He kissed his way south, stopping briefly when his lips reached her lower abdomen. “How’s your stomach? Has everything calmed down in there now?”
She laughed. “There was never anything wrong with my stomach, and you know it.”
She’d saved him the hassle of removing her pajama pants by not wearing them to bed in the first place. He knelt between her legs, skimmed his hands along her hips to pull down her underwear, and then threw them on the floor. He continued the path he’d been on until all his kisses were landing between Kate’s legs.
“You do know that’s not how you make a baby, right?”
He lifted his head, his warm hand resting on the inside of Kate’s thigh. “It’s not? I guess that means I’m going to need a lot more practice.”
“Less talking, more of what you were doing,” Kate said as she twisted her fingers in his hair and moaned when he obliged. Linda had been right: the lower level was perfect for guests, especially if you didn’t want them to hear you making noise while you practiced trying to get pregnant and you’d already used up your holiday allotment of sexual escapades. After all, there was only so much she and Ian could blame on their newlywed status before they started to seem like horny teenagers who lacked any kind of self-control.
As soon as Kate cried out, Ian slid slowly and deliciously into her.
“How am I doing now?” he asked.
“Perfect. Everything’s right where it’s supposed to be.”
“I have a feeling we’re going to make beautiful babies, sweetness. And I hope Shelby looks exactly like her mother.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
Kate was sitting at her desk in her office, soft music coming from the computer’s speakers. She’d tried sitting with her laptop on the couch in Ian’s office so they could work in the same room together, but he was easily distracted and often suggested other, more satisfying, uses for the couch and desk. Her output had suffered because it took very little convincing before they were using his office furniture in ways it was not intended. The only way to maintain productivity was if they remained in their respective offices.
Ian was the best kind of boss because he didn’t micromanage and he let Kate make the decisions regarding the attack vectors she wanted to use for her social engineering assignments. She’d just finished setting up a fake website the way Ian had shown her. Crossing her fingers that it would work, she sent a phishing e-mail to her target with a link to the site. When opened, it would upload malware to the target, which would allow her to leave behind a backdoor for easy, continuous access to the client’s network.
While she waited, she decided to work on their holiday cards. The list of people she could send them to would be extremely short—Phillip and Susan, Kate’s family, Jade, and Renee—but she really wanted to send them, and it would be a wonderful keepsake of their first Christmas as husband and wife. She scrolled through the photos on her computer and selected one from their wedding reception. Ian was holding her on his lap, and the look on his face—like he was the happiest man in the world—made her heart swell. She dragged it into the Christmas card template, and after selecting a font for the text, she reached for her phone.
Kate: I’m designing our Christmas card. How do you feel about Happy Holidays from the Bradshaws?
Kate: Wait. Scratch that. How about Happy Holidays from the Merricks!
Kate: Damn. Happy Holidays from the Smiths!
Kate: I’ve got it. Happy Holidays from Kate and Ian!
Kate: Shit. Happy Holidays from Will and Diane!
Kate: Happy Holidays—you’ll just have to guess who this card is from!
Ian: I’m glad you find this amusing.
Kate: I’ve embraced our anonymity. We can be anyone.
Ian: Now all I can think about is role-playing.
She heard the chime indicating a new e-mail and smiled when she opened the response from her target thanking her for sending the link and telling her he’d already clicked on it.
Kate: Phishing e-mail worked! No wonder you love going in the backdoor. The rush is incredible!
Ian: You just shattered my concentration in the best possible way. We should take a break. Seriously, like right now.
Kate: Can’t. I’m very busy. I had to beg my boss for this job and I don’t want to let him down.
Ian: Trust me. No part of your boss is “down” right now, and he’s totally cool with you taking a break.
Kate: Are you sexually harassing me?
Ian: I’M TRYING TO.
Kate: Get back to work.
Ian: Come to my office. I have something to discuss with you.
Kate: Sure you do.
