Chapter 48

It was a Sunday at the end of January when things changed. It had been one of those rare weekends where I had been alone with Katy and Evelyn. All the women had something else to do. Candice was on a serious date, Kathryn was visiting her parents, and Lindsay was in a conference.

Or, she had been in a conference, as now she was at my door, looking distressed. I opened the door and let her in. I turned to her. She didn't meet my gaze, but looked down. Now I started to worry, too. Then she took a deep breath.

"Noel, I have been with another man."

A sudden flood of jealousy hit me, just as though I had some right to feel like that, when I had been shagging both Candy and Kath whenever possible. Then came sadness. Surely she had come to tell me that she had found someone else, and that she didn't want so see me anymore. As my thoughts were running in these small circles, I almost missed her next statement.

"It was terrible. I don't want to do it anymore, ever. I only want to be with you. Can you please forgive me?"

Even when I heard the words, it took some time for my overloaded mind to process it. When the full meaning of her words hit me, I lifted her chin so that I could see her teary eyes. Then I kissed her. I put into that kiss all the love that I had for her, now that I finally understood my own feelings. I then carried her upstairs. The girls saw us. They started giggling when I closed my bedroom door behind us. The only awkward moment came when I had her almost undressed. I looked at her and tried to formulate a question but she seemed capable of reading my thoughts.

"Yes, we used protection. Now, please, please ... make me forget!"

I did my best, and according to her responses, I somewhat succeeded. The only drawback was that we had to wake up extra early on Monday morning, so that she could get herself ready for work and Evelyn ready for school. But both of them just smiled, even if it was Monday morning. Hell, I smiled like a madman, too.

Neither Candice nor Kathryn looked surprised when we broke the news about our more serious relationship to them. Since Candice was now seeing a guy, it was not any big deal to her, but Kathryn complained a bit about the increasing battery consumption. Lindsay looked at her.

"I never said that you couldn't borrow him, Kath."

I turned to Lindsay, looking shocked. She giggled when she looked at me.

"Don't you dare to say, Buster, that you have not enjoyed your moments with Kath. Besides, I know your sex drive, and it will still take me some time to get to the same level. My friends have helped me so much that it's the least that YOU can do."

What can you say to that?

My relationship with my aunty had remained strained after I had decided to go after the individuals, as well as the community. I guessed that if I had not felt mercy to the families of the two policemen, we would not be talking at all. I still could not feel any remorse for my actions. That was I why I was surprised when she called and invited Beth, Ashley and herself, to MY birthday dinner. In her own subtle way. Very subtle, indeed. I warned Lindsay that my aunty and her family were coming to visit us. I assured her that it wouldn't be a problem, but I didn't go into details.

Lindsay and Evelyn arrived early, and the girls busied themselves while Lindsay came to help me in kitchen. She was a bit worried about meeting my relatives but I assured her that there would be no problems with them. In fact I was happy for her to be there, because that would certainly keep the discussions civilized. The only thing that worried me a bit was that I had not told my aunty anything about Lindsay and Evelyn. I'd probably need to tell Lindsay more about my past. THAT worried me. That worried me a lot.

Unfortunately there was never a suitable time before that weekend when I could have told Lin everything. Suddenly, it turned out that I was much more nervous than Lindsay before the visit. As the expected time of arrival approached rapidly, and I still hadn't managed to talk to her, I stopped her in the kitchen and held her at arms length.

"Lin, I have not told you everything about my past. I can only ask you not to hate me because of that, if something you have not heard is revealed today. I promise that I'll tell you everything - and soon."

She looked at me, and smiled before kissing me.

"I know you will, you goof, and I could never hate you."

I surely hoped that she kept thinking so! Then we were just too busy finalizing the meals. I had no time to worry more. When the guests finally arrived, I was reasonably calm. Katy and I helped them inside, while Lin and Eve waited out of sight in the living room. There was a moment of silence when the two parties finally saw each other.

"Aunty, Beth, Ashley ... may I introduce you to my girlfriend Lindsay, and her daughter Evelyn."

If I was waiting for a response I wasn't disappointed, but the response was not what I expected. My aunty and Beth were dumbfounded, but Ashley looked shocked. Only for a moment, though.

Then Ashley screamed,

"Nooooo!"

and then ran up the stairs.

We could hear a door slamming. Suddenly both my aunty and Beth looked desperate. Then Beth sighed.

"You just didn't have any idea, did you?"

"About what?"

This time it was my aunty who sighed very loudly.

"That the poor girl was hopelessly in love with you, her hero, you idiot!"

She continued to glare me, and then it was Beth who turned to face Lindsay.

"Nice to meet you both and I'm very sorry we met like this. But Ashley has been through some hard times, and she has been very worried that nobody will ever like her."

"Has she been abused?"

If I had ever had any doubts about Lindsay being smart, that question put end to it. I heard Evelyn gasp and Katy just looked grim. It took Beth some time to answer but finally she nodded.