Hi Readers: And welcome to another day of updates of In This Together. I hope that you guys continue to enjoy this story, and I would love it if you guys gave me feedback. Thanks again for reading and I can't wait to see your reactions to the story and where it's headed.
Chapter Twenty-Three
"If we talk about it, we're doing it with you being nothing more than my husband." -Alexandra Marie Casey
When Alex mentioned that if they talk right now, they do it with him being nothing more than her husband; Matt was surprised as he thought that was always how he and Alex spoke. How they always spoke as partners, as husband-and-wife. So, why would anything change from the last time they spoke? Of course, Matt wants to talk to his wife as nothing more than husband-and-wife, because that's precisely what they are. They're a married, expectant couple who need to have conversations from time-to-time about the future. Their future as a married couple, as parents as of next summer, and as partners in business as Alex is now his co-owner. She's his partner in this world and he wants to make sure that Alex knows that above all else. "Hey, look at me Alex." Alex agreed with her husband as he said that, before doing just that. She looked into her husband's eyes as they held each other close here in bed; while Matt put his hand on her back and stroked her upper back with his thumb. "Alex, you're my wife. My partner in life." Alex agreed. After all, that most certainly is what she is; she's his new wife, as well as his partner in life. Which is something that she's very proud of.
She's proud to be the woman he now gets to share his life with, as she's now and forever will be his wife. However, she just doesn't understand why Matt is telling her that, so she just decided to listen to him. "Alex, I love you and I want us to be open and honest with each other about everything; about our marriage, and about the business. We're going to do this as a team, and that's something that I'm proud to say. The fact that we're in this together means the world to me; because for the first time in a long time, I truly feel like I'm living my life with a partner who actually wants to be my equal in life." Alex agreed with her handsome husband, smiling as she leaned in and kissed the man of her dreams softly; especially since she knows that Matt never felt like an equal in his relationship with his ex. Rather, he was always subservient to her and had to follow her lead; but not in their marriage, as Alex wants them to make decisions together. And so far, that's precisely what they've done; they've made important decisions as a team rather than unilaterally, something which neither of them plan on changing. Matt and Alex both want to make important decisions in life together.
They want to be a true team of equals, as a way to truly live out their vows; the vows where they're going to love and support each other for the rest of their lives. And in order to do so, that means that they need to: (a) respect each other's points of view, (b) only make independent decisions when absolutely necessary, and (c) try and respect the decisions that each of them made; with the possibility of them having the opportunity to later review and reassess the situation and decisions that were made by your respective partner should the need be. "And that's why I am so happy, because I feel like I have the true freedom to be myself; rather than have to always worry about whether or not I am going to make my partner mad." Alex smiled as she heard Matt say that, while getting nice and close to the man of her dreams. After which, she wrapped her arms around his neck and smiled as she leaned in and kissed him softly; while also slipping her legs in between his as a way to make sure that they are as close as they can possibly be with each other, something that Matt really enjoys due to the fact that it means that he's holding his entire family extremely close to him.
Because while their child may not have been born yet, Matt is already acting as if he's a father to the little baby who was growing inside of his beautiful wife; he's already being so attentive and loving, not that he hasn't done that during their entire relationship. Rather, he has; and it was one of the things that made Alex fall in love with her husband in the first place. Just how loving and attentive Matt is to her, and how he always wants the best for her; something that she admires and just knows in her heart that he'll do for their children as well the moment they welcome them into the world. And she doesn't need anymore proof of this, other than to look at the way Matt treats his niece (and honorary nephews); he always makes sure that they're okay and that they have everything they need to the best of his abilities. And sure, it may drive his sister mad that he does it at times; but that hasn't stopped Matt from doing it due to the fact that he sees his niece as an honorary daughter (for the time being). However, that will change when he has children of his own due to the fact that he's going to be much more attentive when they have children; that's a fact that Alex already knows.
