What about you? - 27

Chapter 27

The drive to her family home took less than an hour. And when Kate arrived there, she was stunned.  Her mother was in the kitchen, head in hands and a tear stained face. When she looked up and saw her daughter there, she sighed before bursting into tears.

                “What’s going on Mum?”

She pulled her mother into her arms and held her until she stopped crying. Eventually her mother was able to form some words, “she’s just horrible to me. I can’t do anything right and I’m spending all my time hiding in the kitchen to get away from her. I don’t know what I’ve done wrong.”

Kate smiled, “Mum, they’re newlyweds, she probably feels really threatened. You’re a great cook, so organised...you’re everything she’d aspire to be. AND you’re already the farmer’s wife she’s trying to learn to be. Give her some space Mum,” Kate took a contemplative moment, “look. I spoke to Stu at Christmas, is there any way we can build them their own place on site? And maybe we and you can go away, have a holiday, and give them some space? What so you think?”

Her mother was stunned, “you’d really come away with me?”

Kate smiled, “a lot has changed Mum.” She then proceeded to tell her mother about her rather eventful Christmas, she mentioned Mason, but didn’t go into any great detail.

                “So this Mason, tell me more!”

Kate sighed, “I met him at Stu’s wedding, the guy I danced with?”

Her mother paused for a moment then nodded enthusiastically, “I remember, tall, dark and rather rugged looking as I recall.”

Kate chuckled, “that sounds about right. He’s a friend of Paula’s brother, a business partner out in Dubai.”

                “Oh!” Her mother’s sudden change in mood caught Kate off guard, but then she followed her mother’s chain of thought. “I’m not about to rush off to Dubai Mum, that’s not the future...well I was meant to fly tomorrow for a couple of days, but that’s another story!”

Her mother glanced up, “you’ve jeopardised your holiday to come here? Oh my, us and our petty arguments! I’m so ashamed.”

Kate held her mother’s hand and smiled, “I promised Stu I’d help sort this out at Christmas, and I was neglectful of you both...again. I’m happy to be here, if Mason wants me he’ll just have to wait!”

By the time her brother appeared from his living space upstairs, her mother was happy, smiling and laughing.

                “Kate! I thought you were going away?”

She smiled hugging her brother, “no plan is ever set in stone! And it’s about time I started to pay more attention to my family.”

Over a coffee she share the modified story with him too, but then also moved on to the discussions she’d already had with her mother. There was a large disused barn across the farm, and they’d already thought through the logistics of that being converted into a home, and her mother had even suggested that she actually wouldn’t mind moving herself, a downsized home slightly nearer to the village, much to Kate’s amazement.

Stuart was also stunned, “Wow! Mum...I don’t know what to say, it’s so generous.”

Her mother shrugged, “I don’t want this animosity, and when I wasn’t talking to Kate earlier she did say something that made me think differently. I didn’t have a great relationship with your father’s mother, but they gave up this home for us when we married, moved up to the house they had in the village. I think it would have been a lot worse than this situation...” She turned to her son, “I am so sorry for yesterday Stuart, I’m quite ashamed of my behaviour.”

Stuart gave a smile, he was such a cheerful person and Kate could see how difficult this had been for him, “that’s ok Mum, I can see how hard this must be for you too. I mean, we’re taking over your domain, aren’t we?”

Taking a hand of each of her children, she smiled, “I am a very lucky lady to have you both, and of course Paula, I’m just hoping that our relationship isn’t damaged beyond repair.”

                “It’s as much my fault!” the three turned to the voice that joined them from the hallway. Paula stood there looking a little embarrassed. “And Julia, at no point do you have to move out of your home to accommodate us. But our own place is a real must, and that’s not because of you...” she glanced at Stuart, her husband and smiled, “we’re having a baby!”

The two women jumped up to congratulate first Paula, and then the bewildered Daddy to be. As Paula revealed she’d been bleeding and was absolutely petrified that she was losing the baby at every moment of the last six weeks, the tensions and anxieties within the family suddenly made a little more sense.

It was a lot later and after much planning and significantly brighter conversations that Kate made her way upstairs to her childhood bed. The lilac floral wallpaper and posters of horses all still as she’d left them years earlier. Glancing at the clock, she groaned, one thirty am, a few hours before she planned to wake and leave for the airport...and Mason.

