The Switch Ch. 07

Aimee sat in the doctor's office anxiously. She knew something was wrong from the expression on the doctor's face, and his reluctance to actually commence the appointment.

'I don't have a STD do I?' she asked anxiously.

'No, no,' he reassured her. 'That's all clear.'

'So, um, everything's good?'

'No. Your pap smear revealed a high level abnormality. When was your last smear before this one?'

'Um, when I was pregnant with my son,' she admitted.

'Was it normal?'

'Um, no, but I was told it was probably due to a HPV infection. I was a virgin when I met my husband, but he wasn't a virgin. He was two years older than me...' she trailed off.

He nodded. 'Okay. Well, I'm going to refer you to a colposcopy. I've called ahead, and they can fit you in the day after Boxing Day, if that suits you.'

The day after Bella was due to arrive. She was supposed to be working that day.

'Can I organise it for another day?' she asked.

'You can, but I wouldn't delay it. Chances are it's not cancer, but surely you want to put your mind at rest?'

She laughed nervously. 'Are you kidding? It took me over nine year to come back for a pap smear. The only reason I asked for it was because my boyfriend told me to.'

'In which case, ring and confirm for the day after Boxing Day.'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Christmas had passed, Bella had arrived, and Val had spent the day with both Bella and Ben. Aimee had had to go to work, so the three of them had driven to the Gold Coast. They'd gone swimming, eaten McDonalds for lunch, played in the arcade, eaten fairy floss, then headed home.

It had been a long day. A good day. Val finished sweeping the kitchen floor, put the broom back beside the fridge, and went to the living room. He stood in the doorway, watching Aimee and the kids. The three of them were talking about Val's parent's house, and eating m&m's.

He'd wanted this - a family - for so long. He liked the noise and the laughter and the mess and the sense of purpose. He enjoyed listening to the kids bicker and giggle. Bella was enjoying her time up in Toowoomba so much more now that Ben was around, and that made him feel not jealous, but relieved.

He'd never forgive Kylie for not telling him she was pregnant with his child. What selfish, stupid, idiotic part of her had thought that was acceptable? Most people thought the worst part of it was that she'd decided, two years into Bella's life, that she needed his money. Val disagreed. The financial side didn't bother him. He knew he shouldn't have relied on her claims that she was on the pill, and at any rate, he should have used a condom. He'd had a lot of unprotected sex in his early twenties. God knows how he hadn't picked up a STD. But he hadn't; his results were in, he was clear.

The worst part was missing out on the first thirty-one months of Bella's life. He could remember meeting her for the first time like it was yesterday. His mother had come with him. She, too, had been in shock at the news Valery was a father, but unlike him, she was confident around young children.

The two of them had arrived at Kylie's house on a Saturday morning. He'd been so nervous. A kid. A daughter. It had seemed so surreal. And, rather than being interested in the strange Russian couple who'd arrived at her house, Bella had been scared. She'd sat in her mother's lap, barely glancing at them, until a good hour had passed. Only then had she ventured closer to Val and Yuliya.

It had taken Bella years to become used to Val. He'd had to visit her at her mother's house - which later became her mother and stepfather's house - because she was so wary around him. She was nearly four before he was trusted to look after her for a full day, and six before he was allowed to have her sleep over at his hotel room.

Val grieved the lack of contact with his daughter. He was working with some dead beat arsehole at the time, a guy who couldn't be stuffed doing fortnightly visitation with his kids, and he'd been blinded by his rage towards the man. How could he give up on his kids? Didn't he know how lucky he was, to have been the one to bring them home from hospital, watch their first steps, and take them to their first day of school?

Val had none of that. He'd had a daughter who lived interstate, called him by his first name, and referred to her stepfather as 'Dad'. He was angry. He still was angry, a fact that wasn't helped by Kylie intermittently suggesting that he use the cash he was spending on travel directly on his daughter. The implication was clear; your presence isn't as valuable as your money.

Things between him and Kylie had improved these days, but he was still slightly perturbed by the conversation they'd had last night. Kylie had suggested a change to their custody arrangement. Unlike other suggestions she'd made, this one actually seemed to have both his and Bella's needs at the forefront, but he was still worried about it. He'd have to talk to Aimee about it.

Val walked in and took a seat next to Aimee. She glanced over and smiled at him in the glow of the television. He kissed her freckled nose and wondered how it was possible to love someone so much.