She has no need to be told that by her husband, nor does she need to be told that he's much happier with her as she can see it in his eyes and the way he treats her. "Babe, I already know that. Believe me when I say this, I don't need you to constantly tell me just how happy you are now that you have me in your life. I already know that, because I feel the same way as you do. I am so grateful to have such an incredible man in my life, a man that I love more than anything in the entire world; especially since he's now my loving husband." Matt smiled as he heard Alex say that, as he most certainly is her loving husband; because he loves her more than anything in the entire world and will always do so simply due to the fact that she's his wife. And he has a way of showing her that, which is to press a sweet kiss on her lips as they hold each other close here in bed. "I love you so much and I am so glad that we decided to just take it easy here right now and relax." Alex agreed with her husband as he told her that, as she feels the same way. "Ok. But back to the thing we're talking about. We were going to talk about me retiring from modeling." Matt agreed with his wife, smiling at her.
After all, that is something that he's quite interested in talking about, because he actually has some questions about that. "Ok. Before we start with that, I guess I just want to know why you want to retire." Alex took a breath as she looked at the man she loves. "I guess, it's just me feeling like I've done it for long enough." Matt agreed with his wife as she said that, deciding to listen to what she has to say when it comes to why she wants to stop modelling. "I mean, sure; could there be more opportunities? And yes, did I say I would be okay with doing VS shoots if some came along? Of course. However, being pregnant changes things for me." Matt was confused as he heard Alex say that, as he had no idea what she was talking about? I mean, she works out all the time; it wouldn't be that hard for her to bounce back. And even if it did take her a while, she has a secure job with Casey Apparel (who would wait for her to be ready). "Babe, I need to ask you something before we continue; because I want to make sure that we're on the same page here." Alex agreed with her husband, as she's more than ready to answer whatever questions he has; after all, it's part of her job of being his wife.
To make sure that they're on the same page, which involves them having to talk and answer each other's questions when the time is right; so, she's more than ready to answer whatever queries Matt has with regards to the decision that she's already made. A decision that she truly does hope that her husband blesses, though she has a feeling that he already will. "Of course, ask away. That's why we're talking about this as we cuddling in bed." Moving closer to Matt, Alex smiled as she decided to put her hands on his face; that being in contrast to having her arms wrapped around his neck, as that always led to them being further apart from one another. And right now, with her being a newlywed and a newly expectant mother; well, it was the last thing that she wanted when she would much rather be all cuddled up to the man of her dreams as they hold each other close here in the comfort of their bed. "Alex, I just want to make sure that this has nothing to do with the pregnancy." Alex was confused. "Ok. You lost me." Matt sighed. "Alex, if this is about the baby weight, I can already assure you that you don't need to quit just because you're going to have baby weight." Alex was surprised.
After all, that wasn't at all what this was related to. This decision that she's making isn't at all related to the baby weight that she will gain from her pregnancy, because it never was. That's something that he doesn't need to worry about. But still, she decided to let him finish what he was in the midst of telling her. "I can already promise you this, both as your husband and the head of the company. You will be allowed to take whatever time you need to be healthy and feel like you're ready to model again without any pressure from my sister, the marketing team, or the photography team. If that's what you're worried about, then I can assure you that you don't need to worry about it. And I can guarantee you that both as your husband, and as the Chairman and CEO of the company." Alex laughed. "Matt, may I also remind you that your sister is the head of the fashion line? Do you really think she would be okay with the mother of her new niece or nephew being pressured to return to work sooner than she thinks she's ready to? Think about that." Matt agreed, well aware that Christie would never do that; she loves and respects the both of them too much to force Alex back to work too fast.
Especially when she would've just given birth to her new niece or nephew. "Matt, I promise. This isn't at all related to the baby weight thing. Well, it is, but not in the way you think." Matt nodded as he heard Alex tell him that, before deciding to just listen to his wife once more as she explained what she was thinking as she made this decision. "I guess, it's more related to where I see my life going." Matt agreed with his wife. "Matt, we're married now. And as your wife, it's my job to support you as much as I can. And I want us to travel as a family. What if you have a meeting in San Diego while we shoot in here in Florida? I'm not going to want to be here in Florida with the kids, when I know you'll need the kids with you." Matt was confused even more as he said that. "Ok. Not even following you there. Why would I need the kids with me on the west coast, if they're with you on the east coast?" Alex sighed. "Because I know that they'll be a way for you to distract yourself, to get your head out of the office and just be a normal man for a bit. A man who doesn't have to carry the weight of the world on his shoulders, or at least feels like he does." Matt sighed and agreed.
