Don't Tell Your Dad Ch. 01

This story is based on true events.

Chapter One

Marie waited at the school gates, doing her usual best to ignore the din of conversation between the other parents around her. It had already been a long day, a mad rush to get home from the supermarket with the weekly shopping, giving herself just enough time to throw the tins, cans and packets into their usual places in the cupboards before running back out of the house to begin the next manic stage of her day.

It was early April and the afternoon sun was taking the edge off the spring chill that still remained in the air. She loved this time of year. Marie wasn't a sun-worshipper, owing to her naturally auburn hair and fair complexion, but she didn't like the cold either. The winter - especially the lull after Christmas and New Year - always seemed so long and dreary. But spring brought a change in the weather and always filled her with a sense of hope.

The school pick-up was always the same routine, however. She would drive the mile-and-a-half from their house extra early so she could make sure she got a parking space and would then have to sit there, dumbly scrolling her phone for the next half-hour until it was time for the short walk to the school. All of the other parents would be bustling up to the gate by then, already engaged in conversation, giving each other a review of their day or week so far, their plans for the weekend, their hopes that the kids wouldn't be too tired to function.

Though for Marie, the pick-up always brought an additional challenge compared to most other parents as she and her husband Chris had been blessed with twins. Twice the love and joy, in many ways, but double the challenge in another. They - their son Oliver and daughter Lauren - would often come out of school as polar opposites of each other; Lauren would come out beaming, already yapping on about her day, her backpack neatly on her shoulders, everything packed away where it should be, whilst Oliver would trudge his way out, always at the back of the line, dragging his PE kit back in one hand, the straps trailing the ground whilst his backpack clung for dear life off his shoulders, his coat bunched-up between the straps in disarray.

But this day, she already knew, would be slightly different. They both bounded out together, this time further up the line to ensure a swifter exit, and could not contain their excitement. For today was the last day of term before their two-week Easter break. On top of that, it was their 9^th birthday in a week's time. Oh, and not to mention that their step-brother Nathan was arriving that evening to stay for the holidays!

Marie winced as she remembered that little detail once more. She had kept forgetting about their additional house-guest. Not that she ever had a problem with Nathan at all, the opposite in fact. They had always gotten along famously and the twins adored him, but after such a draining work week, Marie was hoping for a nice quiet break herself. To help manage all of the delirium in the household, Marie had opted to take the first week of the holidays off from work too, with Chris taking the second week. This is how they had always had to work it - sharing the holiday duties - and had rarely been able to book blocks of time off together for a proper family holiday.

She shepherded the chatty twins back to the car, got them to routinely throw their bags in the boot, and within a couple of minutes they were away from the ambush that was the end-of-term kicking-out time and heading home. The twins declared their immediate hunger for a snack as soon as they ran through the front door and then proceeded to rush upstairs, shattering all peace and quiet that had existed beforehand. Listening to her children's shrill voices echo throughout the house though, Marie couldn't help but smile.

*****

Marie had always wanted kids. Amongst other things, she believed that one of her purposes in life was to be a mum. She had met Chris nearly eleven years ago, whilst away on a week-long training course for a job with the NHS. It was an IT skills course which both of their employers had insisted they go on, despite the lack of need in either of their jobs at the time to know much about Excel formulas, pivot tables and the like. Chris worked in a completely different field as she did (he was in a more logistics-based role) and so both of them clicked straight away over their mutual distaste for having to be there. Most of the delegates on the course were staying in the same Holiday Inn just a short drive from the college, so they ended up meeting of an evening for a meal and drinks afterwards. It only took until the second night for them to end up in bed together, after more than a fair share of the bar's supply of Chardonnay.

The sex had been good from the start, both of them feeling the heightened excitement of not yet knowing each other but wanting to explore each other in the most intimate ways. Living only one town and a few miles apart, the affair continued over the coming weeks and soon enough, they both knew they were serious about each other and wanted more. They were engaged within six months and married within the year.