As she changed for bed, she checked her phone, but the only text registered was from Tilly, asking where she was and did she fancy shopping the following morning. Kate gasped; she’d been so self absorbed that she’d not even told her best friend of the changes in her life and her plans to travel to Dubai.

With fast, well practiced thumbs she tapped a quick reply, aware that it was very late.

                “Family crisis, at the farm. Call you tom, doubt I’m back in time for shops, xxx!”

With a sigh of regret that things weren’t as she planned, she climbed into bed and covered herself with the patterned duvet.

Farm life started early, and Kate could hear her mother clunking around in the kitchen long before she really wanted to open her eyes. Reaching for her phone, she saw it was just after six, she’d had only a few hours in bed. Things were immediately better in this house, but despite her need to get to Dubai, she really didn’t want to rush away from her family. She thought of Mason, she so desperately wanted to see him, tell him that she was sorry, that she wanted to be with him more than anything. But time was running out. She had to be in work in Tuesday, she’d managed to secure Monday off work, but as she was having a week off to go to Cyprus for Tilly’s wedding in two weeks, she had no more leave until April, if she travelled today, she wouldn’t get there until late Saturday id not Sunday morning, and would then have to almost immediately travel back.

Groaning, Kate hit redial and tried his number, she’d not had a response from him for two days. Getting his answer phone, she decided to leave a message, “Mason, it’s me...I’m sorry for pushing you away, I just wish you’d answer this damn phone and talk to me...I miss you!”  The last three words came out as a sob and she was relieved to hang up the phone and shed yet more tears into her pillow.

The house was cold, but she had no robe to drag over her short pyjamas, instead she found an old pair of hand knitted bed socks in a drawer, covered her cold toes, then headed for the kitchen, and coffee. In the hallway she glanced at her reflection, she looked ghastly, pale with shadowed eyes at the lack of sleep, wild and unruly hair. Dragging her fingers through the tangled locks, she’d just retied a ponytail when she opened the kitchen door and smiled at her mother.

                “I forget how early you farmers rise!”

                “Not just farmers it seems!” Her mother who was beaming in a rather suspicious nature replied, before nodding to her left. Kate followed the nod with her eyes and froze. Sat at the table tucking into a steaming bowl of porridge, was Mason.

She staggered slightly, needing the doorframe to steady herself, “Mason? What are you doing here?”

His eyes were taking her in every inch of her, his smile appreciative and it was several seconds before he answered, “I’m bringing the mountain to Kate!”

Her whole body was a quiver, her heart seemed to skip beats and she’d been calmer riding rollercoasters in the past. “Are you suggesting I’m stubborn?”

He shrugged his shoulders and gave a chuckle, a warm happy sound, “I don’t know, Julia...” he turned to her mother, “do you have a stubborn daughter?”

Kate’s mother was laughing at the banter between them, “I’d normally give such debates a wide berth, but I have to admit Mason, you seem to have the measure of my daughter. Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to change. I’d have worn more than my work clothes if I realised we’d be having company!”

Kate stammered, “I didn’t know either!”

Her mother chuckled then tactfully left the room. As Kate stepped into the kitchen, the door closed behind her, and when she looked up, Mason was in front of her.

                “You look edible!” the humour had left his smile, and he had an almost predatory look to match his words,  and her body almost shuddered in response, she’d never been more aware of being so scantily dressed as her body craved him. Hard nipples pressed into the light cotton of her strappy top, the tiny shorts barely covered her bottom, every inch of her skin was covered in Goosebumps, and not due to the cold.

Kate sighed, “I’ve been trying to call you...how did you know where...” She shook her head, “Tilly?” She answered her own question.

                “Phones don’t work on planes, and I was en route to here, and yes when you weren’t at home, I spoke to Tilly. But you didn’t answer her until late...anyway, I wanted to be here before you left for London, so I left hers at four am, and got here.”

Kate knew she was staring, but it was as though all her Christmases had come at once. She loved every bit of him. Those full lips that were so hypnotic as he spoke, the deep blue eyes that seemed to see right into her, and those long fingers that had somehow started to massage small circles against her sensitive wrists in the most seductive manner. All words failed her; instead she knew she was staring, hungrily, desperately.

