Family Values 7/7
Jan. 31st, 2008 12:31 pm![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
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rugbytackleTitle : Family Values 7/7
Pairing : Sean/Viggo
Rating : upto NC-17
Warning : AU
Summary : Sean is a succesfull solicitor, and unhappily married. Guess what happens when his daughter falls in love with Viggo's son. Viggo who is unruly and hippy-like.
Authors :![[profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
mooms (Viggo) & govi20 (Sean)
DISCLAIMER : Written for fun, not for profit. All lies !
Previous parts : here
Pairing : Sean/Viggo
Rating : upto NC-17
Warning : AU
Summary : Sean is a succesfull solicitor, and unhappily married. Guess what happens when his daughter falls in love with Viggo's son. Viggo who is unruly and hippy-like.
Authors :
mooms (Viggo) & govi20 (Sean) DISCLAIMER : Written for fun, not for profit. All lies !
Previous parts : here
Family Values
Chapter 7/7
Sean
When I arrive at what I now call Mary’s house, she’s waiting for me. She greets me coolly, but refuses to debate over the lock changing issue, when I say I won’t be coming back.
Defeated, I go upstairs, and she follows on my heels. Two suitcases and a small box are all it takes to carry away what really is mine from that enormous house, and that realization hits me like a rock. What the fuck was I thinking all those years, living like that?
She snorts derisively at some of the stuff I pack, but she says nothing. I am finished within 15 minutes, and then carry down the two suitcases that contain the remnants of living here for about twenty years.
At the door I try to persuade Mary one more time to talk this over like normal, reasonable people, but she refuses. The moment I step outside, the door is closed behind my back. I put the suitcases inside my car and leave without regret.
It’s a bit awkward telling Lucy about Mary changing the locks, but she hugs me, and then goes to phone her mother, in an effort to stop her.
Viggo walks with me to the car and hugs me, supporting me. I try to explain how I feel about this, but I am still struggling with my own emotions. I am also afraid of what Mary might come up with next.
While we carry my stuff in, Lucy and Blake take off to see Mary. Lucy says she will move back in with Mary, as long as she agrees to her conditions. Her support means so much to me, that I have to swallow and fight back tears, fiercely. Viggo just grabs and squeezes my shoulder in silent understanding.
The weeks go by slowly after that. Lucy is living with her mother again now, but I see her almost every day, because she and Blake are inseparable. They both have excellent results for their exams, and it will be only a matter of months before they will leave and start their life together.
Viggo still has to sneak his way through the house in the middle of the night so we can get together. It was fun at first, but we are both tired with it now. It would also be good to sleep in a real bed, my body keeps reminding me every morning when I get up. I’ve made some half hearted attempts to look for my own place, but I can’t bring myself to go away. When Lucy and Blake are leaving, Vig and I will look for a small house of our own, we decide.
All the difficulties surrounding us seem to make our relationship only tighter, and I’ve accepted it for what it is. It’s not just about the sex, as amazing as it is. I haven’t told him yet, but I know I love him.
The moment everyone is suddenly away for the weekend, leaving the house to Vig and me, is wonderful. For the first time in months we can move freely, and we take full advantage of that, walking around naked all day, fucking on almost every piece of furniture, sharing the big bath tub and sleeping in a real bed. Best of all is sleeping together and waking up together.
We behave like a couple of teenagers, laughing, loving and fucking all day and I’ve never been so happy in my life. For once I don’t read the letters coming from Mary’s lawyer, time hasn’t softened her stance, on the contrary, but I won’t allow her to spoil this glorious weekend for us.
Much too soon, Sunday comes, and after having a very nice pub lunch we drive home as fast as possible, determined to make the most of our time together while we still can.
Coming home, we go upstairs immediately, shedding our clothes on our way up. The bed is still rumpled from earlier, and we dive in with a yell. No need to stifle our noises, and we pin each other down playfully in turn, until we stop playing and just fuck.
Sticky, sweaty, but happy we cling to each other, and drift off to sleep.
I wake from a nice dream, being shaken roughly by Viggo. He puts his finger on my mouth and then I hear the footsteps downstairs, and then slowly coming up. I wince when I think about our clothes all over the stairs, and I can only hope it’s Chris coming home early. As embarrassing as it will be, it’s not as bad as it being the kids. Viggo and I hold each other, and then Blake’s voice sounds.
“Dad? Are you in there?”
Viggo shouts something back, and I am out of the bed in no time, fleeing into the bathroom. I close the door and put my head against it.
I can hear everything very clearly, and close my eyes when I hear Blake’s question.
“Dad, this room reeks of sex. Who is in your bathroom and what’s going on?”
There’s a deep silence, and I can hear my heart pounding in my ears.
“Dad?”
The bed creaks and then Viggo replies.
“It’s Sean, Blake. Please go downstairs, Sean and I will be with you in minute and try to explain.
‘Fuck! I can only hope Lucy isn’t here with him,’ is all I can think of.
Viggo
Blake’s mouth drops open in astonishment, when I tell him that it is Sean in the bathroom.
He doesn’t argue, when I ask him to go downstairs and wait for us. I think he is too busy trying to process what I have just said.
“It’s okay, Sean, you can come out now, he’s gone.”
Sean emerges sheepishly from the bathroom. If he didn’t look so stricken, I would really see the funny side of us being caught by one of our kids. I know what the problem is. He is terrified that Lucy is down there as well.
I tiptoe to the door, step out onto the landing and listen. I don’t hear voices, so I think Blake is alone.
