Patrick
Dia was delighted with the press coverage, she revelled in this new story that she had caught herself two wealthy men and was getting a book deal out of it. The media wasn’t sure what to say about us, there were a few opinion pieces I read about people interpreting it as a joke, others said we were just scared to be gay. Not a single outlet used the word bisexual, which I found noteworthy.
Charles was interviewed, he would only say that our humanitarian work should speak for us instead of one affair. Christine went on record to clear up the idea of Jon leaving her for a younger woman, she wanted them to know she left him for a slightly younger man. Norm Bower wanted people to know that he always suspected his son-in-law was a ‘sexual deviant’ and was thankful his daughter had the good sense to leave him. That one provided us with endless entertainment.
We weren’t swamped with paparazzi by any means, but it did become difficult over the next few weeks to get things finished for the wedding. Lydia had to change her number and ended up getting two new phones entirely, one on my plan and one on Michelin’s, she was harassed about further interviews constantly.
However, we were bound and determined to make our lives as normal as possible; we continued going on dates both individually and as a group, our stag night was still on, Dia’s friends still wanted to take her out for a bachelorette party, and I still worked with mum on her charity events. But by far, the best thing to come out of it for me was a call from Celestyn only two days after the interview. I bought her and her nurse a plane ticket and the two of them agreed to come stay with us for the wedding.
The event that I had feared might tear us apart had unintentionally made my life better. Happier. I was in Nirvana. Nothing could bring me down.
The days crept by slowly until we were only two weeks out from the wedding and on one snowy Thursday afternoon, we loaded up into Lydia’s new car to view a house Jon had shown us.
“Are you sure it’s down here?” Dia asked as we pulled down Lattingtown Road.
“The GPS doesn’t lie,” I answered without looking up from the email I was typing on my phone.
“I don’t know if I believe that, it feels like it’s leading us the wrong way. I’ve had that happen before.”
“I already told you that this was the right way,” Jon said exasperatedly. “This should be it up here, you’ll see the gates.”
“And I told you I don’t like backseat drivers.”
“I’m about to be a front seat driver in a minute if you keep that attitude up.”
“Children, please,” I scolded them. “Right here, kitten, this looks like it.”
The road branched off into interlaced brickwork that led past a set of large white gates. Lydia turned onto the private road and stopped a few feet away from the fencing.
“Do we have to tell them we’re here?” she asked quietly, glancing over at the guard’s house.
“Should have taken the Pullman,” Jon muttered.
“You would still be sitting in the backseat whether we took the Escalade or the Maybach, zip it.”
I groaned and rubbed my face. “Both of you are going to be the death of me.”
“I’m not even doing anything!” she protested. “I’m busy driving his ungrateful ass around and getting told off for not being a professional chauffer—”
She broke off as the gates in front of us swung open. Slowly the car crept forward under the canopy of snow-covered trees, there was a small park on my side of the road where I could just barely make out a few kids playing in the distance. Mid-size houses were sprinkled in here and there, gradually getting bigger as we made our way down the winding road. The GPS chirped again, advising Lydia to turn left up a narrow driveway.
I imagined that in the summer this drive would look absolutely gorgeous, even now with icicles and snow it looked like a dream, but the shrubbery, the trees, everything would just glow with life come springtime. We came around the bend and Lydia gasped, I couldn’t stop myself from doing the same because the house looked perfect at the crest of the hill.
It was a three-storey cape cod done in weathered light brown wood contrasted against dark teal accents like the shutters and the front door. Large windows stared down over the driveway from every room, they glowed with warmth against the gray tinged sky. It was spread out lazily, spanning the length of the turning circle at the end of the driveway.
“Remember when I promised that I could find the perfect office space if you put up the funds and you didn’t trust me?” Jon chirped from directly behind my seat. “How many times am I going to have to prove to you that I can get shit done?”
“You know, I’m starting to understand why Christine left you.”
“Yeah, because no one is willing to admit when I’m right,” he replied bitterly. “I find paradise only forty minutes outside the city and no one even thanks me.”
“Thank you,” Lydia replied, her voice earnest. “It’s beautiful, it’s perfect, now let’s hope I like the inside.”
I snickered and tucked my phone away. She pulled the car up to the path and shut it off. We sat there for a moment afterward before Jon moved for the door, signalling for us to follow along. I stepped out onto the pavement and glanced out down the hill, you couldn’t see the driveway past the bend, much less any neighbors despite all the people that lived in this gated community. Smoothing out the front of my jacket, I went around the car and helped Lydia step down.
