Capture Tomorrow

by Ann Heathman

  “I’M SO glad you’re home,” Kathryn said, hugging Zach when he came into the kitchen. “Juan explained what happened and all about that girl. I never believed you cheated on Arianna.” She winced. “At least I hoped you hadn’t.”

  Zach returned the hug. “I would never do anything to hurt your daughter. Never.”

  “Awe! You’re a good man, Zach. And thank God, you showed up when you did. That chick almost drowned Arianna.”

  “Hey! Look who’s up and at ‘em,” Juan said.

  Arianna wandered into the kitchen looking perky but a bit disheveled. She had tied her hair back with a ribbon and applied a bit of lipstick and blush to bring some color back to her face.

  “Oh, hi, sweetie.” Kathryn said. “How are you feeling?”

  “Good. Better. Just want to put this behind me.” She poured herself a Coke.

  Kathryn checked her over and smoothed some pieces of her hair back into place which seemed to be sticking up a bit. Arianna shook her head, looked over at Zach, and smiled.

  He had a smug look on his face as if to say, “What? You don’t like my handy work?”

  “Anyway,” Kathryn continued, “I hope everyone’s hungry.” She set a bowl of potato salad on the table. “There are ribs, sweetcorn, and baked beans on the stove, all left over from yesterday. Help yourself and eat up. I don’t want to take any of this home with me.”

  “Smells delicious,” Juan said, filling his plate. “I’m starving.”

  Once they were seated, Kathryn passed a basket of garlic bread to Zach and asked, “So what are your plans now that you’re home?”

  “To actually go home. Back to Costa Luna. You’re welcome to come with us if you like.”

  “That sounds like fun, but I don’t think I can take any more time away from work right now.” Looking at Arianna, she asked, “What about your interview on Friday? Are you going to fly back for that?”

  Arianna frowned at her mother, then glanced over at Zach. If he found this information interesting, exciting, or just plain disturbing, she couldn’t tell by his demeanor. He kept on eating, never looking up. Damn! She’d wanted to be the one to bring the subject up. Thinking the idea of her becoming a foreign correspondent might not go over well, she wanted to pick the right time and place to tell him about it. Too late now.

  “Uh, yeah. Harold Major, my boss at Starline Productions, was approached by an executive producer from CBS. It seems they’re looking to hire a new foreign correspondent and are interested in me.”

  Silence fell across the room. Zach continued to eat, not responding.

  “They saw my documentary and liked what I did,” she continued. “They want someone with real world experience, so they’re considering me for the job.”

  “That’s cool,” Juan said. “I think they know talent when they see it. Where’s the interview?”

  “In New York City this coming Friday.” She looked over at Zach who was polishing off an ear of sweetcorn, seemingly ignoring what she was saying. Damn it! She wished he would say something.

  “Is this something you want to do?” Juan asked. “Could be dangerous depending on where they send you.”

  For the first time, Zach looked over at her, wiped the butter off his face, and waited for her to answer. She knew there could be danger. They weren’t thinking of sending her to cover the running of the bulls or the Tour de France bike race. She so wished her mother had never brought this up.

  She let out a long sigh. “I haven’t decided, but it’s silly to think about it right now since I don’t have the job yet.” She looked at Zach, and for a moment, thought he was going to say something, but he remained silent.

  Kathryn began clearing the dishes. “We had planned to close up the cottage tomorrow morning and head back to the city.”

  Zach pushed away from the table and brought his dishes to the sink. “We’ll stay the night and leave for the city in the morning after we get this place buttoned up.” He began loading the dishwasher.

  “Here. You don’t need to do this,” Kathryn said and tried to shoo him away. “It’s a lovely evening. Why don’t you guys fix yourself a drink and sit out on the deck? Enjoy the last night at the lake. We could take the pontoon out except, well…,” she looked warily at Arianna, “uh, maybe you’ve had enough water for one day.”

