Owen and his step-daughters were sitting at the table, waiting for Cristina to come back home with their promised breakfast. He had made cocoa for the girls and he had done a fresh jug of coffee. They all looked up when they heard the keys in the front door.
"Hey, all my babies are up," Cristina said. She had a large brown bag in her hand. Owen assumed that was the breakfast she had promised.
"Yes, we are," Owen said. "I have fresh coffee on. Do you want a cup?"
"Yeah, but pour out two because there is someone else here besides me," Cristina said. "Come on in," she called out. Just then, a woman with a familiar white head of hair stepped in.
"Mom!" Owen yelled, getting up and walked swiftly to the door. The two little girls got up and ran to the door, too. "Nana, Nana," they shrieked. Irene gave her son a hug and a kiss before bending down to take the two little girls into her arms. "My precious babies," she said, giving each girl a big hug.
"So this was your errand you had to run so early in the morning?" Owen asked his wife. "Yup," she said, nodding. "I went to the airport to pick her up. We both wanted it to be a surprise. Why don't we all sit down and have breakfast?" Irene joined Owen and the children at the table, while Cristina stood at the kitchen counter, taking out the stuff that she had bought. It was country style biscuits with ham and cheese. She noticed the Starbucks coffee cup on the counter.
"Owen, did you go to Starbucks this morning?" she asked, picking up the cup. He shook his head. "No, a friend of yours dropped off that, this morning. A Mr. Madison. He told me his name was Paul," Owen said. He carefully studied his wife's reaction to his mention of Mr. Madison. She showed no reaction to it, which made Owen feel a little relieved but not totally so.
"Oh, Paul. That was nice of him but it is cold, now, so I guess I will just have to toss it," she said, as she poured out the cold coffee into the sink. "So here we go." She placed a plate with a warm biscuit on it in front of everyone. She sat down and gratefully, sipped her coffee.
"Well, Paul said to remind you that he was coming to pick you and the girls up at 3.30," Owen said. He certainly wanted to know why this man needed to take out his family.
"Oh, shoot. I forgot about it. The tea party for army spouses and children. Paul had bought tickets for the children and me, so we could attend it with him and his daughter," Cristina said. "That reminds me I have to find some pretty dresses for the girls to wear."
"Can I come?" Owen asked. Cristina looked doubtful. "It is only for army spouses and children. I think it is supposed to be some sort of community bonding thing. I think you need a ticket to attend and the tickets were all sold out. Sorry." Then she brightened up. "It will only be for two hours and we will be home by six. Then, we can have some family time together."
"Oh," Owen said. "So Paul is an army spouse?"
"Yes, his wife is deployed in Iraq. She is a truck driver, there. He is a teacher at the middle school, teaching English and History," Cristina replied. "He has a seven year old daughter named Tamara. Tamara and Iris are friends." Iris nodded to confirm that piece of information. Irene listened to the conversation without butting in. She could tell from the way Owen was acting that he was a little uneasy about this Mr. Madison.
"Oh," Owen said, again. He was definitely not pleased. As a man, he could tell when another male is encroaching into his territory. His wife seemed blissfully unaware of this, he noted. Maybe, it was just as well that she wasn't aware. He would have to fix this by himself.
Later that day, Paul Madison showed up at 3.30 to pick up Cristina and the girls. Owen noted that all three of his girls looked very pretty. Cristina was in a periwinkle blue dress, Iris was in a cranberry colored dress while Laurel wore a powder pink outfit. Owen opened the door for Paul, who was accompanied by a blonde girl in a white dress.
"Hello," Owen said, rather coolly. "Hello, Major Hunt," Paul replied. "This is my daughter, Tamara." The little girl smiled, shyly at Owen. "Nice to meet you, Tamara. I think the girls are ready," Owen said.
"Yes, we are," Cristina said from inside the house. "Oh my, Tamara, you look so pretty." Tamara blushed at the compliment. "As do Iris and Laurel," Paul said. "You too, Cristina."
"Thank you, Paul," she said. "I guess we should get going." She kissed Owen on the lips and then took her daughters' hands as they headed out of the house. As the door closed, Owen went to the window to watch them get into the car. Though he knew that nothing was going on, it didn't make him feel any better.
Irene watched him and tried to reassure him. "She is not doing anything wrong, Owen," Irene said. "It is just a tea party for two hours."
"I know that, Mom," Owen said. "I trust her, I really do. But that guy? I get uneasy about him. I just know he wants to put the moves on her. I miss Cristina more than anything when I am across there. If it is hard on me, then it is just as hard on her. Who knows there could be a time when she feels vulnerable and lonely and there is good ole Paul, just hanging around, waiting to go in for the kill?" Irene patted him on the back.
"Do what you need to do. Whatever you think it is best for your family, but please nothing illegal or felonious. I cannot bear to see you locked up," she said with a chuckle in her voice. Owen laughed. He knew his mother was joking. It certainly lightened the air around the house.
"No, mom, I am not going to inflict any violent action on the man. I am just going to have a meaningful conversation with him," Owen said. "That is all."
Later that evening, Cristina and the girls came home after the tea party. "Hey," she said, as she opened the front door. "Hey," he replied. "We got something for you," Laurel said, holding up a goodie bag.
"For me? I am so honored," he said. The two little girls came forward and handed him their goodie bags. "They were insistent that they bring you home something from the tea party," Cristina said. Owen opened the bags – there was lots of cake, sandwiches and pastries in each bag.
