Love Never Fades

xxerikamariexx

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Erika was always wanted to settle down and have a family and have a loving husband. She had all that up until a year ago. She had a husband whom she loved and she had two boys, at times they could be rambunctious but she loved them nonetheless. Erika was a substitute school teacher and her husband worked for a law firm. They had a good marriage until things just began to fall apart. It was neither of their faults but, the connection simply wasn't there. The two got divorced which left Erika with the two boys in such a big house. Her ex-husband came by on the weekends to pick up the boys. He usually had the boys on weekends. Erika had been seeing this guy named Jason but he wasn't really her cup of tea. He was good for pleasure but other than that, he was like a door knob. Her ex-husband was seeing some blonde bimbo who Erika didn't particularly like. Her ex-husband respected that Erika had "moved on" so, Erika thought she'd do the same for her ex. The truth of the matter was that she never did get over her ex-husband. Even after their divorce, he knew her well and she liked to believe she knew her ex better than his latest bimbo.

When Erika heard the knock on the door, she knew her ex was here to pick up the boys. Erika was supposed to go out with Jason but he canceled which didn't surprise Erika. Erika was wearing her favorite pair of jeans and a buttoned down shirt that showed her curvy self. "Come in, the boys should be right down." She said. Even though she didn't like her ex's bimbo of choice right now, the two were still on good terms.

ooc: Last player left so looking to start again. Sample PM please. I'm thinking some eventual flirting between exes which will eventually turn sexual.
 
"Don't let me bother you," Dax said as she simply turned and walked deeper into the house. Every time he picked up the boys, it was like this. She acted like she was over him, over them, and she made a point to show it. He followed her in and watched her hips sway, enjoying the view that he had enjoyed so often. She still looked great. He'd bet she still felt great.

"Why weren't they ready to go?" He asked, not really caring, but wanting to begin a dialogue of any sort. He walked over and opened the refrigerator, helping himself to a beer. Sure, it was her house now, but he knew where the beer was, and he would make a point to exert some control still. Leaning against the counter, he opened it and took a pull, eyeing her once more. "You look great," he said, matter of factly as if trying to sound simply polite. "How is Jason?" He asked, with a clear dismissive tone. He never thought much of this new guy he had heard rumors about. He certainly wasn't as good for her as Dax, in his own mind at least. And his recent fling had split, leaving him high and dry and alone at the moment. Again, he cared little for the answer, shifting gears once more to a final topic.

"I like what you've done with the backyard," he said, looking out the dining room blinds. "I would have enjoyed that," he said. "When you liked me." He let the words hang in the air, opening a door slightly to see if she stepped through it. He still liked her, or at least would like her for a night or a weekend. As he waited for his boys to appear, he simply took another sip and locked eyes with the still hot woman across from him, his intentions far from noble, but hoping to appeal to her still.
 
She let out a sigh when she let Dax in. Sometimes he could be pleasant and other times she just wanted to ring his neck. The boys had told her how he was seeing someone. And Erika immediately thought some blonde in a tight sweater. It wasn't always like this though. At one time, they did love each other. But they sort of fell out of that. The divorce was messy and turned ugly but for the sake of their boys, they had agreed, for the most part, to try to keep their animosity away from them. Despite their marriage ending, their boys were the best parts of them.

"Dax...don't start." She said. "The boys had a birthday party for one of the kids in their class." She told him. He always liked to blame everything on her. Typical. "Oh yes, just welcome yourself to my fridge." She rolled her eyes. He was still the same way as he always was.

She didn't like fighting with him, she honestly didn't. "You make it sound like I hate you...I don't." She said. "And don't pretend you care about Jason." She said. She had dated Jason for a few months but something was missing. Eventually the two went their separate ways. She wouldn't tell Dax that, not giving him the chance to rub it in her face.
 
"Don't start, what?" He asked with a shrug, sipping his beer. He grinned a bit as she whined about this Jason guy and whether it was okay to inquire about him. She was cute when she was irritated, he thought. He didn't like the idea of some new guy plowing her cute body, which used to be his to enjoy. Whatever, it didn't matter.

