It was a dream just like many others before, but it was different.
Diana had fallen asleep on the couch, Daniel asleep on her chest, Jordan wide-awake in front of the TV while everyone else was at school. Jerry Springer was on in Italian.
The dream was nothing more then a wish.
Images of passion filled the dream.
It had started out quietly as always with the children down the hall, playfully. First he would wake her with soft kisses along her neck, her shoulder, and back. Until she woke up.
Until she rolled over and playfully smacked him, hissing at him to stop and go to sleep.
Quickly he would kiss her….change her mind.
Until she gave in and whispered that they had to be quiet, they couldn't make too much noise, the kids were down the hall.
When he began to take her nightshirt off she quieted down. And began to take his pajamas off as well. Running her hands over his warm alive skin.
Placing kisses on his soft skin.
She placed her hands on his waist as he climbed on top of her. She ran her hands up and over his chest. It seemed slightly thinner, not something the casual person would notice. He was taller too.
She looked up into Sanderson's face.
It was not repulsion or guilt that crossed her mind, nothing even close.
She reached up and ran her hand across his face. Looking up in his blue eyes she leaned up and kissed him.
Slowly.
Feeling his body against her own, something that hadn't been for some time. As he returned her kiss. Slowly pushing her back down into the bed, she woke up.
Diana sat up as the front door slammed.
She peered over the back of the couch as Matt Eversman walked in with the mail. When he saw her he smiled, "Afternoon."
Diana looked at her watch, 3:25.
With a quick look at the sleeping baby in the playpen, Diana stood up. "Whatever….where'd Jamie go?"
Eversman smiled and sorted through the mail, "She went to pick up the kids at the bus stop. Sanderson was stopping at the food store on his way home."
Diana nodded, she walked over to Jordan and picked up a mini flashlight from the tray table at his side. Where a drink, a box of crackers, and assorted medical toys that Diana had stolen from the hospital were. His homework neatly piled on the floor. Untouched.
She flicked the light on and said, "Look up."
He did.
She shone the light in his eyes, one, then the other. Then asked, "Does anything hurt?"
"Nope," he replied, looking back at the TV.
Diana looked over the bruise.
She then asked, "When did you take your last pill?"
Jordan handed her a pad of paper, where he kept track of when he took his pills, when he felt dizzy, when his head hurt, when he went to the bathroom, and any phone calls he took.
Eversman came to a Cosmo and dropped the rest of the mail on the hall table.
Diana glanced up and sighed, "That's from the previous tenants."
"Uh-huh," he answered.
He leaned against the wall and flipped to page 45, how to please your man.
Diana looked over the paper Jordan had kept. She walked to Eversman and picked up the mail. Muttering as she sorted through it, "Bill, bill, junk, junk, card, ooo catalogue, bill, Jordan your Nickelodeon Magazine is here, so is your fathers Mad Magazine, junk, Christmas card."
Diana threw Jordan his magazine and missed his hand by inches.
"Dammit," he swore.
Diana didn't bother to correct him.
"Holy hell," Eversman muttered.
Diana glanced up as she put the mail back, he pointed to a sentence in the magazine. She nodded, "It's lots of fun. I did it with Hoot all the time."
Eversman was surprised, Jordan asked, "Did what?"
Guiltily he closed the magazine, Diana told Jordan, "Played Golf."
Jordan knew she was lying, "Nu-uh! Uncle Hoot hated golf, he said it was for old men in bad pants."
Diana looked to Jordan and told him, "Did it then."
"Eww," Jordan cried, his face utterly disgusted. "Diana," Eversman hissed.
She rolled her eyes and rubbed the back of her neck.
"Oh, some Doctor in a Benz is outside for you."
Diana cocked a eyebrow, "Please tell me he doesn't look like a poster-boy for GQ." Eversman nodded, "Why?"
She ran a hand through her hair.
Then said, "If I am not back in five minutes, call me and tell me my father is on the phone."
Eversman was confused, then said, "Ok."
In a pair of jeans and a simple oversized Army hoodie, Diana walked to the front door. Barefooted she walked outside and closed the front door. Sure enough a black Mercedes was parked in front of the house.
Dr. Chris Dockery was seated in the drivers seat.
Annoyed, Diana walked across the snowy yard to the car.
Arms crossed she motioned for him to roll down the window. He climbed out of the car and looked at her bare feet, "Di…I came to see if the boy was ok?"
She narrowed her eyes, "Jordan?"
"Yeah. Jordan. How is he?"
Diana pursed her lips, "Ok. The Meds are working. He kept everything down and has been normal in the bathroom. Good yellow urine and he has regular stool. His eyes are just a little dilated, but that's just from the Meds."
"Wonderful."
"How did you know where I live?"
He smiled, when he saw she didn't return it he told her, "I looked at your file."
"My personnel file?"
Unsure if she was angry or not, he nodded, "I just wanted to make sure he was ok."
"Well Jordan is inside, Doc." She glanced up as Sanderson's beaten up Jeep came down the street and pulled into the drive, beside the pristine Mercedes.
Sanderson climbed out, less then pleased at the sight of Chris.
He grabbed a bag from the back.
Diana brushed past Chris and walked to the Jeep, she walked along the side of the Jeep to where Sanderson was, he whispered, "Tell me he's leaving."
Surprised at the annoyance in his voice, Diana told him, "Make him go away."
Sanderson looked at her. Surprised at her bluntness. "You don't like handsome Doctor man?"
Diana narrowed her eyes and grabbed the bags from him, "Eat me." She then looked to Chris, "This is Jordan's father. Remember him? He has a few questions for you."
She quickly pushed past Sanderson as he grabbed for her, only getting her jeans
just as Eversman hung out the front door, "Diana, your dad is on the phone."
With a smile she waved to Chris, "See you Monday."
Sanderson closed the Jeeps door, then asked the Doctor, "How long will Jordan have to take the medicine?"
Chris looked to Sanderson, surprised, as if he hadn't noticed him before. He quickly answered, "Until the prescription wears out. You live here too?"
Sanderson put his keys in his pocket.
Shoving his hands in them as well, "Yeah. With all our children."
Chris stared at him, "Our? I thought she was widowed?"
"She is."
Confused, Chris then asked, "Is she single?"
"Why? A rich handsome man like you should have a girlfriend. Or more."
Chris narrowed his eyes, he then asked, "Is there anything between you and Diana that I need to know about? Before I ask her out?"
"Yeah. I promised her husband I would look after her and the kids."
Chris nodded, "Well that's noble of you. You keep looking."
For just a moment Sanderson remained calm, collected.
Then he punched Chris right in the face.