After all, that is how he feels at times; like he carries the weight of the world on his shoulders, something that he feels based on his job as the Chairman and CEO of the company. "And that brings up something else. Baby, I hope you know that you have other people who can help you when you need it. And I hate to say this, but I can see you burning out at times. I see you get really frustrated and feel like you always need to fix things yourself." Matt sighed as he looked at Alex. "I guess, it's because I still feel like I'm proving myself; I mean, I just finished my business degree while I was also running the company. By the way, I loved that you were at the ceremony." Alex smiled, as she was glad that she was there too. "And I am just getting started, as I want to still make things on my own. I mean, we only have two divisions. Casey Apparel, which my dad created as my sister always wanted to be a fashion designer as a kid, and Casey Construction, which is what I always wanted to do as a kid." Alex smiled and agreed with her husband. "But now, what if there's other things I want to do? Maybe do less construction and more…I don't even know." Alex agreed with Matt, smiling at her husband.
After all, she could always see that there was a lot more potential when it came to where they can put their resources. "I know, you want to keep your options open. But for now, I know that the two companies we have are good. And you love construction, I can see that you're good at it. And we can always add on in the future. That's something that you don't need to worry about, nor do you need to worry about me not being on your side. We can always do things." Matt agreed with Alex. "I guess, I just want to start looking into other things that can both make profit, while also giving back to the community." Alex smiled, as she liked that idea. "Maybe charity too? I mean, we have a lot of money. We should try and give back." Matt agreed. "Yeah, that's why I'm doing the Houston Project and why I want it to succeed. If that works out, I want to maybe try and see whether we can do like deals with other companies to provide manpower for disaster reconstruction; things like that. Like after earthquakes and hurricanes." Alex agreed with Matt. "I know that you sent a team from CH Family Homes to Haiti in 2010 when they had an earthquake to try and get some quick homes up." Matt agreed.
And that was actually something that he was interested in. "I was thinking of doing that more, trying to be humanitarian, which can then lead to projects for low-income and stuff in other countries. I know that we've been mostly in the USA. And that's something I want to change. But I feel like, I need to rebuilt from the ground up. Things are just in place as they were like when I took over in 2007. And that basically hasn't changed since my dad's death. We are still using old machines and ways of doing things. So, I want to change that." Alex agreed with her husband as he said that. "If you want to change things Matt, you have that option as the CEO." Matt sighed. "I hate to say this, but I was hoping to do it next year now that I feel like I'm finally in a place where we can do it." Alex took a breath. "Let me guess, the baby throws a wrench in those plans." Matt just looked at his wife. "Hey, I don't want you to think whatsoever that Billy here changes anything. I am so happy. I just feel like I need to work things out and re-evaluate everything so that I can make sure that I have time with you guys at home, as well as time where I can make the company my dream company." Alex agreed with Matt.
After all, it's her job as his wife to make sure that he realizes his dreams to the best of his abilities. And that's probably why she needs to quite modelling. "And that's why I think it's time for me to step back from modelling." Matt agreed with Alex. "Matt, I'm your wife. And you're going to need me to help you through all of this. You're going to need a support system to deal with this all. We both know this is going to be big, and we're going to need to figure it out as we start fresh basically with the company." Alex agreed with her husband. "Well, you do know you have options. What you can do, is you can always start a new company and restructure. Then, you can bring over the divisions and subsidiaries from the current company and just try and fit them in to the new company. You can keep the old company going with the same teams, until you figure out how you want to reorganize and figure it all out. And even better, you get to keep the staff as is. They still have jobs, and you can basically rework the entire company if that's what you want to do." Taking a breath, Matt looked at the woman he loves. "I can't believe I just told you this. This is something I've been thinking of for a while."
