"It's not gonna pick up what he's saying," Jude said.
I widened my eyes at him, telling him he was talking too loud. The officer concluded the radio correspondence with all of his police code and jargon. I didn't understand it, but it made me feel like he was telling the person on the other end that he thought we were guilty of something.
"Officer, if there's no other problem than the speeding, I'll go ahead and take the ticket so we can be on our way."
"I'm afraid we're way past that," he said.
Jude and I shared another annoyed glance that he couldn't see.
He pressed the button on his radio and began saying more code about having a four-twenty-five on his hands and needing backup. He was giving our location, and I automatically started glancing all around and assuming that the headlights I saw far off in the distance were cops that were heading our way.
My heart began pounding in earnest now. The surreal experience had somehow gone from being an annoyance to having me amped up and full of dread. Adrenaline coursed through my body as thirty seconds of utter chaos ensued.
Eric went to reach for something. His wallet—something in his pocket. It must have been his wallet or keys or something in his pocket because he leaned to the side and reached back in a gesture like he was going to retrieve something from his backside. The officer went ballistic. He put his hand on his gun like he was about to pull it out and start shouting. He was in a fighting stance. His knees were bent and he had one hand on his gun in one hand out toward Eric.
"I was just going to get my phone to look up my—" Eric was not speaking quietly, but the officer did not hear him for his own yelling.
The officer took his hand off of his gun holster just long enough to press the button on his radio. I heard him saying something about the suspect having a possible firearm, land the next thing I knew he was shouting for Eric to, "Get out of the car! Get out of the car!" He shouted fiercely.
Eric began moving. Those seconds were so heart pounding that it was difficult for me to understand what was going on. My brother was videoing the whole thing, and I could do nothing but sit there and watch helplessly.
I covered my face and watched through my fingers as Eric opened his door and stepped outside. The officer was shouting things like, "Keep your hands where I can see them!"
The door was open and I watched as the officer, poised to fight, barked orders at Eric.
"Put your hands on your head and turn around!" he yelled. Eric did as the officer said, and the guy began patting him down.
Jude and I looked at each other, both of us wearing helpless, worried expressions. I still had a hand over my face, but I knew my brother could see me—could see the panic in my eyes. Neither of us knew what to do to help.
Two huge SUV's came speeding up with their lights flashing.
"On your knees!" the officer yelled before anyone could get out of their vehicles.
Eric was facing me when the officer told him to do that and I saw his face fall in confusion. He was always so in control that I felt gut-wrenched seeing him this way. There was just no way I could let him get down on his knees like a criminal. My brother still had his phone trained on the action outside the vehicle.
I let out a, "Noooo!" but my voice was weak and it sounded distant even to my own ears.
The next thing I knew, the officer pushed Eric down by the shoulder and Eric was forced to his knees right in front of me. I watched anxiously, heart pounding, starting to panic.
"Ask her!" he growled.
I was looking straight at Eric when his hands lowered and his serious, confused expression softened. A slow grin touched the corners of his mouth. My heart was pounding in my ears in those dreamlike seconds. I watched Eric's handsome face brake into a slow smile.
"Ask her, why don't cha!" I heard someone else yell from the front side of the vehicle and I looked that way to see my father and a group of others heading our way. My father had, no doubt, been the one who yelled, I recognized his voice.
My body had a delayed reaction to realizing that nothing was wrong. It took several seconds for me to figure out what was actually going on. Those stressful moments had ended with Eric down on his knees. And there was nothing wrong. My family was here. This was a planned moment. Adrenaline was still pumping as I gazed at Eric with a confused expression.
"Olivia, would you please marry me?"
My heart was rattling in my chest, and my blood felt hot and thick as I turned and reached for the door handle. I opened the car door and got out of the vehicle, hopping to the ground and moving around the front of it, trying desperately to get to Eric.
I was so out of it that I felt like I was moving slower than normal, like my body wasn't fully cooperating. Everything felt like I was in a liquid dreamscape. I barely took in everyone who was standing around, which seemed to be about ten or twelve people, all friends and family.
It felt like it took me forever to get to Eric, and by the time I did, he was already getting to his feet. He stood just in time to take me into his arms. I was shaking and tears of relief began flooding my eyes.
"You never answered him!" someone yelled. It was a woman. I thought it might be my Aunt Rhonda. I glanced that way while I hugged Eric, and saw her standing near the cop, who was huddled up behind her. He was being so familiar that I instantly knew it was my uncle in a costume. I would have never recognized him. It wasn't a fake beard from a Halloween store. It was professionally applied stage makeup and beard. The added fake potbelly really put it over the top. Plus, he talked in a deeper voice. I would've never recognized him, even if the situation hadn't been stressful.
