A week had gone by since the confrontation, and things between Alexia and JC were… tense. Nothing had been solved and they couldn’t seem to agree on anything. To make matters worse, it seemed as if they didn’t even see each other at all anymore. They were acting like a divorced couple when they weren’t even married yet. Something had to give sooner or later, especially with a baby on the way.
Not yet showing, Alexia was just eight weeks along, and was waiting for the perfect time to tell JC, but things between them were kind of rocky. This was supposed to be the most special time in their lives, and she wanted to share the news with him cuddled up by the fire place, spending quality time together, not throwing it in his face in the middle of an argument. A part of her was also really worried about what his reaction would be to the news. With his really busy schedule was he ready to become a father? Would he take time out, and rebuild his whole life around their child? Did he even want kids? Twelve whole years together, and it was something that they had never discussed, which made her situation with him all the more difficult. Despite all of this, she knew that she shouldn’t stress. It wasn’t good for her or the baby. All she knew was that something had to give. And soon.
“Pack your bags.”
“What?” Alexia looked up from her computer too see JC standing over her, fighting the urge to smile.
“Why?” She asked, looking around their bedroom, from the high vaulted ceiling to the red silk drapes, and then the mahogany floors. “Do we have Termites or something?”
“Haha, very funny. I’m serious. Pack your bags.”
“You still haven’t told me why.” Alexia said, closing down her laptop and swiveling around in her chair to face JC. Why the sudden change in mood, and since when did he have time to pack bags?
“Does the element of surprise really not have any effect on you?”
“Joshua Scott what is going on?”
“Did everything I just said fall on deaf ears?”
“You come in here out of nowhere, in the middle of the day might I add, which is quite rare, and tell me to pack my bags? Do you mind telling me what’s going on?”
“We are going away,” JC declared.
“Come again?”
“You, me, the Poconos. Need I say more?”
“Uh, yeah.”
JC knelt down to Alexia so that he was now eye to eye with her. “Allie, I know I haven’t exactly been the best fiancé’ lately, and things have been tense between us. I know that I can sometimes be a raging workaholic, so I’m willing to work on that. I don’t want to lose you.”
“You mean that?” Alexia was stunned. Here she was stressing over what to do about their current situation, and JC literally shows up out of the blue, taking the initiative. This is what she’s so desperately hoped for.
“Yes,” JC said, running his fingers through her chestnut brown tresses. “You mean the world to me, and I don’t want to let go of you. I think we just need to spend some time together to just sort things out, and to get back to where we used to be.”
“I’d love nothing more,” Alexia replied, her heart swelling with emotion.
“Then get to packing!” JC exclaimed, before kissing her.
“Okay, how long am I packing for?” Alexia asked, walking towards the closet. “Five days? A week?”
“Two weeks,” JC replied.
“Two weeks?” Alexia repeated
“Well, I figured some extensive time away was needed to be able to work everything out. Plus, the change of scenery would do us some good” JC repeated.
“Hmm, Christmas in the Poconos,” Alexia mused. “Real snow for once. Sounds nice, have you told the parents?” In the past six years since they had been living together, JC and Alexia would alternate visiting their families every Christmas. This year was supposed to be JC’s.
“Yeah, they were really cool with it. My mom told me to take all the time we needed. She said that since we were gonna be a family that it was important that we start our own traditions.”
Alexia stopped dead in her tracks. Hopefully that statement hadn’t given too much away. Karen was the only other person who knew that she was pregnant; she had bought the test for her at Thanksgiving. “Um, what else did she say?”
“Have fun.”
“Oh.” Good. “So, let’s start packing!”
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“So, here we are,” JC announced, upon opening the door to the Rustic two story Swiss chalet that would be their dwelling for the next couple of weeks.
“Wow,” Alexia marveled, her eyes bouncing from the tray ceiling to the smooth cherry wood walls and seemingly brand new black leather furniture. The chandelier lights reflected off the coffee table and hardwood floors, and the red Moroccan themed rug in front of the fireplace gave it a homey feel. “So, this is ours?”
“Yeah, well for two weeks anyway,” JC replied setting their suitcases down.
“This… this is amazing!” Alexia exclaimed, exploring more of the house. Walking up the two steps that led to the kitchen, she marveled at the granite countertops and sub-zero refrigerator. Alexia walked over to the sliding glass door, pulled it back and stepped out onto the expansive sundeck overlooking the lake and rows and rows of snow covered oak trees.
“Beautiful, isn’t it?” JC said, coming from behind and wrapping his arms around her torso. He was glad that he made the decision to come. They really needed this time to be together and repair things.
