“Okay, I think we’re all ready to get out of these Sunday clothes. We’ll take the kids to the house in a few minutes. You be careful and don’t worry about things here.”
Derik made the announcement that they were leaving then swooped his bride into his arms and headed toward the door.
“Wait, Daddy, wait! We want to say goodbye again,” Win called.
“Yeah, wait for us,” D.C. said, trailing behind his brother.
Derik stood Kelly on her feet. Each one took a child in their arms and laughed while bird seed rained down on them.
Kelly blew kisses to the crowd as the truck, decorated with shaving cream and streamers, pulled away from the church. Jack and the boys waved, along with their guests. She turned to look at Derik, who was wrestling with his tie. “That was perfect,” she said as she laid her head back and closed her eyes.
“Yes it was, even though Win spilled his plate of food under the table and Stewart ripped his pants doing that silly line dance. And how about when . . .”
“Perfect,” she sighed. “Just perfect.”
Derik turned and saw her relaxed against the truck seat, eyes closed, a half smile on her face. He squeezed her fingers and rubbed his thumb over the wedding band he’d just placed there. “You’re right.” He brought her hand to his lips and kissed the ring. “Just perfect.”
They held hands all the way to the lake where they had reserved a small cabin for their honeymoon. For the next week, they made love morning, noon, and night. The evening before they returned home, Kelly snuggled against her husband. “I’ve never been so happy.”
Derik kissed her. “Now that we’re married and Dinson is out of the picture, it’s just going to keep getting better.”
She placed her finger on his lips. “Don’t mention him, don’t even think about him. He is out of my life forever. I want to forget Jarrod Dinson ever existed.”
Derik threw his leg over hers, pulling her underneath him. “Let me help you with that.”
Chapter 27
The boys were playing in the yard when Kelly and Derik returned from their honeymoon. She stepped out of the truck, and they wrapped their arms around her waist. D.C. said, “You’re back. We missed you . . . a lot. Can we eat now? Grandpa said we had to wait for you to get home.”
She led them into the house and listened to their chatter while she made a salad and steamed asparagus. The men cooked steaks and hotdogs on the grill. She couldn’t stop smiling as they ate their first meal as a family.
Jack left after dinner was over. The boys were ushered upstairs, bathed, and put in their pajamas.
“Kelly, can we read in your room tonight?” D.C. asked as he pulled a book off the shelf.
“Kelly will be sleeping in my bed now that we’re married,” Derik said from the doorway. “And yes, she can read to you in our room. Come on.” They all got on the big bed, and each boy climbed into a lap. Win began to yawn halfway through the story. He laid his head against Derik’s chest and pulled his green blanket under his chin. Within minutes, D.C. was also yawning. Both boys fell asleep before the end of the book. The adults tucked the children in their beds and kissed them goodnight. As Kelly started to go downstairs, Derik pulled her to him. He raised a brow and nodded in the direction of their bedroom. She grinned and followed him down the hall.
A week later Kelly received a call from the school. Win had been in a playground accident. She rushed across town, not knowing what to expect. When she stepped into the nurse’s office, the boy was sitting on the cot with his arm in a sling.
“Win fell off the slide,” the nurse said. “I don’t have the ability to do x-rays, but I expect it’s broken. I can call an ambulance for transport, or I can stabilize him and you can take him to the hospital yourself.”
“I want to go with her. Please. I don’t want to go in an ambulance. Kelly, please take me,” the boy said.
“Sure, but let’s get you bundled up first.”
As she pulled out of the school parking lot, Win said, “Did you tell Daddy? Is he going to be at the hospital?”
“Yes, I did. He’s on a call, but he’ll be there as soon as he can.” Her phone rang a few minutes later, and she saw that it was Derik calling. “That’s your dad. You can answer and talk to him.” She passed the phone to the backseat.
