CHAPTER 18
Nigel and Tess had arrived the following morning. I had finally gotten to know Tess better. I found that I actually liked her. I could see how much she and Nigel had in common. It was funny but having spent more time with her I could see that she would never have been a good match for Trey.
We helped Susan get the house decorated for the party. Trey, Tristan and Nigel had gone over to the winery to see the progress being made on the expansion. Libby had tagged along with the men preferring their company to ours apparently.
Tess and I were working on one of Susan's candy corn centerpieces as she gave us directions from the kitchen. Clive was in the living room playing with Preston.
"So Tylar," Tess spoke up softly. "What do you think of Tristan's girlfriend?"
"What do you think of Libby?" I countered.
"No fair," she laughed quietly. "I asked you first."
"Well honestly, I don't know her all that well yet but at first blush - I think she rocks Tristan's world sexually and I wish you and Nigel's room was next to theirs instead of ours."
Her eyes widened in surprise.
"That loud huh?"
"Yep - and all night long."
She giggled softly. "We can't pick our in-laws I guess."
I smiled at Tess. The truth was, I could do a whole lot worse for a sister-in-law than Tess - Caroline or Libby for example.
"Exactly," I answered. "Speaking of which I understand that Caroline is now your sister-in-law instead of mine. Congratulations!"
This brought more giggling from Tess and I saw her blush.
"Yeah that was all pretty screwed up wasn't it?"
"Let's just say that Trey and I are never bored at a family get together."
"I hear that," she replied, putting the finishing touches on the centerpiece.
"You know Tylar, I am so glad that you are with Trey. You two are perfect for each other - I mean the same way that it feels like Nigel and I are perfect for each other. I'm glad that you and Trey discovered it before you had to go through disastrous marriages like he and I did."
"Thank you, Tess. I'm glad you are finally happy. Nigel seems so happy as well. Are you uncomfortable being around Caroline?"
"No, not really," she replied. "We finally came to terms with all that happened. I mean I'm not proud of what I did but sometimes it's like Nigel says, 'the heart wants what the heart wants' I guess."
I could picture Nigel telling her that. I saw a sweetness in him that I hadn't seen when he was with Caroline.
"Caroline actually seems happy too now so perhaps everything did work out for the best," she said interrupting my thoughts.
"Why does she hate me?" I asked, hoping that Tess was privy to the reason.
"I don't think that she hates you at all Tylar. I think she was simply jealous of the relationship and love that she saw you and Trey had. I mean it was so obvious to everyone. She had always wanted a baby and there you were all in love and pregnant. She couldn't be happy for you. She was in a bad place then. We all were."
"Did Nigel not want children?" I asked.
"Oh I think Nigel would have liked to have had child or two but that's not in the cards."
"I know," I replied with compassion. "I heard about the accident with Derringer."
"Oh - it's not that. I mean it wasn't in the cards for Nigel with anyone. He's been tested and has an extremely low sperm count."
"I'm sorry," I said quickly, "Tess I didn't mean to pry."
"No it's fine," she assured me. "You see I can conceive but I would never be able to carry a baby to term. Before we married Nigel got tested simply because Caroline had never conceived and we didn't know how we would handle birth control. As it turns out, there is no need to use it."
"I'm sorry," I said again.
"But we sure enjoy spoiling our niece if that's okay with you," she said happily.
As if on cue Clive walked in carrying Preston who saw me and immediately smiled, reaching for me.
"I think it's that time," I said, taking leave to go upstairs to our suite.
We had nearly everything finished for the party. The caterers would be arriving soon to set up. The weather was mild enough that a band was going to be playing outside. There was a fire pit set up to take the chill off out on the patio. We had helped Susan hang Halloween party lights around the large wooden deck where tables and chairs had been set up already.
Up in the suite I stretched out on our bed, switching on the television while Preston curled up against me and nursed. She had nearly dozed off when Trey came into the room having just returned from the winery with his brothers.
"You guys did a fantastic job on the house," he commented, taking his place on the bed beside us. Preston's eyes fluttered open hearing his voice and she smiled up at him.
"Hey there baby girl," he cooed smiling down at her. He put his hands out towards her beckoning for her to come towards him.
"Come over here to daddy 'apple dumpling'," he encouraged.
She rolled over onto her stomach and crawled over to where he was laying. He scooped her up and held her up in the air above him, bouncing her up and down. She squealed and laughed.
"Better watch it," I warned, "She just got finished eating."
I fastened my nursing bra back up and got up from the bed to start my bubble bath. I was going to indulge myself and leave her to Trey's care for the time being.
