Today is Valentine's day, and it's like something has shifted in Stevie. We shared a passionate night full of lovemaking and shameless flirting to ring in our twelfth wedding anniversary, however, on the first of February we had to say goodbye to Ginny. She passed in her sleep and thankfully, I was the one to find the little poodle. Her valentines day gift will be waiting for her when she gets home. An Afghan hound. Why I bought a dog that big, I'll never know.

As we wrap our last music video for the album, Seven Wonders, a Stevie song, I take her out to dinner. My brother took my kids and got a sitter. Meredith is having another baby so they won't be out long.

"Lindsey, what is all of this? I'm exhausted." Stevie chuckles as I pull into the restaurant.

"I know baby. I am tired too. But it's Valentines Day and I have several surprises lined up for the night." I smirk grabbing her hand and kissing it.

***

When we got home, my wife jumped at the sound of the Afghan Hound barking.

"Lindsey, what is that?" Stevie asks.

"Your valentines day present. She's a spayed, year old, Afghan Hound. What are you going to name her?" I ask wrapping my arms around her.

"Lindsey you know the name, Rhiannon." She looks at me.

"You read it in a book," I answer rubbing her shoulders.

"Yes, Rhiannon had a sister Brenwen. I want to name her Brenwen." Stevie smiles turning around and kissing me.

"Go play with your new puppy." I chuckle. Stevie beams and kneels on the floor by the dog.

"How will she do with the kids?" Stevie looks up at me.

"She's already met them," I inform her.

***

A month passes and Sara stops me on my way out the door to Tour rehearsal. Stevie already in the car.

"Daddy, can I have a hug? I don't get a lot of hugs when you're on tour and I want a hug to remember you by." She says sadly. My heart breaks and biting back the tears, I take her into my arms.

Three hours later, I'm staring out of the window while the band discusses our setlist. All of a sudden I break-in.

"I'm not touring," I say

"What?" Mick asks.

"I'm not touring," I repeat. 

"Yeah, I heard that. What do you mean you aren't touring?" Mick growls. 

"I'M SIMPLY NOT TOURING! I HAVE TWO KIDS IN SCHOOL. I DON'T WANT TO MISS ANYMORE OF THEIR LIVES. THEY CAN'T TOUR ALL YEAR ANYMORE AND IT'S NOT FAIR TO THEM, MY MOTHER, AND MY IN-LAWS TO LET THEM BOUNCE FROM GUARDIAN TO GUARDIAN. I'M NOT TOURING." I say sternly.

All of a sudden my wife flies off of her perch on the sofa and starts hitting me.

"You can't back out now. The tour is booked." Stevie yells in between hits.

"I can do whatever the hell I want I'm thirty-five years old." I spit.

All of a sudden, a hard slap hit's my face and my wives long, sharp nails drag down my cheek. A drop of blood fills the corner of my mouth and I see red. I shove my wife and she runs. I follow up and down Christine's maze-like house and into the driveway. I end up hovering over her my hands around her neck

"I HATE YOU! I WISH I NEVER HAD MARRIED YOU! WHEN MY FAMILY FINDS OUT MY BROTHER AND MY FATHER WILL KILL YOU!" Stevie yells.

All of a sudden I am yanked back by John and Mick.

"Keep your hands off of her and get your ass out of my sight." Mick points to the door.

"No, she's my wife I'm going to do whatever the hell I want." I spit.

"I think you should just leave." John looks at me sadly.

I wipe the blood from my mouth and walk away from my sobbing wife huddled up in Christine's arms.

Lindsey drives away in our car leaving me alone in my fellow female's arms. I don't even know what that outburst was about, I just got so angry when he said he wasn't going to tour. Anger I've only ever felt when I was detoxing off of cocaine.

"Stevie, let me take you to the hospital to get you checked out," Mick says taking me out of Christine's arms.

"What are you going to tell them? She has bruises on her neck?" John asks.

"I'll think of something," Mick says helping me into his car.

***

At the hospital, Mick made up a phony story about a masked mugger and the doctor decided to run precautionary tests. Mick and I have been waiting for two hours. Me sitting up in a hospital bed and him lounging on a chair.

"Well, congratulations are in order." The doctor smiles.

"Why?" I croak my voice semi hoarse from the choking.

"Have you noticed anything different about your body?" He asks.

"No. I've been a little more tired than normal but we've been working a lot recently. It normally happens when I overwork myself." I shrug

"Stephanie, I'd like to do an ultrasound if you don't mind. There is one thing though, It's transvaginally." He says eyeing Mick.

'That's my cue to leave." Mick announces abruptly walking out of the room.

Having never experienced it before, it was slightly uncomfortable.

"Stephanie, look at the screen. That's your baby." He says as my heart falls to my stomach.

"Is it alright?" I croak out.

"It is perfectly healthy. You are at about eight weeks. Two, almost three months. Is this going to be your first?" He questions.

"Third. I have a ten-year-old daughter and a son who is turning six in June." I explain.

"An oops baby then." He chuckles.

"Yeah." I sigh placing my hand over my stomach.

"Is that gentleman the father?" the doctor asks.