“Hi, Daddy. I think I broke my arm. Me and Tammy were on the top of the slide, and she pushed me off. She got in big trouble. The teacher made her go to the office.” There was a pause. “Yeah, it hurts a lot, especially when Kelly hits the bumps.” He hung up and laid the phone in his lap. “Daddy’s going to come to the hospital when he gets back.”
“That’s great. I knew he would. Hang on buddy, we’re almost there.”
Win remained quiet until she parked the car. When they started to exit the vehicle, he said, “Daddy said it’s okay to cry if it hurts too much.” He looked at her with tear-filled eyes. “I think I’m about to cry now.”
Kelly put her arm around his shoulders and walked him into the ER. After signing in, they took a seat in the waiting room. A young nurse in bright pink scrubs came to the door and called Win’s name. Kelly helped him to his feet, and they followed her to a back room. She patted the bed. “Hop up here, big guy.” She wrapped a blood pressure cuff around his arm. “The school called and told us about the accident. Sounds like you had a pretty hard fall.” He nodded. When she was done, she said, “Now I need to take a peek at that arm.” As she loosened the binding, he winced and cried out in pain.
Once the arm was unwrapped, they took Win to x-ray. Kelly walked beside him as the nurse pushed the wheelchair down the hall.
She stopped in front of a door labeled “Radiology” and turned to Kelly. “You can’t go in, but you can wait over there.” She pointed toward a row of blue plastic chairs. A uniformed deputy sat in one, flipping through a magazine.
Kelly nodded and kissed Win on the head before the nurse took him away. She leaned against the wall and closed her eyes, listening to the voices over the hospital intercom and the rustling of the magazine pages being turned. Suddenly a chorus of “Bad to the Bone” filled the air. She glanced at the officer as he pulled a cell phone from his pocket. He answered while sprinting past her toward the end of the hall.
A few minutes later, the nurse stepped out and said, “They are just finishing up with a patient, then Win will be next. It shouldn’t be long.” She returned to the ER while Kelly resumed her position against the wall and stared at the ceiling.
The large wooden door opened again. An orderly backed out and eased a wheelchair into the corridor. Kelly stepped aside to make room. When she saw the man in the chair, she gasped and pressed herself against the wall. Her heart pounded against her chest, and her knees began to tremble. Jarrod Dinson looked up. His expression immediately became hard and threatening. The hair on one side of his head had been shaved, and a jagged scar ran from the front of his left ear to the back of his scalp. There was also a scar below his left eye. The right side of his face drooped. Orange and white prison pants had been altered to accommodate the cast on his right leg. Another cast covered his left arm.
He sneered as his eyes traveled up her body and finally locked with hers. “Hello, Kelly. What a coincidence. I’ve been thinking about you.”
Fear kept her pinned against the wall. She covered her mouth with shaking fingers. His hand shot out and grabbed her wrist, yanking her arm down. The vein in his neck bulged, and his jaw clenched. He glared at her wedding ring and shook his head. “Oh no, Kelly, you’re mine. You will always be mine.” She wrenched her arm from his grasp. The man in blue scrubs began to push the chair down the hall. “Always,” he called out as he was rolled into the elevator. Dinson’s voice echoed in the hall when he shouted, “I’m not through with you, Kelly. Did you hear me? You’re mine.” The deputy turned and dropped
his phone in his pocket when he heard the commotion. He stepped inside the elevator and gave her an apologetic look.
Kelly paced the hall, feeling her heart race. Her hands shook as she wiped away tears. She rubbed her arm where Jarrod had held her. Minutes later, a chime announced the arrival of the elevator. Derik stepped out and hurried to her side. He took her into his arms. “What’s the word?”
“He’s in x-ray right now.” Before she could tell him about Jarrod, the radiology door opened and they heard Win’s voice.
“I want my mom. I want my mom.”
“Here she is. I told you she was waiting for you. Now calm down and don’t move that arm,” said the young man pushing the boy’s wheel chair.
“Daddy, you’re here,” Win said as soon as he saw his father. He started crying all over again.