'Want an m&m?' she whispered, offering him the bag.

He grabbed a handful. 'Thanks.'

She leant into him, and he wrapped his arm around her. It felt nice. It was also the first time they'd touched in front of the kids, and it didn't go unnoticed.

'You didn't tell Mum she was your girlfriend!' Bella hissed accusingly.

Ben turned around stared at Val and Aimee. His hazel eyes appraised them carefully, before settling on his mother in a wary, questioning way.

Oh shit. He'd just assumed the kids would have realised he and Aimee were more than friends. Linda's daughters certainly didn't need to be told who he was. In fact, the middle daughter, Anika, had rolled her eyes when they were introduced and made some comment about his age. Ben and Bella, however, seemed too have miss all the clues.

'Well?' Bella demanded. 'Is she going to be sleeping in your bed tonight, or is she actually just a friend?'

'Woah, settle down,' he replied. 'She's my girlfriend. I'm sorry I didn't tell you.'

He was surprised by how angry she was. She was almost treating it as if he'd betrayed her by not telling her. Ben, on the other hand, was taking it all in his stride.

'Cool,' Ben said. He turned to Bella. 'So I guess that makes you my stepsister. I'd rather a brother, but you're pretty cool.'

Bella sighed heavily. 'Aren't you mad that they lied to us?'

Ben considered the question. After a pause he replied. 'Nope. Where are the m&m's?'

Valery stood up and gestured for Bella to follow him. She gave him a withering look, but she got up all the same, and followed him into the kitchen.

She looked a lot like him; pale skin, blue eyes and dark hair. Tall. Solidly built. It was so odd seeing his features reflected back at him, and even weirder when he realised that he, too, would have felt betrayed if he was standing in her shoes.

'I'm sorry,' he repeated. 'Bella, I meant to tell you. There was just never a right time. I thought maybe... you'd just figure it out.'

Her face twisted into a grimace. 'Val, I see you for two weeks a year. Every time I come here, you expect me to know what you're doing. How was I to know you were dating Aimee? You said we were taking Ben with us because his Mum was working.'

Valery tried to think of what he should say or do. At work, he had no troubles dealing with angry or frustrated people, but his private life was very, very different. The more he cared, the less capable he was of voicing his feelings.

'I hate you!' Bella snapped, her eyes narrowing. 'I hate you. I'm calling Mum. I want to go home.'

She ran off to her room and slammed the door behind her. Fuck. Oh dear fucking God. What was he supposed to do now? It had just escalated so quickly that he was left standing, like an idiot, trying to figure out what to do.

Aimee poked her head in the kitchen. 'Is everything okay?'

'No. Bella hates me. She said she's calling her mother and organising to go home.'

'You'd better speak to her.'

'I'm not sure she wants me to,' he admitted.

'She does,' Aimee said. 'She just wants to make sure you still love her.'

'I don't think so. I'm not really anything to her.'

Aimee gave him a hard look. 'You're her father.'

Valery didn't want to argue. 'Okay,' he said. 'I'll speak to her.'

He went to Bella's room and knocked on the door. There was no answer. He knocked again.

'Bella?' he asked cautiously.

'What?'

'Can I come in?'

There was a loud and pointed sigh, followed by 'Whatever'.

He slipped into the room. It was the same lurid pink as the outside of the house, and the carpet was the same beige and orange shagpile that was in the lounge. Her bed was newer, and he'd tried to find bedding he thought she might like, but as she sat on the bed, facing the wall, he thought that perhaps the dark-haired, green-eyed angel motif might be a little too grown up for her. She was still such a young kid.

Val sat on the edge of the bed, feeling it sag under his weight. Bella was facing the wall, arms and legs crossed. Her phone was sitting in her lap.

'Did you manage to call your Mum?' he asked.

She shook her head. 'No. Unfortunately you're going to be stuck with me, and I'm going to be stuck with you, until she answers her phone and we can sort something out.'

'Well, you might not like being stuck with me, but I like being stuck with you,' he offered.

She didn't respond. Val stared at the walls and prayed his daughter would respond. She didn't. Thankfully, Itty Bitty, his sweet tortoiseshell girl squeezed into the room and jumped up on the bed. Valery picked her up used her paw to stroke Bella's hair.

'I love you Bella, don't go,' he said, trying his best to sound like a cat.

Bella's shoulders shook as she tried not to laugh. 'You have so many dumb cats.'