“Sean, I am sure Blake is alone down there. Look, we knew we would have to cross this bridge sometime, it’s just happened a little earlier than we planned.”
He doesn’t look convinced, so I add,
“Good job he didn’t arrive this morning, when you were doing the dance of the seven dish cloths, in yellow rubber gloves with that wooden spoon stuck up your ass!”
That succeeds in making him laugh and also blush at the memory. We dress and then stand facing each other and getting up the courage to go downstairs.
I kiss him gently and tell him,
“It’s gonna be okay,” keeping my fingers crossed that it’s the truth.
Blake is lying on the couch with a tumbler of amber fluid in his hand.
“Sorry, but I needed a stiff drink.”
“That’s okay, son. I think we’ll join you.” I fetch us glasses and the whisky bottle and we each take an armchair.
“So, am I understanding this right? You and Sean are having a thing together?”
“I wouldn’t quite put it like that, Blake. If you mean are we sleeping together, then yes, but it’s more than a “thing”. I love Sean and I hope that he feels the same way.”
I don’t know who looks more stunned, Blake or Sean. It’s the first time I have actually said that I love him and I had kind of expected it to happen in a different way and maybe in a more intimate setting.
He recovers enough to say,
“I do. I do feel the same way, that is…I love you too.”
“Shit!” says Blake, “You guys never actually told each other that before, did you?”
“No.”
“Awesome!”
I just have to get up and go over to Sean to kiss him, and then I kneel by his chair and say to Blake,
“So this is not a problem for you?”
“Well, no. It was a shock. I’m not denying that. It kind of explains some weird noises in the night, though. Lucy asked me once if this house was haunted! But you two being in love, that’s cool. It’s weird with it being Lucy’s dad; weird, but cool!”
“Do you think Lucy will think it’s cool?” Sean asks anxiously, gripping my hand.
“Well, Sean, she didn’t have the benefit of my liberal, hippy upbringing, did she?”
Sean looks distressed and I dig him in the ribs,
“He’s teasing you. Stop it, Blake, the poor guy is worried sick.”
“Sorry, I couldn’t resist it. Lucy is an intelligent girl and fortunately she’s been strong enough to forge her own opinions. She is certainly no homophobe. I think it’ll be a shock to her, though and I think she will be mad that you hid it from us. How long has this been going on anyway?”
“It really started at that dinner party, where Mary wanted to meet us and Sean wasn’t keen. Well, it really started the next day to tell the truth.”
“Does Mom know?”
“Yes. Your mother is very perceptive. We decided to keep it secret at first, because we didn’t know how you and Lucy would feel about it.”
“Shame on you, dad, I’m disappointed that you had so little faith in the way you brought me up.”
“Well if truth were told, we were more worried about screwing up your relationship with Lucy, not to mention Sean’s.”
“Lucy and I love each other. What we have is stronger than that. She loves her dad, too! I think we should call her and get her over here. She needs to be told.”
We nod, although Sean clings tightly to my hand as Blake picks up the phone.
“What can I say, when I tried to play the Victorian father with her and dictate to her how she should conduct her life?”
“You can tell her you are human, Sean!”
Sean
When Viggo calls I go to him. I feel panic rising up, thinking about going downstairs and telling everything to Lucy. ‘Caught in the act’ indeed!
Viggo seems to know what I am thinking, and steps out softly to listen. Luckily Lucy doesn’t seem to be in the house, and I am relieved for a moment. I know I will have to tell her sooner or later, but for now it’s bad enough to go down and tell Viggo’s son what his Dad and his future father-in-law have been up to.
Viggo reminding me it would have been much worse if Blake had come in this morning, catching me in, well, a bit of fun, makes me laugh though. Hard to believe a respected solicitor like me would do something silly like that, but I did. And I didn’t even blush then, though I do now, remembering.
Viggo tells me all will be fine, and I nod. We dress and then we go downstairs. Like Blake, we both have a stiff drink, and then we talk.
It is wonderful to hear Viggo say he loves me, and I can’t do anything else but answer him honestly I love him too. It feels weird to say it here and now, but I am still glad we did.
Amazingly, Blake takes it rather well, even though he admits to the initial shock, and who could blame him? He teases me a little, but seems to be quite sure Lucy will react in the same way.
I very much hope he’s right, but I am not so sure. How could I be, when we’ve never ever talked about this subject? It certainly isn’t a topic raised in Mary’s house.
I know Blake is right when he says we have to talk to Lucy now, and he stands up to call her. Of course we must, but the thought still terrifies me. I hold on to Vig almost desperately, and we wait.
The moment the bell rings, I let go of Viggo’s hand and he gets up and sits in his chair again.
Lucy comes in looking young, pretty and most of all happy, and my stomach clenches.
She sits on the couch, and I stand up to sit next to her, grasping her hand. The look on my face startles her, and she seems scared now.
“Dad? What is it, what’s wrong?’
I gather all my courage, and even though I feel that damned blush creeping up, start telling her.
“We – Viggo and I – were planning to tell you and Blake in time, but Blake came home suddenly, and ... well he...”
“What Dad, tell us what? “
And then I just blurt it out.
“Lucy, Viggo and I have fallen in love with each other.”
She blinks and looks at Viggo and then back at me again.
“But you aren’t gay are you?”
“I have liked both women and men all my life Lucy. I guess that makes me bi-sexual.”
Now there’s a sharp edge to her voice, reminiscent of her mother,
“Do you mean that whilst you were married to mum you had affairs with men? And how long has this thing between you and Viggo been going on?”
