Previous Disclaimers Apply
Chapter 38
About an hour later, Emma was upstairs in her room reading when Mel Boudreaux arrived at the farmhouse.
"Good afternoon, ladies. Natalia, I heard you were in the hospital, is everything OK?" Asked the attorney.
"I'm fine. Just a little fainting spell." Replied Natalia.
"That's good. So Olivia, what's this situation you called me about?"
"Take a seat, Mel. I'll be right back." Said Olivia.
Mel joined Natalia on the sofa. Olivia returned with two mugs of steaming hot coffee and one mug that was steeping with Natalia's favorite hot tea. The ladies then filled in Mel on Natalia's dead husband actually being not so dead. A little while later, Mel left. She needed to do some research on case law to determine the best course of action to remedy Natalia's marriage…or marriages.
For the rest of the afternoon, Olivia did her best to keep her wife's mind off of Nicky and what that meant for the legality of their marriage. Emma spent most of the afternoon in her room, Rafe had yet to return home from class. Natalia was dozing on the sofa and Olivia was upstairs gathering dirty clothes to do laundry when the door bell rang.
"Just a minute!" Called out Natalia.
It took a few seconds for Natalia to get up from the sofa and make her way to the door. She was very surprised to find Nicky on the other side. Natalia sighed as soon as she saw who was on the other side.
"Nicky, what do you want?" Asked Natalia, not really wanting to deal with Nicky today.
"To talk, Natalia. I need to understand."
"Understand what?"
"I've been asking around."
"Asking what?"
"About you, Olivia mostly. No one will talk. I have to understand this and right now, I just can't."
Natalia smiled on the inside. One thing she found out very quickly about Springfield, rather its citizens, they are very protective of their own.
"Are you going to remain calm and not lash out? If not, I have no problems calling the sheriff right now!"
"No, I won't cause any trouble and I promise, the moment you ask me to leave, I'm gone." Stated Nicky.
"OK. Come in."
Natalia led him inside and he took a seat in the wicker chair adjacent to the sofa. Natalia walked to the stairs and called for her wife.
"Olivia? Honey? Can you come downstairs. We have company."
While waiting at the bottom of the steps, Natalia, pulled her cell phone out and quickly sent her wife a text. She wanted to warn Olivia who their visitor was.
"OK, be right there." Replied Olivia.
Olivia had called back to her wife and just as she was picking up the laundry basket, she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. She fished her phone from her pocket and frowned upon reading the text from her wife. She replied with a quick, "K. Love u!" and stuffed it back in her pocket. She grabbed the basket of dirty clothes and headed down stairs. As Olivia descended the stairs she saw Nicky sitting in the wicker chair and her wife waiting at the bottom of the stairs.
"Hey you." Said Olivia purposing stealing a quick kiss from her wife.
Natalia was more than happy to apply.
"Let me put these in the laundry room. I'll be right back."
Natalia followed her wife to the point where she turned and took a seat on the sofa, opposite the end where Nicky was sitting. When Olivia returned to the living room she moved in front of her wife to sit between Nicky and what was hers.
"So to what do we owe this visit?" Asked Olivia.
"He says he's here to talk, to understand. Apparently, he's been asking around town about us, about you and no one is talking." Interjected Natalia before Nicky could speak.
That shocked him. Natalia was never one to jump right in, he always took the lead. The more he got to know this Natalia, the more he was realizing his Natalia was gone.
Knowing that this man was digging into their lives was starting to piss Olivia off. She was thankful that the normal gossip fodder was nonexistent. She knew more than likely that was because of three reasons: (1) people have learned not to cross one Olivia Spencer-Rivera, (2) people love Emma and know not to get on Phillip Spaulding's bad side and (3) everybody loves Natalia, the woman who tamed Olivia 'Freakin' Spencer, nay Spencer-Rivera.
"So, talk!" Exclaimed Olivia.
"I just don't understand. I know that you have a daughter with my brother, but he says you were never in a relationship. Rumor is that you weren't always a nice person and I can't see my wife with someone like that."