Marie had always known that Chris already had a child - his son Nathan, then seven-years-old - when they met, but that things had gone south with Nathan's mother and they had amicably split when he was only four. Chris and Jennifer had remained good friends, which helped him maintain a lovely relationship with his son. Chris' own parents had split when he was young and the divorce had been messy and, as a result, his relationship with his own father remained strained for many years. Chris vowed he would not let the same thing happen with his own son.

Despite her early anxieties, Marie found that Nathan accepted her like a second mother and for a time he helped fill the void until she fell pregnant in the summer of 2013, just ahead of their second wedding anniversary. A few minor bleeds early on prompted Marie to be seen for early scans which, at seven weeks gone, revealed that they were expecting twins. Oliver and Lauren arrived the following April, a full seven weeks early.

When Nathan knew of his new siblings, he couldn't have been happier. He arranged with his mum to pay extra visits, when possible, to the hospital to see them. Due to their prematurity, the twins spent the first month of their lives in neonatal care, finally going home in the first week of May. Nathan had never missed their birthday since and once he was old enough to make his own arrangements, he told his mum that he would spend the school holidays with them.

Nathan had turned eighteen the previous November and was coming to the end of his college days, looking forward to hopefully starting university that summer. It had been a full six months since his last proper visit and the twins were at fever-pitch awaiting his arrival.

That evening, the peace was shattered once more when their dad returned home, with a fish-and-chip tea and their big brother in tow.

*****

When Marie saw Nathan walk in through the door behind Chris, carrying both of his overnight bags easily in one hand, the first thing she noticed was how much taller he seemed since she last saw him. He was now easily two or three inches taller than Chris, a good half-foot taller than herself. When he reached in and hugged her, she also felt how much firmer not only his grip but his upper body seemed, as she wrapped her arms around his back. He smelled good too. He had obviously reached an age when he was picking his own cologne and wanting to attract the ladies. And with just one whiff of him, she was sure it worked!

"Hey, how are you?" Nathan said as he finally pulled from their embrace.

"I'm really good," Marie replied, "Look at you!" She said no more but his shy grin and momentary look away told her that he knew what she meant.

The twins bounded down the stairs and jumped on him, soon collapsing in fits of giggles as he play-fought them to the kitchen floor. They insisted wildly that they each show him their bedrooms and all of the things they had been up to, and Marie and Chris were left chuckling to each other as the noise travelled with them.

*****

The next couple of hours were a blur as the parents let Nathan fulfil his brotherly duties and entertain the twins, trying in vain to ask him to not wind them up too much before bed. Both of the children chose Nathan as their nominated storyteller for the evening which he jokingly protested about but the sounds coming from upstairs as he travelled from one room to the other to read the next chapter of their storybooks told Marie that he was not-so-secretly loving being back in that role again.

When he finally escaped and was able to re-join the adults downstairs, he was handed a large glass of red wine for his efforts.

'"Thought you could do with that," Chris chuckled as he handed him the glass.

"Yeah right! Thanks Dad. They get lounder and more of a handful every time I see them!" Nathan laughed.

Marie came down the stairs and entered the kitchen, grabbing a glass for herself from the bottle on the side. Nathan noticed that she had had a shower, her hair still a little wet and showing her natural curls. Her hair appeared darker than usual, owing not only to the moisture but also due to the fact that she liked to have it dyed whenever she had it cut. When Nathan commented on it, she told him she had only had it done a few days earlier.

"Ah you shouldn't have gone through that trouble for me!" he teased, sparking a flicker of a smile across Marie's face.

The three of them sat down together and enjoyed the meal Marie had prepared - fillet steak (Chris' favourite) with roasted Mediterranean veg, seasoned potato wedges and pepper sauce - finishing what remained of the first bottle of Malbec. Once he had cleared his plate, Nathan sat back and moaned satisfactorily, rubbing his stomach to signal how much he enjoyed a home-cooked meal.

