Chapter 1: Coming Home
"You were young and you were strong / lots of dreams that all went wrong / you won't tell them how you lost it all / you'll just say you're comin' home."
The steady beat of the windshield wipers was enough to put Payson to sleep, but instead of letting her eyes drift closed like she desperately wanted to, she forced them open a little wider. Normally, she would turn on the radio to keep her awake, but the sleeping cargo strapped into the car seat behind her made that a bad idea.
"Almost to Grandma's," Payson whispered, checking the tow-headed two year old in the rearview mirror. They weren't headed to her childhood home, though; they were headed for the nearest Holiday Inn. Kim and Mark were on vacation for a couple more days, and Payson no longer had a key. It would have been an entirely different story if her parents had known she was coming, but her decision to drive back to Boulder had been very last minute.
A strange clunking pulled Payson from her thoughts, which was probably a good thing, except that it meant the car was breaking down. In the pouring rain. In the middle of nowhere.
"No, no, no," Payson begged, pounding on the steering wheel with the heel of her hand. She eased the Lexus to the shoulder, set the hazard lights, and then slumped back against the seat. She blew out a slow, even breath and then popped the hood.
Jumping out of the car, Payson ran to the front, lifting the hood and propping it open and then ducking beneath it to shield her eyes from the rain. She braced her hands on either side, in prime position to be crushed if she hadn't propped the hood correctly, like Jeffrey accused her of all the time, and peered at the engine. Payson knew a little bit about car maintenance, her Dad had taught her a few years ago to change a car's oil, to replace coolant and anti-freeze, but there was nothing wrong that her novice eyes could see.
"Damn it," she sighed.
The sound of a truck pulling up next to her car almost made Payson smack the back of her head against the hood, but she ducked again just in time and backed out slowly.
"You need a lift?"
Payson froze at the sound of the smooth, British accent. She hadn't seen him since her wedding day, and the circumstances she found herself in were not the ones in which she wanted to reconnect. She cursed her bad luck that he would be the Good Samaritan to help her out.
"No, thank you, I'm fine," Payson said, trying to hide her face.
"Come on, you're getting drenched. I promise I'm not an axe-murderer," he said. She could hear the laughter in his voice and found herself fighting a smile.
"All right, I suppose I can trust you." Payson turned to face him. The light from her headlights made it hard to see his face, and probably hers too, but she heard him suck in a breath as he recognized her.
"Payson?" he whispered. She almost didn't hear him over the rain.
"Hey Sasha." They just stood facing each other for a long moment before Sasha seemed to remember himself.
"Come on, you'll catch your death out here," Sasha insisted.
"Is it okay if I move my stuff?" Payson asked.
"Of course. Let me help," Sasha went to the back of the car and opened the hatch to grab Payson's only suitcase as Payson ducked into the backseat to unbuckle Harper and grab her purse.
"Uh, Sasha can you help me with this?" Payson asked when she was sure Sasha was done with her suitcase.
"Of course, what is it?"
"The car-seat needs to be moved to your truck." Sasha stopped in his tracks as he watched Payson practically dive into his truck with Harper.
"I, uh, I forgot you had a daughter," he whispered, strapping in the seat. Payson settled Harper into it as Sasha climbed into the driver's seat and pulled away from her car. "Where to? Your parents'?"
"No, they're out of town. The Holiday Inn over by the Pearl Street Mall is fine," Payson said.
"A hotel? No, that's mad. You can sleep at my apartment until your mum and dad are back in town," Sasha insisted.
"No, Sasha, I couldn't ask you to do that."
"It's not up for discussion."
#
Sasha's apartment was definitely a step-up from the Airstream, and not much farther from The Rock. As Payson followed him inside, she looked for any signs of a feminine touch, something to suggest whether or not he had a girlfriend. She knew he wasn't married, she would have heard from her mother, but that didn't mean he wasn't dating, or living with, someone. The apartment was entirely male though; neat, but Spartan.
"I'll get you some towels," Sasha offered, disappearing down a hallway. Harper started to stir in her arms so she began to move, walking around the room and bouncing slightly. She stopped in front of a wall of photos and smiled at the memories there; pictures of her and the other Rock girls at various stages in their careers, one of her and him at the Olympics, after she won the All-Around gold, several framed news clippings, and some pictures of girls she didn't recognize who must have been the current Rock girls.
"Miss it?" Sasha asked from behind her. She smiled at him sadly, nodding.
"Sometimes, very much."
