I Can't Stop

Part 9

The sharp intake of breath made Stevie look over to the other side of the bed. Don opened his eyes lazily and a smile slowly crossed his lips. She should have been happy, she should have been grateful that her husband took the time to come to Las Vegas and surprise her on her birthday. However, all Stevie could think about was Lindsey. The look on his face, when he saw Don, broke her heart. The reminder of their reality broke his too.

"Good morning." Don said, yawning as he shifted closer to Stevie, his arm now draped around her middle.

"Morning." Stevie said. She knew, she couldn't be angry, she had no right, given that she was the cheater. "Slept well?"

"Wonderful. I've missed you in bed with me." Don pressed a soft kiss to her shoulder. 

"When are you leaving?" The second the question came out, Stevie wished she could take it back. "I mean, do we have more time together?"

"Yes, we do. I know that you're free tonight, so I'm going to stay a bit." 

Stay. Don was going to stay. "Great." Stevie said without much emotion in her voice. 

Don rolled out of bed to go to the bathroom, leaving Stevie alone for a couple of minutes. She glanced at her phone on the nightstand, which she barely used, but she had to reach out to Lindsey. She typed a simple message to him, saying, she was sorry, just in time, when Don returned. 

"You've got to get that pretty butt of yours out of bed, baby. I know Mick had a whole thing planned for you and we barely spent an hour at dinner, I thought we could all have breakfast together." Don said, opening a small suitcase he'd brought a long for a clean set of clothes.

"Really? Do we have to?" Stevie asked, trying to make it sound like a joke, but she wasn't too excited about it. 

"Come on." He held out his hand for her. "Up!" 

Don almost literally had to drag Stevie out of bed. The best she could do was have a shower and dress up, she couldn't be bothered with putting on makeup or doing something with her hair. For once, Stevie didn't take too long. She and Don were headed for the elevator in less than an hour. There was only one thought Stevie had, she wondered if Lindsey was going to be there. She would understand if he didn't show up.

Much to Stevie's surprise, Lindsey was already at the table with Mick and John, when she and Don came down. They locked eyes for just a second, before Lindsey looked down at his phone. 

"Mr. and Mrs. Henley." Mick tipped his head, greeting the two.

"I have never changed my name." Stevie said, she shouldn't have, but she did. "Morning, guys." She smiled at her bandmates, hoping Lindsey would look at her, but he didn't as he picked up his cup of coffee. 

Only a few short minutes later, Stevie felt a pair of hands on her shoulders, making her look up. A wide grin spread across her lips, seeing Alice smiling down at her, Sara stood close by. 

"Oh my God!" Stevie exclaimed, getting up to her feet quickly. "It's so good to see you!"

Pulling Alice into her arms, Stevie held onto her younger daughter tightly, before she pulled back, holding her at arm's length. She allowed herself a second to stare into Alice's bright blue eyes that matched her fathers. A sadness filled her heart.

"You haven't straightened your hair." Stevie noted.

"Yeah, I let my genes do their thing." Alice joked, running a hand through her naturally wavy hair.

Letting go, Stevie embraced Sara, whom she didn't get to see all that often even when she wasn't out on the road. "I've missed you."

"Me too, mom." Sara smiled, holding her mother a second longer. 

"When did you arrive?" Stevie asked, retaking her seat.

"Like an hour ago. Dad wanted us to spend the day together, celebrate your birthday. We would have come yesterday, but he wanted you all to himself." Sara said, unaware of the tension around the table.

Lindsey had zoned out. He was telling himself that he couldn't be an asshole to Stevie, she had no idea that he had plans for them or that Don was coming to surprise her. However, he couldn't help how he felt, especially now, seeing Stevie with her whole family, with her husband and their two beautiful daughters. Lindsey had been there since Sara came into the world, but he wasn't particularly happy about it back then. In a way, he even blamed an innocent child, because he was sure that if not for Sara, Lindsey might still had had a chance with Stevie. He wasn't very involved, he didn't play around with Sara the way Mick or John did. He realized it was stupid, but he couldn't bring himself to get close to the girl. Alice, on the other hand, was a completely different story. Ever since she was born, they had some kind of connection. When Alice joined the extended Fleetwood Mac family, Lindsey had become a father as well, he'd changed. And for some reason, he'd always been drawn to Alice as was she to him. When the band had rehearsals or they were recording and Stevie would bring Alice along, she would always run to him first, she would always ask him to play with her first. Lindsey also in a way wanted to fix his mistakes with Sara through Alice.

"Lindsey, are you with us?" Mick raised his voice, he'd been trying to catch his attention. "Your breakfast has surely gone cold."

"I, uh... I wasn't even that hungry." Lindsey forced a smile, hoping he won't be bothered again.

"Right, well, I think we'll be on our way." Don announced, pushing his chair back. 

"Okay, I just need to grab something from my room." Stevie said, standing up, adding that she'd be right back.

Lindsey excused himself from the group as soon as Stevie had left, but not necessarily to follow after her. He did however manage to catch up to her, but he didn't say anything nor did she, until they got into the elevator.

"Lindsey, I'm so sorry. I swear to you, I had no idea. I was looking forward to spending last night with you and I'm sorry that your plans got ruined. Please, fo-"

"Stevie, slow down." Lindsey cut her off. "I understand. I mean... we've been living in a fantasy and reality just hit us."

"What are you saying?" She asked, worried. "Linds, I don't want this to end. Can I come see you? As soon as Don leaves, I want to see you."

"I think, I'd like to be alone." He said, walking out into the hallway, when the elevator doors opened, not waiting for Stevie.