Magic Moment

by Adams, Angela

  She pressed his open palm to her bare belly. On their way to the courthouse, they had stopped at an ATM and Chase noted their wedding date on his receipt. In the courthouse ladies’ room, Laura had rummaged through her purse, finding the small calendar she carried. Forget that she had missed lunch the previous day with Kate — she would email her friend regrets from Chase’s laptop — Laura had always kept track of that dreaded twenty-eighth day every month so she could curtail her caffeine intake. As she had stared at the date with the red felt-pen circle, she counted backwards.

  • • •

  The next afternoon Chase strolled down the dock, holding the window above his head. The weather had clouded up again, but the temperature was quite pleasant. A light wind whisked the waves. Laura, stretched out on a deck chaise, wore her jeans and a T-shirt and flipped through a magazine.

  Installing the window proved a challenge for Chase, probably because he concentrated more on sneaking glances at his beautiful wife. Laura, his wife. He liked that.

  Their marriage had been no idealistic whim. Nor had he been playing games when he told her his father would protect a pregnant daughter-in-law. This marriage, along with the baby proposition, solved a dilemma. As Mrs. Chase Donovan, Laura was safe. He got to hold on to the woman he was crazy about. And her pregnancy? Well, at this point, all that really mattered was that Dick Donovan thought Laura carried his grandchild. Planting that idea in his father’s head was the only way Chase could count on to protect her.

  She would be safe with his aunt. What he expected to find in the warehouse invoices, how he would handle the discovery and what he would say to his father still preyed on Chase’s mind. But one detail at a time. Right now the priority was getting Laura, his wife, to Sea Tower.

  He gazed out the brand new window, picked up his cell phone from the desk and pressed a digit. She jerked forward, startled, and then realized she had her phone on vibrating mode. Placing the magazine facedown across her thighs, she took her cell phone from her jeans’ hip pocket. She glanced at the caller ID, and put the gadget to her ear. His eyes fixed on the kittenish smile spreading across her face.

  “Hello, husband.”

  Husband … Chase’s heart did a flip, delighted to hear how she addressed him. He never considered a woman addressing him as such. He liked hearing the word. “Come see the new window,” he said.

  “I’m comfortable. If you want me, come and get me.” She barely hid her lighthearted laugh.

  “If you make me come up there, you’ll pay, my beauty.” His voice lowered, mimicking a ruthless privateer.

  “I’m scared,” she taunted and ended the call.

  Chase took the stairs two at a time. The boat was docked tight against the pier, swaying in the sparkling bay water and surrounded by bright sunlight. Laura’s face was buried in the magazine, and she never looked more desirable. Her golden hair windblown, cheeks rosy, Chase couldn’t help himself. He wanted her. Plus, she did disobey the captain’s direct order.

  She focused on her reading, paying him no mind when he stepped onto the deck. He scooped her up in his arms. Laura screamed, more startled than frightened. He dipped her over the side. She shouted a loud protest and smacked his shoulder with the rolled-up magazine. He dipped her again. Her feet kicked the air.

  “When we get inside, I’ll show you what happens to naughty wenches who disobey a captain’s orders.”

  Laura half screamed, half laughed as he carried her down the stairs. She slapped his chest with the magazine, wriggling in his grasp.

  She was still laughing — at his amateur buccaneer voice she insisted — as he dropped her onto the soft mattress.

  “You’re a very bad lass to make sport of the ship’s captain,” Chase croaked.

  He plopped down beside her. Laura’s attempt to roll away from his reach proved fruitless. His hands closed around her waist, pulling her against his body. His mouth took hers, cutting off her laughter. Laura returned the hungry kiss. His mouth traveled to a cheek, down her throat, and back up to take hold of her mouth again. His tongue slid inside, meeting hers, and Laura’s soft, slender body relaxed against him. He gentled the kiss, brushing his tongue over her lips.

  “That’s what you get for being a naughty wench,” he said drawing away, his voice husky.

