by Laura Iding
“That’s ridiculous.” Luke couldn’t believe it. “How could she not know? I’ve gone out of my way to show her how much I care.”
“This is one of those times words would speak louder than actions,” Mitch confided. “Trust me, Caryn needs to know how you really feel.”
Luke replayed the scene in the hospital all over again. Spending the night next to her bed had brought them closer, but he hadn’t taken advantage of that fact. Instead, all he could remember was how he’d promised to go slowly. Was Mitch right? Had she only asked him to slow down because she wasn’t sure how he felt?
“All right, I’ll tell her.” Luke thought for a minute. “I think there’s a way I can show her and tell her how I feel at the same time.”
Bed-rest sounded good until you were forced to stay in your house, staring at the four walls around you without doing a thing to fix or clean all the things that suddenly, glaringly needed immediate attention.
As the hour grew later, she told herself not to get her hopes up that Luke would honor their dinner date. But lecturing herself didn’t make her any less hopeful every time she heard a car drive down the street.
At half past six, she got up and headed into the kitchen to make something easy for dinner.
Dr. Kingsley had indicated she could do simple things, like walk to the kitchen to make herself meals and walk to the bathroom for showers, but anything more strenuous was out of the picture for a couple of days.
Making herself a peanut-butter and jelly sandwich, she wallowed for a moment in self-pity.
The baby kicked, hard, as if protesting her thoughts.
“Hey, you’re not old enough to have your own opinion,” she joked, smoothing the spot on her belly where the baby had kicked. Then she laughed at herself. “Maybe you’re right. I am being stupid. I should just call Luke and ask him to come over.”
Before she could make the first move, her phone rang. She pounced on it. “Hello?”
“Caryn?” She immediately recognized Luke’s voice. “How are you?”
“Fine. Great.” She forced cheerfulness into her tone. “The baby’s kicking like a soccer player.”
“Guess she’s back to her usual active self, huh?”
“Absolutely.” Caryn heard the beeping of monitor alarms in the background and wondered how things were going in the ICU. It seemed as if she hadn’t been there much since the Crypto crisis. “Are you still at work?”
“Yeah, there was a little crisis earlier but I’m leaving now.” He cleared his throat. “I’d like to stop by and see you.”
Yes! She wanted to shout and punch the air with her fist but she refrained. Her heart thudded loudly in her chest and she struggled to keep her voice even. “That would be nice.”
“Good, I’ll see you soon.” He hung up before she could respond.
He hadn’t forgotten. There was a crisis at work. A patient taking a sudden turn for the worse must have caused him to stay late. He hadn’t forgotten.
She went into the bathroom to touch up her makeup. Just because she was pregnant it didn’t mean she couldn’t look her best.
When Luke had stopped by the other night with Chinese food, he’d wanted to talk but she hadn’t let him.
Tonight they really did need to talk.
She flipped through a few television channels but couldn’t find anything that captured her interest. After checking her watch for the eleventh time in as many minutes, she picked a channel and stayed with it, although after ten minutes she couldn’t have described what she’d watched.
When Luke knocked, she almost leapt off the sofa to answer the door.
“Hi.” She couldn’t hide her pleasure at seeing him.
“Hi, yourself.” He stepped forward and swung her into his arms in a move so quick she gasped.
“What are you doing?” she asked, clinging to his broad shoulders with a reflexive grip. “Giving yourself a hernia?”
“You’re not supposed to be on your feet.” When he turned and headed out of her house down the sidewalk toward the street, she saw it. A beautiful white horse-drawn carriage, complete with a driver wearing a shiny tall black hat.
“Luke?” She peered up at him, wondering if she was imagining the sight. Curious, she glanced around but there wasn’t anyone else striding toward the fancy white carriage. “What did you do?”
“I arranged for a carriage ride.” He stood patiently holding her as the driver climbed down to open the door. He gently set her on the cushioned seat.
Amazed, she could only gape at him in shock. “You did?”
He nodded. Awestruck, she slid over to make room for him as he climbed in beside her. Curious, she glanced around. The top of the carriage had been pulled up as protection against the wind and there were tiny lights along the rim. Inside, the seat was soft crushed velvet, she thought was red but it was difficult to tell in the darkness.
The driver didn’t say a thing but simply got into his seat and clucked to the horse. The carriage gave a little jerk as the horse began to walk with a clackety-clack of hooves on the pavement.
Caryn settled back against the cushions, enjoying the quiet ride. The night was clear and mild, although there was a lap blanket provided for warmth. Luke put his arm around her and drew her close. Giving in to the desperate need to touch him, to smell the familiar musky, protective scent of him, she leaned against him.
“This is a wonderful surprise, Luke,” she murmured. “I’ve never in my life been on a carriage ride.”
“I’m glad.” He took her hand and stared down at it for a moment. “Caryn, I know things have been difficult lately, first your pregnancy, then the Crypto outbreak, then dealing with Debbie, then your fall…”
She winced and placed a protect hand over her stomach. “Don’t remind me.”
“But there’s something I want you to know,” Luke continued as if she hadn’t interrupted. “I love you. I love you and your baby.” He put his hand into his pocket, pulled out a small velvet case and opened it with a flick of his thumb, revealing a large diamond. He held it out for her. “Will you marry me?”
“Oh, boy,” she whispered, flabbergasted by the sparkling diamond he’d presented. She hadn’t expected this. She really, really hadn’t expected this. They were supposed to talk. “Oh, Luke.” She curled her fingers into fists, digging her nails into her palms to keep from taking the ring. “I don’t know what to say.”
