Driving Home for Christmas

By Wednesday I was on the plane back and had no idea what was going on.

It was Friday, and I was in the middle of being welcomed by Bonnie when Caroline rang.

"Drew, the next time you're on Newsnight could you control the language please?"

"Sorry Caroline, I hope I didn't embarrass you. How the hell did it get on Newsnight?"

"You couldn't embarrass me darling. BBC2 have been covering the way the European elections are handled in the new member states. I don't think they could resist your little outburst."

I told her about the follow up and all the gory details of Damanescu's sordid little life. I also told her about the sponsorship.

"Five million, that's about a thousand pounds. Is that per annum?"

"I don't know; I'll leave that to you."

"What about you Drew, are you happy with what we've done, and what's next?"

"More than happy. The next job is insulation so we get through less wood."

"OK, I'll look into it and keep you informed."

"And how are you Drew. Did confronting him make you feel better?"

"Yes I think it did."

"Good, keep your chin up. I'll keep you informed."

Then she was gone.

Over the next few weeks there was a little coverage of the Euro elections in Romania and Bulgaria. Damanescu's name was not mentioned so I guessed that he didn't get in. I couldn't remember the name of his party so I didn't know how well they had done. It wasn't until the end of the summer break that I found out. I was just leaving for work when the phone rang.

"Hello"

"Drew, can't talk long. Buy yourself a Guardian and look at page eleven. Must go good bye"

I'd never known Caroline to be so brief. On the way into work I bought the newspaper and looked at the page she mentioned. At the top of the page was a picture of the nuclear power stations in Cernavoda and the Danube River.

Police today identified the body found floating in the Danube at Cernavoda as that of Ion Damanescu, one time European Parliament candidate. Damanescu's fortunes took a nosedive when it was revealed that he planned to marry the party chairman's daughter while still being married to a British woman. This and other investigations into Dm Damanescu and his party led to the collapse of the party's support.

The article went on to tell of suspected Georgian Mafia connections to the party, and of the Damanescu scandal being seen a pivotal in the party's fortunes.

I sent Penny a text message.

See the Guardian page 11. You are free.

By mid morning I got a text back.

Drew please ring me as soon as you can

The first day of term is always hectic so it was lunch time before I could get back to her.

"Hello Penny."

"Oh Drew, thank god. Drew, please tell me you had nothing to do with this."

"Penny I've been back in Britain for four weeks now, how could I have anything to do with it?"

"That's a politician's answer. Now tell me you had nothing to do with it."

"Penny I may have started the ball rolling but I had no idea it would end like this. I was just trying to make it hard for him to get elected."

I explained what had happened in Onesti and the subsequent interview.

"Well it's true, we were never divorced. --And that's all you did."

"What, you think I know a hit man all of a sudden? I didn't want him dead, but I'm not sorry that he is."

There was a short silence.

"Does this mean it's all over?"

"It's all over for him, and you're free to get on with your life."

"And us?"

"I don't see any change there, do you?"

"No I suppose not. Drew... thank you for letting me know. I'm glad I heard it from you."

"Well I'm sorry it had to be a text message. First day of term you know. It's really hectic here. I didn't want everyone at work knowing and not you."

"Thoughtful as ever, thank you."

I thought I heard a tremble in her voice as I hung up.

The autumn term went along as normal, the only thing different was that one of our suppliers of Lab equipment had hired an attractive new rep. We seemed to hit it off right away and she was an outrageous flirt. On her first visit she insisted on taking me out to dinner. So she could claim it on expenses she said with a wink. On her second visit it was more than dinner and I know she couldn't claim that on expenses.

I started getting apprehensive about Christmas. I knew I couldn't let Phoebe down again especially as it was to be her last one in the house. David had announced that he was getting married in the spring and I'd agreed to do the same thing for him as I had for Phoebe. I was giving her back more than enough for a deposit on her own family home.

Two weeks before Christmas Penny called me just to make sure I was still coming.

"If you're not comfortable I can stay away."

"Don't even think about it Penny I'm sure we'll be just fine."

"You really think so?"

"As long as we accept that we are where we are."

"Yes I understand. Can I still say that I'm looking forward to seeing you?"