“No Lucy. I’ve had flings with men before marriage, but I’ve never, ever cheated on your mother, believe me. Not once, until I met Viggo. But I knew the marriage was over long before that. And how long has this been going on? Basically since we first met. “
“So all the time you lived here you were.. ? How did you, I mean...”
Viggo interrupts, his voice soft, but clear,
“Chris knew about it from the start, Lucy. Your father and I just waited for the right moment to tell you and Blake.”
She turns to look at him, realization dawning.
“What did you do? Sneak up to Dad’s bed in the middle of the night?”
“Viggo wasn’t the only one sneaking around in the middle of the night” I say, and Blake laughs.
“Sean’s right there, Lucy!”
She looks me fully in the face. “But why didn’t you tell us? That’s not fair!”
I swallow and think about what Viggo said, about admitting to my daughter I was only human.
“I was afraid to, afraid of raising difficulties between you and Blake because of this, but most of all afraid of losing you. After all I had said to you about Blake, it felt almost impossible to tell you without losing you. And I couldn’t imagine life without you.”
She reaches out to me and hugs me tight. “Don’t be silly Dad, you’ll never lose me! And I am happy when you are.”
I hold her tight against me, so relieved I could sing.
“So what are your plans? she asks, when I release her.
“Viggo and I will find a place to live together once you and Blake go to university. I hope the divorce will come through soon, and I will be able to sell the house. I don’t have to tell you your mother knows nothing about this.”
Now she laughs a little. “No, I don’t think she would survive that!”
That evening we take the kids out to dinner, and though Viggo and I both try not to embarrass them, it’s wonderful to know we don’t have to act any more.
Lucy and Blake seem to have – oh, the flexibility of youth – accepted it quite easily. We drop off Lucy at her home, and she hugs both me and Viggo, playfully pulling my ear like she used to do when she was a little girl.
“Chris won’t be home before tomorrow Sean, “Viggo says. That means we can have the bed for another night.”
“Too much information, “mutters Blake from the back seat.
“I’ll put on clean sheets in the morning son. Your mother will never know.”
And then we all laugh.
Viggo
Sean’s relief at Lucy’s reaction is almost tangible and I am relieved for him
We’ve also actually admitted our feelings, which feels pretty good.
After dinner, we drop Lucy home and I remind Sean that we have another night in a bed, causing Bake to react from the back seat. Fortunately, we can laugh about it, but when we get home, we both feel kind of shy about openly going to bed with Blake in the house. We’ve been able to make as much noise as we like, while we’ve had the house to ourselves.
He tells us firmly that he will have his headphones on, as he goes up to his room, which reassures us a little. We still go for the slow, languid lovemaking, rather than the wild passion, longing for the time, when we will be free to love how and when we like.
In the morning, I change the sheets and put the dirty ones in the washing machine, then fling the bedroom windows wide open. Sean scrubs out the en suite bathroom and we are quite proud of the job we have done.
Of course, it’s all to no avail, because when Chris arrives home on Monday evening, with Paul in tow, the first thing she days to me is,
“So did you enjoy having the double bed for the weekend, so you could play? Did you have fun?”
Paul smirks, so I counter, looking at him,
“Yes, thanks, did you?”
“Okay, that’s fair, but I just hope you were discreet once the kids got home.”
“Well, actually, Chris, the kids know now.”
She stares at me stunned and has to sit down. I give her the edited version, saying that Blake guessed, but not admitting that he caught us. She seems mollified, when I tell her he really is okay with this and thankfully, so is Lucy.
“And Mary? How did she react?”
“Well, she doesn’t actually know. She’s really making difficulties for Sean. She doesn’t want to be divorced and lose face. She also wants to maintain the status quo and stay in the house. They are communicating via solicitors’ letters only.”
“Okay, well Paul and I did some talking over the weekend and like I said, I want him to move in here as soon as Blake goes. I will be wanting a divorce and I don’t mind my adultery being the ground, so long as Paul isn’t cited by name. I told Paul that I am sure we can keep this friendly.”
“I agree. I want to make a new start with Sean. We love each other.”
To my surprise, Paul holds out his hand and congratulates me and Chris kisses me.
We are happily sitting around the kitchen table, when Sean arrives from the office, looking exhausted. I am concerned. Since he left Mary, Sean has found that he doesn’t have to work so hard and the law practice hasn’t suffered at all. He admits that he was throwing himself more and more into his work to avoid her, just as I was staying late at the university as a way of avoiding addressing my own issues.
Once he has got used to the fact that Paul and I are amicably sitting down with Chris and talking about the details of our split, he admits that this thing with Mary is wearing him down.
He is paying the considerable mortgage on their big house, plus supporting her extravagant lifestyle, while contributing to living here. He’ll also be helping Lucy with her living expenses. He wants us to get a place together, but it will really stretch his finances if they can’t sell the house and split their assets.
Our house in the States is let and this one is rented. If Paul moves in and I stop paying the rent, I can afford to rent a place for Sean and me as well as helping Blake, but I know that he won’t find that acceptable. There is no way he would want to feel he was a kept man. I also need to decide what happens, when my contract runs out in a year, although I don’t think there’ll be a problem with getting it extended.
Blake and Lucy arrive and she looks worried, when she sees that Sean’s shoulders are slumping. She sits by him and puts her arm around him protectively,
“Oh dad, it’s Mum, isn’t it? We agreed that I would only stay at home if she didn’t run you down to me, so we don’t talk about it, but I’ve overheard several of her conversations with her solicitor. I do wish she would just cooperate with you. She could buy a nice, small house with her share, if only she wasn’t so concerned with her status.”
