Clawen • What comes next

|| CHAPTER 62 ||

           

A week later, Owen was making dinner in the kitchen with Maisie. Charlie was sleeping in the living room, in a little cot they bought and placed downstairs, so that she had a place to be downstairs as well. Owen thought that Claire was with Charlie or at least on the couch, maybe playing with their daughter or reading a book. When he came in to tell her that dinner was almost ready, she was nowhere to be found. He found it quite mysterious, since Claire was very reluctant when it came to leaving Charlie's side, at any time.

He looked around, walked over to the cot to check that Charlie was okay and proceeded towards the office, which was mostly Claire's but he still had a few of his things in there. The door was slightly ajar and when he pushed it open, he found Claire on her laptop typing away. At first, he thought she might just be writing with Karen or the boys or something like that. But she would surely have taken her laptop to the living room.

Before he could get a better look at what she was doing, she turned around in her chair and quickly slammed her laptop shut, making it very clear that there was something on it, she didn't want him to see. His eyes narrowed at her, making her lips squeeze into a tight smile, as she tried to come up with a lie or excuse or whatever she figured out in that brain of hers. "Claire, honey. What's on there, that I'm not allowed to see?" He asked, taking a few steps towards her. She leaned back in her chair slightly, her mouth still a thin line, as she tried to stare him down, from below. "What makes you think there's anything on it at all? Huh? Maybe there's something on it I'm not allowed to see, huh Owen? Maybe there's nothing on it, why are you asking so many questions hm? Owen, maybe your hiding something from me, but then again why would I be hiding something from you? Hm?" She was rambling and it took everything in him to not break. He had to be strong or she would surely win this ridiculous battle. "Well, Claire. You slammed it shut rather quickly after you noticed me. Plus, you're the one asking all questions" He said, slowly leaning further and further over her.

Not another word came out of Claire's mouth and before she knew it, he had a hold on her laptop and quickly snatched it from behind her, running out of the room. It took her a second to realize why he was running, and as soon as her brain caught up with his act, she ran after him. Careful of not disturbing Charlie, she whispered angrily "Give it back!" He couldn't help but snigger at her attempt at a scary warning, when only dogs could hear her. "What?" He asked, as he put his hand up to his ear, signaling for her to speak louder.

In the meantime, Maisie started wondering where Owen went. It surely couldn't take that long to tell Claire that dinner was ready any minute. Maybe they got caught up in their usual lovey dovey activities...again. She still decided to go check it out however. She heard a bit of commotion in the living room and walked to the door, to have a look. From there, she found her parents running around like kids, somehow without making any noise. After noticing the laptop in Owen's hands and realizing that it was Claire's, she knew what was going on and decided to see how it played out. She got herself comfortable against the doorframe and watched as her parents acted like they were her age.

"Owen give it back dammit" Claire whispered loudly, as she walked really fast after him. "Not before you tell me what you were doing on it" He said, looking behind him to send a smirk her way. She narrowed her eyes at his silly behavior, before she made another attempt. "Owen, I swear, if you don't give it back right now I'll" But she didn't finish. "You'll what? Even if you catch up to me, you won't be able to reach it" He said, stretching his arm as far above his head as he could, without slamming the laptop into the ceiling. "Owen be careful, it's really expensive" Claire said, making another attempt at catching up to him. "Better tell me what you were doing then" He said, sending another smirk.

She sighed and came to a standstill on the other side of the coffee table. "Fine" She said, looking over at Maisie before deciding on what to say. After a couple seconds of considering her options, she leaned in. "I was watching...." Looked over at Maisie before whispering back in the lowest voice possible "P-O-R-N" Owen started laughing at her attempt at a lie, plus the fact that she spelled it out. "That's quite funny Claire, but its also not true" He said, walking away from her, to stand on the other side of the table again.

"What?" She asked, in a nonchalant voice. "You were typing, honey. And I didn't see anything like what you just spelled out, when I sneaked a peak" He said. Her lips went into a tight smile again, still refusing to tell him the truth. "Well I guess, if you won't tell me, I'll just have to find out myself" He brought the laptop down and opened it. It took Claire a second before she realized that he knew her password. God dammit why did she ever think it was a good idea to tell him. Knowing them both well enough, they were eventually going to end up in a situation like this and the password would be her only way to keep him from knowing.

"You know you promised, that you would never lie to me again. Remember that honey?" He said, suddenly quite serious but obviously still in the mood to mess with her. He quickly typed her password, but before he could see what was going on, on the screen, Claire bumped into him. She took a hold of the laptop and the arm holding it. Trying to shut it again but he was of course stronger than her, and got her small hands to let go. "Owen okay I'll tell you, I'll tell you, I promise" She said, begging him to let it go and give it back. "Well if you're going to tell me, I don't see a reason why I can't have a look" He said. He did see a reason, multiple actually. "Because it's my computer, hence my stuff, which equals my privacy. Please honey, I'll tell you, just give it back before you accidentally damage it" She said, sounding very sincere, considering their banter before.

He smiled down at her, respecting her and her tone, deciding to put his poor fiancé out of her misery. He brought the laptop down to her level and held it out for her to take. "I know it's your privacy and I shouldn't be looking" He said, as she took a hold of it and placed it on the dining table behind her. "So, what were you doing?" He asked, taking a few steps closer to her. She sighed and smiled up at him sadly. "Please don't get mad" She whispered, making him tilt his head. Those words were never good. "Claire what were you doing?" He said, now more serious than before because she was really starting to scare him. She looked down at the floor and exhaled. "I was answering work emails" She said, almost inaudible, as if he wouldn't ask her to repeat if he didn't catch it. "Work" He simply said and crossed his arms in front of his chest.

She sighed, before slowly tilted her head up to look at him. The look that met her was serious, she could tell he wasn't happy, she just hoped he would get less mad than what she expected. "You were doing work stuff" He said. Her eyes got sadder and more apologetic with every passing second. She nodded slightly and looked back down at the floor. "Why Claire?" He simple asked. It took her by surprise, making her take a step back and look up at him, to see if he was being serious. "Why?" She asked, to make sure she heard him right. He nodded. "Yes, why" He took a step closer, letting his arms fall to his sides. "Honey, why were you reading work emails?" He then asked. She could tell he was trying to make her less scared, trying to make her understand that it wasn't as bad as she thought.

She sighed sadly, her eyes still on the hardwood floor, admiring the lines in the wood for a couple of seconds before answering. "Because I miss it...I miss it, okay Owen" He could tell she was about to break down again and he quickly went through all the options in his head to stop it from happening. It was never his intent to make her upset, he just wanted to mess with her a little bit. He quickly reached out and grabbed her arms, pulling her into his body and holding onto her as tightly as possible. "Claire its okay, you hear me? Its okay! I just wanted you to tell me. To be honest with me" He said, rubbing her back a few times before pulling her away to look her in the eyes. It was very clear that she was trying to hold back tears, so he smiled down at her, to make it easier. "You should have told me that you missed it so much. If and when you have time, I shouldn't stop you from answering a few emails. But that's also it, no going out of the house to travel to town. Get it?" He said. She nodded and smiled up at him, appreciation showing in her eyes.

She licked her lips and took a step closer, taking a hold of his shirt, before reaching up to give him a kiss. And then another. "Thank you" She whispered, leaving a last kiss, before settling back down on her feet.

What do ya think? Hope this was alright.