"No problem. I'll see you on Christmas day."

As usual I travelled down two days before. I had fun looking after little Harry while Phoebe got her last minute preparations done. I spent Christmas Eve baby sitting while Robert and Phoebe went out visiting their friends.

Penny turned up just after breakfast. On seeing me she gave me a big hug and kissed me on the cheek. She'd put on a little weight since I'd seen her last, It looked good on her she certainly looked happier. David and his fiancée Alison arrived shortly after. The girls seemed to gravitate to the kitchen while the men sat in the living room with Harry.

"Why don't you boys go down the pub for an hour or so while we get everything ready?" said Penny, as she came in from the kitchen. "You know you want to, and you'll only be in the way here."

I looked at Robert and he nodded. David seemed a bit unsure until Alison came in and told him to go. Robert and I both pulled his leg about being under her thumb already. David just laughed it off telling us both that we'd been as bad at one time or another. We sat at the bar eating the complimentary nibbles and drinking our pints. I mentioned my worries about Penny.

"I think she'll be O.K. Dad. She seems a lot more stable these days. She doesn't drink much, she seems fine."

"I'll vouch for that." said Robert."She babysits for us, and we wouldn't let that happen if she wasn't stable. The Christmas before last was just a blip. That arsehole walking out on her hit her harder than we thought."

"Well he won't be causing problems for anyone else." I told them, "and I for one am not unhappy about that."

"I'll drink to that Dad."

"Me too"

We all raised our glasses. "To absent arseholes" I said. "May they remain absent?"

We all drank.

We had a couple of pints before going back to the house. I was a little concerned to find Penny with a glass of wine in her hand when we got back. Phoebe saw the look on my face.

"Relax Dad, that's still her first one. She's fine, really she is."

I did relax and everything was fine. In fact it was the best Christmas in years. When the time came for Penny to go home the decision was simple. It had started to snow about 6 pm so by the time Phoebe went out to the car she found it under several inches of snow.

"Damn, the snow has settled. Is anyone else sober enough to drive mum home?"

One by one we all said that we'd had too much.

"What are we going to do? I've never driven in the snow before. I can't do it tonight, I just can't."

We all looked at each other.

"She'll just have to stay." I said. "You don't mind staying do you Pen?"

The look on her face showed me that the same thing had registered with her as it had with me. I hadn't called her Pen since that fateful day in Bucharest.

"Well I've got no clean undies, and I don't know where I'm going to sleep... But apart from that, I'd love to stay."

"That's settled then. You can have my bed. I can sleep on the sofa."

"You will still be here when I wake up this time."

Suddenly all eyes were on me. I just smiled. "Yes I'll still be here."

Everyone laughed and we finished off the evening watching television. One by one we all turned in. I waited for the last one to go up before I laid out the pillows and the duvet on the sofa. I was just snuggling down under the duvet when Phoebe came down for a glass of water. She sat down on the edge of the Sofa.

"Thanks Dad, it really has been a wonderful Christmas, I know mum enjoyed it. And thanks for this." she said running her hand over the Sofa. "That was a really nice gesture."

"It just seemed like the right thing to do."

She kissed my cheek before getting up and going to bed.

It must have been an hour later that I became aware of someone else in the room. I'd been tossing and turning trying to get comfortable and hadn't heard anyone come in.

"This is madness you know. You sleeping down here."

I recognised her voice as soon as I heard it and gradually her shape came into focus in the darkness.

"That bed is easily big enough for both of us and neither of us have anything the other hasn't seen before."

"Penelope Damanescu. I do believe you're trying to seduce me."

"The thought had crossed my mind, but no I'm not. I can't sleep up there knowing you are tossing about on this Sofa, I'm asking you to share my bed so we can both get a good night's sleep."

Looking back on it I can't believe how easily I gave in. I took her hand and we climbed the stairs. I climbed into bed and fell asleep almost as soon as my head hit the pillow. I woke the next morning and was surprised to find a body behind mine and an arm around my waste. I must have moved because she sensed I was awake and hugged me tighter.

