Lady and the Scamp

As always this story is solely my property and may not be reproduced or republished without my express permission. All place names are geographically correct although residences, characters and titles are fictitious. That being said, enjoy the story.

Another long wait again on this one, but I'd rather take my time and produce a good story than rush out another part and have it be terrible. I hope you enjoy it and let me know through votes and comments!

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Delia woke to the sound of the kettle whistling in the kitchen. Rubbing her eyes she sat up and grabbed her dressing gown before heading that way. When she entered the room Calli was dancing around the cooker humming to herself happily as she prepared her breakfast. She watched her friend for a few moments as she was obviously in her own little world and oblivious to her presence. Delia knew there was something up with Calli and suspected what it was. She cleared her throat loudly and laughed when Calli squeaked and jumped, spinning to see her friend standing in the door with a knowing smirk on her face.

"He bedded you didn't he?" Delia asked.

Calli couldn't help a giggle as she blushed, "Blooming right he did!"

"Finally!" Delia said with a snicker. "Now you two can stop tiptoeing around each other and get down to some serious business. How was it?"

"All I can say is WOW! That man certainly knows how to shag."

Delia grabbed a cup of tea and some biscuits and sat at the table with a grin on her face. "Tell me all about it."

Calli told her everything, not leaving out any of the gory details for her friend, blushing every time Delia thought a particular part was exceptionally juicy. She howled with laughter when Calli told her how she had called Andrew 'Roger' and he had proceeded to throw her into the stream to exact his revenge.

"He really made you say that? He really made you beg him to fuck you." Delia asked when Calli was finished her tale.

"I screamed it to the heavens Del," she replied with another colouring of her cheeks.

"Cor you're mad about him aren't you luv?" Delia said with a twinkle in her eyes.

"I'd do it again in a heartbeat, that man makes me tingle even just thinking about him. I've never felt like this before. Andrew just does things to me that no man has ever done before, he makes me feel things, and I want to please him in every way. I can't hold anything back with him, and I know he's not holding back with me." Calli said with a happy sigh.

"Calli I'm so happy for you!" Delia said as she moved to hug her friend. "So how was it with your family?"

"Daddy thinks the world of him, Maddie and Lizzie are madly in love with him, even Nigel thinks he's ace!"

"And your mum?" Delia asked her apprehensively, knowing that Lady Anne could be cold at times with people.

"She loves him too! She was a bit stand-offish at first, but he charmed her as well."

"Brilliant!" Delia said with a laugh. "Anything else juicy happen? I'd hate to think I missed anything really good!"

Calli frowned momentarily, "Well Roger showed up to the party."

"He did? What a prat! I hope you had him thrown out."

"I did but not before we had a row in front of a room full of people. Andrew saw what was happening and came over and stepped in. Well, Roger being Roger, he started in on Andrew, which he soon realised was a grave mistake."

Delia's eyes widened, "He didn't chin him did he? Not that he wouldn't deserve it."

"No he didn't hit him, but he did give him a very clear message that as my new fiance he wouldn't put up with Roger's rude mistreatment of me." Calli said with a grin, just waiting to see if her friend caught what she had said.

"Your WHAT?" Delia cried out in surprise.

"We're getting engaged." Calli said softly as she sipped her tea.

"Oh Calli dear that's fantastic!" Delia beamed as she hugged her friend again. "How do your parents feel about it? It is rather rushed and all."

"They're fine with it, we went and talked to them right away, and explained what had happened. Andrew was very apologetic about the possibility of causing any embarrassment to the family but they wouldn't have any of that."

"So when will the engagement take place?"

"In two weeks, and I expect you to be there! No excuses this time Del, as my future maid of honour you must attend!" she responded with a grin.

"Of course dear, I wouldn't miss it for the world!"

"Weather permitting we'll be riding Andrew's motorbike up, so I'll make sure Mr. Henworth comes to get you luv." Calli said warmly. She thought for a second then gave her friend a cheeky grin, "Or, would you rather have James come 'round for you?"

Delia laughed and blushed profusely knowing that Calli knew exactly how she felt about the stable master's son. "You're evil Calli!"

---

"Janie?"

"Hey big brother! How's everything in jolly old England?" his sister replied with a grin that he could sense over the phone.

"Pretty good squirt. How's everyone doing over there?" Andrew asked.

