Trying Not to Love You - Part Sixty Five (edited)

Chapter Sixty Five

Martha worked well with Sonny, when they weren’t arguing they had a very symbiotic relationship, she took orders, he served them, he poured drinks, she restocked the fridge. They were almost telepathic, and it made the nights fly by. For Martha that was a relief, she’d started to remember the reasons she loved Sonny, he was funny, caring, and he understood her. When it was just the two of them working the room they were a formidable double act. It could have been so different.

Christmas was just around the corner, and a few days later Martha found Sonny after taking Ethan to school.

                “I want to buy our Christmas tree. Will you help? Not sure I can carry one myself.”

He groaned and barely lifted his head from the racing pages.

Martha reached across and flipped the paper closed, forcing him to look up at her, “tree. Please?”

                “All this bloody fuss, it’s just another day.”

She shook her head, “it’s special.” She gave a sigh, “you may not have great memories, but for Ethan’s sake can’t we at least make it special?”

Sonny groaned, “you know I’ll do anything for that boy. Let me get my coat.”

An hour later he was pulling into the car park of the local farm shop his jaw open wide at the chaos in front of him. Dozens of people milled around arguing over the trees all racked against one wall.

Martha laughed seeing his look of wonder, “you are the only one who isn’t in to Christmas Carter. This is normal.”

He followed her, amazed at her tenacity as she cut through the crowds to select what she deemed the perfect tree. A fat, healthy looking specimen, that once netted closed was still too much for him to carry over his shoulder. Thankfully he’d driven the Land Rover and they had room for the tree.

                “So you don’t do much for Christmas usually?” She asked once they started the drive home.

He shrugged as he drove towards their home, “spent the last two in prison, one before that...”

Suddenly he blushed, not answering.

She glanced at him, and instantly knew what he was hiding, “in bed with a woman? You spent Christmas day like that?”

Sonny gave a shrug, “was a great day. Neither of us had anywhere else to be.”

Martha rolled her eyes not wanting her pity to show, “well this one will be completely different, not sure you’re ready for it.”

Sonny pondered that for a moment, “think I’ll cope.” He offered with a wry smile.

As he carried the tree into the house, he called out to Martha, “are you putting this up now?”

                “Yep. I’ve got the decorations ready in the lounge. Take it on through, I’ll get the stand.”

Sonny did as he was instructed and watched Martha as she revealed the small china and glass ornaments from the paper they were wrapped in, her face displayed pure rapture. As she instructed him on how to wrap the strings of fairy lights around the tree, she told him the history of each ornament that she discovered, one her mother bought her, another angel that she’d made in school, her childlike scrawl spelling her name on the back of it.

Sonny stared in wonder watching her animated face as the revealed a dozen Christmases and a million memories. He felt tears well in his eyes, why hadn’t he had the same? Why were all his childhood memories about pain and hunger and loneliness?

Martha noticed that he’d drifted into a place that caused him to scowl. "Hey, didn’t mean to upset you, just wanted you to be part of this.”

He smiled, “why do you keep doing these things for me? Why are you so nice to me after what I’ve done?”

She sighed, “I have a feeling that your jaded childhood has made you the sceptic that you are, everyone deserves happy times, and in every lump of a man is a little boy who loves the nice things in life. Am I wrong?”

He turned his head away for a moment, needing a moment to deal with the emotion of the moment, when he looked back she’d tactfully looked away, “you’re not. Wrong that is. But the more I stay here, the more I hate all that happened...I feel cheated...my mother...” he shook his head.

She paused from what she was doing, sitting back on to her heels looking up at him, “no one deserves whatever you had Carter, but it wasn’t your fault. You know that?”

He shrugged, “not sure about that, I rebelled against it all, I became trouble, the more that happened, the worse I got. I never really helped myself.”

She laughed, “I imagine you were a wicked boy. You’ve got that glint in your eyes even now.”

He gave a sad smile, and then she added, “I want you and Ethan to go pick some new ornaments for the tree when he finishes school, ok? Something to remind us of this year.”

                “I’d like that.”

She stared at him for a moment but she could tell that he wasn’t about to lower his defences any further.

                “Once we’ve finished this then we need to get the outside house lights on, it’ll be almost dark when I get Ethan home, he’ll be so excited to see the Christmas decorations up.”

The smiles at her enthusiasm faded as she found ladders and despatched him up it to secure rows of lights to the roof.

                “WOW, WOW, WOW!” Ethan skipped across the yard unable to contain his excitement. The house looked magical with the lights tastefully adorning it, then there was the huge lit tree in the window. If there had been a blanket of crisp snow on the ground then the house would look like the scene from a Christmas card.

