Checkmate

52

   As I woke up this morning, my mind tried to detangle itself from the delayed dream that was last night's events. Before having even opened my eyes, I could still feel the magic, from the seductive breeze that threatened to carry me away, to the warmth of his body when I curled up against him as we fell asleep. I smiled unconsciously at the thought, and my arms extended in search of his familiar heat. It was nowhere to be found, however. I raised my head off the pillow and was met with an empty spot beside me. I ran my hands over the sheets and found them warm still. He hadn't been up for too long. The image of him hard at work in the kitchen made me smile and I threw my legs over the bed and made my way out of the room.

   Upon opening the door, there was a shift in the air. The cotton-like cloud I'd been floating off since last night had quickly turned grey, a dark, thunderous grey. My hands grew moist as I dared to step into the hallway, the sound of his voice shaking me to my core.

"You don't get to show up here and demand shit! You fucked her over. Why can't you get that?"

   Jarred's voice was unrecognizable. My throat seemed to collapse on itself and the beat of my heart matched the pace of the fear creeping up my spine. I took a step forward but kept my side against the wall, not trusting my feet to hold me upright. The fatigue in my limbs was five times stronger than when I woke up. I'd longed to be greeted by the smell of bacon, the aroma supposed to bring a skip in my steps, but all I could feel now was tension as I neared the staircase, "Look, this has nothing to do with you so stay out of it. Now get out of my way, I need to see my son."

   Colton's voice oozed with unjustified anger. My jaw clenched at the sound. Why must he always show up at the worst possible times? There were still stars in the sky even with the sun slowly coming out. He wasn't here for Sam, he was here to disrupt the peace in my life, and for that, he didn't need an invitation.

"I'm not going to let you ruin things for her!" Jarred said, sounding irritated.

"And how are you supposed to keep her happy when you couldn't even keep your wife satisfied?"

   I cringed at the personal attack. A new fuel of anger had been ignited in me and I began to march faster when a small creak at the end of the hallway caught my attention. My heart sank when my eyes fell on Sam. Still wearing his pajamas, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes, he glanced at me curiously when a thump came from downstairs and their voices grew louder.

"Is that Dad?" Sam asked, stepping further out of his room. 

My legs moved on their own accord. The sound of their dispute mixed with the knowledge that Sam was awake made for a dangerous concoction, and now that feeling in the pit of my stomach was getting harder to ignore.

I stepped in front of Sam and ran a hand over his head, "Hey sweetie. Why don't we go back to your room so we can talk?"

   Not wasting any more time, I ushered him in, but it was clear by the way his eyes stared in the direction of the noise that he would rather do anything but. Closing the door behind me, I switched on the lights and squatted down to his level, "Why are they shouting?" he asked, scratching his cheek.

I hesitate, somewhat caught off guard by such a reasonable question.

"I think Jarred is just angry that Dad showed up so early. Now, I'm going to ask them to keep it down, alright. You go back to sleep."

   There was a frown on his face, but he reluctantly climbed into bed. Quickly, I tucked him in and turned off the lights. Once the door out of his room, I welcomed a deep breath of air into my lungs. The hard surface against my back couldn't have prepared me for the harsh blow of Colton's words, "You think you two are serious? You're just a distraction. Once she's done with you, she'll come running back to me."