Cristina's life was full, handling three girls and being pregnant at the same time. Tamara wasn't much trouble, she had to admit. The blonde girl spent most of her time with the other girls and minded what Cristina said. This was the perfect adult-child relationship, Cristina thought.
Paul called everyday to talk to Tamara and Cristina, too. He reported that his mother was certainly not well but he had managed to secure a place for her at a nursing home. He had cleaned out her house and was working with a realtor to find a tenant. So far, it was going as well as it could be, he told Cristina. He thanked her every day for taking care of Tamara. She told him that he would have done the same thing for her.
The first time that Owen realized that Tamara was staying at their house was when he saw a flash of blonde hair across his computer screen, when he was speaking to Cristina.
"Who was that?" he asked. He knew neither of his daughters had blonde hair, since they had both inherited their mother's dark curls. "That blonde girl that just passed behind you?"
"Oh, that's Tamara Madison," Cristina said. Owen's hairs on his arms stood on end at the mention of the last name of Madison. That was Paul's daughter. He did not have anything against the child but he was not comfortable about her father.
"Is she there on a play date with Iris and Laurel?" he asked. Cristina shook her head and explained that Tamara was staying at their house for two weeks.
"Paul's mother had a stroke and he had to go to Portland to see about her affairs and to get her into a nursing home," she said. "He said he wouldn't have the time to take care of Tamara and had asked if she could stay with us. I couldn't very well say no, since they were in desperate need."
"No, you couldn't," Owen said. But then again, he thought, it was certainly a way for Paul to make his way back into Cristina's life. It was something he had to keep a watchful eye on, before it got out of hand.
When Paul returned from Oregon, he thanked Cristina profusely and brought her a large bouquet of summer blooms. He also brought gelato ice cream for the children. When he and Tamara left to go home. Cristina sighed with relief. Tamara was a great kid but having an extra child in the house had taken a toll on her, especially now that she was pregnant with twins. She wondered how she was going to cope, once the babies were born, as that would mean four young children in the house. She couldn't even bear to think about it.
She was glad that she was nearly out of the first trimester. Her morning sickness had subsided, for which she was very grateful. Still, she was often a lot more tired than she normally would be. School was about to start and she would now be the only guidance counselor at the school, now that her former mentor had retired. The help that Paul offered would come in quite handy, as he said he would come by and drop Iris off to her school, which was off-base, before he went into work. That meant Cristina only had to drop off Laurel at the preschool and then head into work at the middle school. It was certainly eased her up in the mornings.
After work, she would pick up Laurel at the pre-school and then, Iris at her school. Then, they would all go home, where she would prepare dinner. By the end of the night, she was totally exhausted. She would put the girls to bed, take a warm bath and then, collapse on to the bed. Now that school had started, she didn't talk to Owen as much, mainly because of how busy she was and how exhausted she was at night. They spoke mainly on the weekends. It was a situation that neither of them liked but it could not be avoided.
It was on his usual Saturday call that Owen got the shock of his life. He called, excited to speak to his family. He hadn't spoken to them, all week and he was dying to see their faces. When the call was answered, the face that he saw was not that of his wife. It was Paul Freaking Madison. In his house. Answering his call. Owen could barely speak when he saw Paul's face.
"Paul!" he finally shouted. "What are you doing there?"
Paul immediately turned red in the face and looked a little flustered at Owen's angry tone. "I am just helping Cristina out a bit. She is cleaning out the bathroom. I am preparing dinner for us and the girls." Owen was seething. Paul Madison seemed to be so comfortably ensconced in the Hunt household.
"Can you please get Cristina for me?" Owen asked. He tried to calm himself down. He knew Cristina was having a hard time but the presence of Paul Madison in his house was just too much to take. After a few minutes, Cristina came out and sat down in front of the computer and gave him a tired smile. He could see how exhausted she was but he was still angry that she had allowed Paul to infiltrate their family's life.
"Cristina, you know how much I love you," he started.
"Yes, I love you, too," she replied.
"I am telling you that because I don't want you to be upset about what I am going to say," Owen said. "What is Paul Madison doing in our house, cooking dinner for my family? You know how I feel about the man."
Cristina gave him a defiant look. "He is just being a friend, Owen. Just helping out with the kids and the chores around the house. He listens to me, whenever I need to talk."
"What do you mean he listens to you? I listen to you, Cristina," Owen said.
"Well, you are not around, everyday," Cristina said. "It's not like we're doing anything wrong. He listens to me, he helps out with the kids and he's a friend. I don't know what the big deal is. It's like having a husband but without the sex."
That was exactly the wrong thing to say to Owen. He was so angry that he tightened his grip on the arms of the chair in which he was sitting.
