The Journey Home

by Kelly Elliott

I watched as our baby girl took her first bites of cereal. She looked so much like Cale. Her hair was coming in more and more and it was a very light brown. She now had enough hair that I could put a little Velcro bow in it. Her bright blue eyes sparkled as she lifted her eyebrows with each bite Cale gave her.

  “She is so precious. I can’t wait until y’all give her veggies. I have to be here when you do.” Monica glanced over to Jack and smiled. “I’m so glad we didn’t leave for our honeymoon until tomorrow!” Jack looked at Maddie like she had grown two heads.

  Cale pushed the bowl toward me. “You want to feed her some now?”

  “Yes!” I nodded in excitement as I handed him my phone. I put a small amount of cereal on the spoon and gave it to Lily. She was loving it. She started mouthing for more. “Look, she wants more!”

  I gave her another spoonful and she started talking again. “Dadadada…” I peeked over to Cale and my heart soared as he dabbed the corner of his eye.

  Jack sighed and stood up. “Oh for the love of God. I liked the porn show better.”

  “MADDISON! MADDISON!”

  I turned to see who’d been calling out my name. When I saw that it was my mother, I took a deep breath and slowly let it out. She walked through the library at Crystal Bridges as she called out my name, clearly not caring that she was in a library. I hadn’t spoken to her since Lily’s party when she was three months old.

  I plastered a fake smile on my face and waited for her to come up to me. She kissed me on both cheeks. “Did your father let you know I was back from Greece? I just flew in this morning.”

  I nodded. My mother had gone to Greece two months ago and I’d never seen my father so happy. He’d been coming over at least three times a week to spend time with Lily and us. He’d fallen head over heels in love with our daughter. He also informed me he was going to be divorcing my mother.

  “He did tell me, yes,” I said.

  She smiled weakly. “I thought so, since he had dinner with you and Cale last night.”

  “What are you doing here?” I asked.

  She looked around. “I heard you were still working here…part time.”

  I gave her a fake grin. “Yep, I’m working here at the library. I absolutely love it.”

  She waved her hand in the air as she looked around. “You don’t find this type of work to be a waste of your college education, Maddison?”

  I sighed. “No, Mother, I don’t. I enjoy it and it allows me to spend time with Lily.”

  She raised her eyebrow. “The child who is not yours.”

  I swallowed hard and looked directly into her eyes, scowling. “She is mine,” I said. “I’m her mother, and she is my daughter. We are a family. She and Cale are my life.”

  “I don’t see a ring on your finger.” She said coldly.

  I glanced down at her hand. Her wedding band was missing. “I don’t see one on your finger either.”

  She snapped her eyes down to her hand, then back up to my eyes. “That’s because your father made a grave mistake this morning when he picked me up from the airport. He is seeking a divorce. I was hoping for some support and understanding from my daughter, but all I get is…this” She gestured with her hands. “Disrespect. Like always.”

  I rolled my eyes and turned to walk away, but she followed me. “Please, Mother. The last thing you came here for was support from me. You want information as to why Daddy is asking for a divorce.”

  “Does he have a lover?” She asked.

  I laughed lightly. “If he’s smart, he’s had one for a few years.”

  She grabbed my arm and pulled me to a stop. “Excuse me?”

  “I’m tired of this. I’m tired of being treated like I’m some damn mistake that you made years ago. If you didn’t love Daddy, why didn’t you just leave him? Stop acting like you’re the victim here, Mother. You are far from it. Daddy knows about your affair. He’s known for the last year.”

  She brought her hand up to her mouth. “What? How? I mean…” She looked away.

  I nodded and pulled my arm from her grip. My mother had been having an affair with one of my father’s business associates. They’d meet at a hotel or at my parents’ own home after my father would leave for work or when he was out of town.

  “Karma is a bitch, Mom. Good luck living without Daddy’s money.”

  I turned and walked toward the elevator. I was expecting her to follow, but when I looked back, she was just standing there, stunned. I stepped onto the elevator and leaned on the wall as I tried to calm down. I’d never stood up to my mother before, and I wasn’t sure if I was relieved or if the reality of having the worst mother in the world had just showed up on my doorstep.