  “No, that’s silly. I’m not going to let this ruin my life. As long as I’m above the water and not held under it, a pontoon ride sounds perfect.” Happy someone had changed the subject, she looked at Zach and Juan. “I’ll help Mom clean up the kitchen. Why don’t you guys go down and get the boat ready? The key’s on the hook over there.” She motioned over her shoulder.

  “Deal,” Juan said. “I don’t think Zach wants to get dishpan hands anyway.”

  Zach winged a wet sponge at him, spraying him with water when he caught it. “Very funny. Grab those keys, and let’s go.”

  As soon as they left, Arianna turned to her mother. “I wish you hadn’t brought up the interview thing, Mom.”

  “Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t realize it was such a touchy subject.”

  “No, you couldn’t know, but did you see how quiet Zach got? I can’t really tell what he thinks about my taking this job, but I’m guessing he’s not liking it.”

  “He always seems quiet to me, so I didn’t notice.”

  “That’s because you don’t know him like I do. Trust me. I’m pretty sure he’s not going to be supportive of this.”

  “Oh, dear. Guess I blew that.”

  “No, it’s okay. He had to hear about it sometime. Now, I just need to wait and see what he says.”

  They packed a cooler full of beer and wine and joined the men on the dock. It was early evening, and they had about an hour of good cruising time before the sun set. Zach drove the boat while Arianna and her mother pointed out places of interest around the lake. The sun was just setting when they turned toward home. Zach let Juan take the wheel.

  Helping himself to a beer from the cooler, he sat down beside Arianna on the back of the boat. “Are you cold?” he asked. He took his jacket off and put it around her shoulders.

  “Thank you,” she said and leaned back against his chest. This was heaven…the beautiful evening on the water, her nestled in Zach’s arms, and the horrible saga resolved. She didn’t want to break the mood, but Zach’s lack of reaction to her job news, nagged at her. “You were awfully quiet at dinner tonight,” she said. “Do you not have anything to say about my interview? I know that’s what you’re thinking about.”

  He stared off into the distance, not answering for the longest time. Finally, he said, “Maybe, but we’re not going to talk about it tonight.” He pulled her close and kissed the top of her head. End of discussion.

  AFTER AN evening of good food, alcohol, and a relaxing cruise, everyone retired for the evening.

  “Sleep well, Arianna,” her mother said, bidding her good night. “Try not to let what happened today haunt your dreams.”

  Once inside the bedroom, Arianna slipped out of her shirt and shorts and stood there in nothing but a push-up bra and boy-cut bikini panties, in which she looked nothing like a boy. Moving close to Zach, she pressed her body against his and ran her hands up and down his chest.

  He looked at her in surprise. There was no mistaking the message she was sending. “Are you sure?” he asked. He would never have initiated anything physical himself, thinking it would be insensitive of him to want to make love after all she’d been through this day, but since she seemed to be inviting him, he was more than happy to oblige.

  The fact they were in her mother’s house kind of put a damper on things, but the time for hot, torrid lovemaking wasn’t tonight anyway. He reached up and untied the ribbon in her hair, causing her hair to fall softly upon her shoulders. Next his fingers played teasingly across the swell of her breasts, before dipping into the demi bra, pushing it down while lifting her naked breasts into full view, causing Arianna to let out a loud gasp.

  He
thrummed his finger across her hardened nipples eliciting a long, low hiss as she threw her head back in ecstasy. Lowering his head, he nipped one puckered tip, tugged on the other while he cupped her bottom and pulled her tight against his rock hard erection.

  Man oh man. He had to fight with everything within him to keep this under control. Given the long time apart, coupled with the day’s highly charged emotional setting, all he really wanted to do was drop her on the bed and fuck the hell out of her.

  He ripped his shirt off and wrestled out of his jeans. Picking her up, he laid her on the bed, caressing and massaging between her legs. She buried her face in his chest, trying to muffle the moans of pleasure she was emitting. This cottage was anything but soundproof.