"I'm just asking because the boys talk about him, so I figure it must be okay somewhere that he come around them all the time. I mean, no reason THAT should cause any problems." His sarcasm was all he had. He couldn't yell at her, what would be the point. He could not get a court order modifying custody, not quickly at least. He could simply enjoy her beer and make his point clear. At the same time, he couldn't resist playing with her head a little.

"Do you let him see you in the little blue boy shorts you have? The ones I always asked you to wear to bed? He'd probably enjoy those like I did. Of course, I got to see them first."
 
"Don't start being a major asshole. We're in a good place." She said to him. The divorce proceedings were rocky. They were more than rocky, they turned pretty ugly quickly. But after the divorce, after we both had time to get adjusted to our lives desperate from one another, things seemed to smooth over.

She let out a sigh and rolled her eyes. He was still as sarcastic as ever. But they were in a good place. The boys lived with her but every weekend Dax took them. The boys loved their father. And despite whatever issues Erika had with Dax, she knew him to be a good father.

"What about your girlfriend there...Candice....whatever her name is." She said. Erika didn't exactly like the fact that another woman was hanging around her boys but she had to respect it since Dax didn't throw a fit about the boys spending time with Jason when she was seeing him.

"Boys! Get a move on, your dad is waiting." She called to them. They were moving incredibly slow. She hoped they would move a little faster because it was still hard for her to be around Dax. Despite how bad things turned out in the end for them, they had some very good times....great times in fact. And he was attractive as ever. Even with age, he still looked good. It was evident he kept in shape, just as he had when they were together.
 
"Her name's Carter," he responded, setting his beer down. "And what about her?" He looked at his ex, incredulous. "Can I not date someone in your world?" He felt his temper rising. Carter was cute, younger, a student that was fun and could keep him warm at night. He didn't love her. She could not be a mom to his boys, and he knew that. "If you're going to sleep with guys around the boys all the time, then there's no reason I can't date someone."

He listened for footsteps down the stairs after Erika called for the boys. He wished they would hurry up, so that he could leave the nagging behind. He crossed his arms and stopped talking. He was tired of the blame and finger pointing, at least for a moment. He glanced into the living room from where he stood. He noticed something unusual and commented on it.

"Did you take our picture down? The one from when we all went to the lake with Jarred and Jaimee?" The picture used to sit in a frame on the entertainment center. It had showed him in swim trunks, his arms around her, looking cute in a bikini as he kissed her cheek, while one of the boys was pushing the other who appeared to be falling in the foreground. He had loved that trip, and that picture. "Can I have it if you didn't throw it away?"
 
She got incredibly upset at him for what he insinuated. She grabbed his arm for a minute. "Don't you dare say that." It took a lot to upset her and she and Dax had been in a good place recently. "Those boys are number one in my life before any man. And they will always come first for me before any man." She said, incredibly defensive. "And for you to think I would let just any guy near OUR boys is absurd." She walked away from him and over to the fridge, upset with him for what he said.

"And just for the record, Jason NEVER spent the night when the boys were here." She said. It was none of his business. They weren't married anymore so it didn't concern him but she couldn't help but be angry. And to think they had been in a good place lately.

She knew the picture he was talking about. They were all so happy then. She had it tucked away upstairs in her bedroom. She had put it away in a dresser draw. If it wasn't for the boys, she would have kicked him out by now. She was incredibly offended.
 
"Ok, I'm sorry," he said, backing off. "I was just screwing with you. I shouldn't have said that." He shifted gears to say what he was really thinking. "You, uh. You look great," he said, honestly as one of his boys stomped down the stairs and wrapped an arm around his leg. "I like your hair that way."

"Are you.....um....are.....are you coming home, daddy," the boy said, looking straight up at him.

"I don't think so, you'll have to ask your mom," he said, rubbing the boy's head and sneaking a small, saddish grin toward his ex wife. "Where's your brother? Mom's gonna throw us all out if we don't go soon."

"Upstairs!" The boy pulled away and ran back upstairs in the awkward, stumbling way that little kids do, the pounding of his feet echoing through the house.

