The Twelve Tables Ch. 17

"It would ensure she got more rest, and we would both have more reasons to visit her there than out at the property," Antonia grinned. "There would be extra people to watch over her while Josh does what he needs to create his dream home for her."

"I could get Charles to talk to the boys, make a subtle suggestion. It would be better if the offer came from them rather than us forcing them to house a pregnant woman and her stressed out husband," Andie have a light laugh.

"I'm all for anything that doesn't involve us directly," Antonia said with a smile. "Joseph pointed out that this is the first time one of our children has come to us rather than us having to push our way into their lives. So we are trying very hard to take a back seat and just support them. It's harder to do it this way," she admitted, "but it's so nice to be invited to the discussions for a change."

"We bring them up to be independent and then wonder why they don't want our help with anything," Andie nodded. "I've been rebuilding all my bridges with Peri, and we're in a good place now. I don't want to cross any invisible lines with her either."

"Well, why don't you talk to D. and Lio. Make it seem like it's their idea," Antonia said conspiratorially. "I think it's a wonderful idea, and we would be crazy not to suggest it to someone."

"If you've got idea's I'm the man to speak to," Grant said walking into the room with Peri.

"Grant this is my mother, Andie," Pei introduced them. "So you're all caught up on house plans?" she asked.

"I am, and it sounds wonderfully exciting. Just promise me you aren't planning washed out pastels for the nursery, and I will be a happy grandmama," Andie laughed.

"Heaven forbid," Grant threw his hands up in the air with a laugh. "I'm going to convince the beautiful mother-to-be to find out the sexes of her babies before even entertaining any thoughts on the subject."

"I think that's probably a good idea, I don't know how we will ever choose names with such a big family to consider so knowing who is coming will be important," Peri said and placed a hand on her belly as she often did when talking about her babies now. It was still early days, but they had become more real in the last week now that everyone knew they were on their way.

"Ooh, are you planning a surprise for me," Maryanne squealed in delight as she walked into the room and saw them sitting there deep in conversation.

"I haven't even had the chance to congratulate you properly yet," Andie got to her feet and approached the young woman. "I am looking forward to meeting your fiancé."

"He's coming up on Wednesday to meet everyone and help with all the preparations. Well not help, mama has already done everything, it's going to be amazing!" she gushed.

Peri smiled she was glad that none of the activity surrounding her and Josh seemed to have affected Maryanne and her plans for an engagement party to eclipse all of her sibling's parties. Peri had no doubt the wedding would be just as big and lavish if not more so.

"Actually, I was looking for Josh, he promised to go riding with me today," Maryanne looked around.

"Do you want me to call him?" Peri offered.

"No it's more fun like this, like a big game of hide and seek he doesn't know he's playing," she laughed. "I've been playing it my whole life they just don't know it." She spoke of her brothers in the plural.

"That sounds fun. I'll help if you like. I don't like being this close to the kitchen when they're cooking up a storm," she pulled a face. Nausea continued to plague her so when she could she ate outside, and she tended to stay away from the kitchen.

"Sure we'll try the stables next in case he did remember and was just running late," she grinned.

"Don't forget our meeting this afternoon," Grant said to Peri as she began to walk away.

"I'll be there," she called over her shoulder and left them all to continue to talk about plans she had agreed to and those she hadn't.

Josh was down at the stables and having saddled the horses he sat on a hay bale twirling a piece of straw between his fingers lost in thought. He looked up as they entered and smiled.

"I thought you forgot me," he pouted at Maryanne.

"Fat chance. You were late, so I went looking for you and found Peri instead. There was a time I could always find you in the kitchen annoying the cooks," she turned to Peri and whispered. "He was always the easiest to find."

"Growing boys need food," he shrugged. "I'll be back for the meeting," he murmured as he kissed Peri and then mounted his horse.

"I know you're hiding up there, D. come down and walk Peri back up to the house," Maryanne laughed. Then she galloped off into the countryside with Josh following along behind her after a quick look up at the hay loft, where Dante groaned and stood up close the edge so he could be seen.

