25

Well, there's still a bit more to this story!

As always, thanks to Kenjisato for his editing skills. I may have changed a few of his, so, if anything is amiss, it's down to me!

Thanks to Paolo for his proofreading. I appreciate your time.

Chapter 24

Monday Morning Doubts

Chrissie's POV

I woke finally, but too early. I lay there, practically all night, thinking. Yeah, that's bad for me. And here I thought Tom was the overthinker! My pussy ached, bringing back Tom's abuse of my body.

I felt as if I could hardly function, I was so wiped out, but the kids couldn't do it on their own. It wasn't fair to Tom to have him pick up any slack, even if he was happy to.

I rolled over, finding a bit of solace in Tom's body...and Tom. I hugged him way too tight and he shuffled around, slowly coming to. I felt guilty, not a good way to start a day!

He rolled over and half-opened his eyes. "Morning, sweetheart. How'd you sleep," he asked, groggily.

"Honestly? Like crap! I have too many things on my mind right now," I sighed, trying not to cry.

"Emily?" Tom succinctly asked.

I could feel the tears coming and the river burst. Tom grasped me and pulled me in. He felt like my life preserver. I needed one right now.

"Hey. Hey...it's going to be, right? It will all work out the way it's supposed to," he gently sighed.

I looked at him and gave him a small smile. Do you think your pop psychology is any good?" I laughed a bit more.

"Okay, that was pretty stupid but...we'll work this out. Even if you are still a spoiled brat, I'm here to spoil you know, right?" he smirked.

I slapped his arm. "I AM NOT spoiled! Take it back!" I spat, smiling.

Tom let out a throaty laugh, so I hit him...then hugged him. My brother knew me so well.

"C'mon. Time to get up and get the day sorted. Chrissie," he said, going all Serious Tom now. "I WILL make certain this all works out the way we need it to, okay? Trust me. Believe in me." he said, with the commanding voice I was coming to love...and listen to.

"You better," I pouted, and slapped his arm again.

"

C'mon brat, up!" he teased, although I didn't see the funny side.

He took my hand and dragged me out of bed and into the shower. He tenderly washed me. His touch was all I needed right now. Just his loving touch. We kissed and hugged slowly, just reveling in the joy of being together. I washed Tom down. My brain woke up as I lifted his cock and cleaned him. My heart wasn't in it, though.

We slipped out and brushed up. We had already peed together in the shower, but there was nothing erotic about it this time.

Tom slipped into the bedroom first, dressing in his usual starched white shirt and tie. He always allowed me to pick out his tie, which I rather enjoyed.

He was leaving the bedroom as I left the bathroom. A few minutes later, I heard the kids, but they didn't come running in, as usual.

I slipped on a skimpy pair of soft panties. They always felt the best on my skin.

Hmmm, I thought. Tom owes me underwear!

I picked out a pair of mocha hold-ups, thinking they'd be the most comfortable today. I grabbed the matching demi-bra and I was almost ready. As if.

Unconsciously, I wondered what Em would like to see me in today.

Get a grip, Chrissie, I admonished myself...but still picked out the floral dress she liked.

I shuffled to the kitchen and saw the kids were half done with their breakfast. I walked over to Tom, as he was making sandwiches for them, and wrapped my arms around him, laying my head on his back. He could feel me murmur, "Thank you" through his body.

Could I be happy with just Tom, I thought.

I kissed the kids, 'good morning'. Just seeing them brightened my morning. Again, they paid no attention to my affectionate gesture towards their uncle.

I made Tom his morning fruit and yoghurt. It was the very least I could do, after all. We all sat and chatted about the day ahead. The kids were semi-eager. Not a bad sign, I guess. Tom was busy, as usual, trying to sort out his move back. We both had so much to do this week before we were off Friday morning. Just the thought of that cheered me up.

Em and I were pushing the new exhibition through, and ahead of schedule.

Em. My heart dropped.

Tom kissed us all 'goodbye' and he was gone. The kids piped up then.

"Uncle Tom really likes you, doesn't he?" David asked.

Fuck...

Collecting myself, I looked at David and calmly said, "Yes, David. He does. And I like him. Your Uncle Tom is a special man. Do you like him?" I asked, my breathing increased.

"We do!" he answered, a huge smile on his face. "He's fun," Chloe said, "and reads me extra stories at night." My heart moved back.

Janet showed up about thirty minutes later. I didn't have the heart, or time, for our girl-to-girl talk so we kept it cordial this morning. I hugged everyone and they were out the door.

