This is the nineteenth episode of my unreliable memoirs. Each episode can be read individually but it helps a bit with names to have read the previous ones.
I hope you have enjoyed it so far.
M4bloke
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The week before Christmas was hectic and by the time we'd recovered from the fall out of the swinging weekend in Munich it was almost Christmas Eve.
I'd missed the Durolitum Christmas party the week before but we had managed to go out for dinner with Lynne, my assistant and her partner Siobhan for a meal. It was the first time we'd met Siobhan and it was reassuring that Lynne was comfortable enough to share that part of her life with us now.
Christmas day was on a Saturday that year and Lesley and I both worked on Christmas Eve until lunchtime. Then I visited a clinic recommended by Daniel and had the stitches above my eye removed.
On Christmas Eve we went to a carol concert with the judges, Michael and Claire Taylor. Lesley was captivated by the concert and joined in with all the carols and the joy in her face was obvious to everyone. Afterwards we went back to the Taylor's house and Lesley and Michael did their thing cooking supper together while Claire and I chatted in the lounge. Claire asked what had happened to my face and I told her honestly as I could.
As we sat and ate, Lesley then told them about our plans to buy a house in Wimbledon and how we were going to Provence on Sunday to look for a place there too. Michael told us about his plans to take their vintage Bentley back to Le Mans in June and he asked Lesley if she'd like to be his co-driver. Lesley was so happy to be asked and I must admit I was a bit jealous but then Michael asked if perhaps I could bring Claire along in the Porsche, so at least I got to go.
Lesley and Michael were like a double act, nobody else got a word in that evening. Lesley saw in Michael the father she'd never had and Michael was only too happy to fill that role. The Taylors has lost their own daughter to a drugs overdose a few years before and since she'd moved to London they'd treated Lesley as family. They'd known that she was 'unconventional' since they'd first met us at Carole's in Provence but they never held it against her or tried to change her.
When it was time to go to bed Lesley stayed up to talk to Michael alone. When she finally came to bed she tiptoed in as quietly as she could, then slipped under the covers.
"Everything ok?" I asked.
"Yes," she said. "Michael just wanted to know that I was alright."
"What did you tell him?"
"I told him that becoming Mrs Carter was the best thing that had ever happened to me."
"I Love you," I told her.
"I Love you too."
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On Christmas day we had breakfast with Michael and Claire before we left for my parents. I felt sorry for them. Christmas must have been a difficult time since the death of their daughter. Lesley shed a tear when it was time to go and hugged Michael hard which in turn made Michael a bit teary. She promised we'd come and see them again before I went back to Uni.
The refined tranquility of Michael and Claire's house was in contrast to the chaos of my mum and dad's on Christmas day. This was mainly due to my sister Jackie's two kids who were running riot with their new toys in the living room.
Jackie couldn't stop laughing when she saw I'd been in another fight. My mum, on the other hand was less than impressed. Lesley told them she was proud of what I'd done, although what she told them I'd done was a very selective version of what had actually happened.
At mid-day we all went to the pub. It was a Christmas tradition. Mum showed off her new daughter-in-law to her friends while Dad had more than a few pints with the lads and was quietly sozzled by the time it came to leave.
As usual the girls did all the talking over dinner and afterwards we sat in our chairs like beached whales as we tried to digest the mountain of food we'd just eaten. We watched the Queen's speech, the Morecambe and Wise Christmas show and goodness knows what else on television, then at nine in the evening it was time to leave. We got into the Land Rover and drove back to the apartment.
"I warn you," Lesley joked as we got into bed, "If you try to have sex with me tonight, I may physically burst."
"Ok. Would you like to open your present instead?" I asked.
"I thought you'd never ask."
I gave her the small jewellery box that the jewellers on Bond Street had wrapped for me and she opened it. Inside was a pair of diamond earrings in a platinum setting.
"Oh Steven, they're beautiful. Thank you."
"I'll admit I had some help from Kate," I said.
Lesley giggled then handed me a large package.
"I had some help from Daniel too," she said.
I tore open the wrapping paper and inside was a beautiful black Lewis leather motorcycle jacket.
"Daniel said they're the best."
"He's right."