"You don't have to come down, I'm not an invalid who can't make a ten-minute walk on her own," Peri called up to him.

"Stay right there I'm coming down," he called back and disappeared.

He came down a set of stairs at the end of the stable still dusting straw from his clothes and hair. Like Josh, he was tall and well-built, and it was easy to see the familiar family traits the brothers possessed.

"I didn't think you were a horseman," Peri said as he came closer to where she stood.

"I'd rather use the quads if that's what you mean but the horses are good too," he said looking around. "I guess Carlo and Josh were always more into them than the rest of us, but it doesn't mean we didn't like to ride occasionally."

"I expect it would be hard to live here and not ride when you were younger," Peri mused. "All this land to play on, I mean."

"We all worked in the stable during our trials," he explained. "It was one of the better parts of it, though I didn't mind the landscaping either."

"So you had to live and work with the people who worked for your family?" she asked. She had never spoken about the details of Josh's trial with him, but he had told her everyone had to go through it. It was one of the family traditions that Joseph was strict about."

"Yeah pretty much. I didn't mind it, gives you a bit of perspective. Lio hated it; he likes his creature comforts, even back then," he grinned. "We used to make a nest up there in the hay loft and just hang out once the chores had been done. I still like it as a place to go and think alone. Unless Maryanne decided to come and find me. Luckily she preferred bugging Josh and Nik."

"Maryanne makes me laugh," Peri said with a smile. "She so child-like it's hard to believe she's getting married."

"I find it harder to believe my baby brother is married and has a baby on the way," he chuckled.

"Babies," Peri corrected.

"Wow I guess it shouldn't surprise me that you're having twins," he said with a wide smile. "Conrat..." he stopped speaking as she shook her head and held up three fingers. "No way!" he said in amazement.

"Way," she nodded. "So it's good we have this chance to talk because we'll have to widen the doorways and get me a reinforced chair at work because I am going to be HUGE!" She laughed at his shocked expression.

"Shit Peri," he ran his fingers through his hair and gave her a sad expression. "I love you and all but your fired. We can't turn the Auction house into a sideshow." He grinned as she looked shocked at first then realised he was joking.

"I could make you some extra money," she cajoled. "Come one, come all, and see the only living blimp in the southern hemisphere."

"I'd have to run it past Lio, and you know how fussy he is about this sort of thing. Maybe if you offered him a ring masters uniform, you know with a top hat and tails," he laughed.

"You could at least ask him before firing me without notice," she complained with a smile.

"Fine," he said dramatically rolling his eyes. "Just once I wish I could make a decision on my own. Let's find him then."

"Is Josh going to build a warehouse to house you when you're huge?" he asked as they walked along. "Poor guy never saw this coming did he?"

"Since you asked," Peri said giving him a sly look, "Josh is building me a warehouse. He's tacking it onto our beautiful little house where he will live while I sit all fat and lonely in a warehouse built just to hide what he did to me!"

Dante roared with laughter. He was reminded of the first time he had ever met her when she had told the story of how she had met Josh and had then all rolling with laughter. He wished he had met her first and got to know what a smart and funny woman she was before knowing she was out of his reach. At times like this when they were joking and laughing together, it was hard to hide the love he felt for her. He took his phone from his pocket still laughing.

"Yeah it's me, meet me on the front porch, I fired Peri but she's under the delusion that you get a say in the matter," Dante said into the phone barely holding back his laughter. Peri could hear Emilio's expletive and terse agreement to meet them in a few minutes after he finished speaking with Andie.

Egged on by Dante Peri had almost the same conversion with Emilio, who wiped a tear of laughter from his cheek as Dante commiserated over the poor fat, lonely pregnant woman that needed a whole warehouse built to contain her growing bulk with a perfectly straight face.

"Well that's just not right," Emilio said as he got a hold of his laughter and scratched his chin thoughtfully. "Seems such an extravagant expense for poor Josh to have to build a warehouse for her when he's just started a company. We could probably find some room in the warehouses we already have."