With another of those toe tingling chuckles, he raised a hand to cup her cheek, keeping her eyes focussed on his, running the pad of his thumb across her bottom lip that was plump and red in response to the amount of times she’d dug her teeth into it nervously in the last few minutes. When she physically quivered, he lowered his head until his lips found hers and she melted into his embrace meeting every nip, every bite and every flick of his tongue with relish. Kate’s body was pressed against the length of his, her tingling breasts hard against his muscular chest, those heavenly arms wrapped around her waist. Moaning against her lips as she nipped his tongue with her teeth, he ran his hands down over her bottom, and she could feel the warmth of his skin through the light cotton of her bed shorts.  But they continued down past the hem of the shorts, and then he moaned as he felt the soft peach like skin at the top of her thighs. Sliding both hands up, he settled one her bare bottom, cupping a buttock in each palm.

As his lips left hers and drew a rather erotic path across her cheek, neck towards her shoulder, her moan of pleasure was disturbed by an untimely cough, then chuckle from the back door. Pushing free of Mason as though she’d been burned, she spun around to see Stuart, her brother leaning against the back door frame, a smile spreading from ear to ear.

                “So what’s going on here then?” he grinned, brushing the mud off his hands as he continued to smile. “I was expecting breakfast, instead I find...” He smiled at his big sister, “just what exactly have I found big sis?”

Kate groaned, trying to separate from Mason physically, but he seemed to follow her across the room, his hand protectively and possessively around her.

                “Stuart? You may not recognise me, though I was at your wedding, Mason Fitzgerald.” He extended a hand, and Stuart met it with a vigorous shake.

                “Ah! You’re a friend of Brandon’s? Paula did introduce us briefly.”

Mason nodded, “and now I’m a friend of your sister.”

Stuart chuckled, “so I see! I thought she seemed more chilled than normal...” he turned back to Kate, “am I to presume that Peter is a thing of the past?”

Kate scowled at her brother, and then turned to Mason, “coffee?”

The two men laughed, and a few seconds later Julia, their mother appeared in the room, “what’s the hilarity about?”

Stuart laughed again, “Kate’s struggling Mum, she never was very good at being on the back foot!”

Kate swiped in his direction and was rewarded with her hand clipping his shoulder, then she turned back to the coffee pot. Mason observing this family banter comfortably from his position propped against the work surface, arms folded a wry smile on his lips.

Julia placed a hand on Kate’s shoulder, “ignore him love. Why don’t you go get showered whilst I feed the rest of the rabble?”

Kate nodded, disappearing before making eye contact with anyone else.

In the hot shower, she let the red hot needles of water batter her skin, turning her face to the water, she groaned, letting the jet pound her face. Kate couldn’t deny she was pleased that Mason was there; his reaction to her had been as strong as her own. That was good, but they needed to talk, she wanted to tell him how she felt, and instead she’d resorted to fighting with her brother like a childish schoolgirl. How the hell did she get into these messes?

Back in her bedroom, she’d pulled on her underwear, and was ransacking her bag for something to wear when there was a tap on the door. Conscious that she was barely dressed, she pulled the door open a crack and saw Mason stood there with a mug of coffee.

                “Your mother thought you might like this?”

She smiled, reaching for the mug, as she did the door opened a little and he caught a glimpse of the lace bra and knickers covering her otherwise naked body.

                “Holy Hell! What are you trying to do to me? I thought those ridiculous pyjamas were bad enough!” Mason stepped across the threshold, kicking the door closed behind him. “Have you got any idea what you do to me?”

She smiled, a coy smile amazed that she didn’t feel more self conscious, instead she reached for his shoulders and offered her upturned face for a kiss. Mason couldn’t resist and thrust his lips almost aggressively onto hers. Within mere moments she was once again secure in his arms, his hands possessive on her spine, the evidence of how aroused he was, hard against her stomach.

It was Kate that stopped the kiss; she wanted to have that control back that she had lost in the kitchen. Dragging her body from him, she smiled at his obvious discomfort, disappointment almost, then proceeded to pull on her jeans and soft wool sweater in what she knew was a teasing manner. Mason was leaning against the bedstead watching her with a mixture of amusement and desire.

                “You are one wicked woman!” he breathed as she pulled thick socks over her cold toes.

                “You think?” she gave him a devilish smile, then brushed past him out into the hallway, “I think you ain’t seen nothing yet!”

With that she left him flummoxed and more than a little excited in her bedroom.