The Twelve Tables Ch. 09

He hated that the trial was not in his control. He could control every other aspect of his life regardless of his siblings or friends. His father though was the one man who made him feel out of control. Even today when he had arrived expecting to see Peri, his father had exerted his power and made Josh feel like a petulant child.

"Come for a ride with me," he said as they neared the stable.

"Josh before today I had never even seen a horse let alone ridden one," she laughed. "I can't but you need to clear your head and think about things as much as I do. Go for a ride and clear your head, you can teach me to ride another day when I can concentrate better."

He turned stroking her cheek and searching her eyes.

"It's just a lot to take in you know. I don't regret my choice but I need some time to process it all," she said honestly. "The same way you do. Nothing about today went the way either of us thought it would." She leaned up and kissed him. "I love you and your family, I'm happy," she reassured him quickly. "But I am an only child and used to being able to have some space and time to myself. It's part of who I am, and I could use some time to think right now."

"You can't just wander about by yourself," Josh said with concern.

"I'll stay within sight of the house so I can find my way back easily," she said, "I won't go far I promise."

"I'll compromise," Josh offered, "Come to the stable with me then I will take you somewhere safe to be alone while I go for a ride." He took her hand and led her into the timber barn. She jumped and squealed as the first horse they passed snorted making Josh laugh.

She watched and patted the placid horse as Josh saddled him before leading them both out into the daylight again. He helped her up into the saddle, and they rode slowly toward a small stand of trees some distance away.

Helping her from the horse Josh showed Peri to a ladder that led up to a wonderful tree house. "Ang and Ben helped me build this one year as an escape from Nik," he cleared his throat and pushed a pile of Hustler magazines behind an empty crate. "Nik didn't quite understand my need to be alone as we went through puberty." He grinned. "We weren't made aware of the Kept until we finished school."

"This is awesome," Peri looked around at the large space. It was exactly what she would expect from Josh, neat stacks of books and magazines. Comfortable looking vinyl beanbags to lounge in and pen and paper in neat stacks on shelves with more books. "The view of the house is magnificent!" she went to a window and looked out.

"Yeah I could see anyone coming to find me and get away before they did," he chuckled. "I'll come back and get you on my way back from the ride, an hour or so?" He checked with her, and she looked at her watch. Kissing her softly he stroked her cheek, "I love you, never doubt that."

"I love you too," she smiled and watched him disappear down the ladder before flopping into a beanbag facing the view to watch him ride away.

"How on earth did I wind up here," she asked the empty room. She let her mind wander back to when she had first met Josh and the events that had led her to this day and the bizarre contract she had just signed. She had known Josh would not be happy which was why she had asked to hear him say that he knew what she was being asked to do, and although she wasn't about to mention it herself, she wondered if Joseph had told his son about their moment of intimacy. It didn't matter how she tried to make sense of the situation it always came down to one thing, she wanted a future with Josh, and she clung to that thought.

She was still lost in thought when Josh returned pushing through the trap door in the centre of the floor. She smiled as he approached her and flopped onto a beanbag beside hers reaching out and taking her hand as they lay side by side.

"I am sorry," he said quietly. "It was selfish of me to ride off like that considering only how I was feeling about Papa overseeing your trial when I should have been here with you, helping you with all you have had to deal with today."

"I am not going to pretend I understand any of this. It's your world here and your family. What I do understand is what I have to do to become part of this world with you. So I will have no regrets about signing the contract, as long you promise to love me no matter what happens in the next few months. When the trial is over, we pick up our lives and plan our future family together, without any recriminations."

"I am not going to pretend I am happy about my father's interest in your trial. Honestly, I would rather pretend he is just there to watch over you and ensure you're treated with respect despite your trial. If anything happens beyond that I don't want to know, that will be between you and him, or anyone else that happens to become involved," Josh said revealing how upset he was at the prospect of her being intimate with his father.