"Thank you so much," he said, kissing the girls on their foreheads. "Papa loves you and thanks you for your thoughtfulness."
"I think I am going to get these girls to bed. They are tired. They were running around for most of the tea party," Cristina said. She disappeared with the girls into their rooms. Owen made himself a cup of tea and started feasting on the baked goods that the girls had brought for him. He had completely eaten one bag when he decided to save the second bag for Irene, who was taking a nap. He placed it in the refrigerator, smiling as he did so as he thought about how wonderful his daughters were.
Cristina emerged from Laurel's room. "I think I am going to turn in, too. That tea party was more tiring than I thought it would be. I volunteered to serve tea and then I spent the rest of the time, chasing my kids and other people's kids. I am beat."
"Okay, I will join you," he said and he followed her to their bedroom.
As they lay on their bed, Owen reached over and started kissing his wife. "Really, now?" she said. "I am tired. Maybe later, when I get a little bit of sleep. I will wake you up in the middle of the night."
"Okay, we can just snuggle and talk," he said. "I missed you." She turned and rested her head on his chest.
"Can I ask you about Paul?" Owen asked. "Sure, what do you want to know?" she answered.
"How well do you know Paul?" he asked.
"I met him at school, my first day there. He gave me a tour of the school and then we had lunch and he told me that his wife was deployed abroad and that he had a little girl in first grade at the elementary school. So we knew each other mainly through having lunch together. He has been really good to us. Kind of helps us out too, when I needed a handyman, he volunteered to help. He fixed some loose cupboards for us and helped me with the garden and fixed some loose tiles on the roof," she said.
"Is that all?" Owen asked. "I see that he brings you coffee."
"Yeah, well, he goes to Starbucks, often and he usually brings back a vanilla latte for me because he knows I like that one," she said. "Paul is so cool. He even helped me with the kids on my birthday when we went to the amusement park. He even brought Tamara along."
Owen's hairs on his arms stood on end. He remembered when Cristina had told him that a teacher had helped her with the kids at the amusement park. He had just assumed that it was a female. How wrong he was. While he was in Iraq, it was Paul who was enjoying the company of his wife on her birthday.
"Why are you asking so many questions, Owen?" Cristina said, as she lifted up her head and looked at him. "Don't tell me you're jealous." She chuckled.
"Um, no," Owen said. "Of course not." He wasn't jealous as much as he was on guard. Alright, he thought, he was jealous, too.
"Good," she replied. "I was thinking that we could have a barbecue and invite some of the neighbors and some of the teachers at school. It will be a good time to do so, since your mom is here. Maybe, you and Paul can chat, get to know each other better."
"You know, I think I would like that very much, Cristina. Such a great idea," Owen said. He wrapped his arms around her and she fell asleep. But Owen did not. He had so many things to think about.
The barbecue was going to be held in their backyard. Owen was in charge of the barbecue pit, a job he did not mind to do. He met a lot of people that day, so it became a blur of faces after a while. He met the neighbors, the teachers and all of their kids. He noted that Paul and Tamara had indeed made it to the barbecue. After everyone had eaten and people were just mingling, Owen thought it was an opportune time to speak to Paul. He sidled up next to the man.
"So, hello Paul, how are you today? Are you having a good time?" Owen said, with a steely smile.
"Uh, yes," Paul said, nervously. There was indeed something about Major Hunt that made him uneasy.
"So, Paul, I know you have been spending a lot of time with my wife," Owen said. He noted the change in Paul's face.
"I have to assure you that nothing is going on," Paul stammered out.
"Oh, I know, nothing is going on," Owen said. "And it is my wish to keep it that way. Don't tell me that you haven't been putting the moves on my wife."
"Who, me? No," Paul protested. Owen shook his head. "Don't you think a man knows when another man is trying to move in? Your wife is deployed, protecting our country and here you are, trying to put the moves on Cristina. I can see what you are doing. You are weaseling your way into her life, trying to make yourself indispensable to her, with helping with the cupboards, the garden and the roof and taking the kids to the amusement park. Well, I am on to you."
Paul turned pale, an indication that everything that Owen said was true. "Ah, I can see that we can come to an understanding now that you know that I know," Owen said. "Oh, I see Cristina is looking in our direction. Please smile." Paul plastered on a fake smile. Cristina waved and smiled at the both of them. Owen smiled and waved back.
"So just back off. Your daughter is friends with my daughter and I think they should not suffer because of this," Owen said. "Otherwise, you back off. No more showing up at my house with any more coffees early in the morning. If my wife needs something fixed, recommend a good handyman. I can afford to pay for it. Stop trying to be a husband to my wife, while I am gone. Understand?"
Paul nodded. "Good to see you again, Paul," Owen said. He didn't look back as he walked off and headed straight to his wife. "Good barbecue, Cristina," he said, as he pulled her into his arms. "Yes," she said. "I think everyone is having a great time. Did you and Paul have a good talk?"
"Yes," Owen said. "We had a nice little chat. It looks like he is leaving." Paul had Tamara with him and he waved from across the backyard to indicate that he was leaving.
"Hmm, I thought he would have stayed longer," Cristina said. "He is usually one of those people, who is always among the last to leave."
"Well, maybe he realized that there was somewhere he needed to be," Owen said, taking a swig from his bottle of beer. He had a a slight smile on his face.
A/N Please leave your thoughts and comments. Thanks for the reviews.