The other woman

Reuniting

Living with Seb wasn't what she'd anticipated that it'd be like.

They might have talked for long into the night on Monday (after he'd picked her up from the hospital) but it didn't mean that everything was back to normal between them.

She might have told him all about her ordeal with Soren but it didn't mean that he'd forgotten about the photos or the video that had been on her phone and how she'd once planned to use them to destroy his marriage.

Their relationship felt awkward and up in the air, Alex felt as though she was treading on egg shells around him as he seemed to distance himself from her. Starting from Monday night, Seb had slept in the spare bedroom. There'd been no more kisses and he'd barely laid a finger on her since that day. The last two days had consisted of him training alone in the mornings until lunchtime, then they'd eat together and then he'd spend the afternoon trying to talk to Gisela on the phone. So far she'd not picked up his calls at all.

This morning (Thursday) Alex was awake and out of bed first. She felt even more tired than when she'd gone to bed last night; sleep felt like a luxury when all her mind wanted to do was to go over endless details of that old barn, Soren's ugly snarling face and that rusty pitchfork sticking up in the air from where it was planted in his back. She remembered the awful, haunting noises he made as he laid there on top of Christian with blood soaking his clothes, the way his body became limp, lifeless and heavy and the way she'd crumpled to the floor in shock, almost certain that she'd killed him. Then she'd lay there thinking about Seb, knowing that he was hurting because he'd trusted her and that it was her fault that he couldn't see his kids. In just under a week he'd be jetting off for the final two races of the season, she was planning on going on with him, keen to get herself back to 'work' and she really wanted him to be able to see his kids before they left.

Her tiredness meant that her head was banging as she sat down at the kitchen table and as she massaged her temples she hoped that the painkillers she'd taken would soon take effect.

"Morning," Seb wandered in, his tone stiff and polite - as if he was talking to someone he barely knew.

He was a sight for sore eyes; all messy curls on top of his head, tufts of hair sticking out at odd angles and wearing a baggy navy t-shirt with his black boxer briefs. He'd just got out of bed and yet he still looked gorgeous.

He went straight to the fridge, he'd woken up really hungry and the diet plan was going to go straight out of the window. But as he peered into the fridge he pulled a face, moving his lips from side to side; they really needed to make a trip to a supermarket. "I think we'll have to go out for supplies," he stated as he pushed the door shut and looked in her direction. It was then that he noticed the way she was massaging her temples, sat at the table with a box of pain killers and a glass of water. She looked exhausted.

"I'll just go up and shower, then as soon as I'm dressed we'll go," she stood up, ignoring the questioning, concerned look on his face.

He moved swiftly across the kitchen to catch hold of her wrist before she got too far, "Alex, wait."

She had no option but to stop but kept her back to him.

"I'll go out for the groceries, you stay here and rest. Go back to bed, you look exhausted."

She didn't answer him, inside she was wishing that he was going to be in bed with her because she knew that she'd sleep better with him next to her.

Looking down he noticed the remainder of what had been sore wounds around her wrists from where the ropes had rubbed her skin red raw. Along with the bruises he'd seen on her face and the glimpses of bruises he'd seen on her body, it was a painful reminder of what she'd been through and it instantly made him feel bad for keeping himself distant from her.