"It's not a normal situation," Peri sighed and rolled over to face Josh. "I don't think we are supposed to be happy about it. I think that this is one of those things that if it doesn't kill us will only make us stronger. Maybe instead of worrying about what is happening during my trial you can think about how crazy in love with you I must be to agree to it." Josh chuckled and rolled to face her lifting her hand to kiss it.

"I'm a lucky guy," he murmured pulling her closer.

"Yes, you are," she laughed.

"I always wanted to get a real girl up here when I was younger," he reached out and ran a finger down her neck into her cleavage.

"You had fake girls up here?" Peri laughed as the tension between them eased.

"Sisters aren't real girls, duh," Josh rolled his eyes exaggeratedly at her as his hand ran over the thin material of her dress, down to her hip.

"I thought this was a boy only treehouse, given the reading material you have stashed up here." She raised an eyebrow.

"Have you seen the effect of us telling Nik she can't do something?" Josh chuckled. "What was mine was hers, and what was hers was hers. Basically, I had nothing of my own, until you came along to turn my life into the crazy mess it is now."

"Ah I see," Peri said without thinking but stopping herself before finishing her thought that she now understood why he was so reticent to have his father involved in her trial. "I am yours, and you are mine," she said with feeling. "You may have to share my company and attention for a little while, but you will never have to share my heart with anyone." She leaned forward to kiss him.

It was what Josh needed to hear at that moment, and he rolled over her pinning her hands above her head and kissing her deeply. "Time for those teenage fantasies to come true," he growled.

"Teenage fantasies? Well, this will be the most interesting two minutes of my life," she teased. "Let me guess a blowjob and a quick missionary position fuck?"

"You forget I have seven older brothers and plenty of reading material to inspire my fantasies," he murmured darkly into her ear making her shiver. "As you have decided to be so cheeky, though," he sat up and rolled her onto her belly lifting her dress and smacking her ass hard. "I will show you how I like my girl's cheeks." He smacked her again.

He'd moved so fast Peri barely had time to acknowledge the new position she was in before letting out a squeak of pain and surprise. She knew how he liked her cheeks and when the second smack fell on her ass she was prepared. She whimpered softly as he spanked her squirming in the beanbag making it difficult for him to aim precise smacks as she sank deeper into it. He growled and stood to lift her to her feet and pull her against him gripping the red cheeks of her ass tightly as he ground his hard cock into her belly.

His hands ran up under her dress, and he slowly removed her panties, pushing them down over her thighs, until they fell to her feet. He picked her up then and pushed her against the wall feeling the treehouse shake with the force of the jolt and his need.

"Perhaps not," he grinned and stepped back dropping his pants and jocks while she stood looking at him appreciatively. He raised an eyebrow, and she lifted her dress over her head and dropped it to the floor. She had purposefully worn a sexy bra that she knew he would approve of rather than the more supportive garments she preferred, and she enjoyed his expression as he surveyed her.

"Nice," murmured grabbing her arm and pulling her back toward the beanbags. Kicking the bags into a position he considered useful he sat reclining back into the fuller ends and pulled her down to straddle his lap.

"This is much better," she leaned forward to kiss him rocking her hips to grind over his hard cock.

"Mmhmm," he groaned and bucked his hips reaching out to wrap his hands around her waist and raise her up and position her properly over his cock. Moving his hands to her breasts, he groaned as she slowly sank onto him purring softly and staring into his eyes. Pulling her breasts over the demi cups which barely held them in check her played with her hard nipples as she began to fuck him, sliding up and down his cock in slow and graceful movements.

"Fuck," Josh groaned as if in pain and Peri immediately stopped looking down at him in panic. He put his finger to his lips and she finally heard the horse trotting beneath them.

"Josh, your horse is here so I am assuming you let a girl into our tree house," Carlo's voice boomed ringing with humour. "Wrap it up Mama wants you, I'll do a twenty-minute ride, and you better be down here by then," he chuckled, and the horse galloped off.

"I see what you mean about no privacy in big families," Peri giggled.

"I'm surprised he didn't come up to tell me that," Josh laughed and pulled her down to kiss her deeply. "We still have twenty minutes, he grinned and rolled her to her back curling her legs back over her body and entering her roughly.