Blake starts to laugh and we all glare at him. He has the grace to look contrite and raises his hands in apology,
“I’m sorry, Sean, but I was just thinking that she’d go nuclear if she knew about you and dad. How would she explain that to her society ladies and her friends at the church?”
Sean stands up, suddenly resolute.
“Thank you, Blake! I think you’ve given me the solution.”
“Sean, where are you going? You haven’t eaten yet.”
“Later, Vig! I am going to see Mary.”
Sean
Of course it’s great to have an unexpected last night in a real bed, but I still feel a bit embarrassed now that Blake’s home and I notice Viggo does too. So instead of the two previous pretty wild nights, we behave more like sensible adults. Knowing that we really have a future together, that Viggo loves me, like I love him, makes it kind of different too, I think.
The next morning back at work, I receive three phone calls from John, my lawyer. It seems that Mary is finding more ways to make my life harder every day. It makes it kind of difficult to keep my head on the work that needs to be done.
I used not to mind working long days, I never minded going to the office at night after dinner. Of course I can see now that I was trying to keep away from Mary, and I only did go home eventually for Lucy. That has all changed now and I can’t wait to go home to Viggo by the end of the day.
But the future worries me. Money has never been an issue for the last twenty years, but now it is. As long as Mary refuses to divorce, and even worse, refuses to move to a smaller place, I can’t put the house on the market. I am also supporting her life style, even though I have tried to decrease the money there.
Of course I will support Lucy for as long as it’s needed, too. All in all it will be very hard to find a place to live with Viggo that I can afford.
Over the day I get two more phone calls from John, and it leaves me worried and angry. When I finally drive off I have a head ache and feel very tired.
It’s strange to find Paul, Chris and Viggo having a friendly conversation, but I guess that’s the best way to deal with the situation, and it makes me slightly jealous.
Lucy and Blake arrive, and Lucy tries to comfort me, knowing all to well what’s bothering me. And then Blake makes a brilliant remark, and I stare at him, suddenly convinced that that’s the solution.
I wave off all questions and Viggo’s worries, and I am out, almost running to my car.
When I stop in front of the house I can see Mary has lights on in almost every room. Either she’s giving a party, or she’s just trying to increase the electricity bills to punish me. I don’t really give a fuck any more.
I still have a key – Lucy managed to keep Mary from changing the locks – but I ring the bell. Mary looks very surprised to see me, and perhaps she thinks she’s won, because she opens the door and lets me in.
I follow her to the living room, and we both take a seat.
“So what do you want, Sean?” she asks, a faint smile on her face.
“I am here to ask you one more time to agree to the divorce Mary.”
She laughs, a shrill sound, painful to my ears. “If that’s what you came for, you can leave again Sean. I warned you I would make you pay, and I haven’t even started yet.”
Bitch! I take a deep breath and stand up.
“Okay Mary, you leave me no other choice. You asked me if there was another woman, well, there wasn’t, and there still isn’t. But there’s a man. I’ve fallen in love with Viggo, and I want to spend the rest of my life with him.”
She looks at me in horror, the perfect mask of her face drops, and she suddenly looks old.
“You’re making it up,” she says, her voice barely more than a whisper.
“No, I am not Mary. Remember when I stayed out all night after Lucy had left? I did sleep in a hotel, but Viggo was with me, and we had sex all night.”
“Pervert,” her voice raising, forgetting about the neighbours for once, “you filthy animal ! ”
“I didn’t really expect you to understand Mary; that’s not what I came for.”
Her face is red with anger now, and she almost spits out her words.
“What will your beloved daughter say when I tell her about this? About her daddy having sex with her boyfriend’s father? She’ll probably never want to see you again!”
“Don’t bother, Mary,” I say. “She already knows and she’s fine with it. Now listen to me. If you don’t agree to this divorce, I will make your life miserable for a change. I will personally visit or call every last one of your so called friends and neighbours and tell them all, in excruciating detail if I must. I bet they’ll be interested to hear.”
She just stares at me, her face stricken with shock, and I walk to the door.
“I want to hear your decision tomorrow morning, Mary. Goodnight. “
Epilogue
Well, Mary thought better of it and agreed to a divorce. We managed to sell the house quite easily and Mary lives in a more modest place now. None of her friends knows the truth about Viggo and me. I don’t know what she told them about the split and frankly, I don’t care.
Chris and Paul are living in the old Victorian house and the kids are getting on fine in Nottingham. We agreed with Chris that we got the dog and she could keep the cats.
Viggo and I? We’ve found ourselves a nice house in another part of the town, not too big, but big enough for Viggo to have his studio and a nice bedroom for our kids when they are home for breaks. Most of our friends have got used to the idea by now and even at work, everyone knows. To my surprise and relief, it hasn’t affected my law practice at all.
Viggo paints in his studio and sometimes I pose for him, draped on his couch, which we transported from the old studio for sentimental reasons. I have landscaped the garden, since we moved here and work in it, whenever I can. Bella supervises, dividing her time equally between us and regarding us solemnly, her head on her paws.
Sometimes we go to classical concerts, Viggo wearing one of my suits, in which he looks great; sometimes we just lie on our couch naked, listening to Bowie and sharing a joint.
It’s hard to imagine how much my life has changed in less than a year, but I have never regretted it for one single moment. I have learnt so much in the past few months, one thing being that there are many different kinds of family. I have no doubt that Viggo and I are a family now and I feel content for the first time in years.