"I had to have it made to order but I wasn't sure of your size. Then Daniel told me that his tailor had your exact measurements so I got them to talk to the tailor and hey presto."
I tried it on and it fitted perfectly.
"You know," said Lesley. "If you don't lie on my stomach while you fuck me, then I probably won't burst."
"Let's find out."
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We didn't see Daniel and Kate that Christmas as Daniel had decided to take Kate on a romantic holiday to Cape Town and the wine making region of South Africa. Although it was a shame not to see them over the festive period, to be honest, we saw so much of each other these days it was probably good to have a break.
On Boxing Day we caught a flight to Marseilles. When we arrived it was colder than we'd thought it would be, not at all like the heat of the summer we remembered. We picked up our VW car and headed north on the AutoRoute.
Although we were going to be staying with Carole and Fabien in Aix mostly, we'd flown out a day early to see Ruth and David first. If it hadn't have been for Ruth and David then Lesley and I wouldn't have met. So we had a lot to thank them for, but it was going to be an odd time for Lesley. For almost five years, with Ruth's approval, she'd been David's mistress. Lesley had taken a job in Nottingham to be near to him and he'd set her up in an apartment and visited a couple of times a week. She'd stuck by him even when they'd found out he had throat cancer and had lost his tongue.
Then I'd come along! Within the space of a summer Lesley and I had met, got engaged, got married and Lesley had moved down to London. Fortunately David knew it was the right thing for Lesley and he and Ruth had encouraged our relationship, even to the point of giving me a job in the summer so that I could be close to her. David had even gifted Lesley the apartment. Now, just a few months later, Lesley had come to tell them she was selling it.
Ruth and David had bought a farmhouse in a place called Roussilon, in northern Provence and were having it renovated. The house needed a complete rebuild and so they'd rented a property close by in order to oversee the work. We had a bit of trouble finding the place and when we arrived it was getting dark. Lesley was excited to be seeing Ruth and David again but a little nervous. She needn't have been, they were both waiting to greet us and it all got a bit emotional.
Both of them looked healthy. The last time we'd seen David was at Carole's wedding and he'd looked exhausted but now he looked relaxed and tanned. Ruth looked like she'd lost a couple of pounds too and also had a healthy tan. It seemed that life in Provence suited them both.
Although Lesley and Ruth had spoken several times on the phone over the past few months, Ruth still wanted hear everything from her in person. Over dinner Lesley told them all about her life in London then Ruth told us about the past few months in France. Apparently the new house was coming on well and David, who was a sci-fi author, had even started work on his next book.
"But we wanted to come here and tell you something," said Lesley solemnly.
"Is it that you're going to sell the apartment?" Ruth replied.
"Yes, how did you know?" said Lesley. "Do you mind?"
"Of course not. We expected it. Your life is in London, you need a place there."
"Actually that's partly right. We want to buy a place in Wimbledon but to be honest Steven has already made enough commission to do that. What we'd like to do with the money from the apartment is buy a place near Aix."
"You mean near Carole and Fabien?"
"Yes, but not only them, we've made some other friends there. And it's only forty five minutes from you."
"We think it's an excellent idea darling."
"Thank you," said Lesley, relieved. "We've got viewings lined up while we're here, so fingers crossed."
"We've also got something we'd like to ask you." Ruth added. "We want to sell the house in Lincoln and buy somewhere more manageable in Kent. We love Lincoln but it's too difficult to get to from here. I know you wanted to have your wedding blessing there but would you consider having it here in France instead?"
Lesley thought for a moment.
"You know, I really did want a white wedding but I decided that being married to Steven was more important," Lesley said holding my hand. "I love being Mrs Carter and I don't think I really need another ceremony to prove it. So why don't we have a party instead. Then we can celebrate your new house, us being married and Steven graduating."
"That's a wonderful idea Lesley. We'll do that."
After dinner we sat in the living room and chatted in front of a big old fire. Time passed and it got to that awkward point in the evening where we were going to need to make a decision about who was sleeping with whom. We hadn't had sex with Ruth and David for months and, given our history, neither pair was sure if the other pair wanted to. It fell to Lesley to break the deadlock.
"Steven," said Lesley but addressing everyone. "We've not talked about it, but would you mind if I slept with David tonight?"