  Zach sealed her to the bed with a kiss while he reached down and pulled her panties off. Sliding his hand down her belly to the sweet spot between her legs, he found she was sleek, hot and primed for the taking. He slipped inside and slowly began moving in and out.

  She clutched onto him with such exuberance and passion, he realized, he’d been wrong thinking that making love tonight might be inappropriate considering the trauma she’d been through. This coupling appeared to be exactly what she needed. She responded to him with a sense of need which knew no bounds.

  Delivering a quick succession of thrusts, she clenched and rose up to meet him. She pulled a pillow across her face to keep from crying out as a raging river of contractions coursed through her body, releasing days, hours, and moments of bottled-up anguish and anxiety. The currents of her contractions triggered his own release, causing him to pitch forward and bury his own cries of ecstasy into the curvature of her neck and the bed, a deliverance from days, hours, and moments of his own private hell.

  This was a moment both of them nearly didn’t live to see.

  That’s it,” Kathryn said. “Refrigerator’s empty. Floors swept. Beds changed and bathrooms cleaned. I think we’re good to go.”

  “What do we do with the trash?” Juan asked.

  “Set it out by the mailbox. Tomorrow’s trash day.”

  “Bedroom door lock all repaired,” Zach said. “Good as new.” He picked up the ladies’ suitcases and started for the door. “Kathryn, why don’t you ride with Juan, if you don’t mind? Arianna and I will take the other car.”

  “That works for me. I’ve sure enjoyed his company the last couple of days. He’s a sweet boy.”

  Juan planted a big kiss on Kathryn’s cheek as he juggled past her with two large bags of trash in hand. “You go, mama.”

  The cars pulled away from the cottage and maneuvered out onto the highway. Zach reached over and took Arianna’s hand. “You feeling okay this morning?” he asked.

  She kissed the back of his hand, and said, “I am. I feel calm and at peace.”

  “Well, not to disturb your tranquility,” Zach replied, “but we need to talk.”

  She let out a soft sigh. She thought she knew what the topic of conversation was going to be.

  “Your interview on Friday. Let me hear about it.”

  “Well, I told you what I know. I don’t have the job yet, so it may be a moot point.”

  He glanced over at her. “I doubt that. I’m pretty sure you can bag this job. What I want to know is where they plan to send you. You have real world experience in the Middle East, but that doesn’t mean you should go back there. Do you realize how dangerous it is over there now?”

  She shifted in the seat. “I’ve seen the news. I’ve heard the stories. I don’t think they’ll send me into the heart of ISIS territory.”

  Zach shook his head. “You don’t think so, but you don’t really know, do you?”

  Arianna shrugged her shoulders. “No, but I’m sure they have security.”

  “Security? Babe, I can tell you there’s security and then there’s security. It all depends on what kind and who’s in charge of the security as to whether it’s worth anything. But the number one thing to remember is, there are no safe places in the Middle East and many parts of Europe right now.”

  “So are you saying you don’t want me to go? Just say it then.”

  He flipped on his turn signal, changed lanes, looked over and said, “Yes.”

  She let out a little huff, shook her head, and stared straight out the window.

  “Look. You asked me if I wanted you to go, and I answered you honestly. The big question is whether I would try to stop you. Ask me that.”

  She turned and faced him. “Okay, then. Are you going to try and stop me from taking this job.”

  He let out a long sigh of resignation. “No.”

  “Ahh! Let me see if I understand this correctly.” She looked back out the window. “You don’t want me to take this job because you think it’s too dangerous, but you’re not going to stop me, and you’ll also sit and worry the whole time I’m gone. Oh, don’t I know that feeling.”

  Yes, he was sure she did. “I would never stop you from pursuing your career, but could we please inject a little common sense into this equation?”

  “Meaning?”

  “Meaning…I’d like to be present when there is any discussion of security. I’d like to have a chance to evaluate the plan they have in place to protect their employees. Will you at least let me have a say in that?”