Tonight we are lying on the couch and sharing a bottle of red wine, the same wine that Chris and Viggo brought to dinner on that fateful night.
I turn to him and raise my glass, clinking it against his,
“To family life!”
“To family life!”
The End
Chapter 7/7
Sean
When I arrive at what I now call Mary’s house, she’s waiting for me. She greets me coolly, but refuses to debate over the lock changing issue, when I say I won’t be coming back.
Defeated, I go upstairs, and she follows on my heels. Two suitcases and a small box are all it takes to carry away what really is mine from that enormous house, and that realization hits me like a rock. What the fuck was I thinking all those years, living like that?
She snorts derisively at some of the stuff I pack, but she says nothing. I am finished within 15 minutes, and then carry down the two suitcases that contain the remnants of living here for about twenty years.
At the door I try to persuade Mary one more time to talk this over like normal, reasonable people, but she refuses. The moment I step outside, the door is closed behind my back. I put the suitcases inside my car and leave without regret.
It’s a bit awkward telling Lucy about Mary changing the locks, but she hugs me, and then goes to phone her mother, in an effort to stop her.
Viggo walks with me to the car and hugs me, supporting me. I try to explain how I feel about this, but I am still struggling with my own emotions. I am also afraid of what Mary might come up with next.
While we carry my stuff in, Lucy and Blake take off to see Mary. Lucy says she will move back in with Mary, as long as she agrees to her conditions. Her support means so much to me, that I have to swallow and fight back tears, fiercely. Viggo just grabs and squeezes my shoulder in silent understanding.
The weeks go by slowly after that. Lucy is living with her mother again now, but I see her almost every day, because she and Blake are inseparable. They both have excellent results for their exams, and it will be only a matter of months before they will leave and start their life together.
Viggo still has to sneak his way through the house in the middle of the night so we can get together. It was fun at first, but we are both tired with it now. It would also be good to sleep in a real bed, my body keeps reminding me every morning when I get up. I’ve made some half hearted attempts to look for my own place, but I can’t bring myself to go away. When Lucy and Blake are leaving, Vig and I will look for a small house of our own, we decide.
All the difficulties surrounding us seem to make our relationship only tighter, and I’ve accepted it for what it is. It’s not just about the sex, as amazing as it is. I haven’t told him yet, but I know I love him.
The moment everyone is suddenly away for the weekend, leaving the house to Vig and me, is wonderful. For the first time in months we can move freely, and we take full advantage of that, walking around naked all day, fucking on almost every piece of furniture, sharing the big bath tub and sleeping in a real bed. Best of all is sleeping together and waking up together.
We behave like a couple of teenagers, laughing, loving and fucking all day and I’ve never been so happy in my life. For once I don’t read the letters coming from Mary’s lawyer, time hasn’t softened her stance, on the contrary, but I won’t allow her to spoil this glorious weekend for us.
Much too soon, Sunday comes, and after having a very nice pub lunch we drive home as fast as possible, determined to make the most of our time together while we still can.
Coming home, we go upstairs immediately, shedding our clothes on our way up. The bed is still rumpled from earlier, and we dive in with a yell. No need to stifle our noises, and we pin each other down playfully in turn, until we stop playing and just fuck.
Sticky, sweaty, but happy we cling to each other, and drift off to sleep.
I wake from a nice dream, being shaken roughly by Viggo. He puts his finger on my mouth and then I hear the footsteps downstairs, and then slowly coming up. I wince when I think about our clothes all over the stairs, and I can only hope it’s Chris coming home early. As embarrassing as it will be, it’s not as bad as it being the kids. Viggo and I hold each other, and then Blake’s voice sounds.
“Dad? Are you in there?”
Viggo shouts something back, and I am out of the bed in no time, fleeing into the bathroom. I close the door and put my head against it.
I can hear everything very clearly, and close my eyes when I hear Blake’s question.
“Dad, this room reeks of sex. Who is in your bathroom and what’s going on?”
There’s a deep silence, and I can hear my heart pounding in my ears.
“Dad?”
The bed creaks and then Viggo replies.
“It’s Sean, Blake. Please go downstairs, Sean and I will be with you in minute and try to explain.
‘Fuck! I can only hope Lucy isn’t here with him,’ is all I can think of.
Viggo
Blake’s mouth drops open in astonishment, when I tell him that it is Sean in the bathroom.
He doesn’t argue, when I ask him to go downstairs and wait for us. I think he is too busy trying to process what I have just said.
“It’s okay, Sean, you can come out now, he’s gone.”
Sean emerges sheepishly from the bathroom. If he didn’t look so stricken, I would really see the funny side of us being caught by one of our kids. I know what the problem is. He is terrified that Lucy is down there as well.
I tiptoe to the door, step out onto the landing and listen. I don’t hear voices, so I think Blake is alone.
“Sean, I am sure Blake is alone down there. Look, we knew we would have to cross this bridge sometime, it’s just happened a little earlier than we planned.”
He doesn’t look convinced, so I add,
“Good job he didn’t arrive this morning, when you were doing the dance of the seven dish cloths, in yellow rubber gloves with that wooden spoon stuck up your ass!”
That succeeds in making him laugh and also blush at the memory. We dress and then stand facing each other and getting up the courage to go downstairs.
I kiss him gently and tell him,
“It’s gonna be okay,” keeping my fingers crossed that it’s the truth.
Blake is lying on the couch with a tumbler of amber fluid in his hand.
“Sorry, but I needed a stiff drink.”