Alex smiled and agreed with the man she loves. "Matt, look at me. I'm here to help you. Yes, will it be a lot of work? Of course, it will. But I also know that this has been a dream of yours for a while, to really make the company yours." Matt sighed. "I promise though, we can wait until after the baby is born if you want to." Alex shook her head. "No, we can do it now as we work it out. However, I need to ask. Would we be keeping the company in Chicago? Or are we thinking of moving it here to Florida?" Matt sighed. "I am not even sure if we're incorporated in Illinois, I think we're a Delaware company as we have a very low tax rate." Alex agreed with her husband as he said that. "Matt, listen. I know that this is probably one of the reasons that you're tense. But I promise you that we're in this together." Matt sighed. "I just hate that I've been keeping this from you. I just…I feel like I need to fresh start now. Hallie and the company the way it was is in my past. It's just so confusing and we have a lot of people to go through. Hell, I have to go through 3 people before I can talk to the team in Houston about the project. Or even 4 for the people in Southside Estates. It's a lot to deal with."
Alex then realized just why this is important to her husband, it's because he wants to be involved more; something that he feels he needs to have control of his life again. "Matt, I want to ask you a question that I think you've been ignoring for a bit when it comes to the company and things that you really what." Matt agreed with his wife as she said that, deciding to let her ask her question. "What is it babe?" Taking a breath, Alex proceeded to ask Matt her question. "When you actually think of the reason why you want to do this, are you doing this because you want to have control of the company more? Feel like you're more in touch with the life you have and just be able to control things for a bit? Get your life in order?" Matt sighed, as he hadn't thought about it that way; of him wanting to change things around due to the fact that he wants to get his life in line and get control over his life again. "Do you think that would be wrong?" Alex was surprised to hear Matt ask her that question, as it most certainly was not wrong. "Hey, I never want you to think that it's wrong for you to want to get control of your life. If anything, I think it's what you need to do." Matt nodded as he agreed.
However, there was still a wildcard that he had to take into consideration. "Now, I just need to talk to my sister and see whether she'd be okay with us doing a revamp of the company." Alex smiled as Matt said that. "I think she would, if you give her a bigger share of the company. Or maybe just be partners. I don't know. I just know that you need to do something to reduce your stress baby. And I just thought about this, but might this add to your stress? It might mean that you need to talk to a lot more people to get things done." Matt agreed with his wife. "I could also just talk to one and they get it for me. I know, I am just confused. Does that make sense?" Alex agreed with her husband as she cuddled up to him, before wrapping her arms around his neck and leaning in to kiss him softly. "Babe, of course it does. Just maybe taking it easy and relax. We can figure it out as things go. We have a lot to think about. Maybe we just do it slowly rather than all at once and see where things land. We already have three things on the go right now. We have the company, us being newlyweds and us being pregnant with our baby." Matt agreed with his wife. "Can't wait for the first scan."
Alex agreed with her husband. "Yeah, me too. Especially since I really want to make sure that we're just having one baby." Matt took a breath as Alex said that, as he couldn't help but wonder if she said it for a reason. "Are you worried that we're pregnant with more than one kid? Like twins or something?" Alex shook her head, as she thought that they were going to be fine. "Twins don't run in my family, yours?" Matt shook his head. "As far as I know, no twins or anything in my family." Alex agreed with her husband. "Then we should be fine." Matt agreed with Alex smiling as he cuddled up to her and leaned in to kiss her softly. "Yes, yes we should." Kissing his beautiful wife again, Matt smirked as he took things nice and slow with the woman of his dreams. "I love you." Alex agreed with Matt as he said that, as she loves him too. "I love you too." Matt agreed with Alex as they both held each other close, while rubbing her back as they took it easy in bed. After which, he rolled over so that Alex was on her back. At the same time, Alex reached up and put her hand on his neck as she kissed him softly. "God, I love you." Matt agreed with his gorgeous wife, taking things slow with her.
