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Chapter Fourteen

              Bright blue eyes look back at me, similar ones to those that have held my heart since that night in October.

             
“Cake!” He yells.

             
I smile at him and yell back enthusiastically, “Yes, cake!”

             
“One!” He holds up his index finger high in the air.

             
I laugh. “Yes, one!”

              I finish putting his shoes on as Jason walks in the room.

             
“So who’s a big boy today?” He asks playfully.

             
“Da-Da! One!”

             
He laughs. “Yes, sir, one!”

             
Picking Jayden up from my lap he kisses him on the forehead and swings him in his arms back and forth.

             
Jayden laughs and repeats “more” over and over again.

             
I watch them both from the chair I’m sitting in and think about everything that’s happened since that night at the hospital.

             
Not only do we have Jayden in our lives from that night but I became free from Zac soon after.

             
I smile thinking back to when Zac’s parents showed up to my hospital room begging me not to press charges against their precious son.

             
“Please, Alex, you cannot press charges against Zac. It will ruin the family name and he will go to jail making us all look like a bunch of poor, un-educated low life’s.” Zac’s mother Danielle says with a face full of disgust.

             
I look back at her with that same look of disgust. “You people are just that, Danielle. You just don’t see it because you’re so blinded by what you have. You’re all pieces of shi—“

             
Jason makes a grab for my hand and starts rubbing circles on my knuckles. “Alexandra, why don’t we let these people tell us something we are interested in…?”

             
I close my eyes and sigh heavily. “Fine, tell me something I want to hear Danielle because right now I’m two seconds away from walking down to the police station myself. Hospital gown and all, to press charges against your beloved son.”

             
All I want to do is have these people out of my life forever. I don’t want to see them again.

             
She panics and tries to come near me but Jason stands up and holds his hands up. “You’re not going near her, say what you have to, and then get out.”

             
She hesitates but continues, “Alex, Henry and I came to offer a trade for your cooperation in not filing anything against Zac.”

             
Henry, Zac’s father is a tough gray haired man that doesn’t care about anyone else but himself and has always held Zac to the utmost standards, which is probably why he is the way he is. He never says anything, just stands back behind his wife with no care in the world other than keeping their son’s dirty little secret as quiet as possible so it doesn’t affect them.

             
I laugh sarcastically. “What could you possibly have to say or offer me in order for me to keep Zac out of jail?” I ask incredulously.

             
Her lips thin out as she says, “Money. Just name your price.”

             
I roll my eyes. “You’ve got to do better than that, Danielle. I’ve never wanted your money and you know that,” I say appalled that she would think she can buy me off with her filthy money.

             
She straightens out her Burberry coat and shakes some hair out of her face. “Fine. What do you want?”She asks, irritated.

             
Jason and I look at each other and smile because the only thing we want from them is the thing that will allow us to finally be together.

             
“Signed divorce papers,” I state confidently.

             
That’s all it took for me to not send their son to jail and get what I had wanted since the day I realized my mistake.

             
Zac and his family have been out of our lives for about two years now.

             
He never came near the hospital to see me and I haven’t heard from him since Magda’s wedding.

             
I heard through the grapevine that he disappeared after the ‘incident’ to help people forget about what happened.

             
I was ecstatic to get my divorce and soon after I did, Jason and I got married in an intimate ceremony at Old Saint Joe’s, the St. Norbert College Chapel.

             
We figured since we met there. That’s where we wanted to seal our love for each other.

             
It was just Magda, Jesse, Jason, me, and our growing baby at the time. I wasn’t too far along with Jayden, so the pregnancy wasn’t noticeable yet.

             
Magda was my witness as well as my maid of honor.

             
After the night Zac showed his true colors to everyone, she gave me a good talking to about being open with her because she felt like we were sisters and we needed to share everything with each other. I came clean with her soon after she came back to the hospital because she was hysterical and wouldn’t stop crying and blaming herself for what had transpired with Zac.

             
I’ve been open to all the people I love in my life about everything that happened in my marriage and my relationship with my mother. To my surprise, none felt pity for me, just sadness for what I had been through.

             
We all moved to Chicago after Jason and I got married. Magda and Jesse followed because they said they couldn’t be that far away from their one Godchild. It wasn’t hard for them to soon find jobs that fit the ones they were leaving behind.

             
Jason had already started his own company called Strong Angel Construction so he was all settled.

             
It was a huge change for all of us but it was a good one. There were too many bad memories in De Pere that wouldn’t allow for a fresh start. We wanted to move on with our lives and Chicago was where it was going to happen.

             
It took them all a while to stop blaming themselves for pushing me into an abusive relationship and for not being able to see the signs of it happening. We’ve worked that out, though.

