Stevie sank down in her seat as her jaw settled harsh. "Roll down the window and say hi to your dad." She told the kids in a low tone.
Her heart was suddenly beating a mile a minute as her eyes ventured back, watching as he casually trailed up the driveway, towards the car.
"Can I go with him?" Lola's words were overflowing with sarcasm, even though she didn't think it was a horrible idea.
Before Stevie got the chance to reply, Lindsey's knuckles met the glass of the passenger side window, which caused her to jolt.
"Hi, daddy!" Clancy shouted with a big grin and an equally big wave.
Cracking a smile, he couldn't help but chuckle lightly. "Hey, kids." He gave them a little wave back as his hand met the handle of the passenger side door to pull it open gently. "Can we talk for a second?" His eyes met his wife's, silently pleading for her to give him a moment.
Allowing a deep breath to fill the air around them, she shot daggers his way. "We're going to be late for the airport, Lindsey." Her voice had shifted and everyone knew what that meant... she was annoyed, it was pretty obvious.
Nodding his head softly, he held out a hand to help her out. "Five minutes, Steph... please?" he lingered as a set of sad blue eyes met hers.
She thought about it for a second, the sound of pure silence becoming incredibly overwhelming in such a short moment as all eyes were directed at her. "You're giving me a headache." Stevie unbuckled herself, tossing the seatbelt to the side as she pried herself off the seat. "I don't need your help." She pushed his hand away as this deep look lingered within her dark brown orbs... it was truly terrifying.
He kind of ignored her, giving the kids another soft smile before he shut the car door.
"Do you really want to do this in front of the kids?" She raised a brow, biting down on the inside of her cheek lightly.
She had missed him, a lot and while a part of her wanted to wrap him in a tight hug, there was another part of her that knew it wouldn't have been good, not for either of them.
They needed to be able to work through their problems, not just pretend as if they just didn't exist... that's when the chaos really begins in a marriage.
"I can't let you go when there is so much going on between us right now." He wasn't trying to argue with her, not at all... He just wouldn't have been able to rest if he hadn't tried one more time before she left for Arizona.
Glancing back at the kids, who were all staring very intently, she let out a soft sigh. "I just need some time, Lindsey." She mumbled as her eyes drifted back to his.
She could tell, just by that soft look trailing across his face that he had been having a rough couple of days. He looked sad and maybe even a little lost.
But it had been a long time since he'd been away from her for that long, especially under such harsh circumstances... He regretted it, everything he had ever done to find himself in that situation and he was more than willing to admit it out loud.
"I don't think distance is the answer." Lindsey shook his head lightly as he slipped one hand into his pocket casually. "I don't think that's going to fix any of our problems, Steph."
Rolling her eyes, Stevie tried not to make it obvious just how emotional he was making her. "You don't get to tell me what's right." She said through gritted teeth.
"That's not what I'm trying to do." He wasn't going to harp on her, not for a single second, but he had to make things right with her... or at least try.
"Then why are you here?" She wrapped her sweater around herself a little tighter, suddenly feeling incredibly more vulnerable than before. "If you aren't here to make me feel bad about taking the kids, then what?" She repeated after just a brief moment.
"I haven't worked hard enough to fix our marriage and I realize that... and maybe it's a little too late." His voice cracked, but he wasn't going to cry- he didn't really do that very often. "But I want you to know how proud I am of you." He added with a weak smile. "And how much I love you..." he whispered.
"Don't do this..." she warned as she brought a hand up to her face to wipe away a couple of tears. "Don't do this right now, not in front of my children." Her words left her mouth in such a gentle, yet shaky tone.
"They have to know something's going on..." he lingered, "They aren't totally oblivious anymore, Stevie." Lindsey was almost one hundred percent certain that their older two kids were aware of the fact that there was more going on at home... their dad wasn't just working- they were too old to believe that.
"Then maybe we should just tell them all the truth." She raised a brow as a scoff filled the air around them. "Maybe we should just tell our kids that their mother can't pull herself out of this slump and their father's been sleeping with the nanny!" Her voice had totally shifted and she didn't realize just how loud she had gotten until it had already left her mouth... It had already been heard by the little ears in the back.
And it really felt like the entire world had caved down around them in that very moment. Everything they had tried to shield those children from was suddenly, without any warning, out in the open.
Embarrassment immediately washed over Lindsey as his attention turned towards the kids, who were still sitting in the back of the SUV, each of them with a look of terror written across their face.
That's the last thing anyone wants to know about their parents... That ruins the lives children all the time and while the older two understood perfectly well, Clancy could still tell that whatever that meant, it wasn't good.
"I..." her heart sank instantly, the regret kicking in right away. "I have to go, Lindsey." She whispered as the tears streamed down her cheeks.
Swallowing hard, he let off a light nod. "I can't stop you..." he shrugged a shoulder as he reached out to pull open the car door for her. "I'll see you when you get home, kids." He forced another smile, trying hard to pretend like he wasn't totally ashamed. "I love you." He added as he watched his wife slip back in.
"I love you, daddy." Clancy was the only one to respond... she was the only that didn't understand.
"Have a good Christmas, Lindsey." Stevie couldn't look him in the eye- she didn't want to. "Take care of yourself."
