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 Fifty-One
The master bathroom was dark, except for the tranquil illumination of a few scented candles that lined the large corner bathtub. Stephanie's left palm pierced through the stream of water running into her bath so that she was able to gauge its temperature while her right hand controlled the knobs on either side of the faucet. Satisfied with the degree of warmth, she emptied two caps full of aroma bubble bath. With both hands, she gathered up her long hair, twisting it into a neat bun on top of her head, and held it in a place with a clip.
At eight o'clock in the evening, it was her first opportunity to have some quiet time just by herself. She had left her father's party not long after her husband had earlier in the day. There was no way she could stay and celebrate the day of her father's birth after how he had went behind her back and got in the middle of her problems with Kurt.
Her mother had been understanding about her premature departure. Linda too had been blindsided by the fact that Stephanie had not even been consulted about Angle staying at the McMahon estate. While Mrs. McMahon would have loved Steph and the children to be a part of the family festivities, she knew how awkward it would be for her daughter after how Vince had behaved.
Aurora was the one who was upset by the course of actions of the day. She didn't understand why everyone was so upset, why Kurt had to leave abruptly, and then why her, Mommy, and Andrew had to then leave the party. The only excuse that seemed to be appropriate was that Mommy wasn't feeling well. This, after all, wasn't a lie. There had been an unrelenting tight knot in the pit of Stephanie's stomach ever since the events of the party. She couldn't let it bother her though. Steph had to keep on a happy face for her children. The rest of the afternoon had been filled with taking care of their needs. Now, finally with both the three and one year old fast asleep, she could remove that tiresome mask of happy stability, and let her feelings of frustration and sadness spill out.
After she disrobed, Stephanie gingerly stepped into the tub. She allowed her sensitive skin to become accustomed to the hot bath, while slowly sitting down into the water. Steph sighed as her lower body disappeared beneath the bubbles. As she felt the tears begin to form in her eyes, she closed them, and then breathed in deep. The scent of lavender provided a comforting atmosphere. She let out a soft whimper of sadness, bringing both her hands to her stomach and abdomen where her feeling of nausea, and her tiny unborn child resided. She hoped to God that this drama, that first her husband and now her father, wasn't going to cause a relapse of constant vomiting. That was the last thing she needed. Did her husband and father even stop to think about that? Did they think of how their behavior would affect her in her delicate state, which Kurt himself had put her in to begin with? No, they weren't thinking about her unborn baby at all, because they were too busy thinking about themselves.
"It will be okay..." She assured herself in a whisper.
Steph was going to get through it; with or without the support of her husband and father. She was a great mother and a productive businesswoman. All she needed to do was concentrate on doing both in an effective manner. But how she would do that was the question that kept resurfacing in her mind. Stephanie knew that getting back to her job at WWE headquarters in Stamford would help her get back on track, but who would be there to watch her children during the week? She couldn't burden her mother, since Linda was a career woman herself, and it was safe to say that her husband wasn't coming back home anytime soon.
She could always hire a nanny. Kurt had even suggested the idea to her a month or so ago but at the time, she was quick to dismiss it. The idea of some stranger taking care of her two children all week long wasn't all that appealing to her. A month ago, however, she was able to casually reject the suggestion because she still had Angle there to watch the kids when he was home during the week. Now she had no other choice, she was going to have to look at herself like she was a single mother of two. Stephanie was going to call an agency and start setting up interviews on Monday. The sooner she could get back to work, the sooner she could start feeling like her old herself.
Paul smiled, making his way down the hallway located behind the black curtain that separated the backstage area from the gymnasium where the house show was taking place. His hair was darkened because it was still damp; his torso glistened from a mix of baby oil and perspiration. The crowd was still cheering after the conclusion of his and Edge's one on one match. Levesque had kept his word and gave his all to entertain the two hundred or so fans that were piled into the athletics center in Valparaiso Indiana. As usual, it was slated for Triple H to lose on the white board, but that didn't mean that Hunter didn't give a good fight. Even though The Game was no longer on top of the WWE mountain, Paul still enjoyed his ring work.
"Good match." Adam Copeland muttered as he walked passed Levesque in the hallway at a quicker pace. He had taken his time leaving the ring since he was celebrating his victory.
Paul said nothing in reply, while he began removing the white tape from his fingers. Just because he was willing to put on a good match with the guy, didn't mean that he had to be social with him. The Rated R superstar was, after all, one of Angle's friends. Maybe that's why McMahon and the writers pitted them up against each other for the house show. They never missed an opportunity to inconvenience him or make things awkward.
Levesque made his way into the rather small room that had been designated as the male dressing room. Because of the rather cramped space, he was determined to get in there, change out of his ring gear, and replace it with his casual clothing, not speaking to any of the boys who were happy just hanging out in there. It was definitely a break from his normal post match routine of getting a shower before changing into his clothing. He promised himself that he would do so at his hotel. After packing up his gear, he removed his cell phone, and opened a blank text message box that was addressed to his ex wife and began to thumb the keys to type out his message:
"Hey, I hope u and Aurora r having a good weekend."
He then paused for a moment, wondering if he should add anything else to the message like how much he missed the both of them. Levesque sighed, deciding to leave the message as it was, and then pushed the send button on his phone. Paul wasn't expecting a prompt reply, it was after all pretty late. What was important to him was that she would eventually receive the message from him that illustrated that he cared.