I checked the mirror and headed downtown, my hands sweating.

I parked up and walked into the employee entrance. My heart

acted up again, as my feet made longer strides. I almost ran into work, pushed the door wide open and ran to Em, throwing my bag on my desk. I embraced her, kissing her deeply. The tears started again.

"You won't leave us, will you Em? Say...say you won't leave us. Please! Everything is changing for you and you might not want us and then you'll be dating and finding someone and falling in love and running away with him and maybe even having babies and you won't be near me and I don't what I'll do. I know I'm selfish but...I love you, Em. I'm in love with you. I know I have Tom in my life but I...I can't lose you!"

Em was taken aback. She looked at me, so sweetly and said, "Whoa, girl. Where did this come from? What's going on here? What...what's wrong, Chrissie? And, I could be asking YOU the exact same thing," she said, tenderly, still holding me.

I was crying by now.

"Yesterday...yesterday was so...so beautiful, Em. I saw it all. I felt it all. Then I started thinking that you don't want this and that you'll leave me, leave us one day. I'm...so fucking sorry, Em. I'm...I'm just...Oh, I don't know what I am!" I huffed, totally confused by my outburst.

"Where did you get the silly idea that I was going anywhere, sweetie? Hmm? What makes you think I want anyone but...you and Tom? Hmm? I'll...I'll never leave you, Chrissie. I'll never leave...us," she sighed, and I kissed her again. "Has Tom said anything?"

"Not...not really. It's just that last night, after you left, we were talking. He brought up some good points and...and they hurt."

"What points, Chrissie. Here, sit. Relax. Take a deep breath, darling."

"He...he said that you'll be embarking on a new life after you leave David, and that, perhaps we may not be part of it. We will, won't we?"

Em took my head in her soft hands and gently kissed me. "I'll be with you both, for as long as you'll have me, okay? What if he made you choose? Hmmm? Then what? Have you given any thought to that? What if he decides he can't do an, uh, 'throuple' with us? What if the four of you move away for a job, or something like that. What happens to me then? Hmm? Have you thought about it?" Em said, with a certain harshness in her voice.

"I...I haven't but...we CAN work something out if it ever happens, okay? I know this whole thing is a huge limbo right now but I'm adamant that I want, no, need you in my life. Tom knows this. He will never make me choose. He understands us and loves me anyway. He does, and accepts it. He accepts us, Em!" and I kissed my best friend again. "If moving for work or anything comes up, we do it together. We talked a bit more after you left. He's coming around to the idea, Em! We just need to take it slow and easy, but I am more certain than ever that he wants this...as long as you do?" I asked, with doubt.

We hugged for a few more minutes. I felt as safe with Em as I do with Tom.

"We'll make this work, Chrissie," she smiled.

"Really, Em? You...you want this?" I asked, my heart practically bursting from my chest.

"Yes, Chrissie. Now, should we get some work done now?" Em said, laughing at me.

I couldn't take my eyes off her all day. It felt as if it was the first time. We had a quite productive day, considering how it had started for me. We only touched on yesterday's experience. We both knew it was unforgettable.

"Did you, uh, think about it later?" I asked, pushing her just a bit.

"Did I? Christ, Chrissie! I gave my rabbit a workout," she laughed.

"I had these weird fantasies of what you and Tom were up to! God, I'm getting wet just thinking about it," she sighed.

"So. You're getting wet. Right now? Just...thinking about yesterday? What...what did you like best, Em? Tell me, sweetie. Please," I begged.

"Chrissie! Behave! Just...behave. I...I..." and she brought her hand over her breasts, teasing me.

"Do you want to know what Tom did, Em? Hmmm?" I teased her right back. I knew where this was going, breaking every rule we had laid out way back when.

"Chrissie! I said BEHAVE! You'll be in...trouble, girl. Just..." she almost moaned. "NO! Get back to work," she said, and walked away.

"Keep your hands where I can see them, Em," I laughed.

Em lifted her middle finger and continued to walk away. I could only smile.

Throughout the day, we touched on David and his reaction to her being gone all day. It seems he barely noticed. Bastard! Em hadn't the nerve to ask about his affair. I understood. If you don't confront it, it's not real.

Monday Morning

Tom's POV

I thought I was dreaming peacefully, 'til I was woken by Chrissie. I felt her tight hug. Not a bad way to wake, but still. She looked

terrible, as if she hadn't slept at all. Chrissie was all wound up about yesterday...and Emily. I understood. So much was said yesterday, so much had happened between the three of us.