“That’s okay, son. I think we’ll join you.” I fetch us glasses and the whisky bottle and we each take an armchair.
“So, am I understanding this right? You and Sean are having a thing together?”
“I wouldn’t quite put it like that, Blake. If you mean are we sleeping together, then yes, but it’s more than a “thing”. I love Sean and I hope that he feels the same way.”
I don’t know who looks more stunned, Blake or Sean. It’s the first time I have actually said that I love him and I had kind of expected it to happen in a different way and maybe in a more intimate setting.
He recovers enough to say,
“I do. I do feel the same way, that is…I love you too.”
“Shit!” says Blake, “You guys never actually told each other that before, did you?”
“No.”
“Awesome!”
I just have to get up and go over to Sean to kiss him, and then I kneel by his chair and say to Blake,
“So this is not a problem for you?”
“Well, no. It was a shock. I’m not denying that. It kind of explains some weird noises in the night, though. Lucy asked me once if this house was haunted! But you two being in love, that’s cool. It’s weird with it being Lucy’s dad; weird, but cool!”
“Do you think Lucy will think it’s cool?” Sean asks anxiously, gripping my hand.
“Well, Sean, she didn’t have the benefit of my liberal, hippy upbringing, did she?”
Sean looks distressed and I dig him in the ribs,
“He’s teasing you. Stop it, Blake, the poor guy is worried sick.”
“Sorry, I couldn’t resist it. Lucy is an intelligent girl and fortunately she’s been strong enough to forge her own opinions. She is certainly no homophobe. I think it’ll be a shock to her, though and I think she will be mad that you hid it from us. How long has this been going on anyway?”
“It really started at that dinner party, where Mary wanted to meet us and Sean wasn’t keen. Well, it really started the next day to tell the truth.”
“Does Mom know?”
“Yes. Your mother is very perceptive. We decided to keep it secret at first, because we didn’t know how you and Lucy would feel about it.”
“Shame on you, dad, I’m disappointed that you had so little faith in the way you brought me up.”
“Well if truth were told, we were more worried about screwing up your relationship with Lucy, not to mention Sean’s.”
“Lucy and I love each other. What we have is stronger than that. She loves her dad, too! I think we should call her and get her over here. She needs to be told.”
We nod, although Sean clings tightly to my hand as Blake picks up the phone.
“What can I say, when I tried to play the Victorian father with her and dictate to her how she should conduct her life?”
“You can tell her you are human, Sean!”
Sean
When Viggo calls I go to him. I feel panic rising up, thinking about going downstairs and telling everything to Lucy. ‘Caught in the act’ indeed!
Viggo seems to know what I am thinking, and steps out softly to listen. Luckily Lucy doesn’t seem to be in the house, and I am relieved for a moment. I know I will have to tell her sooner or later, but for now it’s bad enough to go down and tell Viggo’s son what his Dad and his future father-in-law have been up to.
Viggo reminding me it would have been much worse if Blake had come in this morning, catching me in, well, a bit of fun, makes me laugh though. Hard to believe a respected solicitor like me would do something silly like that, but I did. And I didn’t even blush then, though I do now, remembering.
Viggo tells me all will be fine, and I nod. We dress and then we go downstairs. Like Blake, we both have a stiff drink, and then we talk.
It is wonderful to hear Viggo say he loves me, and I can’t do anything else but answer him honestly I love him too. It feels weird to say it here and now, but I am still glad we did.
Amazingly, Blake takes it rather well, even though he admits to the initial shock, and who could blame him? He teases me a little, but seems to be quite sure Lucy will react in the same way.
I very much hope he’s right, but I am not so sure. How could I be, when we’ve never ever talked about this subject? It certainly isn’t a topic raised in Mary’s house.
I know Blake is right when he says we have to talk to Lucy now, and he stands up to call her. Of course we must, but the thought still terrifies me. I hold on to Vig almost desperately, and we wait.
The moment the bell rings, I let go of Viggo’s hand and he gets up and sits in his chair again.
Lucy comes in looking young, pretty and most of all happy, and my stomach clenches.
She sits on the couch, and I stand up to sit next to her, grasping her hand. The look on my face startles her, and she seems scared now.
“Dad? What is it, what’s wrong?’
I gather all my courage, and even though I feel that damned blush creeping up, start telling her.
“We – Viggo and I – were planning to tell you and Blake in time, but Blake came home suddenly, and ... well he...”
“What Dad, tell us what? “
And then I just blurt it out.
“Lucy, Viggo and I have fallen in love with each other.”
She blinks and looks at Viggo and then back at me again.
“But you aren’t gay are you?”
“I have liked both women and men all my life Lucy. I guess that makes me bi-sexual.”
Now there’s a sharp edge to her voice, reminiscent of her mother,
“Do you mean that whilst you were married to mum you had affairs with men? And how long has this thing between you and Viggo been going on?”
“No Lucy. I’ve had flings with men before marriage, but I’ve never, ever cheated on your mother, believe me. Not once, until I met Viggo. But I knew the marriage was over long before that. And how long has this been going on? Basically since we first met. “
“So all the time you lived here you were.. ? How did you, I mean...”
Viggo interrupts, his voice soft, but clear,
“Chris knew about it from the start, Lucy. Your father and I just waited for the right moment to tell you and Blake.”
She turns to look at him, realization dawning.
“What did you do? Sneak up to Dad’s bed in the middle of the night?”
“Viggo wasn’t the only one sneaking around in the middle of the night” I say, and Blake laughs.
“Sean’s right there, Lucy!”
