Chapter One

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"I do not want to move from this bed" Claire sighed sinking into the covers of her and Sean's bed. Snuggling into his bare chest she couldnt help but smile "we have the whole day kitten, lets do something" Sean whispered kissing the top of her head, letting out a playful groan Claire rolled out of bed "like what?" She flirted wiggling out of her lacy knickers seductively and then tossing them to Sean while concealing her breasts. Sean gave a sexy smirk as he caught her underwear before flying out of bed and chasing her to the bathroom where Claire pulled him into the shower with her.

"Thats never as easy as it looks in the movies" Sean laughed coming down the stairs rubbing the towel over his hair while Claire sat at their breakfast bar in the kitchen. "Your brother brags about it all the time" she replied rolling her eyes playfully, tossing the towel at her Sean joked "well Norman has a different woman every night, he has the practice" he teased gently poking Claire in the ribs. Silence fell over the pair as they sat down and clocked eyes over Sean's deployment tickets for two days time, "i dont want you to go." She whispered lacing her fingers through his, trying to fight back tears , she knew he didnt like to see them "come on now, ill be back in time for Christmas and i promise it will be the best one ever" he reassured her trying to get her to smile. Sean knew his job carried risks and involved travelling for months on end and Claire did too, she knew what she was signing up for when she married him 5 years ago, she just hated being away from him.

As the day went on Claire helped Sean pack for his deployment, occasionally hiding stuff and making out she knew not where they were. "Kitten...its 3 months...it will fly by i promise!" Sean pleaded with her to hand back his clothes and passport. Giggling she reluctantly threw him his stuff "you are boring" she teased poking her tongue out. "Im going to start dinner. What time is Norm getting here?" Claire asked as she walked downstairs. "At 6!" Sean called down to her.

As the lasagne baked in the oven Claire went upstairs to get changed and freshen up, putting on her black skinny jeans and white denim shirt she applied smoky eyeshadow and mascara and lipgloss before curling her dark brown hair. She heard the doorbell ring and just by the ring along she knew it was Norman.

"Sup bruvva!" Norman called out giving Sean a highfive and pulling him into a hug as he walked in the front door. "No date?" Sean asked looking down the driveway, shooting Norman a disappointed look "losing your game?" He teased, Norman was about to pull him into a headlock when Claire came down the stairs "what no date?" She asked causing Sean to grab Norman's arms and put him in a headlock "nice try baby brother..I'm US Army trained idiot " he quipped giving Norman a head tap before releasing him. "Come on boys!" Claire called out in a motherly fashion as she began dishing up, Sean poured the wine while Norman shoved garlic bread in his face "honestly Claire your lasagne is the best!" He said with a mouthful of food. "You need to find a woman who will cook you one, and stick with her" Sean said rolling his eyes at Claire about his brothers womanising, Norman swallowed and laughed "i do..i just make them leave by morning and find another one" he replied raising his glass to 'cheers' his comment.

Claire found herself falling asleep at the table after dinner as Sean and Norman began drinking and playing cards, saying goodnight to them she headed up to bed. Even with the door closed she could hear them ribbing eachother.

On the day of Sean's deployment Claire fought back the tears until after he left, Norman couldn't get the day off from his car garage to see him off as he had a lot of cars needing work, but Sean understood he knew how much blood and sweat Norman had put into making his garage a success, and besides Sean wanted it to just be him and Claire at the airport. Kissing her on the lips he could feel her sadness coming through them "baby..3 months. I promise" he whispered kissing her gently on the nose "besides you will have your hands full at the school, you wont even notice" he added trying to joke. "And when i get home i have a trillion English papers to mark" she moaned burying her head in his chest, "dont leave it till last minute then Mrs Flanery" Sean joked nudging her. He had a point, this last week she hadhad off work she had plenty of time to get it done, but they spent most of their time under the covers, not that he was complaining!

Trying to take in every last bit of Sean as she could she let a tear fall down as his flight was called "ill write you everyday and call when i can" he reassured her as they said their goodbyes. Looking back to Claire he could see her begin to sob, taking off his jacket he handed it to her "here, you wear this whenever you miss me and ill always be wrapped around you" he said softly pulling her into a final embrace before waving as he walked to the gate.

Chucking her keys onto the hallway table she let out a pathetic sigh as she soaked in the loneliness she would have for the next 3 months. The first few days were always the hardest when Sean was away, so for now it was tears, duvet covers and sleeping on his side of the bed so she could smell him.

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