The man led them back to the ER and transferred Win to the bed. Before he left, he took a sticker out of his pocket. “Here you go, champ. You earned this.” Win wiped his eyes and smiled.
The orderly walked out, and a tall thin man sporting a gray goatee stepped into the cubicle. The name on the white lab coat read Dr. Johansson. “Hello, folks. Looks like this little guy has a broken arm. It’s a clean break. I’m pretty sure I can set it without surgery. If you two will step outside, I’ll get this taken care of and send you home. What do you say young man, ready to get out of here?”
The little boy nodded but looked at Derik and Kelly with fear in his eyes. “Can they stay with me?” he asked.
“Sorry, I need a lot of room to work, and they’ll just be in the way. Don’t worry. They’ll be waiting for you as soon as we’re done.” Dr. Johansson turned toward the two adults and motioned with his head for them to leave the room. A nurse walked in with a covered tray as they returned to the hall.
As they listened to the noises coming from Win’s exam room, they winced when the boy cried out.
Derik watched Kelly chew her lip and wring her hands. He slipped his arms around her. “You’re trembling. He’s going to be okay. You heard the doctor, it’s a simple break.”
“I know.”
“Then what’s wrong?”
“I just saw Jarrod.”
“What? Where?”
“He came out of x-ray while I was waiting on Win.”
“Did he say anything?”
“Yeah.” She told him what Dinson had said and about the threat behind his words.
Derik’s fists clenched. “That’s it. I’m going to have a talk with the bastard and set him straight.” He pushed away from the wall and turned toward the elevators as the nurse walked out carrying the tray.
“You may go in now.”
Kelly took Derik’s hand. He released the breath he’d been holding and followed her into the cubicle.
The doctor smiled when they walked in. “He did just fine. Bring him into my office in a week and let me x-ray it again. I’ll see you later, Win. You did great.” He nodded at the adults and left the room.
Derik lifted the child off the bed. “Hey, buddy, how are you feeling? Ready to go home?”
“Yeah. Look, Daddy, I got to pick the color.” He raised the blue cast in the air. “My arm’s the same color as Superman’s.”
Derik hugged his son. “It sure is. How about we go home and you can show it to D.C. when he gets off the bus.”
Win smiled. “Can I call Grandpa and tell him I broke my arm?” Derik laughed and handed him his phone. The boy talked to Jack all the way to the house, describing every detail of the playground incident more than once. Derik noticed the story was embellished with each telling.
Kelly cooked Win’s favorite meal of macaroni and cheese and hot dogs, then they played board games until bedtime. Once the children were asleep, Derik and Kelly snuggled on the couch.
“He called me Mom.”
“I heard. Is that okay?”
“Oh yes. I was never going to ask, but it made me feel good. I love those kids, Derik.”
“And they love you.”
After a few minutes, he said, “I’m sorry Dinson upset you.”
“Shh, I don’t want to talk about Jarrod. I was just caught by surprise. He’s in jail now, and he can’t go anywhere without an armed guard. I’m not afraid of him anymore. He’ll never hurt me again. I know that.” She nestled against Derik’s chest and sighed, absently rubbing her bruised wrist.
Chapter 28
Derik was changing the oil in a Chevy Impala when his phone rang. He slid from under the vehicle and patted his pockets. Before he answered, he glanced at the screen and saw Kelly’s name. “Hello, my bride.”
She gave a soft laugh. “It’s been a month, and I’m still not used to hearing that.” There was a pause, and she said, “Would you mind picking up some milk on the way home? I didn’t make it to the store today, and the boys will be here any minute. I’ll go shopping tomorrow, but they’ll need milk before then.”
“Sure, no problem. Do you want me to get anything else?”
“No, that’s all,” she said. “I’ll see you in a couple of hours.”
Her voice sounded weak. Derik wrinkled his brow and asked, “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine, just a little tired and running behind.”
After she hung up, Derik stared at the phone. He went to the front counter and said, “Stewart, I’m leaving. Lock up for me, okay?” He got in his truck and headed home.