"We're good, Dad's been busy as all get out but what else is new? The man never seems to want to stop. Sue and Troy are doing great, and little Morgan is getting so big, she's crawling all over the place now!"

"And I'm sure her Auntie Janie's spoiling her rotten," Andrew said with a chuckle.

"Of course I am! I want to be her absolutely most favouritest Auntie in the world!" Janie giggled. "So-o...I saw your Facebook status this morning Andy. In a relationship now are we?"

"Ha ha! Yes as a matter of fact I am kiddo, and I really don't need you to give me the third degree on it." he replied.

"Andy I have every right to bug you about your new girlfriend! It's my job as your bratty little sister to make sure it happens!" Jane teased.

"Okay fine little one, bug away." Andrew said with a laugh, knowing that his baby sister wouldn't let up until she had her way. Little Jane, or Janie as everyone called her was a very persistent young woman. The twenty-two year old rarely took no for an answer and wasn't afraid to go after what she wanted. In fact, Andrew thought to himself, she was very much like Calli in a lot of ways. The chief difference between the two women was more physical than anything else, whereas Calli was tall and slender, Jane was just a hair over five foot two, and had a voluptuous body, which was certainly not a hindrance to her attracting men as she always seemed to have more than her fair share of dates.

"Hey dummy! Wake up I'm talking here!" Andrew heard over the phone.

"Huh?" he asked as he shook his head to clear his thoughts.

"What's her name you big dope? Where did you meet her?" Janie asked with a giggle.

"Okay I'm here brat. Her name's Calli, we met a bit ago when me and a few friends when out clubbing."

"Kelly? You met a bar tramp named Kelly?" Janie asked, still teasing.

"No sis, Calli! C-A-L-L-I, it's short for Calandria, and she's not a tramp, she's a Lady."

"Ooh! Calandria! Sounds like some sort of anorexic model or something to me bro. Hey you've never dated a lady in your life, every girl you ever showed any interest in ended up being a tramp."

"Ok you've got me there Janie, I haven't exactly had the best luck when it comes to women. Calli's not a model but is definitely beautiful enough to be one, and in the case of her being a lady she most certainly is one. She's a proper 'English Lady', her family's titled, Dad's a Lord of the Realm and everything squirt."

"You're shitting me bro! There is no way in hell a high and mighty 'Lady' would even look twice at you!" Janie said with a loud guffaw.

"Jane you've been hanging out with the boys in the barn too much! You know Dad would tan your backside if he heard you talking like that in the house!" Andrew scolded his sister.

"Sorry," Jane said softly. "You're serious aren't you Andy? You're really dating a Lady."

"One hundred percent serious. In fact very serious, that's why I'm calling. I need to talk to Dad if he's around."

"Hold on I'll get him big brother." she replied.

Andrew heard her put the phone down and call out for their dad to come to the phone as it was him calling. She picked it back up before her dad arrived and asked him almost breathlessly, "What's she look like bro?"

"Sweetie she's gorgeous," he chuckled. "I'll send you a pic of us through email in a bit okay?"

"Okay," Janie said with disappointment.

"Hey wait, you have your moby handy brat?"

"My WHAT?" she asked, totally confused.

"Your moby, shit, cell phone. They call them moby's here. I've got a pic I took of us on my phone I'll send it to you right now okay?" Andrew replied, hoping that would please his little sister. He pulled the phone away from his ear briefly, found the picture he had in mind and sent it off to her. "Okay it's on it's way kiddo."

"Great, thanks Andy! Here's Dad." she replied as she handed the house phone over.

"Hi Andrew! It's about time we heard from you, I thought maybe you'd gone missing son." his dad said with a low rumbling laugh.

"Nothing sinister like that Dad, school's been pretty busy. Lots of extra assignments in second year and all that." he replied with his own chuckle.

"So what else is going on son? You haven't emailed us or even made arrangements to talk on Skype in weeks. For you to call on the phone all of a sudden like this it must be pretty important!"

Andrew blushed and took a deep breath, knowing that what he was going to ask his father for was a big step forward in his life. "Dad I've met her, she's the one."

"Met who son? Who's the one?" his dad asked in confusion.

"Remember how I always used to say I'd know when I met the girl I was going to marry?"