"No. He's my husbands best friend. My husband is currently out of town for work." I easily lie.

***

After I'm discharged and I make my way home, avoiding the attempts at the hospital to talk to police, I walk in to see Lindsey passed out on the couch. And I'm greeted by Jolie, our baby sitter.

"Mrs. Buckingham, he walked in and had a seizure. I'm a nursing student so I took care of him and stitched up his cut. I don't know what happened. All I know is he was bleeding pretty badly. It kind of looked like a cat scratch." Jolie sighs.

"And the kids?" I ask.

"They haven't seen him. They've been asleep since eight, Mr. Buckingham got back around eight-thirty. I was going to leave them with him like that." She explains.

"Thank you, you did the right thing. Have a good night." I smile handing her two hundred dollars and give her a hug. It's more than we normally pay her but seeing as she had to play nurse as well I figured it's the least I could do.

When Lindsey woke up at two in the morning I placed my mug of tea down and sigh.

"You're watching me while I sleep now." He spits.

"Jolie had to help you through a seizure. And she stitched your head up. I'm sorry about that. Listen, Lindsey, I'm pregnant." I'm blunt, very blunt.

"What?" He asks.

"I found out when Mick too me to the hospital. You luckily didn't do any damage to my neck. It was our anniversary. I didn't know. I haven't really experienced any symptoms. Just mood swings and tiredness. Lindsey, I want you to leave first thing in the morning. You chocked me. That is something I will never forgive. I'll let you have the kids on the weekends and while we're touring. Mick is going to start moving dates around to accommodate me." I look at him sternly.

"You're pregnant. You're not going to let me be here for this pregnancy. Just like with Sara. I get that I fucked up but you can't do that to me again. Or is this baby not even mine. Is it Don Henley's or Joe Walsh's how about Mick? I've seen the way he looks at you. Better yet, Tom Petty. You were hanging around with him close to our anniversary." Lindsey chuckles sinisterly.

"Get out. Just Get OUT!" I yell standing up to my full height.

"Fine." He hisses pushing past me and going upstairs.

I meet him at the bottom of the stairs.

"What's that?" Lindsey asks eyeing the key, I'm holding out to him.

"The key to the Santa Monica condo. The kids know it well." I explain.

"Like hell am I going to sleep in a bed you fucked Don Henley in." He spits grabbing his car keys and wallet. That was a low blow.

***

The next morning I'm up before my children. Truthfully, I didn't sleep. Mason was down first. Curious eyes falling on me.

"Mommy, why aren't you in bed?" Mason asks.

"I wasn't sleepy anymore. Why don't you go watch some cartoons and when sissy comes down we'll have breakfast." I smile.

She's like me when it comes to her sleeping habits and she finally emerges at ten.

"Morning mom, where's daddy?" My heart stops.

"Um, I'll tell you at breakfast. What do you two want?" I question.

"While the eggs are cooking the smell wafts up. I immediately shut the stove off, clasp my hand over my mouth and sprint into the hall bathroom. My third pregnancy symptom.

"Where was this a month ago." I groan quietly.

Upon entering the kitchen, my hand goes to my mouth, the smell still lingering. Breathing through it, I finish the meals and call for my children. While they're eating their omelettes I'm munching on dry toast. Dreading the conversation I'm about to have.

"Okay...Daddy won't be home for a while. Last night your dad decided he wasn't going to work with me, Aunt Chrissie, Uncle John, or Uncle Mick anymore. Mom and dad got into an argument and we decided it would be better if we lived apart for a while. He'll pick you up from school on Friday and drop you off Monday morning. When I go on tour next month, you'll stay with daddy the whole time unless I'm home on break. One more thing, Daddy and I are giving you a new baby brother or sister. They're in my tummy growing big and strong so they can meet you." I explain.

"How'd it get there?" Mason asks.

"That's a question for your father." I chuckle.

"Wait, daddy isn't touring?" Sara asks.

"No," I answer.

"Yay! He listened to me." Sara cheers running up the stairs

My heart falls to the pit of my stomach. The children ask for Hamburgers for dinner and as I'm cooking it the smell of the red meat makes me throw up, and as we're eating I can barely force it down my throat.

The phone rings as I'm getting the kids ready for bed.

"Hello, Buckingham Residence. This is Stephanie how can I help you?" I ask just wanting to crawl in bed and sleep myself.

"Stevie, I'm staying at a hotel in LA. I'm going to start looking for an apartment on Monday. When do I get my children?" It's Lindsey.

"Pick them up from school on Friday drop them off at school on Monday," I reply

"Alright." Goodbye

"Lindsey wait, Sara asked you not to tour?" I ask twisting the phone cord.

"She's been saying she hates when we leave since you toured Rock a Little. I made my decision to leave because of her. She hasn't directly said that she wanted me to quit though." He replies.

"Oh," I say quietly.

"Goodnight Stephanie." He hangs up it takes all the will for me not to cry right there. I keep it together long enough to put the kids to bed then when I walk into our room and the smell fo Lindsey's cologne hits me like a wall. That's when I close our door and fall the floor sobbing. How did we get like this again? I had one stupid outburst and now everything was falling apart.