"Are you going to Robert's wedding next Saturday?" He asked her, referencing his former co-worker that had become friends with both of them during their short marriage. He had spent time with the family, hanging out with his girlfriend at his pool, and they had all shared several double dates or nights on the town. "I'll split a sitter with you, if you want to go," he paused. As an afterthought he included a hesitant thought. "I mean, we could go. Unless you're taking Jason." About that time both boys scampered down the stairs, ready to go to their dad's house.
 
Despite how badly she and Dax ended, those boys were the best parts of them. Jarred was a spitting image of Dax and her other son, looked so much like her. When one of the boys came down, she was in a daze for a minute. They were her reminder that she and Dax didn't screw up completely, they had two wonderful boys. Her heart ached a little when she heard one of the boys ask if their Dad was coming home. That was the one thing she knew she would never be able to give the boys. Dax was with Candice and Erika was single but there was too much history between them. It was just too much.

Every so often the boys would ask about their Dad. They got to spend weekends with him every single weekend unless Dax had some big business meeting to attend to. The one thing she knew about Dax was that he loved those boys. It pained her because her boys didn't like leaving her on the weekends despite spending time with their dad, and they didn't like coming home because it meant having to leave their Dad.

She laughed as one of the boys went running upstairs, his small feet pounding the hard wood floor. "It's like crickets when they're not here." She said. The house was eerily quiet when Dax took the boys for the weekend. She liked the time to herself but now since she and Jason split, it was lonely. But she knew how much her boys loved spending time with their father.

She thought about that picture she had tucked away in her bedroom. It was their last family trip together before the divorce. They were happy...all of them. The boys had fought on the car ride up there but once they got there, that weekend was filled with fun, happiness and family. She got lost in her own head for a minute.

"Oh Robert. I got his invitation a few weeks ago." She said. She didn't like going to big functions like that anymore. She always had to field questions about Dax. Everyone thought they'd eventually get back together but she knew better. And she could never bring Jason because the topic of Dax would inevitably come up and that would have been awkward. But Jason was a non issue now. She realized that despite wanting a man in her life again, someone to complete her like Dax had, she knew Jason wasn't that person. She also knew Jason would never be a father to her boys. That was the hardest part. She knew she would have to meet an amazing man in order for him to be part of her life, a part of her boy's life.

"I...was going to pass. You know, Robert's your friend and you know how those things can be...." She trailed off. Ever since the divorce, things of the nature were just awkward and she didn't want to subject herself to that.
 
Dax picked up the boys' bags and turned to face her before they all left. "Well, ok. But if you change your mind, you know."

"Daaaaaaad!" came a little voice from below. "What are we doing this weekend."

"Guys weekend," he said to his son whose attention had already shifted to something he found more exciting as he ran out the door toward the car. "Hookers and blow," Dax grinned, proud of the joke the boys didn't likely hear. He walked to the car and tossed the two bags into the back of his SUV. "Come on boys," he said, prompting them to run over to where he was. He lifted Jarred up and placed him in a car seat in the back, while Bradley climbed in on his own and hopped into his seat. After both seatbelts were buckled, Dax told them to say bye to their mom.

"Bye!" The boys called, both grinning, not entirely aware of the tension and awkwardness in the air.

"We," he began to tell his ex wife, "are going to the zoo on Sunday. Right boys?"

"Yeah!" shouted Bradley.

"I don't want to!" shouted Jarred.

"Jay, I will feed you to the bears," Dax said.

"Nuh uh!" said the boy.

"Do you boys want to feed mom to the bears?"

"Yeah!!!" they both said.

"So, you think she needs to come to the zoo with us?"

"Yeah!!!" Dax looked at Erika as he got into the car and rolled down the window.

"If you want to go," is all he said, putting on his sunglasses and starting the car. "Just let me know and I'll have Bradley drive over here and pick you up."

"Daaaaad, I want pizza!!!!"

"I'm feeding them bread and water," Dax said with a grin. "I'll see you later."
 
She couldn't help but laugh at the little fight between her boys. They were boys alright. They were so much like Dax it was insane. Even when she having a terrible day, she just looked at them and they reminded her that everything else didn't matter.

"Behave for your dad!" She told them. Despite how they fought, they were well-behaved for the most part. She couldn't complain, they were truly great kids.