She looks me fully in the face. “But why didn’t you tell us? That’s not fair!”
I swallow and think about what Viggo said, about admitting to my daughter I was only human.
“I was afraid to, afraid of raising difficulties between you and Blake because of this, but most of all afraid of losing you. After all I had said to you about Blake, it felt almost impossible to tell you without losing you. And I couldn’t imagine life without you.”
She reaches out to me and hugs me tight. “Don’t be silly Dad, you’ll never lose me! And I am happy when you are.”
I hold her tight against me, so relieved I could sing.
“So what are your plans? she asks, when I release her.
“Viggo and I will find a place to live together once you and Blake go to university. I hope the divorce will come through soon, and I will be able to sell the house. I don’t have to tell you your mother knows nothing about this.”
Now she laughs a little. “No, I don’t think she would survive that!”
That evening we take the kids out to dinner, and though Viggo and I both try not to embarrass them, it’s wonderful to know we don’t have to act any more.
Lucy and Blake seem to have – oh, the flexibility of youth – accepted it quite easily. We drop off Lucy at her home, and she hugs both me and Viggo, playfully pulling my ear like she used to do when she was a little girl.
“Chris won’t be home before tomorrow Sean, “Viggo says. That means we can have the bed for another night.”
“Too much information, “mutters Blake from the back seat.
“I’ll put on clean sheets in the morning son. Your mother will never know.”
And then we all laugh.
Viggo
Sean’s relief at Lucy’s reaction is almost tangible and I am relieved for him
We’ve also actually admitted our feelings, which feels pretty good.
After dinner, we drop Lucy home and I remind Sean that we have another night in a bed, causing Bake to react from the back seat. Fortunately, we can laugh about it, but when we get home, we both feel kind of shy about openly going to bed with Blake in the house. We’ve been able to make as much noise as we like, while we’ve had the house to ourselves.
He tells us firmly that he will have his headphones on, as he goes up to his room, which reassures us a little. We still go for the slow, languid lovemaking, rather than the wild passion, longing for the time, when we will be free to love how and when we like.
In the morning, I change the sheets and put the dirty ones in the washing machine, then fling the bedroom windows wide open. Sean scrubs out the en suite bathroom and we are quite proud of the job we have done.
Of course, it’s all to no avail, because when Chris arrives home on Monday evening, with Paul in tow, the first thing she days to me is,
“So did you enjoy having the double bed for the weekend, so you could play? Did you have fun?”
Paul smirks, so I counter, looking at him,
“Yes, thanks, did you?”
“Okay, that’s fair, but I just hope you were discreet once the kids got home.”
“Well, actually, Chris, the kids know now.”
She stares at me stunned and has to sit down. I give her the edited version, saying that Blake guessed, but not admitting that he caught us. She seems mollified, when I tell her he really is okay with this and thankfully, so is Lucy.
“And Mary? How did she react?”
“Well, she doesn’t actually know. She’s really making difficulties for Sean. She doesn’t want to be divorced and lose face. She also wants to maintain the status quo and stay in the house. They are communicating via solicitors’ letters only.”
“Okay, well Paul and I did some talking over the weekend and like I said, I want him to move in here as soon as Blake goes. I will be wanting a divorce and I don’t mind my adultery being the ground, so long as Paul isn’t cited by name. I told Paul that I am sure we can keep this friendly.”
“I agree. I want to make a new start with Sean. We love each other.”
To my surprise, Paul holds out his hand and congratulates me and Chris kisses me.
We are happily sitting around the kitchen table, when Sean arrives from the office, looking exhausted. I am concerned. Since he left Mary, Sean has found that he doesn’t have to work so hard and the law practice hasn’t suffered at all. He admits that he was throwing himself more and more into his work to avoid her, just as I was staying late at the university as a way of avoiding addressing my own issues.
Once he has got used to the fact that Paul and I are amicably sitting down with Chris and talking about the details of our split, he admits that this thing with Mary is wearing him down.
He is paying the considerable mortgage on their big house, plus supporting her extravagant lifestyle, while contributing to living here. He’ll also be helping Lucy with her living expenses. He wants us to get a place together, but it will really stretch his finances if they can’t sell the house and split their assets.
Our house in the States is let and this one is rented. If Paul moves in and I stop paying the rent, I can afford to rent a place for Sean and me as well as helping Blake, but I know that he won’t find that acceptable. There is no way he would want to feel he was a kept man. I also need to decide what happens, when my contract runs out in a year, although I don’t think there’ll be a problem with getting it extended.
Blake and Lucy arrive and she looks worried, when she sees that Sean’s shoulders are slumping. She sits by him and puts her arm around him protectively,
“Oh dad, it’s Mum, isn’t it? We agreed that I would only stay at home if she didn’t run you down to me, so we don’t talk about it, but I’ve overheard several of her conversations with her solicitor. I do wish she would just cooperate with you. She could buy a nice, small house with her share, if only she wasn’t so concerned with her status.”
Blake starts to laugh and we all glare at him. He has the grace to look contrite and raises his hands in apology,
“I’m sorry, Sean, but I was just thinking that she’d go nuclear if she knew about you and dad. How would she explain that to her society ladies and her friends at the church?”
Sean stands up, suddenly resolute.
“Thank you, Blake! I think you’ve given me the solution.”
“Sean, where are you going? You haven’t eaten yet.”
“Later, Vig! I am going to see Mary.”
