Worth The Wait 43

Mia doubted she had ever known love. Yes, she had married, but that had been a disaster. Perhaps the closest she had come was the crush she had on her high school music teacher Mr Cranwell when she was 17 but nothing had ever come of it.

Mr C had urged Mia to study music and pursue a career as a teacher which had gone well until she crossed paths with one of her lecturers who had doubted her proficiency in piano. Instead of contacting Mr C for advice, she deferred uni for a year and obtained a job in a bank. Mia had moved out of home into a Granny Flat behind the home of family friends near the uni. Certain boys had been interested in her, but none of them appealed to Mia. She still thought daily of Mr C and wondered if she should contact him now it had been a year since she had left school and she was now over 18.

One evening when her landlords were away on holiday Mia heard noises outside. With no dog to bark or anyone to call in the main house Mia called the police for assistance. Two officers turned up including Brad the beefiest man she had ever met. Both assured her that there was no one around. Before they left, Brad gave Mia his personal number and told her to call it should she need to. Mia entered the number in her phone and texted Brad straight away. An hour later her phone pinged- it was Brad. He had finished his shift and wanted to check she was ok. He offered to call by and check things again and Mia readily accepted.

Mia felt her stomach go fluttery when Brad turned up again. He assured her there was no one outside and offered to check inside. Mia giggled and said she would know if there was anyone inside, but Brad insisted. Brad told Mia she shouldn't be too lax in her safety because a pretty girl like her was bound to receive a lot of attention. Brad stroked his hand down my face as he said this, and I was immediately attracted to him. He leant in and kissed her. It was tender yet passionate and before she knew it, Brad was pulling her top off. Mia tried to slow him down and told him she had never done anything like this before. Brad told Mia he knew she wanted to and he looked so sexy in his uniform that Mia fell to his charms.

It was a pretty ordinary experience for Mia, but Brad ensured he was satisfied. Mia felt pain and discomfort, but it was something she had been wanting to do for ages and was pleased to have crossed over from innocent virgin to woman of the world. Brad kept in contact and he and Mia went on a few dates and had sex several times more. Mia was getting more and more into it, however she did not feel any release or climax that she had read about in the magazines. Brad suggested it was because they were using condoms, so she went to the doctor and went on the pill.

Mia was convinced she was in love with Brad. He was spending more and more time with Mia and in time Mia moved out of the Granny Flat and into Brad's house. Again and again the sex was indifferent to Mia. Brad would come and kiss her, and she knew she wanted to fuck him but as soon as he poked his penis inside her it was a few pumps and he came. Mia read up in magazines and tried to bring more variety to the bedroom. She learnt to give head which Brad loved, however he refused to return the pleasure stating she was a little 'smelly' down there.

Brad received a transfer. It was not a promotion but more a sidestep to the country. Mia's friends suggested she let Brad go by himself and she could follow later, but Mia was convinced she was in love with Brad. One evening, a few months before the transfer, Brad came home and told Mia there was a problem- he was moving into police housing and the old-fashioned ruling was that police officers could only have their wives or husbands live with them. Mia asked Brad if that meant they were getting married and Brad replied that he supposed so. Mia's parents were not keen on Brad but agreed to the marriage believing Mia to be happy. Claire, her best friend suggested they wait as Mia was only 20, but Mia wanted to be with Brad.

The wedding was nice enough. Brad's parents had died when he was young, and he had spent time in foster care so he had no relatives to speak of so it was a small wedding. Claire came to Mia midway through the reception and suggested they go for a little walk together. Claire told Mia that Brad had told her she looked so gorgeous in her bridesmaid dress and he would love to make sure he was up to things on his wedding night by trying things with her first. Mia did not believe her friend and told her she was just jealous.

Mia and Brad moved to the country and Mia was cut off from her friends. She was not sure why Claire had told her that story and she did not believe Brad would do anything like that. Mia asked for a transfer with the bank but was unsuccessful so Brad told her she could keep house. After a while Mia was getting bored at simply keeping house. For her 21st birthday her parents asked her what she wanted, and she asked for her piano to be transferred to her new house so she could make music.

