Reformation Ch. 15

Rebecca's stomach fluttered with butterflies; she grew very nervous and self-conscious as the family walked into the church she knew well. A few cold stares and pitiful expressions were given from the people that Rebecca had expected, and some from a few people she didn't. Not all of the reactions she received were bad and quite a few people walked over to her and greeted her and the family with warm greetings and open arms. Rebecca made sure to introduce the family to everyone as "friends," using "real" names, of course. By the time the church service was about to start the family was feeling welcomed.

The church service was a typical affair and since the family had attended the previous week, they knew what to expect. Rebecca knew the hymns and prayers by heart and only occasionally glanced at a neighbour's book for reference. Rebecca felt happiest during that church service than she had been in months. She was in church with her Sir, something she never would have imagined possible when they first met. For a fleeting moment during the service she actually let herself believe that she could somehow have the best of both worlds with her Sir: Christian life and BDSM. The fact that he came to church with her, because of her, showed how much he cared for her, and that he was willing to put her needs first.

Harold had to do a double take when he saw Rebecca and made a hasty exit out of the service, making sure to avoid any contact with Owen and the family. As he emerged from the basement of the church with his kids, after collecting them from Sunday School, he glanced around the room to locate Rebecca. Confident that they were looking the other way, Harold directed the children towards the nearest exit in the other direction.

When Rebecca gave an old friend an animated greeting, three pairs of young eyes quickly glanced around, after instantly recognizing their mother's voice. It was the oldest, six year old Mark who spotted their mother first and bolted out of his father's grasp. This jailbreak was quickly followed by the four year old Lisa and two year old Daniela.

"Kids, get back here!" Harold said in a stern, yet quiet tone of voice.

The three kids didn't see or hear anything but their mother, and ran as fast as their little legs could carry them to the warm embrace of their mother. Rebecca spun around and upon seeing her children rushing towards her, kneeling down to hold them wasn't a problem because her knees almost buckled due to the joyous surprise. Owen and Taryn helped Rebecca to her knees where she was just in time to receive three bundles of joy bouncing and shouting as they clutched their mother tightly. All three kids talked a-mile-a-minute and at the same time, so while Rebecca made noises like she heard what they were saying, in truth she didn't understand half of what they said.

As all this was going on and the attention was focused on the happy reunion Harold slinked his way closer to the very spot he didn't want to be. Knowing that sooner or later he would have to retrieve his kids from Rebecca's embrace yet he didn't want to be near her, Owen or the rest of the family. One person in particular scared him more than any of the others, someone who had occupied his thoughts over the past week. For reasons he couldn't understand she scared and excited him at the same time and he couldn't help but take the opportunity to look her over and was pleased by what he saw.

Veronica had the feeling she was being watched and started to glance around the church foyer, curious to see who would recognize her. The inhale of shock and the wide eyes of fear and surprise made it clear that it was indeed Harold who had been the source of the sensation. When she looked at him their eyes locked, neither looked away and it was clear, even in the first few seconds, that Harold was afraid of her. Veronica chuckled to herself and smirked at Harold before shooting him a light glare. In response Harold's face went pale and he looked down and away.

The effect on Veronica was intoxicating, while she didn't find Harold attractive she did love the fact she could intimidate and dominate him from across the room with only a look. Her mind started to race and wonder what she could do to him if they were alone. How much pain could she inflict on him? How deeply under her control could she put him? The largest question of all was if she should let the opportunity pass or if she should inflict some sort of revenge on him for what he had done to Rebecca. Who said revenge can't be fun, Veronica told herself as she looked away from Harold and back to the group at hand.

After a moment or two had passed, Harold made his way to the group, making sure to position himself in front of Rebecca but also a safe distance away from Veronica. When Harold entered her view, Rebecca was conflicted, part of her wanted to either: cry out her shame, or beg him to take her back, or kick him in the nuts. Somehow she kept her composure as Harold was behaving ever so politely at the moment.

"I didn't know you got back," Harold said in a nervous sounding voice as he looked at Rebecca with a pale smile, his eyes darting to Veronica.

"Yes, I'm staying with friends at the Spa down the street from the store," Rebecca replied in the best strong and confident manner she could muster.

