There were just a few days left till the year ended. Camilla and her family had settled nicely into their new home. With lots of space to run and play, Meghan and Marshall could not have asked for anything better. James and Michelle had sent a text message to Bradford and Camilla congratulating them on their move and were looking forward to coming home for the New Year's Eve dance. The space in the new house was so big that they had decided that this year the ball would be hosted at their place. "Babe, what would our theme be for this year?" Camilla asked. "That's a good question," Bradford said, "we can do a few different ones, but what about a black tie event?" Camilla thought for a second, "nope I don't like it, it's boring. Let's do something jazzy!" she voiced her opinion. "Okay, what about a costume ball?" he asked. "It could work," she responded, thinking a little more, "I got it. Why don't we do a masquerade ball?" Bradford's face lit up, "You're amazing. Yes, I like th
Everyone had masks on their faces, so unless you knew what mask each one was wearing that evening, it would have been difficult to identify a specific person. Camilla had on a queen's mask, while Bradford had the mask of a king. By the time all the guests had arrived and had been given a glass in hand, the host and hostess entered the ballroom. First they mingled with guests, and then it was time for Bradford to make the introductory welcome speech."Ladies and Gentlemen, as we dawn on a new year, let's reflect and be thankful for the year we exit out of. Friends have been made, loved ones lost," he said, holding his wife dear and near to him, "couples uniting and business thriving. One thing I have learned this year is to cherish what you have. Let's enjoy this ball and move forward into a better new year," he completed saying, holding up his glass to his wife. Everyone applauded the speech and went back to mingling. Earlier that week, at Thorn Cross Prison in Warrington, Cheshire,
The new year rang in, and well wishes were sent all around. Eventually, everyone left, and the family managed to get some rest. Morgan had slept right through the night despite all the noise downstairs. Later that morning, as was custom in the Jones family, they were all going to gather for a new year meal. Usually, they would go to Aunt Ruby and Uncle Chris's place. This year, the tide changed, and everyone would be assembling at their place. The family had not gone home after the ball. Everyone had slept over. Around 10 that morning, everyone was up and busying themselves in the kitchen, preparing for the grand lunch. While the women were working in the kitchen, the men gathered in the living room, each enjoying a warm cup of hot chocolate and having a good conversation. The children were busy playing with Morgan in the walking ring. While preparing the meal, Camilla asked the others, "Did anyone other than myself, Tamara and the children notice that strange gentleman that ca
As a young adult in her early twenties, Camilla led a quiet life. Growing up in Cheshire was something she loved. On the street where she lived, they all knew each other. Camilla fell in love with a man who was twenty-three, but after two years, they parted ways. At the age of twenty-five, she met her, to be, husband Steven Middleton. They started courting and what a whirlwind of a courtship it was. Six months after dating, Steven asked her, "Camilla?" "Hmmm," she replied while sitting in the living room by the fireplace, gazing at how the fire was blazing in front of her. It was so mesmerizing. "Camilla, will you marry me?" he asked. Camilla was elated and immediately jumped up and said, "Yes, yes, I will marry you." Camilla threw her arms around his lean, masculine, well-trained torso. He drew her in for a slow, long, lingering kiss. Camilla wasn't a very attractive young lady, but her qualities were something to behold. She was an ordinary country girl with a slightly bigger
Several months had passed, and things hadn't gotten easier for Camilla. Steven drank every day. He had even gone to work drunk and received various warnings for being drunk on duty. By now, Camilla was in the last month of her pregnancy. Money struggles were real for the couple due to Steven's drinking. Camilla hoped that once the baby came, he would stop drinking and step up to being a dad. At 4 one morning, Camilla awoke to the feeling of wanting to use the bathroom, but as she arose, everything on the bed was soaked through. She went to the bathroom, but she still couldn't stop. Eventually, she called for her husband, who was still hung over from the night before. "Steven, please get the car!" She yelled, knowing it was going to be difficult for him to wake up. "Steven, can you get up, I need to get to the hospital now!" she yelled again. In a groggy state, he said to her, "Just get some more sleep. It's okay, you'll be fine." Steven hadn't realized his wife's water had broken
It was 3:30 in the morning when Camilla received a phone call. "Morning, mam, sorry to wake you up, we just want to find out something!" The male voice said.Just then, Camilla's heart stopped, "What is it?" she asked through her tears. "Mam, do you have a Toyota Camry?" he asked. "Yes!" she nervously replied. Camilla's stomach was in knots. She didn't know what next to expect. "Mam, can you describe the driver of your car?" Camilla described her car, registration number, and the driver of her car, explaining that he was her husband and that she'd been waiting all night for him to come home. "Is he ok?" Camilla asked. "Yes, mam, we pulled him over for not having his lights on while driving and a broken taillight. He's on his way home now," the officer informed her. "Thank you, officer." she responded and hung up the phone. Looking at the time, she sighed. "What's the use of going to sleep now?" she thought to herself. Camilla went to take a shower, prepared her clothes for w