"First off, Nicky, I don't appreciate you going behind our backs asking personal questions. You know how much I hate gossip…" Started Natalia.
"All you had to do was ask. I would have gladly told you about my daughters." Added Olivia.
"Wait, daughters, plural? You have more than one child?" Interrupted Nicky.
"Yes. I'm sorry, but I won't go into details other than to say I had my oldest daughter Ava young when I was 16. I never considered having more children until I fell in love with Maggie. We decided to have a child and Phillip who is one of my oldest and dearest friends offered to be the donor. The plan was that he would not be involved with the child's life; but Maggie was killed in an car accident when Emma was a few months old. Then not too long after that, I became sick. So sick that I needed a heart transplant. I wasn't sure if I was going to make it until a heart was found and I didn't want to leave Ava having to raise her little sister alone. So Phillip and I talked and we decided that he would be a fulltime father to Emma. Since then, my focus had been my girls and my business, but then one day, literally, Natalia came crashing into my life. Aside from Rafe's time in the hospital and missing in action we've been blissfully happy and no one will take that away from us. No one! That's all the explanation you will be getting from me on my life."
Nicky was taken aback. Rarely did anyone ever speak to him this way. Being a cop, he always made sure he was in control of the situation.
"I still don't understand what you did to my wife?! You made her gay!"
Olivia started to respond but Natalia stopped her.
"It's OK, honey. I can handle this. Nicky, I'm going to tell you what I told Rafe when he questioned my decision, my choice to be in a romantic relationship with a woman. I don't like labels, I never have and you know this; at least I hope you do. When I first met Olivia, we became friends, best friends. I will admit that when I realized my feelings for Olivia went beyond friendship and that I was attracted to her, it did scare me, a lot actually. But not because she was a woman, but because the feelings were so strong unlike anything I had ever felt before. It did make me question some of the decisions I had made in my life, but once I accepted how I felt about her, I knew that I would be spending the rest of my life with her. Does that make me gay? Maybe I don't know. If you have to label it then I'd prefer bi-sexual. However, Nicky, the label doesn't matter. What matters is what I feel in my heart and soul for Olivia. I love her, I'm in love with her. I am not confused about my feelings. I want to be with her in every possibly way, whether that's spending the day with our family, taking a drive in the country, cuddling on the sofa on a cold winter's day or making love in our bed. This is who I am Nicky. I'm no longer yours; I am no longer your wife."
Nicky stood up; he was starting to feel defeat, but he was not going to show it.
"I can't accept this Natalia. I don't think I ever will. And as for being my wife, well seeing as I am alive and we've never divorced you are legally still my wife and I am going to fight for what is mine." Said Nicky as he turned heading for the front door.
"Nicky!" Exclaimed Olivia getting his attention.
"You might want to think long and hard before going up against me. I have a lot of pull and friends in this town." Said Olivia.
"Well, you know what Mrs. Spencer, I'm a Spaulding and if I have to spend every last dime my father left me to fight this I will." Replied Nicky purposely leaving the Rivera part off of Olivia's name.
Olivia started laughing and this threw Nicky off. He thought for sure dangling the Spaulding name would put Olivia in her place. She'd know how much money was coming to him.
"Oh, yes, I do agree you have money coming to you…it's just a question of how quickly you'll get it. You don't know your brother. His kids and their happiness means everything to him. You in any way threaten his child's happiness, you'll find yourself not only back on that cold Colorado mountain, but probably under it! That I can guarantee. Please leave. You are no longer welcome in our home and you'll be hearing from our attorney." Said Olivia who was now at the door holding it open.
Nicky walked through the door and just as he turned around to get the last word in he was met with that front door slamming in his face. He was fuming. He drove back to town like a bat out of hell. He went to the Beacon, to his room and changed clothes before heading to the gym. There he spent the next hour pounding the bag in frustration.
"Olivia? This isn't the Nicky I know." Said Natalia trying not to sound scared.