"Oh Drew, I've really missed this. Just being this close is a treat in itself." I felt her breasts pushing into my back. Her hand moved down to my waist until it came to the waistband of my shorts.

"What's all this I don't remember you wearing anything in bed."

"Well I wasn't expecting to be in bed. I thought I might still be sleeping when everyone got up."

Her hand slipped lower.

"Hmm now is this just the morning glory growing stronger than ever, or is it the compliment I'd like it to be?"

I've got to admit I was excited. My dick wasn't just hard, it had started to buck and my shorts were getting damp. I rolled toward her and onto my back. For the first time I realised that she was completely naked. Sephie's words came back to me. "Nice tits" she'd said and she was right Penny still had great tits. She rested one on my chest as she ran one finger down the side of my face and across my lips.

"Last night you said you weren't trying to seduce me."

"And I wasn't last night, but I said nothing about this morning. A girl would be failing in her duty if she found herself in bed with a gorgeous man and didn't at least try."

I looked either side of me. "So, where is this gorgeous man?"

"You know who I'm talking about." She said slapping my chest."You know I don't remember it being that firm before." she moved her hand down and under the waistband of my shorts I felt her fingers wrap around my manhood. "This, on the other hand, has always been firm enough for any woman."

I felt her leg swing across mine and she started grinding her mound against my hip. "You want me to beg? I'll beg, please make love to me Drew. I've missed you so much."

She slid her self further across until she was fully on top of me. I offered no resistance at all as she pushed my shorts down, took hold of my member and positioned it at her entrance. She pushed herself up off the bed to look at me. She waited as if giving me the chance to stop her, I didn't. She pushed her hips down and let out a long sigh as I entered her. She lay down on my chest as she ground herself on to me. I ran my hand down over her back, then over the cheeks of her arse. When ran my fingers into her crack her movements became more forceful. When I started to gently rub around her anus she went wild and in no time the noises came.

"Ah. Ah. Ah, Ah, AARGH"

She went limp and rested on me. After a short pause, I lifted her hips and started to move up and down beneath her. As I felt my climax getting closer I used more force to drive up into her. I could hear and feel her orgasm as my juices pumped into her. She lay on top of me and I stroked her back neither of us said anything for several minutes. I thought she'd gone to sleep when she said it.

"I love you."

I pushed her up, away from me. I could now look her in the eye.

"This doesn't mean anything Pen. Just two people making each other feel better."

She climbed off me and looked down.

"You can't fool me Drew I've known you too long. You can't make love to someone you feel nothing for. You must feel something for me."

"You're right I do, but not like I did. I've got past the hurt and disappointment. I'm at a point where I think we can be friends, maybe even friends with benefits, but that's all. I don't have that romantic love for you that I once had. It's just not there. I don't want you getting your hopes up."

She kissed me gently. "OK so I've got some work to do. I can live with that. If being friends is all I can have now, then I'm happy with that.

"You're not listening to me Pen; I'm saying that's probably all you'll ever have."

She kissed me again.

"Whatever you say." she said getting out of the bed. "Now I'm going to have a shower." She grabbed my dressing gown, wrapped it around herself and left the room. I did think about following her but decided against it. We'd had a great start to the day but there was no sense in giving her the idea that it was more than lust. She came back and threw the robe on the bed letting me feast my eyes on her body as she dressed. I donned the robe and took my turn in the shower. I'd left my clothes downstairs so I went down wearing the robe. When I got to the living room I heard voices from the kitchen.

"Oh mum you didn't."

"I did and it was wonderful. I tell you Phoebe I've missed him so much. I've dreamed of last night, well this morning actually, and it was every bit as good as I'd imagined."

"Mum don't read too much into this. I know dad's still fond of you in his way, but any man who wakes up with a naked woman is going to react like that."

"Well he was certainly all man, if you know what I mean."

"Whoa, too much information Mum."

I picked up my clothes as their conversation turned to breakfast. I went back upstairs to get dressed.

Over breakfast I kept getting odd looks from Robert and David. Eventually Robert couldn't keep it in any longer.

"What happened to you last night Drew? You had us worried, we thought you'd done a runner again."

"What do you mean?"

"Well we go to bed leaving you on the sofa. When we came down you'd gone, I had to go out and check that your car was still here."