After Camilla had taken a stand and gone out with her friend, Steven had had a rude awakening and realized his wife wasn't someone to play with.Things seemed to settle down and get back on track. Just when Camilla started to feel more relaxed again in her marriage, she was again disappointed by her husband.One afternoon, Steven came home from work in a very bad mood. "Steven, what's wrong?" Camilla asked.Angrily, he shouted at her, "Shut up, just shut up." He walked to the bathroom, changed his clothes, picked up the keys to the car, and drove off."What is going on?" Camilla asked herself, bewildered at his sudden relapse in actions.Uneasy about the whole ordeal, Camilla called her friend, who worked with Steven. "Michelle, what happened today? Steven came home in such a bad mood."Michelle sighed. She had reservations about telling her friend what happened between her boss, Steven, and the "client." So she just settled for the last part, not wanting to hurt her friend, "Camilla
It was coming into summer, the weather was becoming a little warmer, and flowers were blooming. Camilla loved roses and carnations, and in her garden, she had a beautiful array of both. Things between her and Steven had seemingly gotten a lot better. Steven had gone back to working for the accounting firm, but he was on very thin ice. He couldn't afford to falter not one time. One afternoon in March, Camilla was buying a few groceries as she always did, and walking past the fisheries, she suddenly felt ill from the smell of the oil. As she finished getting the groceries and walking back to the bus stop, she felt dizzy. She regained her composure and decided to go and buy a pregnancy test. On arriving at home, Camilla decided to do the test. She wasn't sure if she wanted another child or not as things had been rocky between her and Steven and had only just now, seemingly, started to settle down. As she waited for the result to appear, Steven walked into the house. "Camilla, I'm ho
The new year rang in, and well wishes were sent all around. Eventually, everyone left, and the family managed to get some rest. Morgan had slept right through the night despite all the noise downstairs. Later that morning, as was custom in the Jones family, they were all going to gather for a new year meal. Usually, they would go to Aunt Ruby and Uncle Chris's place. This year, the tide changed, and everyone would be assembling at their place. The family had not gone home after the ball. Everyone had slept over. Around 10 that morning, everyone was up and busying themselves in the kitchen, preparing for the grand lunch. While the women were working in the kitchen, the men gathered in the living room, each enjoying a warm cup of hot chocolate and having a good conversation. The children were busy playing with Morgan in the walking ring. While preparing the meal, Camilla asked the others, "Did anyone other than myself, Tamara and the children notice that strange gentleman that ca
Everyone had masks on their faces, so unless you knew what mask each one was wearing that evening, it would have been difficult to identify a specific person. Camilla had on a queen's mask, while Bradford had the mask of a king. By the time all the guests had arrived and had been given a glass in hand, the host and hostess entered the ballroom. First they mingled with guests, and then it was time for Bradford to make the introductory welcome speech."Ladies and Gentlemen, as we dawn on a new year, let's reflect and be thankful for the year we exit out of. Friends have been made, loved ones lost," he said, holding his wife dear and near to him, "couples uniting and business thriving. One thing I have learned this year is to cherish what you have. Let's enjoy this ball and move forward into a better new year," he completed saying, holding up his glass to his wife. Everyone applauded the speech and went back to mingling. Earlier that week, at Thorn Cross Prison in Warrington, Cheshire,
There were just a few days left till the year ended. Camilla and her family had settled nicely into their new home. With lots of space to run and play, Meghan and Marshall could not have asked for anything better. James and Michelle had sent a text message to Bradford and Camilla congratulating them on their move and were looking forward to coming home for the New Year's Eve dance. The space in the new house was so big that they had decided that this year the ball would be hosted at their place. "Babe, what would our theme be for this year?" Camilla asked. "That's a good question," Bradford said, "we can do a few different ones, but what about a black tie event?" Camilla thought for a second, "nope I don't like it, it's boring. Let's do something jazzy!" she voiced her opinion. "Okay, what about a costume ball?" he asked. "It could work," she responded, thinking a little more, "I got it. Why don't we do a masquerade ball?" Bradford's face lit up, "You're amazing. Yes, I like th
