Disclaimer: All the events and character description taken place in this story is COMPLETELY FICTION. No copyright infringement intended. All characters are copy written to their respective owners. No profit is being made from this story. It should be viewed only as entertainment.
Chapter Twenty-One
"See the little birdie out there? He's looking for some dinner." Kurt said in a whisper to his son as he held him in his muscular arms by the large living room window. Angle was shifting his weight back and forth from each foot in an attempt to keep his sick child soothed. He thought that pointing out the small bird would keep his baby's interest.
"Baa?" Andrew blurted out pointing one of his little fingers toward the window. Kurt had followed his wife's directions to a tee; giving his son a dose of medicine that he needed to keep the fever down.
"Open this pweaze." Aurora said to Kurt as she held up a pack of M&Ms she took out of the kitchen pantry.
"No sweetie, Mommy's on her way home with dinner. If you have a snack now, you won't want to eat. Go put the candy back." Angle explained smiling down at his step-daughter.
"But I want this." The three year old whined showing her stubbornness for sweets. She didn't comprehend what Kurt had told her about having to wait.
Before Angle was able to reply to her, Stephanie made her entrance through the garage door and walked from the laundry room to the kitchen. It was her mother's return that caused Aurora to drop the package of candy and run to her mommy.
"Hey sweetheart, what a nice greeting, do you want to help me by carrying a bag?" Stephanie asked with loving smile. She was looking down at her daughter who was hugging her legs. Steph allowed her daughter to take hold of the lightest bag of food so she could follow her with it into the kitchen.
The sound of Stephanie's voice caused Andrew's head to turn and look in her direction. His eyes widened and his mouth formed a wet smile; he knew his mother's voice.
"Maa!" Andy shrieked through his smile, leaning out toward Steph's direction.
"Yay, Mommy is home. Let's walk over to Mommy." Angle said to his son before he gently set the baby on his feet while still holding on to his little hands to make sure he was steady. With his daddy providing some support, Andy toddled quickly across the kitchen to his mother.
"Oh look at my big boy! Look at you walking with Daddy, come here!" Stephanie exclaimed as she knelt down with her arms out toward her approaching baby. When he reached her, she quickly lifted him up into her arms and planted a few kisses on his face.
"Mommy, candy in here?" Aurora asked as she peeked in the small bag Stephanie had given her to carry. Even with her mother's arrival, she had not forgotten about her desire for sweets.
"No honey, there's no candy in there. It's one of the bags of food I brought home for dinner. Are you hungry? Why don't you let Kurt sit you at the table and I'll bring you your food." Stephanie told her daughter before lovingly brushing her daughter's hair away from her little face with her free hand.
"Come here little princess, time to take your place on your throne. How about you fly there? Woosh!" Kurt said making the sound effect. His voice filled with playfulness as he lifted Aurora off the ground. He held her up in the air with both arms to simulate her flying as he ran with her across the kitchen. This caused Aurora to let out a belly laugh that her little half brother attempted to mimic from where he sat on his mother's left hip.
A hearty laugh came from Stephanie while she watched her husband interacting with her daughter. She always loved watching how great Kurt was with Aurora. It always amazed her how sweet and loving he could be to her when she was not his child. Even before Steph became romantically involved with Angle, he was always friendly to Aurora. Stephanie felt so lucky to have a husband who not only loved her but also her child from her first marriage. Despite Angle's strong dislike for Aurora's father, he did not allow that to influence the way he treated her.
"I'm so relieved that he is feeling better. That medicine really did the trick." Steph commented as she spoon fed Andrew baby food from where he sat in his high chair next to her.
The family was seated at the table eating their take-out food. Stephanie was sitting in between her two children while Kurt was on the other side of the high chair, at the head of the table. Angle gave his wife a smile before leaning back in his chair and taking a sip of his diet coke.
"Where's my toy?" Aurora asked looking up from her food and to her mother and then stepfather.
"What toy, sweetie?" Steph asked turning her attention away from feeding her youngest.
"It's only McDonalds that comes with toys, little girl." Kurt told the three year old. Unlike his wife, he knew what the youngster was asking about. Vince had taken Aurora to McDonalds on occasion and as a result, many cheaply made happy meal toys were scattered around the house which Steph hated.
"We don't eat McDonalds. It's not good for you and I told your Grandpa not to take you there anymore. Not that he listens…" Steph muttered with an eye roll before she went back to spooning baby food into Andy's mouth.