I noticed Penny's face starting to redden.

"As Penny pointed out, there was room in the bed for two, and it's not as if we'd never shared a bed before."

David and Robert gave each other knowing smiles.

"Leave it alone, you two." Phoebe said."This is the best Christmas we've had in years and I want it to stay that way."

The sun was shining and the snow had melted by the time breakfast was over. Phoebe punished Robert and David by making them do the washing up while she changed Harry's nappy and made him comfortable. I announced my intention to go for a walk.

"Do you mind if I tag along?" Penny asked.

"Why not, if that's what you want?"

"I'd just like some fresh air, and maybe the chance for a chat."

We set off towards the cliff top. I set a brisk pace and Penny asked me to slow down.

"I want to be able to talk to you and I can't talk if I'm out of breath. There are things we've never said, Things I've never said that I should have done. Drew, I'm so sorry for what I did to you, to us. I tried to tell myself that it wasn't all my fault but I know it was. I said I could manage without you but I couldn't. Oh I could handle the job alright, what I couldn't manage was the loneliness. Being in a foreign country where you hardly speak the language. I cried for you night after night."

"So how come you didn't talk to me about all that. I scanned the faxes you sent, time and time again looking for an indication that you were unhappy. I found nothing, why didn't you talk to me? You know I'd have been there like a shot."

"Pride Drew, my stupid pride. I didn't want to admit that I couldn't cope. I knew you didn't want to leave me out there, but I'd insisted I could cope. I couldn't Drew I couldn't handle the feeling of isolation, and the loneliness, but my pride wouldn't let me tell you so I soldiered on getting more and more miserable."

"If you'd told me I could have done things to help. I would have quit my job and come out there. I'd have called Caroline and got her to talk to some of the other NGO staff. I could have got you some support. You didn't have to turn to that little snake in the grass."

"I didn't mean to. I just sort of drifted into it. He must have picked up on the fact that I didn't want him to leave at the end of the day. It wasn't because I was attracted to him it was just that I didn't want to be alone. He offered to show me the real Bucharest, the places other British people don't see. What I didn't realise was that by taking me to those places he was making me more dependant on him. I should have been going to the places that all the other British NGO staff went. I should have been making friends with them, but I didn't. When he wasn't around I was completely isolated, so I started inviting him into the flat, just to have someone to talk to."

"But it didn't stop at talking did it; if it had we wouldn't be where we are today."

"No, to my eternal shame it didn't. I still can't put my finger on how it started. I missed you so much and he used that. 'How could he leave such a beautiful woman out here all alone.' he asked. He would never leave a woman like me in that situation he said. I started to believe that you didn't care for me. That you'd decided to leave me there, when I knew I'd sent you away. I'm so sorry Drew."

"But when I turned up, you tried to protect him."

"Of course I did I thought we were being robbed. How was I supposed to know it was you in that Santa suit?"

I smiled. "Yes, I suppose it was pretty bizarre. You were supposed to open the door, I'd reveal myself and you'd fall into my arms. Shows what a fool I was, it took you ten days to even try to talk to me."

"That's because I thought you were still in Bucharest. After I'd sorted Ion out we tried to find you He had friends working at the airport and found out you were booked on a flight on 3rd of January. We checked out every hotel and hostel in Bucharest. Then we tried the Police and Hospitals. When we still didn't find you I camped out at the airport on the day you were supposed to leave. From 6 AM until 3 PM I waited. I didn't leave until the plane was in the air. I know now that you went in and out on the Oituz Christmas transport but at the time I didn't think of it."

"And if you had found me what would you have done? Told me the same pack of lies that you tried to lay on me here? Tell me I'd got it all wrong?"

"Probably not, that was Ion's idea. He said if I could make you believe it was your mistake, you'd take me back. I think he was worried that you would come back for him. I should have known you would have been thorough, and gathered all the evidence. I was too busy with Ion to see where you went. I really thought you were trying to rob us. I should have been honest with you maybe then I would have had a chance, just a chance of keeping us together. At the time Ion's advice sounded plausible now I look back and wonder if he ever wanted me to succeed."