Ch15 | The Piteous Life of Dr. Stevens' New Wife
Created By: Erikftglitter
Teacher’s Appreciation Week was one of Kari’s favorite weeks of the school year. Each year, she discovered just how creative her students could be when it came to making gifts.
She’d received homemade patches, a repurposed quilt, and an abundance of flowers and cards. It was one of the few times she felt truly celebrated and loved for her work. When the school year ended, although she was always grateful for a break, she was usually alone, left to celebrate her own accomplishments.
Erik had completely changed that. He loved to take her out even when there was no occasion. He celebrated and valued her. That was one of the biggest reasons why he was advising her to attend the conference.
He hated the distance but was fond of the idea. It would be a great accolade to show their children one day. He was a little… off like that. His need for traditionalist influences was growing stronger, but he ignored it, just as he had been ignoring it for the past several months.
Kari hadn’t told Erik that it was Teacher’s Appreciation Week, and she had no desire to. She’d be satisfied with the gifts from her students—gifts she’d have to hide in her car—and then go to sleep. She had an unshakeable migraine all week.
Despite the migraine, Kari did receive a notification about one of her favorite stores having a sale. Erik was working late, she had to go to the pharmacy, and she still needed things for her trip. She thought the idea over once more, then decided to head in the direction of the mall.
She needed to stop by Sephora, find some comfortable standing shoes, and she couldn’t resist the idea of a new activewear set. She loved being comfortable, and a new set would look great on her while she was traveling.
After trying on two sets, Kari settled for a navy blue set, another black set, and absolutely, positively deserved the orange set. While bright colors weren’t her first choice, she was happy she tried it on because she loved how her skin glowed in the orange. Orange looked great on brown skin.
She found a pair of neutral kitten heels that would be perfect for the outfits she had in mind. She had already restocked her beauty essentials from Sephora, and this was her last stop. When she glanced at the time, she shook her head. Women were not beings capable of coming “in and out” of their favorite stores quickly.
She piled her bags inside of her car and held each receipt. As she sat in the driver’s seat, she reviewed her expenses. If she’d thought about it inside the mall, she’d probably have left something behind, but she was in a shopping mood. Every now and then she’d get like that.
Kari noticed that she didn’t recognize the last four digits of the card being used. She had most of her card numbers memorized, or at least the last four digits. She dug through her purse for her wallet and opened it.
Driver’s license, Caber City Public Library Card, Gym Membership Card, and there was the black card that she’d been using confidently. Her card was black, but she noticed the sleeker appearance of the black card in her wallet. She didn’t need to read the card to know who it belonged to.
Still, she flipped it over, and to no surprise—
She had been swiping Erik’s card faithfully, and she had no clue. When did he remove her own credit cards from her wallet? Where were they? Kari tried to remember the last time she’d seen her card and was stunned by the lack of recollection. He meant everything he said.
When she entered their condo, she disregarded her bags at the front door. A large pink bow caught her attention. As she walked closer, she saw that it was attached to a suitcase and a card.
“Happy Teacher’s Appreciation Week to my favorite teacher. Make sure this is big enough.”
It wasn’t the suitcase that made Kari cry, but the card attached to it. It was the fact that he knew. He knew everything about her world, even if she didn’t explicitly say anything. The feeling of being known and loved like this was something she hadn’t felt since she lost her grandparents.
She dialed Erik’s number and waited patiently for him to answer. She hoped he was charting alone or somewhere he could answer her call. She never called him while he was working, but she had an overwhelming amount of gratitude and needed to talk to him.
“Kitten. You alright?” He answered after the second ring.
“Yes,” Kari sniffled. “I—um, got your card.” She smiled.
“Yeah?” Erik laughed. He could almost visualize what she looked like—small tears, big round eyes, and those lips puckered out like they always were when she cried.
“Yeah. How’d you know?” Kari asked, twirling her curls around her fingers.
“I always know, Kari.” He paused. “You think you can stay up for me?”
“I can do that.” Kari smiled. The migraine was still there, but she was curious about Erik’s plans.
“I have to get back, kitten. I want a little show of everything you bought too.” He was gone, but not before hearing Kari’s gasp.
How in the fuck did he know that?
Kari ran a bath as she waited for Erik to come home. She ordered dinner but couldn’t bring herself to eat it. The migraine was getting worse, and she’d had enough of trying to manage it naturally. As she took the painkiller, she remembered that she forgot to stop by the pharmacy. She’d have to remember to go out tomorrow because she was completely out of pills.
Entering the warm water eased Kari’s body instantly. She was calm, at ease, and most of all, missing her very busy man. Whenever she didn’t feel well, he would do the most, and she loved it. It made Kari think, though. How did he manage to be that way?
He was so stoic. So cool and unaffectionate to anyone other than Kari. What made her the exception? Had he done this before? They’d both discussed their upbringings at the start of their relationship. It was an emotional burden that neither of them liked to cover. But Kari did know love, and that’s why she desired it.
She wanted to know what made Erik the way he was. Why was he so Erik? She was drifting off as she pondered the matter.
The bath had cooled by the time Kari heard Erik’s deliberate footsteps. Her fingers were pruned and she was cooler, but the migraine had subsided. She wrapped herself in a towel and walked to their shared vanity sink.
