Chapter 1: Olivia
Please keep in mind that this is an EXCERPT. I will only be posting the first few chapters of this story.
This story is unfinished and has been in my drafts for several years. I’m posting to see if there’s interest in completing Connor's journey. Your feedback will determine whether I continue and complete this story. Thank you for giving this draft a chance!
This story takes place about 10 years after Young Hearts.
July 2009:
“The floor is lava!” Ashleigh yells from the living room.
Aiden quickly jumps on the coffee table and she stands on the sofa.
“Throw that pillow on the floor so I can hop to the recliner,” Aiden says to his sister.
Ashleigh tosses a tiny round pillow from the couch in between the coffee table and recliner. “The kitchen is the safe zone,” she says as Aiden hops on the pillow.
It’s day 41 of summer break and I willingly to let them do anything that will keep them occupied. I’m totally regretting not putting them in summer camp. Normally we spend the morning at the community pool. I pack a lunch and a bunch of snacks and the kids swim nearly all day. Other days we have lunch at the park then they spend the rest of the afternoon running off their energy but today it’s raining. Instead, they must expend their energy in our tiny 900 square foot bungalow. I look forward to the day we can move from this place. Yes, it’s our very first home, and we have some great memories here, but we have out grown it. It’s only two bedroom so the kids share a room. They are getting older now and need their own separate spaces.
Landon says we just need to hold out a bit longer. We could buy another place, but Landon has his mind set on a neighborhood called Westbrook Estates. It’s a semi new development with a fancy country club and a private school system. The houses are huge and the lawns are manicured similarly to how Landon grew up. But unlike Prestonwood, which is now mostly a town for retirees, Westbrook is where a lot of young families are moving to. Young affluent families under 40. His plan is to put down a hefty down payment and pay the house off within 15 years. It will be the dream house, our forever home.
I sip my morning coffee from the dining room table and watch Ashleigh run across the sofa then hop across to the loveseat.
“Ok,” Aiden says to Ashleigh, “Now hop onto the coffee table and then the pillow.”
Ashleigh nods then jumps from the loveseat to the coffee table. The table is rather large and made of solid oak. I found it in a thrift store when Landon and I first moved in together. The day I purchased it, I never thought our kids would be using it to stand on. Once Ashleigh is on the coffee table, she surveys her next move. The pillow she is attempting to land on is pretty small. She jumps, her left foot lands on the pillow but she wobbles and her right foot touches the floor.
“You got burned up!” Aiden teases.
“Aww man,” she whines.
“You have to start over now,” Aiden states.
I take a sip of my Maxwell House coffee, wishing I had at least taken time to go to Starbucks this morning. The house windows rattle from a car’s engine pulling nearby, then shuts off. About ten seconds later Bear barks as the doorbell rings. I look at the clock on the cable box, it reads 10:37am. I have no idea who it could be because I wasn’t expecting any company. I walk past the mirror in our little entryway. My hair is tied up in a satin scarf. I’m wearing a t-shirt stained with paint from one of my HGTV DIY projects.
I peek out the window. There is a blue Mustang and a hooded man standing in the doorway. Bear continues to bark loudly and aggressively at the door. I don’t know if this man will try anything stupid, but he picked the wrong house. The man knocks again and this time I get a glimpse of his face.
Connor?
I quickly open the door.
“Oh my God, Connor what are you doing here?” I ask as the rain pours on him.
“Hey Birdie. Sorry, I dropped by unannounced,” he says pulling at the hood of the rain jacket. “I lost my phone at a rest stop, so I didn’t have your number.”
“It’s fine, come on in.” I put Bear in a down stay and I open the door and step aside so he can enter.
“I see Landon got you a guard dog,” Connor chuckles.
“Something like that,” I smile and release Bear from the down position and send him to his bed. “We rescued him about 6 months ago. He’s not fond of men but absolutely adores children. And he is so well behaved.”
“Where’s Landon? At work?”
“Yeah.” I take Connor’s jacket and hang it on the hook by the door and he slips off his wet shoes.
Once all the wet items of clothing have been removed, he greets me with a hug. “Sorry, I hope I’m not interrupting your morning.”
“No, it’s fine, I was just watching the kids play.” I walk him toward the sofa.
“So Landon is a Fruit of the Loom man?” Connor questions playfully.
“Huh, what?” I look down, realizing he is referring to the pair of Landon’s boxer I’m currently sporting as shorts. “Oh.” I blush.
“I’m more of a Hanes guy,” he jokes. “Dominique steals my stuff all the time. Nothing is safe around you wives.”
“Uncle Connor, Uncle Connor the floor is lava!” Ashleigh shrieks.
“Oh No!” He jumps onto the couch with Aiden. “Olivia, come on, the floor is lava, what are you doing?”
I let a chuckle and hop onto the loveseat. Honestly, I don’t feel like playing this, but I’ll indulge them for a few moments.
“Uncle Connor, jump on the table,” Aiden instructs.
“Oh buddy. I don’t know if that’s a good idea. How about I just sit on the couch with my feet up?”