'I'm not dumb,' Valery said, smacking Itty Bitty's paw against his daughter's head. 'You mean girl.'

'Valery! Stop it.'

He put Itty Bitty down on the bed. The cat judged this to be her best chance at escaping her lunatic owner, and bolted out the door.

'You're so stupid,' Bella muttered. 'She's going to be just like Linda.'

'Who, Aimee?' Val asked.

'Who else? Of course I mean Aimee. She's going to be nice this year, and each year she's going to get meaner and meaner.'

Linda had been a bitch to Bella. No matter how much Val tried to intervene, she always managed to rummage up some reason to punish the child. Linda had hated Bella. She'd made digs about the amount of money Valery paid in child support, and how inconvenient it was that he disappeared once a month to fly to Melbourne and visit her, and whenever Valery had issues with Kylie, Linda would just roll her eyes and mutter about how stupid he'd been to not wear a condom.

'She was mean to me, and mean to you,' Bella added. 'I don't want anyone else being mean to us.'

'Aimee won't be mean. I promised you that would never happen again, and I meant it.'

'So you'll break up with her if she starts yelling at me all the time?'

Val thought of Aimee and smiled faintly. 'That won't happen.'

'But if it does?'

He shrugged. 'I made a promise. You come first. I should never have let Linda treat you the way she did.'

Bella regarded him carefully. 'You better not be lying.'

'I'm not,' he said.

And he wasn't.

'I'm sorry,' he added. 'The whole Linda thing... it wasn't fair to you.'

'It's okay,' she shrugged, finally turning around to face him. Her clear blue eyes met his. 'I forgive you.'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

They'd put the kids to bed, and were sitting at the dining room sharing a bottle of red. Val glanced over at Aimee and smiled. She smiled back and took a sip.

'Did Ben ask you any awkward questions?' he inquired.

She shook her head. 'No. He just wanted to know if we were going to get married.'

Val laughed. 'I hope you said 'yes'.'

She groaned and buried her face in her hands. 'He'd think I was being serious.'

Valery couldn't see a problem with that. All going well in the next few months, he fully intended to propose. Why wouldn't he? She was everything he'd ever wanted, and he was keen to join their families together. Perhaps even add a new face to the mix. His family would be happy with that. Roza had asked him if he was serious about Aimee and he'd admitted he was. She'd just said 'good, we all like this one'.

He refilled his glass and offered her a top up, but she shook her head. She asked if he had any weed, and when he said he did, they went outside and got stoned. He was a little drunk and a little high, and very happy.

'Come here,' he ordered, pulling her close. She was wearing black cotton pajama pants and a singlet. No bra. Her nipples were visible through the light material of her shirt, and yanked the front down and exposed a breast. He fondled it, rubbing her nipple in between his thumb and forefinger, while pressing his mouth against hers.

'Horny?' she murmured through the kiss.

'Very.' He grabbed her hand and pressed it against his erection. There was no hiding it in his old training shorts. 'Is that contraceptive implant of yours working yet?'

'It is.'

No condoms. No stopping what they were doing to make sure they were safe. No loss of feeling. The future shined brighter than ever. He let out a happy groan, and buried his face in her neck.

He wondered if he should perhaps wind her up sexually, then stop, and let her take control. It was the only way he ever managed to get her to dominate him. The urge to submit to her was raising it's head. He'd love to have her dress him in lingerie, bind his wrists, attach a collar to his neck and force him to do her bidding, but he knew he needed to settle for more realistic fantasies. Aimee riding him. Aimee worrying only about her own pleasure. Aimee sitting on his face and screaming out his name.

'Let's go to the bedroom,' he said.

They crept inside and into his room, careful not to wake their respective children. He stripped off his clothing, and before she had a chance to undress, he laid her on the bed and climbed in beside her. There was an inequality to them; her covered, him exposed, that he enjoyed. The feel of her cotton shorts against his bare cock was pure aphrodisiac.

Her hands moved over his chest and back and rear, and the moment she applied the slightest of pressure to him, he rolled onto his back. He stared at her through lust filled eyes and wondered if she was enjoying herself. He sure was.

'Look at you,' she giggled, lowering her head to his chest. She nipped at the skin, working her way down from his chest to his belly to his cock. 'Are you just going to lay there?'

'I was planning on it,' he confessed. 'Is that a problem?'

'Oh no,' she replied. 'Tell me if you want me to do something else.'

