Chapter Ten

12:00pm

The phone rang, waking Jack from a very deep sleep. He reached for it blindly.

"Malone."

"Jack? Are you okay? You were supposed to call me when you got home."

"Honey, I'm sorry. I'm okay to go back to work. Steven is concerned that I'm tired. I came home and fell asleep. I'm sorry I didn't call you."

"Well, I'm sorry that I woke your prescribed sleep. I'll see you tonight."

"Mmmm."

"Jack, disconnect the phone."

Jack hit the green button and fell back asleep.

6:00pm
Anne walked in to a myriad of wonderful smells. Jack was in the kitchen, Vince Gill played on the stereo, and for once, the apartment was warm.

"Hey."

"Hey," he replied, not turning from the stove.

"How are you?" she said, taking off her coat, hat, and boots.

"I'm okay. How was your day?"

"Uhm, it was fine."

Jack poured her a glass of white wine and handed it to her when she walked into the kitchen. She kissed him first and then sipped the wine. Noting his casual attire, pajama bottoms and a t-shirt, she teased him.

"So, great coutour-dressed chef, what are you making? Grilled cheese?"

"Funny, actually, I was interrupted earlier today, so I went to the market. Tonight, beef stroganoff for two."

"Jack, that's one of my favorites."

"I know, I remember. I thought maybe you needed a little TLC and so did I."

She looked at his broad back and listened to Vince Gill sing 'The Reason Why' seemingly answering all of the questions she had for him. Looking back into the apartment, she noted the fresh flowers on the dining room table. Without looking, she knew that he had put a bud vase in the master bath as well. Jack knew she loved flowers. Sipping her wine, she watched him cook, settling in to the music and the warmth of the apartment.

"Voila."

Jack dished two plates and brought them to the table. He lit the candles and turned off the kitchen lights. He brought a bottle of cabernet sauvignon to the table, refilling her glass before he sat down. She filled her fork and took her first mouthful.

"Oh, Jack, this is wonderful. When did you learn to cook?"

"Uhm, my mom would teach me sometimes. Then, I guess, Gloria."

"Who's Gloria?"

"She was my first girlfriend in high school. Her mom had died and we kind of hooked up. So instead of dates, we would cook for each others' families."

"That's nice."

"At the time, I would have preferred dates."

She looked at him and saw that sparkle in his eye and the smirk and couldn't resist grinning in return. They continued to eat in relative silence, just listening to Vince Gill.

"This is Vince Gill?"

"Yeah."

"It's new to me."

"He released a new album with a forty-three songs in October. Anyway, I downloaded it to my IPOD."

"I think of you as a wax man."

"I suppose I am a bit retro, but I like to think that I'm au current as well."

She grinned at him as she finished her meal.

"Seconds?"

"No, thank you," she said, looking at his half finished plate. "Can you eat any more?"

"No, I reached my limit," he said, standing to bus their plates to the kitchen.

She looked at him and saw the fatigue had returned to his face.

"Jack, leave the dishes. I'll do them later. Come sit here and listen the music with me."

Jack nodded and limped back to the living room, sitting next to her, easing his ankle onto the coffee table. She leaned into him and in moments, he was asleep.

8:00pm

He woke up with a start. Looking around the room, he saw Anne asleep, her head in his lap. He needed to walk - now. Gently, he eased her head back onto the sofa and then stood. He felt it was hot in the apartment and cracked the window. Watching the snow fall, he felt the snow as it occasionally came into the apartment. He went to the kitchen and noticed that Anne hadn't had a chance to do the dishes. Humming to the Vince Gill playlist that was still playing, he put the leftovers into the fridge and then did the dishes.

9:00pm

As he dried the last dish, he noticed the time. He took a sip of wine and placed a call.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Hanna, it's Dad."

"Hi, Dad. How are you? Are you out of the hospital?"

"Yeah, I'm home. I loved your card. Thank you."

"You're welcome. You're sure that you're fine?"

"I went to the doctor today. I'm allowed to return to work on Monday. My cast comes off in four weeks."

"What cast?"

"I broke my ankle."

"Oh. Kate wants to talk to you."

"Hi, Daddy. Did you get my card?"