Ian: It’s very important.
Kate: Maybe it can wait until lunch.
Her e-mail chimed again, but it wasn’t another message from her client. Ian had sent a meeting request via their calendar software.
SUBJECT: Lunch.
WHERE: My couch. Bent over my desk. In my chair. I’m not picky.
WHEN: As soon as you can get in here.
She clicked on Decline but added a note: It’s only 10:28 a.m. A little early for lunch, don’t you think?
She turned her attention back to her computer, but her cursor seemed frozen, so she wiggled her mouse. She turned it off and then switched it back on. Finally she pulled the batteries and replaced them. Still nothing. She was about to ask Ian to come in and take a look when she had a sudden thought.
Kate: Fix my mouse!
Her mouse started working again, but then “One Week” by the Barenaked Ladies blasted forth from her computer’s speakers and startled her so completely she almost fell off her chair.
She got up, opened her office door, and yelled down the hall. “Stop hacking me!”
When she sat back down, the light of her webcam blinked on, and she grabbed a Post-it note and covered up the camera.
A few minutes later a notepad popped up on her computer screen. As if an invisible hand was typing, the words I AM IN CONTROL appeared.
He gave her a triumphant smile when she appeared in the doorway of his office.
“I forgot how frustratingly persistent you can be,” she said.
He pushed his chair back and waved her over. After she sat down on his lap, he said, “Now that you’re here, we can have lunch.” He kissed her but then pulled back abruptly. “You know what I mean when I say lunch, right?”
She laughed. “Ian, when you say things like that, I always know what you mean.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
Kate and Ian flew out of DC early on the morning of December thirtieth. There had been talk on the news of an approaching winter storm, and Diane would not breathe easy—or be able to immerse herself in Chad and Kristin’s wedding festivities—until they were on the ground in Indiana. Kate had promised her mother they would be there by noon, and their chartered plane touched down with an hour to spare.
Because they were traveling to Indiana for Chad and Kristin’s wedding, she and Ian had stayed home for Christmas. They spent Christmas Eve alone, eating dinner by candlelight and cuddling in the glow of the lights from their nine-foot Christmas tree, which was exactly what they wanted. On Christmas Day, they joined Phillip and Susan for dinner. Kate loved the way Ian and Phillip put their work aside and enjoyed the holiday in a more familial way while Susan fussed over all of them. Kate had sent Ian’s mom a holiday card, but Ian told her he didn’t expect to receive one in return.
Kate checked their post office box every day, and it saddened her to discover that he’d been right.
“The decorations look beautiful,” Kate said as she stood with her mom, sipping a glass of champagne. Her parents had rented out the spacious back room of Diane’s favorite Italian restaurant for Chad and Kristin’s rehearsal dinner. Twig trees wrapped in fairy lights were scattered throughout the room, casting everything in a romantic glow. Candles flickered on the tables, and flowers—lavender and cream roses in crystal vases—covered every flat surface. Ian stood at
the makeshift bar talking to Chad and a few of his groomsmen while Kristin and her mother visited with the rest of the wedding party.
Diane leaned back in her chair and sighed. “I can’t believe it. It seems like just yesterday you and your brother were toddling around the house. After tomorrow, both of my children will be married, and someday you’ll have families of your own.”
“Speaking of families, I didn’t refill my birth control pills this month.”
Diane reached for Kate’s hand, clasping it in her own. “Oh, Kate.”
“Don’t get too excited. Nature still has to take its course. It could take a while.”
“What does Ian think about this?”
“He tried to play it cool, but I think he wants a baby almost as much as you do.” Kate fiddled with the stem of her champagne glass. “I said I wasn’t sure if it was a good time and that maybe we shouldn’t be thinking about taking this step until… things were more resolved. He said if I wanted to wait then that’s what we should do, but he left the decision up to me.”
