The Restraining Order

"Richard, what's so bad about moving in with your wife and children."

"You mean my ex-wife. The woman who slept with the man who set me up."

"Yes the woman who found out what he had done and did her best to put it right. Look Richard you are Robb's brother and we love you but you can't go on with this self pity. You think it's only you fighting that Woodward creep, but just remember who told you. Who told his employer and got him fired and prosecuted. While you boys have been doing all your macho posturing, she's done more to bring him down than you have."

"But she was sleeping with the bastard."

"Yes and as soon as she found out about him, she kicked him out and told you. Cut her some slack Richard. No one's suggesting you jump straight into bed with her, only share the same house. I can't see Maddy and Tom objecting."

"OK Vicki, I'll get out. I've outstayed my welcome here. I don't know about moving in with Cath and the kids though. I still remember the way she used my children as a bargaining chip to get a settlement that meant I could hardly live. I know you'll tell me that was the lawyers but she signed off on it."

"Get your head out of your arse for a minute. You were in a mess back then, don't you think she was? The difference is you had us to support you, Robb, your mum and me, all trying to stop you falling apart. Who did she have? Her mum thinks the sun shines out of your arse, so not much support there. The only person offering help and support was the arsehole that caused it all."

Richard was shocked, he'd never heard Vicki use such language before. What she said made sense but it didn't alter how he felt inside. Cath had reacted in a way he hadn't thought possible and he didn't see how he was going to get past that.

*****

Having someone else you can rely on is a great help when you have children. I enjoyed being able to call Richard and ask him to pick them up from school. He would stay with them until I got home and they would invariably persuade him to stay for dinner. If I was very lucky I even got a kiss on the cheek when he left. I'd tried to make him as comfortable as possible but still there was a barrier between us. When he told me he needed to find somewhere else to live, I never gave him room to doubt what I wanted.

"Why don't you move in with us?" I asked. "After all you are paying the mortgage. There's no sense in paying a landlord when you have a house to live in." I prepared myself for the question I knew was about to come.

"Where would I sleep? The rooms are all occupied."

"Look Richard, if push comes to shove Tom and Maddy can share a room. I don't want to see you living in some dingy flat when you could live here with us. We'd love to have you"

"Well I suppose I could fit most of my stuff into Tom's room, and like you said I am paying the mortgage."

Richard moved back into the house but it wasn't the solution I'd hoped for. After four weeks we were no nearer sharing a bed. He still went out once or twice a week, often not coming home until the following day. He never said, but it was obvious to me, someone else was taking care of his needs. We became closer in some ways. We started going out as a family at weekends and we sat together at the children's school events. An outsider would have thought we were a normal family. My friend Penny congratulated me and asked if we planned to marry again. I broke down in tears as I told her we slept in separate rooms and I thought he had a girlfriend.

Matters weren't helped by Maddy falling out with Tom over a teddy bear. She wanted her room back. I told her Tom couldn't go back to his room because daddy slept in there.

"Why can't daddy sleep in your bed? Then Tom could go back to his own room." It seemed so simple to a child, and a sensible question. However, it was a question I was dreading.

"Well sweetheart, mummy and daddy aren't married anymore. Only married people are supposed to sleep together." As soon as I said it I knew I'd laid myself wide open to what came next.

"You weren't married to Tony but he slept in your bed,"

The silence was deafening and seemed to last forever. In reality than a minute passed. I looked at Richard. It was obvious he'd heard what she had said. He got up picked up his coat and headed for the door.

"I'm just going out for a walk," he said as he put his coat on and left.

She must have seen the look of horror on my face because Maddy started to cry.

"Daddy will come back won't he mummy?"

"Of course he will darling. I'm sure he will be back for your bedtime story."

He was , but only because I delayed bedtime. He seemed calm and left both children drifting off to sleep. I wanted to talk to him but he went straight to his room and stayed there.

That little incident set us back a few weeks. When the blackmail charge was dropped I thought it would really break him. I was quite grateful because I knew he would have to lie in court. I didn't think Richard could do that. I tried to console him. We could take out private prosecutions in the civil court and take away what funds he had. It wasn't enough for Richard, he wanted to see Anthony banged up in prison.

