Stevie and Lindsey spent a long time on the phone, chatting in hushed tones for far longer than either of them had realized. It felt like they had entire lifetimes to catch up on and in all reality, that really was the case.
That night, he had guessed her middle name on the third try and after that, it felt like everything just sort of flowed with ease. They shared so much. Everything and anything that came to mind, in fact.
They talked a lot about growing up- she told him about moving around quite a bit as a kid and then she wanted to know all about his start in the music industry. After that, Lindsey told her that he had gotten married the summer of his high school graduation, while Stevie filled him in on how she had gone to college to be a teacher before meeting her husband... She was a stay at home mom for eighteen years after that and she never taught a day in her life.
It felt like they had really left no stone unturned, or so Stevie thought, at least.
And of course, when he had told her how he had felt, she told him that she was starting to feel the same way... She was also falling in love and if he was ready to tell her that, she wanted him to know that it was very much two sided.
And the more she thought about it, the more she realized that maybe it wasn't too soon, even if it seemed like it was.... Loving someone isn't always supposed to be hostile and hard- sometimes it's just simple and carefree.
Anyway, it was just a little after six when a very sleep deprived mother slipped out of her bedroom with her baby in her arms. He had stopped crying by then, but he was still wide awake, ready for a bottle. So she snuck down the hallway, through the living room and into the kitchen, where the telephone cord was stretched right across the counter and disappeared under the bathroom door.
At first she wasn't sure what was going on, but half heartedly and very anxiously, Courtney pulled open old wood door. And on the other side, sitting on the bath mat, with her back against the tub and the phone pressed to her ear was her mother-in-law.
"Oh," that was the first thing out of Stevie's mouth when her eyes met the younger woman's, heart sinking into the pit of her stomach instantly. "I'll call you later." She told Lindsey right before she ended the call.
And to be honest, she didn't really act like a woman that had just been caught talking on the phone to another man... Yes, it looked odd and she knew that, but she wasn't as nearly freaked out as she thought she would be.
When you get caught cheating, you assume you're immediately you're going to be overly defensive but she wasn't.
Raising a brow softly, Courtney was a little stunned to say the least... It definitely looked as suspicious as it was. "Everything okay?" She wondered, not sure what else she was supposed to say.
A part of her kind of wanted to just turn around, go back to the kitchen, make a bottle for her infant and then go back to bed... She wanted to pretend like she didn't walk in on whatever that was and Stevie wanted that too.
Pursing her lips to the side, a hint of embarrassment washed over her, but not much else... There was really no guilt there and that said a lot for someone who had been married as long as she had been. "This probably seems strange." Stevie nodded her head lightly as she used the edge of the bathtub as leverage to stand.
"A little, yeah." She immediately agreed, still bouncing her baby lightly as she watched her mother-in- law lift herself up. "But I don't want to know." Courtney assured just a second later as she held up her free hand to stop her before her mouth even opened. "I don't want to know what that was all about." She repeated just as she began to turn around and head back through the open doorway.
With a soft sigh, Stevie followed right behind. "It's not-"
"What's going on?" Brooklynns voice rang through the room, causing both women to flinch as she made her presence known.
She was in an old hoodie, a pair of sweatpants and fuzzy slippers with messy hair, tired eyes and not clue what was happening in there... She was more focused on making a pot of coffee and getting a bowl of cereal.
"Hey," Courtney leaned back against the counter, eyes traveling to Stevie and then instantly back to Brooke. "We were just thinking about making everyone breakfast this morning." She lied, only because she didn't want to get anymore involved in the situation than she already was.
It was no secret, not to anyone that Stevie and Tom had a weird marriage... Not even their two children, who they had both hoped to protect from the truth. But it really wasn't hard to read the fine print when they hadn't lived together in years and when they were in the same place at the same time, the air was so thick with tension- it was almost uncomfortable at times.
"Breakfast sounds good." Brooklynn chuckled softly, creasing a brow at how awkward they were being.
With a racing heart, Stevie nodded her head as she set the phone down on the cradle. "I'll be back in a few minutes to start on something, girls." She patted her daughters shoulder when she passed by, finally beginning to feel what she should have felt from the start... "Tom?" She whispered his name through the dark bedroom the moment she slipped through doorway.
He was still in bed, very much asleep before he heard the lock on the door twist and then the sound of her bare feet sneaking across the wood floor. "What happened?" He mumbled, bringing one hand up to his face to rub his eyes as he began to push himself up on his elbow.
She was already half way up the bed, crawling on her knees to get to him.
Creasing a brow, he held out his free hand, wrapping it around her waist the second she was close enough to do so. "Are you alright?" Tom wondered, very confused... It was far too early for all of that insanity.
Nodding lightly, she slipped her arm around his neck. "Do you still love me?" Her voice was so low as her big brown eyes pierced into his through the darkness.
He paused for a second, not meaning to hesitate but doing it anyway. "Of course, I love you."