Aiden frowns, “But you have to get to the kitchen! It’s the safe zone!”
“Aiden,” I chime in, “Why don’t you and your sister go play in your room so Uncle Connor and I can talk.”
“Ok, he pouts.
Now that the game is over, Connor and I take a seated position.
“Uncle Connor,” Ashleigh gets down from the ottoman and hugs him then tucks herself at his side. “What’s it like to fly in the clouds? Are they really puffy like cotton?”
This is a classic Ashleigh stall tactic. The girl is too smart for her own good.
“Well, they aren’t puffy, they just look like it. Clouds are just water vapor, but even though they aren’t actually puffy it’s hard to see through them.”
Aiden takes a seat at his other side, “Uncle Connor, do you ever do flips and loops?”
“Yeah, sometimes.”
“I bet that’s so cool. You’re like Mavrick!” Aiden coos.
Connor's face lights up, “You’ve seen Top Gun?”
“Yeah, Mommy let us watch it a few weeks ago.”
“That happens to be one of my favorite movies. Top Gun and Forrest Gump.” Connor gives me a knowing smile.
“Uncle Connor,” Ashleigh says, “Have you ever seen a mermaid?”
“I actually—I have,” he says in a mysterious voice.
Ashleigh’s eyes widen and her face brightens, “Did she look like Airel?”
He suppresses a shudder, “No Sweetpea, it didn’t look like Airel.”
“Tells us about it, tells,” Aiden gets to his knees, eagerly waiting for more.
“Well, late one night some buddies and I were wandering around the ship down near the ballast tanks,” Connor says.
“What a ballast tank,” Ashleigh asks.
Aiden proudly jumps in to answer, “It holds water to stabilize the ship.”
Connor gives an impressed smile, “That’s right. Well were wandering near the tanks and we heard thumps coming from the tank. We didn’t think much of it because the tanks often suck up fish and sometimes sharks. From the force of the noise, we figured it was a shark. So we thought we’d go check it out.”
The kids sit on the edge of the sofa, looking toward Connor with sheer anticipation.
“But as we got closer, it started making a shrieking noise,” Connor says.
“But sharks don’t shriek,” Aiden points out.
“I know,” Connor says, his voice low and eerie. “So we all hesitant for a moment but eventually decided to see what it was. So we took a flashlight and peered in the tank. And that’s when we saw it.”
Ashleigh’s eyes widen, “The mermaid?”
“Yup. But it wasn’t pretty like in the fairytales.” He pauses and looks at me to get permission to keep going.
Truth be told, I’m on the edge of my seat as well, and I want to know too. I nod for him to keep going.
Connor now seems unsettled. “This is thing was hideous. It didn’t look like anything I’ve ever seen before. It was really pale and scaly and had webbed hands.”
Ashleigh and I are horrified.
“Awesome!” Aiden proclaims.
“Ok kids, enough stalling. Time to go play in your room.”
“Ahh man, but I have more questions,” Ashleigh says.
Connor looks absolutely delighted to talk more with them, but I’m curious as to what brought him over.
“You can ask him more questions later. Right now, grown folks need to talk. To your room,” I point a firm finger down the hall.
“Aiden, give me a piggyback ride,” Ashleigh asks.
Aiden turns his back and lets Ashleigh hop on, but he can barely hold her up. Though they are only a year apart, Aiden is much taller than her. He’s actually taller than most 6 years old. I’m still trying to figure out where he gets his height from because it sure isn’t me. After managing to only get a few steps, they turn it into a game of leapfrog.
“Sorry about the mess,” I say almost embarrassed. Mrs. Harrington kept their house immaculate. Of course, she did have a maid service come in on Monday mornings, making it easier for her to maintain throughout the week. I haven’t cleaned my house in a few days. Some of it is a storage issue, like piles of toys spread all around. But other things are laziness issues like, the stack of dishes in the sink that hasn’t been touched in two days.
“No need to apologize, I’m intruding. Plus, the house looks fine.”
“I’m surprised to see you in town, where’s Dom?”
His face sours, “She's back home in Jacksonville. She didn’t come with me. I should say I didn’t want her to come with me.”
Connor and Dominique had very hectic schedules, with them both being in the navy. There are always lots of weeks and months spent apart so they were always together anytime they could be together. So I’m taken by surprise when he says he didn’t want her along on this trip.
“Wow, Connor, what going on? Is everything ok?”
His right leg bounces uncontrollably, and he drops his head back into the sofa. “I didn’t come here to bother you with all my problems. I just wanted to see if you, Landon and the kids wanted to grab some dinner with me tonight.”
“Connor,” I state firmly, “You aren’t bothering me with your problems. We’re family, you can talk to me.”
He drums his fingers on his knee. “Dom and I have been trying for a baby.”
I gather my thoughts, wanting to say the right words once he tells me she miscarried. I know the pain of losing a baby. A baby that was so desperately wanted.
But wait...
That wouldn’t make any sense. Why wouldn’t he want her on this trip? I continue to listen.
“We’ve been trying for half a year.”