"Well, it was nice to see you, but we have to be going. C'mon kids," Harold said to Rebecca before extending his hands to the children.

"But mommy, why can't you come home?" Mark asked in a whiny voice.

"Because mommy doesn't live with us anymore," Harold said as he reached for the children.

"Do we have to go?" Lisa whined as she clutched Rebecca tighter.

"Why don't we take you all to lunch?" Owen asked Harold in a gracious tone of voice.

"That's very generous of you, but we really have to go. Kids, let's go!" Harold said as calmly as he could, but it was obvious that his patience was wearing thin.

"How about we pick them up for a visit on Saturday? Say around nine o'clock?" Veronica said in a firm and pleasant tone of voice as she looked right at Harold, who looked at Veronica with a fearful look in his eye the moment she opened her mouth.

"Sure, sounds lovely," Harold replied in a subdued tone of voice.

"Thank you, Harold!" Rebecca replied in a grateful tone of voice as she hugged her children before urging them to go with their father.

"Don't mention it," Harold replied with a subdued and fearful tone of voice before he departed with the children in tow.

Taryn looked over at Veronica and gave her a knowing smirk on her face and shook her head as Owen and Karen helped Rebecca to her feet. Veronica gave Taryn a cheeky smirk in reply, but said nothing. The family was about to leave the church when yet another familiar face decided to welcome Rebecca back to the church family.

"As I live and breathe, Becky, how you been?" an energetic, plump woman said in a bright and warm tone of voice as she approached Rebecca.

"Monica! Oh my goodness? Good to see you! I've been okay. How've you been?" Rebecca said as she turned to the plump woman and hugged her tightly.

The woman embracing Rebecca was indeed an old friend of Rebecca's. Monica was a woman who had a pear shaped body but was not excessively large. Sure, she had extra weight on her that was not distributed well, simply gathering around her torso, but she could move about without being hindered or clumsy. Her black hair went straight to her shoulder-blades and framed her oval face well. Her blue eyes were set off by her light skin tone and her dark black hair and made sure you noticed them well. She was dressed in a nice pair of slacks and a blouse, and looked like the perpetual "Mom" type.

Monica was not alone in her greeting of Rebecca, as her husband Peter was there as well. Peter could best be described as a tall man who was in decent shape at one time but had gone soft over the years. His chestnut brown hair started to fall out in his late teens and before he was thirty he was bald on top and only had hair around the sides of his head, not unlike Patrick Stewart. He had a neatly trimmed goatee beard, which he thought balanced out his lack of hair well and added a "tough guy" air to him. Monica liked it and that was all he cared about.

"My goodness girl you are getting huge!" Monica said as she broke the embrace and grasped Rebecca's pregnant gut with both hands. "When are you due?" she asked as she lightly shook Rebecca's gut, and to let its dislike of the motion known, the baby kicked.

"Don't do that," Rebecca said as she grasped her gut and paused to wait to see if her baby would kick again. "I'm due in three weeks," Rebecca added once she was sure the baby was settled down.

"Well, it's good to see you're in such good hands," Monica said as she flashed a smile over at Owen.

"Yeah, my friends are taking good care of me," Rebecca said with a warm smile as she glanced around the rest of the family.

"Owen, good to see you again!" Monica said as she reached up and hugged Owen in a tight embrace which Owen reciprocated, yet was puzzled how she knew him.

As Owen hugged Monica his mind was racing on just how he knew her, and Peter. As soon as he saw them something about them struck him as familiar but he had written it off as just seeing them at church the previous Sunday. Yet that didn't seem like it, he couldn't put his finger on it but it didn't seem like he knew them from church. When the embrace was over Monica looked at Owen and could see that he hadn't recognized them. She leaned in and hugged him once again but this time whispered in his ear when Peter hugged Rebecca.

"Heather's . . . but don't tell Becky, she doesn't know about us or that we know about her," Monica whispered quickly in Owen's ear.

When his eyes fell on her face once again, it all clicked and his eyes went wide. Now he remembered her, she and Peter were taking lessons from Heather and he had observed a few of these sessions. Peter, like Owen was taking lessons from Heather on how to best Dominate his wife, Monica. Monica was there to support her husband and loved being dominated by him. They never got involved with any other couple but did socialize around the Heather's, but made sure to keep their distance from Rebecca. It seems that they knew Rebecca enough to know that she was not willing to "come out" as a submissive and respected her privacy on this matter. As for Rebecca, she had been too focused on her own self-loathing to be able to notice anyone but whom she was either serving or serving with.