"I like Donalds…I like Donald duck too, and Mickey Mouse, and Pluto." Aurora commented aloud in between bites of food. She wasn't speaking to anyone in particular but simply talking to herself.
"Guess who I got a call from today." Kurt said aloud to his wife.
Steph's eyes shifted to focus on her husband. Her thoughts suddenly went to the phone call she received at work. She knew better than to bring up the call from Levesque to her husband at the dinner table. Paul had already come up in conversation earlier in the day and nothing good came of it. She would wait to tell him about her plans for Sunday.
"Who?" Steph asked back showing her curiosity as to who called her husband that was worth mentioning at dinner.
"Brock Lesnar." Kurt replied with a smile as he lean forward to take a bite of his food.
Stephanie gave her husband a blank look before shrugging her shoulders. She hoped he wasn't expecting her to be happy or even mildly interested about Lesnar's phone call. This was a guy who had made derogatory comments about her and Paul while they were still married. Brock had commented to the effect that if it wasn't Paul who was having sex with her, it would be another WWE wrestler; all this of course after he ditched the McMahons' company for a long shot career in the NFL. Now Brock Lesnar was a fighter in the UFC which ultimately made him a bad influence for her husband, Kurt. That was all Kurt needed; someone feeding into his MMA aspirations.
"What did he want?" Steph asked nonchalantly while she leaned over the high chair to wipe baby food from Andrew's face with a napkin.
"He's got a fight in New York and wanted to hang out today. Rena and the baby are going to be with him in New York this weekend. I told him that we would have them over for dinner. What day did you want to have them over?"
"So you just invited them without talking to me first?" Stephanie asked with a hint of attitude as she threw the napkin on the table.
"I extended the invitation but I told him that I needed to check with you about the specific day. I didn't think it would be a big deal. I thought you liked Rena."
"I do like Rena. I'm not a big fan of Brock though. You know the comments he made about me a few years ago."
"That was when you were with Paul. You're now my wife. Brock respects me and so he respects you now. Besides, you know I would never let him disrespect you. I promise you, he won't be a problem. I think his son, Turk, is Andrew's age. I'm sure you and Rena will have a lot in common to talk about." Angle told his wife. He was trying to smooth things over so that Steph would see that having the Lesnars over for dinner would be a pleasant experience.
"Well that shows how shallow he is. What does who I am married to have to do with how he behaves toward me?"
"Babe, he's not the only one that has no respect for Levesque. Some of the boys called him the Kevin Federline of WWE when he was with you. If it wasn't for you, he wouldn't have stayed in the main event. I'm not like that. I am a real wrestling champion. I'm a shooter. None of my wrestling accolades have to do with us being together. We are both two unstoppable forces in this business in our own right." Kurt explained.
"Who I choose to be with has nothing to do with wrestling ability." Steph pointed out making her point clear as she looked directly at her husband.
"I know honey, but that's how people perceive it. Now which day do you want them over here?" Angle asked getting up from where he sat.
"Saturday would be better. I have something planned for Sunday." Stephanie replied after a brief pause and an exhale.
"What are you doing on Sunday?" Angle asked narrowing his eyes. This was the first he had heard that his wife had something going on this weekend. He was curious as to what it was.
"We'll talk about it later. It's not that important, it's just that this isn't the time or place to discuss it."
Kurt's eyebrows went up and then he flashed a smirk. To him, it sounded like Stephanie had some ideas of a sexual nature planned for Sunday that she couldn't discuss in front of Aurora. Angle wondered if what she had planned could even come close to topping their anniversary night in New York they just had.
"Will you finish up feeding the baby then clean up from dinner? It's getting late and I need to give Aurora a bath and get her ready for bed."
"Yeah sure, babe, is Andrew going to need another dose of medicine before bedtime?" Angle asked before Steph left the room with Aurora.
"No, you gave him the dose while I was at work, right? He's fine for the night."
After a quick bath, Stephanie helped Aurora into her pretty pink pajamas and tucked her into her bed with her stuffed puppy dog and teddy bear by her side. Steph was sitting on the edge of the bed so that she could give her daughter all of the goodnight hugs and kisses she wanted before bedtime.
"Daddy hug me goodnight-night too?" Aurora asked turning her head toward the doorway to her room.
