Your Lying Eyes

Your Lying Eyes Chapter 61

Two weeks later and Howard felt empty inside.  He couldn't get over the way he felt because of Maisie.  Anna tried to reassure him.

"She didn't mean it How, truly she didn't.  She's only a baby," she told him.  "She doesn't understand words yet."

"Why did she do it then?" he asked her, frowning, trying to understand.  "She pushed me and kicked me like she really meant it.  She wanted Jason, not me." He shook his head, not understanding.  "Was it because she hadn't been with me like she should have been?"

"No, not that," Anna told him.  "She could see all the fuss that was being made over Matthew and didn't want to miss out on it. It was the first sign of jealousy over him.  It wasn't anything that you'd done, don't think that."  

Howard glanced at her, not really convinced.  Whenever Chloe had brought Maisie for a visit, she had refused to leave her side, demanding to be taken home as soon as she'd reached the flat. This was the reason for his visit to Jason's house, to try and get to the bottom of things and also for him to be able to see his daughter.  He looked to where she sat playing with her toys now, seemingly happy enough.  He got up from the sofa and went over to join her.

She was building a tower with blocks and he picked up one and added it to the pile.  Maisie looked at him and shook her head.

"No," she said firmly and knocked the tower down, before running over to Anna and scowling at him.

"Maisie, that was naughty, Daddy wanted to play building with you."  Anna scolded her.

"Not playing with him," she muttered to herself, her small chubby arms crossing over her chest as she continued to glare at him.

Anna sighed.  She didn't know what more she could do.  They would have to wait until this phase passed.  Trying to force her would do no good at all, if anything it would make things worse for Howard if she continued to reject him like this.  All she could do was to suggest that he carried on coming to the house and trying to join in with her playing there.

Howard saw the sense in this but wanted to have things as they were before.  He carried on coming to visit her but each time he suggested that the two of them went out somewhere by themselves he got the same reaction.  Maisie would kick up a fuss and cry, refusing to go without Matthew coming with them.  Anna had joined them on a couple of trips taking the baby with them and Maisiis seemed happy enough.  But the situation was getting to Howard.  He felt each rejection keenly.  He just wanted to have some time with his daughter.  Maybe this was his punishment that was due to him because of the way he'd acted in the past.

Anna felt so sorry for him, Jason too.  Now that he'd become a father, he could understand better how Howard felt.  He knew how Howard idolised his daughter, the way she was being with him now must hurt so much.  He hoped he'd never have to be in a situation like that.  His life with Anna was almost perfect. He was finally with the woman he'd loved for a long time and had a family to go with her as well.  

Anna felt Howard's hurt too.  She too knew that he adored his daughter and although they were apart, he took his responsibilities seriously.  It seemed to her that his and Jason's lives were the exact opposite of the other at the moment.  Jason's was becoming more full by the moment with his family and Howard's seemed so empty.  She felt so sorry for him, this adding to everything else that she still could feel.  At times it was if she spent more time thinking about him than she did Jason.  This made her feel so guilty after everything that Jason had done for her.  Then tears would fall as she finally realised she was so confused about how she felt about the two of them.

Howard had come to a decision and the sooner it was carried out the better.

It was the end of October, three months after the tour had finished and the guys were finally unwinding.  They hadn't seen much of each other since Mark and Chloe's engagement and soon the run up to Christmas would begin.  Chloe, Sandy and Anna thought that it would be a good idea for them all to get together, once a month, and have a simple meal, just the seven of them, prepared by the three women.  It was decided that the October meal would be at Jason and Anna's house.