Chrissie was out of sorts, so I dealt with the kids 'til she made an appearance. We had a relaxed breakfast, but could tell she was not herself. I certainly did not want her to have any angst over what had happened. That was my department!

"Love your dress, Chrissie!" I grinned. "A bit of summer never goes amiss," I smiled, and leant in and kissed her.

How does she always look so gorgeous, I thought.

I sat with the kids and had breakfast, laughing and enjoying their company. Chrissie walked over and lay her hands on my shoulders. I could feel her smile. I softly laid one hand on hers. I felt her gentle squeeze on my shoulder.

In no time, it seemed, I headed off for the office, knowing I was going to have a full-on week. Leaving Friday didn't give me much time to finish what I had started. I had a meeting with Arthur when I arrived. We talked about Martin Russell and what our next steps would be. I wondered if we could get the appropriate due diligence sorted by Wednesday, to have a meeting on Thursday. Arthur asked me to copy in another member and get him up to speed so there would be a smooth transition when I left. The guy, Nick, whom I had worked with before, was more than competent. We had similar styles of work and got on well. That took a lot of the worry from me, allowing me to concentrate on the structure.

I called Chrissie, just wanting to hear her voice and reassure her all was well.

"How's it going, darling? Feeling a bit better?" I asked her. You sound a bit perkier," I laughed.

"I'm...I'm a lot better, yes. I've talked with Em, and we're okay. Or rather, I am. I was just being silly and overreacted and I was all over the place, but I'm fine now. Thanks though. It's lovely to hear your voice. And...thanks for sorting the kids this morning. I would have, but thank you. Do you want to talk with Em?" she asked.

Fuck. This is what I meant about her orchestrating, I thought.

I had to say something to her or it would appear like I was avoiding her. If I didn't at least say, 'Hi', I'd be a real dick. "Yeah, put her on real quick, all right? If she's not too busy."

"Tom, she always has time for you," she giggled. "Here she is. I'll say 'goodbye' right now and see you at home. Love you," she enthused. "Here's Em," she said.

"Hi, Emily. How's your day going? Is Chrissie giving you a hard time? I know you can't say too much, but is she calmed down now? She was out of sorts this morning. I just want to check both of you are fine."

"I'm good, Tom. Thanks. We're doing well today. Your sister is on form and we're plugging away here. And...thank you for everything yesterday. It was strange, yes, but thank you," she said, only touching on the subject that was on everyone's mind. "If truth be told, Tom. I needed to know where you're at. I feel so much better today, so thank you, again." she sighed. "I'll see you sometime soon. Have a great day,' she said and disconnected the line.

Arthur said he would have an answer for me tomorrow about my work proposal. I couldn't read him, so I put it to the back of my mind. It's out of my hands so... I set up a conference call with Jeremy in London at three this afternoon. I wanted to touch base with him and keep him in the loop on my progress here, although I was fairly certain he knew already.

Nick and I worked all day, and feeling we had a handle on our initial proposal for Martin, I called him on his direct line.

"Martin?"I asked, "Tom Lawrence. How's your day going? I thought we should catch."

He chatted about Grace and Chrissie, and their lunch. It was nice of him to mention it. I asked if he was free on Thursday to come by the office and meet everyone and have some preliminary talks. He checked his schedule right away and we set a meeting for eleven o'clock. I told him that Chrissie was coming back to London with me on Friday.

"Really, Tom? I'm...I'm so happy for you both," he enthused.

"As am I, Martin. There's so much going on right now, I thought she could use a break. I also wanted her to see where I've been for the last two years. We'll miss the kids, but there's time in the future to show them London," I said.

"So, if you don't mind me asking, things are going, uh, well with you two," he enquired.

"As you know, Martin, it's, well, complicated," I laughed. "I'd like to get together for an early meal sometime before we go? I'm not even sure if we can, I'll have to check Chrissie's schedule, but we'd like to sit down with Grace and yourself...if you're open to that?" I asked, uncertain how he'd react to my idea.

"Tom, we'd love to. As Grace told Chrissie, whatever we can do to help, we'd like to, okay? Don't put too much pressure on yourselves this week though. If we can arrange it, great. If not, we'll do it when you both return."