He nodded, not in the least bit put off by her less-than-enthusiastic response. “I know you planned to raise your child alone, that you don’t need me because you have David’s parents’ financial and emotional support. But I’m asking you to reconsider.” He paused, and then added, “I think your baby deserves a complete family.”
Her frisson of excitement faded. “Is that the only reason you want to marry me, Luke? Because of the baby?”
“No. I love you, Caryn.”
She wanted to believe him. But then she remembered his white-knight routine and wondered if he realized the truth himself. “Maybe you don’t. Maybe you just want to save me from myself.”
“Save you?” He laughed. “Caryn, you’re the one who saved me. I was attracted to you from the start, but the more I got to know you, the more I wanted to be with you.” His smile was crooked. “Your caring concern toward Mrs. Nowicki’s son made me realize what I was missing from life.”
Hope fluttered, swelled. “You need to be sure, Luke, because I don’t want you to see me as someone who needs to be rescued.”
He shook his head. “I don’t see you like that at all. I’ve never met anyone as strong as you, Caryn.” He reached over to place his hand protectively on the swell of her abdomen. “But I can’t deny I feel protective about you and your baby. I hadn’t really thought about what it would be like to be a father until I met you.”
He looked so serious she couldn’t help but believe he really meant it. “You might not feel the same way when the baby is crying in the middle of the night and we’re both tired a
nd crabby,” she warned. “Not only that, but it’s complicated. This baby is going to need her grandparents as much as her grandparents are going to need her.”
He stared down at the ring. “I know it’s not going to be easy, but nothing worthwhile ever is.”
Humbled, she stared at him.
“This baby is important to me, Caryn. I understand she’s David’s daughter and, of course, her grandparents will remain a part of her life. But I hope you’ll allow her to be my daughter, too.”
Love intertwined with threads of hope bloomed in her chest, making tears dampen her eyes. She swiped them away with the back of her hand and sniffled. “I think she’ll like that.”
He cradled her cheek. “And how does her mother feel?”
“Her mother likes that, too.” Half laughing, half crying, she threw her arms around his neck and pulled him close. “I love you, Luke. I love you so much. I was stupid to doubt your feelings.”
“Not stupid. Smart. Cautious. Beautiful. Sexy.” Covering her mouth with his, he kissed her, drawing her legs over his lap so he could reach her more fully.
“Giddyap!” The driver called out to the white horse.
Pulling away from Luke, she realized they’d passed the park located a few blocks from her house for the second time. “I think the driver is going in circles,” she whispered. “Is he lost?”
He laughed. “I don’t care if he’s lost. He can drive in circles all night, if that’s what it takes to make you happy.”
“I don’t need a diamond ring or a fancy carriage ride to make me happy,” she told him seriously. “I only need you.”
“I know. I need you, too.” Luke took the ring from the velvet box and slipped it on her finger. “That’s just another reason why I love you, Caryn. Because all my life I’ve been looking for someone exactly like you.”
EPILOGUE
“COME on, Caryn. Push. You can do this,” Luke encouraged, trying to remain calm, although watching her suffer through the agonizing pain was killing him. Nightmares of the night he’d lost Lisa had haunted him as Caryn’s delivery date loomed closer. He’d promised to be here for her.
And he would be. No matter what.
Sweat dampened the hair at her temples and stained her hospital gown, and the muscles in her neck corded as she clutched his hand, straining to push.
“That’s it, almost finished. See the head? Let’s suction out the mouth, now the shoulders—there! Congratulations, Caryn and Luke. You have a beautiful baby girl.”
Luke nearly wept with relief as the baby began to cry. While the hospital staff did a quick apgar score, he kissed his wife. He couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate their three-month wedding anniversary. “A girl. Did you hear that, Caryn? You were right all along. We have a beautiful baby girl.”
“Seven pounds even and twenty inches long. Here, you can hold her now.” Marion wrapped the baby in a pink blanket and placed her in Caryn’s waiting arms.
“Oh, Luke. Isn’t she wonderful?” Caryn kissed the baby’s soft crown.
“Yes. Almost as beautiful as you.” Luke couldn’t believe his good fortune to have two precious women in his life. As he stared down at their tiny daughter, he vowed to be the best husband and father he could possibly be.
“Her fingers are so slender and dainty.” Caryn gazed up at him with shiny eyes. “Maybe she’ll be a pianist.”
He had to laugh. “Not a surgeon?”
She giggled. “Of course! What was I thinking?”
Glancing over to the doorway, he figured it was time to let the rest of the family see the newest addition. Caryn held up the pink bundle and he gently took the baby into his arms. They’d already decided on names. For a girl they’d chosen a first name in memory of Caryn’s mother Loraine, and in memory of her biological father they’d decided to use David’s surname as the baby’s middle name.
The last name would be Luke’s.
He walked out to the hallway, where the rest of the family was waiting. Everyone was there—David’s sisters and brothers, David’s parents, and even his mother, along with her latest husband. Proudly he held up the baby for all to see.
“Caryn and I would like to introduce our daughter, Raine Morgan Hamilton.”
By the enthusiastic response from the room, Luke was satisfied his daughter would always be surrounded with love.
And love was the secret to a lifetime of happiness.
ISBN: 978-1-4603-5907-5
HIS PREGNANT NURSE
First North American Publication 2007
Copyright © 2007 by Laura Iding
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