Babysitter, Nanny, Friend ...

Isla was sitting on the couch near to Sandra, her mother, chatting. Charlotte was sitting on the floor in front of them and Isla was brushing her long dark hair. She'd be starting school in September; it was hard to believe that she was five. Isla had carried one of my eggs, so she was truly ours and although it was early days it seemed likely that she'd look a bit like me. Charlotte was shyer than Grace, but they were almost always together and they both giggled a lot, just like Oliver had. Isla looked over at me and smiled. It set my pulse racing as it had done for years now, then she winked and I knew that she had some ideas for us later. I'd always thought that she was very attractive, but now, in her early thirties, she'd grown into a stunning woman, a head turner and she was mine, all mine, well, apart from the fact that I had to share her with Oliver, Grace and Charlotte, but that was okay.

Sandra saw the look on her daughters face; she smiled and shook her head gently. It had been wonderful to have her as a part of our family, she was a loving, kind grandmother, but she could be strict when the need arose. Somewhat different from Mike's Mum, who hadn't been around for a couple of years now.

Grace checked the time again and then a smile broke out as she saw Oliver coming down the path after his driving lesson. Oliver would be eighteen in a few weeks and then he'll be off to University. He looked very much like his father, who'd sadly died before Oliver had reached his second birthday. I'll miss him a great deal, so will his sisters, but I suspect that Isla will take it worse than the rest of us, they were close, very close and they had been for almost all of his life.

He bustled through the door and scooped Grace up into his arms. They smiled at each other and exchanged kisses. "Well, birthday girl are you all set?"

"Yes, they'll be here soon. How was your lesson? Will you take me out for a drive when you pass your test?"

"If I can borrow the car, you and Charlie will be my first passengers." Charlotte went over to Oliver and slapped his leg.

"I'd like to go with you, but my name is not Charlie!" She scowled at him.

The next thing Oliver grabbed her and spun her upside down. She screamed, "Put me down, put me down, you can call me Charlie if you like."

He put her back down and the three of them hugged. "Love you both, now I'm going to set up the music." He'd agreed to act as DJ so that girls would be able to dance and I suspect that Grace was going to enjoy showing her big brother off.

Isla came over to me and smiled. "They're lovely kids aren't they?"

"They should be, their mother is a magician."

Sandra joined in, "Both of their mothers are wonderful and you should both be proud of them."

"Well, we had help from a pretty good Grandmother too."

Grace screeched as the doorbell rang and she hurried away to answer it. I went along to check on things and speak to one of the girls Mum's to confirm what time to collect them. Just as she was heading off another two girls arrived. Grace escorted her guests into the garden and introduced them to Oliver. He was crouched down and Grace was glowing with pride. Soon all eight girls were here and the dancing had started. I stood with Sandra watching Grace and her friends.

"How quickly she's grown up. I'd never really thought much about grandkids, but now I have three of the nicest, thank you for that."

"They're good and I suspect that your daughter deserves most of the credit. She'll be lost when Charlotte starts school and Oliver goes away."

"She will, but she's going to help you isn't she?"

"Yes. She's going to do a few hours each week and she should have more time to write. But she wants to be there for the girls and me."

"She adores you, and I see how you look at her, how you feel. The two of you are good together and I saw the look she gave you, so I can guess what that means." I blushed a little.

Charlotte tugged my skirt whilst still holding Isla's hand, "Mum, why are you going red?"

"It's just a little warm honey." I thought Isla would burst into laughter, but she managed to control herself and just giggled softly.

"Oh Mum, I forgot to tell you, the publishers confirmed my book launch for November."

"That's great and I'm very proud of you."

"It's exciting, but I need to finish the follow-up. And now, it's time to get the food set up. Charlotte, why don't you go and see if Oliver wants a drink and maybe you could help him." She dashed off smiling; she thought that her big brother was a superhero.

I was devastated when Mike went, but here we are sixteen years on. I have a wife who I adore, who feels the same about me, three wonderful children, good health and we have money. I'm lucky, very lucky.

The end

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