  I walked out to my car and decided that I would be the mother to Lily that I’d always wanted. This nonsense about me not being Lily’s biological mother was now behind me. Regardless of our situation, I was going to be the best mother for her, and I would always be there for both her and Cale. As I walked through the endless trail of flowers, I took a moment to look around. I loved Crystal Bridges. Even in the winter, they had flowers planted. I loved the quietness of it. It had a way of calming my nerves. I closed my eyes and could hear the water running along the creek that flowed through the property.

  I stopped at my car and placed my hand on my stomach. Cale’s words replayed in my head:

  I want to have a baby…you and me.

  I pulled out my phone and texted Cale.

  Me: Dinner at JJ’s tonight?

  Cale: Sounds good to me.

  Me: I think Lily will love feeding the fish and turtles.

  Cale: Oh man, she will. I came home earlier and was talking to Mom. She’s heading out the door now. You may or may not have a surprise waiting for you when you get home.

  Me: I’m on my way! I need something to cheer me up. My mom came by to see me.

  Cale: Oh man. I’ll cheer you up. I got this, baby. I got this.

  I walked into the house and looked around. “Cale?”

  I walked into the kitchen, dining room, Cale’s office, and finally walked outside onto the deck. I looked down and saw him on the dock. Taking off my pumps, I made my way down the stone steps. It was mid-January and unusually warm. I looked around at the bare trees. There was a slight wind blowing, and I could smell the fire from a nearby fireplace. We hadn’t had much snow this year but, when we did, I loved sitting on the deck, wrapped up in warm blanket, looking out over the white landscape.

  As I made my way down, I noticed Cale didn’t have Lily. I panicked for a moment and thought about turning around. “Cale? Where’s Lily?”

  When he turned, the way he looked at me stopped me in my tracks. I sucked in a breath and my heart dropped to my stomach. He was so handsome and his smile drove me mad with desire.

  He began walking toward me, and that was when I noticed his bare feet. Oh Lord help me. I wanted to strip out of my clothes and beg him to take me then and there.

  “Lily is spending the night with her Grammy and Grampa.” Cale said, his voice laced with seduction as he sauntered my way. I smiled and tilted my head.

  “Is that right?” I asked as I slowly ran my tongue along my teeth. He stopped just short of me and placed his hand on my cheek. My stomach took an immediate dive and my hands trembled as I thought about all the things I wanted him to do to me.

  “I need you to go change.”

  I looked at him, confused. “Change into what? I would think you’d be asking me to undress.”

  One side of Cale’s mouth moved up into a grin and I was ready to drop to the ground and beg him to take me right that second. I felt my face flush at my wayward thoughts.

  “Why are you blushing, baby?” He asked as he moved his lips to mine. I moaned and placed my hands on his chest.

  “Cale, please, I want you,” I said, almost panting with desire. I looked up into his eyes and saw nothing but passion. I knew he wanted me, too.

  “I have somewhere I need to take you first.”
r />   I smiled. “If it’s to JJ’s, I think I’ll pass.”

  Cale laughed and shook his head. “No. Dress warm, we’ll be outside this evening.”

  I scrunched up my nose. “Outside? For dinner?”

  He turned me around and slapped my ass. “Yep! Come on, we need to get going.”

  “HOW WAS WORK?” I asked as Maddie got into the car. I grabbed her hand and gave it a kiss.

  “Good,” she said, grinning. “We closed early today, though, because someone was renting out the whole restaurant.” She wiggled her eyebrows. “It was being kept on the down-low. I’m guessing someone big must be using it.”

  I was looking back at the road as I shrugged. I headed into Bentonville and Maddie talked about Lily the whole time.

  “Can you believe she’s six months old, Cale? The time is just flying by.” She shook her head, smiling.

  I laughed. “I still can’t believe her poop turned orange. Scared the piss out of me.”

  Maddie laughed and squeezed my hand. “I can’t wait to give her something sweet. Can we do that tomorrow, do you think?” Maddie asked. I quickly glanced at her, then back at the road.

