-10-
Later that morning, around ten o'clock, Emma called her mom and told her what had happened over the weekend with Phil and the kids. Evelyn had no idea that Jenna wasn't Phil's biological child; she just assumed that he had fathered all of her grandchildren just to irritate her. She never forgave Phil for talking Emma into marrying him when she was so young; she never had a chance to experience life, never went to college like Evelyn had planned for her, never got to see the world. Her daughter was thrown into the role of the good housewife at the age of 19.
"What do you mean Phil is in jail?" Evelyn asked.
"Just what I said mom. He and Scott were fighting on the front lawn at 1:30 this morning, one of the neighbors called the police and the cop showed up. At first the cop wasn't going to take him in; he just wanted Phil to go inside and calm down, and he was going to do just that; but then the cop insinuated that Phil had been drinking and that he should be arrested for public drunkenness and that set him off. You know as well as I do that Phil has a hard time controlling his mouth once he's upset."
Evelyn sighed. "Emma Sue, I never understood why you married that man."
"I love him."
"Loved him," Evelyn corrected her daughter. She had been Emma's biggest supporter when her daughter said that she was intending to seek a divorce.
"No, mom. I love him. I still love him. I made some mistakes...but I love him. I promised him forever and a day, and well, it hasn't been forever yet, has it?"
"Emma, think about what you're saying. You have put those children through hell the last six months with this pending divorce; it is not fair to them to just decide that you changed your mind and that you want Phil back."
"Mom, you don't understand," Emma sighed in frustration.
"What don't I understand? Please, help me understand why all of the sudden you've changed your mind about what you were so intent on doing? From my recollection, you were fed up with being a housewife and you wanted to go to school and eventually find yourself a career. What changed? Did he say or do something to make you change your mind? Is he trying to buy you back with a bigger house or new clothes?" Evelyn knew about Phil's tendency to throw money at Emma when he wanted to get close to her. Hence, the five bedroom home, the brand new Pontiac Grand Am in the driveway, the new clothes...
"There's a lot about my relationship with Phil that you're not going to understand, mom. It was never fully about me not feeling like I didn't have a life of my own. That was part of it. But the other part was guilt and shame," she said quietly.
"What on earth would you have to feel guilty about, Emma? If anything, he should feel guilty for making you stay at home with the kids without anything of your own."
"Jenna's not Phil's," Emma finally blurted out.
Evelyn was in shock; did she just hear her daughter correctly. "Explain yourself young lady," was all that Evelyn could get out.
"I had an affair and it resulted in pregnancy."
"How could you do this? Didn't I raise you better than that? You know I am not a fan of Phil, never have been and never will, but to do that to him? Does Jenna have any idea?"
"No. And I don't think I'm going to tell her until she's much older, or if I even tell her at all. Her entire life she's thought that Phil was her dad and he absolutely adores that little girl. That's why he was fighting with Scott last night."
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Little did Emma know, Jack was sitting on the steps listening to his mom talk to Grandma Evelyn while she sat on the couch in the living room. He had heard what his mom had said about dad not being Jenna's dad too, and was confused. How could him and his little sister not have the same dad? Mom and dad were married and happy when Jenna was born. It didn't make any sense whatsoever to the little boy and he wasn't sure if he should ask him mom about it at all. Maybe Uncle Scott would be able to answer his questions...
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Phil was scheduled to be released from jail around noon. He had used his one phone call to call Vince and luckily the owner of the WWE was able to pull some strings and was able to get him out on early bail, provided that he keep himself out of the trouble in the near future. Vince wanted to know why he was thrown in the clink last night. Phil gave him a very abbreviated version; it wasn't anyone's business but his and Emma's about their private life and what had happened this weekend. He groaned to himself when he thought about how all of these life changing events had happened over the course of the past few days. When he got home to Chicago Friday morning, his intent was to take the kids for the weekend, spend some time with them and then head back on the road after his week of 'vacation'. Instead, he bullied Emma until she finally agreed to let him have the kids, even though she had made prior plans, he ended up sleeping with his estranged wife because she was drunk, the Brooks family spent the afternoon and night of Saturday together, pretending to be a happy family because two of his kids had had major meltdowns about the pending divorce. He still hadn't had more than an hour of two of sleep since Thursday night; he had intended to sleep at the house with Emma, but she had other ideas and instead, she dropped a bomb on him. Then he beat the shit out of his best friend, called his wife a whore in front of his oldest son, and then got hauled off to jail. He was beginning to think that maybe he should have just stayed home this weekend.
On the way back to his apartment, he started to wonder what the hell he was supposed to do now. He still hadn't heard the full story of how and why Emma and Scott hooked up, and how the two of them could be so sure that Jenna was in fact Scott's daughter. If they had done a paternity test, surely Phil would have run across the test results or a receipt from the hospital or something, to indicate that they had the little girl tested. It infuriated him to know that Emma was aware that Jenna might not be his, but she still put his name on the birth certificate. It angered him even more to know that she kept this secret from him for three years. He couldn't even begin to describe the feelings of betrayal he had right now for not only Scott, but also for Emma.