"See you..." She said as she watched her ex-husband take off with their boys.

The quiet was daunting now that the boys were gone for the weekend. She didn't hear any fighting, no stomping of their cute feet. She actually missed those sounds when they weren't home. She sighed, figuring she could do some cleaning around the house and other errands.

A few hours later, she found herself on the couch and in a matter of minutes she was asleep. Her body must have needed the rest. She got up from the couch and slipped into a hot shower, changing into her clothes for the evening. She found herself back in the living room, opening up a bottle of wine and thought of Dax's offer.

They didn't argue in front of the boys normally but she thought it would be a good idea to present a united front. And the boys always liked spending time with both of them. She reached for phone and Dax's name was still in there. She never got around to deleting it...that would make it permanent. She sighed, she hoped Candice wasn't there because Candice didn't typically like Erika. But Erika figured since it was late enough, the boys would be in bed.

She hit Dax's name on her phone and listened to it ring, waiting for him to pick up and hoping she didn't regret this.
 
Dax loved his boys, but man it was work keeping track of two little heathens on his own. He drove off and entertained himself by playing a little Ice Cube while the boys tried to learn the lyrics. It amused him hearing the two kids busting out some 80s gangsta rap, and he found it to be one of the funniest things ever. After a drive through Little Cesar's and loading the boys up with pizza, he managed to get them to bed at a reasonable time. Saturdays usually included a bunch of errands with the boys tagging along, and then they would grab lunch somewhere fun, somewhere they enjoyed, and tomorrow would be the same. The last few weeks, they watched movies in the evening with Carter on Saturdays. But she had decided to party a bit more with friends her age, and he needed a break from her anyway. He actually didn't know if he would see her again or not. This weekend truly would be a guys' weekend.

With the boys finally asleep after a few false starts, he grabbed an amber beer from the fridge and poured it into a chilled glass before sitting in his favorite chair. He looked around his condo, which was nice, but much smaller, much less cozy, and not as quiet sitting square in the center of downtown. He sighed and turned on Sportscenter. While the hosts reported on the Heat-Knicks game, his phone rang.

Erika said the name on the screen.

This should be interesting, he thought to himself after wondering a moment whether to answer at all.

"Hello?" he said, pressing the phone to his ear.
 
She took a deep breath. She was already beginning to regret this. She would regret this even more if Carter was there. She would regret it big time if she had interrupted Dax and Carter having sex...definitely not an image she needed to have in her head. Definitely not. As much as Erika didn't like Carter, she had to respect that Dax had every right to have a woman in his life. She didn't have to like it, she just had to pretend that she did. The boys told her that Carter was cool but even Erika knew that Carter was not mother to her boys material.

"Hey...." She said, letting her voice trail off a bit. "I hope I'm not catching you at a bad time." She said. "I hope our little trouble makers weren't too much trouble." She laughed softly, knowing it was ironic. But also knowing that their boys were pretty well behaved for their age.

"I thought about what you said earlier. I mean, if the offer still stands...for tomorrow." She said. Post divorce, they were in a relatively good place most of the time. And she knew the boys would be thrilled that the four of them would be hanging out. They didn't do that anymore, well since the divorce. It was just easier that way. Dax had moved on and so had she even if she was single at this current moment.
 
"They were pretty good," he reported. "I had them MMA fight, and then when Jarred knocked out Bradley, I put them both to bed. I was just sitting here watching the Heat highlights." He sipped his beer and listened to his ex wife for a moment, and then his eyes widened a bit.

"Yeah," he said, when she mentioned tagging along to their guys' trip to the zoo. "The boys definitely want to feed the bears, so we'd love to have you." There was a time that would not have been a joke, when the divorce proceedings were at full rage. "We were actually going on Sunday. If you want, you can go with us and then just keep the boys once we're done. I mean, if you don't mind getting them a few hours early."

