Thanks for the tip
Luna I'm not a wine person too. You guys sure have some stories to tell but am glad you all are ok now.
Adding the task force thing to your siggy is cool.
Anyway I'm fast-forwarding the story a couple of years so here goes...
Pounding the pavement in the wee hours of the morning, something Yelina started making a habit out of for the past year or so. Not like Horatio who prefered the PD gym when he could find the time, she prefered the outdoors. The quiet of the morning except the sound of blood rushing in her ears and her heart pounding, she enjoyed taking the time during her morning runs to think things through in her mind. It was the time to herself before the busyness of the day got the better of her. Horatio had tried to convince her he was making enough for her to stop working or cut back on her hours. But Yelina enjoyed her work, and she didn't want to give it up.
Her boys had grown. Matthew now a seven year old was quiet and was very good natured, much like his father, not that he looked much like Horatio. Matt still looked much like his mother down to his large brown eyes and curly mop of unruly hair. Joshua, now five, on the other hand proved a challenge and she often wondered how she'd had two sons with such different temperaments. He was always getting into trouble ans would have been subject to alot more time outs if not for how much he looked like his father. And somehow the little red-headed boy had figured all he had to do was put on his "sad puppy eyed" look and his mother might give up on exacting his punishment.
And then there was her brother-in-law Raymond, who after a string of failed romances had eventually settled down with Meredith McKay, the ADA whom he often worked with. Horatio had commmented that he didn't think his little brother would settle down but he was proven wrong.
And then there was her husband himself. People talked about the seven-year-itch, something Yelina refused to belive in, but recently she wasn;t so sure. In the past weeks, Horatio had become distant and withdrawn, often leaving for work early and then coming in late at night. That wasn't much reason for concern, he was now head of MDPD crime lab and he was kept busy enough with work. But then there were the late night phone calls which he would only take when he made sure she wasn't around. If his phone rang he would hurridly leave the room to take the call. And then there was the seeming diminished interest in Yelina herself, even donning some sexy underwear didn't elicit any response from him as it always used to. And there was last week, on her day off she had been asked to run an errand down town for her mother. Horatio had said he would be busy at the lab all day, but she had chanced upon him having lunch with a young brunette she didn't recognise.
Her suspicions had been sufficiently aroused but she didn't want to confront him. On the surface, they were still the perfect family, and Horatio was still a great father to their two sons. Perhaps she was afraid of finding out the truth.
Yelina ran the final bend down their street, she was almost home. Horatio would just be waking and she have time for a shower before the boys woke. As she reached the last strecth home she noticed a car pulled up outside their house. A car she didn't recognise. She slowed down and came to s stop behind a hedge, bending over and resting her hands on her kness, she took a minute to catch her breath. She looked up and saw the same brunette she had seen Horatio having lunch with last week. She was in their driveway, talking animatedly with Horatio. He seemed slightly flustered by her presence and clad only in his pyjama bottom looked as if he wasn't expecting her. Yelina couldn't hear what they were saying but after some moments of heated discussion, Horatio managed to chase her to her car and watched as she drove off. He looked round as if to check if anyone had seen what had happened, then hurried back into the house.
What was that about? Who was that woman? Someone Horatio was seeing behind her back? That would explain why he didn't want anyone to see them. Yelina felt crushed. She didn't want to jump to conclusions, but she couldn't fight the nagging unease.
Slowly she made her way into the house. Nothing seemed out of place and Horatio was nowhere to be seen. She went to pour herself a glass of ice cold water, then headed upstairs. Horatio had just emerged from the shower, his hair still wet.
"You're back early," he said, drying his hair with the bath towel.
"Yeah. Guess I picked up the pace a little today."
"I have to get to work early." He said, pulling on a shirt and his pants. He was avoiding her eyes, she knew he was hiding something.
"Got a case already?" Yelina asked.
"Um, yeah. Something like that." He grabbed his cellphone and car keys, still avoiding her eyes. He clipped his badge to his belt then slipped on his sunglasses. Pulling on his black suit jacket he kissed her quickly on the cheek.
"I'll see you later."
Yelina sat on their bed for a moment. He was hiding something from her, it was clear. Was he off to meet the brunetee she had seen that morning? She started to feel upset, angry even. She'd never once thought that Horatio would cheat on her, but now it seemed like he was. Was she reacting like the overly suspicious wife?
"Mummy?" A small voice called out, snapping Yelina out of her thoughts. She turned to find Matt at the door, rubbing his eyes sleepily.
"I'm hungry." Matt said, walking to his mother for a hug.
"Ok, why don't you go wake your brother. I'm gonna take a quick shower then I'll have your breakfast ready."
The small boy nodded, then padded out of the room. Yelina sighed. Whatever it was, it would have to wait, the boys needed to go to school and she had work. Perhaps she would find the time to talk to Horatio that night.