  She met his gaze and smiled demurely. “I like being naughty.”

  Chase liked her naughty, too. He lowered his head and kissed her again. Teasing, caressing, his mouth parted her lips, his tongue sparring with hers. He was lying on his side, facing her. His hand found her left breast and closed over it. His hand kneaded, a thumb grazing her nipple, his teeth gently biting the side of her neck. Laura sighed, pressing closer. Desire soared through him, enjoying her nearness. She was soft, warm, passionate, tantalizing. His mouth moved lower, kissing the soft mounds of her breasts through her shirt. She sighed, her fingers weaving themselves in his wavy hair. His mouth crept lower, his fingers clenching the zipper of her jeans. Damn, would he ever get enough of her?

  “Time for this later,” she breathed into his ear. “First, I want to see our new window.”

  He rolled off her and flipped over on his back. “You sure can kill a mood.”

  “I’ll be back.” She slid off the bed. “I want to see our window.”

  “No, too late.” He propped himself up on elbows and looked down at his pelvis. “You ruined it.”

  “I can fix that easily.”

  She knelt on the window seat, staring out the casement. Chase loved hearing her say our window, jointly, together, like regular, sharing, married people. It felt right. Her divorce notion … he had gone along with her because it was the easiest thing to do. But Chase was convinced he and Laura were good for each other. He had at least nine long months to convince her.

  “Chase,” she said, her voice wary.

  “What? Did I forget a nut or bolt?” He swung off the bed and stood beside her.

  She whirled and looked at him, her previously amused green eyes now alarmingly wide. “Chase, there’s a man watching us.”

  Chapter Eleven

  Fear, an all too familiar sensation, returned to Laura. “I didn’t pay him much attention. I thought he was taking in the day, enjoying the water,” she said, her voice cracking.

  Chase stood next to her, fixated on the outside. “Honey, no one is there. Did you see him the entire time you were on deck?”

  She stared back out the window. There was no one in sight. “Not until you picked me up. When you spun me around.” Her words pushed through the tightness in her throat. “I saw him. He was on the dock. I thought he was enjoying the water,” she repeated. “He was by the newspaper box. He was there.”

  Chase made light of her anxious concern. “He was probably watching you because you’re so damn beautiful.”

  Laura’s dismay remained. “You don’t understand. When I looked out the window, he was closer. To get a better view of the boat.” Panic gripped her. “That’s how I know. He’s watching us.”

  His eyes hardened into steel flecks. Laura grabbed for him, but despite her efforts, Chase ran out the door. She feared for his safety as he raced up the stairs. She watched through the new window as he leaped over the boat’s side, and flew down the wooden boards. His sneakers hardly hit the planks. She watched his image fade, and her heart pounded. Terror sped through her body. She was afraid to go up on deck, afraid someone might be waiting to snatch her. Then she saw Chase’s cell phone on the desk and dread overpowered her.

  Vivid images ran wild. Suppose they waited for Chase at the end of the dock. Or in the parking lot. Suppose they grabbed him, overtook him, and stuffed him in a car trunk. He didn’t have his cell phone to call for help. Chase had told her, always have your cell phone. He didn’t have his.

  Bile rose in Laura’s throat, choking her. Her introduction to Madre, the p
anic and fright as she had lain bound and helpless, returned.

  “Chase,” she croaked.

  They were going to kill him. They were taking him from her, and he wasn’t coming back.

  She sobbed uncontrollably. Her chest grew heavy, she gulped for air and her legs weakened. Her lungs struggled to take in air. She crumbled to the floor in a heap of wretched tears.

  Which was how Chase found her as he rushed back into the cabin.

  “My God.” He hunkered down and gathered her in his arms. “I got you, honey. Little breaths, Laura. Take little breaths.”

  He held her, murmuring soothing words. Laura wished she could stop crying, but she shook with fear. Her tears refused to let up. Driving sobs heaved from her throat, piercing the tiny space. Her cries clogged her airflow, and she gasped for breath.