  “Sure we can! I don’t see why not. We’ve pretty much introduced her to all the veggies. Should we invite Jack and Monica over?”

  Maddie chuckled. “We totally should. Tell them we’re having a small dinner party.” Maddie put her hand to her mouth, trying to hold back a laugh. “I’m texting Monica right now!” she said, grabbing her phone.

  I was glad she was distracted, because I was driving straight to where she worked—Crystal Bridges. Crystal Bridges was an amazing place. Lily loved being in her stroller as we walked the trails.

  I pulled up to the front while Maddie texted Monica. I’d hired a few people to work that night, and originally had planned on using the restaurant. But when the weather turned out to be so nice, I made other arrangements.

  Maddie laughed, “Monica and Jack are a go for…” she started, then, seeing where we were, she said, “Wait. Why are we at Crystal Bridges?”

  I smiled and got out of the car. I walked around to the front of my car and up to a young lady standing there. “Mr. Blackwood, everything is ready. It looks beautiful. Thank you again for your generous donation, sir.”

  I nodded and said, “Thank you for taking care of all of this for me.”

  She nodded and smiled. “It was our pleasure.”

  I opened Maddie’s door. She sat there, stunned. I held out my hand and helped her out of the car.

  “Cale, what are we doing here? They have a private event tonight!”

  I chuckled. “We’re just going to go for a walk on the trails, baby. I just want to spend some time with you at a place that is dear to your heart.”

  She smiled and shook her head. “I thought…what about dinner?”

  I grabbed her hand and started for the trail. “Dinner is still on.”

  We walked along the trail in silence. I knew how much Maddie loved it here. The gardens were breathtaking, even during the middle of winter. The pansies and evergreens set against the barren trees were exactly what I wanted for this moment. As we made our way to the spot I’d had set up, I began talking to Maddie.

  “The first moment I saw you, I knew there was something special about you.”

  She grinned and began chewing on her lip.

  “I couldn’t take my eyes off of you. It was if all the air had been sucked out of the room when you smiled. Then, when you followed me to the beach…” I slowly shook my head. “That night, Maddie, I will forever be the best night of my life.”

  I stopped right before we turned the corner and took both her hands in mine. “I think I loved you the moment I first saw you.”

  Maddie swallowed hard and tried to talk, but closed her eyes instead, smiling before opening them again. I dropped one of her hands and led her around the corner. I smiled when I heard her gasp. I’d arranged for a small table to be set up next to the Robert Indiana LOVE sculpture. It had always been one of my favorite sculptures. A few candles where lit on the table, and rose petals where laid out all around the table.

  “Cale, oh my…I don’t…this is beautiful. How did you? When?” She turned to me, her eyes filled with such a quizzical look that I couldn’t help but chuckle.

  “I’d originally planned for the restaurant, but it was so beautiful outside these last few days that I had a different idea. Lily and I walk by this sculpture all the time. It reminds me of you.”

  I led her over and pulled out the chair for her to sit down. She wiped away a tear and smiled. I moved and sat across from her as a young blonde in black dress pants and a light blue shirt poured us each a glass of champagne. I smiled and thanked her.

  “My pleasure, sir. Would you like us to begin serving dinner?” she asked.

  I peeked at Maddie and almost laughed. She still looked puzzled. Completely thrown for a loop. I was internally fist-pumping, having surprised her like this. The biggest surprise was yet to come.

  I nodded, “That would be wonderful. Thank you.” I reached across the table and took Maddie’s hand. “Are you surprised?”

  She grinned and nodded. “Very. I’m completely shocked that you did all of this. How in the world did you get this place all to us?”

  “A very hefty donation.”

  Maddie laughed and shook her head. The waitress brought us out our salads first. Maddie and I talked as we ate, mostly about Lily. She was our whole world. I was so glad Maddie had moved past not being Lily’s biological mother. In my eyes, she had become Lily’s mother the moment we both walked into her room and met her face-to-face for the first time.