“Your dad thinks I’m being naïve, but I choose to believe that everything will blow over. Do you think it will?” Diane had accepted her daughter’s unorthodox lifestyle better than her father had, but that didn’t mean she didn’t worry.
Kate thought of the car that had followed her home. There’s nothing to worry about. It was probably just a coincidence.
“I hope so. Ian’s been in these situations before.”
“And what happened?”
“They’ve blown over. Just like you said this one will.”
During the wedding ceremony, Ian never took his eyes off Kate. She held a bridesmaid’s bouquet of lavender and cream-colored roses, and she looked stunning in a long, flowing dress in deep purple shot through with glittering metallic strands. He wished there was some way to let her extended family know she was doing fine and that he was the luckiest man in the world because he would be spending the rest of his life with her.
Later, at the reception while he was at the bar getting a drink, an elderly woman elbowed her way in next to him. “Get me a whiskey sour,” she barked. She had to be ninety if she was a day, and he found her direct approach amusing. When he handed her the drink, she took a sip, peered at him, and said, “I’m Doris. Who are you?”
“I’m Will. I’m here with Chad’s sister, Kate.”
“Oh, you’re the plumber. You’re Katie’s new boyfriend.”
He set his drink down on the bar. “Excuse me?”
“Stevie is my nephew. He told me Katie had a new beau named Will who is a very successful plumber.” She appraised him like he was a piece of meat. “You are a fine-looking man, but your hair’s a little long.”
“Kate likes it this way.” He’d thought about cutting it for the wedding, but since he wasn’t the one getting married, he decided to skip it.
“Katie’s last boyfriend died. I feel like I should tell you in case there’s a curse or something.”
He stifled his laugh behind his fist. “Thanks for letting me know, but I’m not worried.”
“Before the one who died, Katie lived in sin with Stuart. I don’t know what happened to him. He seemed like a very nice boy, but he was awfully beige. Do you know what I mean by that?”
“I do, Doris.” He leaned against the bar, thoroughly entertained.
“You, on the other hand, seem very colorful. Like a peacock. Bet it drives Stevie crazy.”
He outright laughed then. “You… really have no idea.”
“Don’t string Katie along. She’s not getting any younger.”
“She’s only thirty. Women are getting married later in life now.”
She made a face and waved her hand at him as if to say what do you know? “I was seventeen when I got married. My husband Tony, God rest his soul, was barely eighteen. How old are you?”
“Thirty-three.”
“Have you ever been married?”
He shook his head. “No.”
“Why, what’s wrong with you?”
“Haven’t found the right girl, I guess.”
“Stop being so picky. Katie would make a fine wife. If you expect me to come to your wedding, you better hurry up. I’m not gonna live forever.”
The DJ announced that Kristin was ready to throw the bouquet. “All you single ladies, please make your way to the dance floor. If you’re not married, we need you out here right away.” Someone pulled Kate onto the dance floor. From her pinched expression, Ian guessed she was not as excited about the bouquet toss as some of the other wedding guests, who were angling for a prime spot in the middle.
“Everyone get out of the way and let Katie catch it! She needs all the help she can get,” Doris yelled.
Kristin threw the bouquet, but Kate ignored it, her feet remaining planted on the floor as it sailed through the air. A young woman almost took out three others as she swooped in, caught it, and held it over her head triumphantly.
Doris shook her head and sighed. “It’s like she’s not even trying.”
Kate exited the dance floor and made a beeline for Ian. He caught the bartender’s attention and motioned for a glass of wine, which he handed to Kate the second she reached him. She took a giant gulp and then bent down to hug her aunt. “Hi, Aunt Doris. It’s so nice to see you.”
“I like your fella. I’m trying to convince him to marry you, but if you keep giving the milk away for free, it makes things a lot harder.”
“Well, that’s… something to keep in mind,” Kate said.
“I have to go to the ladies’ room. That whiskey sour went straight through me and my bladder control is very iffy.”
They watched her stride off with more speed than Ian would have thought possible.