"That was amazing, thank you!" he said, raising what remained of his glass of wine in Marie's direction. Nathan had always been fond of her cooking. Back at home, his own mum specialised in microwave meals, bottled sauces and boil-in-the-bag rice. Marie's cooking was only one of the reasons why he often could not wait to get back to Devon to visit his other family.

Marie loved to mother him too, always had done. But there was always something a little more playful about their relationship, almost like the pressure of her not being his birth-mum had allowed them to be almost like friends. Of course, there had been times when he was younger that she did have to play the role of Mum properly, for she still wanted to him respect and see her as an extension of his Dad whenever he visited them, but they would often tease each other by making fun of little things they had said or done, more at times like brother and sister.

Nathan found himself trying to steal glances at Marie across the table during the meal, more than was usual. There was something about her that made him feel different in some way. She caught his eye a few times, smiling whenever she did, but he started to wonder if he could sense more of a lingering glance as the night wore on. To tell the truth, Marie felt something was different too. She put it down to the wine and the relaxed atmosphere that had finally descended on her home after such a torrid week.

After Nathan complimented the meal, Marie nodded her thanks, clinked his now-empty glass and made to leave the table. "You wait until you see what's for afters," she replied, trailing a hand lightly over his shoulder as she crossed to the fridge. Her touch sent a shiver through him, one he couldn't ignore. He looked back and watched her as she opened the fridge. Nathan found himself looking at her form from behind, noticing for the first time how motherhood had changed her body shape slightly, but also how much he thought it suited her.

Marie had always been very self-conscious of her appearance and much of her years with Chris had seen him convince her how beautiful she was. But until she saw it for herself, he knew he was on the losing end of a very long battle. She would always say that until she was back looking like she was when she first met him - a UK size eight and eight-and-a-half stone - she wouldn't feel comfortable.

She had always been "cursed", in her words, with a pear-shaped body; her breasts had always been on the smaller size, outweighed by her larger bottom. Since carrying and birthing twins, her hips had widened slightly and due to her caesarean-section, and the subsequent cutting of her stomach muscles, she was left with the usual pouch of 'mummy-fat' just above her groin. But at only a month away from her fortieth birthday, Nathan (and his Dad) both thought she looked incredible, like a real woman should.

In those few lingering moments he looked at her, Nathan saw how her shirt had risen up slightly as she reach to a higher shelf in the fridge, showing the small of her back. She had a cute 'angel Eeyore' tattoo on the right side. His breath caught for a moment as he remembered how her back curved seductively as it met the heavenly curve of her bottom.

Realising he was fixating on his step-mother's rump, he flickered his eyes from side-to-side quickly as to dispel the image from his mind. Marie turned around to show him the surprise that she had in store; a large family-size Black Forest gateau, Nathan's favourite!

"Ah no way, thanks Me!" he beamed, moving aside to let her place the dessert on the table. He had never called her Mum, which all had agreed was fine. Neither Chris nor Marie wanted any confusion in Nathan's life by having two mums, so he adopted the same nickname his Dad had for as long as he'd known her, a simple shortening of her name.

Marie squeezed Nathan closer in a quick hug as, again, she accepted his compliments on the food. Chris busied himself with popping the cork on the second bottle of wine, leaving Nathan and Marie at the table for a few moments to catch one more treasured glance at each other. For a moment, Nathan swore Marie had looked up again as he lowered his eyes.

*****

Once dessert was devoured, the men cleared the table and took care of the washing-up as Marie retired upstairs to the lounge, collapsing into her usual spot on the reclining three-seat sofa, clutching her now-full glass of wine. She sipped and enjoyed the quiet for a while, listening to the boys chattering downstairs. For the first time all week, she was very relaxed and contented. She reclined her seat and took another swig of wine. The liquid soothed her and was something she always looked forward to at the end of the week. They'd made sure to get in extra bottles for this weekend, knowing that Nathan was now enjoying something other than just water and juice.

She closed her eyes for a moment and her thoughts returned to dinner. Images of the banter, the laughter, the good food and...

No, you must stop thinking about him in that way.