"She's gonna get..., what was the word you used Peri? Huge!" Dante shook his head. "I'm not sure we have that much room. Even if we do charge admission to see the living blimp, I don't think we would break even."

"You guys are too kind," Peri rolled her eyes.

"In all seriousness, where will you stay while the renovations are going on?" Emilio asked.

"I don't know that we've thought that far ahead yet," Peri said surprised by the question after all the joking around.

"You and Josh could take Dante's place, and he could move in with me for a few months," Emilio suggested. "You wouldn't have to worry about driving into work every day and Josh wouldn't be trying to stop you. You know, now that he has started being so mean, he'll probably be embarrassed to have you driving around in public while he builds that warehouse to hide you."

"Or you could take Lio's place, and he could move in with me for a few months," Dante chuckled. "Then you could work the hours you chose to and be close to the hospital and doctors."

"You're the best man, so they should have your place," Emilio pointed out with an air of finality.

"That sounds perfect, but I would hate to kick either of you out of your home," Peri said looking at them both. "I don't know if Josh has anything else planned so maybe ask him about it, it would mean a lot of commuting for him between work and the build and me. I'm not sure he will like the idea as much as I do."

*****

"I wish all my clients were like you," Carmella said with a smile several days later when she unfurled her drawings. She had been working on them and consulting with Josh and Peri from time to time over the past week. All of her team were present, but she had not invited the couple's parents or the few people who had wanted to be involved in the project.

"Really? It's such a rush to get things done I thought you would be cursing us for the urgency," Josh looked surprised.

"I love a tight deadline," Carmella said as she weighted the corners of the pages spreading them out over the table. "I meant that you both have very clear ideas about what you want in your home, and fortunately, those ideas don't conflict at all." She finished arranging the drawings on the table and looked up to her team. "Okay, I'm good to go."

"Okay on with the presentation," Tarsia nodded to Paul, who hefted a large LED screen to the table and turned it on. Josh and Peri looked at the screen as it flickered to life showing a still shot of a beautiful large house with wide veranda's spanning the front and wrapping around the sides. The presentation went on to show the full exterior of the house before taking them for a walk through an unfurnished interior. At various stages, Tarsia stopped the presentation so that they could ask questions or for the team to explain possible features that could replace the ones they had built into the design at this point.

"So we could change the tiles or wall colour in any room," Peri asked during one of the early pauses.

"Don't be put off by the neutral colours at this stage," Grant answered for the team. "Colour will come in with furniture and accessories, and we wouldn't want you to limit what you could put in each room. Particularly the nursery and rooms for when the babies are older."

"That makes sense," Josh nodded.

"I know it's hard to imagine with these large open areas, but we have added some touches of colour to the wet areas where furniture is not such an issue," Grant added. "We can talk about colour once we've completed the virtual tour and tweak anything you like."

Peri relaxed back in her chair and held Josh's hand. The house was beautiful, and she knew it would be the perfect family home they had dreamed about building. She was just finding it difficult to imagine the furniture in the large open spaces. It had everything she had asked for and more with small splashes of blue and green in the bathrooms and warm golden glow to the kitchen.

Josh whistled as the presentation ended with a tour through the couples retreat which included a sauna and spa as well as a designated play room which made Peri blush as Josh talked about specifications for that room. She wasn't sure she would ever get over his family's openness about their sexuality. She had learnt much while sitting with Emily and staring out of the atrium windows. Affairs were common amongst the relatives, and it would seem not only tolerated but in many instances encouraged. Emily seemed to know who was into kinky things as she called them and who was straight-laced.

While Peri was initially put off by the gossipy nature their conversation, she found she was able to remember names more easily as the intricate webs of these relatives began to unravel before her eyes. Josephs brothers all came with their families and their families, but Peri found that his sisters who he rarely saw sometimes came to attend the gathering including Joseph's twin who was expected to attend the engagement party.