To try to bring him out of his depression I suggested taking the children swimming at the weekend. Penny and her two children came with us. Playing in the water with the children seemed to work wonders he even started trying to teach Maddy to swim. Penny couldn't take her eyes off of Richard. In the end I had to pinch her.

"Hey that's my husband you're ogling."

"Don't you mean ex-husband."

"I'm working on that."

"Well you'd better work fast girl, once he gets his head together there is going to be a queue."

I'd never thought about it before but he really did have a hot body. When he went to the main pool to swim for a while I could see some of the girls checking him out. I turned to Penny.

"I'm going to fix him, and when I do he'll be all mine. Anyway I have a secret weapon."

"What would that be?"

"Those two" I said pointing to the children. "As long as I've got them, he won't go far and I'm going to make sure he never wants to."

"Well good luck on that one. I can't understand how you let him get away in the first place."

"Looking back on it neither can I."

Richard came back to the junior pool and played with the children before saying he would take us all to Pizza Hut for lunch. It was a fitting end to a wonderful morning and Richard held my hand as we walked out of the mall. That was when I saw a face I hoped I'd never see again. His nose was a bit bent following his last altercation with Richard but apart from that it was the same old Tony. He looked surprised at first then started to smile.

"Well, well, I see my cast-offs have found someone to look after them."

"As I recall, she threw you out," Richard replied.

"All the charges are dropped. You didn't really think you'd take me down did you?"

"I'm with my family Woodward. Now step aside and we'll be on our way."

My family, he said my family. He included me. I was so pleased that I almost missed Anthony following us out to the car park.

"What are you going to do now big man."

"I'm gonna take my family home." Richard continued walking ushering the children in front of him. I was amazed at his restraint.

"That's it walk away. Roll over like you always did."

Richard turned to Penny, "Penny would you take the children home please."

Penny hustled the children over to her Isuzu and started buckling them all in. Richard and I walked towards the BMW. Richard go out the key and pressed the unlock button. I heard the chirp, chirp, and saw the lights flash, then I heard Tony's outburst.

"That's my car. You bastard you stole my car."

I heard Tony running towards us as Penny Drove away. Richard let go of my hand and turned to face Anthony. Tony's fist connected with the side of Richards face. He went down and was on his hands and knees when Tony kicked at his stomach. He rolled onto his side and Tony continued kicking him. I pulled out my phone and called the police. I tried to pull Tony away but he threw me off and I fell to the floor. Richard started to get up, he looked at me and winked. He was still bent over as Tony went to kick him again.

For me it was like seeing it in slow motion. Richard put both hands together as if he was holding a bat. As Tony kicked at him Richard turned his body away. With all the force he could muster he swung round and both his hands crashed into Tony's genitals. He doubled up with both hands between his legs. Richard continued to spin full circle and his two hands connected with Tony's jaw. He went over, and rolled onto his back. Richard staggered over to him and dropped to his knees, one of which came down firmly between Tony's legs. Both men let out a scream. I heard the sirens as Richard pinned Tony to the floor. Between gasps of breath I could hear Richard speaking to Tony.

"I think you've just activated your suspended sentence. Three years wasn't it?"

"It'll never happen," Tony mumbled. "It's your word against mine"

Richard nodded in the direction of the mall entrance. "Not out here it's not."

Tony and I looked in the direction Richard had indicated. Ten feet up, above the entrance was the CCTV camera.

"You bastard, you set me up."

"That camera is going to show an unprovoked assault." He held his ribs. "By the feel of things, I've got a couple of broken ribs at least. That makes it aggravated assault occasioning grievous bodily harm. Cath's grazed her arm so there's another charge. I hope they can fix your jaw. A pretty boy like you will be in great demand where you are going."

The police arrived followed by the ambulance. I told the attending officers that it was an unprovoked attack on both of us and pointed out the CCTV. They asked Richard to get off Tony but he told them he couldn't do it without help. The paramedics arrived and wanted to examine both men before they moved them. They found Richard had two or more broken ribs. They lifted him up then examined Tony. He had a broken jaw and possible damage to his testicles. Richard and I went in the ambulance and they called for a second vehicle for Tony.