The following day was Boxing Day. Everyone in the house arose early to begin the move from Macclesfield to Alderley Edge. The kids, especially, were extremely excited. Bradford had arranged a small moving van to take the goods they were moving with. Most of the things in the house were being left behind except for Morgan's cot and camper. These would be going with them. Shopping online had made things simple for the couple, so the furniture for the new house would have been delivered about a week prior to their moving in. Bradford and Camilla had arranged for a designer and her team to be there when the furniture arrived, in order to ensure the house would be ready and equipped when they arrived. James and Michelle were on their honeymoon so they weren't available. However, Tamara was still at her mom's with Frederick. Aunt Ruby and Uncle Chris, along with Tamara and Frederick, came to help with the moving. When the others arrived, they all sat around the dining room table for o
The wedding for James and Michelle had gone off beautifully. "I can't believe Tamara and Frederick caught the bouquet and garter," Camilla said to Bradford as they were watching the snow falling.It was the festive season holidays. Looking at the snow, Bradford commented, "we've been through a lot this year. Can you believe we have been together for a year?" he smiled, looking at the back of his wife as he embraced her."I know," she smiled back at him. "It's been a good year for us. Yes, we have faced a lot, but I am forever grateful to you, my love," Camilla said while sipping her Sherry and looking at the snow.Just then, like she had remembered something, Camilla put her glass down, took Bradford's glass from him, and dragged him out into the snow. Bradford laughed, "I'm glad you haven't lost your sense of humour," he said through the laughter. While outside, the children, grandpa, and Aunt Joyce came to see what all the noise was. "Ah, such young love," Grandpa said, "I remember
Just two days were left before the wedding day. Michelle and Camilla had been very busy with the finer details. Camilla had taken James' mom and Aunt Joyce to the boutique to get their dresses for the wedding, and Michelle was at the beauty salon doing pre-bridal test runs of makeup before the day. That afternoon, Bradford and James treated all the women, Michelle's mom, James' mom, Aunt Joyce, Michelle, and Camilla, to a spa afternoon with massages. Enjoying the two hours, the ladies discussed a lot of the ideas for the reception. "Where's Tamara?" Michelle asked. "She's coming down with Frederick tomorrow morning," Aunt Ruby said, "Apparently she has something planned for you and Camilla." Camilla's eyebrows rose, "I hope she's going to behave." They all laughed. In the past, this may have been something of a warning, but Tamara had changed, and she was more placid than before. The morning before the wedding. Tamara and Frederick arrived at her parents' place around 7 that mo
Tamara and Frederick started attending the University of Bolton. Both were studying as per the specifications from Bradford. It was nearing the wedding of Tamara's brother, James, and his fiancé, Michelle. James had given his sister permission to bring a plus one to the wedding. One Friday afternoon, after lectures had ended, Frederick had invited Tamara out for dinner and drinks. "This could be the perfect time to invite him to my brother's wedding with me!" she thought. "I'll swing by your place. Be ready by 6 p.m.," Frederick informed her. Smiling, she said, "Anything specific?" she asked. "Nothing major," he responded. By 6 that evening, Tamara was ready and nervous. They'd been out with friends in a crowd, but this was their first official date. "Wow, you look beautiful," Frederick said as she opened the front door. Tamara was wearing a long, black pencil skirt with a white, long-sleeved blouse and a black jacket. "Thank you," she smiled coyly. She was blushing at the att
For the next three days, Bradford was forced to stay in hospital despite the fact that he wanted to get back home. Camilla remained at the hospital with him while they had frequent guests in and out. While lying on the bed, Bradford asked, "Can you please continue the audiobook. I want to hear what Desmond has in store for Theresa next."Camilla laughed, "Bradford, you really are something else I tell you. So do you want to listen for the sake of listening, or is it to conjure up something in that devious mind of yours for when you get home?"A devilish smile grew across his lips at the thought of what he would plan for his wife. Camilla saw that smile, and she knew what he was up to. Shaking her head, she responded, "I have no words for you, my husband." Camilla continued to play the book as they sat snuggled together on the hospital bed. Some of the scenes were excellent, and Bradford said, "Just imagine that this was us and Desmond was me," he smiled. His manhood getting a high-r
There was a long wait till Bradford was wheeled out into the ICU. "Doctor, how is my husband?" Camilla asked, tears rolling down her cheeks. "We will have to see. We managed to remove the bullet," the doctor said. Judith's father arrived at the hospital. "Tell me, is Bradford okay?" He asked, sincerely concerned about the young man. "He's still unconscious, Mr Brown," James said. "Please keep me updated on his progress," the elder gentleman said and left the hospital. Camilla went into the room, "Babe, please wake up, I need you," she said, crying as she sat beside his bed. The family popped in briefly, one at a time, to see him. "Thank you all for coming," Camilla said, "you can all go home. I will keep everyone updated on the family chat group." Nodding, they said goodbye and left.Later that evening, James and Michelle took the children in to see him. "Dad Brad, you need to be okay. We all need you, but mom and Morgan need you more," Meghan said, holding his hand. Marshall w