A Touch of Passion (boxed set romance bundle)

by Uvi Poznansky

  Judy patted her shoulder. “Take your time, dear. Don’t worry about the heat. I already have your dad on it. The last time I saw him, he was heading down into the basement with his tool box. He was going to give Old Faithful a once over. Hopefully, he won’t blow us all up in the process. He should be able to get the furnace working properly before breakfast is ready.”

  Judy leaned down and kissed Charity on the cheek. For a few moments, they just looked at each other. Judy stroked Charity’s cheek as if that would make everything better. She finally stood and left without saying anything.

  As soon as the door was closed, Charity pushed the warm covers back and made a mad dash into her private bathroom. If the wood floor hadn’t been chilly enough on her bare feet, the tile floor was freezing. After slipping out of her old pjs and dropping them into the hamper, she hopped around from foot to foot while waiting on the water to warm up. When it was finally warm enough she jumped into the shower, and was grateful that at least one thing in the old house functioned properly. The gas water heater was great for keeping the water scalding hot.

  Her parents had purchased the house right before Charity started first grade. Her father was an English professor at the local University, and it was conveniently located a mere four blocks from the house. The middle school where Charity had met Johnny was just a little over a block from the house. She had been a big hit with the kids in middle school, because she had lived so close. Many of the kids would head to her house in the afternoons instead of heading straight to their own homes.

  After Johnny had transferred to Charity’s middle school, he had also joined the others at her house every afternoon. There had seldom been a day he hadn’t dropped by before heading on to his own home which was within walking distance of her house. Every afternoon after school her mom always had a pan of fresh baked cookies and other snacks ready for her and her friends. While Charity’s childhood hadn’t been just like a television sitcom, it had come just about as close to it as real life could get.

  Old memories could not keep the new ones away. Those memories kept coming to the surface no matter how hard she struggled to block them out. She let the hot water run its course down her body, but no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t wash away the terrible emptiness or pain.

  Charity was afraid she was slowly losing her mind. Mentally, she was drained. She hadn’t cried again after that first night. She had to keep it together, because if Judy had even the slightest idea that first night that something had been wrong between her and Johnny, there wouldn’t have been any way she ever would have returned home the next day. Charity didn’t want that on her conscience, too. After Johnny had left that night she had waited for her mother to return, and then she lied about why he had left and wasn’t returning. It wasn’t something she was necessarily very proud of, but she was in too much shock to come up with a better plan.

  It had been an unconvincing lie about Johnny having to return home because of an emergency at his dad’s garage. From the expression on her mother’s face it was easy to see she wasn’t convinced, but for some reason Judy accepted the explanation without question. Maybe she could tell Charity didn’t want her delving into the matter any deeper, or maybe it was because her mother respected hers and Johnny’s privacy enough to not ask any questions. Whatever her mom’s reasons, Charity had certainly appreciated not having to explain what was happening to her marriage until she understood it all better herself.

  Charity rinsed the shampoo out of her hair, shut off the water, and then toweled off. She wrapped the towel around herself before heading back into her bedroom to search through the dresser drawers for something to wear. She could tell from their contents that Johnny must have sent her things back over from their apartment. Her mom had never said anything about him sending her belongings home. Judy must not have wanted to call with that information, knowing it would only open the wounds again. Seeing her things neatly folded and back in her old room was just another sign her marriage was really over. In the back of her mind she had known it, ached in her heart from it, but it still hadn’t felt completely real until that moment.

  Charity tried not to dwell on the fresh wave of pain coursing through her and instead shoved the bad thoughts away as she pushed through folded clothes to find something warm to wear. In the middle of the search her hand struck the hard edge of a book lying on the bottom of the drawer. It seemed so out of place that she pulled all of the clothes out to see what it was, letting them drop to the floor carelessly. Even before she had it completely uncovered she recognized the white leather cover of her wedding album. Her mom must have placed it in the bottom of the drawer thinking it would be out of sight and Charity wouldn’t dig that far down looking for anything.

  She finished pulling it free from the drawer, turned around, and plopped right down onto the cold wood floor. She closed her eyes, wrapped both arms around the book, and clasped it tightly against the bare skin of her chest. Closing her eyes, she thought back to the day of their wedding. It had been hastily put together. Ever since Johnny had proposed during her first year at the University they had plotted and planned on an enormous wedding. Their plans had been to wait until she had her degree, he had worked at his father’s garage, and had a good savings started for their future. Their plans had changed on the day Mr. Bennett had approached her about starring in his movie.

  Looking back, it was easy to see they should have waited, but Charity had wanted to do whatever it took to make sure Johnny understood that no matter what her future held, he was always going to be the most important thing in it. When it had been decided to move up the date, Charity and Judy had thrown together a small ceremony that had been held in the large living room, just downstairs from her now. Their pastor, Gerald Trust, had performed the ceremony. While it had been low key and simple, it had been such a beautiful moment in time for Charity. She could still clearly see the look of happiness on Johnny’s face the moment right before he had leaned in to kiss her and after they had been pronounced man and wife. Her mom’s brother, Dennis, was an amateur photographer and had agreed to take the wedding pictures. The very ones she was so desperately clutching. Uncle Dennis had captured that precise moment, and the happiness on Johnny’s face was so clear in the photo. Without opening the book, she could see that picture clearly and for a moment, she wished that happiness had been a sign of their future together, instead of the painful memory that it was now.