"Yes I do Andy, you had a whole list of things that she'd be if I remember correctly. You had some pretty high expectations for her."

"I know. Sometimes, especially lately, I've thought that maybe I'd never find someone who could live up to my fantasy. But Jesus, Dad she's real!"

"Andrew!" his father chided him.

"Sorry Dad," Andrew responded.

Suddenly they heard the click of the kitchen extension being picked up and a high warbling shriek over the line as Janie screamed with excitement. "EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!OHMYGOD,OHMYGOD, OHMYGOD, OHMYGOD! Andy she's freaking GORGEOUS!!!!!!"

Both men pulled their ears away from the receivers as his sister freaked out for several minutes until their dad had had enough. "JANIE SHUT THE HELL UP!" he bellowed across the house, which stunned her into silence because swearing in the house had been strictly forbidden while they were growing up. Swearing out in the field, if the situation warranted it, could be done. But never in the house.

Janie gulped to regain her composure and apologized to her father for interrupting, but asked if she could stay on the line as well.

"You okay with the brat listening in son?" their dad asked with a soft chuckle.

"Sure Dad, it'll save you having to listen to her whine until you tell her everything anyway."

"Tell us about this girl Andy, she must be pretty special if you're talking this way about her." his dad coaxed as he sat down in his recliner chair.

Andrew proceeded to tell his dad and sister about how he and Calli had met, and how he had demanded that she meet him for dinner without so much as a backward glance, which his dad scolded him for, as respect for women was very high on his list of things a gentleman should hold dear. When Andrew got to the part where Calli had poured her beer on his head at the end of their first date Janie interrupted again as she went off into fits of laughter. Of course Andrew left out all of the intimate details of their courtship, as that was none of their business. He then told them about his recent visit to her parents' estate and how he got on with her family.

Then he went on about what happened at the party, "...so Calli's ex had the nerve to show up and they were into it when I came up to see if she needed any help. This Roger guy was a real piece of work Dad, the way he was talking to Calli I wanted to take him to the stable and muck a stall out with him."

"Well I hope to hell you didn't hit him in front of everyone son!" their dad said without even thinking.

"HEY! If we're still not allowed to swear in the house neither are you Daddy!" Janie corrected him with a giggle.

Their dad shook his head ruefully, "Sorry sweetie you're absolutely right, I should follow my own rules if I expect you to still follow them. Go on Andrew, tell us what else happened if you didn't mop the floor with him."

"Well..." Andrew said with a sigh, "I told him that seeing as I was Calli's fiancé I didn't appreciate him talking to her like he was, and if he didn't stop he'd not enjoy what would happen next."

Andrew's dad nodded silently, he knew that his son would have followed through on that threat as he'd always been very protective of the women in his life, even if they didn't deserve it. "So you two are engaged then," it was a statement not a question.

"Uh, not yet. Not officially Dad." Andrew responded.

"And her parents know about this? They're okay with you saying what you did in front of a room full of people?"

"Yeah," Andrew said with a chuckle. "We went to them right away and explained what happened, and I apologized for putting them on the spot like that, but they said there was nothing to apologize for. Dad I didn't say anything I didn't mean or didn't want to say. I think her folks had a good idea that at some point I'd eventually propose to Calli, they were just surprised that it happened the way it did, but we're fixing that up in a few weeks with an official engagement party at their home."

"Well congratulations then son! I'm just sorry that we can't be there to see it." his dad said heartily as Janie cheered from the extension.

"Sue's gonna have a cow when I tell her!" she said with glee.

"Have you got a ring for her yet Andrew?" his dad asked on a more serious note.

"No I haven't. Calli's mom said she'd find something among the family heirlooms that we could use, but that just doesn't feel right to me. Shouldn't it be something from me? As a symbol of my love for her?" Andrew said.

"Aww Andy that's so sweet!" Janie said with a sniffle, thinking how romantic her brother was being for the beautiful girl in the picture he'd sent her.

"Andrew go ahead and buy your girl a ring," his dad said. "Obviously don't go cheap but don't go crazy either son. I'll make sure the money you need will be in your account, and if there's any left over make sure you take her out and have a good night out together as a little engagement gift."

"Thanks Dad, I really appreciate you doing this!"

"Hey Andy, do you have someone to help you shop for Calli's ring?" Janie asked him.