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"Kids! Let's go, Grandma's waiting for us," Emma yelled up the stairs. Her mother had agreed to take the children for the next week while Emma and Phil sorted out their problems. Evelyn was still in strong support of Emma being divorced from Phil. Emma was unsure. The past six months have been hell; not just on the kids and Phil but on and herself as well. She had been trying to drown the feelings of guilt she has over what her and Scott had done with alcohol. But all of the rum in the world wasn't going to be able to fix this mess.
She was just about to yell up the stairs again, when Jack came down the stairs first, with Josh and Jenna trailing behind him. "Mom, how long are we staying at Grandma's? Are we going to be able to see dad again before he leaves?" Jack asked as he set down Jenna's overnight bag and took her little hand.
"I don't know. I'm sure you'll see him or maybe he'll call before has to leave again," Emma said distractedly as she looked around for her car keys.
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Instead of driving back to his apartment, Punk just kept driving until he found himself in front of the house him and Emma had shared for the past five years together. He had a lot of time to think last night and this morning while he sat in that jail cell. For the past six months he had been sure that he would be able to convince Emma to be a halt to the proceedings, and they could just move on with their lives together; but not he wasn't so sure if that's what he wanted anymore. He sat in the car in front the house; her car was gone. Should he stay and wait for her to get back? Or should he just go home and wait until she called him. He knew deep down inside that it was highly unlikely that she would call him willingly. Turning the car off, he got out and went up to the house, using his key to unlock the door he went inside and sat down on couch. He would just wait for her to get back; they needed to talk. He knew he was going to have to do a lot of apologizing for calling her a whore last night. He needed to talk to Jack too. If there was on thing he felt the worst about, was that his boy had heard him say those things to Emma. What kind of father was he?
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Emma had just dropped the kids off at her mom's house and was heading back home when she turned on the radio to try and drown out her thoughts. What was she thinking when she told her mom that she still loved Phil? He did make her promise to love him forever and a day; but so many things had changed since that day. She wasn't the same person, she wanted more out of life. Then there was that forever nagging feeling of betraying him. She 's wished a million times that she had told Scott no, this wasn't right and told him to leave. Instead she did the one thing that she promised Punk she would only do with him—she created a life with Scott. An innocent baby that, until last night, he had no idea wasn't his and Emma's. He really did adore that little girl; he was wrapped around her little finger.
But how did she feel about him? If she begged for his forgiveness, and actually got it, would she be willing to fall back into the same routine with him? Would she be all right with him gone days at a time? Would she be all right with staying home with the kids while he was off seeing the world, living his dream? Would she be able to resist the temptation that Scott had presented to her before?
Would he even take her back? She did the ultimate wrong. She broke his trust. She wouldn't blame him if he never wanted to talk to her again and went to court tomorrow morning to try and push the papers through the system faster. Where would that leave her?
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Phil must have sat on the couch for almost and hour before he finally heard her car pull up into the driveway. He braced himself for her to start screaming at him when she unlocked the door and found it unlocked and him sitting on the couch waiting for her.
She opened the door and his breath caught; she looked like hell. It didn't look like she had been to bed yet. Maybe she was feeling as bad he was right now. Her normally perfectly made up face didn't have any make-up on; her beautiful brown hair looked limp and was pulled up into a hasty ponytail. She had a pair of old blue jeans on and one of his old t-shirts. He wasn't sure if her wearing his shirt was a good thing or not.
"Hey," she whispered as she came into the room, set her purse and car keys down on the buffet and sat down in a recliner. "When did you get here," she asked quietly as she refused to meet his eyes, instead finding her hands extremely interesting at the moment.
"About an hour ago," he said quietly as he refused to look at her as well. Why did they keep doing this to themselves, he found himself wondering. Why couldn't they both just accept the fact that it's not working between them and that they should just give up. Because it hasn't been forever and a day he reminded himself. "Where's the kids?"
"I took them to my mom's. Jack didn't want to be here right now, he's um...having a hard time dealing with what happened last night outside."
"I feel like shit knowing that he saw all of that, Em. I really do. I had no idea that he had heard us and had seen everything. The kid probably hates me," Punk said sullenly.
"He doesn't hate you; he could never hate his dad..." Emma said quietly.
"Do you hate me?" he asked as he finally looked up at her.
"No. Do you hate me? I wouldn't blame you if you did, Punk, I really don't. This is why I wanted a divorce, because the guilt finally got to me...I'm so sorry..." she whispered as she wiped the tears from her eyes.
"Emmy...We promised each other forever, and a day and forever isn't over yet. I just need to know why. Why did you do it? And with Scott, my best friend, of all people? What was he giving you that I wasn't? Please tell me everything. From the beginning. I need to know what he could give you that I couldn't. I need to know why you turned away from me like you did. It doesn't matter right now if we're going to get back together or not; I just need to know for my own sanity, what the hell happened between you and Scott."