He didn't want to know what she was going to do next. He didn't care. He wanted her to show him what she wanted from him, and he wanted her to be brutal with him if he didn't live up to expectations. He wanted to be slapped, bitten and scratched. He wanted to feel pain, nothing extreme mind you, but he wanted to experience the exhilaration of being hurt.

Aimee ran her tongue over the head of his prick. She took his balls in her hand and juggled them gently as she used her free hand to work his shaft. It felt good, very, very, good. It'd be better still if she'd insert a butt plug, but he was still wary of what she might and might not consider 'normal'.

He'd once picked up a girl who seemed open minded about sex, but who had freaked out when he'd pulled out a plug and lube. She'd asked if he was gay. No, he'd replied, embarrassed. I'm not gay. Not bisexual. Still, she didn't seem to understand a man could be straight and still enjoy being penetrated and he'd put it away. She'd made a hasty exit the second he'd finished orgasming.

Aimee continued to blow him until he was close to climax. When he felt his balls start to tighten, he pulled her off, and requested she ride him.

She was still wearing her pyjamas. She pulled off her cotton shorts and panties, but not her singlet, and flung a leg over him. He pushed her shirt up, to expose her delicious tits, then positioned her over his cock. He watched in reverence as he was swallowed up by her warm, wet pussy. Without a condom, the sensations were incredible.

'You like?' she asked.

He nodded mutely. He loved. He rested his arms behind his head, laid perfectly still, and watched her go to work. He was nothing but warm, hard body attached to a thick, hard, cock. He was here for her pleasure. All that mattered was her enjoyment. Her climax.

Aimee rode him for what seemed like an eternity. Several times he thought she might be about to climax, but she never quite got there. He could the slickness of her thighs, and the pressure of her fingers digging into his chest. Her hair fell over her face like a long, red, river. She'd stop occasionally and tuck it behind her ears.

When she did climax, it was so unexpected it took him a second to realise what was happening. She was so quiet this time. Normally she was loud. He realised it was because of the children next door, sleeping in their beds, completely unaware.

He watched her with an intense sense of pride and happiness. She'd cum on his cock. She'd twisted and thrashed like a madwoman, but had been unable to move away due to the pole of his that impaled her.

'Shit,' she mumbled. 'Wow. That was intense.'

Val continued to stare at her, amazed that she was his.

'Where do you want me?' she asked.

He blinked, confused. He was more stoned and more drunk than he'd realised.

'Oh, hands knees, please,' he said.

She rolled off him, and positioned herself. She had a beautiful, soft, bum. The cheeks were round and white, and beneath it was her beautiful, wet, womanhood. He knelt behind her and ran the back of one hand along her labia. He parted her soft lips and found her entrance, warm and waiting.

Valery lined up his cock and slowly pushed inside. The walls of her cunt were welcoming, gripping his cock in a hot, spongy embrace. It wouldn't take him long to climax. He'd mustered up all of his self control to wait for her to orgasm, but now she was satisfied, any sense of restraint was gone.

He grabbed her hips and began to rock, dancing to the rhythm of his lust. She let out a low moan and he propelled harder into her pusssy, loving the way his balls hit her arse. He was getting close now, very, very close. Each thrust bought him nearer and nearer, and he was soon driving into her, burying his cock as far as he could in her womanhood while gasping and panting through a wickedly violent orgasm of his own.

His lust sated, he fell from her, and onto the bed. His cum trickled down her leg and he felt a peculiar sense of pride. She'd carry his scent now, the scent of his manhood. She reached for tissues and tried to clean herself up, before pulling on a pair of panties. He'd have to try and steal her underwear tomorrow. They'd smell like her cunt, and his cum, and be stiff in the crotch. He could use them to masturbate the next time he was alone and in need of some relief.

'What?' she asked, noticing him staring.

He smiled. 'You're beautiful, and that felt incredible. I love cumming in you.'

She laughed and crawled into bed. She wrapped her arms around him and kissed him on the lips. 'You're the best lover I've had, by far,' she offered with a shy smile. 'I cum so hard when I'm with you.'

'Oh, and you,' he replied tenderly, holding her close. 'Aimee, Aimee, Aimee. You drive me wild.'

He revelled in this part more than anything. The affection and the gentle murmurings and the tenderness. A comfortable bed, the softness of his lover's flesh, and the silence of a dark, still, summer's night. The peace that came from having a woman you loved in your arms, and two children sleeping in adjoining bedrooms.