  “What if you don’t approve of the measures they’re taking? Then what?”

  He didn’t answer. He’d already stretched the truth concerning her taking this job. He might stop her. He knew he had the connections needed to prevent her from getting the job. He’d already killed her interview on 60 Minutes to protect her anonymity. He personally found it frightening to go into some of these places he’d been to in the Middle East, and he was a trained special operator. Could he tamp down everything he knew and had seen first-hand in order to be at peace with her going to these dangerous places? He wasn’t really sure. Better to say nothing at all right now, than to back himself into a corner.

  “Then what?” she repeated. “What if you don’t like the security they have in place?”

  It was ironic that he worried almost more about her safety than he did his own. She never tried to stop him from doing what he loved, not that she knew exactly what he did, but she’d stood by patiently, coping with his long absences and fear of harm. It was so selfish of him to not do the same for her. No, not selfish. The problem was he knew too much. Had seen too much. Was afraid for her. God, I’m such a hypocrite.

  “You’re not going to answer me are you?”

  “I’m proud of you. You’re damn good at what you do. I’m sure they’ll hire you. I would never want to stand in the way of you and your career.”

  “Boy, you are so irritating at times, but I like your non-answer answer, so I’ll take that to mean, we’ll see what happens.”

  That was fine with him. He was done discussing this.

  “One other piece of business,” Arianna said, “regarding this maniac girlfriend thing.”

  Zach shot her an ominous look. “She’s not and never was my girlfriend, so please don’t ever refer to this situation like that again.”

  “Okay. Fair enough. Regarding that nut job who tried to drown me. You guys were playing cards while you were gone. Do you not know how much I long to talk to you when you’re away. Just to hear your voice and know you’re all right? You evidently have time to play cards. Couldn’t you please just call me? Text me? Something?”

  He turned onto I94 into Milwaukee, looked over at her, and said, “Ah, babe. You’re killing me.”

  She started to say something, but he put his hand up to stop her. “You think I don’t miss you too, and don’t want to talk to you? I absolutely do, but understand something. That poker game was a rare event. We were socked-in by bad weather and had some downtime. Because of this and only because of this, a poker game broke out. But… that doesn’t change anything. You will not hear from me. You just won’t.”

  She folded her arms and sat there pouting.

  “End of conversation
, Arianna. You can sit there and pout all you want. No calls are coming.”

  “I hate you sometimes.”

  He smiled. “I’m sure you don’t, but you might. As long as we’re clearing the air—.” He pulled her Blackphone out of his pocket and waved it at her.

  She looked at him and shook her head.

  “Don’t shake your head at me. I know you know where we found it—in the trash in your mom’s garage.”

  “That’s because I was mad at you. I didn’t want you tracking my every move.”

  “And now I’m mad at you. I’m not joking about this. This phone needs to stay with you at all times even more so if you take this correspondent job. And, had you had your phone on you this week, I may have even been able to prevent the whole drowning episode.” He handed her the phone.

  “But that’s my point. I have this special phone, but you won’t call me on it, and you can keep tabs on me, but I have no clue regarding your whereabouts. I just think it’s unfair.” She dropped the phone into her purse.

  “And you’d be right, but it’s not going to change anything. Don’t ditch your phone again or the same thing will happen as the time you ditched your body guard.”

  She got that message loud and clear, only adding to her irritation with him.

  They drove on in silence until Zach finally asked, “So are we good here, then? Anything else we need to talk about?”

  She shook her head, and sat there with her arms folded, still not talking to him.

  He glanced over at her and decided he couldn’t leave things like this. He zoomed off the first exit he came to.

  “What are you doing?” she asked. “This is not our exit.”

  He pulled into an empty parking lot and slammed on the brakes.

  She lurched forward and put her arms out to brace herself. “What is wrong with you? Why are we stopping here?”

  “Well, first of all, to get you to uncross your arms, and secondly because I have something to say, and I didn’t want to say it barreling down the highway at eighty miles an hour.”