APOV

I looked lovingly down at my son as he drank from my breast. It was such a beautiful moment between us two, made more so when Christian had his arms wrapped around us both.

We have had to have one rule implemented into our home since Edward was born. No entering my bedroom when the door is closed. That rule is for Geoffrey who came in wanting to play with his nephew while I was feeding him and left looking rather confused.

A long conversation between Geoffrey and Paulina happened where the poor woman tried to explain in a child's way that I was feeding Edward. Only Geoffrey did not want a child's way, he wanted answers to his questions about why Edward was feeding from that area of me, to how the milk got there in the first place. At the question of where breasts came from later in the evening, I had to leave the room for fear of upsetting him with my laughter. Geoffrey had so many questions in his little head about everything, but some are best left for when he is older, a lot older.

"Do you want me to burp him" Christian asked, joining me in our room.

"Please, I do think he will need a change also as something smells down below."

"Come here young man, come to your father" Christian laughed, taking our son from me.

I loved to watch them together, the little conversations between those two. At the moment like Geoffrey received, a little squeak is all we get also but it is enough for us.

I left Christian and Edward, heading down the stairs towards the kitchen where I found mother making tea.

"You smelt it, did you not" she laughed.

"I would be dishonest if I said yes. I was escaping the smells my son was leaving in my room."

"You want to start changing him in the nursery. He will not be sleeping in there for a while, so no one will have to worry about the smells his little bottom leaves behind in there."

"That is an idea. It is just so perfect in there, but I suppose we will have to use it eventually."

My son was just coming up to six weeks old and he had turned the house upside down, in a good way though. There is no shortage of hands who want to hold him the second he is out of our room, my little brother's hands and arms especially.

When the pot of tea was made, we took it into the drawing room where Grace was reading the newspaper.

I smiled upon seeing her reading like this or was it how much Carrick had changed. Viewing my relationship with Christian, how we work perfectly side by side, Carrick had come to realise having his wife's opinion on something's was not so bad. At the moment he was waiting for Grace to finish reading the newspaper, waiting impatiently some would say. I had never seen a man fidget so much before, I felt like telling him to sit on his hands.

"Here you go dear, thank you for letting me read it first" Grace said, smiling to him as she passed the paper.

"Anytime" he smiled to her before starting to read.

I chuckled to myself, while I enjoyed my tea.

"What time did Paulina, Elliot and Geoffrey leave" I asked mother.

"It was early, maybe just before eight."

"I cannot believe my little brother will be attending school just next week. Where has the time gone."

"I keep asking myself that same question, when I see you with Edward. All the times I watched you play with your doll, wanting to be the perfect mother to them" she said, smiling.

"I remember that doll fondly" I said, sadly. "I wonder where it would be now, what he did with it."

"I do not know. I remember seeing you playing in the garden with it. I heard Raymond's anger at you and your cries one day and then it was gone."

"I was too old to be playing with dolls, I was told. At eight years old, I was too old. I looked after that doll as if she was real. Maybe that was wrong because as far as they were concerned, parents did not look after their children, nannies did."

"I was no nanny" she said sadly.

"No, you were then and still are my real mother" I said, smiling. "Grandmother too."

"I hope there is not going to be a scrabble or a fight today" Christian said, entering the drawing room with my happy clean son.

Edward was wide awake, taking in the world around him and squeaked happily when Christian placed him into his grandmother's outstretched hands.

"I do love the smell of babies" Charlotte laughed, kissing his tiny curls.

His head was full of them but so was Christian's when he was Edwards age, Grace told me.

…

My brother returned after lunch, happily telling us where he had been. He had his uniform for school and I could not believe when he tried it on for us, how grown up he looked.

"I am not going to cry" I said, as he turned around, showing us from every angle.

"I feel dizzy now" he laughed, taking a seat by my side. "Why would you cry, are you sad."

"No Geoffrey, I am just so happy that you are happy, healthy and are able to go to school. You are going to the best school in the city and you are going to have so much fun."

"Will I sound funny to the other children at school."

"What do you mean" I asked.

"My voice is different to the children I hear here. Will I be different."

"No, you will just have so much more to tell them, of all the places you have visited on your way to arrive here. Ever since we met, you have been on a grand adventure and I am sure any new friends you will meet, will want to hear about it. Besides, it is always good to be different from the crowd, even if that is just your accent."

"I have something else you can tell them about, which I can guarantee if they have only lived here, they would have never experienced" Christian told him.

"What is that" he asked.

"Mazes. The start of your maze was planted today. It will be a while before it is big enough to hide in, but we found the fastest growing trees so hopefully not as long as if we went the English route, as Hampton Court maze is hundreds of years old."

"I do not want to be a hundred to play in it" he laughed.

"You will not. What we chose will already reach your waist so once it is finished, you will be able to play in it, just not hide in it yet."