"Kurt is cleaning up from dinner and then putting your baby brother to bed. But speaking of your real daddy, Aurora, would you like to visit with him on Sunday? I know that he loves and misses you very much.
"Daddy come upstairs and visit with brother?" Aurora asked tilting her head to the side as she gave her mother a puzzled look.
"I'm trying to figure out a way of explaining this to you so that you understand…" Steph said aloud while she racked her brain for a way of explaining to her daughter about who her real father was.
"Aurora, your little brother, Andrew, was a present to Mommy from Kurt. He is Andrew's Daddy. You were a present to me from Paul. Paul is your daddy. Do you understand what I'm saying?" Steph asked looking back at her daughter waiting and hoping that her young mind could grasp the analogy she had given her.
"Yeah…I want a present, Mommy. Can I have a present?" The three year old asked; her voice full of excitement as she sat up in bed.
Stephanie exhaled and gave her daughter a loving smile. It wasn't her little girl's fault if she could not comprehend the complexity of her living arrangements. Divorce definitely complicated things. At least Aurora was lucky enough to have more than one man who wanted to be a father figure in her life.
"Here's your present, one huge hug and a whole bunch of kisses!" Stephanie said back with enthusiasm and she leaned over and showered her child with affection. "Good night sweetheart, I love you."
"Night, night Mommy." Aurora answered back before rolling over on her side and closing her eyes before Steph turned the light off in her room and exited.
With Aurora tucked in her bed for the night and Kurt taking care of the baby, Stephanie decided that she needed a little quiet time for herself with a nice hot bath. The master bathroom provided her with the perfect relaxing atmosphere. She dimmed the lights and lit a few scented candles that were sitting around the large Jacuzzi tub. She swept her hair up in a loose up do to keep her hair from falling into the water as she soaked in the hot water.
"Hey babe, having some quiet time?" Angle asked in a quiet voice as he entered their master bathroom just after putting Andrew down for the night.
"Yes, it feels so nice to relax. I feel like I've been on the go nonstop today." Steph muttered with her eyes closed.
Kurt crept over to the edge of the bath tub. Without saying anything, he leaned over and kissed his wife's lips already parted lips. She let out a sigh and enjoyed the passionate kiss that lasted for a brief moment before he spoke again in a whisper.
"Do you want me to get in? Or do you want to save that for Sunday?" Angle asked. He was referencing what he believed to be the day of the weekend Stephanie had set aside just for them to fool around.
"I don't feel like to tonight, honey. I just want to soak in the tub and then go to bed."
Angle narrowed his eyes. He looked surprised by his wife's decision to reject his invitation of intimacy. That wasn't her normal response. Since they had become romantically involved over a year ago, she had always had a desire for regular intimacy. Was there something wrong? Did it have anything to do with their argument over Levesque earlier in the day or what he said about him at the dinner table?
"Are you still upset with me about what I said about Paul or our argument about him earlier today?" He asked wanting an honest answer from his spouse. The question caused Stephanie to open her eyes and sit up in the tub.
"No, I'm just so tired. Between Andrew being sick and having to take him to the doctors and then dealing with things at the office, I could fall asleep right now. Just thinking about how we'll have to pack up and take the kids to RAW on Monday." Steph said listing off all the stressors that she was trying to let go by relaxing in the hot bath.
"Well I know I brought up the idea of us getting help for the kids before. A nanny could really help us out. You don't have to do everything yourself. I mean if it's stressing you out." Kurt pointed out as he began to undress, putting his clothing in the nearby hamper.
"I don't want some stranger taking care of my children. I'm their mother, it's my job to put them first. I have to talk to Dad, because I'm seriously thinking about staying home with the kids instead of being at every RAW."
"You really want to stay home and just work at the office? I have a hard time believing that you'll be able to stay at home. You love traveling with the show." Angle replied, reminding his wife of her tendency to become 'stir-crazy' as she had once told him about staying in one place too long.
"There has to be a happy medium. I'll talk with Dad. I'm sure we can figure out something. My children come first, bottom line." Steph answered back leaning back again to resume relaxing position.
"Do whatever you want, baby. I just want you to be happy, you and the kids…" Kurt muttered before he began brushing his teeth.
The next morning brought Andrew's fever back with a vengeance. Steph knew that his fever was returning because he needed a dose of the antibiotic. Before she could give him the medicine, he needed a diaper change.
