The Landlord's Protégé Pt. 05

"Victor?" Ian asked, just curious. Susan felt fear.

"He's a very good friend," she said. "He lives in the penthouse at the top of these flats. I keep his place clean and tidy and he looks after the children if I have to handle an emergency. The children love him; he's very good with them."

"I remember," Ian said. "Isn't he the guy that Seth tried to frame? Planted some evidence against him? Porn, wasn't it?"

"Yes, Seth thought Victor was my boyfriend. He's in his mid-forties."

"Katy said he was freeloading on you, and--"

"Victor?" Susan squeaked, astounded.

"No, Seth. And he insulted Victor and Victor got him kicked out?"

"That's right. Seth took some mates to do Victor over and Victor and some army friends destroyed him."

So ended the topic.

That evening, Susan knew Ian was going to want to talk about their relationship, and she felt uncomfortable at the prospect, worrying that Victor was going to figure in the discussion, but he waited until they had made love and were lying relaxed together.

"Susan," he began.

"Will I come home?" she preempted him, with a smile,as she looked across at him.

He smiled back. "You were always the love of my life," he said quietly, "now you've come back into my life, I don't want to let you go. I want to be with you all the time. We are good together, aren't we?"

She nodded.

"And I'm good with the children, aren't I?"

Again a nod and a smile from her.

"So?"

Her smile went, replaced by a thoughtful look.

"Ian darling," she said, "you're being very patient, and I'm really grateful. It's just a little quick for me. It's only a year since I was nearly homeless and had no confidence. I've come a long way in a short time.

"I'm loving the power my job gives me, and the self-confidence. I'm a success and can give my children what they need, but I've told you that already. It's hard for me to give it up, especially after being so dependent on Seth. I was housebound and had no financial freedom."

"But I-- "

"I know, Ian, you'd be different, but I need to feel sure. I need to feel at ease about letting it all go. I can't commit to you until I feel ready. I had a bad time with Seth; it'll take time to get over it."

"Yes, I understand," Ian said with resignation, and it showed. "But it's not easy for me, you know. You said you'd come home regularly, but you didn't. I miss you when you don't come home."

"OK," said Susan, feeling relief that she didn't need to bring Victor into the discussion. "It's a long way with two small children in the car, and even longer on the train. I'll come down to you every six weeks at weekends, and you can come up here every six weeks, so we'll see each other every three weeks, and we can phone each other in between. How's that?"

She wondered how she would explain him to Victor, but sooner or later she would have to decide between the two of them, and perhaps this would force her hand.

"So when do we start?" he asked.

"It's Katy's birthday in two weeks," she said. "I'll definitely come down for that, and we can go from there. Shall I stay with you that weekend? I promise you it won't be for ever before I make up my mind. I just need time to do it finally."

He looked mollified and there they left it.

After he had gone, she wondered how she would ever approach Victor and Ian and tell them the truth, and how long this could go on. She did not know it was already out of her hands.

----

Chapter Twenty Four

it was the week before Ian came to visit when Victor had been sitting in his living room at the house most of the afternoon looking out onto a sunny garden, weighing the situation between Susan and himself.

It was time, Victor decided.

It had been four months since that moment when they had made love for the first time, and so successfully. It began with mutual forgiveness and was born of love, of that he was sure, but since then they had settled into a loving relationship. He was sure of that as well. Was she really in love with him, was he with her?

He thought back to that first meeting. He had been entranced by her. Yes, she was a very attractive woman, but it was her vulnerability that entrapped him. After that it was her capability and her fortitude.

So it was time. When she came to stay on the Wednesday, he was about to ask her to sit down and talk about their future. He needed to know. It was unusual for him to need to know where he stood with a woman; normally he kept emotionally aloof, while being kind and loving to the women he knew.

He always allowed them to go their way. His early commitment to his ex-wife and its disastrous ending had kept him so, but now he had fallen again, and he needed to know. This time he wanted this woman even though she was so much younger than him. This time it did not seem to matter. He hoped not.

He was about to broach the subject when she told him about her forthcoming weekend. It put him off. There would be time after her visitor had left.