He sipped his beer again. He missed Erika. He missed squeezing her next to him, smelling her perfume. He missed kissing her. He missed just talking to her and sharing stupid little moments that happened each day. He missed sometimes having dinner at home when he got there. And he missed sex. God he missed sex. She knew his body and he always enjoyed hers, and their sex life had never let up or declined other than once things had become irreparable. It was then that the sex stopped entirely. He couldn't blame her, as she no longer loved him, and she likely feared that as vigorous as he could be anyway, he might endanger her if she let him approach her in bed while he was furious amidst the fighting and hostility leading up to the divorce. He suspected this call was, however, in no way about him. She missed her boys. And he knew she was fucking Jason anyway. Part of divorce is growing up, even more than you have, especially with two little boys. This wasn't about him at all. It was simply another new and strange situation that he would have to adapt to, which made him a bit uncertain at the moment.

"I can pick you up around ten, if you still want to go," he told the girl on the other end of the line.
 
"You and that SportsCenter." She joked softly. Dax was big into sports, he always had been. He had tried to teach her the ins and outs of football early on in their relationship but that was a lost cause. She just wasn't sports inclined and soon they both accepted that. She was glad their boys had behaved themselves. She knew it was hard for them and that was the hardest for her. It was hard for her anyway, moving on from Dax, she had thought they would always be together. But between their work and just daily life, things had gotten hard and they ultimately drifted apart. But when her boys would ask for Dax, that's what did her in. Sometimes at dinner they'd ask her if Dax could come over and they would bring him up all the time. She knew they missed him and she also knew there wasn't a single thing she could do about it.

She was working on the bottle of wine she opened. She sipped it, enjoying the quiet but also realizing how much she hated it. Her times with Dax weren't all bad. Before the divorce and before things went south, things were really good. They had tried for a long time for their boys so when it actually happened, it changed them. She closed her eyes for a minute, thinking about that. She missed the way he slept next to her. He knew her body in ways no other man would probably ever know. And the sex? God, it was amazing. Hell, she missed the sex. Some nights they would have hot, passionate sex and other nights he would make love to her and as hard as she tried to forget about that, it sometimes creeped into her mind.

And she knew she shouldn't let it. Dax was with Carter, someone much younger. And every time she found herself missing Dax, she had to remind herself that he was fucking Carter. Did that make her jealous? Maybe. But she also knew he didn't love Carter, just like she knew she didn't love Jason....at least not in that way. She found herself getting lost in her thoughts for a moment.

"Um...yeah, I'd love to." She told him. She felt a tear slip down the side of her face. The divorce had been bad...it had been a knock out, drag out fight, and she remembered those days well. They said some pretty nasty things to each other. Soon as the divorce proceedings started, Dax moved out and some days after meetings with lawyers, she'd come home and it would tear her apart. She often wondered how two people who loved each other once could be so hateful to one another. She thought about how happy they once were and that killed her because she knew she'd never have that again. Dax was the father of her boys and the love she felt for him was one she new she would never be capable of feeling again.

"Sorry to cramp your boys weekend." She smiled a little into the phone.
 
"It's not a problem," he told her. "The boys will love having you there." He paused and thought for a moment. "No hot date tonight? Or no going out with friends?" He wasn't sure he needed or wanted an answer. A few months back, a friend of his had seen Erika at a local pool bar and made the terrible choice to tell him that his ex looked amazing in some gray leggings and a cute sweatshirt, playing shuffleboard with some guy, who he presumed was Jason. His friend told him that as they played, the guy she was with would run his hand over her ass or over her lower back as he pretended to help line up her shot. Once it looked like the guy was grinding against her as they played. The story did nothing but enrage and upset him, imagining some giant guy fucking his wife from behind later that night. His ex-wife, anyway. Since then, he often wondered about her weekends when it was not his place. "Sorry," he said. "It's not my business."
 
"You'll have to make sure they don't throw me to the bears." She joked a little as she took a sip of her wine. She knew the boys would be happy that they were all spending time together. Ever since the divorce, they didn't do that anymore. It was pretty bad, a nasty knock out fight. But they seemed to get back from that. Sure, sometimes Dax would say something that really angered her but for the most part, they were in a good place.

She heard what he asked and she could have told him it was none of his business but she didn't. "No...just me a big glass of wine." She said. Sure, Jason was fun for awhile. He was good in bed but even the sex wasn't that great. And at this stage in her life, she wanted more than just some random hookup. She had two boys, she wasn't some twenty something anymore.