I sat beside Richards in the ambulance. I put my arm around him but was frightened of hurting him. He just grinned at me.

"He's going down Cath. We won't see him again for a few years. I can let Robb have the car back now."

"Oh! I rather like it. I just wish it was a different colour, so that it didn't remind me of him."

He squeezed my hand. "Better get a re-spray then."

I couldn't help myself I started to cry. Even breathing caused him to wince with pain. "I'm so sorry Richard, this is all my fault."

"No it's not, it's his fault and now he's going to pay."

He was right about most of it. He had three broken ribs, a swollen liver, and possible kidney damage. The hospital kept him in for two days then discharged him into my care. They told me he had to have two weeks bed rest. Tony was not admitted. They wired his jaw and discharged him into the custody of the police.

Robb collected the car and brought it home. After a week the police called to check out Tony's allegation. I found all Richards documents and unlocked the car for them to inspect it. After five minutes they returned everything to me and said we had nothing to worry about. I'd insisted Richard used the master bedroom because it had an en-suite bathroom. The first night I slept in his room. After that I slept with him. Yes we only slept, but to wake up and find him there was like heaven to me. By the end of the two weeks he was able to get about and insisted on going back to his own room. However, we were closer. Sadly as soon as he was well enough he went out for the night and didn't return until the next day.

*****

Eva rang a couple of times while Richard was incapacitated. She seemed very worried about him and wanted to visit. He told her that Cathy was looking after him. As soon as he was fit they fixed a date. Eva was her usual beautiful self but Richard thought something was wrong. Once they got back to Eva's flat Richard decided to find out what was wrong.

"What's wrong Eva you've been distant all evening, have I done something wrong?"

"No! No it's me. I have a problem."

"Well what is it? Maybe I can help."

"No you can't help because you are my problem. I like you Richard I like you very much. Too much maybe. All the time I think about you. When I find out you are hurt I want to look after you but I can't. You have your children, and you have your wife. I know you cannot leave them. Me, I like my work I don't want to give it up. Be truthful Richard can you really let your girlfriend be Escort girl?"

"I'm sorry Eva, I don't think I can. If you were my girl I would want you to be my girl and no one else's."

"You see I have problem. I want you to be my man but I want to continue my work. I know is not fair, but that's what I want and can't have."

"Sounds like you've thought about this a lot. What conclusion have you come to."

"I think this is last time for us. The more I see you the more I want to be with you. I can't do this anymore Richard. We have to end it today I'm sorry."

They spent the night in tender love making and parted in the morning.

*****

When he did return he seemed introspective. He seemed sad about something but didn't want to talk to me about it. I know I was being selfish but I hoped he had broken it off with his girlfriend. As the weeks went by It looked like I was right, he certainly wasn't going out anymore. It took almost a month before he could lift the children, but of course a little pain wasn't going to stop him.

We were getting on really well by the time Tony's trial came up. Both of us were called as witnesses as was Penny. We were told by the prosecution counsel that he expected Tony to claim provocation. The CCTV looked pretty conclusive but there was no sound so he expected Tony to claim Richard had verbally abused him. Penny was a star she told it like it was and wasn't browbeaten by defending counsel. I watched the jurors as she told them about Richard wanting the children out of the way. The defence barrister asked why she thought he had wanted her to do that.

"It was obvious Mr Woodward was itching for a fight. Mr Thompson didn't want them to see their daddy getting hurt, of course."

I could almost see the jurors ticking that one off. "good dad and family man".

The judge gave Tony ten years. The suspended sentence made it thirteen. If he behaved himself he would be out in seven years. Richard was relieved, it was almost over. The civil case for damages would take some time but with Tony in prison Richard seemed much happier. The lawyer had garnished Tony's accounts so all money going into the accounts was frozen until the case was heard.