Mia got back into her music and eventually took on a couple of piano students. Brad was not interested in the same music Mia played. He drank with the boys after work and often came home drunk. A couple of years into their marriage Mia suggested she cease taking the pill and they try for a baby. Their sex life had not really improved, however Mia thought with the prospect of making a baby it might pick up. It took two years for Mia to fall pregnant. She suggested they see a doctor, but Brad didn't think it was necessary stating it would happen when it should.

Mia was lonely and was questioning her decision to marry Brad when she found out she was pregnant. Brad was actually ecstatic which surprised Mia. He came to her obstetrician appointments with her and helped her decorate a nursery. When she was 6 months pregnant her father died suddenly. It was a heart attack they were told. Mia had not spent a lot of time with her parents since her marriage and felt guilty. Mia was an only child and was now all her mother had. She suggested to Brad she spend a week or two with her mum, Margaret, but Brad said she really needed to be with him in case the baby came. She suggested her mum stay with them when the baby came, but Brad said perhaps for a weekend, but they would parent together when their baby came.

The funeral was a sombre event. Mia was surprised to see Mr Cranwell there and he came and gave Mia a big hug. He did not know she was married or pregnant and seemed happy for her. Mia's father and Mr C had shared a first name, Peter, and Mia joked that if the baby was a boy she would name him after Mr C, her favourite teacher and he laughed, getting the inside joke. Mia did not necessarily mean it as a joke. As soon as she saw Mr C her heart skipped a beat and she knew she had married the wrong person.

A few months later baby Peter Bradley was born. She told Brad he was named after her father and her husband, but Mia knew he was named for Mr C. Mia had a difficult labour. She tore and required stitches. Brad did not like seeing baby Pete suckle at her breast and wanted them for himself. When Pete was 10 days old Brad tried to attempt intercourse. Mia asked him to stop because it was hurting, but Brad would not stop telling Mia it was her job as his wife to please him. After this Mia knew her stitches had popped. She was in agony around her perineum and told Brad she had to go and see the doctor. Brad told her that was not necessary, and most women just get better.

In agreeance for not going to the doctor, Brad agreed to not attempt intercourse for another month, but Mia was expected to suck her husband off most nights. Mia thought Pete was a good baby, but Brad was not convinced. He became angry every time Pete cried which upset the baby even more. Mia had been isolated from her friends, her mother and now she hated what Brad was making her do. After a month they again attempted intercourse, but Brad complained she was no longer tight and said he preferred head anyway. Brad would stay out late after his shifts and not tell Mia where he had been. At one stage she thought she caught lipstick on his cheek, but he brushed it off saying it was from his Sargent's wife who had called into the station.

Mia knew the Sargent's wife was a kisser and believed this. Occasionally Brad would try and fuck Mia, but Mia just felt pain and knew this was not love. When Pete was 18 months old Brad was sent on a weeklong training course. Mia was getting very excited at spending a week with Pete and thought she might invite her mum to come and visit for a few days. She had developed lumps around her vulva and thought she might go and see the doctor to see what was wrong.

The first day Brad was away there was a knock at the door. It was Jane, the new constable in town. Mia did not know Brad's colleagues very well, but she knew he did not like Jane. Jane explained she just wanted to check Mia was ok. Mia invited her in for a coffee. This was the first person apart from Brad, Pete or her Mum who had been in her home. Jane picked up on Mia's awkwardness and asked her if she was alright. Mia broke down and admitted she no longer loved Brad and she knew he did not like her. She told Jane of Brad's demands of oral sex and that he did not like intercourse because the baby had 'ruined' her vagina. Jane told Mia it sounded like she was living in a domestic violence situation.

Mia felt heard for the first time since she met Brad. Jane took Mia to see the local women's health nurse who told Mia that not only had Brad done damage by attempting intercourse whilst her stitches were still there, but he had also given her a case of genital warts. Mia had been in denial not wanting to believe that Brad was sleeping around. Jane arranged for Mia and Pete to move to a women's refuge whilst Brad was away on his course. Brad was calling Mia several times per day to check on her and she had to pretend she was staying at home and not doing anything different. Mia packed the things she could carry in two suitcases and on Thursday, the day before Brad was due home, Jane took Mia to the women's refuge several towns away from where Brad lived. She told her mother of what had happened and her mother cried. Mia was simply relieved.

