A Wife, A Secret Life and Discovery

When Ava, talked about the new clients in Tauranga. I could see why she was throwing so much effort at it. The contract, if she got them across the line, would be by far the biggest she had ever landed.

Preparations for the party dragged me away from work and it was quite stressful. I started to wonder why I agreed.

It was going to be expensive to put up all the guests. Leeza, rocked up at my office one lunchtime carrying a briefcase, and an arm full of brown paper bags.

"Aye up. What's this all about?" I asked.

She smiled, dumped the bags on my desk, and her briefcase on the floor. "I thought we should have lunch, and discuss the party."

She pulled out a selection of sandwiches and pastries. I found some plates from the kitchenette, and we sat down to eat at my meeting room table.

"How have you been?" She asked.

"Pretty exhausted actually. Work has been flat out, as it usually is in the build up to Christmas."

"Same." she said. "I wanted to thank you for everything you're doing for me. It goes way over the top. I'm concerned about the cost of putting people up. Ava, said she would pay for a motel, but I'm not happy about that. It'd cost a bloody bomb."

"What about a bus? Assuming most of the guests are going to come from Auckland. We could hire a coach for the evening, and they could deliver everyone back home?"

She smiled brightly, and gave me a hug. "You clever bugger. What a great idea."

"Hey, I'm not just a pretty face you know."

She giggled and we moved on to the other items on our list. I made a cup of tea, and we talked about other things. "Ava, is putting a lot of effort into this new contract."

"Yeah, she's hardly home."

"Does that worry you?"

"Nah, we talked about it. I sort of trust her."

She sniggered... "Sort of. God, how does that work. Surely either you do or you don't."

"Over the years, I never doubted Ava. Never once. Since discovering her affair, I have a level of doubt. She hid the affair so easily it does worry me."

"So, you are concerned then?"

"No, I have chosen to trust her."

*****

The party rushed towards us at a frenetic pace. Rhian, arrived home first. It had been over three months since I saw her last. I picked her up from the airport, and she looked more beautiful than ever.

She flew into my arms, and I had to swing her around, like a child to diffuse her energy.

"You look beautiful Rhian."

"Stop it Dad, you have to say that. You're my Dad."

"No I don't, I say it because it's true. You've inherited your mothers good looks."

"Yeah, thankfully I didn't get yours."

"Hey, I'm not that bad."

She leaned back, and her eyes went up and down my body appraisingly. "Nah, you're okay for an old dude."

"Yeah, I'm starting to feel old as well."

"Cut it out Dad, you look pretty good actual. Pretty choice."

As we walked to the car, me carrying two bags, and her wheeling a trolley she said. "I'm glad you and Mum worked out your shit. I was so scared. What the hell happened?"

"Like I said. We were in different places in our lives. It happens. I think we've managed to work it out."

"You fucking better. I can't bear the thought of you splitting up. Shit Dad. If you guys can't do it. What chance do I have. I always thought you two were made for each other. The deepest love."

"Yeah, but sometimes, things happen." Trying to deflect. I added. "Anyway, we're working through things. What about you, how come you're not doing a Dylan?"

She laughed. "Dylan, yeah I didn't see that coming. Dirty bugger."

"Surprised us, because he's never even mentioned her before."

She glanced at me pensively. "I've met her a couple of times. She's really nice. You're gonna love on her like crazy."

"You met her?"

"Yeah, Dylan brought her up to Palmy to meet me. She's choice Dad, real sweet."

"Okay, that sounds big. What about you, there must be plenty of good looking blokes hanging around Palmerston North."

"Nah, nobody special."

"You've been dating though?"

"Pop, cut it out. Stop being nosy. Yeah, I date occasionally. I'm trying to get out, with scores higher than Mum. I wanna be able to brag."

"Shit, you better have been putting in a big effort. She was in the top ten percent."

"Don't worry, I know."

The conversation eased off as we drove home. There seemed to be an air of sadness. I couldn't put my finger on it. I got the feeling there was something she wanted to say. I decided not to press, and if it was important. She would speak up."

When we got home. Ava, rushed out, and the two collided mid air in a frantic hug. They kissed, and held each other like it had been years rather than months.

We carried all her stuff inside, and then sat down to eat while Ava, interrogate her in something the CIA would have been proud of. At one point, I was expecting to be dispatched to get the water board.