“Is the realtor here?” she asked, glancing around.
“No,” Jon answered. “I asked if we could tour it privately, she left the keys in the mailbox and sent me a list of things about the house if you’re curious.”
“Oh, cool, we can take our time then.”
He agreed and we approached the door together. I reached in the mailbox and pulled out the key ring with a little green tag on it. It felt heavy in my hand, I stole a glance toward Dia who was watching me with barely contained excitement. I smiled back at her and unlocked the doors, giving a gentle push, they swung open into the entry way. Jon gestured for Lydia to go first, we followed behind her.
The entryway led into a grand foyer with a staircase that wrapped around the circular room, going up to the second floor. The room was made of white panelled walls and light wooden floors. It was empty for the time being, but the light that poured in from the large windows above the door made it feel warm and welcoming.
Dia turned around in small circle as she took in the room, her mouth open slightly and her hand toying with her necklace.
“It’s really big,” she remarked suddenly.
“Now there’s something we never hear you say,” Jon teased.
“That’s because yours still isn’t the biggest I’ve seen, I’ll let you know when I find one bigger though.”
“Oh, I’m so looking forward to moving in together properly,” I said as I went off down the hall. “Getting to hear about all the dicks you’ve seen is the best part of my day.”
“You’ve seen more than I have!” she called to me.
I smirked and glanced back at her long enough that she could see me wink, she grinned and blew me a kiss while Jon gave me the finger behind her back.
Grinning to myself, I took in the few pieces of art that had been left hanging on the walls. There was an office that I passed, along with a formal dining room and a sunroom. I touched the wall, feeling the wood panelling reverently. A house for us. I remembered sitting with Nora in the sunroom when I was a kid, watching her read while I played with some toys, the cozy feeling of us spending time together while it down poured outside. I could see Lydia curled up on a fluffy chair in the corner with our baby, Jon working in the study…
Where would I be?
I turned back toward the hallway and watched Lydia head into what I was pretty sure was the kitchen. She would need help once the baby was here, I could only guess that my place would be with her until I found my footing. Being here all the time wouldn’t be too bad, I thought as I admired the view of the snowy trees. I heard something clatter loudly to the floor and spun around, sprinting for the door.
“Lydia?”
“I’m fine!” she called back instantly.
I came running into the kitchen a few doors down and saw her picking up two pots off the floor.
“The hooks are smaller than they look,” she said sheepishly. “I didn’t think they would fall.”
“You dork.”
She hung them back up on the rack above the island and my heart finally slowed back down. Dia relaxed against the island and I took a good look at the kitchen for the first time, taking in the white cabinetry and large window over the sink. The second floor had a small section where the hallway was exposed, anyone walking up there could stop and talk to people in the kitchen over the railing. I liked the layout, but the counters were a fucking hideous shade of green.
“This needs to go,” I told her, tapping the marble. “It’s just so ugly…”
“Oh, trust me, there’s one ugly room down that way.” She pointed in the other direction. “Jon found a library that leads out to the yard, but it’s entirely cherry wood.”
I cringed at the thought as I paced around the kitchen. Suddenly a beep sound caught our attention and Jon’s voice came through.
“Shit, can you hear me?” His voice crackled through the speaker.
Lydia rushed over and paused, looking over the buttons before tentatively pressing the bottom one. “Jon?”
“I heard something, are you two alright?”
“We’re fine, thank you!”
“Come down here then, you two have to see this.”
The intercom beeped again and Lydia glanced at me with her brow raised. I came around the counter and pulled her to me, giving her a gentle kiss. “You can’t say there isn’t enough space,” I teased.
She laughed and pulled me back down to her mouth. “No, there’s definitely more than enough.”
“Can you imagine breakfast in here?” I asked. “Sitting at the table with Jon and the baby, mum and Nora coming to visit…”
“Celestyn too,” she said excitedly. “And Michelin, Allie, Mari, we could have everyone over.”
“Everyone,” I agreed.
She was beaming with happiness as she led us out and down the other side of the house. Stairs led us into the basement with walkout doors into the backyard. Her dress was light and flowy, each window we passed silhouetted her legs beneath the baby-blue material, I watched the fabric gently brush across her skin, barely even noticing when she came to a sudden stop at the end of the hall.
I glanced up to see Jon relaxing on a large black love seat in the cinema, his arms spanning the back while he stretched out lazily. He grinned and beckoned us over.
“Look at this, a proper home theatre set up,” he said as we took a look around the room. “I always wanted something like this.”
