Costumes and Second Chances

Katelynn was suddenly shy, gripping her mom's legs, eyes getting big. She looked up to her mom and then back at the king. "It's okay, babe; I know the king. He's a friend of your mommy's." Kate's face brightened with the reassurance, her worried face sliding into a wide smile as she held up four tiny fingers.

"Wow, you having a good birthday?" Katelynn nodded.

"I like your dress." Louise was speaking to Ellie.

"Thank you, I like yours too. Did you make it?"

Louise nodded vigorously. "With Aunt Michelle."

Mike had intended to just play along for a few minutes, but Katelynn had glommed on to his children as they wandered around to all the fun things the festival had in-store. Ellie stayed by his side, making the rounds with his family and Heather in tow. When they thought they could get away with it, they held hands. This time there was no shying away from discussing their lives.

Epilogue -- Ellie

Sipping on a cup of coffee as she strolled through the house, Ellie stepped over a toy brick invention of some sort that now pervaded her home, likely an own going collaboration between Mikey and his younger sister. El watched the snow slowly building into piles on their back deck as she passed an open window. Her home was warm, beautiful, peaceful, and quiet in the midmorning of a chilly late January day. School was out for a few days for conferences; Grandma and Papa had taken the four grandchildren, as well as Jason and Michelle, on a quick excursion to visit the town where Louise and Mikey had been born. They had a great children's museum that his kids loved and had been telling Kate about for years. Mike and Ellie would have gone along, but they both had at least a day of work that couldn't be skipped.

What had the intention of a long weekend may stretch over a few more days if the winter storm didn't relent. She hoped it would slack before Sunday when they planned to return. More than four days without her kids would be too long. It would be the longest she had been without Katelynn, Mikey, and Louise since their honeymoon. Ellie had managed to complete a project yesterday, so she took a personal day. Mike was planning on joining her, but he had one last video conference to complete before spending the day together. With the snow falling heavily, it was doubtful they would be getting out of the house for a few days. Ellie didn't think that would hurt her feelings at all.

Their early courtship began with a fit of stops and starts. They were both interested but had equally hectic schedules. Ellie was pretty sure she had started loving him seventeen years ago but needed to assure herself that Mike was the man she built up in her mind. They took everything slow, they had gone trick or treating together on Katelynn and Mikey's insistence, but other than that tried to limit doing too much with the kids in case it didn't work out. It would be two months before they were in bed together. They celebrated New Year's Eve with a sultry kiss that was the precursor to fantastic sex against a wall in Cheryl's storage room. Mike could, in fact, hold her up in his strong arms the whole time they fucked without cramping up. Interrupted briefly by Heather and the girl she was dating, she had the same idea.

They didn't have sex in private until the following morning. That broke the dam that had managed to keep them somewhat separate, even though they were both yearning for one another. Her fitness may have suffered for a little while thereafter; she traded the time she partitioned for yoga for sex with Mike. Though they did work up quite the sweat. The weekend after Valentine's Day, they finally couldn't keep a budding relationship from their kids any longer. By summer, her apartment lease was up, and she moved in with Mike in his wonderful new house. They were engaged by the next Harvest Fest and married early the following summer.

Anna, their year and a half old golden retriever, was sacked out on the couch in the front room. Her eyes opened as Ellie walked into the room, her tail thumping the couch cushions like a drum, but she didn't get up. With as much squeaking of her favorite toy she had done last night, she ought to be tuckered out. Maybe I should keep waking you up. The kids picked her name; what else could it be other than their favorite queen. She thought that Anna was a little miffed that her mom kicked her out of the bedroom.

The walls of the hallway were covered with pictures of her and her family and another woman. She could never replace Deborah, nor would she want to rob the two oldest of their dearly departed mother. Ellie was happy to find her slice of perfection. Louise called her bonus mom, which made her smile. Mikey never really knew his mother and now called Ellie mom, which made her a little sad and very happy at the same time.

Mike's voice was booming out from the office in the far corner of the house. He worked from home most days, only occasionally catching a flight to the primary office a couple of times each quarter. Setting his own hours most days meant he could help around the house and with their three munchkins quite often. It did, however, mean he was occasionally beholden to important meetings. He had taken a personal day today as well, but an impromptu meeting with their most important client had him conferencing in for a few hours this morning. His boss was going to refund the whole vacation day for two hours of work.

Mike was an excellent father for Katelynn, a job he took on without question the moment their dating became serious. Todd had never met his flesh and blood, and Mike never missed an important school or social event. Their daddy-daughter dance had been so adorable. Ellie hoped that she was as good to Louise and Mikey as he was to Kate. It wasn't just Mike; his whole family adopted her as their own. His parents were Grandma and Papa to Katelynn. Michelle and Jason were her aunt and uncle; little JJ was her beloved cousin. Louise and Mikey were, no question, her brother and sister. The memory of Mike asking Kate if he could marry her mama before he proposed had an errant, happy tear sliding down her cheek. She insisted that her last name was changed when mama's name was. Fitting as Todd had been nothing more than a sperm donor, even his financial support disappeared. Juan and Heather could reach out to their contacts, but Ellie declined; her family needed nothing to do with that deadbeat liar.