Sean
Of course it’s great to have an unexpected last night in a real bed, but I still feel a bit embarrassed now that Blake’s home and I notice Viggo does too. So instead of the two previous pretty wild nights, we behave more like sensible adults. Knowing that we really have a future together, that Viggo loves me, like I love him, makes it kind of different too, I think.
The next morning back at work, I receive three phone calls from John, my lawyer. It seems that Mary is finding more ways to make my life harder every day. It makes it kind of difficult to keep my head on the work that needs to be done.
I used not to mind working long days, I never minded going to the office at night after dinner. Of course I can see now that I was trying to keep away from Mary, and I only did go home eventually for Lucy. That has all changed now and I can’t wait to go home to Viggo by the end of the day.
But the future worries me. Money has never been an issue for the last twenty years, but now it is. As long as Mary refuses to divorce, and even worse, refuses to move to a smaller place, I can’t put the house on the market. I am also supporting her life style, even though I have tried to decrease the money there.
Of course I will support Lucy for as long as it’s needed, too. All in all it will be very hard to find a place to live with Viggo that I can afford.
Over the day I get two more phone calls from John, and it leaves me worried and angry. When I finally drive off I have a head ache and feel very tired.
It’s strange to find Paul, Chris and Viggo having a friendly conversation, but I guess that’s the best way to deal with the situation, and it makes me slightly jealous.
Lucy and Blake arrive, and Lucy tries to comfort me, knowing all to well what’s bothering me. And then Blake makes a brilliant remark, and I stare at him, suddenly convinced that that’s the solution.
I wave off all questions and Viggo’s worries, and I am out, almost running to my car.
When I stop in front of the house I can see Mary has lights on in almost every room. Either she’s giving a party, or she’s just trying to increase the electricity bills to punish me. I don’t really give a fuck any more.
I still have a key – Lucy managed to keep Mary from changing the locks – but I ring the bell. Mary looks very surprised to see me, and perhaps she thinks she’s won, because she opens the door and lets me in.
I follow her to the living room, and we both take a seat.
“So what do you want, Sean?” she asks, a faint smile on her face.
“I am here to ask you one more time to agree to the divorce Mary.”
She laughs, a shrill sound, painful to my ears. “If that’s what you came for, you can leave again Sean. I warned you I would make you pay, and I haven’t even started yet.”
Bitch! I take a deep breath and stand up.
“Okay Mary, you leave me no other choice. You asked me if there was another woman, well, there wasn’t, and there still isn’t. But there’s a man. I’ve fallen in love with Viggo, and I want to spend the rest of my life with him.”
She looks at me in horror, the perfect mask of her face drops, and she suddenly looks old.
“You’re making it up,” she says, her voice barely more than a whisper.
“No, I am not Mary. Remember when I stayed out all night after Lucy had left? I did sleep in a hotel, but Viggo was with me, and we had sex all night.”
“Pervert,” her voice raising, forgetting about the neighbours for once, “you filthy animal ! ”
“I didn’t really expect you to understand Mary; that’s not what I came for.”
Her face is red with anger now, and she almost spits out her words.
“What will your beloved daughter say when I tell her about this? About her daddy having sex with her boyfriend’s father? She’ll probably never want to see you again!”
“Don’t bother, Mary,” I say. “She already knows and she’s fine with it. Now listen to me. If you don’t agree to this divorce, I will make your life miserable for a change. I will personally visit or call every last one of your so called friends and neighbours and tell them all, in excruciating detail if I must. I bet they’ll be interested to hear.”
She just stares at me, her face stricken with shock, and I walk to the door.
“I want to hear your decision tomorrow morning, Mary. Goodnight. “
Epilogue
Well, Mary thought better of it and agreed to a divorce. We managed to sell the house quite easily and Mary lives in a more modest place now. None of her friends knows the truth about Viggo and me. I don’t know what she told them about the split and frankly, I don’t care.
Chris and Paul are living in the old Victorian house and the kids are getting on fine in Nottingham. We agreed with Chris that we got the dog and she could keep the cats.
Viggo and I? We’ve found ourselves a nice house in another part of the town, not too big, but big enough for Viggo to have his studio and a nice bedroom for our kids when they are home for breaks. Most of our friends have got used to the idea by now and even at work, everyone knows. To my surprise and relief, it hasn’t affected my law practice at all.
Viggo paints in his studio and sometimes I pose for him, draped on his couch, which we transported from the old studio for sentimental reasons. I have landscaped the garden, since we moved here and work in it, whenever I can. Bella supervises, dividing her time equally between us and regarding us solemnly, her head on her paws.
Sometimes we go to classical concerts, Viggo wearing one of my suits, in which he looks great; sometimes we just lie on our couch naked, listening to Bowie and sharing a joint.
It’s hard to imagine how much my life has changed in less than a year, but I have never regretted it for one single moment. I have learnt so much in the past few months, one thing being that there are many different kinds of family. I have no doubt that Viggo and I are a family now and I feel content for the first time in years.
Tonight we are lying on the couch and sharing a bottle of red wine, the same wine that Chris and Viggo brought to dinner on that fateful night.
I turn to him and raise my glass, clinking it against his,
“To family life!”
“To family life!”
The End
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Date: 2008-01-31 03:14 pm (UTC)for sharing Ladies.
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Date: 2008-02-01 09:15 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-02-01 01:32 am (UTC)Did I ever mention tnat I have a very vivid imagination ROFL
Thank you so much for giving me a great time reading the story *hugs you both*
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Date: 2008-02-01 09:17 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-02-01 06:36 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-02-01 09:17 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-02-01 09:11 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-02-01 09:18 am (UTC)