"Carter didn't want to go to the zoo with you guys tomorrow?"Shew knew she was crossing a line by asking but she did it anyway. She hated the idea of Carter spending time with her boys. It made her livid. Carter wasn't mother material and she didn't like Carter being all motherly to her boys. And she also didn't like Carter with Dax. She hated it. She had found out about Carter through a mutual friend of her and Dax's. He told her that he saw Dax at some bar with a hot young thing, who barely had any clothes on. She had a skirt that was too short, her breasts almost exposed. And Carter was pressing up against Dax. That enraged her because she was pretty sure that night she would be all over Dax's dick. Carter just wasn't classy. She was a mess. Erika knew it wasn't her business who Dax fooled around with but it still made her mad.

"It's fine..." She shrugged. She knew Dax was with Carter and as much as she hated it, she had to pretend to be okay with it.
 
He smirked a bit when she asked about Carter. Normally she called her Candice, so he was surprised she remembered her name this time. He had met Carter when she had appeared at court with a co-counsel on one of the firm's cases. She was interning for another firm at the time. She looked cute in court that day, and he quickly began talking with her when he bumped into her the following week at a Brazilian Carnival themed party at a local happy hour. There, she had worn a tiny summer dress and a deep tan. Carter was nine years younger than Dax, and coming off his fresh divorce, he was only in the mood for one thing, and Carter happily provided it after a couple of dinners and drinks. Even though he appreciated her willingness to serve as his plaything, he and she both knew it was merely a fling for a few weeks or months. He njoyed her in every way during that time. Now, he hadn't actually seen her in several days and she wasn't much on his mind.

"I didn't mention it to her," he answered Erika's question, not revealing the split between him and his recent, shiny toy. He changed the subject once more. "Hey, I have to go out of town in two weeks over the weekend. "I'm going to need to leave the boys with my sister, unless you just want to keep them an extra weekend," he said. "I don't want to interfere with any plans you have." His friends had planned a couples trip to San Diego, and he and Carter had planned on going. She was no longer going, but his money was non-refundable, so he was still stuck with tickets and a beach condo, and he knew there were plenty of girls on the beach. "If that's a problem, just let me know," he told Erika.
 
She found herself glad that Dax hadn't mentioned the zoo with the boys to Carter. Whatever Dax and Carter were doing, she didn't exactly want Carter around her boys. She had to co-parent with Dax now that they were divorced but that became harder when he was around a ditzy twenty something. And maybe part of her was a little jealous. When things were good with Dax, they had been great...pretty amazing. And she knew deep down that Carter didn't appreciate that and she probably never would. Erika had to keep reminding herself that who Dax slept with wasn't her concern.

"It's not a problem." She said. She wanted to laugh because she had zero plans. Ever since she and Jason split, she spent her weekends alone. She knew she should probably hit the bar for the bar scene and mix and mingle, and do all the stuff you're supposed to do when you're single but she didn't. She was at the stage in her life where she wanted to be with a respectable man, one who could accept her boys.

"The boys might be a little disappointed. I'm not as cool as you." She joked a bit. The boys loved their dad and they loved spending time with him. Ideally, they boys liked it when they all spent time together. That hadn't been happening much lately, well since the divorce. She knew the boys would be happy about them all spending time together tomorrow, even for just a short time.
 
"You're not as cool as I am, that's for sure," he agreed with her assessment. "But you're way cuter," he told her. He was being sincere. His ex-wife always turned him on. From the moment he had first seen her, he found her to be sexy, yet girlish, innocent yet sultry, and always appealing. He often thought about how great she was in bed, how much he enjoyed making love to her, and how much he enjoyed simply fucking her as hard as he wanted. She was the girl that knew him best and always would be.

"We'll see you at ten," he told her before getting off the phone. Her voice was always sweet in her ear, and he missed a lot of little things that she did. He was cranky about sitting here alone when his cute ex wife was home alone too. But he put away any thought that she still wanted him. He figured Jason was making her his own every chance he got, and she seemed happy enough and independent enough to be sure she was not into him any longer.

He got up and grabbed another beer, before returning to his chair, gazing at his phone. He pulled up Carter's name and hacked out a quick text.