Just before he reached the house, he got another call, and Kelly’s name appeared on the screen again. “Did you think of something else?” he said before he heard the crying.
“Daddy, Kelly’s asleep, and she won’t wake up,” D.C. sobbed.
“Okay, calm down. Maybe she’s really tired,” Derik said, trying to reassure the boy. “Where is she?”
“On the floor. In the kitchen.” The fear in the young voice was obvious.
Derik’s pulse began to race. “Okay buddy, I’m almost there.” Moments later, he turned into the drive. “Kelly!” he yelled, as he ran into the house.
She was sitting on the kitchen floor, leaning against the wall with a wet rag on her forehead and a sheepish grin on her face. “I’m okay. I just got a little dizzy and passed out. Everyone relax and let me stand up.”
“Boys, back up and give her some breathing room.” Derik stepped forward and pulled her to her feet. Before she could protest, she was lifted in his arms and carried to the sofa. He laid her against the cushions and sat down.
“What’s going on? Has this happened before? Do you hurt anywhere?”
“Derik, I fainted, that’s all. I must have stood up too fast. Don’t make a fuss, or you’ll scare the boys. Now, move so I can get dinner started.”
“No, you stay put. I’ll take the kids and grab a pizza and that gallon of milk you asked for. Do you think you’ll be okay alone for a few minutes?”
“Yes, I’m fine.”
Derik kissed her, and he and the boys headed to the truck.
When they returned to the house, Kelly was asleep on the couch. He let her rest while he fed the boys and took them outside. After bath time he read a short story, tucked them into bed, then hurried downstairs.
Kelly opened her eyes and saw the look of concern on Derik’s face. “Guess I dozed off. Did you get pizza?”
He sat down beside her. “Yeah, you dozed off all right. About three hours of dozing, to be exact. We ate, and the boys are in bed.” When she started to protest, he said, “I explained you weren’t feeling well and read to them. They’re fine. It’s you I’m worried about.”
“I’m just a little tired.” She got up and headed out of the room. At the bottom step, she looked over her shoulder. “I’m going to take a shower. Do you want to join me?” She laughed when he chased her up the stairs.
The ne
xt morning Kelly woke to the children’s laughter and hurried to join them.
“Good morning,” Derik said when she entered the kitchen. “How are you feeling?”
“Great.” She kissed the boys and walked to where he stood at the stove. She started to kiss him then suddenly clamped a hand over her mouth and ran upstairs. He wrinkled his forehead and watched her hurry out of the room. Derik looked at the bacon, then back at the stairs, and smiled.
“Boys, you finish eating. I’ll be right back.” He moved the skillet off the burner and followed her. He stood outside the bathroom where he could hear Kelly emptying her stomach. “Are you okay?” he said when she finished brushing her teeth. “Can I get you some crackers or a drink?”
The door flew open, and Kelly glared at him. “You did this to me.”
Derik wrapped her in his arms. “Have you been to the doctor or taken a test? It doesn’t matter, I know. I feel it in my bones.”
“That isn’t where I feel it.” She laughed then laid her head against his chest.
He carried her to the bed and sat beside her. “I hope you’re happy about this, because I’m thrilled. I don’t think we should tell the boys right away, but I can’t wait to call Jack.” He grinned at her while he punched a few numbers into his phone. “Hello, Jack. I know it’s early, but I’ve got some news to share. You’re going to be a grandpa again.” He threw his head back and laughed at the man’s reply. “Yeah, I’m so happy I could burst. I can’t believe we’re pregnant. I hope it’s a girl, but another boy would be okay. She’s fine, a little bout of morning sickness, but she’s great. Beautiful, absolutely beautiful.” He never took his eyes off her.
“She doesn’t feel very beautiful. Right now she feels like she’s going to get sick again. Move over and let me up,” Kelly said. She crawled off the bed and hurried across the hall.
An Unexpected Rescue (Oak Springs Series Book 1) Page 15