  Chase repeated, “Little breaths, little breaths” until finally her tears eased, and she took in air again. Gently, with his arms locked around her, he lifted her into a standing position, resting her head on his shoulder.

  “I’m with you, honey,” he whispered, stroking her hair.

  She yanked her head back. Wet eyes focused on him. Bitter anger replaced her distress. “You dumb jerk,” she spat. “Your cell phone. Always have your cell phone. You ran after him, alone.”

  She clenched both hands into fists and pounded his chest. “Suppose there had been more waiting for you.” Again, the powerful wails began.

  “Honey,” he whispered.

  “You-didn’t-have-your-cell-phone.” She emphasized these last words with harder blows, then collapsed against him once more.

  “Laura, I’m sorry. That was a stupid thing to do.” His arms tightened around her. “I ran out without my cell, without a weapon. You’re right. Always have your cell phone.”

  “If I have to obey the rule, so do you,” she garbled, sucking in air.

  He held her close. “You’re absolutely right.”

  They stood in the center of the room; Laura locked in Chase’s arms. After a while, she calmed, her tears diminished, and the only sound as he held her was the ocean waves slapping against the boat.

  • • •

  With Laura resting, and the window replaced, Chase guided the boat back onto the open sea. He had read about Laura’s breakdown in one of the Internet articles. How people, men and women, who endure a trauma seemed fine, living life as if the nightmare had been put behind them, then one small, trivial incident occurred, and the agony and horror returned.

  Chase had expected Laura’s emotional crash would come the first night they made love. After her initial hesitancy, she was fine. They continued making love, and they were fine. No, they were more than fine. They were fantastic together.

  But her collapse circled, lingering and waiting to show itself. A forgotten cell phone was Laura’s breaking point.

  Chase had sprinted to the end of the docks, but no man — or woman, for that matter — had been anywhere in sight.

  On the other hand, his father knew Madre was docked in Beach Bay. The stranger, possibly dispatched by Dick or Oliver Daniels, perhaps wanted to ascertain that Laura was with Chase. Perhaps the intention wasn’t to harm her, at least not in broad daylight, but to confirm Chase’s story and regroup for the next step. If that were the case, Chase was more than relieved that Madre was back on open water.

  “Chase.”

  His wife stood in the doorway. Her buttery blonde hair attractively tangled, she chewed nervously on her bottom lip, her eyes still raw and spent from her earlier tears.

  “Did you have a nice nap?” he asked.

  She nodded, remaining set in the doorway. Her timidity and vulnerability wrung his heart. Helplessness overwhelmed him, wishing he could make all the bad that had happened go away.

  One hand on the wheel, he held out his free arm, beckoning her. “Come here, honey.”

  Her footsteps were swift. When she reached him, her arms slid around his waist. Chase pulled her close.

  “I’m sorry. The way I acted earlier. My hysterics.” She nestled against him. “I’m sorry.”

  “Nothing to be sorry for.”

  “I don’t know what got into me,” she whispered, her tone embarrassed. “I never carry on like that.”

  “You saw someone who frightened you. You were frightened when I ran off, that I would be harmed. You were worried. A wife being worried about her husband’s welfare, what a novel concept,” he quipped.

  Chapter Twelve

  Wind gusts assaulted Madre’s deck, and rain pounded against her sides. A violent storm raged along the coast, nature’s rampage forcing the vessel to dock at a lakeside marina in Fisherman Point, Maryland. The newlyweds, secluded for three days, barely noticed the outburst, spending their time talking, joking, and making love. Caught up in being with Chase, and enjoying being his wife, Laura forgot the stranger on the pier.

  By dawn on the fourth day, although a light drizzle remained, the Coast Guard gave the “all clear” for travel. Chase was confident they would reach Sea Tower, the small town where his aunt lived, before dark.

