Love to Hate You: Three's a Crowd

Epilogue

'Are you all set for next week?' Rafe asked, as people began to file out of the meeting room.

'Yes,' Chris nodded. 'Not that I have any choice.'

'It's not ideal, I know,' Rafe agreed, feeling a little sorry for his friend. Aunt Vee had organised a family holiday for everyone. Disneyland, of course, followed by a week in the Caribbean to appeal to the adults. The family holiday – paid for by her inheritance from Byron (not that she couldn't afford it, already) – of course included everyone. Aunt Vee and Carl (able to join them as he'd finally retired from surgery and now only worked part-time at the university), Ramona, Rafe, Mattie and their children, Rudy, Vicky and their children, Xander, Amy and the triplets, and Tobias and Lydia. Nineteen people was a lot, especially when four of them worked at Paxton and Colville and two of those four were managing partners.

Lydia was not a named partner, because Chris's heart couldn't take the paperwork changing their company name would have generated. When she had married Tobias, she'd taken his name. Mostly for his sake. Although she knew he wouldn't object to her remaining a "Munro" (because he'd been well-trained), she also knew that he secretly wanted her to be "Mrs Paxton". Now, their utility bills came addressed to "Mr and Mrs Paxton", and Tobias would smile when he saw the letters lying on the doormat, and she'd been able to make him happy with very little effort on her part.

Then she'd realised that she could be a named partner, after all. She'd spent a week introducing herself to people as "Lydia Paxton", and even went as far as asking I.T. to update her work email address, when a new client had come into the office to discuss an eco retreat they wanted to build in North Wales. It was a large project; one she would be working on with Rafe, so the pair of them had met with the client, Mattie taking notes.

'Rafe Paxton,' Rafe had said, offering his hand in greeting.

'Chrissie Newman,' the woman replied.

'My business partner, Lydia Paxton,' Rafe continued, gesturing to Lydia, who shook Chrissie's hand, 'and my P.A., Matilda Paxton.' Mattie merely smiled and waved; in the middle of pouring coffees.

'A family enterprise!' Chrissie smiled, speaking to Rafe, as he was the natural leader of the group.

'Excuse me?' he replied.

'It must be lovely to work with your wife and daughter,' she elaborated, nodding from Lydia to Mattie.

'I'm not his daughter!' Mattie scoffed in dismay.

'Oh...' Chrissie frowned in confusion. 'Niece?' she offered speculatively. Rafe scowled. Lydia winced.

'Wife!' Mattie told her, with a petulant stamping of her foot. 'I'm Rafe's wife, and Lydia is our sister-in-law.' This last bit was a veritable growl.

'Don't worry,' Lydia placated. 'Rafe's just aged badly,' which was a blatant lie. Of course, the moment the client had left the building, Rafe had turned to Lydia and said, –

'I don't care if you're a managing partner. I don't care if you're married to my brother and you've changed your sodding name. Here you are "Lydia Munro" and if I ever hear you call yourself "Paxton" again I will –' but Mattie cut him off by saying, –

'Set me on you! You married the inferior brother. I married the good one. Sod off or I'll cut your heart out with a rusty spoon and shove it down your throat!'

'A tad melodramatic,' Lydia said archly, as she held up her hands in supplication, 'but I assure you, I took no pleasure in being thought of as Raffey's wife! I'll get I.T. to change my email back immediately.'