Chapter 26: Realizations

Cade had a lot to think about after his talk with Lonnie's father and he decided to take some time to be alone so that he could absorb everything. It was his day off, and he drove his car to the far edge of town and parked high up on a hill overlooking the town. He got out of his car and stood next to it, smoking a cigarette.

He breathed a heavy sigh and allowed his mind to drift back to his time in prison, for the first time in a long time. Every day in prison had seemed like an eternity. If there was any place on earth worse than prison, Cade wasn't sure what it was. Some of the men he served time with were the worst he had ever met. All of them had made plenty of mistakes, but most of them didn't care. If Cade hadn't met Brett, he probably would have been one of those empty uncaring souls behind the iron bars, but meeting Brett had changed him. Brett was a man in his sixties, serving time for murder, and he took Cade under his wings after a group of inmates wouldn't leave Cade alone.

Cade recalled how bitter and angry he was at the time he met Brett. He had aspirations of murdering his prison assailants, with his bare hands. Cade never understood what Brett had seen in him, but something had drawn them together, and for that, he was grateful. Cade had spent hours talking to Brett, since there was little else to do, and after awhile he realized that Brett had a way of looking at the world that was different. Brett didn't blame the world for his problems; instead, he took full responsibility. Cade's self-pity and anger began to fade over time as he and Brett became better friends, and Cade began to think more calmly and rationally.

Cade found a mentor in Brett, and over time, he thought of Brett as the father he never had. Brett loaned books to Cade, and they talked about the books for hours. Brett was a simple man, and he passed away from a heart attack six months prior to Cade's release. No one other than Cade seemed to notice. "You've got to learn to let love in," Brett always said, and at the time, Cade hadn't known what love even was. Now he thought he understood.

Cade was developing a love for Callie from some place deep down inside of him and he felt the same way about the children. Even though he had left prison feeling numb, he no longer felt numb; he was full of caring. Lately, because he had been so busy, he felt himself drifting away from Callie and the children. He wanted to stop that from happening. His family mattered more than anything else did, but he was getting tired of fighting to survive, and he wished life could somehow be easier.

He was proud of his grandfather and his family who had gone before him. He wished he had known them, and that his life had been different, but for now he was stuck with what he had. The past was in the past, and he needed to focus on the future.

Callie removed her blouse and stared at her reflection in the motel room mirror. Peter had gone inside the bathroom to take a quick shower, and he emerged a short time later, dripping wet. His belly was indeed flat, as he had boasted. Every morning Peter exercised for nearly an hour, and it showed. He walked up behind Callie and gently pulled her up into his arms and began kissing her.

They had stolen a few small kisses in the alley behind the diner, but this was different. Their kisses were long and filled with passion and determination. The bulge beneath Peter's towel was noticeable as he kissed Callie. He inserted his tongue between her lips and her panties became wet as he pushed her down backwards onto the bed. Peter climbed on top of her and began to remove her remaining clothes. All of their flirting had come this, a hurried sexual encounter in a cheap motel room.

Peter's hands caressed her breasts, and she wiggled with excitement. "I've been waiting a long time for this," Peter breathed. "Oh yeah, how long?" She grinned.

"Ever since the day I first set eyes on you, when you came to my house to pick-up Harley," Peter said between kisses. "When I saw you at the door I got an instant hard-on."

Peter pressed himself against her leg and she could feel his erection. She wanted to feel him inside of her and she wiggled and squirmed with anticipation as he continued to kiss her. Peter could hardly contain himself. He had planned that he would take it slow, but suddenly he couldn't wait, and he ripped his towel off, and forced Callie's legs apart.

Callie's arms draped around his neck and her sweet spot was swollen and wet as he pushed inside her tight opening. She dug her nails into his back and moaned from the sensation. He began to thrust in and out and his penis felt good. She pushed any thoughts of Cade completely out of her mind, and enjoyed Peter's body. It didn't take long before Peter stiffened and she tightened around him at the same time, urging her body to climax with him. He jerked in and out of her, spewing his hot liquid deep inside of her with each thrust and she let herself go. "Oh God," Peter said, kissing her softly, "Sorry I couldn't hold on longer, but you feel just so damn good."

Beads of sweat formed on Callie's forehead, and then she went limp as Peter collapsed on top of her, breathing heavily. It wasn't until Peter moved off that Callie fully realized what she had done. She slowly sat up and lit a cigarette, rubbing her forehead with aggravation.

"Oh God baby," Peter said with satisfaction, and he leaned over and kissed the back of her neck tenderly, "You're so hot."

Callie stiffened, "Cade would kill me if he ever found out what we just did."

"Well then," Peter said softly, "We'll just have to make sure he never finds out."

Callie turned around and looked at Peter. For the first time since she arrived at the motel room, she wondered what if anything Cade would do to Peter if he found out. "Oh my God, I better get home," she said anxiously as she looked at the digital clock next to the bed. "I'm running late."

