Fire And Ice

10

Once people started arriving to the party, Logan was the center of attention like he always is. His uncle Payson immediately picked him up, and he, Parker, and Roger talked and played with Logan in the living room, keeping him all to themselves while Layla and Nancy were talking in the kitchen preparing food. One by one Parker and Layla's friends arrived, and the squeals from the girls were music to Parker's ears. Knowing that Layla was here and happy was all it took to make him happy.

But in the back of his mind he was worried about what Lizzie would tell Layla when they got alone. He was determined to get her alone and talk to her before she could get Layla alone.

As Parker stood beside Layla as they all sung happy birthday to Logan while he played in his own personal cake, he knew it was the right time to talk to Lizzie when he spotted her walk into the kitchen to refill her drink while she was still singing. When they finished the song, Layla smiled as she clapped and helped Logan blow out his candle. Parker gave them both a smile and a kiss on the head before slipping away and into the kitchen.

"Lizzie we need to talk." Parker stated as he grabbed a beer from the fridge.

"I don't think we do." Lizzie said.

Parker grabbed Lizzie's arm and kept her from walking away from him. "Lizzie, I just got my wife back. I just got my family back the way it needs to be. I admit I screwed up and shouldn't have done the things I did. But please don't tell Layla. Nobody else that knows is gonna tell him because they don't wanna hurt her, she's already been through enough."

"And you don't think she's gonna find out? She's gonna find some evidence somewhere that you've been doing pills, weed, that slut or something."

"No she isn't." Parker whispered. "Don't talk so loud. I'm trying to get off the pills, I haven't smoked a joint since the night before I went to get her, and that slut ain't never gonna come up again."

But what Parker didn't know is that Layla had walked in the kitchen a minute after him and had been standing behind him listening to the whole conversation.

"So you were just going to hide all that from me forever?" Layla said, standing there with a hand on her hip.

Parker jumped slightly, startled. He mumbled a few profanities under his breath before releasing Lizzie's arm and turning around the face Layla.

"Baby, I swear she didn't mean anything to me."

"But you still fucked her."

Parker stuttered, not knowing what to say.

"We're done, Parker." Layla stated calmly as she took off her wedding rings and handed them to him. "I'm not going to make a scene because it's our son's party. But we're through, you keep your pills and your weed and your slut, okay? Me and Logan will find somewhere else to stay."

"You can come back home and stay with me!" Lizzie smiled.

Parker glared back at Lizzie before turning back to Layla, grabbing her hands with his. "No baby, I'll find somewhere else to stay if you don't want to stay with me, okay? I'll move back in with Mom and Dad or something. You and Logan stay in the house."

Layla snatched her hands away from him and wiped a tear from her eye. "I can't believe you. You better be gone by tonight, Parker. We're not even talking about this."

Parker sighed and lowered his head, sliding Layla's wedding rings in his pocket before walking back into the living room with everyone else. Layla cried against Lizzie's shoulder quietly.

But Layla knew the crying would have to wait, so she wiped her eyes and walked back into the living room with Lizzie. Everyone was eating cake and ice cream, but she was thoroughly disgusted and didn't feel like eating. She focused on Logan, taking pictures of him playing and laughing while helping him eat.

"Lays, where'd Parker go?" Payson asked.

"I have no idea." Layla said bluntly.

"Well he was just with you in the kitchen, weren't he?"

"Yeah but I don't know where he went. He might have left, I don't know and I don't really care." Layla said simply.

Parker did come back to the living room around twenty minutes later, however. He had been packing up his stuff upstairs, and he threw his duffle bags by the door before going to sit beside Layla who was holding Logan because they were about to open his presents.

"Okay, babe, let's see what ya got here." Layla smiled at Logan as she was helping him tear the wrapping paper off his present. "Oh, look! It's a dump truck!"

Logan smiled, giggling as he clapped his hands.

"Me and your daddy got you that." Layla said as she set it down beside them.

"And there's a lot more that goes with it." Parker added.

Layla chuckled and agreed. Logan crawled out of Layla's lap to go to the dump truck.

"Baby, you got more presents." Layla said to him.

Logan looked back at her for a second before turning his attention back to trying to get the dump truck out of the box, hitting it and pulling on it before starting to whine.

Parker chuckled. "Payson, help him get that damn thing outta the box."

"I guess we open his presents now." Layla smiled softly as she picked up a bag.

"Well we knew he'd like that thing." Parker smirked as he leaned back on his hands closer to Layla.

"And he gets more presents at Christmas, good lord." Layla chuckled.

Parker laughed. "We might go a little overboard, huh?"

Layla chuckled softly as she looked at the shirt she had pulled out of the bag, then she sobered as she quietly agreed.