Catering With Benefits (3) - An Appetite for More - 2. You Become Like Brothers

Before introducing Jared to Hannah and the boys, Julia thought it better to meet alone with Jared to tell him about the circumstances that lead to her pregnancy. A restaurant seemed a bit public, especially if one or both of them became emotional and they both had others living in their homes so another venue had to be found. Eventually Julia asked Jessica for the use of her flat.

***

Jared arranged to have the whole of Saturday off, as he did not know what would happen when he met his mother. He thought if it was an emotionally draining experience then he did not want to have to work that night. Then on the other hand it might go so well they would want to spend the whole day and evening together.

He stood looking at the contents of his wardrobe and decided to dress in a dark suit but without the tie. When dressed he asked Thomas “What do ya think?”

“It’s fabulous.”

“Really?”

“Yes, if you’re going to a funeral.”

“Oh, that bad?”

Back at the wardrobe and thinking about Thomas’ funeral comment he went to the opposite end of his wardrobe. This time he chose a floral shirt and white pants.

“Well?” he asked Thomas

“Better, but a bit too Caribbean.”

“Ok, maybe third time lucky.”

He changed and again presented for inspection.

“Perfect, it’s just you.”

“Really, you’re not pulling my leg.”

“No, I mean it.”

***

Jessica welcomed Julia into her flat, advised her that if her and Jared wanted to eat then the people, who ran the restaurant below, would be happy to bring their meals up to the flat. Then she then went over to Justin’s for the afternoon.

Jared arrived about 15 minutes later. They greeted each other with a long hug and each expressed their excitement at meeting. Julia then stepped back to take a good look at the handsome man in front of her, who was dressed simply in a body-hugging T shirt and black stretch jeans. Jared nervously asked, “Did I do something wrong?”

“Why do you ask?”

“You stepped back from me suddenly.”

“Oh, Jared my boy, I just wanted to take a good long look at you and I note that you are indeed a very good-looking well-built young man.”

“Thank you, but I feel a bit embarrassed by your description.”

“It can’t be the first time someone has observed your beauty, but I’m sorry if I embarrassed you, however as you mother I reserve the right to do so.”

“What, observe or embarrass?”

“Both.”

“Sure, I understand Julia.”

“Now, take a seat while I get some drinks. Tea, coffee or white wine is all I have to offer.”

“I’ll have whatever you’re having.”

“White wine it is then.”

When Julia returned with the wine she said straight up to Jared “I’m not going to ask you if you want the good news or the bad news. I’m going to get the bad news out of the way first and then you can decide if you still want to hear more.”

“I’m very nervous and a bit scared about this Julia.”

“But Justin told me you are ex SAS, I didn’t think anything scared you guys.”

“That’s not true at all. If you’re not scared of a dangerous situation then you will make mistakes that could cost your life or your mates. But having said that, this is entirely different, this is emotional stuff that you can’t threaten with an F88 rifle.”

“Understood; so down that glass, refill and I’ll get the ugly stuff out of the way first.”

<>

When Julia got to the part about Brendan forcing her to the floor, Jared said “Stop please Mum, I mean Julia. Please don’t tell me anymore, I don’t want to have a visual image in my mind.” He paused, they sat in silence for a moment, then Jared began to weep.

“Are you all right?” asked Julia

“I will be, just give me a few minutes.”

“Can I give you a hug?”

“Oh yes please, I need that.”

When they both recovered, Julia said “Now I want to hear all about your life. The life I missed out on sharing. Is that ok with you?”

“I would love to tell you all, but first I want to ask if it’s all right if I refer to my adoptive parents as Mum and Dad. I don’t want to...how do I say this?”

“I think I know what you are trying to say and the answers is, it’s fine. They are your mum and dad.”

“Thanks Julia.”

“My parents’ names are Patricia and Nate Miller. I grew up with the surname Miller until I was a teenager and found it difficult when getting official documents, like passport and driver’s licence because my birth certificate had not been changed from Haynes. So I started using the name Haynes after I left school. That is of course how I made the connection with Justin when I found out his name.”