However, the reason why he was taking things slow with his wife was not due to the fact that he wanted to please her; rather, it was due to the fact that he wanted to change the topic and stop thinking about what he was talking about. They were getting far into business for his comfort, when they should instead be concentrating on the fact that they are newlyweds who are very happy to be married. God, Matt still can't believe that. He and Alex are married, very happily married to be precisely. This is the happiest that Matt's been in a long time, and he just feels so blessed to have this life with Alex. This life that they're starting with each other here in the comfort of their Florida home, which might be their new permanent home if they have it their way; because maybe this is really want they need. A place which they can call their own rather than a city where they are living in the shadows of his former relationship. A relationship which was never healthy and which he should've left much sooner than he did to be with Alex, his new wife, and the woman he truly loves, who just so happens to be pregnant with their child. God, he still loves the sound of that.
Their child.
The baby that was conceived out of love, and who will be loved from the moment he or she is born, a day that Matt can't wait for due to the fact that he wants to be a father more than anything in the entire world. And thanks to this gorgeous woman he's extremely proud to call his wife, that's precisely what he's going to be quite soon; a father to their beautiful child whom they will love.
They ended up taking a nap after having a nice make out with each other in bed, only for Matt to wake up naked and alone in bed; with a foggy memory as to what happened as he didn't think that they had sex with each other, and they didn't. Rather, him being naked was his wife's doing based on the note that he read. 'Hey hunky. Decided to go take a skinny dip. Already got you undressed. Come join me?' And damn was that a turn on, one that Matt Casey most certainly cannot ignore. After all, he most certainly does want something from his wife whenever he gets a chance to get it, which would be time where they're very sexy with each other. And them going skinny dipping with each other most certainly is a time where they can get very sexy with each other in their pool. And that's precisely why Matt was currently on his way downstairs with nothing but a towel around his waist, well aware that there was another reason for this sexy swim. It was Alex's way of calming things down and just taking it easy. And he was more than ready to obliger her request, as it's precisely what he wants to do as well. He wants to calm things down as they take it easy with each other.
But rather than take it easy with each other in bed, they're going to take it easy with each other in the pool, something that Matt was more than ready to do with the woman he loves. The woman he craves more than anything in the entire world. And the woman who was clearly a bit stressed as he walked out of the house with a towel around his waist and a fresh pair of boxers in his hands, something that he was going to wear when they were out of the pool. But for now, he only had plans to wear one thing for his wife: nothing. He planned on being naked, as his wife requested while they take a nice swim with each other; a swim that will make Alex relax and just calm down. And he can only hope that him being here with her helps, as the last thing he wants is for him being here to cause her more stress. However, there's just something that tells her that he won't be adding stress; but instead, he'll be relieving some of it. He'll be relieving it as he can give her some attention here in the pool that she might not be able to get in bed since they will be floating with each other rather than be in bed with each other. And that will be much more liberating, which they need now.
They need more freedom to move, as they take it easy and just relax with each other. And that's something that Matt is more than ready to give his wife as he walked over to the pool chair where she already set her bathrobe down, prior to him going ahead and taking off his towel. After which, he smirked as he looked at the woman he loves and set his towel (and fresh pair of boxers) down on the pool chair; which was the last thing that he needed to do prior to getting in with the woman he loves. And now, that's precisely what Matt is in the midst of doing as he walked down the stairs and into the pool. He was joining his wife so that he can help her relax and take it easy, something that he needs to do so that he can fix the mess he made upstairs. He just knew that them talking about the business was a bad idea, yet they did it anyways. And now, his wife is stressed. He just hopes that he can make things better when it comes to the way he makes her feel. And that's precisely what Matt was ready to do now that he was swimming up right behind her, something that Alex loved the feeling of the moment she felt Matt behind her in the pool; a feeling that she really loves.
Along with the kiss that he placed on her back the moment he was right behind her. "Hey." Smiling as she heard Matt say that, Alex agreed with her husband as she was happy. "Hey." Turning around in his arms afterwards, Alex smiled as she looked at the man she loves prior to getting close to him in the pool; meanwhile, Matt grabbed her legs and wrapped them around his waist. "God, I have to say that I already love the way that we're in the pool with each other." Alex smiled as she heard Matt say that, well aware of the reason why as she cuddled up to the man of her dreams. After which, she felt Matt bring her right against his chest so that they were getting really sexy with each other; something that she loved so much that she wanted to kiss her husband now. And as she leaned back, Alex could already tell that Matt wanted the same thing. He wanted to kiss her as they took things nice and slow with each other. So, he did just that. He kissed the woman he loves and smirked as they took things nice and slow with each other today, with the hopes of the both of them calming down when it came to how they were feeling. "You feeling okay?" Alex sighed.
