had you told them at the time because I don’t think there is any time that they would have taken this well.”
I can’t help but feel a little stung. “Is it really this bad? Do they hate me that much?”
“It isn’t that they hate you,” Adam starts, trying to make me feel a little better. “They just have funny ideas about what is good enough for them. It isn’t anything to do with you, it’s all them.”
“Is that because I once made you have a party or because I’m an orphan?”
“Probably a bit of both. I don’t know, I never tried to understand them.”
“You always pleased them much more than I did,” Paisley pipes up. “And you still are even now. You are married to Sian, the woman who they said was perfect for you, and now any children you have will not be in sin. Whereas I already have an illegitimate child. With a man who they won’t ever deem good enough, and now I want to be with him properly. It won’t even matter that I’m finally getting my family together.”
Adam leans across the table and smiles at her. “I will support you, no matter what happens. They won’t like it and I know that, but it doesn’t matter. I never thought that I would be in the position where I am okay with this, but I am. It’s weird, I know it’s going to take a while for me to fully get used to it, but it really seems like you make one another happy, and I cannot argue with Freddie having both parents around. So, I will stand with you when you tell them, so they cannot be as hard on you as they would like.”
As he glances at Sian I know that she is the one who has calmed him down and made him see things this way. She might have been picked out by their parents, but she really is good for him. They did that right.
“Thanks, Adam, that’s really kind of you. I think that will make things smoother.”
“I’m not doing it tonight though.” Adam stretches his arms high and yawns. “I’m exhausted. I think we have had enough drama. Let’s do it tomorrow when we’re all a bit clear headed.”
We all agree to that one, I don’t think any of us want to face them tonight. Instead, we all finish our meals and we head out, saying goodbye at the door. As Adam and Sian go off, hand in hand, I turn to face Paisley with a new found happiness on my face. We did it, we really overcame that massive hurdle.
“Well, we made it. We finally told Adam about us and all it took was a little arrest.”
Paisley tosses her head back and laughs loudly. “Yeah, that’s true. Who would have thought that our lives would start in that way? Mind you, I suppose nothing about me and you has been perfect.”
I dip my head down and kiss her lightly on the lips. “It’s been perfect for us though.”
“Hmm, that’s true. Do you have any plans right now? Do you want to come back to mine?”
“But Freddie…?” I start, my words trailing off as I see the smile playing on her lips.
“Freddie already knows you and he likes you a lot. We don’t necessarily need to tell him anything specific right now, but I think it will be good for him to have you around. You both need time together.”
I love the way that sounds. I’m so keen to get to know my son properly. I have kept my distance from him as much as possible because I’ve been so scared of having him ripped away from me, but now I don’t need to think about it at all. I know that I can allow this deep bond to grow. At last.
“That sounds perfect, Paisley. Thank you. I would love to come back with you. Thank you very much.”
We walk for a while, just talking casually about the past and the future, all of it intertwining as we go, until we find a taxi rank. We hop in to a car and it takes us all the way to Paisley’s home. Kate is asleep on the couch all curled up under a blanket. Paisley disturbs her just to let her know that we’re home but tells her to go back to sleep until the morning when it will be easier for her to get a ride home.
Once she has done that, Paisley takes my hand and leads me up the stairs. She pushes open the door to Freddie’s room and leans against me while we both admire our son. With Paisley on my arm and my son in front of me, breathing deeply as he dreams hopefully something wonderful, my chest swells with love. I don’t think I have ever been so happy in my life. I feel all warm and fuzzy like my life is complete.
“This really is a happy ever after, isn’t it?” I whisper. “Our little family.”
“We still have a hurdle to overcome yet, don’t get too confident.” She tugs at my side. “Come on, let’s get to bed. It is some ridiculous time in the morning now and I need some rest. I don’t think you are well equipped for how early Freddie wakes up in the morning.” She grins brightly at me. “We are going to be shattered.”
I chuckle, not caring about being tired as long as I’m here. This feels like the exact right place to be. I let Paisley drag me into her room and we collapse in to bed together. As our limbs tangle up and I rest my forehead against hers, my heart grows even bigger. I really do love this woman with everything I have.
“I know that it’s been a long road,” I say while tucking a stray strand of hair behind her ear. “But it’s been worth it just to be here. I can’t wait to see what our future holds. Me and you, it’s going to be great.”
She leans up and kisses me, her soft plump lips sparking intense desire all the way through me. I know that we need rest because tomorrow is going to be a big day, but my desire is peaked, and I really need to satisfy my needs. I climb above her and kiss harder, my body rolling against hers. Her hips immediately roll in to mine.
“We’ll have to be quiet,” she giggles as she whispers. “We
don’t want to wake everyone up.”
That only turns me on even more. It reminds me of the secrecy when we first slept together but combined with the knowledge that it isn’t really a secret anymore, makes it that much more exciting.
“I can do quiet.” I grab the hem line of her top and slowly drag it upwards, grazing my fingers over her flushed skin as I go. She shudders and lets out a delicious little mewing sound. “Can you?”
“Hmm, I don’t know,” she groans. “There’s something about you that makes silence impossible.”
I press my lips against her skin and slowly move downwards, pausing as I get to the waist band of her leggings. I impulsively grip on to the material with my teeth and drag it all the way down, loving the way she shivers with delight as I shed her second skin. Once she’s only in her underwear her eager fingers start stripping me too. There is something desperate and needy about her movements, but she’s being tender and romantic with me too. I can see the intense love in her eyes as she strips me down which makes me hold on to her shoulders and fix her in place. I need to really look at her as I say these words. I need her to really hear it.
“Paisley, I love you. I really do. I always have, and I know I always will.”
She places her lips on the tip of my nose. “I really love you too. You are everything to me.”
I drag myself down the bed and kiss the outside of her panties while she writhes desperately beneath me. I can feel the wet snatch burning through the thin cotton material and it’s driving me crazy. I groan as I kiss her harder, using my tongue to circle the material around her clit. She grips on to my hair, tugging hard every time it feels good for her. I love that sharp pain; it means she’s enjoying herself. I end up pushing her panties to one side and eagerly plunging my tongue into her, getting a taste of her sweet seductive desire.
“Oh, Josiah. That feels…” She gasps loudly and stiffens. “That’s too much, it’s too good.”