An Illicit Love

Chapter 19

Chapter 19

The alarm went off just before three the next morning, and Kevin and Catie quickly got up, brushed teeth, showered and dressed and while Kevin loaded the picnic basket, she made a flask of hot coffee. This was a tradition formed since their first holiday together, and the familiarity of the preparations soothed Catie, who had not slept well at all. Finally, Kevin went and picked Bryan up, still wrapped in his duvet and carried him softly to the car, where he placed him on the back seat. Being an only child, Bryan was inclined to chatter and talk incessantly, which would be made worse with his excitement at going to the ocean. Leaving this early, and allowing for an additional few hours of sleep for him meant that they could complete the first part of the journey, which was through dry and uninteresting scenery, in comparative silence, without having to try to keep a small child entertained. It was a long distance and they did what was necessary to make it as pleasant as possible for all of them. Invariably, when Bryan awoke, he would ask every ten minutes when they would arrive.

Keeping Bryan asleep for a long as possible necessitated as little talk as normal, and Kevin and Catie drove in silence, broken only by a request for a cup of coffee from Kevin. This too was so familiar to that she found herself relaxing and undertaking to try and enjoy this holiday as much as possible. It was not Kevin or Bryan’s fault that she found herself in this difficult situation. Kevin was not a bad person, he was even tempered and well like by all their friends and family. If he was a little distant and totally unaware of what Catie needed in their marriage, it was probably something that could be overcome if she really wanted to. ‘Did she want to?’ she asked herself. Of course, was the quick reply. Bryan was not going to grow up torn between two parents, and if that meant a bit of sacrifice, then that was what was going to happen. Catie settled back in her seat and vowed to enjoy the getaway and sort out what course of action she would take with Dave when they returned.

Later that day, as they sat under a cool, shady tree where they had stopped to stretch their legs, Bryan’s chatter and Kevin’s enthusiasm calmed Catie’s doubts. She would conquer her traitorous thoughts about Dave. She would give one hundred percent of her co-operation to enjoying this break and by the ti e they returned, things would get back to normal. No sneaking away to see Dave, which was so unlike her anyway, just herself, Bryan and Kevin. Catie’s inner voice interrupted at this point, reminding her that the road to hell is paved with good intentions.

When they arrived at the ocean, the excitement of unpacking the car, putting everything in a heap on the floor of their apartment and then dashing down to walk on the beach before it grew dark, left little time to think of Dave. Although his haunted blue eyes floated in front of Catie nearly all the time. They ran down to the water’s edge, splashing each other and laughing when the cold water hit them. Afterwards, they went to the nearest Pizza takeaway and bought food to eat while they unpacked. Their holiday had officially begun