"Cristina, I am going to go, now because I know I will probably say some things that will upset you and I know I will later regret," he said. "I will talk to you tomorrow. Hopefully, both of us will be in a better mood to discuss this. Good-bye." He hung up the call and then, screamed. He was so angry with her but he didn't want to blow up at her, since he knew she was in an emotionally vulnerable state. Still, he thought, that wasn't an excuse to have Paul Madison in the house. He knew she was feeling alone and was grasping for friendship. He groaned when he realized he didn't even get the opportunity to talk to his daughters.
This situation could not continue, he determined. There was no way that Paul Madison was going to have free rein over his wife or children. Cristina had hurt him deeply when she said that having Paul around was like having a husband without the sex. There was no way that he was going to allow himself to be replaced. He totally understood the fears of his fellow servicemen about leaving their wives and girlfriends at home. He was experiencing full-blown anxiety about that very same situation. He knew what he had to do.
Cristina regretted the words the moment she said it. She saw the immediate look of hurt on Owen's face, followed by anger. He hung up because he didn't want to say things to hurt her. That evening, as she and the children had dinner with Paul and Tamara, she decided that it was going to be the last time that this was going to happen. She had to learn to tough it out, she thought. When Paul left that evening, she told him that she couldn't continue to accept his help because it upset Owen and her marriage was important to her. Paul protested a bit but she stood firm. He said he understood and then, he left.
The next day, she waited for Owen to call. She let the girls speak to him, first. They would put him in a good mood, he thought. He could never resist them. She listened to the three of them, laughing together. It was really a wonderfully happy sound. Then, he asked to speak to her, while the little girls went to Iris' room to play.
"Hey," he said. "How are you feeling today?"
"Alright, I guess," she said. "Owen, I wanted to say that I am sorry about what I said, yesterday. I didn't mean to hurt you. It was a stupid thing to say."
"Yeah," he said. "Apology accepted."
"I guess I just wanted to have someone I could lean on, during the pregnancy," she said. "It's been kind of lonely but I know now that Paul was not the right person for that. I knew you had your objections to him being around and I should have respected that. I explained this to Paul, yesterday and he won't be around, anymore."
"Thank you, Cristina," he said. "There is nothing more I would like to do than to be there with you but I have a job to do. I made a commitment to this country. I may be over here but I still want to protect my family, too. I told you before that Paul had ulterior motives, when it came to you. That's why I don't want him around you."
"I know," she said. "I understand that. It's okay." He reached out and touched the screen.
"I wish I could hold you," he said. "Anyway, just to show you that I haven't been totally dense about how you have been feeling, I have made arrangements to fill the void."
"What have you done?" Cristina asked. He gave her a cheeky smile.
"It is a surprise," he said. "I am pretty sure it will show up, quite soon. Anyway, Cristina, I am going now. Thankfully, we're leaving this in a better mood than yesterday."
"Yes," she said. "Goodbye. Speak to you, soon." She kissed her fingers and then pressed it against the screen where his lips were.
Later that day, she and the girls were having lunch, when they were interrupted by the sound of a knock on their front door. It was rare that they would have visitors on a Sunday. She opened the door to find Irene Hunt standing on the doorstep.
"Irene, what are you doing here?" Cristina asked, giving her mother-in-law a hug and a kiss. The little girls, on seeing their grandmother, ran to her, "Nana, nana!" they shrieked in delight. Irene bent down and enveloped both little girls in her arms.
"Hey, are you the surprise that Owen was talking about?" Cristina asked.
"Yes, I am," Irene said. "Owen called me, yesterday and asked if I could come down to California and stay with you, for as long as you need me."
"Irene, that is so wonderful of you," Cristina said, as a tear rolled down her cheek. "Thank you."
"Aww, it's nothing. When Owen told me that you and the grandbabies needed me, I made arrangements with my neighbor to look after the house and hopped on a plane to get here. Is it a good surprise?" Irene asked.
"A brilliant surprise," Cristina said. "I am so happy that you are here." The two women hugged.
Irene had just got herself settled in the guest room and was headed to the kitchen, when she heard a knock. Cristina and the girls were all taking naps. Irene opened the door to find Paul standing there.
She had a few choice words to tell him but she held her tongue. "Mr. Madison, how may I help you?" she asked.
"Mrs. Hunt, I didn't know you were visiting," Paul said. "Is Cristina around?"
"Yes, she is but she is taking a nap, right now and I don't think I am going to disturb her," Irene said. "I was under the impression that you were not going to be visiting, anymore."
"I was hoping that Cristina would have changed her mind," Paul said.
"No, no, that's final. We thank you for your help but we don't think that it will be necessary, anymore. I am here to help Cristina, now," Irene said, firmly. "Have a good evening, Mr. Madison." It was clear that the way she said it that nothing more was going to be said on the topic.
As Paul left, Irene closed the door, shook her head and said, "Good riddance."
A/N Please leave your thoughts and comments. I do appreciate when you leave your reviews. As a side note, I published the first chapter of my first fan fiction, "Finding Our Way Back" on this website on July 11, 2011, so it is my second anniversary. So here we are, 14 stories completed and three in progress, I think I haven't done too badly.