"So what did you think of the winery?" I asked, coming back out to the bedroom for clean underwear.
"Baby you should see it. You won't recognize it when you go over there next. He has a whole new building under construction that is totally automated. Once he gets it in operation, there will be very little for him to do except count his money. He's planning on expanding his market through a distribution channel that would cover the east coast at a minimum. I'm thinking about buying some shares. What do you think?"
"Honey I leave that to you, okay. It's your money."
"It's our money," he corrected me, lowering Preston down so that he could sniff her diaper.
"Pee-yew!! he said making a face.
"I think she wants her mommy to change her."
"The diapers are next to the bed Trey. The baby wipes are on the nightstand. She's on your watch while I get my bath sweetie."
I went into the bathroom leaving the door open as I undressed for my bath. I could hear Trey rustling around for the baby wipes and diapers; I chuckled when I heard him gag as he unfastened her dirty diaper.
"No, no Preston, sweetie. Lay still for daddy --"
I relaxed in my bubble bath glad that Trey was spending some quality time with his daughter.
My relaxation was interrupted when I heard Trey holler from the bedroom at me.
"Jesus Christ Tylar, she's had a major shit explosion in this diaper!"
"Don’t blame me," I called out from the tub. "You were the one that fed her applesauce last night at Morelli's saying that she was ready for solids."
I heard him gag a couple of more times before he finally had her cleaned up and diapered. He must have taken the toxic diaper out of the room instead of putting it in the trash can. Several moments later Preston crawled into the bathroom spying me in the tub.
Trey appeared in the doorway just then relieved to see that she hadn't wandered down the hall.
"Man she scared me," he said. "That little shit can crawl fast."
"That's why you are supposed to be keeping an eye on her Trey."
He gave me his dimpled grin, scooping her back up into his arms and leaving me to my bath.
____________________________________
Tristan's 40th birthday party was in full swing. The guests had arrived; the band was playing outside. Tristan and Libby had not yet made their entrance.
Everyone loved our Flintstone costumes. Susan and Tess continued to gush over 'Pebbles.' Tess and Nigel were dressed as Minnie and Mickey Mouse; Preston was enthralled with their costumes. Tess was holding the baby whenever Susan wasn't.
Caroline and Landon had arrived as 'Bonnie & Clyde.' They were both cordial to everyone. Mr. & Mrs. Andrews were dressed as Frankenstein and his bride; Denise and Ray came as Romeo and Juliet; Susan and Clive were dressed as Laurel and Hardy.
There were an assortment of other costumes such as characters from the Twilight saga movies, Harry Potter and a neighbor couple came as George and Jane Jetson.
Trey looked great as Fred Flintstone; he kept bopping me with his wooden club that was made of soft foam, threatening to drag me back to the cave by my hair.
Finally we saw Tristan and Libby come into the room. Oh My God! I saw Minnie Mouse do a double take as she nudged Mickey beside her.
They were dressed as Adam and Eve. Tristan looked magnificent wearing a loin cloth which covered only the bare essentials. He was built to carry it off. His dark hair was longer than Trey's and Libby had slicked it back to look just like Adam's looked in the biblical movie. He had that sexy five o'clock shadow thing going like Trey. He had a white sash draped diagonally over his broad shoulder and tied at his narrow hip.
Libby had nothing more than a g-string on with some fig leaves affixed in a triangle in the front to cover her pubic area. Her butt cheeks were in full view. Of course she had the perfect ass. Her top was the same with fig leaves covering a bit more than her nipple areas. Her long blond hair cascaded down to the middle of her back in curly waves. Hair extensions - there was no way her hair was that long or curly yesterday.
Her breasts were ripe and round - just as one would imagine Eve's had been in the Garden of Eden. She had obviously used a self-tanner all over her body as it was sun-bronzed. Again, not the pale skin she sported only the day before. She carried a red apple with a bite out of it as a prop. Tristan had a python snake wrapped around his neck which I was relieved to find out was not real.
I heard Trey catch his breath as she turned to model for everyone. There were many appreciative whistles in the crowd. I jabbed my elbow into Trey's rib.
"Ouch," he said finally taking his eyes off of her.
"What's the matter, Wilma?"
"Cut the shit Trey."
I wanted to laugh thinking about how Trey had thought my Wilma Flintstone shift was too short and revealed too much leg. Hah! He certainly seemed to enjoy the view of ass, legs and tits that Libby provided.
The band was playing a slow song outside.
"I think I'll go ask Tristan for a birthday dance," I said, heading away from the group towards where Tristan and Libby stood front and center.
I immediately felt Trey's arm hauling me back next to him.
"What's the matter, Fred?"