“You have one at the apartment,” Dia pointed out. “But honestly, this one is a lot nicer.”
I had to agree, this one had five rows of seating and a proper incline in the room so that everyone could see. I could imagine us sitting in here on our days off, relaxing together, fucking until we passed out. From what I could see, this house had great noise isolation, and plenty of rooms that we could quietly turn into private playrooms away from the kids.
I admired the projector for a moment before coming back around the couch to see Lydia in Jon’s lap with his hands up her skirt and the top of her dress undone. The bastard worked fast. I twisted her hair around my fist and jerked her back, she gasped and Jon laughed as his mouth met her hard nipple. Lydia grinned up at me and reached out to touch my beard, running her nails through it and raising goosebumps along my arms.
“Hi, Master,” she purred.
“Hello, kitten.” I smiled down at her. “You’re all over us today.”
She nodded excitedly, a furious blush had spread across her cheeks as Jon moved from one breast to the other and then up to her throat. “I love her like this,” he growled. “An insatiable little slut.”
“So do I.” I paused and scrutinized the corner of the room. “But I’m going to have to break this up before the homeowners get a full-length video for themselves.”
“What?” Lydia cried, immediately jumping off Jon’s lap and adjusting her dress. “Ohmigod, where are the cameras?”
I smirked and pointed across the room, she peeked over the back of the couch and quickly ducked back down. “That is the first thing to go, I don’t want cameras everywhere like some fucking psycho,” she complained haughtily.
“Don’t be shy,” Jon said, sliding his hand up her thigh. “I know you like to put on a show for strangers.”
She glowered at him and both of us just laughed while I helped her off the couch. Jon followed suit and the three of us reluctantly left the cinema to see what else the place had to offer. Lydia hung off his arm and reached for my hand so that I couldn’t get very far. We surveyed the indoor pool and hot tub before taking a look at the guest house. It was a two-bedroom, two-bath set up and my mind went to Celestyn as I gazed out at the river in the distance.
“Twenty-three-thousand square-feet,” Jon told me as we strolled through the upper halls in the main house. “Bedrooms for everyone, since I know Lydia still wants to spend the first few nights with the baby.”
I nodded in agreement, there just wasn’t a bed big enough for all of us if Lydia wanted to also share the room with the baby, but that would be alright. “Is the property next door vacant?”
“It’s just a plot of land right now, someone was trying to get the permits to build a new house, but I’ve spoken to the realtor and she said it would be no problem if we wanted to buy it too and do something with it.”
“I was thinking keep it as it is and build a small stable, I could bring my horses in.”
“Lydia would probably like that,” he mused. “I don’t even think we really need to look elsewhere, I love this place. Do you?”
“Of course I do, I didn’t expect to like it this much but it’s just stunning…” We passed the kitchen below and I looked down at those fucking hideous countertops again. “Except for that, which I want renovated if we buy it.”
Jon laughed and clapped a hand on my back. “We have to get the queen’s opinion first, don’t get ahead of yourself now.”
I rolled my eyes but agreed, we all had to like the house, but I was sure that Lydia was already in love with it. We came to the end of the hall where a large white panelled door was open a crack, I pushed it open to find her sitting on the floor in the center of the room. We were at the very end of the hall and so there were windows facing every which way, letting in plenty of light. The ceiling above us caught my attention because of the interesting design: it came to a peak in the middle and sloped down over the windows creating little sitting areas in each, it almost felt like the top of tent. The wallpaper was teal with delicate tree branches and little birds here and there. I knew right away that this was her favorite room and I could picture a nursery set up with her dotting on the kids.
Jon seemed mesmerized as he circled the room and I went to take a seat next to Lydia who was gazing out the window while fiddling with the hem of her dress.
“This is it,” she told me softly. “This is the house for us.”
I reached for her hand and threaded our fingers together. “Is this his room?”
She nodded and I could see her eyes starting to water. “This is his room.” She paused and wiped her face “Right there, that’s where I’m going to put the crib.” She pointed to the nook directly across from the door.
Jon turned and offered her a reassuring smile as he came over to us. “You don’t want to look at anything else, baby?”
He sat in front of us, wincing as he got down and crossed his legs. Lydia shook her head vehemently again and reached for his hand. “I want this one.” She looked up at me with a sparkle in her eye and asked, “When can we move in?”
I met Jon’s gaze and the two of us smirked. We could move mountains if we wanted to, and I would personally make sure that we moved in as soon as possible. The more important question was what room we were going to christen first.