"What about the house" I asked Christian.

"The house is gone, and the site has been cleared so no hidden stones to fall over. The foundations are sound and will be expanded to fit our new home."

"I am in no rush to move from here, although it would be nice to wake and hear a bird singing and not a car horn honking."

"It is not me who is honking the horn, not early in the morning anyway" Geoffrey told us, a mischievous smirk on his face.

"Honking is fine, just not when Edward is sleeping" I laughed turning to my son who seemed to be listening to every word his grandfather said at the moment, as he held him in his arms.

Christian had asked Elliot to build our home and I could not think of anyone better to do it. He knew Christian's tastes and he had grown to know mine too, so I was not surprised to find out that Elliot had a lot of input into the plans I had been originally shown.

"How long will it take to build" Grace asked Elliot.

"Everything has been ordered and once it all arrives, I would say a matter of months, three, four. It all depends on the weather and if that hampers our build now that fall is on our doorstep.

"Four would leave us in December. I do not know what the winters are like here."

"Cold, very cold. Everything outside should be finished before then, so we can start a roaring fire in one of the many fireplaces that I will build so doing the interiors we will be warm. My main aim is to have it finished by Christmas. Whether you move in then or spend Christmas here is up to you, but it will be finished."

"Thank you Elliot, for doing this" I said.

"I am glad Christian asked me."

"Like I would ask or trust anyone else with my family's future home" Christian said, smiling to his friend.

…

I could hear Geoffrey's laugher up ahead as Christian and I enjoyed our stroll in the park. It was Edwards first time here and I am unsure of how far he can see at his age, but he was happy to lie in his baby carriage and look around.

He is such a good baby, not a crier at all. He gets upset if he is not changed but then I do not blame him as I would not like to be left wet.

Edward is content to lie in his crib, watching the little animals move over his head on the mobile that his father made for him.

"Do you think they would find us, if we stopped in the meadow for a little while" I asked Christian.

"They know where we would be Ana, besides they would just find the carriage."

I pulled a blanket from under the carriage, laying it down in the long grass. Picking Edward up, I lay him down by my side. Christian and I like to let him play by himself, the others in the house hold not so much. They will spoil him as they never want to put him down. He is content like this, his little shoes soon finding themselves on the blanket too as he kicked them from his feet.

"Smile" Christian said, taking our photograph before taking one of just our son. "He smiled Ana."

"What, are you sure it is not gas. I do not think I have ever known a little boy before, with such a stinky bottom."

"No look" Christian laughed. "Edward, where is your mother" Christian asked, speaking quietly to our son and earning a toothless smile.

I laughed, my smile matching that of my husband and our son too. It is probably wind, but I think I will class that as his first smile and it was worth the wait too.

"Did you capture it" I asked Christian, who had his camera in hand, clicking away.

"I do hope so. It will be the perfect photograph."

"Do you know what I think will be another perfect photograph."

"What is that" he asked.

"A photograph of father and son. You have many of myself and Edward, I would like some of you too."

He passed the camera over to me, picking our son up from the blanket. I had used this before although not often, but I still knew which button to press and was soon taking photographs of my husband and our son.

"They will be beautiful photographs" Grace said, coming to join us.

"Are you alright" I asked as she struggled to catch her breath.

"Yes. That little boy can sure make an old woman such as I, quickly puffed out though."

"Wait until Edward is running around mother, then you will have both of them" he told her, laughing at the look of shock on her face.

Shock turned to a smile as she stroked her grandson's cheek.

"I look forward to it. Now please pass me the camera Ana, I think a photograph of the three of you together would be beautiful too."

With a few instructions from Christian, our photograph was taken. Looking down to see the smile on my sons face, I believe it will be the perfect photograph too.

"Ana" Geoffrey called out, gesturing for me to join him.

"My turn" I laughed, rising to my feet before making my way over towards Geoffrey.

He was stood by the bars, wanting me to watch him go across. Geoffrey had been on these bars many times since we had arrived here but although he had hung upside down from them, walked across the top, he had never managed to make his way all the way across, hanging underneath.

"Go and sit down mother" I laughed, sending her towards our group while I watched Geoffrey.

"Show me then" I asked, smiling as he started to climb to the top of the steps and held onto the bar above.

He moved from bar to bar above me as I held my hands out to catch him if he should fall. He did not need my help though as he reached the other side. Cheering his achievement, I pulled him into my arms to help him down.

"I did it Ana, I did it" he laughed.

"You did, you can do anything you want to do" I told him before he ran back to join the queue.

I walked over to Geoffrey, waiting with him for his next turn. There was a boy, who looked a few years older than Geoffrey in front of us accompanied by a man and a little girl.

We watched the boy go across, constant encouragement from the father who celebrated his achievement when he got to the other side.

"You do it father" he laughed, encouraging his father to follow him.

