Chapter 18

Things settled down over the next few months. Zoe finished her rotation through radiology and began her surgery rotation. The purchase of both houses was completed, and we were busy redecorating and furnishing the cabin. I found out that I was entitled to a part-time assistant and arranged for the university to hire Sally. Yes, I know, abuse of power and all, but I don’t care!

Mila was upset to discover that she needed to sit the local radiology boards before she could work as a radiographer. She spent a month busily studying and was heard moaning that she was a radiographer, not a bloody X-Ray tech. Not surprisingly, she passed at her first attempt and was offered a post at a local sports medicine clinic.

Sally organized the sleeping arrangements with the efficiency that she showed as my personal assistant. The master bedroom was ours, and the girls each took one of the others as their private space when they wanted to sleep on their own, but honestly, they were rarely used. There a monster of a bed in my room and I don’t think I ever slept alone in it. Sally and Mila were bisexual and were happy to share a bed on the occasions Zoe claimed me for her own. On the nights that either Sally or Mila wanted me for themselves, Zoe usually started in her own bed. In the morning, I’d usually find her curled up around my other lover.

In the New Year, we all were in the UK, and Sally and I got married. The plan was very simple: Sally and I would have a British wedding license. Zoe and I would get married in America at the end of the summer, so we would have an American wedding license. Mila couldn’t make her mind up whether she wanted to marry or not. I think she preferred the idea of living in sin. I didn’t push her.

We held the wedding at a country house hotel in Devon. There was a winter storm the day before. The next morning was crisp, but bright winter sunlight caused the stained glass windows of the private chapel on the ground to cast the interior in a riot of colors. As it was a private chapel, the ceremony was conducted by the hotel’s chaplain.

Sally’s father walked her down the aisle. I don’t think he understood why when we were exchanging our vows, our two bridesmaids took hold of our free hands. Mila was holding Sally’s and Zoe mine.

Daniel was my best man; he, Mia and their children had flown over for the wedding. Both of my daughters and their families were there as well.

As Gillian pointed out in an impromptu speech at the reception, “Sally’s been my mother for over twelve years, it’s about time dad got his head out of his ass and made it legal.”

Our lovers gave us our first night together - like hell, they did! An hour after we managed to escape to our room for our first night of married sex, our bed was invaded by two naked women, who claimed that they were sex starved. Their words, not mine I hasten to add.

My three lovers, abetted by my daughters, attempted to bankrupt me, as they set about furnishing our home in England. I took refuge in the local pub and let them get on with it.

Back in the States, Bree was a regular visitor, she and Zoe still officially shared a dorm room at the University. Zoe found it very useful to stay there on her late shifts.

And it was a call from Bree on a Friday morning in the spring that triggered the next crisis in our lives. The snow was still on the high ground, and the trees were bare. It was that time of the year!

Zoe had claimed me the night before; she’d been staying in the dorm the last couple of nights, revising with Bree deep into the night. She had arrived at the cabin late yesterday afternoon after completing her case presentation. We had been down on the lakeshore with Mia and the children. Daniel was in New York at a book signing and wouldn’t be back until tomorrow night. Mila was in Evergreen; at her job at a local clinic. We were all braving the cold and the snow down by the lakeshore.

The children had run up to Zoe as she came down the path. She’d changed into her fleece-lined jeans and jacket. She had screamed as they ambushed her with snowballs.

She led them a merry dance as she dodged their attacks as they chased after her. She found sanctuary in my arms.

I kissed her, and she gave a little moan. “I missed you, Michael.”

“How did the case presentation go?” I asked.

“I got a good from Dr. Simons and an excellent from the Prof.” She grinned as I hugged her. “I get you tonight as a prize,” she said.

“You have that the wrong way around,” I said, “I get the prize!”

That evening she tried to drag me off to the bedroom as soon as she decently could. I kept teasing her, finding little jobs that I had to do right then. Sally and Mila got involved in the fun until finally, Zoe stood in the middle of the kitchen stamping her feet in frustration. I took pity on her and picked her up and slung her over my shoulder and carried her off to my bedroom.

Pushing me back on the bed, she magically made her clothes disappear and then performed the same magic trick on me.

“Finally,” she gasped, “You’re all mine, and I’m going to fuck you until I’m senseless.” She ran her fingers lightly down my chest and downwards until they encountered my shaft rising from its resting place.

I gave a little gasp as she ran her fingers along my length and a slightly louder one when she ran the tip of her tongue around the crown. I pulled her up and rolled her onto her back, covering her mouth with mine.