"What's wrong with Daddy's little buddy?" Kurt asked walking into the nursery with a towel wrapped around his waist. He had just gotten out of the shower and could hear his son crying hard from the master bedroom.
"His fever came back. He needs a dose of medicine." Stephanie explained as she gave her son a quick gentle rub on his bare tummy in an attempt to sooth him as she finished up putting a new diaper on him.
"Can I do something to help?" Angle asked showing that he was a bit uneasy with his child crying with such intensity. He brought his hand to Andy's head and stroked his soft hair as the baby brought his little hands to his face and rubbed it.
"Why don't you go get dressed? I've got the kids. Just hurry up and come downstairs, I have to get a shower too. I want the house to be spotless when the Lesnars show up."
Angle did as his wife told him while Stephanie took her fussy baby downstairs and into the kitchen. Aurora was busy playing with her stuffed animals while watching Saturday morning cartoons. She didn't even notice that her mother was now downstairs.
A dose of medicine followed by his pacifier being popped into his mouth, caused Andrew's crying to cease. Steph went to put the baby down on the floor but he let out a whine the moment his feet touched the ground. She lifted her son back up into her arms so that he would stay soothed. With her free hand, Stephanie grabbed hold of the cordless phone and quickly dialed numbers into the keypad before she brought it to her ear.
"Hey Steph, I'm glad you didn't forget to call me. Am I going to see you and Aurora today?" Paul asked the moment he answered the phone. It was obvious that he had seen on the caller id that it was his ex-wife who was calling him. He was genuinely overjoyed to hear from her first thing in the morning.
"Hi Paul, well actually it's going to have to be Sunday at my parents' house. Kurt and I are entertaining guests at the house today."
"Who are you having over? I mean, who could possibly be more important than me? What, is one of Angle's twenty brothers coming over? They all look like." Paul replied with a chuckle.
"No, Brock and Rena Lesnar are in town and Kurt and I invited them to dinner." Steph heard herself tell him before she even thought about whether or not she wanted to give him all the details of her day. Why was it any of his business to know who her and Kurt were having over?
"Oh, one of Angle's butt buddies, how nice."
"I'm going to hang up if this is all this conversation is going to be." Stephanie threatened, rolling her eyes in response to how childish her ex-husband was being.
"I'm just kidding around. So does Angle know that we're spending the day together with Aurora tomorrow? I don't want him horning in on our time. The idea is for it to be just you and me with our daughter."
"I haven't had a chance to talk to him about it yet. I'm sure he will be fine with it though since it's for Aurora." Steph explained.
"Why haven't you told him? Maybe you know that tomorrow's visit is just important for us as it is for Aurora." Levesque pointed out.
"Stephy, do you know where my white collared shirt is? Could it be in the laundry room?" Angle called out as she walked into the kitchen in a pair of jeans without a shirt. It was then he saw that his wife was on the phone. He fell silent, allowing her to finish speaking to whoever was on the phone. He had no clue that it was Paul.
"Well I have to go, I'll tell Aurora that you send your love. Okay, goodbye." Steph quickly said to end the phone call.
"Who was that, babe?" Kurt asked narrowing his eyes slightly to show his curiosity. He found it a little strange that his wife ended the phone call the moment he entered the room.
"Oh, it was just Paul…" Steph replied nonchalantly before she set the phone down in its charger.
"What did he want?" Angle asked following up with another question not even a second after his wife revealed to him that it was her ex-husband that was on the phone.
Stephanie's eyes quickly shifted to the left for a brief second as she thought about what would be the best response to his question. Was this the best time to tell him about tomorrow's visitation? Telling him about it now would only lead to more questioning on his part. She had so much to do before the Lesnars arrival. She really didn't have time to deal with more drama. She would tell her husband after their day of entertaining their guests was over.
"Nothing important, he was asking about the next time he could see Aurora. Your shirt is hanging in the hallway closet. I had it dry cleaned and just stuck it there when it was dropped off." Stephanie replied, her eyes focused back on her husband. She was hoping her disclosure of the location of his dress shirt would make him lose interest in the phone call.
"Okay, thanks babe…" He muttered staring right back into his wife's eyes.
He looked like he was deep in thought; processing what Steph had just told him. Angle's blue eyes then shifted over to the cordless phone that Steph had returned to its cradle. He held his breath for a moment, as if he was about to say something, but he didn't. Instead, he left the kitchen to grab his shirt from the hall closet.