I looked up at him coquettishly.
"I'm your dance partner tonight," he said, all caveman style. "Come on woman."
We went out to the dance area that wasn't too crowded yet. The fire pit going just off to the side of it kept the area fairly well-lit and warm.
He took me in his arms and pulled me against him as we danced to the soft melodic tunes of the song. The song was called, "Beautiful Tonight." Just then Tristan and Libby came on to the dance floor. Holy Shit! How in the hell are they going to manage dancing without revealing more than they already did?
It was then that I saw Tristan had on skin colored long johns under his loin cloth. Libby had no such protection. I was glad to see that at least Tristan hadn't completely lost his mind. I had been right. Tristan was all about her. I could see it as he held her closely, rubbing her back. I tried to watch under semi-closed lids so he wouldn't know I was staring. I was sure at one point he whispered 'I love you' in her ear.
I then saw that she had a full few of Trey and was watching him intently with her eyes wide open. My eyes locked with hers and she didn't bother to look away. She was sending me a message loud and clear.
I was grateful when the song ended and we went back inside. Tess was holding Preston who was starting to get fussy. It was probably time for her to go down for the night. I took her from Tess and told Trey I was taking her upstairs to put her to bed. I was relieved to get away from the party. Tess followed me upstairs taking off her Minnie Mouse head.
"God it feels good to get that thing off," she said. "I don't know what Nigel and I were thinking getting costumes that required pulling a head on over our own," she chuckled.
"Enjoying the party?" I asked her as we headed into our suite.
"Probably about as much as you are," she replied, "Some costume, huh?"
"Oh - it's not just that," I said. "Last night Trey went downstairs to get his Blackberry off of the kitchen counter and she was there. He said she accidently brushed her hand against his crotch."
"What?" she sat up where she had been reclining on the bed.
I laid one of Preston's blankets on top of the bed placing her on it."
"Will you watch her a sec while I gather her stuff for bed?"
"Sure, no problem," Tess said, smiling over at Preston who was sucking her thumb.
I returned to the room and started undressing the baby. She was squirming around turning her head so that she could continue to watch Tess who was no longer 'Minnie Mouse' to her.
"Yes. Trey told me told me that when he came back up to our room. He was bothered by it I could tell but then he convinced himself it was an accident."
I shared with her the rest of it about the apology and then about what I had observed on the dance floor.
I changed Preston's diaper and got her into her pajamas.
"Tylar I can see that she craves male attention. Nigel said that the whole time they were touring the winery expansion it was all about her. Did you know that once Tristan gets his staff hired he is moving to Atlanta to live with her?"
"No," I said aghast. "It must be way serious."
"Hmm, on Tristan's part maybe but certainly not on hers."
"Thank you," I said, picking the baby up preparing to nurse her one last time before bed.
"That is exactly what I told Trey; Tristan is all about her but she's all about something else."
"I agree with you."
Just then there was a tap on the door.
"Who is it?" both Tess and I called out together.
"It's Bonnie," the voice slurred. Caroline!
"Come on in," Tess invited.
"It'll be okay," she said quietly to me.
Caroline came in with a glass of wine in her hand.
"I have one question," she slurred.
"Who the hell is that bitch that is all but naked down there shaking her fig leaves at every guy in the room?"
Tess and I both snickered. Libby's ears had to be burning. It was kind of comical to see Caroline appearing to be just a normal drunk jealous wife.
"She's got Landon out there dancing now. She's already been shaking her booty out there with Nigel and then with Trey," she said.
"What!" Tess and I both shrieked at the same time.
"Yep," she said, shaking her head up and down then taking a gulp of her wine.
"Just thought you girls would want to know. I'm headed back down to make sure my man isn't pruning her fig bush. I suggest you two do the same."
She walked out of the room keeping her staggering to a minimum.
"Hey she's right; we need to get back down there Tylar," Tess said.
"I've got to nurse Preston now, Tess. You go ahead."
"Okay," she said reluctantly. "Just know that I have your back."
"Thanks Tess," I smiled as she left.
I lay Preston on the bed while I slipped out of my costume and pulled the covers back on my side of the bed. I lifted her up and into my arms, snuggling beneath the covers with her.
I flipped the television on and nestled her against me. She latched onto my breast like a pro, watching me the whole time she nursed. I looked over at the bedside clock. It was only 10:30. Of course everyone was drinking alcohol except me. I'm sure it made for a great party.
It pissed me off to know that Trey had danced with her, drinking or not. He had certainly put a stop to my asking Tristan to dance.
I looked down at Preston and her little brows were furrowed as if she sensed I was upset about something.