She opened the door to her cosplay studio, office combination. Mike made sure she had a few hours a week without the kids and dog milling about to work on her creations. She could do some sowing while hanging out and having family time, but more intricate work needed time and concentration. He would take them on some fun expeditions, Ellie would return the favor letting him pick up hobbies he had never had time for since Debbie died. She checked on the epoxy she had set on a costume for Louise; it seemed that she would be following the acting path of her father. Ellie had taught Mikey to sow; he was an outdoorsy kid but seemed to be interested in creative pursuits. Katie had a budding interest in all things computer; her dad and Uncle Jason were delighted to teach her a little about what they did.

Michelle, her one-time rival at the annual costume contest, had her own corner of the cosplay space. Each Halloween, they would prepare costumes for their whole combined clan. Using their collective skills had netted a couple of wins in the family contest of the Harvest Fest. Only the adult contest each year was a point of contention. They battled for the podium each year.

Halloween and the Harvest Festival were seminal parts of their year. Not the least important part of which was Katelynn's birthday. It had been when Mike and she had gotten back together. It was also when a lack of communication almost ended everything before it started. That lesson coming so early had been a boon to their romance. The unofficial connected event of the bonfire was equally as important.

It was hard to believe how much had changed in the three years since they had gotten back together. Cheryl and Heather still joined her a few nights of the week for yoga or just some time together, sometimes with all the kids, and other times Juan and Mike would take them.

Heather, the savior of a budding relationship and the impetus to them getting together, was still great with kids, even with the addition of Mikey and Louise. Each year she would insist that Mike and Ellie attend the bonfire. She would even set them up with the same bed as the first time. Sometimes, Heather didn't find another couple to stay with; instead, she shared their bed. It was so much fun that she became a frequent visitor on nights that either of the Grandparents took the kids. That was likely over now as Heather had finally found a fellow nudist that she and Cheryl had money on would be her husband. Her vocal protestations against having her own children were also weakening.

Ellie peeked her head into the room; she knew where Mike had always set up the laptop, so he was facing toward the door, hoping no surprise children or puppies could not walk into the door and into the shot, but she wanted to be extra careful. His dark blue eyes met her instantly as he continued to explain the ins and outs of a new setup for their product; he couldn't help his mouth turning up into a smile as he finished his spiel. The talk had a familiarity of just being his office; the client must have completed their part of the call. Assured that his camera was not pointing toward the door, she stepped into the opening and leaned against the wall as seductively as she could. Her open silk robe was likely aiding her in the exhibition. He gave him the best demure smile she could and pointed at her smartwatch, reminding him that his promised two hours were over. "Do you guys need me for anything else? Ellie is at the door and seems quite insistent that my time is up."

"Why don't you have her say hi? We always love to see Ellie." His kindly, if occasionally grumpy boss asked.

"She's shaking her head no, says she has no makeup on." Mike couldn't help his cocky grin as he drank her in. It wasn't just the makeup that was missing.

"Hi, Frank!" Ellie called out, still unseen.

"That's the best you are going to get, sorry, sir."

"You bring her with you the next time you come to the home office; I'll budget a ticket for her as well."

"Yes, sir. If you'll excuse me, I believe my wife has a busy day planned for me already." Mike signed off and shut down the computer. He had his cellphone if there was an emergency. It had better be multiple servers burning to the ground and taking their designs with them if his two direct reports couldn't handle it. Mike had been promoted to just below the CTO at the company; still, he managed to clear time for his family. Mike worked his forty hours and no more unless there was a true emergency. His family, his children, and his wife were more important than any job. He hustled to the door with excitement in his eyes. "Make coffee?"

"Decaf." She stated before his lips met hers. His hands came behind her to grab her ass. "You did this to me."

"Darn, I think you had a lot to do with it too." He gave her a small, playful, aggravated grunt. It was just something he was going to have to get used to. Although he was rather good at abstaining from alcohol with her, he needed caffeine to function. The most recent bonfire Ellie had come home with a more fantastic present than any before. Come summertime, Mike and Mikey would be further outnumbered. She was three months pregnant with another daughter. They couldn't be happier. "What honey-do list do you have planned for me today?"

So far, this pregnancy had been far smoother than her first. No morning sickness to speak of, with Katie that had been a constant. Ellie hoped that she didn't have a reciprocal relationship with how good a baby she would be. Katelynn had slept through the night nearly immediately. There was one side effect of the pregnancy though, she had been insatiably horny. Her smoothly waxed vulva showed slick evidence of her masturbating while El was waiting for her hubby. She had kicked Anna out of the bedroom to play with her vibe. She hoped to keep the wax sessions going, at least until closer to their daughter's arrival. Ellie had become much more confident in her body since Heather had nearly forced her to get waxed again. She would do almost anything to avoid the meek feeling in the time after Todd and before Mike.

Perhaps the pregnancy couldn't entirely be blamed for the persistent amorous feelings. Both she and Mike had spent nearly a half-decade without sex; now, they were making up for lost time. They had even revisited the site of their first sexual escapades. It was a little sad to find cameras in the pool area, but not the conference room. Over three years in and the sex only seemed to be getting better.

"I think you'll like this one." She leaned in for another kiss. A bedroom needed to be repainted, a crib that needed building, but they still had six months to accomplish that. Her hand reached down to give his cock a squeeze. He was already hard. "No kids, a long weekend, and an empty house; what kind of trouble do you think we can get into?" Ellie set down her coffee and let her robe fall; she turned around and strutted to the kitchen. She could hear Mike's belt hit the floor as he stripped behind her.