“I’m sorry. She has no filter left,” Kate said.
“No, she does not. But I like her a lot.”
“When I’m ninety, I’m going to start saying whatever I want. I bet it’s very liberating.”
“Why wait until you’re ninety? I’ve been saying whatever I want for years.”
“You certainly have.”
“Did you know your dad’s telling everyone I’m a plumber?”
Kate burst out laughing. “He is?” She composed herself quickly, and her tone was decidedly more somber when she said, “I mean, you have made introductions rather tricky.”
“I’m sorry about that, sweetness. I wish you could tell everyone how happy we are.”
“That’s okay. We know, and that’s all that matters.” The DJ started playing a slow song. “Do you think Will the plumber could take Katie the old maid for a spin on the dance floor?”
“He’d love to. And I want you to know that I would marry the crap out of you if I wasn’t already married to you.”
“You say the sweetest things. But just so we’re clear, when Chad throws the garter, you’re going to be out on that dance floor with all the other single men.”
Not only was he on the dance floor, he caught the garter.
The next morning, Chad and Kristin managed to board their flight and leave for their honeymoon ahead of the big winter storm that had picked up a giant head of steam overnight as it bore down on the Midwest. Steve Watts had been looking forward to putting all the wedding festivities behind him and settling in with six solid hours of football on New Year’s Day, but the snow continued to fall, and by late that afternoon, Zionsville had received nine inches. The Wattses’ satellite dish was completely buried and unable to receive a signal. Steve was not the kind of fan who enjoyed watching bowl games in a sports bar; he wanted to watch them in his own living room with a beer and a bowl of snacks close at hand.
“I can climb up on the roof and brush off the snow,” Ian said.
“No,” Kate and Diane said simultaneously. Kate was lying on the couch with her feet in Ian’s lap, reading a book. “This is why women live longer. We have no desire to climb up on roofs.”
“You can stream most games to the TV from a computer,” Ian sai
d. “It doesn’t require hacking. It’s not even illegal.”
“Who cares about football,” Diane said. “They’re still showing It’s a Wonderful Life. I’ll make some snacks.”
Steve glanced at Ian, sending a silent plea.
“Oh, you want the plumber to do it?” He walked over to the TV and looked at the back. After finding the correct cable and plugging it in to his laptop, he typed a series of commands and the game appeared on the TV a few minutes later as if by magic.
“How’d you do that?” Steve asked.
Kate smiled as Ian explained it to her dad, walking him through the steps.
“Well, isn’t that the greatest thing. Thank you, Ian,” Steve said, settling back in his chair. He reached for his beer and grabbed a handful of popcorn from the holiday tin on the coffee table.
Ian sat down and Kate put her feet back in his lap, anticipating a nice long nap because nothing put her to sleep quite like football.
Zionsville had almost managed to dig itself out by the time Kate’s parents drove Kate and Ian to the airport two days later. They could see their breath in the bitterly cold air when they got out of the car and said their good-byes.
Diane hugged Kate. “I love you, honey. Stay warm.”
Her dad pulled her into his warm embrace. “Come back soon, Katydid. Bring that husband of yours with you.”
“Sure, Dad. I’ll miss you.”
“I’ll miss you too.”
Diane hugged Ian, and when Steve shook his hand, Kate couldn’t help but notice they both smiled.
“Shouldn’t we be descending by now?” Kate asked after they’d been in the air for a couple of hours. The plane came equipped with a comfy leather couch, and they’d been lounging on it for the better part of the trip.
“We would if we were going home, but we’re flying to Costa Rica.”
She sat up. “What? Really?” She threw her arms around him.
“Surprise,” he said with a big grin. “I told you I’d be ready to go someplace tropical by January.”
“I’ve always wanted to visit Costa Rica. But I don’t have the right clothes. Winter in Indiana is sort of the polar opposite of what one should bring to the jungles of South America.”
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