"It’s okay baby girl," I said to her smiling. "I warn you though, Mommy better never find out that you were in public wearing nothing but fig leaves. Do you hear me?"
She stopped nursing to give me a smile. I kissed her forehead and we both drifted off to sleep.
I wasn't sure how much later it was when Trey stumbled into our bedroom, flicking on the overhead light.
"Why the hell didn't you come back down to the party," he asked, slightly inebriated.
"Shhh, Trey," I cautioned. "You're going to wake the baby up."
"What the hell is she doing in here? Her crib is in my parents' room."
"We fell asleep," I said, irritated with his attitude about Preston being in here with me.
"Here baby," he said, reaching for her.
"Let me take her on down to their room. They're getting ready for bed so they will be in there with her."
"Are you drunk?" I asked.
"I've had a few," he admitted, "But no, I'm not drunk-drunk, just a little buzzed-buzzed is all."
If I hadn’t been butt naked under the sheets I would have carried her down. As it was, I felt he could manage getting her there in one piece. I climbed out of bed and got into my nightgown and finished up in the bathroom before he got back.
When he returned I was still under the covers.
"Jesus Christ," he commented, getting out of his costume and into his pj pants and a t-shirt.
"Mom and Dad are fit to be tied about Tristan's girlfriend. I had to listen to them go on for a full ten minutes or more."
"Why are they fit to be tied?"
"Why do you think Tylar? They didn't exactly appreciate her costume."
He went into the bathroom where I heard him pee and then brush his teeth. Once finished he climbed into bed with me. It was after 1:00 a.m.
"Hey, you missed the best part of Tristan's party," he commented, pulling me next to him so that he could caress my breasts.
"Oh? What part was that?"
"When they sang Happy Birthday and toasted him. Then he made a toast and announced his engagement to Libby?"
"What?" I sat up in bed. "Are you serious?"
"Yeah," he grinned, "You should see the rock he gave her. I told you they were all about each other."
"I'd rather have seen your mother's face after the announcement. How did she take it?"
"I don't know Tylar," he said with a hint of irritation.
"I mean I wasn't specifically watching everyone's reaction. My brother is happy. I think we should wish them well."
"Whatever Trey. Goodnight."
I wasn't going to argue with him. I wasn't even going to bring anything up about knowing he danced with Libby. What was the point? I either trusted him or I didn't. Anything outside of that was simply drama.
"I don't want to sleep baby; I want to fuck."
"Go next door," I answered rolling over onto my side with my back to him.
I heard a mumbled curse and he turned on his side pulling the covers up and went to sleep.
A short time later Trey and I were both roused out of our sleep by the noise next door.
"Oh yes, baby!" Libby was screaming. "Keep fucking me Tristan just like that. Pull the ass beads out now - oh yeah, aarrrgghhh!"
"Shit ….not again," Trey moaned, pulling the covers up over his head.
The headboard was slamming against the wall in a steady rhythm that seemed to go and on. It continued at a slower pace as Libby's orgasm apparently was winding down.
Someone was knocking on our door.
"What the hell now?" Trey grumbled, throwing the covers off and going to the door.
It was Clive asking that Trey and I keep it down.
"Jesus Christ dad, it's not us! It's Tristan and that nymph he's engaged to."
(So much for wishing them well Trey!)
Clive apologized for the interruption. By this time, things had quieted down next door.
Within twenty minutes it started up again; by this time Trey had passed out so I was left to listen to it alone.
I had finally drifted back to sleep when more noise came from the room next door. It sounded as if there was an argument ensuing. My female ears perked up. This was way more interesting that listening to sex.
"What do you mean that I'm too friendly, Tristan?" Libby yelled.
"No I will not keep it down. You need to explain yourself to me."
Evidently Tristan's answers were in a quiet tone so I didn't get to hear them. Libby however was not pleased with them.
"What the fuck! So I danced with Trey - what of it? I danced with Nigel, too. Oh and I danced with Landon and some other guy named Ray. Why are you making a federal case about my dancing with Trey? Someone had to I suppose. I just felt so sorry for him."
I didn't hear anything further for several seconds.
"Quit shushing me," she hollered. "You’re the one that is making a big deal out of it. His wife deserted him for the most part during your party to play wet nurse to that baby of theirs. I felt sorry for the poor guy. Christ, don't you trust me?"
Tristan must have put her mind at ease with his response.
"I love you Tristan and only you. You have to believe me."
Oh Christ - what an actress I thought.
Tristan must have bought off on her explanation because I didn't hear any further argument. Within minutes the music of their slamming headboard against our wall was all I heard. Trey had managed to sleep through it all.