Avalon and Maddock

Chapter 7: Maddock

For the rest of the day, I had trouble concentrating at work, wanting to get to six o'clock so I could hold Avalon in my arms. Every day until our next counseling session the following Monday, I'd get to see her and hold her again, and even if it was only for one minute a day, I'd take it. I'd get to be in the same house as my wife and boys. I'd have my wife in my arms, her soft curves held tightly against me. Finally at five thirty, I almost sprinted out of the office to my car, my PA following behind me as per the anti-Salem protocols we'd set up. I drove over to Avalon's new place, making one stop along the way and arrived with two minutes to spare. I was as nervous as I think I'd ever been in my life.

When I knocked on her front door, I heard the boys yelling inside, "Mommy! Daddy's here!"

A few seconds later, the front door opened and there stood my tiny wife, her face grumpy but the boys' faces were beaming with their happiest smiles. Children were much more forgiving than adults.

"Daddy!" the crowed as they pushed past Avalon to get to me. I put down the bags in my hands, bent down and scooped them up, hugging their little bodies close. After a few moments, they wriggled to get down and I set them on the floor with a kiss to their heads.

Landon noticed the food bags first and he crouched to look inside. "Chicken!" he told Christian who immediately parroted "Chicken!"

I looked up at Avalon as the boys took possession of the bags. "Boys, you ask Mommy first. She may have something for dinner planned."

She shook her head. "I was just going to make some hamburgers after..."

After you left was the unspoken part of her statement, and I nodded. "I just figured my being here was going to interrupt dinner time, so I thought bringing some chicken might help you out."

Avalon shrugged. "It's fine. They love fried chicken." She paused, then said, "Thank you."

"No problem. So, can I hug you yet? Or do you want to get the boys settled first?" Could this get any more awkward? How did I let us get to this point? Well, I knew the answer to that, but Avalon didn't. Not really. 

"Let me get the boys cleaning up their toys for a two minute burst, and then we can...you can hug me."

She turned from me and called out to the boys. She had instituted the two-minute burst when Landon turned two. She set the timer for two minutes and he -- and then eventually he and Christian -- had to put all of their toys that were scattered about into the toy baskets for two minutes. It became a game with them to find all their toys and put them in the baskets before the timer went off. After, there was a reward of story time (which they would have gotten anyway, but hey! whatever works), or dessert or ten minutes of Blue's Clues and You or Sesame Street.

With the boys occupied for the next two minutes, Avalon came back and stood in front of me. "OK. Ready," she said softly.

Needing no further invitation, I wrapped my arms around her, pulling her stiff little body as close to mine as humanly possible. I laid my cheek on the top of her head and held her so close that I'm sure she could hear my heart pounding under her ear, which was pressed tight against my chest.

I slowed my breathing, trying to make her relax without words, hoping she could feel the love I had for her pouring out of me, willing her to absorb it. The boys' chatter faded into the background and all I was focused on was having my wife in my arms again. 

I love you. I'm so sorry. I want you back.

Before I knew it, the timer was going off and Avalon backed out of my hold, refusing to meet my eyes.

"We did it, Mommy!" Christian shouted. The boy had one level and it was set to loud.

"Good job, guys!" she praised them. "Are you ready for chicken now?"