“Isn’t that supposed to be ‘I’ll fuck you until you’re senseless?’”

“Hmm, you do it your way, I know what I mean,” she murmured as she rubbed her body seductively against mine.

And that’s what she managed to do. Traveling through multiple orgasms until she finally collapsed senseless on top of me with cum flavored drool dripping from the side of her mouth onto my neck. In all honesty, I would have waved the white flag an hour earlier. But she’d been in no mood to accept my surrender, as she rode my cock to her final series of orgasms.

As I lay on my back with her still twitching body collapsed on me, I basked in the unconditional love that my little elfin girl gave me. I gently caressed her back and she shifted into a more comfortable position on me. She gave a small sigh of loss as my softening cock slid out of her slick passage.

She whispered sleepily, “I love you,” before descending into the arms of Morpheus

The sun was well above the horizon when Sally woke us with mugs of coffee. She was holding Zoe’s phone out to her as we sat up in bed.

“Zoe, you’ve got a bunch of missed calls and texts,” she said, and as she spoke, the phone buzzed again.

“Have you got a secret lover you’ve been hiding from me?” I quipped.

“Idiot,” and she punched me on the arm and took the phone. Her expression quickly went from intrigued to concern as she read the messages.

“My sister has been trying to contact me, she called me but for some reason,” and she looked at me, “I wasn’t picking up. She called Bree, and they have both been calling. Crap Bree’s on her way here.”

She fumbled with her phone, and moments later, she was talking to Bree.

“Where are you?”

“...”

“No, don’t turn around; you’re only twenty minutes away.”

“...”

“Shit they aren’t, I’ll call Lizzie,” and she rang off.

She looked at the pair of us; all the color had washed out of her face. “My sister has been trying to contact me. My parents have been visiting Lizzie and her family in Portland, and she only found out last night that they have decided to drop in on me on their way back.”

What’s the problem?” Sally asked.

“I haven’t told them anything about all of you, Christ; they probably think I’m still a virgin. My father would have me thrown out of our church and possibly the family if he found out I was living in sin.”

And that was the problem in a nutshell. Zoe’s parents, especially her father, were very religious. To the degree that us Brits found rather confusing, and Zoe was scared to death, worrying how they would react to our complex relationships. She’d been putting off any discussion about her past and present relationships. Preferring to let her father believe she was leading a virtuous life while she studied hard for her medical degree.

We quickly pulled on some clothing and went out to the kitchen. Mila wandered out of her room, rubbing the sleep from her eyes, trying to work out what all the commotion was for. Zoe was frantically dialing her sister in Seattle as she sat down at the table. Elizabeth was her oldest sister and like Zoe, had broken away from the strict religious confines of their family. She had married Ralph, a dentist and they had two children. They’d moved to Portland last year and as far as I was aware, this was her parent’s first trip out to see them. They knew all about us, we had driven to Portland to see them a couple of months ago, just after we got back from the wedding in England.

“Lizzie, it’s me.”

“...”

“I’m putting you on speaker,” and she fumbled with her phone before placing it on the table.

“Where have you been, I’ve been trying to call you since yesterday.”

“I had an important test yesterday and I put the phone on silent, and I forgot about it. I’m at the cabin. Why didn’t you let me know they were coming?”

“Because I didn’t know, dad told me as they were pulling out of the drive yesterday. It’s a last-minute thing and it’s supposed to be surprised as they missed your birthday last month.”

“You didn’t tell them anything about Michael or the girls, did you?”

“Are you mad, I’m not suicidal.”

I asked, “Do you know when they thought they would get here?”

“Hi Michael, I think dad was hoping that they would get into Denver either this evening or early tomorrow and spend the weekend with Zoe. He only mentioned it in case I knew if Zoe was away. I was so shocked that I missed the chance to say she was away and my idiot husband just blurted out that ‘I’m sure she would love to see you.’ He’s sulking in his den as we speak!”

I couldn’t help it, I laughed, and Zoe punched my arm again.

“It’s not funny, what are we going to do,” Zoe whispered.

“We are just going to have to tell them the truth,” I said.

“Do we have to, I’ll go back with Bree, and we don’t have to tell them anything.”

“Zoe, sooner or later, you’re going to have to tell mum and dad. It might as well be now; you won’t be able to hide your relationship forever. You’re talking about a wedding this year and a possible pregnancy.”

“Zoe, we will all be here for you,” Sally said as she gave her a hug.

Zoe picked up the phone and switched off the speaker. She stood up and walked away, talking animatedly.