He thought no more about it until the Friday afternoon when he realised he had not got the little treats the children liked, and went out to get them. On the way to his car he saw another car driving into the car park, it was an upmarket BMW, one he did not know.

He wondered who it was and which flat the driver wanted. He sat in his car and watched. The man rang the bell at the entrance and Susan came out. He watched the man drop his bags, he saw Susan throw her arms round his neck and he saw their prolonged kiss. He saw them go into her flat. He saw the door close behind them.

It did not bother him; this was her visitor from home. It was only after he had driven for some minutes that he began to feel something was amiss. It was not the greeting. Then he remembered. He had assumed it was a woman who was coming, but she had not corrected him. Why?

There was a sinking feeling. Why would she want to conceal the sex of her visitor? He felt let down by her. He had thought she was committed to him and him alone. Had he assumed too much? Or perhaps she hadn't paid attention to what he'd said.

He corrected himself immediately. He had learned in his army life and since then in business not to jump to conclusions. His training kicked in; he would give her a simple test.

He did not try to contact her on the following Monday. On Tuesday morning she came to his door and he invited her in for coffee. Gail was at nursery and Carl, who only went to day nursery twice a week, played happily with Victor's collection of toys.

"Good weekend?" he asked.

"Yes," she said. "We caught up on things; took the children to the coast."

"I bet your girlfriend was impressed with your job," he said disingenuously. "Did you take her round the various blocks."

She was caught, but once again she could not face the consequences of telling him the truth. She ignored the mistake she thought he had made.

"No," she said, "but I showed her the office and explained the supervision. We went to the coast on Saturday. We missed the rain."

"Well, I'm glad you had a good time," said Victor. His face betrayed none of the feelings welling up inside him.

They chatted about other things then, until it was time for her to get back to work. She hugged and kissed him, and he was just able to return the semblance of affection.

When she had gone he sat down heavily and gazed out of the window over the tops of the houses in the estates below. After a while he gathered his thoughts. She had lied to him, and that showed there was more to her relationship with the male visitor than mere friendship, or she would have introduced him and invited him to join them for part of the time.

So it appeared she was using Victor, and had another lover. From what he had seen of the young man, he was about her age, and was well placed enough to drive a high range BMW.

A wave of sadness came over him. It seemed he would never be successful in relationships. He berated himself for ever thinking that a young woman like Susan could make anything permanent with a middle-aged man like him.

Then he felt annoyance which rapidly developed into anger at her for her deception. Why couldn't she just say that she had found someone nearer her own age? Then he wondered how long she had been seeing the man. He realised she had not been back home very often. Perhaps it was a recent thing. It did not really matter though. She should have finished the sexual aspect of their relationship when she found her new man.

He wondered with resentment how long she would have continued using him for comfort and sexual relief before handing in her resignation and returning to her roots.

He shrugged, thinking it was not the first time he was left alone; he was used to it. However, he knew deep down that he had fallen for Susan and the thought of the future without her was now one of loneliness and bleakness.

Then he made a resolution. Two things would happen. He would cut himself off from her immediately. He would make up a job away from home, and close up the flat.

He knew she would have to inform George when she went away, and George would tell him. Then he would take the invitation to visit the family and Susan. He would confront her with what she had done and finally finish contact with her.

He felt sad at losing contact with the children, but it could not be helped. In any case, she would go south and the children would be gone as well. Better that way.

He lost no time in packing. It took him the rest of the morning and early afternoon. He knew Susan would be away until the evening from what she had told him over coffee. He loaded the car and wrote a brief and rather terse note to her.

Dear Susan A job has come up which will take me away for some time. I've closed up the flat, so don't bother cleaning. I've no idea when I'll be back. Your friend, Victor.

He left the building and called in on George. He explained the situation, and received an assurance of his help.

"Seems your life is full of setbacks with that one," said George. "Probably better off without her."

Victor nodded and smiled, but he felt no satisfaction at the thought.

He went to the house, and from there he phoned round his friends from the army and made arrangements to go visiting. The weather was warming and it would be a holiday for him. A tour of Britain!

A fortnight later he was staying with Gary and Judy in London when Gordon phoned him.