“Do you have any brothers or sisters, besides Justin?”

“No, I don’t think Mum and Dad could have children, that is why they adopted. It’s funny growing up as an only child. You take it for granted, until you get older and think about what it would be like to have a brother or sister. You don’t learn to share as you are the only person on which your parents focus. That makes it a bit difficult to have a relationship when you get older. But I think I’ve managed it now.”

“You said his name is Thomas?”

“Yes, we have a solid relationship now. But getting back to sharing, I think joining the army was a very good step for me on a personal and emotional level. Because you are forced to live so closely with your mates, you become like brothers. At least that’s how it felt for me. I guess that was when I first thought about what I may have missed out on, being an only child.”

“Jared, do you want to say anything about how you feel about me giving to up?”

“Not really, it wouldn’t do anyone any good to have bad feelings about that. You have explained very clearly why and I had a good life as a child. So it’s best I just accept what happened and we start our relationship from now. Does that sound too cold?”

“Not at all Jared. It’s a very pragmatic way to look at the situation. I feel that acceptance is far better than regrets.”

“Gee, we do think alike Julia, that’s a great start.”

“What have you told your parents about me?”

“Only that you had me as a teenager and gave me up for adoption as you were too young to care for a child. But, they probably knew that already from the adoption agency.”

“So, they think your birth was the result of an unplanned teenage pregnancy and nothing else?”

“Yes, before today I knew you were my father’s sister but not about the...other. But I haven’t told them anything about that. Should I?”

“That really is your decision. I don’t want to influence you one way or another.”

“I appreciate that, but I really would like some...direction. No. That’s too strong, what I mean is...how would you feel, if I told them everything? Or, how would you feel if I told them nothing more? I don’t want you to make the decision for me, but I really need to know how you’d feel, either way.”

“Can I think about that for a while?”

“Sure, there’s no rush.”

“Good; now are you hungry? There’s a Thai restaurant below and Jessica says they’ll deliver if we want.”

“I’ve got a better idea. How about I take my Mother out for lunch, my treat? Downstairs is fine.”

<>

As they sat down for lunch, Jared asked “Tell me about your life, I’ve done all the talking so far.”

“My partner is Hannah, we’ve been together nearly 18 years now. For some years I feared I would never find my soul mate and then when I stopped looking for a while, suddenly she dropped into my life. I was just a legal secretary at the time and Hannah joined the practice as an intern, just out of uni. It really was love at first sight. I was absolutely besotted with her. We had a few dates, but it almost ended there because she wasn’t keen on pursuing a workplace relationship.”

“So what changed her mind?”

“I’d like to say, she couldn’t live without me, and that may be true to some extent, but Hannah came up with a plan to get around that. She told me that I could be more than a legal secretary and encouraged me to study law. I was hesitant at first, but she persisted and made me realise I could do it. But when she built up my confidence I then realised that it would take me at least eight years part-time study and I couldn’t afford to go to uni full-time.

Hannah had a solution to that as well. She said two could live almost as cheaply as one. So we moved in together, Hannah partly supported me and I still did some part-time work for the practice.”

“So now you are both solicitors?”

“Yes, and we set up our own practice as soon as I was qualified. We specialise in family law and protection of women’s rights.”

“That must keep you busy, these days.”

“It keeps us busy, but is not as lucrative as you might imagine. We do a lot of pro bono or low fee cases if we consider the case worthy.”

“I’m impressed Julia. You are a really caring person.”

“Thank you. Now tell me about your work. You said you used to be in the army, but what do you do now?”

“Oh I knew we would get around to this sooner or later.”

“Why is it a problem; are you out of work at present?”

“No, on the contrary, I’m well paid, but my job is a little different to most.”

“Do I want to hear about this, is it legal. I am bound, by oath, to uphold the law.”