"Father, can I have a turn" the little girl asked, her doll under her arm.

"Of course not" he told her, turning to the girl "Girls are not strong enough to do that."

With that he left the girl, her lip quivering as he reached up for the bar. He got about half way before his feet hit the floor, his portly stomach weighing him down.

"Just watch this" I told Geoffrey, hearing him giggle as I reached up for the bar.

I had a long skirt on so nothing of my legs were seen as I made my way across the bar, passed the stunned man and dropped down when I reached the other end.

I turned to him, smiling to the little girl by his side.

"You will find sir, girls can do things just as well as boys. We can even do better sometimes" I said, nodding to the bars.

"What the..." he spluttered.

"You have a good day, young lady" I said before turning to the man. "Telling a girl that she cannot do something only makes her more determined to do it. I should know because I was once that girl and I now have everything I could ever want or need. Encourage her, not discourage her" I said, before turning to Geoffrey as I watched him climb again.

"Ana, is everything alright" Christian asked, coming over to us and wrapped his arm around my waist.

"Everything is perfect" I declared, looking to the girl who had a beaming smile on her face as her father picked her up, so she could take a turn on the bars.

Baby steps are a wonderful thing and I know within the year, my son will be taking many of his own. I do believe when it comes to men realising how capable females are, baby steps will need to be taken too. They will not be rushed, they will not be told they are wrong, they are men after all.

I am lucky because I do not have to worry about that as there is no more perfect a man than my own.

We had a lovely picnic in the park once Geoffrey, Christian and I rejoined our family. Many photographs were taken during our lunch too.

I watched Geoffrey who was sat by Edward chatting away while my son squeaked his reply back. These two are going to be a force to be reckoned with as they grow older and I could not wait to watch.

….

"I think Edward enjoyed his first trip to the park" Christian said, kissing our sleeping sons head before placing him down in his crib.

"The fresh air, certainly did knock him out, Charlotte too" I laughed thinking of them napping side by side.

Getting into bed myself, Christian pulled me into his arms. We were both tired after our adventure in the park but as Christian fell asleep quickly, my mind went back to the little girl.

No matter what the future brings, none of my children will be treated as she. If we are blessed with a daughter one day she can run around the park, climb upon the bars and she will have both parents cheering her on. One day attitudes towards women will change but until then the fight goes on. The fight to be free, to choose, to think. The fight to be themselves, just like me.

Paulina Pov

"Do you think he will like it" Elliot asked, looking to the little tool belt that lay in my lap that we had just picked up from his office. One he had made just for my son.

"He will love it Elliot, especially as it has come from you."

Elliot and I were having a day alone while Geoffrey had gone with Ana, Christian and Edward to see the progress of his maze. Thinking of the family I now had, always brought a smile to my face. In the space of just one year our lives had change forever. I was happy, incredibly so especially with this man by my side.

"Where has that beautiful mind of yours gone" Elliot asked, as we stopped outside of his home.

We had been here before many times with Geoffrey but only a few times on our own.

"I was thinking of family and the amazing one I had."

"They are very special, and I am incredibly happy to be classed as part of it. Come" he said, getting out of the car and coming around to my side.

I took his hand which he placed a kiss on top of before getting out of the car. Climbing the steps, we were soon inside his home. It was modest, smaller than the home where I live now but he would not need all that space when it was just him.

Elliot led me out into the courtyard, where our lunch had already been laid out. His housekeeper Ruth was around Charlotte's age and unlike Charlotte who was very English, regal even I would say, Ruth was very laid back, in no rush to complete a task. She is a lovely woman though and completely in love with my son.

"What do we have today for lunch" Elliot asked, carefully lifting the cloche, having no idea what was underneath. Ruth was an experimental cook so who knows what you would get or if it was even edible. Elliot did not mind though as he would eat pretty much anything.

"We have chicken" he said, breathing a sigh of relief that made me laugh.

"You could have Ruth make a menu plan like Charlotte and Gail do and then you will know what you are eating on any given day."

"Where would the fun be in that" he smiled, pouring me a glass of juice.

"You sound just like my son" I laughed, starting on my meal.

"I love you" Elliot said, stopping my fork on its way to my mouth.

"I love you too Elliot, so much" I told him smiling.

It was not the first time we had expressed our love for each other, but each time meant as much as the first.

"I was hoping to wait for us to finish our meal but as the butterflies that are filling my stomach are making it impossible to eat, I would like to do it now."

"Do what" I asked, as he got to his feet, before dropping down to one knee before me.

"Paulina, my beautiful Paulina. From the moment I saw you stepping off that ship, I knew I had to meet you, know you. I went there that day to meet my friend, but you were all I saw, you and that amazing little boy. I love you Paulina so much, Geoffrey too. I want to give you the world, have more babies if you would like and for Geoffrey to be my own. Paulina please, would you do me the honour of marrying me."