"Susan is going back home next weekend. She goes down on Friday morning and returns on Sunday. Good luck!"

"Thanks Gordon, but I don't think luck will have much to do with it."

He decided to arrive mid-morning on Sunday, since he would be on his way home then in any case.

It was eleven when he knocked at the door of the large detached house where Barry and Lucy Clemson lived.

A young woman answered the door. "Yes?"

"Hello," said Victor. "I'm Victor Freeman. I'm on my way home and thought I'd drop in on you since I believe Susan is here."

"You're Victor?" she looked happy to see him. She was as pretty as Susan.

"I'm Katy, Susan's sister. Come in, come in!"

She preceded him down the hallway, calling out as she went, "Aunty Lucy, Uncle Barry, look who's here!" and she led him into what was obviously the living room.

Barry Clemson, tall and a little overweight, white haired, stood and grasped his hand.

"Major Freeman!" he said. "We're so pleased to meet you."

Lucy Clemson offered her hand in her turn. Katy went off to pour another coffee, since the family were already furnished with mugs of the beverage.

"I was on my way home from an appointment with the MoD," lied Victor. "I knew Susan was here, and I don't know if she has her car or not. If not I could give her a lift back."

"She's got her car," said Katy, "Shame you couldn't be here yesterday. It was my birthday party."

Victor wished her happy birthday. She coloured and thanked him.

"But Susan isn't here," said Lucy. "She and the children are staying with her boyfriend. But you'll have met him -- he visited her a couple of weeks ago -- Ian?"

Out of the corner of his eye he could see Katy shaking her head in warning to her aunt.

"Oh," said Victor. "No I didn't meet him. I thought it was a girlfriend of Susan's who visited? She said it was."

There was a stunned silence. Then Lucy ventured, "Probably a slip of the tongue, I'm sure it was Ian. He was here with her yesterday for the party. A very nice young man."

Barry rapidly changed the subject having seen Katy's discomfiture, asking Victor about his army experience, and the atmosphere lightened.

After what Victor considered to be a reasonable time, he stood.

"I'd better be on my way," he said. "I'm very glad I've met you at last."

Katy accompanied him to the door and then to his car.

"I'm so sorry Victor," she said.

Both knew what she was sorry for, and he knew she was aware of the situation.

"Not your fault, Katy," he said, facing her. "I would have expected, given how close we've become, that she would have told me, and not lied about the 'girlfriend'. Tell her I hope she'll be happy with him."

"Victor--"

"No, Katy," he told her. "There's nothing more to say. She lied to me. I thought I deserved a little more. Perhaps her protestations of love were more lies."

She impulsively hugged him, and kissed his cheek.

"You're wrong, Victor," she said. "She didn't lie, not about loving you. She does. She loves Ian as well. She just couldn't decide..."

"Well, the decisions been made for her now, hasn't it?"

"I'm so sorry," she said.

He just smiled at her. Then got into his car and drove away.

----

Chapter Twenty Five

Susan felt very guilty, and rightly so, she thought. She had lied outright to Victor who had been so good to her, and with whom she was to all intents and purposes living. It was a heavy weight on her conscience. She resolved to go back that evening and confess everything.

However, when she arrived home with the children from Gail's nursery that evening, there was the note. He was gone beyond her reach and she could not put things right. She looked again at the note. Not, 'Dearest Susan' and not 'All my love'. The note was brief and rather formal. She felt fear. Did he already know?

A fortnight later, she was on her way back to the family, ready to spend a weekend at Ian's house. She was happy to be able to celebrate Katy's birthday, but there was a sense of foreboding. She was definitely going to tell Ian the true situation. If he threw her out, she would go back to Victor. She was not sure if she would confess to him as well.

She reckoned without an evening out, the family party and having children about the place.

She called at her Aunt's house and Katy was there. The children were entertained while she took Katy upstairs and told her everything that she had done and what had happened.

"You're a bloody fool!" was Katy's response. "You're sleeping with two men? And neither knows of the other? One of them is going to find out and then you'll be toast. Why, Susan?"