Sonny had spent what was left of the afternoon slamming the punch bag in frustration; though now with his new iPod it was far more calming than it had always been. How had he managed to train in silence all these years?

But his serenity was disturbed with the boy arriving home, and it was a disruption he never got fed up with.

                “You like it mate?”

He nodded, “did you do it?”

Sonny laughed, “I put things where your mother told me, that’s all.”

                “I love it.”

Sonny smiled, “well I’m going to get a shower, then me and you are heading to the shop as there’s a whole branch on the tree that needs some new decorations, and your mother wants us to fill it.”

That caused a whole new burst of excitement.

When he emerged clean and showered, Martha looked up. 
                “Go whilst I get dinner ready,” she threw him the keys to Herman. “Take care of him Carter.”

He laughed, “Ethan or the car?”

                “Both!”

An hour later they came home with far more than he’d intended. He couldn’t say no to the boy.

                “Can I go check the chickens before dinner?”

Sonny laughed, “you are obsessed with those birds! Five minutes, your mother will have dinner ready, ok?”

Ethan disappeared and Sonny carried the bag into the house, and was immediately absorbed by the aromas in the kitchen.

                “Something smells divine!”  He announced dropping the bag on the table.

                “Roast chicken and garlic potatoes.”

He smiled, “I love living here.”

There was an awkward pause at that moment, “where’s Ethan?” When he rolled his eyes she laughed, “chickens? Really? He’s obsessed.”

Sonny nodded, "Let's hope he doesn't click that you're cooking one! Where’s Carl?”

She shrugged, “not sure. Lucy’s upstairs. Will you drive her to Northbury before work? She’s going to some party there.”

He nodded, “of course. I’ll go get Ethan, it’s cold out there.”

As he stepped into the yard he was surprised to see a sleek black four wheel drive across the yard from the house, the headlights dimmed but the engine running. Suddenly he felt sick. Breaking into a sprint he ran to the car just as he saw Michael Oldbury emerging from around the back of a barn, his hand linked with Ethan’s.

                “MARTHA!” he shouted, hoping that she heard him. Striding across to the older man trying not to scare the boy, he glared at him, “Oldbury? What are you doing here?”

Ethan dropped his grandfather’s hand and skipped to Sonny, “my granddad wants to show me his Christmas tree too. I’ve got presents under it.”

Taking Ethan's hand, he pushed him in the direction of both Martha and Lucy who thankfully had heard his shouts and were coming towards him, then turned back to his father.

                “Who the hell do you think you are?” He stepped towards him, his hands in tight fists at his side, anyone else and he’d already have mashed their face, but a voice kept reminding him that this was his father.

The door to the car on their right opened and Michael’s right hand man got out and Sonny turned to Derek, "don’t think about it. I could pound you both into the ground without breaking a sweat for trying to steal that boy." He turned back to Michael, "you’ve threatened me and his mother no end, and this is your latest trick? Taking him?”

                “I just want to see my grandson...”

Sonny laughed out loud, “and the way to that is by making his mother’s life hell? You are so FAR from the mark.  I mean you use threats and poison to get what you want. Martha would never stop you seeing him, but you've threatened her, told her you want to take Ethan off her. Now you expect her to let you into his life. You're crazy.”

                “I’ve lost my only son; Ethan’s all I have left.”

Sonny gulped, hating that those words could hurt him, “I suggest you go home and take a long hard look at yourself. If you did more things right you’d not be in this position.”

At that moment a hand landed on his shoulder and he turned to see Martha beside him, “get off this farm Mr Oldbury. You’ve ensured that any contact between us goes via solicitors. That was your doing. You touch my son again...” she let the threat fall into a tense silence.

Oldbury looked at Sonny, “you know what you have to do. It's all in your hands.” Sonny remembered his threats, that he wanted him off the farm and away from Martha and Ethan.

Sonny shook his head, “one call to the police will change everything. You are the aggressor here, WE are the ones with the power now.”

                “Derek, did you see this thug threaten me?”

Derek nodded from the side of them, “I did.”

Sonny screamed out loud knowing it was one man's word against the other. They had no advantage really. Furious he lifted his hand wanting to slam it into his father’s face, but Martha grabbed his arm, pulled him away.

                “Don’t," she forced him to look at her, "that’s what he wants Carter, he wants to see you in jail. He’s goading you. One punch and you’re guilty of GBH, with your record...”

He looked at her, “I’ll go back inside.”

She nodded, “that’s what this is about. He's pushing your buttons.” Turning back to the older man she shook her head, “you’ll never see Ethan again, unless you stop all this bullshit. I mean it. I can leave here like that,” she clicked her fingers, “and I will if you keep this up.”

With that she dragged Sonny back to the house and the oblivious Ethan who waited patiently in the kitchen with Lucy.