After all, her husband had to know that she was down here for a reason. "Are you really going to pretend like you don't already have suspicious when it comes to why I'm down here in the first place." Matt sighed, as he did have suspicious as to why she was down here in the first place; and he didn't like them as they involve stress, which isn't good for the baby. "I know they involve stress, which we know isn't good for the baby." Alex agreed with Matt, as they did involve stress. And she hates that. She hates that she feels stress when she should be taking it easy and just relaxing for the sake of their child. "Sorry about that." Matt shook his head, as his beautiful wife has no reason to apologize. "Babe, I'm the one that made you stressed. I brought up topics that you clearly weren't ready to hear about. Business that we don't need to talk about right now." Alex agreed with her husband as she put her hands on his face and kissed him softly. "I guess, it's just me coming to terms with my new reality. The fact that I'm the wife of the Chairman and CEO." Matt sighed, as he hated that she saw herself as the wife of the Chairman and CEO; and while that was true, she's so much more than that.
In fact, she's not even that in his eyes. To him, she's just his wife. She's the woman he loves and is incredibly proud to call his wife. "Baby, you're nothing more than my wife to me. I hope you know that." Alex agreed with her husband as he said that, smiling as she wrapped her arms around his neck and started to take things nice and slow with the man of her dreams. The man she loves more than anything in the entire world. "I know, and I love you for that reason. I love you because you're the man of my dreams and I'm crazy for you,." Matt agreed with Alex as he ran his hand up and down her back as a way to take it nice and easy with her. "I just hate the way I made you feel. And for that, I'm sorry. I guess, I just wanted to tell you what's been going on. I want to do a better job in our marriage than my previous relationship, I want to be open and honest about some of my plans so you can help me." Alex agreed with Matt, well aware that was the case as she leaned her forehead against his and kissed him softly. "And I love that, because I love you Matt. I'll always love you and I am more than ready to help you. I guess, it was just a lot to take in all at once." Matt agreed.
After all, he's well aware of the fact that this can be a daunting situation for anybody, especially his pregnant wife. "I promise, I'm going to do better when it comes to keeping your stress down. If you don't want to talk about it, then we don't have to." Alex shook her head. "I guess, I just need to learn about the business more first. Figure out where my place is." Matt smiled. "Your place in the business is as my wife. You have no need to be involved if you don't want to, and you can easily just be a mother to our child." Alex agreed with Matt as she kissed him softly, as she definitely loves the sound of that. Yet, at the same time, she also wants to be involved. "I want to be involved though Matt. I want to be there for you and I want to help you run the business like a partner." Matt agreed with Alex once more, smiling as he kissed the woman he loves softly. "And we'll figure out what that means for the both of us in our own way. We can see how that happens, and what we need to go to make that a reality; I promise Alex. I'm in this with you." Alex agreed with Matt. "As am I. I just need you to remember that you need to take it easy as you explain things."
Matt agreed with Alex, which is something that he most certainly can do for her. He can take his time as he explains things to her, so that she can understand. "And maybe that's where we start then. Maybe we start with me just telling you about the business, so you know where we are and what I want to do. I want us to be a team babe. I want you to help me as I can't do this on my own." Alex agreed with Matt. "So, co-Chairwoman and CEO?" Matt laughed. "Maybe just at home. But right now, let's just have fun and take it easy here in the pool. We can talk later, maybe even have more sex to celebrate our little boy." Alex agreed with Matt. "Sex in here, cuddle in bed and fun." Matt agreed with his wife, doing just that for the woman he loves. "We can take our time. We can figure it out as we go." Alex agreed with Matt, smiling as she took things nice and slow with her husband here in their pool...which is a lot of fun.