             
Since Jayden was born on December 5
th
of last year, we have all moved past what happened. Our whole lives are surrounded by the love we feel for each other and for this little person that turns one year old today.

             
I shake my head, smiling. “Jason, stop it, you’re gonna make him puke on his birthday.” I stand up and take him from his arms.

             
“Come here, baby,” I say giving him kisses all over his face, making him laugh nonstop.

             
“Come on, babe, he was having fun,” Jason says, pouting.

             
I roll my eyes and grunt. “Not the lips…you know what they do to me and we don’t have time for that right now. Magda’s going to bust through the door at any moment with Jesse in toe.”

             
I give him a kiss on his lips that still, to this day drive me wild with want.

             
He makes a grab for my waist as I pull away from him.

             
“Are you sure we don’t have time? Just a fast one, baby…” He whispers in my ear.

             
I shiver, involuntarily—yes, he still causes my body to do involuntarily movements.

             
“No, Jason. Come on…you know it’s never a fast one. Besides we have to finish getting everything ready. I have to go pick up the cake so you have to make sure that Magda and Jesse don’t go overboard with more decorations and keep Jayden away from the presents until I get back. Now, back away, Mr. Roberts,” I say with a wink.

             
He sighs, “Later, then, Mrs. Roberts.”

             
I smile as I give Jayden back to him and start for the door out of Jayden’s room.

             
“You sure you don’t want me to go get it?” Jason asks as he starts walking towards me.

             
“No, babe. It’ll be fine. I want to make sure that they got every detail right on his SpongeBob cake. I know you don’t know what it’s supposed to look like, so I’ll go, in case they need to fix it. I won’t be long. Just keep everyone entertained until I get back. Your family should be here soon too, so I’m gonna try to hurry back.”

             
He moves Jayden to his left hip and places his arm around my shoulders.

             
He kisses me on the lips. “What would I do without you? I love you, don’t ever forget that. You make me the happiest man alive.”

             
I smile and kiss him back. “Back at ya’.”

             
We walk through our living room that’s already filled with balloons, confetti, and some sort of banners that say ‘Happy Birthday’.

             
It was only going to be an intimate family gathering but Magda decided to go all out and decorate our whole house with birthday decorations.

             
I smile as I walk through and bump into a life size SpongeBob blow up doll by the couch.

             
The doorbell rings and I run to get it.

             
Magda barges in through the door with an angry expression. “Since when do I have to ring the doorbell?” She asks annoyed.

             
I smile remembering that we lock the door now.

             
“Since the last time you and Jesse decided to walk in on me and Jason doing—uh—yoga together.” I blush and Jason laughs.

             
Jayden says, “Yo—ga—ga.”

             
We all laugh.

             
“I’m outta here. I gotta go pick up the cake.”

             
I get my coat from the closet and put it on before telling Magda not to overdo it anymore with the decorations.

             
All I get in return was a “no promises” look.

             
As Jesse bumps fists with Jason he adds, “Can’t let Jayden be the only one on this block to not have a kick balls birthday party.”

             
I reach the doorknob but turn back to address that comment. “First of all, don’t say ‘balls’ in front of my one year old. Second, please control your wife. Third, make sure Jayden stays away from the presents. Jason is a softy so he’ll give in at some point.”

             
I wink at Jason and blow both my boys a kiss as I make my way out the door into the cold Chicago winter air.

             
I get in my Toyota Sequoia and turn it on to hear Beyonce singing ‘I was here’ on the radio.

             
Looking into the rearview mirror to back out of the driveway, I see my worst nightmare—Zac.

             
He’s standing right in the middle of the road making it impossible for me to back up without hitting him.

             
My head starts spinning with worry. I close my eyes and look again. He’s still standing there in a black pea coat looking mad as hell.

             
What the hell is he doing here? How did he find me?
Oh, God, my whole family is in there.
Shit!
I have to control my nerves here. This is a psycho I’m dealing with.

             
I just have to play along and make him go away.

             
I take a deep breath before opening my door and getting out apprehensive about what’s about to go down.

             
“What are you doing here, Zac?” I ask seemingly calm, but on the inside I’m a nervous wreck.

             
He starts walking towards me but I stand my ground to show him I’m not scared.

             
I have to keep him away from my family.

             
He gets closer than I would like before responding, “Just wanted to stop by and say ‘Happy Birthday’ to the birthday boy.”

             
I tense and hold my breath. My whole body goes into high alert.

             
“I don’t know what you’re talking about. You should leave. You shouldn’t be here, Zac.” I say trying to keep my family out of this.