"Be sure to take care of your little Mouse now," Monica said with a wink of her eye as she nodded in Rebecca's direction.

"I will. We should really have you over for lunch sometime," Owen said with a conspiratorial smile.

"Perhaps, next week, but we really have to run," Monica said as she broke the embrace and put her arm around her husband's waist and they started to walk away, after saying their goodbyes.

"Are we really going to have the kids over next Saturday?" Rebecca asked with shock, as the realization just hit her. "What are we going to do with them? Where are we going to put them?" she added with slight fear and worry.

"We're not going to have them over; we'll take them out somewhere. You know, DO something with them," Owen replied with a smile on his face as he put his arm around Rebecca and they started to walk towards the exit of the church.

"Do what? I don't have any money!" Rebecca said in worry and started to panic.

Owen and Taryn were about to respond but Karen cut them off when she stepped in front of Rebecca. With a warm smile, Karen lifted Rebecca's chin until their eyes met.

"How many times do we have to tell you? You are family now, so what we have is yours. We're not rich but we have enough, and certainly enough to entertain the kids for a Saturday, don't worry about it," Karen said with a friendly and comforting tone of voice.

"Thank you," Rebecca said with a relieved tone of voice.

In the middle of the church foyer, the family gave Rebecca a group hug and at that moment she felt accepted and truly like she was part of this unique family. The moral issues of right and wrong faded in the overwhelming feeling of love that overtook her at that moment. She felt loved, accepted and cared for, and that was just what she needed at the moment. All Rebecca could think of was that this was what family was supposed to feel like, and as strange as it seemed to outsiders, this eclectic group was a indeed a real family.

After spending five days sitting around in the basement apartment of the Spa, Rebecca was bored and restless so when Monday lunchtime approached, she had an idea to make herself useful. With a bag, containing lunch for Taryn and Karen, Rebecca struggled to get up the stairs of the apartment but by the time lunch came around she walked into the front of the spa.

"What are you doing up here? You should be downstairs resting!" Taryn said to Rebecca in shock when she saw her enter the front area.

"Oh please, I've been resting so much I'm bored silly. I brought you two lunch," Rebecca replied as she handed Taryn the bag of lunch while she sat down in the nearest chair.

"Thank you, but you really didn't have to," Taryn said with a gracious smile as she leaned over and gave Rebecca a hug and kiss.

Taryn had only just begun to sort through the containers of lunch when Karen walked out from the back, with a customer. She only shot Rebecca a light scowl to silently let Rebecca know that she felt the pregnant woman should not be upstairs yet. When the customer had left the store, Karen turned to Rebecca and spoke up.

"What are you doing up here? You should be downstairs resting!" Karen said in shock to Rebecca as she pointed towards the door leading to the downstairs.

"I told her that already," Taryn said to Karen as she handed her a container filled with a sandwich.

"Well, I was downstairs and decided since I am part of this family, I should start pulling my weight," Rebecca said with a slight smile on her face.

"Sweetie, you're already pulling the weight of two," Karen said with a smirk on her face.

"Or is it three?" Taryn asked with a giggle.

"Yeah, twins and triplets run rampant in your family, don't they?" Karen replied to Taryn with a light giggle that the two women shared.

"Yes, lots of twins, large strapping kids too, with big heads!" Taryn added and she and Karen broke into uproarious laughter.

"Very funny but I already know it is only one child, a boy," Rebecca replied in an unimpressed manner, yet the smirk on her face betrayed her annoyed façade.

"But you really should be taking it easy," Taryn added in a concerned tone of voice as she took a bite out of her sandwich and sat down beside Rebecca.

"Please! All I've been doing is taking it easy. I can sit around up here and at least make myself useful. Show me how to run the till and you can help Bella in the back," Rebecca replied as she looked first at Taryn and then at Karen.

"It's important to you, isn't it?" Karen asked Rebecca in a curious tone of voice.