Satisfied with his action, he placed the phone back into his black duffle bag, and then brought the piece of luggage to his shoulder before exiting the dressing room. As Paul walked in the direction of the exit, he passed by a alcove in the hallway where a few SmackDown divas were huddled up together chatting. While he saw them out of the corner of his eye, he didn't bother giving any of them the time of day. But that didn't mean that they didn't take note of him.
"Go ahead, Michelle, ask him." Maryse whispered in McCool's ear, encouraging her to call after Levesque.
"Hey Paul?" Michelle called out after him just before he turned the corner toward the exit.
His name being called out made him stop and turn back around to face the divas. Paul rolled his eyes and waited to find out what it was that the young women wanted. He hoped it was something that would be quick so that he could get to his hotel before the next hour.
"Have you seen or talked to Stephanie lately?" McCool asked.
"Yeah, why? What's it to you?" He questioned back holding his muscular arms in front of his chest. He was a little annoyed by the random inquiry about his former wife.
Maryse and the other divas all looked at Michelle, as a silent way of wanting her to continue her line of questioning.
"Well, we were wondering if there was any truth to the progressing rumor floating around in the company." She then explained.
"What are we talking about here?" Paul then asked in an agitated voice while shrugging his shoulders. He wished that the gossiping bitches would just get to the point.
"You mean you haven't heard about Candice's news that goes along with what the girls on RAW are saying?"
"Just fucking spit it out." He growled back with impatience.
"Well, Candice confided to some of the girls that she's pregnant, and there's been a rumor going around that she's having an affair with Kurt. Is Stephanie doing okay? Are she and Kurt having any problems that you know of?"
Levesque's immediate response to what he heard was a scoff. While he had been the one to plant it in Candice's head that Angle was interested in her, the rumor about them had seem to take on a life of its own. With Kurt's track record, it was very possible that Angle had acted on Candice showing interest in him. The latest development about the diva being pregnant was quite a turn of events. It was then that Paul began to wonder if all of this had something to do with all the fighting between the Angles that his three year old had told him about.
"What makes you think that I give a shit about their problems?" He muttered in reply before he turned back around to begin walking.
"So you have no idea if it's possible that Angle is the father of Candice's baby?" Maryse then asked before Paul had a chance to turn the corner. The women were obviously desperate to get any juicy details on the possible scandalous affair.
"It wouldn't be first time that he impregnated a married woman." Levesque quickly answered back in what was definitely a knee jerk response to the question that was somewhat rash but truthful.
His comment caused the divas to begin to whisper to each other back and forth. Paul took the opportunity to finally round the corner to exit the building. He didn't want to give them a chance to expound upon his comment with a whole other series of questioning.
Kurt arrived in Alexandra Minnesota just before midnight. Reaching out to his friend, Brock, Angle had been extended an invitation to come stay at Lesnar's lavish country estate until things could blow over with the missus.
He was exhausted from his journey out to the Midwest. While he had flown there, there was a considerable waiting time at the airport for an available flight, and he even had a connecting flight at Chicago's O'Hare that was a three hour layover. A airport taxi drove him up the dirt road to the sprawling property that the Lesnar's home was built on. He couldn't wait to crash.
"I really appreciate this, bro." Kurt told his friend, giving him a quick hug the moment after Brock gave him access to the home through the front door.
"Don't worry about it, just keep it down, Rena and the baby are asleep upstairs." Lesnar instructed in a quiet whisper after closing the door behind his friend.
"I hope Rena was okay with me staying here for a little bit. I don't want you getting in trouble with the wife too." Angle then whispered as Brock lead him in the direction of the staircase.
"Nah, she was fine with it. With you and Steph having us over for dinner just a few weeks ago, she figured it would be a way to return the favor. Besides, we've got plenty of guest rooms." Brock explained as he and Kurt crept up the stairs while trying to make as little noise as possible.
"I appreciate it. Any room would be fine. I'm exhausted."
As the two men reached the second floor, all talk ceased until Lesnar led his friend into one of the spacious guest rooms and flipped on the light. The room had somewhat of a rustic decor that definitely matched the area in which the home was located. It was no secret that Brock liked his privacy away from the glare of the media. He loved the isolation of his property, and while he wasn't training for a fight, he was out fishing and hunting.
"Thanks again, man." Kurt said aloud again.
He set his duffle bag on the suitcase rack which looked to have legs made out of some sort of animal bone and weathered leather straps.
"No problem, just try and rest up. I'll show you the property, that I call my domain, tomorrow." Lesnar promised before leaving his friend to settle in for the night.
Once he was left alone in the bedroom, Angle immediately began undressing down to his briefs. He casually tossed his clothing onto the nearby dresser, not caring to fold it. He paused for a moment to gaze at his own reflection in the dresser mirror. He scratched his salt and pepper beard stubbles while looking at his blue wide eyes that were bloodshot from his fatigue. Angle could only hope that spending some time out in the country could help him refocus getting his life back on track. At the same time, he hoped that his extended absence from Stephanie would better her attitude toward him. After all, didn't the famous saying go: absence makes the heart grow fonder? He hoped so.
When he was finally through wrestling with his thoughts for the night, Kurt traveled back across the room and flipped the light switch, making the darkness of the night fill the bedroom. He then made his way over to the bed. After pulling back the bed sheets, he slipped into the king size bed. The moment his head hit the pillow, all his muscles finally relaxed, and he was out.