  Charity ran a fingertip down the album’s gold trimmed binding. Johnny must not have wanted old memories lying around the apartment since he was beginning a new life with another woman soon. It wasn’t something you left around for the soon-to-be new bride to see. That thought was enough to make Charity want to throw the book across the room. No, she really just wanted to toss everything that showed them being a happy couple out the window. The young, smiling couple inside of it was just a mocking reminder that she had failed.

  Charity crumbled forward and sobbed. The burden of blame pressed heavily against her heart. As much as she wanted to place all the blame on Johnny’s shoulders it wasn’t possible to. She either shouldn’t have agreed to marry him, or she shouldn’t have left so soon after their marriage. She had been well aware of just how much Johnny was afraid of losing her. He had always received his strength from her. She had known of his inability to stand without her in his life. It had been so easy to pretend she could have it all. She had wanted the movie deal, so she had convinced herself she could leave for six months and he would be fine.

  Because of her greed, her world was now fractured beyond repair. She pressed her forehead into the wood flooring and struggled to stop crying. Her mom was waiting downstairs for her to help cook breakfast, and there was no point in continuing to rehash the past. What was done was done, never to be fixed again no matter who she blamed. She sat back against the dresser, pulled her knees up to her chest, and held them tightly while rocking back and forth. Minutes passed as she raged inside against things that could
not be changed.

  She finally used the edge of her towel to wipe away her tears. It was in that moment she made the decision to never cry over Johnny again. She was taking away his power to hurt her again. This was not going to destroy her. He had obviously moved on with his life, and seemingly without a backward glance, so she was going to do the same. She didn’t have a clue what was going to happen next, but was through with the self-pity parties all the same. From now on she was moving forward and not looking back at what used to be. This one failure wasn’t going to destroy her entire life.

  Charity found a pair of jeans and one of her old University sweatshirts, dressed, and then picked up the object that had been the catalyst for her breakdown. Without a second thought she walked over to the waste basket next to her bed and tossed it in. With that major decision taken care of, she left the bedroom and headed downstairs to the kitchen.

  If Judy wondered about the amount of time it took Charity to get dressed and come downstairs, she never said a thing about it. She put Charity to work turning the pancakes while she started the coffee. Her dad emerged from the basement with his toolbox about the time the bacon was finished frying.

  He tiptoed up behind Charity, grabbed her from behind, and put her in a huge bear hug. “There’s my baby girl!”

  Charity squirmed around in his arms and planted a kiss on his cheek. “Merry Christmas Daddy!”

  A movement caught her attention and when she looked up she saw David and Maria stop just inside the doorway. “Dad. You had better let me go. We have company.”

  Instead of putting her down he turned to face David and Maria. “Sorry, but they’ll just have to bear seeing the sight of an old man greeting his long lost daughter.”

  Charity giggled. “You’re going to throw your back out.”

  He finally set her down again but pulled her back into a deep hug. “You’ve lost too much weight. You must be working too hard.”

  Charity didn’t want to get into a long drawn out discussion about her weight loss so she quickly changed the subject. She waved David and Maria towards the kitchen table. “Come on in and sit down. Don’t mind Dad. He just gets a little crazy every time I go away for any length of time. I can’t even imagine how he made it without Mom and me.”

  She reached over and patted the beginnings of a small pot belly. “But it looks like he has tried to make up for those lost meals. I don’t remember this stomach being there before I left.”

  He quickly sucked it in. “I don’t know what you’re talking about, and I don’t remember you having such a smart mouth on you when you left here.”

  David and Maria sat down at the kitchen table. They both looked around hungrily at the heaping plates of food. David grabbed a slice of bacon and pointed it at Charity. “I believe she must have had that mouth before she came to Texas, sir. No one gets as sassy as she is in that short amount of time.”

  He crunched on the bacon and chewed thoughtfully. “She probably just had you fooled into thinking that she wasn’t such a smart aleck.”

  Jim sat down in the chair across from David. Judy and Charity took the remaining chairs at the kitchen table. Charity passed the plate of pancakes. “Dad, you know, I meant it only in the kindest way. You look adorable with that cute little stomach.”

  He grinned as he stabbed several pancakes before passing the plate to Judy. “I do not have a cute little stomach. I wish you would quit saying that. Judy, tell your daughter I don’t have a cute little stomach.”

  Judy took the plate and gave him a knowing look before finally saying, “Leave him alone. He’s in denial. I wouldn’t burst his bubble. It is, after all, Christmas day.”

  Jim looked around the table at all the smiling faces. He grumbled as he pointed his fork in Judy’s direction. “I don’t remember you having such a smart mouth either.”