With the initial plans for the house tweaked as much as possible and agreed upon Peri relaxed into her final days at the farm and looked forward to going home and away from the crowd. She picked up the book she had been reading and decided to spend the morning in bed. She needed a break from the constant ebb and flow of people who came and went from the main house throughout the day, and she imagined it would be a late night at the engagement party.

"Excuse me, Mrs. Donati," a small voice spoke from the door.

"Come in, I was just reading," Peri said in an equally quiet voice putting her book down and focusing on the woman in the doorway.

"I hate to disturb you but Mrs. Donati and Miss Andie said you wouldn't mind if I came and introduced myself," she walked into the room and performed a small differential curtsey.

"Oh, well I am sure they sent you for a reason then," Peri smiled at the woman, "Why don't we sit in the comfortable chairs," Peri invited. She had met several women in need of a contract or looking for a change to their existing contracts.

"Thank you, my name is Bridgette," she said taking a seat.

"It's nice to meet you, please call me Peri," she said keeping her voice as soft as the woman's was. "Are you looking for a contract to work for my husband and me?" she asked tentatively.

"I would like that, I hear you are expecting and may have need of a housekeeper and a nanny," she said hopefully. "I have quite a lot of experience at keeping house and looking after children, in fact, that is all I have done in the last twenty years," she spoke with a wistful note in her voice.

"Were you with one family for that long?" Per inquired confused as to why this woman would want to leave somewhere she must have been so familiar with. Somehow the woman didn't seem old enough to have so much experience.

"It was my own family, this would be my first contract, but I assure you I am very capable," she explained.

"Perhaps you could tell me a little about them and why you are looking to join my little family when the babies arrive?" Peri placed a hand on her belly.

"Where to begin," the woman sighed at having to tell her story again. "I married my childhood sweetheart straight out of school. We started a family right away, he had a good job in the family business, and we were deliriously happy, much like you I expect," she smiled.

"We had three boys one after the other," she spoke with the same wistful note she had from the beginning of their conversation. My family was so excited; there had only been girls born in my family for generations so to have boys finally was a wonderful gift. Unfortunately, the women in my family carry a faulty gene and pass down a debilitating and eventually fatal disease to their sons. We discovered the fact when my oldest son, Stanley was five years old. He had struggled for a while getting up and down from the floor and one night just couldn't get himself into bed. He said his legs hurt, and we rushed him to the hospital."

"Oh," Peri put her hand to her mouth, "That's awful I am so sorry."

"Please don't be. They were good boys who had full if short lives. My youngest William died three years ago. Without the boys to keep us together, my husband and I realised we barely knew each other anymore. The boys had been our world. We grew further apart, and he found love with someone else. When the divorce was final, I was lost. My volunteer work with the DMD organization had become increasing hard for me to bear without my boys and I answered an add that offered work for the right person with training provided."

"I've done some small contracts, filling in for others who were ill or unavailable, but I would love to join a young couple just starting out," Bridgette spoke well and was honest about her preferences and her motives for coming to Peri. "I have had a family of my own, and nothing can compare to that, but I want to feel useful and productive again, and I believe I could be an asset to a young family."

"Thank you for being so honest with me," Peri said in equally soft tones. "My husband and I have had to overcome many hurdles to get to this point and having some help when the babies come is going to be important. Did they tell you that I am expecting triplets?"

"No," she said in surprise. "That will be quite a handful won't it."

"Several handfuls I believe," Peri laughed. "We are also building a new house and trying to get it finished before the babies come so that means I wouldn't need a nanny for some time yet. I am more looking for someone who can help with the day to day things I need to be done, like cooking or picking up dry cleaning. I am going to be staying with my brother-in-law while the house is being built, but I don't want to take advantage of his housekeeper nor do I want someone I bring in to tread on her toes. It's going to be a bit of a delicate balance act for the next few months."

"I'm quite good at blending in and negotiating duties with others," Bridgette said confidently. "I would like the opportunity if you are willing to take a chance on an old duck like me. I will leave my training folder with you and perhaps you could talk to your husband about it. Mrs. Donati senior has said she would give me a reference if you needed it."