"Yes, sweetheart, it was wonderful. I put it up on the fridge."

"That's good. Mom took us to the Lincoln Park Zoo today after school."

"Great, what did you see?"

"We saw people milking cows. And we saw baby chickens."

"That's wonderful, honey. Is Mom around?"

"Yeah, she's right here."

"Hello?"

"Hi, Maria. I just wanted to thank you for the special cards. I can't tell you how much they meant to me."

There was silence on the phone.

"Maria?"

"Jack, I…I didn't know what to do when Viv said you had been hurt. I…we have our separate lives but…Jesus, Jack I…I…still care."

He listened, looking at Anne sleeping on his sofa, and the cards from his kids that were now on the fridge door.

"I know, Maria. I know. I'll be fine. I'm on desk duty for four more weeks because of my ankle. We're looking at restricted hours. I'll let you know. In the meantime, could you send Christmas lists for the girls?"

"Of course, Jack. I'll grill them tomorrow."

"Thanks. Look I have to go and get some more sleep. I'll talk to you next week, if not before."

"Sure, Jack. Take care."

"Thanks and the same to you."

Maria hung up the phone and Jack put his into the cradle.

"Everything okay in Chicago?" Anne said, stretching.

"Yes, I'm sorry; I didn't mean to wake you."

"It's not a problem, Jack. I'm going to take a shower and then head to bed," she said, standing up and walking towards him.

"Okay, I need to finish here. I'll see you soon."

"I love you, Jack," she said, pulling him into a gentle kiss.

"I love you, too."

Anne walked to the bedroom. Moments later, Jack heard the shower running. He cleaned the counter, ground coffee for the morning, and refilled his glass of wine. Limping to the radiator, he turned it down to a quarter and then closed the window. The noise of the running shower stopped. Watching the snow fall, he smiled to himself that he didn't have to work until Monday and neither did Anne. Finishing his drink, he limped to the kitchen, set his glass in the sink, turned off the lights, and walked to the bedroom. He heard her soft breathing and saw her shape in the pale light from the window.

The bedroom was dark and, to him, stifling. He opened the window and immediately felt the cold fresh air invade the room. Pulling off his t-shirt, Jack carefully got into bed. He lay on his back, trying to unwind. Anne rolled towards him and stretched out her left arm across his chest, feeling his warmth. He kissed the top of her head and fell asleep.

Saturday 2:00am

Anne woke up suddenly. Sitting up in bed, she realized she was alone. She pulled on his sweatshirt from the chair and walked out into the apartment. He was sitting in the leather chair, a glass of scotch at his side, listening to Vince Gill again. The snow was falling and he stared at it from the darkness of the apartment.

"Hi."

"Uhm, hi."

"What's going on?"

"I…I couldn't sleep."

"Obviously."

He nodded and then took a big sip of his drink. Jack looked at her, his brown eyes full, and then he turned his look back to the window, taking a breath.

"What is it, Jack?"

He reached his hand to her and she carefully sat in his lap. Bringing her hand to his lips, he kissed her and she noticed that he was shaking.

"I…I'm not always good at talking about my feelings, but I have to tell you this; it's really eating at me."

She squeezed his hand in encouragement. He nodded and took a deep breath.

"Anne, I love you without limits. I'm very sorry about the miscarriage…very sorry," he said, his voice getting softer.

"Jack, you don't have to-"

"Please, honey, it's just that I want you to know…if you want to try again, that's great and if you don't want to, that's okay too. It's just…I couldn't bear to lose you."

The tears were falling down his face now and hers as well. She wiped his eyes gently, feeling his beard and smiled. Kissing him gently, she felt his arms around her, giving her a tender hug.

"Can you come back to bed?"

He reached to her face and wiped her tears before dragging his left arm over his own eyes.

"Yeah, I think so."

She stood and helped him to his feet. Reaching for the remote, she turned off the stereo. They walked side by side to the bedroom and got into bed. It was cold and she shivered as she moved to get closer to him. He rolled onto his left aside and pulled her towards him. When his body touched hers, she melted and started to relax. He was still emotional and energized by his admission to her. She fell asleep easily, feeling his strong arm around her. Jack remembered seeing the pale daylight filter into the room before he surrendered to sleep.