He handed her the towels and Payson went to work drying and changing Harper, and then herself, in the large bathroom Sasha directed her too. She debated drying her hair, but tied it back in a braid instead. Then she settled Harper into Sasha's bed, although she had resisted putting him out like that for as long as possible, and returned to the living room.
"Better?" He asked, handing her a glass of wine. She nodded.
"Thank you, Sasha, really."
"It's not a problem. So, what brings you back to Boulder?" Sasha asked as he and Payson sat down on his couch. Payson curled her feet beneath her and sipped her wine.
"Just…coming home," Payson said. Sasha watched her, noting her left ring finger, which was bare except for a dramatic tan line where her wedding ring used to be.
"Payson, what happened?" Sasha asked. He asked in that voice he used to use on her, when he wanted to compel her to do something without triggering her stubborn streak, and he knew she would answer him.
"I left Jeffrey."
#
Los Angeles, CA- 2 days earlier
Payson was just coming downstairs from tucking Harper in for her mid-afternoon nap when she heard Jeffrey's iPhone ringing. He'd left in such a hurry that morning, late for a meeting with some client who was apparently a big deal, that he'd left it sitting on the dining room table. Not thinking twice, she jogged into the dining room and grabbed it.
"Jeffrey Thames' phone," she answered. There was a long stretch of silence. Payson was about to ask if there was anyone there when a gravelly, female voice finally came through.
"Who is this?" the woman demanded.
"Jeffrey's wife. He left his phone at home, but I can get him a message, or I can give you his office number if you need to get a hold of him," Payson offered.
"I…I'm sorry."
Payson frowned as the line went dead. Sorry for what? Pulling the phone away from her ear, she glanced at the screen. The woman's face smiled back at her, saved as "Rebecca." Payson wracked her brain, trying to think of any time Jeffrey mentioned a Rebecca.
Something gnawing at her conscience made her look through Jeffrey's call history; Rebecca's name appeared at least once every day.
Payson immediately wanted to undo it, to go back and just let his phone go to voicemail. Her heart sank and though her mind screamed at her to walk away from the phone, her fingers went to his pictures of their own accord. Flicking through the saved photos, she saw at least a hundred pictures of him and this Rebecca woman, kissing, cuddling, and being romantic. In one, they were clearly in bed.
Payson's hand started to tremble, and she scrolled through Jeffrey's contacts until she reached his office number. She waited as it rang and he answered in a harried voice. She knew he would be annoyed that she was calling in the middle of a day when he was too busy to even remember his phone, but she couldn't wait another moment to hear what he had to say. Even if the thought made her nauseous.
"What?" he snapped.
"Rebecca called." Payson forced herself to say. "Come home. Now."
It took Jeffery an hour to get home, even though his office was only fifteen minutes away, and when he walked in the door he tried to act like nothing was wrong. Payson could see in his eyes that it was all for show.
"How long?" she asked.
"What do you mean?" Jeffery replied lightly, his voice a little too high pitched. Payson clenched her fist and made a grab for the phone.
"How long, Jeffery?" Payson hissed, tossing the phone at him. Jeffery scrambled to catch it and then his eyes went wide when he saw the picture Payson had pulled up.
"You went through my phone?" he asked.
"Don't you dare make this my fault! How long?"
"Almost three years."
Payson doubled over, feeling the breath leave her chest. She gasped, trying to suck in air, but all she could feel was the weight of her husband's infidelity on her sternum.
"The entire time Harper's been alive?" Payson gasped. Jeffery nodded. "So while I was up all day and all night with a brand new baby and you were "working late," you were really screwing her?"
"Yes."
Payson was at an absolute loss for words. Her husband was standing in their living room telling her that he'd been cheating on her for three years and he didn't even seem that sorry about it. He wasn't begging for forgiveness or apologizing, he was just staring at her, waiting for her reaction.
Her marriage was over.
#
"He's a bloody fool, Payson," Sasha whispered, reaching out to brush his fingers over her shoulder. She pressed her lips into a thin line and felt them tremble as she shook her head.
"I don't care," she insisted. Sasha's fingers curled around her shoulder, holding tightly and he leaned forward so he could meet her eyes.
"It's okay to care. You were married to the wanker for almost five years, and he hurt you. It's okay to care."
"I don't want to care, I just want to move on with my life," Payson groaned, rubbing her eyes.
"Do you have a plan?" Sasha asked. He knew Payson always felt better when she had a plan she could attack.
"No. I just needed to get away, I thought I'd figure out a plan later," Payson said. For a moment, Sasha just stared at her, a gaze so intense it made her want to disappear inside herself.
