Together Again

Chapter 4

Mike had dozed off holding Christine, but was thankfully awake early enough to run the errands he needed to. He was excited to be reunited with his daughter, even if it would be uncomfortable with Katie. Finally, he woke Christine up about four. She got ready to go, fixed them a quick snack and a sandwich for Hannah and they were off.

Mike's idea of fun would never be being surrounded by ten screaming teenage girls, but Christine led him into a gym and quickly enough, he was holding Hannah. She was ecstatic. Christine spoke with her coach to get Hannah a few minutes to eat her sandwich and visit with Mike. She was talkative, telling him all about her classes, the position she played on the team and a thousand other things. Christine mostly stayed quiet, letting Mike and Hannah get reacquainted. Finally, Hannah left to meet with her team and Mike groaned when they walked out on the court wearing very tight spandex shorts.

"Those shorts?" Mike groaned and Christine laughed.

"Don't worry. She hates them too. They create some body image issues. Me and some of the other moms are working on more appropriate uniforms." Christine explained.

"Good. They don't leave much to the imagination." Mike remarked before squeezing Christine's hand.

"I'm glad I'm off tonight. Gives us some time to catch up." Christine told him.

"Yeah. And time to mediate between Katie and I." Mike said.

"Not quite what I had in mind. Besides, you never know. Katie is unpredictable. She might be happy to have you back." Christine told him.

"You do remember that last fight, correct?" Mike said quietly.

"Yes, and you crossed a line, but you were reacting to her." Christine answered as Mike remembered the fight that occurred the nigh before he left for the Arctic.

"Katie, Dad is just wanting to spend some time with you guys since this cruise got pulled up so fast, so no; you can't go to Larissa's house. I'll call her mom and explain." Christine explained to their oldest daughter as Mike walked into the kitchen. Christine was fixing some cookies for Mike to take with him.

"Why should I be punished because he always chooses the stupid Navy over us." Katie whined. Normally, Mike would have just absorbed the complaint but he didn't like the tone she was taking with her mom.

"Watch the tone, young lady." Mike ordered. Katie made a face in response.

"This is so stupid. Your stupid, Mom's stupid for letting you string her along, and Hannah and Lucas is stupid for thinking your some sort of hero. I hate both of you." Katie said. Mike wasn't sure what he was thinking but he reached out and slapped her across the face, quite hard. Hard enough that his wedding band scratch across her cheek.

"MIKE!" Christine yelled.

Mike would always regret that with Katie. He should have just taken the high ground. At the time, he justified it because of how she was talking about her mom, but even that could have been handled differently. Mike was not a huge believer in corporal punishment where his kids were concerned. His sheer size would have made overpowering them, and potentially injuring them too easy, so slapping Katie was the only time he had laid anything but a gentle hand on his kids, and Katie had looked at him in shock and horror. He knew he had injured something more then just her face, and hadn't had time to fix it.

"She might be thrilled that you're back." Christine remarked.

"I'm not sure how she could be." Mike said quietly.

"Just give her a chance to respond. You never know. She's a tough nut, but deep down, she's missed you. And deep down, you've missed her too." Christine objected just as Hannah scored a point. She looked to Mike for approval and he cheered and clapped in response.

Hannah's team won and once she changed into a warm-up suit, Mike, Christine and Hannah left the gym and found a Chinese restaurant to eat at. The entire time, Christine had been texting someone and she finally handed her phone for Mike to look at. It was a text exchange between her and Katie.

Christine: I just wanted you to know that your dad is back. He found me this morning at work. I would appreciate you giving him a chance. I know he crossed a line, but so did you. He's missed you a lot and he regrets what happened that day.

Katie: Okay. How long is he back for?

Christine: Not sure. He'll be here at least over the weekend. Probably moving in with us.

Katie :Good. I have been kind of missing him.

Christine: Good. We'll see you in a bit. Do you want anything to eat? We are eating Chinese.

Katie: Maybe some sweet and sour chicken and rice? My normal stuff.

Christine: Alright. Drive safe. Love you.

All Mike could do was smile in response. It was more than he could hope

for. Christine told him what Katie normally ate, so he fixed her a to-go box of food. Once they were done, they headed back to the house, and Katie pulled in five minutes later. Mike met her at the door, and while she hugged him, he could feel the tension and fear.

"I won't ever hurt you again." Mike whispered in her ear.

"I would hope not." Katie answered. He knew he was going to have to prove himself and Katie was a tough judge.