"That's great, Martin. Thanks for understanding. So...I had better get back to work. Now, I won't be taking the meeting. Arthur, our MD will meet you and take you through what we've put together so far. I hope that's okay? Chrissie and I have a lot to do before Friday. I certainly hope we impress you on Thursday, but I want you to know, business and personal are separate so, even if, for some reason, you feel we aren't a good fit, Chrissie and I would still like to get to know you both, okay? I don't want one to conflict with the other."

"Thanks, Tom. I rather thought you'd have this attitude, and I appreciate you voicing it. I'll see your people on Thursday. And, thank you."

Whew. That's another small step.

I followed up on the other two cards I received at the auction. I told them both that I was heading back to London for two weeks, and asked them if they would take a call from our MD, Arthur. They were both open to the idea, so I passed all the details to him and he said he would follow up for us. I asked Martin to email Martin with the details we wanted to go over with him, just so he was in the loop.

Nick and I had made great progress so we decided to call it a day around five. I felt good about what we had achieved.

I headed home and arrived around six. I walked in and Chrissie walked over to me, wrapping her arms around my neck and embracing me in a loving kiss.

"I've missed you so fucking much today, Tom," she sighed. "It has been a tough one," she lamented.

My hands moved down to her little butt and I pulled her onto me.

"I could use you...right now," she whispered, and winked.

"I WILL use you later, Chrissie," I smirked, swatting her ass.

The kids were diligently working on their homework, although Chloe's consisted of rudimentary math and drawing. I thought I'd help her. I helped with dinner, and then the routine of baths, reading and bed soon overtook us.

Chrissie and I headed to the front room after the kids were safely tucked up. I poured us both a drink, badly needed by Chrissie, I thought.

Chrissie took a long slip, then laid her head on my shoulder.

"So, what's going on? Are you better now? You were pretty out of sorts this morning," I asked, concerned.

"Damn, Tom. I don't know. It all was just too much. Em leaving David, us; London, us; last night, us; just...I just couldn't figure it all out," she sighed heavily and took another gulp.

"Okay...let's take them one at a time. Em. What about her, hmmm?"

"Everything's changing for her, or at least it will. I'm...I'm wondering if she'll still want to be with us. I...I can't lose her, Tom. Do you understand that?" she asked, her eyes welling up.

"Shhh, Chrissie, you know as well as I, that things change. You cannot worry and fret about the future. We make our plans and adjust. Nothing is certain. You should know that by now. I suggest we carry on, always be open and honest and, if something drastic like that happens, we move on. Just trust what you both have, okay?" I tried to explain. "This is not all going to be smooth. There's a huge, new dynamic going on. Emily and I need to get to know each other. I think we are developing the connection we both need, but it will take time. I don't want or need sex getting in the way, okay? I need to get my head around this, too. We're, I'm, bringing someone else to our relationship. I wasn't prepared for that if I'm honest. I envisioned us, you and me, not a lover. Now, I have just about embraced that, but there will be pitfalls if we don't ALL talk about and are honest, okay?" I breathed, hoping I hadn't been too harsh.

"Maybe that's what I'm feeling, too. I'm excited about the future, Tom. With you...and hopefully, Em," she sighed. "Why are you so fucking understanding, eh," she laughed.

I laughed, too. "Because, Chrissie, I love you. I see what Emily brings to you. Why would I want to stop that? I can see what she'll bring to me, too, and I don't mean sex. It'll take a bit of time for me to get my head around it, but I see the possibilities. Who says we just have to be two? Hmm? So, what's next, London? What about it?"

"I don't know. It's just with work and Em, it seems to be a bad time for me to, well, desert her," she whispered.

"Fuck, Chrissie. Then don't come. That will sort that out!" I said, a bit too harshly.

"Fuck off, Tom. You're not listening! I...I feel I should be here for her...and I want to be there for you. Why is this so difficult?" she almost yelled.

I laughed, which pissed Chrissie off. "Because it IS difficult, Chrissie. Only you can sort this out. Sorry. I'm not prepared to give you an out, or ultimatum. This one's on you. I know you want the responsibility of a decision taken out of your hands, but I'm not prepared to do that...this time. You know you're my little kitten, but sometimes kittens need to act on their own."

"I am your kitten, aren't I" she smiled, looking so coquettish. "I'm...I'm going to call Em, is that okay?"

"Of course, darling. Give her a call, see how she's doing and give her our support, okay?" I said, and kissed her, my hands sliding under her summery dress. "Then come to bed, and I'll fuck you, sweetheart. Oh, and tell Em what I'm going to do," I said, devilishly, my fingers stroking her panty-covered pussy.