I could only vaguely appreciate what an elaborate plan it must have been with the lights and sirens and outfits.
"Yes!" I said, through tears.
Eric held me and kissed me, and I felt an overwhelming, surreal sense of relief, adrenaline, desire, happiness, amazement, and love. I loved this man. And in those moments of heart-pounding excitement, where everyone was gathered to celebrate, I couldn't mistake how very much he loved me too.
Epilogue
A year later
Eric and I got married in the spring, and it was now late September again. We were still newlyweds at this point which could possibly explain why we were completely inseparable. Or maybe that was just how our life would be from now on. Maybe we would just remain inseparable forever. It felt that way.
I traveled with Eric quite a bit, so I wound up quitting both of my jobs. I didn't, however, stop working. I still basically did similar job duties as I did when I was working, but now I did it as a partner of Eric's and business owner.
Now, when I went into Roxy's, I worked behind the counter or helped out some as needed, but I did it for free. I did it as someone who has an interest in the longevity of the company. I became a helper to Eric, giving opinions about the feel of the marketing. I did some of the designs myself, and then I gave my work and direction to Janet who was still our go-to woman at Stone Lion. So, I was still working as a designer, but now I had a different relationship with the advertising firm. Now, I was the client and they were doing their best to please me.
It was wonderful being able to work and contribute without officially having a job. I did all I could to help build the Roxy's brand and help Eric with his other investments. We had talked about having children, and I already felt like I wanted to be with them as much as I could.
Eric was just happy that I could tag along with him when he traveled. He loved having me with him, and that was right where I wanted to be.
We were traveling at the moment.
We were currently in Costa Rica. There had been a fire on the farm that grew our beans. The farmers had lost two of their main structures and were scrambling to figure things out when Eric stepped in and donated the new buildings they needed. He had a good relationship with the farmers, and he didn't hesitate to help them when he heard about what happened. They had just completed the new buildings, and we flew in f
or the opening celebration.
We had been there for a few days already, but tonight was a party and feast before Eric and I headed back to the States. There were a few hundred people at the party, and since all of them spoke Spanish, I had been with an interpreter the whole evening.
Eric had gone off a while ago to meet some of the farm workers who would be using the new building. I could see him in the distance, smiling and shaking hands, and looking gorgeous and confident.
There was a live band and a small open area where people gathered to listen and dance. I headed that way with my interpreter whose name was Laura. I loved that she could understand me in English, and I enjoyed hanging out with her in general, so we had been talking and having fun the whole time Eric was occupied.
It was crowded near the band, so Laura and I went through the people in single-file fashion, me holding her hand as she led us to a spot near the wall. I was following her when an old withered hand reached out and touched my arm. I turned to find a little old lady, wrapped in a colorful shawl and grinning at me. Both of her front teeth were missing, but it didn't inhibit her sweet smile. It was contagious, and I smiled back at her.
Laura turned when I stopped walking and she joined me, stepping back to talk to the lady. We kind of huddled around her since the music was loud and she obviously wanted to say something. She looked directly at me as she was speaking. I held her gaze even though I couldn't understand a single word she said.
Laura had to lean in to hear her over the music. Once the lady stopped talking, I glanced at Laura for translation.
"This is Mrs. Torres," Laura said, speaking near my ear. "Her grandson is Angelo, the crop manager."
I nodded since I remembered meeting Angelo. "It's a pleasure to meet you," I said with a smile and bow.
Laura translated.
Mrs. Torres looked slowly back and forth between us and then she spoke again. She said something longer in Spanish, and I waited for her to finish and for Laura to translate.
"She says thank you. She says that her family has been working on this farm for three generations, and they have never had such a nice, uh, facilities."
"Tell her that it was our pleasure and we are so thankful we could help out."
Laura translated, and again the lady said something in Spanish. Laura smiled as she was listening and then she turned to me to translate.
"She says it makes a mother's heart happy and grateful to see her children and grandchildren looked after. She said you will know all about that soon since you and Eric are expecting a baby."
Laura shifted and stared at me, going from translator mode to her own personal reaction. "I didn't know you were going to have a baby," she added in English. "Congratulations!"
"I'm not," I said. "I mean, I want to one day, but I'm not pregnant right now. Does she think I'm pregnant?"
I wanted to reach out and touch my stomach, but I didn't let myself do it. I had eaten a lot at dinner, but I didn't think I was that bloated.
"I think she does," Laura said.
She leaned over to talk to Mrs. Torres again, Saying something in Spanish. I assumed she was informing her that I was not pregnant. The old lady nodded and patted her own tummy before saying a long sentence in Spanish to Laura.
"She said you are," Laura said, leaning in to speak to me.