Andrew only had to think for a half second before a big grin spread across his face, "I know just the girl sis, if I didn't ask her to help me she'd never forgive me for it!"

"Well Andrew this phone call's going to cost me a fortune as it is, but I'm glad we could talk and you could tell us about your girl. You're definitely going to have to come home soon so we can meet her!"

"Sure thing Dad. Thanks for everything, really."

"No problem son."

"Don't forget to get pictures at the party Andy! I want to see them!" Jane cried out before they cut the connection.

After the call ended Janie came into the living room and sat on the arm of the chair her father was sitting on. He looked up at her and saw a strange look on her face, "What's that look for baby?"

"You gotta see the pic Andy sent me," she replied as she handed her dad her phone.

He took the phone from his daughter and looked at the screen for a moment, it had a picture of Andrew and a very pretty brown haired girl smiling happily on it. "Yes, so?" He asked. "She's very pretty that's for sure."

She got up and went into her brother's room and pulled a sketch book off of his bookshelf before returning to the living room. Janie flipped pages until she found the one she wanted.

"Take another look at her and tell me if she doesn't look familiar Dad." Jane said with a little smirk and chuckle as she showed him the picture in the book too.

Her father looked at the screen again, then at the drawing she was showing him. He began to chuckle himself, then he began to laugh and Janie joined him. The picture of the girl on the phone screen and the drawing were remarkably similar.

---

Delia laughed as she shut her flat door behind her and skipped down the stairs to the street. The look on Calli's face when she'd once again refused to tell her friend where she was off to had been priceless. She had already been upset when Andrew had abruptly cancelled their date earlier and had wanted to spend some time with Delia. Little did Calli know that Andrew had co-opted Delia to help him find her the perfect engagement ring. Andrew had been evading her all week, meeting with Delia every afternoon to hunt down a ring that Calli would love. They hadn't had much luck at the first few stores they'd gone to, nothing seemed to be right according to Delia. She'd known Calli since they'd met in first form, Calli had been boarding and Del was a day girl, coming to school every day but returning home after class. They'd been fast friends from their first class together, and if anyone knew what Calli liked it was her.

'Bugger it!' Delia thought to herself as she ran up to Andrew, who'd been waiting down the block so Calli wouldn't see them together. "We're going to Robert Gatward Jewellers in Abingdon luv, if they don't have anything she'll like no one will." She said as she set the helmet on her head and climbed on the Harley behind him.

"Yes ma'am!" Andrew said with a chuckle. "How was our Lady tonight?"

"Ooh, she's in a mood Andrew. With me running out every night this week and you avoiding her like she's got the plague her temper's on the razor's edge!"

"I really hate doing this to her Del, but with less than two weeks before the engagement party I really need to get her a ring that's worthy of her."

"I know ducky," Delia said with a soft laugh. "I think it's absolutely lovely and romantic that you're doing it this way instead of using one of her family's dusty old heirlooms. I'm sure they've got some beautiful things but picking something out for her is so much more special. She'll get over it."

"I'm just worried I won't survive long enough for her to get over it sweetie!" Andrew replied.

"Trust me dearie, once we find that ring for her and you slip it on her finger all will be forgiven. Of course you might not survive the sex afterward, but that's another story!" Delia giggled.

Andrew let out a raucous laugh and grinned broadly, knowing that Delia was most probably accurate in her assessment of what would occur after their engagement was made official. "Delia you're an imp!" He kicked the bike into life and they roared off down the street.

---

Calli sat in the lounge, sprawled on the settee as she sniffled and felt sorry for herself. She hadn't seen Andrew since Monday morning when he'd left early to get back to his place to get ready for school. He'd been acting strangely all week, he was being evasive and never seemed to be available to spend any time with her. She was beginning to think that maybe he was having second thoughts about their upcoming engagement. She couldn't believe that though, he'd seemed so sincere when he'd told her and her family how much he loved her and wanted her in his life. How could a man who made her heart soar and her soul sing be so callous and cold after what they'd shared? She longed for him to hold her in his arms, for him to smile at her, hell if she really wanted to admit it she wanted to hear him call her one of his ridiculous pet names! To make matters worse Delia was acting strangely too, running out as soon as she got off work for God only knows where. She desperately needed to talk about what was troubling her and the one person whom she could always count on to listen to her was never around either!