Brad was not happy to arrive home and find no Mia or Pete. He was less pleased to be served a Domestic Violence Order and told his Sargent that it was all lies. He knew this was because of Jane and he knew he wanted to ruin Jane's life the same way he perceived she had ruined his. A week later another police officer called at the refuge and told Mia that Brad had been in an accident whilst on pursuit of another vehicle and had died. Mia asked if he was alone and when she was told that Jane had also been in the vehicle, however she had survived and was fighting for life in hospital.

In many ways Brad helped Mia in his death. Mia believed it was a suicide with attempted homicide and because she was still legally married to Brad she received a substantial payout from his life insurance as well as assistance from the police widow's fund. Mia felt nothing at Brad's death, however when she visited their former home and discovered Brad had destroyed her piano with an axe she cried. Brad knew how much she loved her piano and it was the thing she could not take with her when she fled.

Mia knew she had to move closer to her mother and she had to work out what she wanted to do with her life. She sought the help of a trusted female doctor who repaired her perineum and treated her for the sexually transmitted diseases Brad had given her. She was thrilled when her HIV and Hepatitis C results came back negative, although the doctor counselled that it was highly unlikely Mia would ever be able to fall pregnant again due to her damaged fallopian tubes.

Jane was in a hospital in the city and Jane and Pete called in to visit her. Mia wanted to apologise, however Jane would have nothing of it. After months and months of rehab Jane was able to return to a desk job, however she had formed an attachment with Mike, a nurse who had worked on the ward she was on. Mia loved watching this romance blossom and was proud to be there when Pete was a pageboy at their wedding a few years later. Pete was about to start school and Mia decided it was time she returned to university, but this time she would study to become a nurse.

Nursing school came easily to Mia. She passed with flying colours. She built a Granny Flat in her back yard for her mum to come and live in and her mum was a great help with Pete after school and when Mia worked shifts. Mia was a kind nurse and her patients loved her. So did the other staff. Her mother suggested she try and meet another man, but Mia did not want to.

The annual medical ball was coming up and Mike and Jane convinced Mia to attend. Mia looked stunning in an emerald gown that highlighted her green eyes and dark hair. At the ball she met Nick, a doctor she had done a little work with over the years. Nick was all over Mia, dancing with her and attempting to run his hands up and down her back, squeezing her butt and pressing his growing erection to her. He started kissing her on the dancefloor, but Mia wanted him to stop. Mia found Jane and Mike and told them she was leaving. She caught a cab home and crawled into bed by herself.

The following week at work Dr Nick sought Mia out. "Mia, we have some unfinished business from the ball," he said as he pulled her into a disabled toilet as she was leaving work. At first Mia thought this was a joke, but she soon realised that Nick had one thing on his mind and one thing only. It brought back all the memories of Brad and she surmised that if she let him do it, it would be over and that would be that.

Nick at least tried to seduce Mia by kissing her breasts and running his tongue down her belly having a small lap at her mound. This was new to Mia and she urged him to continue. Nick did not listen as he slipped on a condom and penetrated her with a single stroke. For Mia it was like the first time all over again. It was painful and brought back so many old memories. Nick saw she was crying and took that as a sign she was enjoying herself.

After he finished, Mia felt used. She had not said no in as many words, but she had not asked for this either. She asked Nick if she would be seeing him again and his response floored her, "Well my wife is back this week, so I doubt it." Mia slapped him across the face and he laughed, "I thought all you young nurses liked putting out." Mia slapped him again as she pulled up her pants and left the cubicle. She was angry with herself for being so vulnerable and she declared she hated all men. She took a couple of days off work but decided she could not stay away for ever.