Erik was already there, watching her with that quiet intensity that always sent a shiver down her spine. He watched her finish up her skincare routine and soaked up her appearance. Her curls were wrapped in a small towel that he’d love to remove, but he didn’t ask her to stay up for that.
“Kitten,” he spoke, his lips curving into that familiar smirk. He stepped closer, wrapping his arms around her smaller frame. He kissed her forehead. “Or should I say Ms. Evans?” he chuckled.
“Perhaps Mrs. Stevens?” Kari laughed, watching his face in the mirror.
Erik ignored the pull in his heart as he heard it aloud. It was perfect to him. Kari Stevens was such a better signature than the default.
He eyed her in the mirror, his thumb brushing away a stray drop of water on her cheek. “The mall, huh?” he teased gently, having almost tripped over the bags in the living room.
Kari’s smile widened. “Yeah. Where are my cards?” She turned around to face him, trying her best to look intimidating and stern.
He picked her up and sat her on the sink. “Why do you need them?” he asked, eyebrows raised.
“What if you needed your card?”
“What if they flagged it for fraud?”
“What if you didn’t see it?”
“You’re an authorized user.”
“When did you do that?” Kari was surprised by his rapid responses. He had a certainty that couldn’t be doubted. He didn’t doubt Kari.
“The moment I asked you to move in with me,” he answered truthfully, his eyes never leaving hers though she kept dodging his gaze.
“I’m not even going to ask how you accessed my social security number.”
“I know a lot of things that I probably shouldn’t,” he spoke into her ear, making her body fall closer to his instinctively.
“You know I do have a job.” She laughed nervously, trying to loosen the tension. If she didn’t, she knew his ability to have her bent over the edge of the sink in a matter of seconds.
His brows furrowed slightly, then softened. “I know,” he said simply. “I like taking care of you.”
They eventually moved to the bed, Kari putting on one of his shirts before sinking beside Erik.
“Can I ask you something, Erik?” Her voice was low and uncertain. He was a bit concerned about the use of his first name but opened the floor for her to begin.
“How come you’re so sweet to me?” Kari looked at her feet as she waited for him to say something.
Erik lifted her head to his and searched her eyes for an answer. “Where’s this coming from, Kitten? I’m always like this when it comes to you.”
“Right. That’s what I mean.” She paused, finding her words. “I love it. I love you.” She paused briefly, feeling a little embarrassed by her declaration that she found herself repeating so much.
Erik’s hand on her thigh encouraged her to keep going. “I just wanted to know how you managed to make an exception for me and no one else.”
Erik let out a silent breath. He was more relieved than before, but he knew this day would come. He pulled Kari onto his lap to straddle him before he started. This was his safe haven. His words flowed better when he was able to cradle her like she was his own personalized comforter.
Then Erik spoke, his voice low and unguarded. “I didn’t know love growing up. My parents died, and I bounced from one foster home to the next. That’s all I knew before joining the military.”
She swallowed, listening, her fingers lightly tracing small shapes on his back as he held her tighter.
“In the military, you learn to kill and not to feel,” he said, his voice monotone. “I was great at it.” He admitted. “Even earned a nickname…” Erik felt himself reminiscing but stopped the memories from flooding. “PTSD, night terrors, whatever you can think of, Kitten—I had it.”
Kari’s eyes filled with tears. She had always known there was trauma within Erik—she just hadn’t realized how deep it ran.
“Being a surgeon—it’s how I learned to control it.”
That was partly true. Kill was still very much there, his ego and his only friend. He was humored to hear that he was… controllable.
“These same bloody hands save lives. I’ve saved lives in service and out.”
She thought carefully before asking her next question, her voice a whisper. “And Andre?”
“Removed a bullet from his head,” he sighed. “His family is eternally grateful. I just can’t do the speech shit.” He admitted. It was one thing to talk to a few people at a time, but he didn’t have the preparation for Kill to control him in a room full of easy targets.
The room was silent for a while. Erik pulled Kari away to look at her face.
“You… you’re everything I thought I’d never have, Kari.” Her eyes were watery.
“From the moment that I met you, I knew that I could see you. I didn’t think it could be true, then you extended that invitation to me, and I knew it wasn’t a coincidence.” He removed her from his lap completely.
“I look into your eyes and I see your submission. You are so rare, Kari, and you deserve everything that this world has to offer. I can’t stand the idea of you struggling,” Erik said quietly. “I’ve seen enough pain. Enough loss. I can’t stop the world from hurting you, but I’ll do everything I can to limit it. That’s why I do all of this. It’s why I am controlling. Why I’m obsessed. It’s all… instinctual when it comes to you.”
Kari couldn’t stop the tears from flowing. Even in the dark confession, she heard nothing but love. She saw nothing but safety. What better place for both of them than to be together?
She reached for his standing body but he held her still, his body slowly reaching the ground.
“I love you, kitten. I may not know how to love like other people do—but I know that I found it with you. Kari Elaine Evans, will you marry me?”
Kari shot up to look at him, her hands resting on his broad shoulders. “I— Yes! Oh my goodness, yes, yes, yess!!”
His lips curved into a relieved smile, his hand cradling the velvet box. They finally had Kari. He slipped the ring onto her finger and remained on the floor. “I promise to give you all of me.”
And for the first time in many years, both of the Stevens’ had a family. The kiss was tender, intense—it radiated a light of hope in the face of darkness.
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