  Charity leaned across the kitchen table and patted his arm. “Dad, Mom and I were like this before we left for Dallas, but if it makes you feel better, we were always very good at hiding it.”

  Jim took his daughter’s hand and squeezed it. “Dear, you weren’t that good. I knew. I just like pretending I don’t have a clue about what’s going on around here. That’s what men do. We just pretend we don’t have a clue. It keeps us out of so much trouble.”

  David lifted his glass as if to give a toast. “Here, here. I like your style, Jim. I couldn’t have said it better myself.”

  Maria grinned at David. “Dear, in your case, you really don’t have a clue.”

  David tried to appear hurt by Maria’s remark but couldn’t pull it off for very long before grinning. “I don’t remember you having such a smart mouth, either. Maybe, it’s Charity’s bad influence.”

  It didn’t take long for the food to disappear, but even after everyone had finished eating, they stayed seated at the table talking. Charity couldn’t remember the last time she had eaten so much food in one sitting, and was pleasantly surprised that she had been able to put aside her problems and enjoy herself without the sadness creeping back into her thoughts.

  Even though David and Maria wanted to help clean up the kitchen, Judy ran everyone out so she could wash the dishes. Despite her mother insisting that she join the others in the living room, Charity stayed behind to dry and put away the dishes with her.

  They were almost finished when David came back into the kitchen looking disturbed. “Judy. Maria has another headache. I’m going to find a doctor who will be willing to see her even though it’s Christmas Day. Can you recommend a doctor I can take her to?”

  Judy laid the dish cloth on the kitchen counter. “I don’t think any doctors will be in their offices today. You’ll have to take her to the emergency room. Do you think you can talk her into going?”

  David turned to leave the room but called over his shoulder. “I’m not giving her a choice.”

  Charity put the dish towel across the back of a chair. “I’m going to drive them, and stay with them. If he thinks it’s important enough to take her to the hospital, then she must be in a lot of pain.”

  As soon as Charity grabbed her car keys and coat, she joined David and Maria in the guest bedroom.

  Maria was combing her hair and it was obvious she was resisting the idea of going to the hospital. “It’s just a headache. I don’t want to spoil Judy and Jim’s Christmas plans.”

  David was sitting on the edge of the bed watching Maria get ready to leave for the hospital. “You’ve had this headache for too long. You need to see someone.”

  “Why does it have to be today?”

  David stood and walked over to Maria. “Because the headaches are getting worse. If we don’t go today, you’ll find another reason tomorrow not to go. We’re going. I’m sure Jim and Judy will understand.”

  Charity ventured through the doorway into the couple’s bedroom. “I’m driving the two of you to the hospital. Don’t worry about spoiling anybody’s plans. Mom and dad don’t mind waiting until we get back to open up presents. Come on and let’s get checked out by a doctor. You will make David feel better. He just wants what is best for you.”

  Maria let out a long sigh. She placed the comb on the top of the dresser and then shrugged. “Okay, but David, I’m only going so you will see that everything is fine.” Dragging her feet like a three year old being asked to give up a piece of candy, she walked over to the closet and pulled out a fleece coat. With one arm in and the other poised to shove into the other sleeve she turned back to David and Charity. “Well let’s go on then. I don’t want to take up all of our Christmas day sitting in an emergency room.”

  She finished putting the coat on and headed out of the bedroom. She stopped just inside the doorway. “Well, let’s get this over with.”

  David grinned at Charity. “I’m glad that she’s taking this so well.”

  As expected, the emergency room on Christmas day was hectic. Charity made herself comfortable, as best she could, in the hard plastic chairs of the waiting room. She tried not to think of all t
he germs that were running rampant on the arm of her chair. She looked around at the crowd waiting and decided this was not going to be a quick trip. There were several sick children being held by concerned parents. There were various other sick and hurt people already waiting to be called back for a doctor to see them. It was anyone’s guess how many people were already in the rooms and still waiting for doctors to check them out.

  It took David and Maria thirty minutes to get checked in at the reception area. After the receptionist had all the information she needed, she sent them into the waiting area to wait for their turn. For over an hour, David pretended to read an old magazine while peeking over its edge every now and then to see how Maria was doing. Maria and Charity pretended not to see his concern, but sat and tried chatting over the room filled with children playing, coughing, crying, or sometimes all three at the same time. Everyone there wore the same look and it spoke volumes. This was not anyone’s first choice of how they would have liked to spend Christmas.

  When a nurse finally called Maria back to the exam rooms, David got up to go with her.

  Maria stood but motioned for him to stay seated. “You don’t have to go. I will be fine.”

  He stood anyway and took her arm. “I’m sure you will be fine, but I’m going back with you. I want to hear what the doctor says.” He turned to Charity. “I hate leaving you here by yourself. I hope you don’t mind.”

  Charity waved them on, reached over, and picked up his discarded magazine. “I’m fine. I’ll still be here when your exam is over. Now go on.”

  Time came to a complete standstill after David and Maria disappeared into the examining rooms and there was no one left to talk with. She had read every magazine and was eyeing the children’s books when David and Maria finally emerged from behind the sliding double doors.