Winchester Legacy 2.0

When I woke up the next morning Gordon was gone and somehow Neil had crawled out of his crib and was making faces at the bunny toy that Marissa had gotten for him.  Looking around I saw a note taped to the fridge. It was from Gordon telling me that he had left for the day but he’d be back around six or so. I bit my lip then shrugging decided to call Dane at the office.

“Hey babe,” he said as he answered the phone.

“How’d you know it was me?” I asked as I leaned back against the fridge.

“The magic of caller ID. Is everything alright?”

“Yes…I was just wondering if maybe you wanted to go out to the park today. Just the three of us. Gordon is going to be at work until six so I thought-”

“I’ll be right there!”

Laughing I hung up the phone and taking a quick shower got Neil and myself ready.

We had fun at the park and got home with plenty of time to spare. Putting Neil in his crib, he had passed out on the ride back home, I walked back out into the living room. I was absently rubbing at the small of my back when Dane suggested that I turn around. Smiling I did then let out a low groan as he immediately started to massage the tension from my neck and back.

“You have such wonderful hands.”

“That’s what all the ladies say,” he said teasingly.

“Hey!” Spinning around I swatted at him. Capturing my hand he pulled me closer and before I knew it we were making out. Pretty soon we were falling into the bed. I must have drifted off because I bolted awake and glanced at the clock on the wall. Reaching over I shook Dane awake.

“Dane! Wake up! You have to leave. Hurry up!”

We couldn’t contain our giggles as we hastily dressed. I was looking over my shoulder at Dane and about to make make a joke when I pulled open the bedroom door.  I turned and came face to face with Gordon.  He looked over my shoulder and I knew what he was seeing. The sheets were a rumpled mess and the room reeked of sex. His eyes bulged and his jaw clenched.

“So, how long has this been going on?” he demanded angrily.

Dane tightened his grip around me before he stepped away to turn at look at Gordon.

“Gordon-”

“I’ m not talking to you doctor! I’m talking to my wife. How long Latonya? How long have you been whoring around behind my back?” he snarled. Before I could say anything his eyes dropped to my stomach.

“Is that baby even mine?”

I took a step back. His fury seemed to be a physical thing as it reached out to choke me with guilt. This isn’t how I had wanted him to find out.

“I-I don’tknow,” I said softly.

I didn’t even see the slap coming. Didn’t even have time to prepare myself. It wasn’t a hard slap but it was so unexpected I almost fell from the blow. Dane slipped an arm around my waist before he turned to Gordon with a scowl.

“Don’t you ever touch her again,” he snapped. “Regardless of if this baby is yours she still is the mother of your child. Don’t-”

“Don’t you preach to me. She was my wife. My best friend. And you knew she was married.  Why couldn’t you find someone else to sleep with?”

“It wasn’t like that Gordon. We didn’t mean for things to go as far as they did. It-”

“I can’t talk to you right now. Get out of my sight. Get out! Get OUT! GET OUT!!!!”

There was nothing for me to do but leave. Or at least walk outside for a moment. There was no way I was going to just leave my son in that house with Gordon while he was like this. He was too unpredictable. For all I knew he might decided to take Neil and run. Just to make me hurt as badly as he was hurting. I could hear Dane’s footsteps behind me but I was numb. My face still throbbed from where Gordon had slapped me and my thoughts were a jumbled mess.

“Hey,” Dane said softly as he gently touched my arm.

I stopped in my tracks with my back to him. “How could I be so selfish Dane? I never should have married him. And now I’ve ruined our friendship and not only that but possibly his relationship with his son.

“Babe, look at me. Look at me,” he demanded when I resisted. Finally, with a resigned sigh, I turned to face him.

“You two would have never been happy together. Eventually you would have separated. It’s better to make a clean break now, while Neil is still young, instead of letting it drag out for years and years.”

“Dane…” I said on a sigh.

“Hey,” he said as he gently as he wrapped me in a tight embrace. I squeezed my eyes closed and before I knew it I was sobbing in his arms.

He cupped the back of my head and rubbed my back as he crooned nonsense in my ear.

“It’ll be okay baby. It’ll be okay.”

I prayed that he was right.