My voice was gone, my vision clouded by my tears as I reached my hand to his cheek.

"Yes" my voice but a whisper. "Yes" I said again, clearer this time.

In all of this I had not noticed the ring that he held, having been more focused on his face. When he slipped the ring onto my finger, I sure did see it then.

"It is beautiful" I spoke, leaning forward to kiss his lips.

He stood, taking me with him as our kiss continued, our arms wrapped around the other. We only broke away to take a breath when we both struggled to breathe.

"I wonder what Geoffrey will say when he sees my ring."

"He will be happy, I know."

"What do you mean" I asked.

"As the main man in your life, no matter how old he may be, it only felt right that I ask his permission, which he thankfully gave. The ring, Geoffrey helped me choose and I do believe we picked the perfect one together."

"I agree" I said, smiling at my ring before Elliot lifted my chin with his finger and kissed my lips once more.

….

Geoffrey was more than happy, he was ecstatic to see the ring on my finger. He had kept Elliot's secret which he was proud of, to be trusted with such a thing.

Elliot and I sat down that night once Geoffrey had been put to bed making plans for our future. We will remain living here until after our wedding, at that point we will move in with Elliot. It would be strange not living with Ana and Christian, but we would still see them all the time. Geoffrey did have mischievous plans with Edward after all.

This morning my normally mischievous son was quiet, his breakfast forgotten as his own butterflies came into play. Today is his first day of school and although he said he is looking forward to going, he is nervous too.

"You are going to have so much fun and I cannot wait to hear all about it" Ana said to him, trying to coax him to eat his meal.

"If I do not like it, can I come home again."

"Will you try for me" I asked, approaching my son, before kissing his forehead. "You have looked forward to going so much over the past few weeks. You are going to be nervous as it is a big change. You were nervous when we first moved in with Ana. You were as well the day we were to step onto the ship. Look how those adventures turned out. School is just another big adventure."

He smiled then, and thankfully started to eat his breakfast.

….

We were in the car, heading to the school and I was trying to hide my own nerves from Geoffrey. Ana was with Elliot and me, at the insistence of my son that she attend too.

We stopped outside the school as I turned to Geoffrey who was watching the children in the school yard. They were running about, playing, happy to be back while others were sat quietly talking to their friends.

"Come on" I told him, as Elliot got out opening my door and then Ana's.

I got out first, offering Geoffrey my hand. His palm was sweaty, but he didn't have the scared look on his face any more as he watched the children play.

We walked towards the main school building and to the office where we had come the day of his visit.

I spoke to the lady behind the desk while Geoffrey went back to the door, taking Ana with him. I thought he wanted to leave but Ana had lowered herself to his height, pointing through the glass door to the yard outside where he continued to watch the children play.

"Geoffrey, come. This lady is going to take us to your classroom."

He turned to Ana, hugging her tightly before he came to my side and took my hand. Ana and Elliot would stay here while we followed behind the woman.

His teacher was a man who came out and shook my hand. I was not the meek woman I used to be, I did not cower any more in the presence of a man. I think I borrow some of Ana's strength in moments like this or maybe she just helped me find my own.

"We are happy to have Geoffrey here with us. We have lots to teach you but from what the headmaster has told me about you Geoffrey, you have had a lot of adventures to reach us so maybe there are a few things you could teach us too."

Geoffrey smiled at his teacher's words, the perfect ones to say to my son.

"I will let you say goodbye to your mother and then you can join us and have some fun. We will look after him" he said turning to me.

"Thank you" I said before he left, leaving Geoffrey and I alone.

I did as Ana did, coming down to my son's height.

"It looks fun Mama" he said, looking to the class room before turning back to me.

"It will be. You will learn so much here and have so much fun too. Despite how far we have come, this is the start of a new journey for you Geoffrey. What

ever you want to do when you are older, whoever you want to be, it all starts here."

"You will be here when I leave."

"Of course, I will be waiting to hear all about what you have done. Go and have some fun and I will be back before you know it."

I pulled him into my arms hugging him tight before finally letting go. He took the steps away from me towards the classroom door before turning to me and blowing a kiss.

I caught it, before I blew one back to him which he caught too. A kiss to last us until he was back with me once more.

Standing here on my own in the corridor now, my son gone from my side, I smiled. I smiled for the future my son had been given, for the opportunities that awaited him now. I smiled because I had an amazing man who was waiting for me, a sister too. I smiled for the family we had been given and the love that being part of that family brings. Above all else, the main thing that made me smile was that although Geoffrey and I will always be together, we were no longer alone.

~ The End ~

Thank you for reading.

I was trying to write an epilogue, but it just was not coming together. I think I struggle with them as I don't like saying goodbye. Ending with Ana, Paulina and Geoffrey and showing how far they had come, just felt right so I will leave their journey's here.

Take care.

Caroline.