She caught herself for a moment before her thoughts lingered on the silly notion that maybe - just maybe - Nathan had been looking at her differently since he arrived. He had certainly grown up in the months since she had last seen him. The feel of his firm arms and shoulders as he hugged her came flooding back. That was definitely different! He knew from Chris' conversations with him that he'd been attending the gym regularly since last summer and it was definitely paying off. Chris had never had what could be called an athletic body. He was slim, sure, and had been dangerously slender when she had met him. But over the years since the twins had arrived, both Marie and her husband had relaxed into parenthood a little more than either was comfortable with and had become a little softer around the edges. Thinking for a moment at how Nathan's body was obviously developing, she found herself jealous of his youth, missing the days when her own body may have been that supple.

Marie's thoughts were chased away by the enhancing volume of chatter and footsteps as Nathan and Chris returned from their clear-up duties and joined her in the lounge.

"No sign of either of them this evening, I take it?" Chris asked, taking his seat on the other end of the recliner sofa. Over the last several months, the twins had resorted to finding absolutely any reason to come down after being put back to bed, excuses ranging from needing the toilet (despite passing two bathrooms on the way down to the lounge) and needing a plaster to stop a spot hurting. Marie had half-expected them to be more trouble tonight due to their over-excitement at Nathan's return.

"Not a peep so far," Marie replied, "although if there is, I believe it's your turn tonight, dear." She grinned and stuck her tongue out at him, playfully.

"Yeah, thanks for that!" Chris replied, throwing the TV remote control over to his son. "Here mate, your choice tonight."

"Jeez, thanks Dad," came the slightly sarcastic reply, "What are we all in the mood for?"

After a bit of back-and-forth, they decided on a monster horror film which none of them had seen before, or could recall. The next two hours passed by with more chatter than watching as the movie played out on screen and several more glasses of wine were consumed. It was at this point that Marie was aware of the usual effects of the alcohol, as she started talking louder and freer, enjoying the slight dizziness every now and then as any worries that had plagued her that week all slowly melted away.

She also found that she was watching her step-son more than she was watching the TV and was more convinced than ever that he was reciprocating.

And then, only ten minutes into the Saturday night gameshow they all decided was worth a punt, came the inevitable.

"Chriiiiiiis!" she moaned. "Wake up!"

Marie had looked over to find her husband in the usual Saturday night position of empty glass in hand, mouth slightly open and eyes firmly closed. He had a terrible habit of falling asleep during their weekend evenings, often cutting their fun short.

At the drone of her voice, Chris awakened and denied vehemently that his eyes were even closed. Marie looked at her watch and was shocked to find it was already 10:30pm. Her stomach dropped a little as she realised that the evening was almost over.

"Go to bed if you need to, love. Remember you're at work tomorrow," she told him.

Chris groaned as the realisation hit him once more that it was his weekend on call and he was required in the Bridgwater office - an hour's drive away - at 8am the next morning. "Ah bollocks," he moaned, "I suppose I had better do."

Chris wearily rose from his seat, still holding his empty wine glass, and bent to kiss his wife goodnight. He then shook his son's hand, followed by a manly hug-and-back-slap.

"Great to have you back, son. Don't you two stay up too late!" he chuckled as he left the room, stomping lightly down the stairs to return his glass to the sideboard, poking his head into the lounge once more to say a further 'goodnight' as he returned upstairs before taking the next flight of steps to the top floor to bed.

For a moment, Marie and Nathan sat quietly, both of their gazes fixed to the TV but actually neither properly watching what was going on. Marie was listening to hear the final footsteps to tell her that Chris was upstairs. Their master bedroom was directly above the lounge and she could always hear if anyone was moving up there, so could tell when he had entered to en-suite to complete the last of his nightly routine.

For a moment, for some reason, she felt nervous. She had no idea why, for she had been left alone in Nathan's presence so, so many times over the past eleven years, but again something felt different. She continued to pretend she was watching TV but could feel his eyes on her and tried her best to ignore it. But she could feel those good chills again, the fuzziness in her belly, as she kept thinking about it.