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Emma had dropped her kids off at her mom's for the weekend. It was Friday night, and it had been a long week. This mama needed a break. Phil was on the road. Again. She always supported his dream of being a pro, never tried to discourage him from going after the big times, but since he hit it big, the nights have been lonely without him. He didn't approve of drinking, but right now, she didn't care. She had stopped at the liquor store after she dropped Jack and Josh off and picked up a bottle of wine for herself. She had intended to drink it all by herself while she watched sappy movies. She was craving some alone time; taking care of two active little boys by herself could really wear a person down.
That was why when the doorbell rang at 11:30 that night, she was a little peeved. Who the hell would be coming over this late. Checking the peephole first before she opened the door, she sighed when she saw that it was Punk's best friend Scott. What the hell did he want, she wondered to herself as she opened the door and he came in.
"Punk's on the road," she mumbled as she sat down on the couch and reached for her glass of wine. She had had four glasses already and she was feeling more than a little woozy.
"I know. He asked me to come over and check on you while he was on tour. So here, I am. Checking on you. Are you broken or anything?" he asked with a grin.
Forgetting that she usually despised Scott, she found herself giggling at his lame joke. "Well, kind of. I'm a little lonely without Punk in my bed at night, but I suppose I'll just have to fly solo until he gets back; if you catch my drift." she giggled with a wink.
"Lonely, huh?" he said as he moved off of the chair and sat down next to her on the couch. "Tell me, Emma. What do you miss most about your husband when he's on the road?" he asked quietly as he moved a lock of dark hair off of her shoulder.
"His touch," she whispered. "I crave him; I can't get enough of him. We've been together for almost seven years and I still can't get enough of him. Does that sound stupid? Because, right now, it sounded stupid to me," she giggled as she took another drink.
"Shit, woman. How much of that have you had?" he asked as he glanced at the almost empty bottle on the coffee table.
"Enough to make you look attractive," she spat at him and rolled her eyes. She was trying to remember why he was here in the first place.
"You think I'm attractive?" Scott asked with amusement. He didn't drink, but he sometimes found drunk people amusing. It was a Friday night and he was bored; he knew he should just head home now that he checked on her like he promised Punk he would, but there was something...sexy about the way she was acting when she had had a little bit too much to drink.
"Sure. Why the hell not?" she mumbled as she finished the rest of her wine. She set the glass down and turned to look at Scott. "Why are you here again?"
"Punk asked me to stop over to make sure you were doing all right. He said when he talked to you earlier, you sounded a little down in the dumps."
"You would be too if you spent all day with two little boys who are hell bent on destroying everything."
"They can't be that bad..."
Emma chuckled, "Oh, Scott. If you only knew..."
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"So that's how it started? He came over to check up on you like I asked and then you two started humping?" Phil asked with his hazel eyes starting to flare up with anger.
"No. We were only talking. I didn't know anything was going to happen. Obviously I had had too much-"
"And that's why you shouldn't drink, Em. That shit clouds your judgment. Keep talking."
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"If I only knew what, Emma?" Scott persisted. He was intrigued with the way she was actually being so candid with him tonight. It was interesting.
"My day is spent driving those boys around and picking up their messes. I wait by the phone every night for my husband to call, just so I can talk to him for maybe five minutes. Then I go to bed alone. Then the next day I get up and do it all over again until Punk gets to come home for two or three days, then he's gone again. It's a vicious cycle that never stops."
"Ah. Poor Emma. All alone at night with no big strong man to cuddle with. Poor thing," Scott chuckled.
Emma rolled her eyes. "Jerk," she muttered.
"Hey, now. What's with you? Wait, I get it. Is this little attitude of yours tonight what Punk was talking about when he said that you were feisty?"
"He said I was feisty?"
"Oh yeah. He said you were a wild woman some nights. I gotta admit, some of the stories I hear about you from Punk make me a little jealous."
"What? What kind of stories is he telling you?"
"Ah, not much."
She moved closer to Scott. "Tell me what he's been saying?"
"I shouldn't..."
She moved even closer to him; their knees were touching. "Tell me."
"You really want to know?"
She giggled. "Yes! I really want to know."
He reached out and brushed some hair out of her face. "He said that you were a firecracker in bed and that you really knew how to give head."
"Are you fucking serious?"
"Yep, that's exactly what he said," Scott said as he held back a chuckle. Punk had never told him anything about him and Emma; she was his and only his, he didn't feel the need to share their secrets even with his best friend.
"Liar."
"Not lying. I was kinda jealous when he said that. I've never had a firecracker in my bed before; seems kind of dangerous," he said softly as he brushed that burdensome piece of hair out of her eyes again.
"Do you want one?"
"Want what?"
"A firecracker," she whispered as she bit her bottom lip.
"More than anything," he whispered back as he moved his face closer to hers. "How lonely are you without him, Emma?"
"Very."
"I see. Maybe I can do something to help..." he trailed off as his lips met hers.
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"Stop. Stop. Stop. I don't know if I can hear anymore of this, Emmy. I really don't," Punk said as he jumped up from the couch and started pacing around the room. "Tell me you didn't sleep with him that night."
"I didn't sleep with him that night."
"When did you sleep with him?"
Emma bit her bottom lip; she didn't want to tell him. If he was upset now, he was going to be even more upset when he found out the date that Jenna was conceived.