Pete was growing up quickly. He was an excellent student who excelled at maths. He also had an ear for music and was learning the flute. Mia had purchased a small piano when she moved into her house and she and Pete would play little duets together. Pete had a fine voice and his school music teacher suggested he try for a scholarship at the Grammar School with both his academic and musical success. He had also taken a shine to cricket which Mia knew pleased her mother as Pete's grandfather had been a fine cricketer.

A Scholarship was offered, and Pete was offered a place in the chapel choir. This reminded Mia of the fun she had had in choir at school, especially when Mr C arrived. Mia was working when Pete did his orientation days. Pete came home extremely excited from his last one, "Mum, Mum, you'll never guess who we met today, nope you won't and I'm not going to let you guess!"

Mia couldn't help but giggle at her son's enthusiasm, "Was it the Queen?" she asked, but she really was floored when Pete said that his choirmaster and music teacher was going to be Mr Peter Cranwell and Mr Cranwell had told Pete that he had taught his mother.

Pete went on to say that he didn't think that was possible as Mr Cranwell did not look old enough, "And Mum, guess what, his name is Peter like me!" Mia remembered back to her father's funeral and the hug from Mr C. She felt the same feelings with that hug that she had felt playing piano duets with Mr C on the stage in assembly before the entire school when their sides were pressed together on the piano stool.

Mia attended the first chapel service Pete was involved in however had just come off night shift. She saw Pete process in with the choir followed by Mr C. Her heart skipped a beat. He still had the same foppish hair he had had when he taught her. She looked at his fingers for rings but saw none and assumed he had chosen not to wear one. She believed that he had to be married by now and wondered if his wife was there. Mia fell asleep midway through the service and it wasn't until she was prodded by her mother that she realised it was over and people had left. She made excuses to her mother about being exhausted and rushed home. It was so lovely seeing Mr C again after all these years. She couldn't bring herself to call him Peter. She wondered when they next might meet.

Pete joined the cricket team and came home to say that each family was responsible for bringing dinner after training each week. Mia consulted her roster and found out she had to wait several weeks until she had time. Pete was doing well at his new school and his grandmother suggested that as a treat at the next school holidays they might travel to the theme parks, just the two of them. Mia had already booked time off work, but her mum insisted she spend some time by herself. Mia asked Pete what other families provided for cricket dinner. She discovered she was rostered on with another mother, Pam. She rang Pam and asked her what was usually done. Pam said that she had been doing this for years and it was now her youngest son playing cricket and some people provided pasta, some a barbecue, but anything was appreciated.

Mia knew Max's favourite food was tacos so she suggested they do a taco night. Pam was really enthusiastic. She confirmed there were 15 kids on the squad, plus Pam and herself, "Plus the coach I assume," stated Mia. Pam explained that coach was a bit of a recluse who had never been to cricket dinners in all the years she had been there. Mia and Pam met for coffee and arranged their dinner down to the last tomato.

Pete was so excited, "Mum, I've been telling coach all about your tacos and he said he might come!" Mia said that coach was probably a busy man and he may not have time knowing what Pam had told her.

Mia was chopping lettuce when she saw Peter Cranwell walk across the oval in cricket whites. She turned to Pam, "Wait, is Mr Cranwell the cricket coach?" Pam assured her he was but that he was a very reserved gentleman.

Pam loved a gossip and believed she knew everything about every teacher at Grammar so went on to tell Mia that she had heard from another mother that Peter Cranwell had taught at a girl's school but had left when he had an affair with a student and he was lucky he knew the Headmaster at Grammar who offered him a job. Pam went on to say that Peter lived in a small room off the organ loft next to the chapel despite being given a furnished cottage on the Grammar grounds.

"So, he's not married then?" Mia asked not wanting to sound too curious. Pam explained that she thought he must be gay as he was never seen with any women despite the rumour of the affair with the student.

The boys started trickling over after training Mia saw Pete chatting away to Mr C, or Coach C as he was that night as they walked towards the pavilion. "Well what do you know," exclaimed Pam, "I think he's actually coming over, it's such a shame he doesn't have anyone in his life because he really is very handsome." Mia blushed. He was very handsome. For a man who must be nearing 40 he was extremely good looking.