Love Always Wins

90

Monday October 12th. Hemsbach, Germany.

Seb rolled into his side to find that, unsurprisingly, his wife had got out of bed at some point in the night and left him on his own. He hated it when she was angry at him and he knew that it was his own fault that she was still angry right now. Throwing back the duvet, he got up and out of bed. Today's plans were to sort things out with his wife, take her and Luis to visit his parents in nearby Heppenheim and spend some time studying the track layout for Portimão before packing for the long drive back home tomorrow morning. After another difficult day and a point-less grands prix yesterday, the last thing he wanted was for Chloe to still be mad with him all day today so he knew he'd have some grovelling to do to get back in her good books. He threw on the grey t-shirt and black sweatpants he'd left on the floor last night and headed downstairs to the open plan ground floor. Chloe was sat on the floor re-dressing Luis after changing his nappy and Britta was sat next to Heikki at the kitchen island.

Hearing his footsteps as he came down the stairs, Chloe kept her gaze fixed on Luis as she snapped together the press studs on his navy blue baby-grow. She resisted the urge to shake her head, still angry at what Seb had told her yesterday evening and quite hurt that it had taken him nearly a month to tell her that Viviana had made a pass at him in Mugello.

He headed over to her, already sensing her ice cold mood towards him. "Morning beautiful." He bent to kiss the top of her head and then watched as she carried on as if he wasn't even there. "Chloe, please. I said I was sorry."

She ignored him as she scooped Luis up from his changing mat and then picked it up from the floor. "Come on little man, let's see if Auntie Britta will just look after you so that I can have a coffee." She chucked the changing mat onto the sofa and went to walk away.

Seb jumped in front of her, he wasn't going to stand for her ignoring him all day and he especially wasn't going to stand for her using their son in an argument. "I'll take him, pass him here."

She threw him an icy glare before trying to step around him.

"Don't use Luis in this." He snapped, a little more hastily than he meant to. "Don't use him to punish me."

She clutched Luis protectively against her. "I'm not, now get out of my way." She snapped back.

From their stools in the kitchen area Britta exchanged a look of 'here we go again' with Heikki before slipping from her stool to go and rescue Luis from his bickering parents. "Chloe, why don't you pass Luis to me so that you two can go and talk somewhere more private." She suggested, holding her hands out to take their son.

Seb stepped back, holding his hands up as if to say 'I give up' while Chloe gently handed over their eleven week old baby.

"Go and talk, you two need to sort this out." Britta added while giving Seb an 'I told you so' look.

Chloe tenderly stroked Luis' chubby little cheek before turning, storming off and stomping up the stairs, leaving her husband to rapidly follow her. Getting into their bedroom, she heard the door slam shut behind her and she turned to face him. He now looked just as angry as she did.

"That wasn't fair!" He snapped. "I get that you're angry with me but to use my son to punish me is not on!"

"How else am I supposed to get through to you?!" She yelled. "That fucking woman tried to kiss you and you didn't tell me for nearly a month, then you kept it to yourself that you'd made a formal complaint about her for a fucking fortnight!"

"Anyone would think that I'd kissed her or even fucked her the way you're carrying on!" He scoffed, thinking that her anger was way over the top.

"How many times have we both said that there'd be no more secrets between us? That we'd tell each other everything?" She cried, frustrated by his response before lowering her voice to petulantly mutter, "You know, right now that wouldn't even surprise me if you had kissed her....or worse."