Mum looked sad at that.
“Is that how it is, then, the two of you…?” and we both nodded, unable to lie to her, unable to deny any longer what was happening between us.
Min chose that moment to speak up.
“Let it go, Maureen, and don’t worry about them, they’ll be okay; they have what they want, and they have what they need; just be happy for them.”
I snapped round to look at Min, hardly expecting her to understand, or to catch the smile of understanding and approval on Doreen’s face. Min took my hand.
“Darryl, Lena, are you both positive this is what you really want? Because what you do now is for real, and there’s no going back, so tell me, are you ready for this?”
I looked at dad, but he was obviously waiting for my answer, as was Lena, her eyes shining with unshed tears.
“Mum, dad, Aunt Min, Lena and I love each other. We’ve had a whole lifetime to work this out, even if I didn’t know that was what I was doing. There’s no-one else for me, there never really has been, there’s only Lena, and I can’t leave her, I won’t. I love her, and I always will. Mum, you and dad can go away now, Lena and I will be fine, I promise, we’ll be here, we’ll always be here for each other!”
Mum hugged me, kissed me on the forehead and slipped a small package into my hand.
“Open it and give it to Lena!” she whispered, so I opened it. Inside was an antique gold engagement ring, a cluster of small diamonds in a small exquisite heart setting.
“It was your Great-Grandmother’s, now go on, you know what to do!”
I held Lena close, feeling her warmth against me as I kissed her cheek lightly, then I took her hand, my sister’s hand, and slipped the antique engagement ring onto her finger, pulling her close again to kiss her cheek once more and whisper that I loved her, while mum stood by and smiled sadly. Finally she dabbed at her eyes and passed me a piece of paper with a ‘University Hospitals Bristol NHS Trust’ heading. I looked at her questioningly.
“What is this mum?” I asked her, and she smiled.
“It’s the number for my old head of department; he’s head of the Cardio-Vascular unit at the Royal Infirmary, and he’s looking for a Junior Surgical Consultant for a Locum to substantive post with the Cardiology team; I told him about you, and he’s waiting for you to call him. It’s initially for six months, but the post will become substantive if you decide to remain with the team; I think you should take it; you and Lena will need this, so do it soon, Darryl, please, for both of you.”
I hugged her tightly, she’d solved my first problem, and now Lena and I had something to tell everyone. I nodded to Lena and all eyes switched to her.
“Mum, daddy, Darryl and I have been talking, and we’ve come to a decision; we want to have a baby, soon, this year. Please don’t object or start giving me reasons why we can’t, this is what we want, we think it’s what this family needs, there are… other reasons why we want a baby this year, you know as well as I what they are, but this is for us, and for you. We love each other very much, and this is what we both want.”
Dad smiled, looking slightly bemused, but not surprised, mum smiled slightly, nodding as though something had become clear.
“What you kids do is not really my business anymore,” said dad, “I’m in no position to tell you what’s right or wrong, but I will say just one thing again; Darryl, Lena’s been in love with you since forever, don’t make her regret giving her heart to you, and I mean that; in a little while there’ll be only the two of you here, you’ll have to take care of each other, and any little ones who come along, so you have to be sure that this is what you want. Your Aunt Min’s right, this is an all-in deal, so now’s the time to back out if you’re going to, not two years down the line, or five or ten. I want to leave this world secure in the knowledge that my kids have done the right thing by each other, and that they’re going to keep on doing it for each other and their family.”
Lena left her seat and came and stood next to me, her fingers gently stroking the back of my neck, before sitting on my lap, my arm instinctively going around her waist to hold her to me. She used to sit like this before, when we were younger, but now there was a whole new meaning to why she chose to do that, and mum and dad both got it.
“Mum, daddy, Darryl and I will be fine; we’ve both got what we want, you really don’t need to worry about us, or what we’re doing, or where we’re going with this; we know what we feel for each other, and what we want out of life, for both of us, and it starts right here!”
After that there was a flurry of family hugs and conversation about when they were leaving, things they should take and leave behind, bright and positive, but with an undercurrent of bitter sadness.
I called the number mum gave me and made an appointment to see her old boss after she and dad had left, and he understood; he was quite despondent at her leaving, she’d been Head Nurse in the Cardiology Centre before taking up her post in the Renal Unit, and was one of his most trusted friends and colleagues in both posts. He really didn’t want to let her go, but he knew what was happening with dad, and accepted that I had more pressing things to deal with just now.
That night, Lena and I went up to bed together, mum and dad making no comment when we left together, and just a broad wink from Min. Once we got to the room, Lena wasted no time in stripping off and climbing into bed naked. I held out her sleeping shirt, but she just dimpled and declined it.
“What’s the point in putting it on Dar, you’ll just yank it off me again! I’ll just sleep raw if you don’t mind!”
I didn’t mind at all, she was a wonderful sight to behold naked, and I could feel all kinds of interest stirring, something she noted as I climbed into bed.
We held each other close, as much for comfort as for the chance to feel each other’s body pressed together so intimately, and the involuntary reflex struck; my cock was rock hard and ready for action from being pressed against Lena’s smooth hairless mound, something she noticed immediately.
“So Darryl, you feel like a little contact sport, some night games, yes?” she whispered in my ear, and try as I might to think how inappropriate this would be, all I really wanted to do was jam my cock into her as hard and as far as I could. Taking my silence as agreement, she wrapped her little hand around my hardness and squeezed gently. I reciprocated by sliding my hands down and cupping her sexy cheeks, enjoying the springy firmness of them in the palms of my hands as I squeezed and kneaded them.
“Got any new moves in your playbook, Stud?” she teased, licking my lips as she kissed me with light, feathery kisses all over my face and neck.
In reply, I rolled her onto her back and clamped my lips over her nipples, sucking at the rubbery little stalks in turn and flicking them with my tongue tip, making her giggle and sigh. I moved on down, lightly kissing and licking her tummy, licking and swirling my tongue around in her gorgeous little navel before kissing down to her beautiful bare little pussy. I slid between her thighs and pulled toward me, putting my hands behind her knees and pushing her legs up to raise her pelvis off the bed.