Luckily we got through it without bloodshed. It was something that Ava, had complained to me about regularly. Rhian, wouldn't discuss her dating or romantic liaisons. In every other aspect, they were like best friends. It ate Ava, up that Rhian wouldn't share.

The next day, Jodi, and a couple of Ava's friends from the office, came out to help. It was weird, when Rhian, and Jodi, met. I noticed that they held each other longer than normal greetings, and I caught her staring at Jodi, from time to time. I wondered whether, Ava, had mentioned Jodi, was Bi, and Rhian was somehow affected by that?

It was no surprise when Ava approached me, during a quite moment. "Ian, this is driving me crazy. We have to talk."

I knew what was coming, this would be the forth time she had raised it with me.

"Ian, Jodi, was put a lot of effort into helping out. I feel terrible that her husband can't join her."

"Sorry Ava, I wasn't keen on her coming, but I relented. She is welcome, but I will never, and I mean never let that arsehole step foot on my property. He is not welcome here, and if Jodi, isn't happy. Then she doesn't have to come."

"She's very close with Leeza. They have become good friends. Leeza would be devastated if Jodi didn't come."

"Then she can come. She just has to leave her husband at home."

"Have you no empathy at all? What possible harm would there be in Reed attending?"

"I don't like him. This is my home, I'm allowed to choose who I do and don't welcome."

She didn't exactly storm off, but she clearly wasn't happy.

I was dispatched to the airport again to pick up Dylan, and Natalie, his girlfriend.

I was shocked, when he walked through the gates. It had been a year since I had seen him last. He had grown and filled out. Gone was the gangly kid. This was a young man.

He held Natalie's, hand in his, as they strode towards me.

Natalie, what could I say. She was certainly attractive, but not in a way I expected. I had always pictured him with a taller woman, fair haired. Natalie, was the opposite of all those. She was shorter than him, with dark glossy short hair. Her figure was nice, possibly described as voluptuous. Oh yeah, that fit. I had to shake my head to clear those nasty thoughts.

Dylan, stuck out his hand, and the shake was firm, and strong. "Hey Dad." He turned and moved aside. "This is Natalie, my girlfriend."

She walked into my open arms, and we hugged. "It's a pleasure to meet you Natalie."

"You too." She replied demurely. Her voice soft and melodic. I could definitely see what Dylan saw. She was lovely, and she'd only spoken two words.

In the pickup, we headed for home. Dylan led most of the conversation. Natalie was studying teaching, and next year was going to be her final year.

We talked about Natalie's, father, and his engineering company. Dylan, floored me when he said he was going to be staying with them in Pukekohe, while he worked for him. We had been expecting him to stay with us.

When we arrived at home. The previous day was recreated. Dylan and Ava, sharing a fierce embrace. Natalie, next in line for the Ava, express. It was clear that Natalie and Rhian, had met. They exchanged hugs, but there was a familiarity to it.

The girls all went inside. Ava, had already started the preparations for dinner. Now they were all crowded in there. Each trying to do their bit. There was laughter aplenty, giggling and a never ending chatter.

Dylan, and I grabbed a beer, and went for a walk around the property.

"She's a nice girl Dylan. You're very lucky."

"Thanks Pop. I wanted you guys to like her, because. I'm going to ask her to marry me."

I stumbled over an unseen pebble and Spluttered. "Marry?"

"Yeah, I know pop, but hey. It worked out for you and Mum. You were young when you got together."

"Son, I wasn't saying anything. If you love her, and you think she's the one. Then do it. You just have to realise it's a hard road. Money will be tight."

"I know Pop. I remember when we were little. You and Mum always made it work though."

We stopped, and I gave him a fatherly bear hug. "Shit, I can't believe it. Married."

"Yeah, sorry to spring it on you Dad."

"No worries. Shit. Where are you going to get married?"

"Right here if you'll let us."

Then we fell into father and son territory. We talked about his career, responsibilities. Where to live. When we got back to the house. The food was already being served.

When Dylan got down on one knee. The table erupted. I thought Ava, was going to faint. Rhian, I'm sure already knew. Natalie, was speechless, but accepted. It was a comical moment, she was caught completely unawares. Talk about hyperventilating, she gasped, and choked her way through her reply, and all she said was yes.

The standout from that magical moment being the love they so obviously shared for each other.