Peter embraced her, "Callie," he whispered, "No regrets, remember, we talked about that."

Callie nodded and felt the tears beginning to build in her eyes, "I know we did Pete," she said in a choked voice, "I-I've got to go." She grabbed her clothing and quickly got dressed, rushing out of the motel room. Peter lay back on the bed after she left and smiled with satisfaction. The scent of her body lingered on his skin and he breathed it in deeply.

Cade was waiting at home with the children. They had made plans to go out to McDonalds for dinner. "Where is she?" Harley moaned impatiently. His stomach was growling.

"She's working," Ashley assured him. "She'll be here soon."

Jessica was annoyed. "I wanna go eat now," she whined.

"Stop acting like a baby," Harley scolded her in irritation.

"No," Jess stuck out her lower lip, followed by her tongue.

"That's enough," Cade said in a tired voice.

"You're such a baby Jess," Harley said bitterly.

Jessica whined in response, "I just wanna go."

Cade stood up and telephoned Beatrice's Diner. Lionel answered the phone and Cade hid his surprise when he learned that Callie wasn't scheduled to work today and had not been at work. Rhonelle was there at the diner and she overheard Lionel. Her jaw dropped. They both knew what Callie was up to, and Rhonelle was angry that Lionel hadn't covered for her. She gave Lionel a scowl, but he just shook his head and hung up the phone. "I'm tired of covering everyone's ass," Lionel said bitterly. Rhonelle shook her head, "This is only going to lead to trouble." Lionel ignored her.

Cade held the phone in his hand for a while and gathered his thoughts. Callie wasn't working today. He was puzzled. He turned to the children, "go get in the car," he said.

The kids didn't question him. They simply rushed outside and got into the car. Cade got in and started the car. He was about to drive away, when Callie arrived home in the truck. "Wait," she called, and she quickly parked the truck and rushed over to get in the car with them. "You're not leaving without me are you?"

Cade cast an angry look in her direction, and then he remembered the children in the back seat and knew he should not confront her in front of them. He was afraid he might lose control, and he didn't want the kids to witness that. He tightened his jaw and sped into town, parking outside McDonalds. "I want some chicken nuggets," Jess informed them as she got out of the car. "Here we are at Mickey D's" Harley said with satisfaction as they walked through the big glass doors.

Cade watched Callie closely. She avoided eye contact with him and smiled down at Jess, "You always want chicken nuggets," she teased playfully.

"Why were you so late getting home today mom?" Harley asked.

"I wasn't late." Callie protested.

Cade continued to seethe. No wonder Callie wanted to keep her job, she was up to no good, and he wondered how many other times she had lied to him about where she was. He was sullen and quiet. Ashley realized something was wrong with her dad, but she wasn't sure what it was. The way her dad kept looking at Callie gave her a sinking feeling, but she tried to ignore it.

"Are we going to the lake on Saturday?" Harley asked. It had been awhile, but this weekend was the Fourth of July and they had planned a picnic at the Lake with Lonnie and his family. They would have another picnic and cook out, and watch fireworks over the lake in the evening. The holiday was only a few days away.

"Yes," Cade said, trying not to let his anger show. "We're still going to the lake."

"I had to beg Lionel to give me the Fourth off," Callie said bitterly, "What time are we leaving? He wants me to cover the breakfast shift. I told him I'd try, because it's one of his busiest days, so if we aren't leaving too early, I'm hoping you won't mind."

Cade didn't respond and the children shifted uncomfortably as they ate. "Look, I got a little toy girl car," Jessica held up the toy she had found in her Happy Meal.

"That's a car from a movie," Harley said, and he held up his car, "I got one too." He looked at both toys and suddenly wished they could go to a movie like other kids.

McDonalds had a PlayPlace and the kids rushed to play on the toys after they finished eating their food. Ashley felt she was too big to play, but there was nothing else to do, so she followed her siblings and all three of them commenced to climb on the plastic toys.

Cade and Callie stayed behind, watching the kids. "How was work?" Cade asked casually.

Callie kept her eyes on the children, "Oh you know, the usual," she said absently. She could feel Cade's eyes boring into her and she finally turned around to look at him. "Is something wrong?"

Cade looked at her for a minute and then he stood up, "I'm going out for a smoke."

Callie watched him leave. She would smoke when he came back, so that one of them could keep an eye on the kids at all times. As Callie sat there alone, she realized she could still smell Peter on her skin. She suddenly felt anxious and wanted to go home to take a shower. She had been stupid to go to that motel room. Temptation had finally gotten the better of her. She knew Cade was upset, but she figured he was angry because she was a bit late. She didn't think there was any way he could know what she had really been doing.

After about thirty minutes, they left McDonalds. Cade was still quiet, and not playful like he often was. The kids sensed they should behave on the way home. They figured Cade's mood was because he was tired, since he was always tired. Nevertheless, Jessica always hungered for attention. "Daddy," she said, "can we go see a movie sometime?" She rolled her toy car across her legs.