*****

After reconnecting with Josh and feeling more confident in her decisions, Peri spent the following twenty-four hours helping the family prepare for the festival on Christmas Eve. Lio, Jules and Bianca arrived early the following afternoon and with the last of the tree decorations in place Joseph and Antonia rode the cherry picker up to place the star on the top of the enormous tree to great cheers from their children and grandchildren.

"Time to have a shower and get ready for the festival," Josh said leading her back toward the house ahead of his family. "There's only so much hot water to go around and with so many of us here, I say we get a head start," he laughed encouraging her to walk quickly.

"Yes, please, I need a shower," Peri said following him into the house and upstairs to her room. "Wait what do I wear is it formal or casual tonight," she asked as he turned to leave her and go to shower in his room.

"Cocktail party type stuff I guess, I'm not wearing a jacket if that helps," he shrugged.

"Not much," she laughed.

"Wear something nice, it'll be a fun night. I'll come and pick you up to go down to the party, just like a proper date," he kissed her then and turned to hurry away.

Unsure of what to expect here, Peri had brought several formal dresses. With Josh not being in the city she had been able to meet her mother after work and let her help to find suitable outfits to impress a traditional Italian family. With all her new contacts in her personal shopper business, Andie had been fabulous at finding just what she had needed. The change in her mother's attitude to her daughters looks was still startling to Peri, and as she surveyed the three gowns, she pulled out a short cocktail length dress and smiled. It was pretty and sparkly, and she could imagine it lighting up with the Christmas tree.

She quickly showered and took her time doing her makeup and hair before finally stepping into the dress. The low heels she chose to wear knowing she would be walking on the grass made the dress less cocktail party and more casual party orientated. In the end, she was happy with her choice. The white material hugged her torso and fell into a full skirt that ended just above her knees. The intricate red beading was heavy over the bodice and became lighter as it progressed downward. Like sparkling red snowflakes falling on a white landscape.

She opened her door looking down the corridor and not hearing any footsteps frowned. She had expected that Josh would have been here nagging her to hurry. She didn't know if she should try to find him now or just wait, so she sat down on the end of her bed and sent him a text, "Did you forget our date?"

"Never, be there in few," came the reply. Peri looked at herself in the mirror and began second guessing her choice of lipstick and the way she had swept her hair up off her neck. She wished she had a nicer necklace. She shook her head at the thought. Andi had offered to loan her some pearls for the trip, but she had said no. She wished she had them now.

"If you had wings you would look like a Christmas angel," Josh said standing in her doorway. "Shall we go?"

"Yes please," Peri said smiling widely. "You're sure I look okay?"

"You are perfect," he bent to kiss her cheek not wanting to mess up her makeup just yet.

"Is Lucia or Maryanne here yet?" Peri asked as they descended the stairs.

"Lucy spends the holidays with her husband's family, and Maryanne is spending the holidays with our Uncle in Melbourne," Josh said as if it was normal not to have his sister's home for the holidays.

"Do Ben and Emily ever take the children to her parents for the holidays?" She asked realising that at least part of Nik's feminist rant about her family was true.

"No why would they?" He asked not sure why she was concerned about where the girls spent the holidays.

"She must miss her parents over the holidays, even Andie and I have a few traditions," she smiled.

"Starting tonight you will be part of my family's traditions," he took her hand and led her down into the gathering crowd. "Andie will make new traditions with Charles," he added seeing her frown.

"Joshua," a deep voice boomed, and a large bald man moved through the crowd toward them.

"Hide," Josh whispered and moved to step in front of Peri essentially blocking her view of the man. "Ang, if you think I am letting you anywhere near my girl think again," Josh said with a laugh.

"You wound me, I am a gentleman and a scholar. It is not my fault I am irresistible to the fairer sex," he said sadly as if it was a great burden to bear.

"There you are Peri," Antonia's voice cut through the crowd. "I've been looking for you. Come with me, I need you to do me a favour." She linked her arm through Peri's and started to walk her away from the boys.

