by Donna Fasano
"Yes, but does that success have to go to her head?" Ben laughed, and then grew quiet as he gazed lovingly at his baby girl. "She's inherited my mother's dimple." There was awe in his voice and he tenderly traced the tiny indentation in Kelly's cheek.
Chelsea took a moment to look around her. "The trees are beautiful this year.''
Ben nodded. "I've never seen so many blooms," he told her. "If Mother Nature is cooperative, we'll have an excellent harvest this fall. One that will go a long way in making up for last year's loss."
His green eyes were like a powerful magnet that drew Chelsea's gaze.
"Your money saved us this winter," he said. "I didn't have to lay off Tom or Jimmy or any of the other…"
"Our money," she gently corrected him.
He reached out and ran his fingertips along her jaw. "Damn, I'm a lucky man."
Reaching up, Chelsea cupped her hand over his and pressed his work-roughened palm to her cheek.
"I'm the lucky one."
Ben pulled her to him and she snuggled against his chest next to their baby. The aroma of apple blossoms and baby powder wafted around them. Then another fragrance overtook her senses. A familiar male scent that impelled her to reach on tiptoe and press her nose to the heated skin of Ben's neck. She planted a kiss there and was delighted to feel his pulse quicken against her lips.
"Tonight."
The whispered promise had his mouth pulling into a sensuous, knowing grin.
The aura of love that surrounded the three of them was strong, stable and secure. Chelsea watched Ben tuck Kelly into the padded carriage and marveled at the warm sentiment coursing through her as he fussed with the soft, pink blanket.
Entrusting Ben with all her honest, open emotions had been the hardest, yet the most wonderful decision she'd ever made. All the years she'd spent distancing herself from others had been a terrible, lonely mistake. But all of the missteps her distrust had forced her to take seemed to slowly be righting themselves as her world opened and even expanded. It was only natural that Roxanne, Tom's wife, and Chelsea were drawn to one another since the young Hispanic woman was due to deliver her first child in two short weeks. Roxanne had introduced Chelsea to her older sister, Mia, who owned a small coffee shop in town. The three women had become fast friends, and Chelsea marveled at how they continuously enriched her life.
She reached out and touched Ben's silky, sun-bleached hair and was rewarded with another smile. He took hold of her hand and entwined his fingers with hers.
The heavy burden she carried from her past had somehow lightened over the months simply by revealing, one by one, all her bad memories to the man who loved and cared for her. Slowly, but surely, Ben was helping her to understand that she couldn't possibly hold herself responsible for the awful things that had happened to her as a child. Releasing the anger she felt toward her mother and other people who had harmed her in one way or another, intentionally or not, was a tedious but necessary and healthy process.
The closeness and intimacy that she and Ben had developed over the past year continued to bring her unspeakable joy. Standing in the middle of the apple orchard with the man of her dreams and the beautiful baby they had created, Chelsea understood she couldn't know what the future held for them, but she did realize that, with Ben by her side, she could face anything. Absolutely anything.
***
A note from the author:
Child abuse comes in many forms — physical, psychological, sexual, neglect. If you, like my heroine, are a survivor of child abuse, start the healing process now. A counselor is available to help you twenty-four hours a day. Call Childhelp/IOF Foresters National Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-4-A-CHILD. If you are hearing impaired and have TDD, call 1-800-2-A-CHILD. Or visit the site on-line at www.ChildHelp.org.
I love to hear from readers. Please connect with me on-line!
My blog: www.DonnaFasano.blogspot.com
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I want to thank you for reading my book. I do hope you enjoyed it. Posting a review or telling a friend about good books is the best way a reader can support an author. I encourage you to help me in this respect. I'd also like to share the opening scene of my next book, tentatively titled Nanny and the Professor. Please understand that this is an uncorrected proof that is just now beginning the editing stage. Enjoy!
Warmest Regards,
~Donna~
Nanny and the Professor
Cassie Simmons parked her car in front of the impressive stone Tudor-style home and rechecked the house number carefully. In the hopes of calming her jittery nerves she smoothed her hand against her tense abdomen, closed her eyes and took a couple of deep breaths. Mary Kingston, Cassie's landlady, had claimed that her nephew was desperate for a live-in nanny. Cassie hoped it was true — because she was desperate for a job.
She turned off the ignition and fixed her anxious gaze on the big house that sat back some distance from the road, wishing the butterflies in her stomach weren't having such a wild time rocking out to the anxious and uncontrollable jam session going on inside her.
Mrs. Kingston had said that the nanny position came with room and board, that the salary was generous. Of course, Mary could sometimes become a little absentminded, but if the lovable lady's information was correct, this job was a perfect solution to Cassie's predicament. She only hoped she could make Professor Kingston understand about Eric and that she had to have him with her.
As she thought of the impending interview with Joshua Kingston, her hands trembled. Was she crazy going to a college professor for a job? Working for an intelligent and scholarly man wouldn't be easy. Cassie knew she'd have to keep her wits about her if she were to keep him from discovering her secret.
She'd kept the awful truth from her last employer for years. She hadn't lied; she just hadn't felt the need to answer questions that had never been asked. She'd lost the position, though, regardless of her excellent job performance record, once the plant manager had found her out.
She would need to practice extreme caution when answering Joshua Kingston's questions — she planned to be truthful, as always, but that didn't mean she had to bare her soul to the whole world.
Tucking her purse under her arm, she started up the long, winding walkway. The air was thick with humidity as only summers in New Jersey could be. Yet, she was oblivious to the August heat as all the reasons she so crucially needed this job swam through her head; Eric needed new clothes, she owed the doctor for the last office visit when Eric had been so sick, and she still owed Mrs. Kingston for this month's rent. Next month's rent would be due in two short weeks.
Cassie heaved a sigh. If she could only convince Joshua Kingston to hire her, she needn't worry about next month's rent.
Halfway to the front door, the distinct sound of snapping twigs caught her attention. She stopped and scanned the yard. Then movement in the periphery of her vision had her looking upward at the side of the house, but the expected scampering squirrel or foraging crow wasn't what she saw. She sucked in her breath sharply. There, perched precariously high in the tree, was a young boy. His hold on the branch looked awkward as he reached out toward a furry ball of fluff. Cassie had to squint to see the tiny kitten out on the limb.
She physically shuddered as cold fear crawled across her skin. The boy was going to plunge to the ground, she was sure of it.
Look for Nanny and the Professor, coming soon!
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