Richard and I were getting on really well, no sex but good friends. We told each other all about our problems and our dreams. Having him there all the time with me burning for him and he taking no notice caused me a lot of frustration. I got through no end of batteries, he must been able to hear me groaning. When I woke up wanting him I would walk to his room to sit and watch him sleep. Eventually I could take it no longer. I lifted the covers and climbed in alongside him. I edged closer to him and reached over to stroke his back. I ran my hand down over his bum, then down the back of his leg. I reached his knee and started back up the front. I stroked his inner thigh and fondled his balls. His cock grew as I brought my hand up over his stomach. He moved towards me and I kissed his lips. His hand moved across and wrapped around my waist. I kissed him again. He opened his eyes.

"Cathy?"

"I want this Richard. I really, really, want this."

I pulled him closer to me and his dick pushed against me. I kissed his cheek and whispered in his ear.

"I love you Richard and I really need to do this. Make love to me darling, please make love to me."

He was still half asleep and the single bed was very cramped. I rolled him onto his back and climbed astride him. I lowered myself onto his hard rod. My pussy was already throbbing, deep inside. I could feel my wetness starting to drip down onto him. As I felt him enter me, I was in ecstasy. I lowered myself and he penetrated further and further. I came down on his legs and wiggled on top of him. I never knew I having him inside me again could feel so good, it was wonderful. I felt his hands come up to my breasts. He squeezed and ran his thumbs over my nipples. They were already hard but when he touched me it was like an electric shock, one that forced my stomach forward. My insides started to clench and the hardest orgasm in over a year ripped through me. I leaned forward and placed my hands either side of his head and started to move up and down on him. I couldn't remember ever feeling that good. I started to rub my clit but Richard took the hint and pushed his hand down to rub it for me. I could feel myself coming again when Richard started thrusting up into me. I sat back throwing my head back and let out o long low moan. When the orgasm was over I pushed my feet down and collapsed on top of him.

I wanted to stay there forever, His arms around me and me lying on his chest. I was drifting off to sleep when I felt him shaking me.

"Cath, Cath, we need to get some sleep and you need to go back to your own room."

"Come with me."

"I can't, I'm not ready and it will give the kids the wrong idea. If they find me in your bed they'll think things are back as they were, and they're not."

That hurt, I thought he'd taken me back. Now the feeling of rejection overwhelmed me. I rushed back to my room threw myself on the bed and cried my eyes out. It took a week to get back to what passed for normal. From then on we slowly started to make progress and would get round to a bit of snogging on the sofa. Sometimes we got a bit carried away and would end up in my bed. Always he left and went back to his own room.

I knew I had to do something drastic so in February 2012 I put a plan together. On the 29^th I cooked his favourite meal for dinner and put some champagne on ice. With the children were tucked up in bed I went into the bedroom to prepare. When I returned to Richard he was sitting on the sofa in the living room. I was wearing only a white silk kimono. I went down on one knee in front of him and took his hand.

"Richard Thompson, will you marry me?"

I took him completely by surprise. "Is this for real, aren't you supposed to offer me a ring or something?"

He was smiling as I got up. "I can do better than that." I opened the kimono to expose my smooth naked pussy. As he studied it he started to laugh. Tattooed on my mons was a sign sticking out of my slit. The sign said Private Keep out either side of the slit was written The exclusive property of Richard Thompson. Richard laughed. I looked at him and smiled.

"If that's not enough, how about this?" I turned around lifted the kimono and bent down pushing my arse towards him. Each cheek displayed a sign which appeared to come from my anus. The signs read Private RT only.

I turned back to him.

"But I've never fucked your arse."

"Nor has anyone else, but it's yours if you want it. Please Richard, please say yes. I want to grow old with you. I want us to bring up our children as man and wife. I don't ever want to lose you again."

I dropped my original engagement ring in his hand. I'd had it cleaned and it sparkled like new. I held out my left hand.

"Well what's it to be." With my heart in my mouth waited for a reply that never came. Instead he took the ring in his right hand and slipped it onto my third finger. With the kimono still open I jumped onto his lap and smothered him in kisses. I got up and ran to the fridge and got out the champagne.