"It was nice to meet you, Angelo," she called over her shoulder as she walked away making Josh laugh loudly.

"Hello dear, I'm Rosanna," a middle-aged woman took her other arm as she walked with Antonia. "I'm married to that loud-mouth back there."

"Hi," Peri said starting to become anxious as the women guided her to a small tent where the baskets were stored for when the guests began to leave.

"If anyone asks we had a basket mishap and needed help putting them back together again," Antonia smiled as they stepped inside out of sight. "I know it's been crazy around here today, but I want you to know I am very glad you are here with us for the holidays. You make my son very happy." She hugged Peri and kissed her on both cheeks. "Don't be too long," she said to Rosanna, "Josh tends to come looking for her if she disappears."

"Then give him a job, there's plenty to do," Rosanna laughed. "Just don't let on we are in here, or I really will have to tip over a stack of baskets." Antonia hurried off without another word.

"We don't have much time so let's just agree that I'm good, your good, it's a wonderful night and all that jazz," Rosanna said in a brisk, no-nonsense way. "Can you sing? Do you like Karaoke?"

"Umm yeah, I guess, though I am not very good," Peri said confused by why she was here with this woman.

"Well that's a start, here's the thing. You have never been to the Christmas festival before and if I know the boys they haven't told you anything about it, so here is the condensed version. When the sun sets, there will be the official lighting of the tree and a small round of fireworks for the small children. That is followed by a children's concert where they all get up on stage and sing the songs they have learned at school in groups usually because there are a lot of them," she seemed to stop and think but went on quickly.

"Then at about seven-thirty there is a big countdown to Santa leaving the North Pole to start his journey around the world. We put it up on the big screen, and the kids love it!" she said enthusiastically and seemed to be talking even faster. "There is a small break for food and for nannies and the locals to settle the children in for the night or head home before the adult concert starts. Everyone in the family is expected to perform. Josh has a great voice did you know that? It doesn't matter you will find out later anyway. The whole thing is hosted by my husband, Angelo. Are you with me so far?"

"I think so," Peri nodded feeling better about having an idea of what was going to happen at this festival.

"Here's the thing, and I don't want you to get offended or upset because I am about to be very blunt. No one expected you to be still here. Ben did, but he's a romantic, and we don't trust his opinion on things like this. He won a lot of money from his brothers betting that you would stay after talking with Joseph." She stopped to check Peri's reaction.

"I know girl's like me aren't likely to stay, it's a bit bizarre to tell you the truth, but I love Josh. I love him enough to accept the bizarreness of the whole situation," Peri said honestly.

"Well that makes this easier then," Rosanna said with a smile. "Normally no one would expect you to perform but you my dear are a rare creature, and they intend to test your commitment to being part of the family. So when Nik's song comes up on the playlist, they intend to cajole you into either performing by saying it is expected of anyone wanting to be part of the family or they will make it hard for you to say no."

"Oh gosh no, I can't, not Nik's song you have to help me." Peri's eyes widened in panic.

"I am helping you, sweetheart. I am giving you some warning and preparation time. No one can stop it happening, and if you tell Josh, there will be hell to pay for ruining their fun, especially for Antonia and me. The best we can do is give you the words to look over and let you listen to it on your phone quickly," she took a deep breath. "Please understand, it's a different world here, and women do as they are told."

"Yeah I am becoming more aware of that all the time," Peri gave a half-hearted laugh and looked at the words Rosanna had handed her on a small sheet of paper. It was one of Andie's favourites, so she didn't need to look it up. "If it's like Karaoke will I have words for the performance?" she asked.

"I don't know," she said sadly. "Listen no one knows except Angelo and Carlo, so act very surprised when they call you up. The best thing you could do is embrace it, sing your heart out and make their joke backfire on them."

Peri took a deep breath and considered the woman standing in front of her. "You're right. I have done a lot of things in the last few months I never thought possible why not this," she said in a voice that was anything but confident. "I won't say a word or let on that you told me anything. Thank you, Rosanna, this could have gone very badly for me, I'm still not sure it won't, but at least, I know what's coming."