  The waitress came over and set down two plates. Each one had salmon and steamed vegetables along with a roll.

  “I’m so glad I decided to rent my house out to Monica and Jack last year, before they got married.” Maddie said as she took a bite of her salmon.

  I nodded. “It’s been great having them so close by. Have you noticed how Jack watches Monica with Lily? I mean like really watches her.”

  Maddie chortled and nodded. “Yes! I think Jack is getting the baby bug, which is so weird to me.” She looked away for just a moment. “I was thinking…about um…maybe seeing if they wanted to buy the house.” Her face blushed and she began playing with her vegetables. “I mean, it was just a thought.”

  I couldn’t help but smile. “I think that’s a great idea. I mean, unless you want it as an investment property. But if Jack and Monica are interested in buying, I say sell it.”

  She looked back up at me and smiled. “I think Jack and Monica would be perfect owners for the house.

  I nodded and placed my napkin on the table. I motioned for the waitress. “Would you like dessert?” I asked.

  Maddie licked her lips and pulled the corner of her mouth into a come-hither grin. “The kind of dessert I want I can’t get from our waitress.”

  I squirmed in my seat to adjust my growing dick. The waitress set two cups down in front of us. They were filled with orange soufflé, with a small, red heart in the center.

  Maddie smiled and said, “Oh my gosh, orange soufflé? I love orange soufflé!”

  Right about that time, the violinist I’d hired came toward us from behind Maddie. He was dressed in a tux and playing some classical song that he’d had to tell me the name of five times. I finally told him I was never going to remember it. When Maddie turned to look at him, I moved into position. I took the ring box out of my pocket and waited.

  “Oh my God, Cale. This is so romantic.”

  Maddie was about to say something else, but she jumped, startled, when she saw me at her side, on one knee, holding the ring out.

  She lifted her hands to her mouth and immediately began crying.

  “I love you, Maddie. I want nothing more than to spend the rest of my life giving you moments like this. I want to start each day with your beautiful smile. I want to talk to you about our future, and our dreams. These last few months
with you have been the most incredible months of my life. This journey I’m on…I want…no, I need you to be on it with me.” I opened the box to reveal the solitaire, one-carat, round diamond.

  “Maddison Nicole Powers, will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?”

  Maddie dropped her hands and began nodding as she attempted to talk. I took the ring out and reached for Maddie’s fingers. Her hand was trembling as I slipped the diamond onto her ring finger. I stood and pulled her up with me. She threw herself into me and began crying harder.

  “Cale,” she said. “I love you so much.”

  I COULDN’T BELIEVE how I was staring at my engagement ring. I felt like a teenager who’d just had her first kiss. I was on top of the world. When Cale reached over and placed his hand on mine, my stomach dropped and I was overtaken with emotion.

  “Cale, this ring is beautiful. This whole night has just been…beautiful.” I glanced over and my smile grew bigger just seeing the expression on Cale’s face. I closed my eyes and silently thanked God for bringing us back to together.

  Cale pulled into the driveway of our house and put the car in park. When he looked at me, I found myself fighting to pull in air. I just couldn’t believe he was mine.

  He placed his hand on my cheek and whispered, “So beautiful.” I smiled and placed my hand over his before he said, “I’m going to take you inside and make love to you all night, Maddie.”

  My heart raced at the idea of being alone with Cale all night. I licked my lips and attempted to talk. “I…um…Cale.”

  He smiled his panty-melting smile. “Tell me what you want, Maddie.”

  I unbuckled my seatbelt and lowered my head. I looked at him through my eyelashes and bit my lip. “You, Cale,” I said. “I want you in every single way possible. And we have all night to make love. Right now, I want…more.”

  Cale quickly got out of the car and came around to my side.

  Before I knew it, Cale had me up against the wall in our living room, tearing my clothes from my body. I loved how he couldn’t seem to get to me fast enough, and my libido was cranked up as high as it would go. I unbuttoned his jeans and pushed them down. The moment his dick sprang free, I dropped to the ground and took him into my mouth. His long, hard shaft filled my entire mouth as I moaned.