"Honey, he's been gone for five years. He was ripped from his family, his life. That has to change a person. Don't you worry. I'm going to handle this. If our marriage is invalid, then worst case, you divorce Nicky and we get married again. Heck, that'll give us two anniversaries to celebrate." Said Olivia now next to her wife trying to calm her fears.
Olivia placed a chaste kiss to her wife's cheek and then kissed a path to her ear and down to the pulse point.
"That's another honeymoon for us to take. That's another opportunity for me to buy you something ridiculously expensive. It's another chance for me to spoil, pamper and worship you." Continued Olivia.
Though Olivia was trying to distract her wife, all she managed to do was work them both into an excited and wanton state.
"Honey, Emma's upstairs." Said Natalia.
Olivia collapse to the back of the sofa.
"Spoil sport." Whined Olivia.
"Tonight, I promise after the kids go to sleep."
"I'm holding you to that wife of mine." Said Olivia stealing one more kiss.
"So, you rest, me…laundry." Continued Olivia as she headed for the laundry room.
Little did both ladies know, young ears had been listening at the tops of the stairs only leaving when the yucky lovey dovey stuff started. Emma retreated to her room, she needed some time to plan and then make some phone calls.
About an hour later, Olivia was fixing dinner while Natalia was getting started on the baby book for Peanut when Emma came barreling down the steps.
"Emma, house rules, no running." Scolded Natalia.
"Sorry Ma. Ma, is it OK if Ava takes me out of pizza tonight?" Asked Emma.
"Well, let's ask your mom, OK?" Said Natalia setting the book aside and getting up from the sofa.
Emma gave her Ma a hand and tugged while Natalia used the arm rest to push herself the rest of the way up and they joined Olivia in the kitchen.
"Well, if it isn't two of my three favorite girls. It's still a little early for dinner; it's not quite ready yet."
"Mom, can I go have pizza with Ava tonight?"
"What? You don't want salmon over rice? You love my salmon." Said Olivia feigning hurt.
"No, not tonight."
"Hmm. Well, let me talk to your sister, OK."
"OK. I'll be in my room."
"And she's gone." Said Olivia.
"Any idea what that's about?" Asked Olivia.
"None, she just came downstairs and asked to have dinner with Ava."
"K. Can you watch this and I'll call her?"
The ladies traded places and Olivia called Ava. Ava said she had talked to Emma earlier and asked about pizza. Olivia gave the OK and Ava said she'd be along shortly to gather her sister up for an evening of sisterly bonding.
Olivia and Natalia said their goodbyes to their daughters and then decided to take advantage of a now empty house since Rafe was going to be out late studying with a friend.
Emma had one request before going to the pizza place and that was to stop and see her daddy. Once there, Emma and Phillip went into the study leaving Ava in the parlor. A few minutes later they returned with Emma announcing she was ready to leave. The girls were then on their way to their favorite pizza place.
"So are you going to tell me what the impromptu visit to your dad was about?" Asked Ava to her little sister.
"Do I have to tell?" Asked the little girl from the back seat.
"No, but we are sisters. I'm a good secret keeper if you don't want mom to know." Replied Ava.
Ava watched in the rearview mirror as her sister pondered trying to decide if she could trust her big sister.
"OK, but I don't want mom or ma to know."
"OK. I won't say anything." Replied Ava.
Emma spent the rest of the ride to the pizza place filling in Ava on her conversation with her daddy. Ava had to hand it to her sister; she definitely inherited their mother's scheming abilities. Soon they were at the pizza place and were seated off to one side as requested, giving them both a view of the big screen TV. While waiting on their pizza, Emma noticed someone entering the restaurant. She recognized him as the man who made her Ma get sick and have to the go the hospital. Ava saw Emma staring and followed her line of sight to see what her little sister was starting at; she too immediately recognized the man as Natalia supposed dead husband. Before she realized it Emma was out of the booth making her away to Nicky.
TBC…