Chapter 2.
Although his face-framing hair cascaded down his forehead, she could see how intense and red his eyeballs were as he lifted his blue gaze. His countenance was unsearchable and dark, causing knots in her stomach.
And why was he quiet? Say something, please. As much as she was scared of the future, this silence was agonizing, increasing her anxieties, and she was already sick. She'd always been.
He poked his hair backward and sighed. "Alright." His voice wasn't as fierce as he looked.
The way his eyes were searching hers drove guilt soaring in her. "I'm sorry, Cay…Cayden, I'm so sorry." For everything. She bit back the cry, shutting her eyes to refrain the burning tears from welling up again.
"I know." He said.
And that was all. He didn't say much. She felt like she was starving because she expected more words from him; a clarification of those grim expressions in his eyes.
In a couple of minutes, they went downstairs for dinner.
She lifted little Raiden and made him sit close to her while Cayden sat across them.
Cutleries clinking against the plates as they were eating, Elodre was feeling a knot in her gut. She'd lost her mind and appetite. She just couldn't stop glancing at Cayden. The silence was so horrible, she couldn't live with herself right now.
Moreover, this was how it had always been since Raiden came into the Brook family. He was just a whole bundle of sorrow. She glanced at Raiden.
"What are you doing, honey?" She asked the kid who was using the French fries to poke his long brown hair. "No, no, no, it's not a comb. Eat'm, Raiden, in your mouth." She smiled at the child's innocence. "Here you go!" She put the food in his tiny mouth.
Feeding himself stressed Raiden a lot, especially as the dining table was quite high. Eating French fries and sauce was even worse as his little pink lips to his nose were all messed up with sauce. Not that he would let anyone feed him.
A smile pulled Cayden's red lips as he watched his son and Elodre was pleased. She wished he kept the smile on no matter what. Still, it grieved her to see that the smile wasn't hearty because his eyes were still fierce and grim.
Soon, Cayden's phone chimed in his pocket. He pulled it out and smiled slightly. "Hey, bro!"
That was his younger brother for sure. Elodre was all ears.
"Weston, Comm'n," Cayden laughed so hard. "Oh!" He giggled. "You're f*ckin' kidding me bro."
Elodre was charmed by the vigor with which he laughed. Damn! Her hubby was too handsome. And if there was anyone in this damn world that can make a man laugh so hard, it was Weston. She smiled.
"Alright, Weston…"
"Dada!" Raiden called with a broad smile. "Dada!! That's my dada!!"
Wait. What? Distracted and astonished, Cayden's thick curved brow raised.
"Hey, Lil pumpkin!" Weston's enthusiastic voice was heard as Cayden put it on loudspeaker. "Watcha doin' ?" Weston asked.
"Eatin', dada!"
Crap!! Elodre's heart had swooped to her throat, thumping brutally, she could hardly breathe. She was extremely shocked by Raiden's outburst.
"I miss you dada!" Raiden was still talking.
"I miss you too, son!..."
Son? Was this a joke? Curiosity was gleaming in Cayden's blue eyes.
Oh, Weston! Stop talking, please! Elodre was apprehensive, she felt her body trembling as Cayden's fierce glowing glare drove fright down her spine.
"See ya in the Morrow!" Weston concluded before hanging up.
For reasons Elodre couldn't comprehend, Cayden's thin lips pulled in a smile that left her perplexed. But she awkwardly smiled back.
"That's your dad, huh?" Cayden said calmly, smiling at Raiden.
That didn't sound like a question, perhaps Cayden just said what he assumed.
"Yes! That's my real dada. "
Real dada. That's close.
Now this was a slap on Cayden's face. What the hell?! Not that he was hearing this for the first time, this had always been Raiden's anthem, and it was pretty getting out of hand. He was tired of going back and forth with the kid's constant resentment.
Son? Really? No! No! No! This was a f*ckin' joke! Cayden thought. Weston was his younger brother and would never dare to…
He sighed with both feelings of rage and jealousy soaring inside of him.
God knows he was damned tired of this fckin' sht and motherf*ckin' kid! Dammit!!
Struggling hard to remain calm, he dropped back the cutleries, rested both elbows on the table, and plunged his fingers into his long raven hair, carelessly disarranging the center patting.
He was looking crazy and restless. Elodre observed as tears were burning her eyes but stifled the cry. Her grief was unbearable. When her husband lifted his red-blazing gaze upon her, she quivered as fear crammed into her body. Overwhelmed by his grim glare, she lowered her gaze to the sauce on the table, and the tears instantly slid down her cheek.
Suddenly, Cayden got up and walked away, looking furious, then she burst out crying.
"Mama," Raiden's tender voice floated into her ears as he patted her head with his tiny hands. "Why are you crying?"
Oh, the child was so innocent. He didn't know the pain he'd caused her and how devastating his actions were to her marriage.
"Don't cry, mama…" The kid said again even though he didn't have a clue what was going on. "I love you, mama."
God, she can't! She wrapped her arms around the kid, carrying him on her body. "Mama loves you more, honey," She said shakily and kissed his forehead. "I love you, pumpkin." She muttered, cuddling him warmly.
Still sobbing, she packed the dishes of unfinished food into the kitchen after she'd taken Raiden to bed.
A few minutes later, she headed off to their room but Cayden wasn't in there. With a long pale face, she locked the door and went to bed.
In a couple of seconds, he emerged from the restroom, and Elodre couldn't take her eyes off him. He was tall, ripped, and extremely charming. As the years passed by, he looked younger, fit as a fiddle, and more handsome.
Always thrilled to see his bare body, she admired the perfect curves of his muscles, his broad chest, and the perfect lines that divided his stomach into six packs. Craving to lay her head on his chest and wrapped in his powerful arms, she watched in awe the way he wore his pajamas.
Yet, this gradually rising difference between them gave her a sense of an impending tragedy in her marriage. Now, talking freely with her man was like rocket science because of how heavy her heart was, coupled with anxieties and confusion. She didn't know how to go about this right now.
When he finally lay on the bed she was quite thrilled, hoping he would say something to her, but he didn't. After waiting for a while, she was troubled as guilt began to soar inside her. But for the life of her, she didn't know what she'd done wrong.
Thinking of how to break the ice, she opened her mouth severally to speak but didn't know what to say.
Oh, God! I can do this. She swallowed hard. "B…baby?" When she said this, her heart seemed to have skipped a beat.