"I feel so useless, I just want to contribute somehow," Rebecca said with a frustrated sigh.

"I certainly understand that feeling," Taryn agreed as she put her arm around Rebecca and squeezed. "C'mon, it's really not that hard, I'll show you" Taryn added as she stood up and walked over to the till.

Rebecca caught on quickly, as she did have till and customer service experience from running the Christian Bookstore with Harold all those years. By the end of the day she had settled into the position of front casher quite well. The rest of the week followed the same pattern, Rebecca would go upstairs and run the Spa with Taryn and Karen while Owen and Veronica went to their respective workplaces. In the evening the family would do something together and even the dinner and movie night tradition was carried on.

At night, with no fanfare at all each woman would go to her respective bed, including Rebecca to her spot on the hid-a-bed in the living room. There were no great announcements or bragging of whose turn it was with Owen, the woman in question would just go into Owen's bedroom with Owen. Rebecca noticed, however, and watched as slyly as possible each night as Owen took a different woman into his bedroom, every woman but her that is.

Saturday could not come quick enough for Rebecca and she was excited to be able to see her kids. Despite her bulk she was the first one in the minivan that Saturday morning, eager to see her kids. Owen, Rebecca and Veronica drove over to Harold's house to pick up the kids for the visit. When the minivan pulled up in front of her old house, Rebecca was filled with mixed feelings.

"I'll get them, you stay here," Owen said to Rebecca with a smile as he got out of the minivan. Owen walked up to the front door of the lovely home in the tree-lined avenue, which used to be his neighbourhood and rang the doorbell. Harold opened up the door and looked around, wearing a puzzled look on his face.

"What, she couldn't be bothered to pick them up herself?" Harold replied with disgust as he sneered at Owen.

"Mom?" Mark asked as he poked out from behind Harold and looked around.

"She's in the van, buddy, but why don't you guys go get your swimming stuff?" Owen said with an energetic and friendly tone of voice, typical when talking to kids.

"SWIMMING! WE'RE GOING SWIMMING?" Mark shouted as he disappeared into the house with the screaming and shouting of his sisters as they ran up the stairs.

"Nice house," Owen said as he looked inside at the clean furnishings of the lovely home.

"Thanks," Harold replied through gritted teeth.

"How do you sleep at night?" Owen said with a disgusted look on his face.

"Quiet well," Harold replied defiantly.

"We both know that was some really dirty pool you pulled on Rebecca. Taking everything, including the kids!" Owen said with a stern tone of voice as he glared a cold glare at Harold.

"Hey, she signed the papers, on her own. After everything she did, she deserved it! I don't owe her anything!" Harold replied just as sternly as he glared at Owen with just as cold a stare.

"I could get you in some deep shit for the crap you pulled, but I will let it slide, as long as you make it right to her," Owen said as he stepped closer to Harold and looked him deep in the eye.

"What about the assault last Sunday? I could get you in some serious shit too!" Harold snapped in an angry and taunting reply.

"Do you really want people knowing about that?" Owen asked with a raised eyebrow and Harold's expression turned to one of confusion and embarrassment. "Just think about it. We'll talk about this some other time," Owen said with a smile as he lightly poked Harold in the chest a few times.

Before Harold could reply the kids came out, each clutching their swimsuits and towels in hand. Without another word spoken, Owen walked to the minivan with the kids gathered around him. As the sliding-door of the minivan opened, Lisa voiced the question that was on the minds of the three children.

"Mommy, who's he?" Lisa asked as she looked up at Owen, with her little hand in his with one hand and her towel in her other.

"He's mommy's friend and his name is Owen," Rebecca said as she smiled at each of them.

"But I'd like to be your friend too," Owen said as he glanced at each of the kids who looked at him with unsure looks. "In you go, or we'll never get to go swimming!" Owen added and that got the exciting response he was looking for.

Owen took the group over to a large, indoor water park where they spent the time in the shallow end of the pool. Everyone enjoyed the swimming and horsing around in the pool and by the end of the day, the kids had warmed up to Owen and Veronica. What had helped was that he acted like a big kid the whole time. Daniela spent most of her time with Rebecca while Veronica divided her time between Mark, Lisa and Owen and taking care of Rebecca and Daniela.