"I need a gym manager," he finally said. Payson's head snapped up to meet his gaze.
"What?"
"A manager, for The Rock. The mom who was doing it just had a baby and I haven't been able to find anyone else. It's the perfect arrangement," Sasha insisted. Payson shook her head, laughing.
"I haven't been in a gym with elite athletes since…the Olympics. I mean, we had a gym built at the house in L.A. so I could still work out, but that's totally different."
"Payson, please. For me, do it for me. To help out your old coach," Sasha begged. He reached for Payson's free hand and gave her fingers a squeeze. Payson sat back, chewing on her bottom lip.
"Okay, fine. I'll do it." Sasha sat back with a cocky smile.
"Brilliant. Now, you should get some sleep, you've had a long day," Sasha said, as if she needed reminding. Smiling, she stood up and set her glass of wine on the table.
"Goodnight, Sasha. And thank you, again."
"Goodnight, Payson."
#
Sasha stayed up for a few more hours to get some paperwork done, until he could hardly hold his eyes open any more. Part of him didn't want to go to sleep, for fear he would wake up and Payson would be just a dream, but he knew that if he didn't sleep he would be useless in the gym.
He moved to the linen closet for a blanket, passing by his bedroom. The door was open just a crack, and he could hear Payson breathing softly. It was weird, and probably crossing a line, but he pushed the door open a little bit more and peeked inside. Payson was sleeping on her side, her hand resting gently over Harper's stomach. The sight made his heart ache.
She should have been his.
#
Boulder, CO- 5 years ago
Sasha knocked softly on the heavy wooden door, waiting for someone to open it. After barely a heartbeat it was yanked open and he was greeted with Becca Keeler's smiling face.
"Sasha," she said in surprise.
"Mind if I come in to wish the bride well?" Sasha asked, giving her his most charming smile. Becca glanced over her shoulder.
"Can Sasha come in?" She asked someone, he guessed Payson.
"Of course!" Kim cried. Apparently, he had guessed wrong. Becca opened the door the rest of the way and stepped aside to let Sasha by.
"Okay everyone, let's give Payson and Sasha a moment," Kim suggested, ushering Kaylie, Emily, Becca, and Kelly out of the room. As soon as they were gone, Sasha finally looked at Payson.
She was stunning. More than stunning, she took his breath away in her simple, elegant white wedding dress that glowed against her lightly tanned skin. He took a breath and offered her a smile.
"Sasha," she said. She crossed the room quickly and threw her arms around his neck, pressing herself against him. Sasha froze for a split second before setting his hands on her waist. It wasn't enough, though, and he slowly skimmed his hands around her waist and up her back until he was returning her embrace just as tightly.
"Payson, I wanted to tell you…" Sasha started.
"Do I look okay?" Payson asked as she stepped back. Her hands traveled down the length of his arms, the heat radiating from her palms nearly scorching him, until they were holding hands. He held her hands out to take another look at her and gave her a playful spin. She laughed, letting her head fall back and twirling into him. He laughed too.
"You look incredible, Payson. Jeffrey is a lucky man," Sasha said. "I…"
"Can you believe I'm getting married?" Payson asked, giddy, as she turned to the mirror. Sasha sighed and nodded.
"I'm so happy for you," Sasha said. The door opened and Kim poked her head inside.
"Pay, honey? We need you for some pictures now," Kim said.
"Sure, Mom, one second," Payson agreed. Kim ducked back out and Payson turned to Sasha, still smiling.
"Save me a dance?" Payson asked, batting her eyelashes. Sasha was pretty certain she didn't even realize she was doing it.
"Of course," Sasha promised. He stepped closer, taking her face in his hands and lightly caressing her cheeks with his thumbs. Then he leaned in and pressed a firm kiss to her forehead.
Sasha watched as Payson hurried out to join her wedding party, the door clicking shut behind her, and ignored the pain in his chest. It wasn't time, not yet.
"I love you, Payson Keeler."
A/N: Happy MIOBI Monday! And, for me at least, happy first day of summer vacation (even though its snowing here in Michigan and not feeling like summer at all)! I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter of my new fic, more are to come! I'm planning on updating once a week because I do need to actually work, as well write some of my own, original stuff.
PLEASE review! It's super important with these early chapters that people review if they can because I need to know how the story is being received. It isn't too late to do some tweaking to the overall story now if you guys don't love it, but it might be later so the earlier you tell me what's working and what isn't, the better! Oh, and I know that some people are not that fond of flashbacks, and I promise they are only in the first couple of chapters.
That little button just below here...you should click it. Just sayin'.