I looked back and forth from her to the lady, feeling a little stunned. "Tell her I don't think I'm expecting a baby, not that I know of, and ask her what made her say that, please."
Laura spoke to the woman, who listened before speaking back to her. While they did this, I could see the lady gesturing to her own stomach and shifting her mid-section this way and that. I knew it was entirely possible that I could be pregnant, but I didn't think I was. I hadn't even missed a period yet. I was supposed to start in the next couple of days. Laura leaned over to speak to me after conversing with the lady.
"She says she can tell you are by your posture, the way you carry yourself. She says you guard yourself, you know, your middle, when you move around. She says you will be a beautiful, caring mother with how you're already guarding that baby."
Tears sprang to my eyes, because it felt in my heart that what she was saying was the truth. Even if I wasn't pregnant yet, I knew I would guard Eric's baby with my life.
I took a test when we made it home the following day, and it came out negative.
I passed it off as an odd conversation with a curious old lady.
But then, five days later, once I was officially late for my period, I took another test which came out positive. It just goes to show you that old Costa Rican ladies are sometimes more accurate than a pregnancy test.
Even after I gave birth to Eden Rose the following May, I never forgot that lady who told me I was expecting her and that I would be a great mom.
I eventually painted her from memory. It wasn't an exact likeness, but I painted her from a distance, and I definitely captured her essence. That painting hung in the roasting house for a year until someone from the farm saw it in a photo and had to have it.
Roxy's got a lot of free coffee as a trade for that deal. The coffee farm was flourishing, and they were looking for a way to repay our kindness anyway, so they way-overpaid in trade. The best part was that the painting was now cherished in the home of the woman's grandson.
In the years that followed, I made a lot of art. Sometimes I'd draw, and sometimes I'd paint, and sometimes I'd design digitally. Sometimes I depicted people and situations I knew deeply like my two daughters, or my mother, or my home, or our racehorses, and others were of people like Mrs. Torres who I had barely crossed paths with.
But most of my art was inspired by one person. The answer to my brother's prayer, and ultimately the answer to mine. My muse, my friend, my lover, my partner, my protector, my helper, my man, my husband. Eric. My happily ever after.
The End
(till book 5)
Other titles available from Brooke St. James:
Another Shot:
(A Modern-Day Ruth and Boaz Story)
When Lightning Strikes
Something of a Storm (All in Good Time #1)
Someone Someday (All in Good Time #2)
Finally My Forever (Meant for Me #1)
Finally My Heart's Desire (Meant for Me #2)
Finally My Happy Ending (Meant for Me #3)
Shot by Cupid's Arrow
Dreams of Us
Meet Me in Myrtle Beach (Hunt Family #1)
Kiss Me in Carolina (Hunt Family #2)
California's Calling (Hunt Family #3)
Back to the Beach (Hunt Family #4)
It's About Time (Hunt Family #5)
Loved Bayou (Martin Family #1)
Dear California (Martin Family #2)
My One Regret (Martin Family #3)
Broken and Beautiful (Martin Family #4)
Back to the Bayou (Martin Family #5)
Almost Christmas
JFK to Dublin (Shower & Shelter Artist Collective #1)
Not Your Average Joe (Shower & Shelter Artist Collective #2)
So Much for Boundaries (Shower & Shelter Artist Collective #3)
Suddenly Starstruck (Shower & Shelter Artist Collective #4)
Love Stung (Shower & Shelter Artist Collective #5)
My American Angel (Shower & Shelter Artist Collective #6)
Summer of '65 (Bishop Family #1)
Jesse's Girl (Bishop Family #2)
Maybe Memphis (Bishop Family #3)
So Happy Together (Bishop Family #4)
My Little Gypsy (Bishop Family #5)
Malibu by Moonlight (Bishop Family #6)
The Harder They Fall (Bishop Family #7)
Come Friday (Bishop Family #8)
So This is Love (Miami Stories #1)
All In (Miami Stories #2)
Something Precious (Miami Stories #3)
The Suite Life (The Family Stone #1)
Feels Like Forever (The Family Stone #2)
Treat
You Better (The Family Stone #3)
The Sweetheart of Summer Street (The Family Stone #4)
Out of Nowhere (The Family Stone #5)
Delicate Balance (The Blair Brothers #1)
Cherished (The Blair Brothers #2)
The Whole Story (The Blair Brothers #3)
Dream Chaser (Blair Brothers #4)
Mischief & Mayhem (Tanner Family #1)
Reckless & Wild (Tanner Family #2)
Heart & Soul (Tanner Family #3)
Me & Mister Everything (Tanner Family #4)
Me & Mister Everything: A Romance (Tanner Family Book 4) Page 14