So I added a bit at the end of this chapter because I was like, might was well, right? so yeah. :)
I know nothing about divorce so I'm sorry if it's not accurate. :p
Also notice how the rating changed to T. It might even change to M for next chapter. :o
Jodi
Jodi is 27
Ryan is 28
Georgia is 8
Lily is 6
Brett is 29
Annabelle is 8
Bridget is 9
Bella is 51 (:O)
9 years after Epilogue
"Mommy where are we going?" I looked at Lily at the mirror and smiled gently.
"You're going to spend the day with grandma because mommy has a meeting with her lawyer." I said gently. Lily frowned and nodded.
"Mommy, how come daddy isn't at home anymore?" I looked at Georgia and bit my lip. How did you explain divorce to a six and eight year old?
"Daddy and mommy aren't going to be married anymore." I said slowly. Georgia and Lily glanced at each other.
"How come?" I bit my lip, trying not to let the tears slip down my cheeks. I pulled up to my parent's house, giving me an excuse to not answer them. I got out, and the girls darted out of the car and run up to the front door.
"Grandma! Grandma!" they screamed. Mom opened the door and grinned, pulling the girls into tight hugs.
"Hello ladies! How are you today?" she asked kissing their cheeks.
"Good grandma!" they cried. She grinned.
"Do you know what I just made?" They shook their heads. "I just made a whole batch of sugar cookies and I need some help decorating them."The girls squealed in excitement and raced inside. Mom stood up and looked at me. "How are you sweetie?" she asked gently. I sighed.
"It's hard." I admitted. Mom nodded and pulled me into a gentle hug.
"I know sweetie. It's never easy dealing with divorce." She said gently. I nodded.
"The girls keep asking why he's not living with us anymore. I don't know what to say." I admitted. Mom nodded.
"How did your father tell you?" I frowned, trying to remember.
"I don't know. I think he told us that my mom still loved us but she didn't love him anymore." I said frowning. Mom nodded.
"Sweetie, there's no easy way to explain to a child that one of their parents is leaving them." She said gently. "You just have to be there for them until they can understand what's going on." I nodded.
"Thanks mom." She nodded.
"Sweetie, your father and I are both here for you." She said gently. I nodded and hugged her.
"Thanks, I'll be back later to pick up the girls." Mom nodded and I stepped back to my car. I drove about twenty minutes into the city and pulled up to the large building. I took a deep breath before getting out of my car and walking toward the building. I rode the elevator in silence until the tenth floor and got out.
"Hello Mrs. Taylor." I nodded to the receptionist.
"Not Mrs. Taylor for long." I muttered. She nodded.
"Mr. Taylor is waiting for you through there." I nodded and walked into the conference room. I glared at Ryan who was looking bored. I glanced at Patrick, my lawyer and sat down next to him.
"Thanks for gracing us with your presence." Ryan said sarcastically.
"Oh I'm sorry I'm late, I had to make sure our daughters were taken care of, not that you're concerned about that." I spat. Ryan glared at me.
"Alright, well the papers have been drawn, everything is settled, all we need is for you two to sign them and then the divorce will be final." I nodded, relieved that this nightmare would be over soon.
Ryan snatched the papers and signed them hastily before handing them to me. I took a deep breath and signed them before turning back to Patrick. "Congratulations Jodi. You're a single woman again." I nodded.
"Thanks Patrick." I turned to Ryan. "So the only contact I'll be having with you is the monthly child support checks correct?" He nodded.
"Nothing more, nothing less." I nodded.
"Good." I nodded once more to Patrick then turned to leave. I couldn't believe I was finally free. I practically skipped down to my car and sighed, smiling. For the past year, Ryan and I had been at each other's throats. I couldn't figure out what had happened, since before we were the best of friends. About six months ago I found out about the affair and suddenly everything clicked. He started picking fights with me, worried I would find out about it. I was completely devastated. We had been married for almost seven years, and dating a few more than that. It had been a brutal six months but now, finally I was done. I slid into my car and put the key in the ignition. "Shoot!" I looked up to see a man, roughly my age, jump out of his car and kick it. He had dark brown hair and he looked tall, well built and lean. He glared at his car once more before pulling out his cell phone. I watched, slightly amused as he made his phone call, his voice loud and angry. He snapped the phone shut and sighed, running his hands through his hair. I felt sort of bad for him, I had, on many accounts, needed my car to be towed. Maybe there was some way I could help him…
"Excuse me," I said getting out of the car before I could realize what I was doing. "Are you alright?" He looked up at me and I was stunned by his eyes, a perfect hazel, mixed with blues and greens.
"Yes, I'm sorry if I startled you." He said apologetically. "I just have to pick up my daughters from gymnastics in about five minutes and my car is broken down and the tow truck won't be here for at least an hour." I nodded sympathetically.
"Is there anyone you can call to pick up your girls?" he shook his head.
"No, unfortunately. It's just me." I nodded. It seemed we had a lot more in common than I would have thought.
"Well, I don't want to seem weird or anything, but I was just going to pick up my girls from my mom's house. I could pick up your girls if you want and you could meet me at my parent's place." He looked at me in surprise and I just about slapped myself. Nice move idiot. Way to not sound creepy.
"What's your name?" he asked slowly. I smiled.
"Jodi Ta-" I stopped and grinned. "Cullen. Jodi Cullen." It was amazing to say my last name again.
"I'm Brett Holmes." I nodded, the name rang a bell, though I couldn't place it. "How old are your daughters?" he asked. I shrugged.
"Eight and six." He grinned.