“Yeah,” Alexia replied, turning to face JC, and placing a quick kiss on his lips. She smiled brightly, “let’s explore this place a little more, shall we?”
“Mmm, I like the way you think.”
So far, things had already been different. Making love in the middle of the daytime, in the large master bedroom, with the soothing sounds of Jazz music playing was a far cry from the way things were back home. “That was so good,” Alexia sighed pulling the sheets up over her body, and resting her back against the headboard.
“More like incredible,” JC replied, coming up to lay soft gentle kisses along her jaw line and down her neck. Alexia giggled, as she reveled in the fact that she was in a luxurious vacation home, in a secluded area of the woods alone with her fiancé. This was paradise. “So, are you sure you don’t want any of this wine?” He asked, picking up his glass from the nightstand, and taking a sip.
“I’m sure,” Alexia replied.
“C’mon Allie, this is a 1937 Chateau Margaux, it’s the finest.”
Alexia smiled. JC had always been such a wine connoisseur. He had been trying to get her to drink since they had gotten there, but if he only knew. “Maybe at dinner,” she replied, pushing off his advances once more. No wine for her tonight, or for the next seven months for that matter. “Speaking of dinner, get dressed, there’s this place just off of Woodland Road that I wanna try,” she said sneaking a kiss in, before getting up from the bed.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
“Let’s see, I’ll have the Halibut Oreganato,” JC said, giving his order to the waiter. “Allie, what about you?”
Alexia quickly scrolled down the menu once more her mouth watering in the process. The Frutti Di Mare, which consisted of Lobster and Clams, nope. The Salmone Piccante consisted of salmon and spicy shrimp; that was a definite no. “Um, how about the Bistecca Tagliatta?” She finally said, in a perfect Italian accent.
“Coming right up,” the waiter replied, after taking their menus.
“You look so beautiful,” JC said, looking across the table at his beautiful fiancée’.
“Thank you,” Alexia smiled, blushing. This was perfect. Everything was perfect; the soothing ambience of the restaurant, the private room all to themselves, the candlelight. It was almost magical. If there were ever a more perfect time to tell him, it was now. “Josh, Honey, there’s something I have to tell you,” she said, reaching across the table and taking hold of his hand.
“What is it?” JC asked, becoming a bit concerned.
“Well, I’ve been waiting for the perfect moment to tell you, and what seems like a more perfect time than now? I think the moment is right and-“
Alexia was soon cut off, by the shrill ring of a telephone.
“Can you hold that thought for a second, Babe?” JC asked.
“Is… is that your cell phone?” Alexia scoffed.
“Yeah, sorry this will just take a minute,” he said, pulling his phone out of his jacket pocket, and standing up to leave the private room they were in.
“I can’t believe this!” Alexia said out loud after he slammed the door shut behind him. Talk about a moment ruined. A few minutes later, JC came walking back into the room.
“Sorry about that, that was Jimmy,” he explained, sitting back down at the table.
“That was a work call?” Alexia scoffed.
“He just wanted to brief me on what was happening back in LA.”
“You’re taking a work call on our vacation?”
“I can’t believe you’re getting so upset about this,” JC exclaimed, not thinking very much of his actions.
“I can’t even believe you couldn’t even be considerate enough to turn your phone off during dinner!” Alexia replied, raising her voice.
“Alexia, lower your voice,” JC hissed. “We are in a public place.”
“The very reason why we flew some two thousand miles up here was so that it could just be us, and not work coming in between us all the time!”
“Lexie relax,” JC whispered, trying to calm her down. “Are you okay Sweetie, maybe you’re just a little tired-“
“Oh don’t patronize me, Joshua!”
“I wasn’t, I was just-“
“You were just trying to deflect the problem, once again.”
“Oh and what’s that supposed to mean?”
“It means that every time I address an issue with you, you completely deflect it, and place the blame on me.”
“Allie, that is not true,” JC replied, growing angrier himself.
“When I brought up the fact that you worked too much, you got offended and totally flipped the script.”
“Did I lie? Do you not work just as hard as I do?”
“Oh, I’m not denying that I’m not passionate about my work, but what you don’t know is that the extra hours I’ve picked up have been planning our wedding, that you have had absolutely zero say in,” she said, holding up her left hand and wiggling her ring finger, emphasizing her engagement ring.
“I… I’m sorry, Lexie, I didn’t think-“
“That’s right, Josh, you didn’t think.”
JC felt like such an ass, because right now, a wedding was the farthest thing from his mind.
“Just take me home Josh,” Alexia said,
“What?”
“Let’s just go back to the house,” she repeated. “I’m not in the mood to be out right now. I just want to go to bed.”
And just like that, they were back to square one.