Sally and Mila looked at me, and I looked back at them. There was a long silence before it was broken when Sally asked me, “Is it as serious as Zoe thinks?”

I held out my empty coffee mug, and Mila topped it up.

I thought about my answer and then said, “It could be. I know that her religion is an important aspect of her life; you know how she loves it when we join her in church on a Sunday. We had a long discussion about our different approaches to religion on our trip. She was surprised when I told her I believed but I was a high days and holidays Christian. But I understand that for most of her family, their religion is one of the most important things in their lives. And they live their lives according to its rules. And Zoe living in what they will see as a sinful relationship is not going to go down well with her parents.”

The girls nodded, and I knew what they were thinking because I was thinking the same. Religion for us was important but not a lifestyle and the big difference between us is how much religion is embedded in daily life in the States.

The number of churches was one of the first things I’d noticed when we were driving across the country. I used to live in a small village with a population of four thousand and there were only two churches, one Church of England and one not. A similar-sized town I’d seen over here had eight churches.

“Is she going to be okay?” Mila questioned.

“I hope so,” I replied, “We just need to let her know that we all love her, and we support whatever decision she makes.”

“I know you do and will,” Zoe said from the doorway. She came over and sat on my lap and buried her face in my chest.

Her muffled voice said, “Lizzie is right; I can’t carry on hiding the most important people in my life from my family.”

She wriggled around, so she was sitting more comfortably on my lap. The doorbell rang and Mila hurried off to let Bree in.

Zoe continued, “I just called my mother, they are changing their plans and will be staying at the hotel in Evergreen. They should get here later tonight. I’ve not explained much other than I’m staying close by with some very good friends, and I want them to meet you.”

Mila shook her head, “Zoe, you know I love you, but in this case, you need to count me out. I could be the straw that breaks the camel’s back. I think it’ll be simpler all around if I’m just Sally’s niece who’s on a ‘workcation’ to the States while your parents are here.”

Zoe’s face was a mixture of disappointment and relief as she nodded in agreement. She held her arms out to Mila, and they hugged, “Thank you,” she said. “I think the idea of me being Michael and Sally’s partner may already be a step too far for them. Adding you into the mix could be catastrophic.”

For the rest of the day, she was on tenterhooks waiting for her parents to call and say that they’d arrived. It took all of us to keep her calm.

The call came at nine-thirty that evening, and she agreed as they were tired from the drive, she would meet them tomorrow morning and bring them back to the cabin to meet the rest of us.

She was a nervous wreck by the time Sally and I managed to get her settled down in bed. She clung to the pair of us all night, making cute little snuffling noises in her sleep.

We saw her off in the morning; she was meeting up with her parents for lunch and some shopping and a little local sightseeing before she brought them back to the cabin for dinner with us. She was rather conservatively dressed than usual, which didn’t surprise me considering the conversation we’d had the night before. She’d taken her engagement ring off and given it to me for safekeeping.

“Hold this for me until they’ve gone, that way I know it’s safe,” She said.

Zoe loved her parents, and they loved her back. She grew up in a happy but strict household. Her father came from a very religious extended family and was an Elder of his church. He expected the same religion and moral standards from his family that he measured himself against.

Ralph, Zoe’s eldest sister’s husband, had regularly attended their church. But ultimately, they had come into conflict with Anthony over what Anthony saw as Ralph’s liberal interpretation of the church’s rules. They had moved to Portland to get away. It seemed that her mother had pushed her father into making the trip to ‘bury the hatchet’ as she missed her grandchildren.

Her other sister was married to the son of one of the church elders and seemed happy.

Zoe had found living with her father’s restrictions difficult, and so she had taken the opportunity to move away when she was accepted as a medical student far from home.

The Range Rover pulled up in front of the cabin as the sun dipped below the hills, and the three of us went out to meet Zoe and her parents.

Zoe stood with her mother and father. He was a tall, rugged stern-looking man in his early sixties; her mother was a beautiful older version of my elfin girl. She turned to us and said, “Michael, this is my mom Katarina and my father, Anthony. Mum, Dad, I’d like you to meet Professor Michael Fitzpatrick and his wife, Sally.”

We smiled, and Sally said, “And this young lady is Mila, my niece who’s staying with us.”

I shook hands with her father, and her mother tilted her face for an air kiss.

“Call me Kata,” her mother told us.

Sally and Mila gave both of them a hug.

We exchanged greetings and led them into the cabin. I had laid a fire in the fireplace in the lounge, and we settled down in its warm glow to talk until dinner was ready.