"Really? Mine are eight and nine." I smiled. "Cullen, hey you wouldn't happen to be related to Bella Cullen would you?" I grinned.
"She's my mom." He looked surprised.
"No way." I nodded. When the triplets had turned four, mom had finally gotten her first book published, Twilight. It was a huge success and people who hadn't read the books had still heard of her. "So, you must be Dr. Cullen's daughter as well." I frowned.
"How do you know my dad?" Brett smirked.
"My uncle, Allen Cooper was a long time patient of his. He raved about Dr. Cullen and his magic for years. I'm pretty sure I went to see him a few times myself growing up with broken bones, and whatnot." I chuckled. Small world.
"That's too funny." I said grinning. He nodded. "So, I was about to go," I said slowly. "Do you want me to pick up your girls?" He hesitated.
"Are you sure you don't mind?" I shook my head.
"Of course not. Here, I'll give you my parent's address." I said fishing out a napkin and pen from my car. I scribbled it down and handed it over to him as well as my cell number. He took it and smiled.
"Thanks so much. It really means a lot to me." I nodded.
"It's no trouble." He briefly described his girls to me and I nodded. "I'll see you in a couple hours?" he nodded and I walked back to my car.
"Oh and Jodi," I looked up at Brett and smiled. "Pickles." I frowned but he just nodded, grinning. I nodded slowly, slid in and sped off.
The Gymnastics Academy was closer to my parent's house than I expected and I got there shortly. I walked in, looking for two girls that fit Brett's description. I looked around and saw two, tall lanky girls with chocolate hair, pulled back into identical buns on the floor. I sat down, and watched them. I knew they were Brett's girls, they looked just like him.
I watched in amazement as the girls flipped, flew and soared across the mat. They were so young and already that good. I watched another few minutes before they came off the mat and gathered their things. They looked around, frowning and I took a deep breath. "Annabelle and Bridgett?" I asked softly. They looked up at me, startled. I crouched down to their eye level, which was rather tall for their age. "Hi girls, I'm Jodi." I said smiling. The older one nodded curtly. "I met your daddy today in a parking lot. He's having some car troubles so I offered to pick you two up and take you to my parents house until he could get his car fixed." They looked a little scared so I smiled gently. "I have two daughters myself, one who is six, and one who is eight. I'm sure you two would get along marvelously with them." They glanced at each other before the taller one spoke.
"What's the word?"
"Pickles?" I guessed. It was the only thing that made sense. The girls grinned and nodded.
"Okay." They said nodding. I grinned and took their hands, leading them out to my car.
Once they had learned I wasn't a bad stranger, they had decided they really liked me, and proceeded to tell me all about themselves in the car ride to my parent's house. By the time I pulled up, there was little I didn't know about the two girls.
"Mom, girls, I'm home." I called out, letting Annie and Bee in before me.
"Mommy!" Lily came barreling towards me and hugged my knees, Georgia not far behind. Once I had introduced the girls, they all started talking and playing as if they had been best friends for years. I walked into the kitchen to find mom cleaning up the frosting that had managed to miss the cookies.
"Who are the other two?" she asked curiously. I grinned, snatching a cookie before launching into my story.
Mom grinned when I had finished. "Brett Holmes? One of the most well known, influential lawyers in the country?" I gasped when I realized she was right. That's why his name rang a bell. "Well, perfect, he'll be in time for dinner." Mom said grinning. I shook my head, stunned.
"I can't believe I didn't realize that." I muttered. Mom laughed.
"Don't worry sweetie. You'll be fine. Plus I'm sure your father would love meeting him again." I rolled my eyes and poured myself another glass of wine. I was excited, and nervous for tonight. Somehow I knew that tonight, could change the rest of my life.
About One Year Later
"Mommy!" I frowned and rolled over, too tired to open my eyes. "Mommy! Mommy! Mommy! Wake up Mommy!" I groaned as I felt them climb on to the bed. They started jumping around, and singing as I buried my head under my pillow. I heard the shower go off and the bathroom door open.
"What are you monkey's doing on my bed?" I heard Brett's deep voice chuckle. The girls all screamed and ran towards him.
"Daddy! We're hungry and mommy won't wake up." Brett chuckled.
"Well, why don't you girls turn on some cartoons and I'll wake up mommy." I heard the girls squeal and run out of the room. I felt the bed shift under new weight and shivered in anticipation.
"Hey Baby." Brett's voice was next to my ear, deep and seductive. I felt heat radiating off his skin and could only imagine the water droplets from the shower, sliding down between his glorious muscles. His lips found my neck and I leaned into him instinctually. "They girls are hungry baby." He said gently. I smiled.
"Then feed them." Brett chuckled and started sucking on my neck, teasing me. My eyes flew open and I wrapped myself around his almost naked body. He hovered above me, just enough so that I could feel his skin on every surface of my own.
"Will you wake up?" I gasped as his lips traveled lower, along my collar bone.
"Y-yes." I stuttered. He chuckled and kissed my clavicle before kissing me on the lips.
"I love you." He whispered gently. I smiled.
"I love you too." He brushed my bangs from my eyes and smiled.
"So Mrs. Holmes. What's on the schedule for today?" I smiled and bit my lip, looking into his beautiful hazel eyes.
"Well Mr. Holmes. I was thinking that the girls could go to my parent's house and help them decorate for Christmas while we get some," I glanced at his perfect chest and smiled. "Things taken care of." He grinned and kissed me deeply.
"That sounds like an excellent plan."
Ah, so cute. lol. Next chapter is Clara.
