Y/N is Falling, but will anyone catch her?
Recovering from an abusive marriage and trying to find herself and her place in the world again when an accident leaves the Holland family becoming a central part of her life, including Tom. But they're...
Paddys birthday was a total success, he'd been overjoyed at the opportunity to play golf with not only his mates but his brothers and dad too. The photos they'd taken all showed the same story - grinning faces and exhuberance. I couldn't join in with the golf, not wanting to overexert myself and the thought of being surrounded by yelling boisterous teenagers was enough to make me want to move to Mongolia so Nikki and I had both packed them all off as we relaxed on the sofa and chatted, mostly about pregnancies, nursery items and what to expect over the next few months. I'd also finally accepted her job offer so we hashed out start dates and salaries, signing contracts to make it all official. All I had to do now was finish out my last couple of weeks and hand back my laptop to the recruitment agency, which was planned for the new year; they hadn't made any fuss about me going, but as I worked remotely they didn't even really know who I was, just another face in a square box at the monthly teleconferences.
One of the first events we had was that Saturday, an awards ceremony for charities, the Trust had been nominated, but we already knew they hadn't won, but Nikki, Tom and I were down to attend, to introduce me as part of the senior team and also for Tom to get back into the public eye following his breakdown. Nikki and I discussed some strategies to make the most of the networking opportunity, as well as scrolling through some dress ideas for me; the green corset dress from last time would no longer fit me with my slightly swollen belly, but I was still small enough to get away with a non-maternity dress.
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After much searching I'd ended up with a black swagged dress, gathered just above my waist and falling on the bias down, the material slightly patterned, adding in extra camouflage for my swelling abdomen
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As the event was going on late and so near to Christmas, Tom elected to get a hotel room so we didn't have to worry about getting there and back and gave me a chance to have a break after the networking and awards which I used for a quick nap, before the dinner and dance. It was going to be a long day and night, but we needed to keep pushing the Trust out there to gain more recognition and income streams. Nikki and I had pressed the flesh and I'd been introduced to dozens of influential people before Tom made it there, having been stuck at a meeting with his publicist, trying to manage his image following his disappearance. He came over to us just as dinner was announced, with his tailored dinner suit, looking by far the most put together man present, crisp white shirt elegantly set off by the perfect bow tie. And the glasses, where had he got those, they made him even more attractive and I could feel squirmings begin low in my body. He rested his hand lightly on my waist, whilst at the same time kissing his mum on the cheek. He was very aware of not outing our relationship, but also not being able to leave me hanging, as he escorted us both in, hearing the many murmurs about his appearance, which he brushed off with his fake press smile as some cameras flashed nearby.
Dinner was fine, a pear and walnut salad to begin, followed by either baked salmon or herbed pork chop and ending with eton mess. It was edible, but what I really wanted was some celery sticks. Damn cravings.