Ava, and Rhian, made a fuss about the ring, which in all honesty wasn't that spectacular. Dylan went to get Natalie a glass of water, and I intercepted him there. "Son, if you needed money for a ring. You only had to ask."

He shook his head, and I was as proud as punch when he said. "Not a chance in hell Pop. If she isn't happy with that ring, she's not the girl I thought she was." As he filled the glass, he added. "I might talk to you about it later, when we're in a better financial position. When we have our home sorted, then I would like to get a replacement."

That night in bed, Ava couldn't stop crying and talking. She was shocked, I mean completely blind sided.

"Natalie, she's such a wonderful girl. Did you see the look on her face, and Ian. That ring wasn't that nice. Why didn't he talk to us?"

"Because he wanted to do it on his own. He's our son all right. Determined bugger that he is."

"Golly, now we have to start planning a wedding!"

"Slow down boss lady. Didn't you listen to anything I just said? He's independent. We will wait for him to come to us. If you go pushing your nose in. He will not appreciate it. You have to learn to wait."

She hugged me tighter than ever. "Our son has grown up. Can you believe it. Married..."

"Yeah, I have to say. I was not impressed when he told me, but when I saw the expression on that girls face. I think he got it right."

"Oh heavens yes. She's perfect." She laughed softly. "But without sounding mean. She's not what I expected."

I chuckled with her. "I feel the same. Still, now that I've met her. I think she's right for him."

We woke in the morning, with a big day ahead. It was all hands on deck. Dylan, Natalie, and Rhian, all pitched in. It was Rhian, who grabbed me by the arm when we were cleaning the hired barbecue.

"Can you tell me why we're hosting this party Pop? Mum's never worried about any of her other employee's. Whys this girl so special?"

That one stunned me. What was I going to say... Because she's my girlfriend, and your mother likes her. It sounded ridiculous to me. "I don't know." I mumbled. "You'll have to ask your mother."

"She's only an employee, right?"

"What the hell are you suggesting?" I replied snappily.

"I dunno Pops... It seems weird, doesn't make sense. Mum's been running that company for like twelve years. This is the first time she's done anything like this. Some of the people there are her best friends, and she never did anything for them."

"You don't know that. I agree, this is the first public occasion. However, she may have done other things."

"Yeah nah... It's weird okay. That's all I'm saying."

Dylan, said something similar, as we put up the marquee. It was weird, and it made me think a little about why Ava, was so happy to help Leeza? Thinking about it, made me curious.

Jodi, again turned up to help about lunch time. No big surprise, except Rhian, rushed over to her, and they shared a very long drawn out hug. After that, the pair were inseparable. Curious...

The guests started arriving about four in the afternoon. Rhian, wasn't there, she had borrowed Ava's, Audi to pick up some of her friends.

Leeza, arrived on the bus, as they all descended, it was apparent, the party had already started on the bus. They were all laughing and cheering. They were already in party mode all right. Ava, greeted her with a huge embrace, and kiss. When she saw me, she threw her arms around me, and I got a big hug as well. Feeling guilty and anxious, I had to push her away.

"Welcome to your party." I said trying to sound like it was a joke. Ava, led them all over to the marquee, and the bar. There were a lot more guests, Ava, had pretty much invited the whole office.

I was going to be doing all the cooking on the massive barbecue we hired. It was nice to get away from the crowd, and I let my guilt subside a little.

This was really the first time I felt actual guilt over our relationship. Mostly driven I think by having to lie to my kids. I didn't like that.

Pulling on my apron, I fired it up, and went through the cleaning routine.

It was the perfect place to crowd watch. First thing I noticed, was how popular Leeza, was with everyone. Aside from Ava, she seemed to get along with everyone. She was apparently respected amongst her team.

"Hey Lover." Leeza's, voice startled me, and I turned to find her standing behind me. I quickly glanced around to check she hadn't been over heard.

She slipped into my arms for a hug. "Thank you for organising this. It's way over the top. All I wanted was a few drinks."

"It's all good, a little less of the lover stuff though."

She giggled. "Sorry, I'll be more discreet." As we stood together, she asked. "Are you going to play the chef all night?"

"Yep, that's me. So be nice or I'll burn your food." She didn't get a chance to respond. She was dragged away by a group of her friends, and I went back to the food preparation.

Dylan, looked after the bar, and brought me over a beer. "Jeez, Dad. Bloody big crowd. Gotta say though. I can see why Mum, likes that girl Leeza. She's obviously popular. You don't usually see graduates so integrated."