"Well, you know about Ian. You practically pushed me onto him, and it was lovely to see him. I hadn't had a man for ages and I wanted him. And he was so good to me, and we met again during the Christmas holidays but you know all that.

"Then when I went home I made my peace with Victor. He forgave me, and he was gentle and I wanted to show him how much I loved him. I made the running.

"At the time I hadn't made any commitment to Ian beyond emails, and thanks to my server junking his mails I thought he had thought better of it, and Victor was the whole package -- he's considerate, loving, caring and he's a superb lover.

"That's why I didn't even think about Ian when Uncle Barry had the stroke. Then I felt guilty when he texted me saying he was upset I didn't see him.

"I don't know why I didn't tell you about Victor when I came for the long weekend, and again you pushed me to Ian. And he was so loving as well, so I went with him. I felt really guilty.

"I told Ian my life was with my job, but he wanted me to give it up and come back home and live with him. I didn't want to cut him off completely, so I asked for time.

"Katy, I love them both in different ways. They are both loveable men. Victor is so relaxed and cares so much for me. Ian is really intense and that turns me on, and he loves the kids. I don't know what to do. I don't want to give up my job, but apart from Victor I hardly know anyone there."

"Victor is older, isn't he?" said Katy. "I mean, quite a bit older."

"He's in his mid to late forties," Susan replied, "but he's very -- vigorous." She grinned.

Katy laughed, then became serious. "That's a big age difference," she said. "When you get to his present age he'll be sixty going on seventy."

"My problem with Ian," Susan said, "is that I had enough of being dependent on a man with Seth. I had no power in the relationship; no money of my own. Now I'm independent and in charge of my life. I don't want to go back to relying on a man, and I'll never get a job like mine back here."

"Hmm," Katy mused. "Tricky. But, Susan, you'll have to decide and very soon. This can't go on, or you'll end up losing both of them. Anyway, there's a meeting of our friends at the pub tonight -- the ones who aren't invited to the 'do' tomorrow."

Susan continued her journey and arrived at Ian's house in the evening. Then there was unpacking, sorting the children out, getting some dinner and then the rigmarole of putting the children to bed.

No sooner had that been accomplished than Lucy arrived to babysit while they joined Katy for the evening get-together of friends. They returned home rather the worse for drink, thanked Lucy and fell into bed. The next morning they were off to prepare for the family party. Another late night and some sleepy love making, before being woken by the children on Sunday morning. Ian and she hardly spoke a word to each other the whole weekend.

Ian said a much as they hugged goodbye. "We never got a chance to talk at all!" he complained.

"I know," she sympathised, "but that's what family life is like. I'll come back soon and we'll talk then."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

She took the children to her uncle and aunt's house, to say goodbye. They ran into the house and she followed, sitting down with her aunt.

"Oh, what a shame!" Lucy said eagerly. "You missed him!"

"Missed who?" she asked

"Major Freeman," said Harry. "He called in on the way back from some meeting."

"Victor?" she said wonderingly.

"He wondered if you might need a lift," Lucy said. "I told him you had your car and you and the children were staying with Ian for the weekend. He didn't know Ian came to visit you, you know."

Susan's spirits dropped through the floor. At the same moment, Katy came down the stairs, took one look at Susan's face and took her away to her bedroom.

"Well," said Katy, flopping down on the bed, "It's shit and fan time, sister dear. Aunt Lucy was blissfully unaware of what she was saying. She told him you were staying with Ian, that Ian was your boyfriend, and that he came to visit you.

"Victor was surprised and said he thought you said it was a girlfriend. From then it was too late to rescue things. Aunt Lucy said it must have been a slip of the tongue on your part, but I could see that Victor knew it wasn't.

"I went with him to his car. He said basically you two are finished and he hoped you'd be happy with Ian. He said you'd lied to him and he thought you were better than that. He said you were both so close. He's angry and very hurt, Sis. I think you've lost him as a friend as well; I don't think he's the type to forgive an outright lie."

Susan sat with her head in her hands. She felt hopeless and afraid. How could she face him after what she'd done? Nevertheless, she knew she would have to see him and explain, even if he rejected her.