Ok maybe he’s frustrated she’s having a hard time getting pregnant? But still, I know Connor and I can’t ever see him taking it out on her.
He continues, “So last month I told her we should set an appointment with a specialist to see what was up. In the meantime, I did some research and saw it was easy for them to test— ,” his voice drops to a whisper, “my sperm count.” He returns to his normal voice, “So I went ahead and made the appointment since Dom was underway. I did the appointment and everything was fine on my end.”
“Ok, Dominique is where the issue lies?”
“Oh yeah, but you have no fucking idea. When she got back, I kept asking her to make an appointment, but she kept giving me excuses not to. I was trying to be patient and understanding, and I didn’t want to push her, but I also wanted answers. I left the Navy so we could start a family. I just needed her to make the appointment so we would know our next step.”
“Ok, so what happened?”
“She told me the other day she couldn’t get pregnant because she was still on birth control.” Tears stream down Connor's face. “For seven fucking months she led me on, Olivia. She even had a bullshit ovulation chart hanging up in our bathroom knowing damn well she wasn’t even ovulating.”
I can’t believe Dominique would do this to Connor. “Jesus Connor,” I move to sit beside him. “I’m so sorry she did that to you.”
“I just don’t understand. I know she didn’t want a big family. But I thought we had everything settled before we got married. She was willing to have one or two, but she didn’t want to leave the Navy. I understood that and would never ask her to give up her career. So, I happily left the Navy because having kids was more important to me. We agreed she’d stay in, and I’d get a civilian job and I’d take on the bulk of the childrearing duties. “
I squeeze Connor’s knee. “I’m so sorry, Connor,” I say, my voice full of empathy.
“She let me give up my career only to bullshit me into thinking she wanted kids.”
“Why did she say she did it?” I ask.
“She said she’s at a place where her career is really taking off, and she doesn’t want children to hinder that. She thought that after a few months of trying I’d drop it and move on if I thought she was infertile.”
“I have always admired Dominque for her ambition and drive. And I’ve always believed she was an excellent role model for Ash. I was glad Ash could see first hand that a woman could do anything she wanted. There are so few women pilots, I can absolutely understand her not wanting to put her career on hold, but to string you along like this is sickening. She should have been woman enough to have a conversation with you.”
“That’s exactly why I have always thrown a hundred precent of my support behind her. I know what she is doing is not only important to her but to a whole community of women and that’s why I would never be the person to hold back from achieving greatness.”
“What does this mean for you guys?”
“I don’t know. I threw a bunch of stuff in my seabag. Hopped in the car and drove. After two hours, she started blowing up my phone. I pulled over to a rest stop to talk to her and that ended in another argument, and I threw my phone into the woods. I haven’t spoken to her since.”
“Does she know where you are?”
“I’m sure she’s figured it out. She called my parents’ house a few times yesterday, but I asked them not to answer. When they wouldn’t pick up, she called Court’s phone. Court ripped her a new one and told her stop trying to contact me.”
“I don’t blame Court, that was awful what she did,” I state.
“Yeah, I know, but I still told Court back down. Dom is still my wife, and she can’t talk to her any kind of way.”
My eyes widen, “You’d still protect her after what she’s done?”
“I know I’m furious with her, but I can’t let my family disrespect her. There has to be boundaries in a marriage, and a man needs to stick up for his wife.”
“Hmpf, I wish those were words Landon would live by,” I say. “Connor, I'm so sorry this is happening to you. I know how important having children is to you. Do you think she lied just to marry you?”
“Funny enough, I asked her that very question. She said at the time she really thought she could compromise.” Connor sinks into the seat, “She’s going on deployment next month. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but for the first time ever I’m glad she’ll be gone.”
Aiden and Ashleigh run out of their room. “Mommy,” Ashleigh says, “Can we have a snack?”
“Sure.” I get up and make them a plate of Goldfish crackers and apple slices.
Aiden drags some blankets over to Connor. “Uncle Connor, can you help us make a fort?”
“Sure, buddy. Where do you want to make it?”
“Over here,” Ashleigh points to the dining room.
Connor and Aiden pull the chairs from the table and line them in a square.
“Make it really big,” Ashleigh says.
“Ok, we’ll add the table as part of it,” Connor says as he rearranges the chairs to create an entrance to under the table. Then he places the blankets on top of the fort.
“Mommy, can we eat in the fort,” Aiden.
“Sure, go ahead.”
He crawls in and Ashleigh follows, I bend down and stick the plate under the blanket.
“Can you and Uncle Connor come in with us?” Ashleigh asks.
“Only if you share your apple slices,” Connor teases.
“I have a few chores to finish up, do you mind?” I ask Connor.
“I got it, do whatever you need to do,” He says and crawls in the fort, his long legs dangling out from under the table.
I find myself wishing Landon would play with the kids like this. They often ask him to play, but he always says no. I get it; he works extremely long hours and when he is home on Sunday he just wants to rest. Totally understandable. I just fear the kids will remember every time that he said no to building a fort or playing a game versus the times he sat and watched TV with them. I don’t want them to have a hardened view of him.