"Yeah, she's got something about her."

Ava, sauntered over and gave me a hug, clinked her vodka cocktail against my beer bottle. "What a fabulous party. I wish we did more of this."

"We can do, we'll make it a priority."

"Oh yes. Everyone's having so much fun."

The afternoon went fabulously. It was amazing to meet everybody from Ava's office. Her closer friends I'd met many times, but the others. I knew nothing of. This was the perfect opportunity, especially since I was the cook, and they had to talk to me.

As I watched the crowd. My attention was drawn to Rhian. I hadn't seen much of her. What I saw shocked the hell out of me.

She was seated on one of the blow up sofas we had hired. It was set back away from the crowd amongst the trees. Sitting cuddled up beside her, was Leeza. They were sharing a set of headphones. One ear piece each. They were listening to something, their faces turned to each other as they giggled and chatted.

Rhian's, arm was draped over Leeza's shoulder holding her tightly. Their feet tapped as they listened. The rest of the world clearly had vanished for them. They were in their own little world. Like lovers, taking turns selecting songs.

It was more than flirting, it was how lovers interact. They joked so easily with each other. Nudging playfully when they clearly didn't like the selection.

My thoughts were broken by Jodi, who had moved up beside me. "Great job you're doing chef. Do you need a break?"

I noticed she wore an apron, moving in beside me helping me keep the food flowing.

We served and joked around until there was a break in the traffic. "I have to say, it's tough being here without my husband. I have to say, I was disappointed when Ava told me he wasn't allowed to attend."

"Jodi, I could never be near him. I wouldn't be able to hold back. I'd want to beat the shit out of him. Maybe that's the answer. We should go out around the back of a shed somewhere, and fight it out. That's the way we did it when I was a kid. A few punches, a handshake and we moved on."

She gave me a scathing glare. "I wouldn't do that Ian. Reed, is a fifth Dan black belt. He is a very experienced fighter."

"What do you mean fighter?"

"I don't mean like he gets into street fights. He competes a lot in competitions. It's full contact full on fighting. So don't even think about it. What happened to letting go, and moving on?"

"Sorry Jodi. As far as I'm concerned. He will never be invited to anything I attend."

"Ian, you have to let that go. He never once said anything derogatory about you."

"He was hardly likely to say it to you was he."

We filled a couple of plates, and headed towards Ava, who was talking with some of her friends from the office. "Hey you two." She said by way of greeting. "Finished playing chef?"

"Yeah. I think there's plenty of food cooked."

"Lets go and find a seat, and get a few drinks."

I pulled, up and said. "I might go and see if I can find the party girl and have a chat."

Ava, grabbed my hand. "No, don't be a meany. Come and talk to Alice, and Pete. They said earlier they were hoping to catch up."

"I'll catch them later. I promised to sit and talk to Leeza," She let my hand go, and I turned and walked away. The problem being. Rhian, and Leeza. Were nowhere to be found.

Ava, must have seen me standing alone, and came to catch me. "Everybody's asking after you. Come on. You don't get to spend a lot of time with my friends. You look like a blasted grump standing here staring. Come on."

She dragged me by the hand, and I sat beside her, as she chatted with her friends. Alice and I had always gotten on well. She was one of the first people Ava, employed. She'd been with her the whole time. Over the years, we had bumped into each other quite a lot.

I asked. "Have you used the caravan much this year?" It was Alice's favourite thing. Packing up during the holidays, and heading for the beach in their caravan. It got her going.

After we finished her description of their last adventure. I stood quickly, and said. "Right, I'm off to find my daughter."

It took me a while, but I finally found Rhian, and Leeza. Cuddled up together up the back of the property laying in the cool grass, under the shade of the twisted old Matai tree. They still had the shared headphones on. Their hands sliding up and down the others body.

"Right, you two. What's going on?"

"Oh shit, Dad." Rhian, gasped as she sat upright in shock. "We were just um, listening to some music."

"Music huh." I glanced at Leeza, who had her hands over her bright red face.

"Leeza, I think Ava's looking for you."

She stood up, dusting off the blades of grass from her jeans. "Okay, I'll go and see what she wants." She said guiltily. "See you in a bit Rhian." She whispered, before wandering of.

I sat down beside Rhian, who was now rocking back and forth. Her knees drawn up under her chin. Her head buried between her knees.