Racing Hearts
AU. When Sarah's father returns to her life years later claiming he wants to make amends she struggles a bit with the decision of letting the man who once betrayed her into her heart again? Will her family make her see there's forgiveness after all?
When Sarah Reese had first met Connor Rhodes she felt as any med student would. He'd walked passed her and she would swoon. Never in a million years would she have predicted just how her life would have turned out.
As she laid in bed, her rambunctious trio next to her, she thought of just how lucky she'd been.
God, how had she come to be an awkward 20 year old to being married to the main cardiovascular surgeon in Chicago? Most importantly, how had she managed to have 3 toddlers and still be sane enough to function at work?
Mostly she owed it to Amy, her nanny. The girl was working two jobs and still managed to pick up the boys from daycare and spend the afternoon with them and Connor of course, who even though had spent 9 hours standing up in the OR, would get up in the middle of the night so she wouldn't have to.
That was her support system, but today Sarah had told Amy she would stay home so she didn't have to come over.
Yet, in the midst of having her boys and taking a day off, she did feel alone, wishing she had the courage to admit to Connor she wasn't really okay with Robert wanting a relationship with her. How could she? The man had walked away from her, of course, the divorce had been horrible and her mother had made her best, or tried to make her best effort to shield Sarah from all but she didn't understand how Robert had not had the guts to come and find her later on.
And then there was Connor, who had his share of family drama to deal with but was a very present father in his children's life. Nothing like the man who had mildly raised him.
Just as on cue, her phone buzzed and Connor's face appeared on the screen. "Hey, how'd surgery go?"
"Good, the little boy is in post op." He told her. "How are you?"
"I'm good, although this bed feels too big." She could picture his smile on the other line.
"I miss you too babe." He said. "I don't have a lot to do left so I'm just going to finish off some charts and I'll head home okay?"
"You don't have to do that. Isn't Ava going to take every opportunity to put you down?"
"Nah, she can be Dr. Latham's fellow for a little while. I don't mind."
"Connor, I know you, you do mind." She told him as she watched the boys with their bottles.
"Okay maybe only a little." He admitted shyly. "But still…"
"See? Finish your shift, I'll be fine." She said. "Really."
Connor sighed. "How are the boys?" He better change the subject to something more of a meeting ground before she would get even more defensive.
"Right now, we're through our third Lion Guard episode so it's off to a good start." He laughed. She loved to hear him laugh. "Here, I'll put you on speaker." Connor braced himself for the loudness of three toddlers. "Hey boys, it's daddy…You want to say hi?" It took them a minute to register her words, Connor thought because that show would just keep them occupied for hours at a time.
"Daddy!" One, two and three excited little voices began babbling to the best of their abilities. Connor's eyes lighted up at the bickering on the other line and Sarah trying to rescue her phone.
"Okay, I'm back… sorry." Sarah said exhaustedly. "So, yeah why in the world did we have 3 of these?"
"Get some rest Dr. Reese, I'll see you later. Love you." He laughed.
"Yeah, now that you riled them up on me." She huffed. "You better be here to put them to bed Connor Rhodes…"
"Of course I will…" He told her. "I always am, right?"
And he always was.
He clicked on the lock slowly. He took off his sneakers and tip toed over to the kitchen. The house was awfully quiet. That was when he found the next desktop picture for his phone. Sarah had fallen asleep with the kids around her, the tv playing quietly in the background.
He picked two of the boys swiftly, careful not to wake them. He opened the door to their bedroom. Three cribs were lined up each with the starting letter to their name.
Just as he was going back to get the last one he saw Sarah walking over. She rocked the little boy close to her chest. Connor watched as she put him down tenderly and his heart swelled with nothing but love.
"I didn't even realized I had fallen asleep." Sarah said closing the door behind her.
"You looked so cute I have to say." He smirked.
"Of course I did." She mused. He turned to her so their faces were inches apart.
"You are beautiful Sarah…" he leaned in to kiss her. It was slow at first but she felt herself being pushed by the need to feel him close. Emotions getting the best of her. She ran her fingers on his face, then moved to his short hair. "And there's no way you can't convince me you didn't look amazing there with our children…Baby, we better not wake them up." He said breaking the kiss. "Come on."
Back in their room, Sarah took charge of their make out session. Her friends made jokes about Connor and how hot he was and she mostly boasted because she had managed to marry the man, a man who was loving and a devoted husband and father.
Far from the Connor Rhodes she'd met when he started working at Med.
"I can hear your mind going crazy." He said breaking the most recent kiss. "Talk to me Sarah."
"I don't want to, this is all I can do right now." She said taking off his jacket.
"Okay…, as much as I'm loving this…." He gritted his teeth. "I really need you to tell me what's going on."
She pulled back. "I don't know… it's just messed up, how dare he show up in my life again!"
Connor sighed. There it was. She was definitely not fine.
"My life is great. I have you and the boys,It's pretty damn perfect." She huffed. "And if he thinks I'm just going to run over and see him because he's dying…"
Connor caught her just in time as she cried.
"It's okay Sarah, we'll figure this out, I promise you." He held her close and kissed her forehead. "You're not alone…"
"Why do I even have to bother?" Sarah asked. She could see the confusion in his eyes. "I don't mean it like I want him to die, but just, I was never meant to deal with him, he's always been a stranger."
Connor bit his lip. He wasn't sure if he was the right person to be talking about parents, Cornelius hadn't really been father material. "You know what? No, I'm not going to let him get under my skin…" Sarah continued.
"Sarah…" Connor said holding her close. He was going to regret this.
"What?"
"Baby, I hate to say this, but he's already gotten to you." She glared at him. Oh oh.
"Whose side are you on?" She snarled. She broke their embrace and Connor put his foot ahead, not letting her go.
"Yours of course, but Sarah... you keep saying you won't let him affect you because you barely know him, but the fact that you are this upset means, it's already making you consider just how this might play out."
She hated to admit it but he was right. If there was someone who could understand how she felt was Connor. "Hey, listen.. no matter what, we'll figure it out, alright?"
Sarah smiled as he hugged her. "Now, how about I make you some early dinner?"
"Food sounds good." She said calmly. "But you're my secure blanket. I don't want to let you go."
"I'm here, always." He kissed her softly on the lips. And just like that they had to break the kiss as the baby monitor came to life with the cries of their children.
"I'll get them, you're better in the kitchen anyway." Sarah said, making Connor grin.
"Is that why you married me?" He called from the kitchen.
"That and because you make such cute babies..." Sarah said coming from the room with two of the boys. "Would you just look at them?"
He helped her strap them into their high chairs. Luke, the oldest was the one who took after Connor the most, dark hair and blue eyes and such a troublemaker. He was definitely the leader when it came to getting in trouble.
Finn was the middle man and the most zen but took on his elder brother to make a mess. He too had most of his daddy's features.
And then there was Oille, who god help him, was the youngest and most calm of the three and had Sarah's curly hair and eyes.
Sarah watched as Connor turned into super dad and managed to include them into his meal making. She laughed when Luke fed him a little of red sauce and it dripped down on his chin, much to the little boy's delight.
It made her think, about Robert and the real reason he'd come back into her life in such a time, but just as she stood there watching her family she imagined there was still a small part of her that had been gone since her father had left.
Sooo... what did you think? I'm having so much fun with this and how perfectly they fit with each other. When will the writers see that, I wonder?
