To Everything, There Is A Season

Chapter 37

Meryl was starting to get frustrated. Every time she kissed Don and it started to progress, something happened to stop them. Either the phone was ringing or Henry needed them. She wasn't frustrated with their son, not at all, but she desperately needed her husband and she was going to make sure they both had their needs met. No matter what she had to do.

****

Don walked into the den with soda and popcorn, surprised not to find Meryl in there. He thought they were going to watch one of the movies Liz had rented for them and relax on the sofa. He hoped she wasn't cleaning or doing something she wasn't supposed to. He knew it would be hard to keep her down and rest once they were discharged from the hospital, but he hoped that the fact he had to rest as well would help keep her down. It obviously wasn't. He sat the popcorn down and went to look for his wife. He knew she wasn't in the kitchen as he just came from there. He looked up in the loft and it was dark; not that he expected her to be up there anyway. He went into their office, spare bedroom, nursery, and Henry's room and there was no sign of her; though he was grateful Henry was still sleeping. He was starting to get worried until he walked into their bedroom and saw that she had candles lit all around the room and soft music was playing. His heart sunk when he immediately realized what was going on. She was trying to romance him, which he loved, but he knew he couldn't make love to her. It was too soon. Her body wasn't up for it no matter how much he wanted to make love to his wife. He was doing it for her. Everything he did was for her and Henry. He was so caught up in his own thoughts when Meryl walked out of the bathroom in a short silk gray robe, his favorite on her. "Well, you finally found me."

"Uh yeah..." Don stuttered as he looked up and saw her walking towards him, beginning to untie the belt of her robe. Just as she got close enough to touch him he pushed her away. "NO! We're not doing this."

Tears immediately sprung to Meryl's eyes. Not only was she devastated that her husband didn't want her, but the harshness in his voice devastated her. Don had never talked to her quite like that. "Yeah, I'm uh gonna..."

"Baby." Don was inwardly kicking himself; he didn't mean to be so gruff and he certainly didn't mean for the words to come out of his mouth as they did. "It's not..."

Meryl quickly tied up her robe. "It's not me, it's you? Is that what you were going to fucking say?"

"Meryl!" Don sighed as he watched his wife run out of their bedroom and slam the bedroom door. "Damn it, what the fuck is wrong with me?" Don couldn't let her think it was about her, and he knew she did by the look of devastation in her eyes. It was about him, it really was. It was about him not wanting to hurt her. He couldn't let her think it was about her for one more minute. He went through the room and blew out the candles, not wanting to start a fire and for it to be unsafe without them in the bedroom. He went and grabbed a rose from the bouquet of roses in their room he had delivered to her earlier in the day and went to come clean to his wife and tell her how he was feeling. "She'll understand, she'll have to."

***

"Baby?" Don said quietly as he found Meryl in their office sitting on the leather sofa in there, crying into her hands. "What are you doing in here?"

Meryl looked up as she felt him kneeling in front of her and she shook her head. "It's about the only room in this place that does haven't any bad memories for us. Except for our bedroom and now..."

"Damn it." Don cursed again. "Come on, let's pack up and get Henry and get the hell out of here. I'll take you wherever you want to go."

Meryl didn't want to go anywhere, she wanted answers. "I don't want to go anywhere. I want to know what the hell I did."

"Darl..." Don tried to touch her face but she moved away; as much as it hurt him he felt like he deserved it. "Baby, you didn't do anything other than be the woman I love more than anyone else in the whole entire world."