Lean on Me

Part Three - Chapter Twenty-Seven: Shopping for Christmas

“What do you want for Christmas?” Cassidy asked looking at her husband, she brushed some hair from her face as she watched Fernando with the twins.

The couple had brought the twins to see Father Christmas since it was something that neither of them wanted to miss.

Fernando chuckled looking at his wife and shrugged his shoulders, he knew it would annoy her and that wasn’t his intention; he really didn’t care as long as he had her and the twins.

“Nando,” Cassidy muttered annoyed bumping her shoulder with his, she smiled up at him as they walked through the shopping centre; they were having a day out together as a family, since Fernando had been told he would be expected to play over the Christmas break.

Mourinho seemed determined to keep Fernando around for as long as possible, he wasn’t allowing the footballer anytime off after the Spaniard had disappeared off to Madrid for a couple of weeks to look after his pregnant wife.

“I really didn’t want anything as long as I have you, the twins and the baby,” Fernando said picking Leia up in his arms, he smiled to himself as he held his daughter close knowing that she would just toddle off.

Noah was currently seated in the black retro Mickey and Minnie twin pushchair that Cassidy was pushing.

Cassidy huffed knowing that she had to get her husband something special for him, he had worked so hard to fix things for them that she wanted to get him something that he would love.

“Has Olalla said anything about Leo’s third birthday?” Cassidy asked knowing that her stepson’s birthday was that weekend, it was two days before her own and it made her worry that Olalla was trying to cut Fernando out of his eldest son’s life.

Fernando shook his head looking at his wife, he knew that Olalla wasn’t making things easy for him and their lawyers were currently discussing what would happen when the footballer returned to Madrid.

“What about you?” Fernando asked knowing that her twenty-seventh birthday was coming up, he had a couple of ideas of what he wanted to do.

The team were playing away the day before her birthday at Stoke City and Fernando was determined to make this birthday a little special since it would be the last one that Cassidy spent in London before they moved to Spain.

“I don’t want anything big,” Cassidy said with a shake of her head, she just wanted something small this year since she was twenty-five weeks pregnant right now and her bump was starting to grow bigger.

Cassidy wanted to focus on her baby boy right now and with them packing up to move to Madrid, she really didn’t want to make a fussy about her birthday.

Fernando was expected to move to Atlético Madrid at the very start of the 2014 New Year and the footballer wanted his family settled in his home country before he focused on anything else.

***

Fernando smiled looking at the twins as he waited for Cassidy to come back from the ladies room, they had stopped at a small restaurant for a break and the footballer knew that they deserved it.

The couple had spent the morning shopping for bits and pieces for the approaching holidays, they wanted to have everything ready since they hoped to spend Christmas in Madrid still even if Mourinho wasn’t going to allow it.

Fernando sipped on his drink, his brown eyes watching the twins contently as he thought about how quickly they were growing up; they were already twenty months old now and seemed to be getting bigger every day.

“Papa,” called a voice snapping the footballer out of his thoughts, he looked around quickly before his eyes settled on Nora and Leo; he smiled as he ducked down to hold them knowing that he hadn’t seen them in a while.

Olalla followed after her two eldest children with Georgie in her arms, her parents hovered back away from their former son-in-law as they took their seats at the table that they had been given.

Olalla’s parents hadn’t really spoken to Fernando since the divorce had been finalised since they felt horrible about what their daughter had done to him; they had sent a gift when he had married Cassidy but that was the last that he had heard from them.

“We missed you,” Nora said hugging her father, her brown eyes looking up at him in awe since her mother had been making problems when it came for her and Leo to spend time with their father.

Leo nodded his head in agreement as he toddled over to his other siblings, who seemed excited to see their older brother; Nora quickly followed after them eager to see her younger brother and sister.

“Olalla,” Fernando greeted nodding at his ex-wife, he eyed Georgie as he wondered if the boy’s father had anything to do with him; he knew that George was an idiot if he had turned his back on his son.

Fernando couldn’t imagine a day where he turned his back on his children like that, he did his best for all four of his children and he always would.

It wasn’t always easy to have four children under the age of five with one on the way, and Olalla certainly wasn’t making things easy for him right now.

“Fernando,” Olalla said stiffly eyeing the twins, she really didn’t like seeing them since they were only evidence that her former husband had moved on successful with his life while her own had fallen apart.

Olalla pursed her lips as Cassidy returned from the ladies room, her brown eyes glaring at the bump that her love rival now carried; she couldn’t believe that they were expecting a new child.

“Olalla,” Cassidy greeted knowing that Fernando knew nothing of the little chat that she’d had with Olalla back in Brazil; she had no intentions of him finding out about it either since it was between them.

Olalla ignored Cassidy completely as the brunette sat down beside Fernando, she had nothing to say to her replacement.

“Nora, Leo… come along,” Olalla said looking back at her parents, they wouldn’t get involved since she had dumped Georgie on them after her relationship with George collapsed months ago.

Cassidy glanced at Olalla hoping that Fernando would get a good deal with the lawyers, the brunette hated that she was messing with the time that the footballer got to spend with his children.

Fernando swallowed at the look on his eldest children’s faces, he hated that they couldn’t spend more time with their half siblings; they barely even got to be excited about their new baby brother that was coming.

“Why don’t they stay here with me and Cass? It’s been a while since I got to spend time with them,” Fernando asked knowing that he would love to have Nora and Leo join them for lunch for a while.

Fernando didn’t even have to ask Cassidy about this since he knew that she would be okay with it.

Olalla pursed her lips as she looked at her ex-husband, she knew that this would come back and bit her in the ass but she didn’t want her children around their father and his new family.

“I don’t think so. Come along,” Olalla said ignoring the sad faces that Nora and Leo made before she herded them away back to their table; she wasn’t going to let Fernando win.