“Of course it’s legal, I suppose. I work for a very wealthy woman, whose husband can’t give her everything she needs, despite their riches.”

“Are you her sperm donor? That’s not really a long term job.”

“No, she’s past that anyway, but you’re in the right room. I’m her full-time bedroom partner, because her husband is gay.”

“But I thought you were gay also.”

“I am...well I’m bi actually.”

“So, you’re a sex partner for this rich woman. How does...Thomas feel about this?”

“Oh he’s cool with it. In fact he gave me the job.”

“What?” Julia questioned as she reached for the wine bottle, topped up her glass and took a gulp. “Is he some kind of pimp or sex broker?”

“Sort of, but not always, he has other duties. He’s a PA, that is, a secretary for Mrs P and one of his duties is to procure her personal intimate assistants.”

“And that’s you?”

“At present, but when he gave me the job, we weren’t together. We had broken up, but subsequently got back together.”

“Well that is a revelation.”

“Are you disappointed in me?”

“No, not at all, just surprised. I’ve not heard of such a thing before. She must be obscenely rich to be able to afford that.”

“Oh they are, believe me, but very generous as well.”

<>

Mother and son were getting on so well, they didn’t want the day to end, so after lunch they drove to Bondi beach and walked along the beach and the headlands towards South Head. On their walk Jared said “When I was explaining my work, you mentioned sperm donor. May I ask, is that how you arranged your pregnancy?”

“Yes, it is. Are you surprised?”

“Not at all, it seems the most obvious way for a woman without a male partner to get pregnant.”

“And before you ask, no we didn’t have sex, or use a turkey baster. We used a recognised sperm bank and a doctor performed the procedure.”

“Good for you, and Hannah the same?”

“Yes, the same doctor did it for both of us and we have two healthy, happy sons.”

***

Jared decided not to tell his parents the whole truth and allowed them to believe he was the result of an unplanned pregnancy of a teenage girl.

***

On the drive home, all the good that happened on the day was overshadowed by the bad and when he arrived, Jared was still agitated enough for Thomas to notice. After they kissed and hugged, Thomas asked, “You ok?”

“Not really.”

“So, meeting your mother didn’t go well.”

“You could say that.”

“What happened, didn’t you two get on?”

“No it’s not that, she’s really nice and we will see each other again.”

“So, what’s got you so shaken up?”

“Well, all I can say is it’s just as well Justin’s father is in jail, where he belongs, otherwise I may not be responsible for my actions.”

“Well I know he’s your father but what happened between them?”

“HE FUCKIN’ WELL RAPED HER!”

“Shit, I wasn’t expecting that. Thought maybe it was just teenagers experimenting and it all went wrong.”

“That fucking bastard forced her to the floor and raped her because she told him she was gay. I hate him so much and I haven’t even met him and hope I never do. I hope he dies an agonising death in jail. It happens if you know the right people and I just might know someone who can arrange it. Some discharged soldiers find very ingenious ways of making a living after service, especially those with PTSD.”

“Stop this immediately Jared and don’t let it eat you up.”

“Easy for you to say, it’s not your mother who was raped or your father who is the lowest form of life on this planet.” He said as he began shaking with rage.

Thomas, who was used to being in charge of every situation suddenly found himself without the knowledge or ideas on how to cope and what to do to calm his partner. He knew words would not work. Either Jared would not listen or would fight against anything he said and that would only make it worse. All he could think of was to hug Jared.

Andy heard the yelling, came out of his room and cautiously approached the living room. Jared had his back towards Andy, so did not see him when he looked questioningly at Thomas, who shook his head side to side. Andy understood Thomas’ message, backed off and returned to his room.

As Thomas continued to hug Jared he felt the shaking slowly turn from rage to sobbing. This made him feel better for Jared because to Thomas that meant he might cry it out, at least for now. Not being in control of the situation was one thing, but having a grown man, that he loved so much, crying in his arms was a new experience for Thomas. One that he felt was totally out of his control.