You up? he asked. He sat watching television a few moments before the girl he had most recently been seeing finally responded.

"Hey," her text said.

Boys are asleep.

"And?"

Thought you might want to come over.

"Umm, NO."

He thought about a response, but really could think of nothing substantial. He would not beg. The fact was that Carter liked to party on her terms. Her terms were that she came around when she wanted to, but was careful to not get too close. At her age, she didn't want commitment. Sometimes she wanted to simply have a nice cock to play with. Sometimes, she wanted one that wasn't his. And while he had pressed her for more, she wasn't interested, and the last time he had seen her, she made it clear she wanted to be free to do what she wanted. He then shut down and pretty much backed away. Their connection had grown cold, and while they still had these little exchanges occasionally, it felt like the chill that began the end of a relationship. And it bothered him that she had taken to his boys, enough that they loved when she came around, only to be confused about why she stopped.

Whatever was the only response he could muster. He took a moment to hack out one more message.

Goodnight, E. He sent to his ex-wife, just before sitting the phone down beside him.
 
She let out a heavy sigh once she hung up with Dax. "See you tomorrow..." She said out loud. She was making a pretty good dent in her bottle of wine. She rarely drank when the boys were home and if they were home, she usually didn't drink till they were in bed. She was thinking a lot about Dax. He was the father of her boys, he gave her the greatest gift in the entire world. And before the divorce, she loved him. Hell, a part of her loved him even now. She remembered the days in which he'd come up behind her in the kitchen and kiss her neck. It sent shivers through her body when he did that. And the way he would make love to her was different than any other man she had been with.

She thought about texting Jason. Maybe he'd want to come over and hang out. She and Jason pretty much ended things. She was older and she wanted something more than just a fling. Sure, the sex was fun but she was lonely. And she knew if Jason came over, it would feel good for a little while but at the end of the night she'd still be lonely. She had tried to convince herself she was over Dax, that she didn't love him anymore but she knew the truth. She was lying to herself. She knew she would never meet another man who knew her as well as Dax.

She heard her phone buzz. She picked it up from the couch and saw Dax's name across the screen. Goodnight E, he had written. She smiled as he always called her that. Was it weird if she texted him back? They didn't normally text. Hell, the only time they really talked was when it was about the boys. What the hell....she was feeling tipsy and lonely and pretty miserable. So what if she texted her ex-husband.

Goodnight Dax. She typed out before hitting send. Part of her had to wonder if Carter was with him. She hoped to God she wasn't. Did that make her jealous? Maybe a tiny bit.
 
He saw her response, then settled in, finished his drink, and slowly made it down the hall to get ready for bed. He pulled on some sleep pants and pulled off his shirt. The bed was cold, which he hated. He was eager for a time again when it never would be. He drifted to sleep quickly, waking early when his boys began screaming in the living room. He jumped out of bed before he was fully awake, only to find that Jarred had pushed Bradley into the door frame over some dispute that was already forgotten among the pain and tears.

He picked Bradley up from the heap he was on the floor, and as the boy put his face into his neck, he asked the oldest brother why he had done what he had.

"Because I hate him," Jarred shouted with an unseen vitriol.

"Jarred, that's enough of that." Dax said. It was unusual for either boy to be so cruel toward the other.

"But he, he said he wants to go back to mom's!" Dax became angry himself. He hated this kind of battle over the hearts of the boys. He knew their mother had not done this, or planted that seed. But he wondered if her mother had, or perhaps her new boyfriend said something. It was a bullshit thing that came with divorce and threatened to be a powder keg between he and his ex wife, as if things could not be worse or they could be farther apart.

"Get in your room," he told Jarred, who began to cry on his own as he stormed off. He brushed Bradley's hair away, and the boy had a nice, but small, cut over his eye. "Ugh, mom's gonna like that," Dax mumbled, more to himself than his son. He cleaned it up before making the boys hug and make up, then feeding them eggs and telling them to get ready for the zoo. The weather was perfect, and it would be 80 degrees and beautiful. He threw on jeans and a nice designer t-shirt. He always liked to look good around Erika, even if she was no longer in to him. Moments later, they were in the car headed to pick her up.
 
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