  Laura found him in the galley. His back to her, he was hunched over the bar, scanning a map. Coming up behind him, she pressed into his solid, muscular frame, her slender arms sliding around his waist.

  “Remember the day we were married?” She laid her cheek against his shoulder. “I stopped at a pharmacy?”

  He turned and faced her, wearing a wide grin. “You insulted my toothpaste. Claimed it wasn’t minty fresh and you wanted your own.”

  She eased back and held up a thin, long rainbow-striped box with a torn lid. “I also got a few of these.”

  Chase fingered the box, focusing solely on the big, red print. “The ‘ES’ means extra strength?”

  “Extra sensitive. Most home pregnancy tests instruct you to take it ten days after you sense conception.”

  His eyes widened. “Home pregnancy test?”

  She smiled. “For two dollars more, and since you’re not married to a cheapskate, I got the extra sensitive. Gives results sooner.”

  His features bore a blank, vacant stare. “Laura … ”

  Her grin faded. Perhaps, he had reconsidered. He realized that even after they were divorced, he remained tied to her, along with the real responsibility of providing for a child.

  Anxiety replaced her enthusiasm. “The nuns at Saint Theresa’s lectured us it only took one time,” she said plainly. Saint Theresa’s was the Catholic high school that Laura had attended. “For you and me, the first time was it.”

  Laura held her breath.

  “You’re kidding? Right?” he asked.

  His expression remained blank. Dread crept through her. If he no longer wanted a child, she would raise and love this baby on her own. She and her child didn’t need a man in their lives.

  “I’m not kidding.”

  With one huge scoop, Chase enveloped her in his arms. “Hot damn!” He pulled away. “Oh, wait a minute. Here, sit down.”

  He pulled out a stool and nudged her to sit. “Are you sick? Throwing up? Any pain? You need vitamins, right? The first time, you say? Isn’t that something? Did you have breakfast? What did you have?” His brow crinkled. “You didn’t eat a granola bar, did you? They’re all sugar and no nutrition.”

  Laura studied her child’s father and sighed with relief. The man beamed.

  “I’m not sick, or in pain, or throwing up. Nothing.”

  “Are you sure?” His thoughts came in a rush. “What’s the first thing we need to do? I guess get you to a doctor. You got a doctor? Never mind, we’ll get you one. When’s the baby due?” The crinkled brow returned. “You probably won’t know until after you see the doctor.”

  Laura gently ran her fingers through his hair. He was so adorable. He had to calm down. At thi
s rate, the doctor would prescribe vitamins for her and Valium for him.

  “I’m fine. I figure the baby’s due around Christmas,” she said.

  “Should you take that test again? To be sure?”

  “I took two. The instructions state I should take it again in two days. By then we’ll be at Aunt Lonnie’s, and I can see her doctor. A blood test will confirm.”

  “You mean you could be wrong?” His voice held a hint of panic. “Maybe you’re not pregnant?”

  If she were wrong, his letdown was evident. “I’ve had friends who’ve used this exact brand. I don’t know anyone who had a positive turn out to be a negative.”

  “You’re getting the best. The best doctor, the best hospital, live-in nurse. We’ll get you the best.”

  “Chase, Aunt Lonnie will recommend a doctor. She won’t send us to a quack.”

  Chase had spoken so fondly of Lonnie during the journey, to Laura his aunt already felt like her family.

  “You haven’t changed your mind?” Laura palmed her stomach. “I mean, sure, we’re married for convenience’s sake, but there will be a baby. You want to be part of the baby’s life?”

  His eyes held her. “You bet. I’m happy to be a father. I’m happy to be your baby’s father. When we first discussed having this child, I told you I wanted to be part of my child’s life. You want a divorce once we get to the bottom of who wanted to hurt you … ”

  “ … because you shouldn’t be stuck with a wife you only married to solve a sticky problem.”

  “But my child isn’t a problem.” He pulled her close. “I’m not going to bring a child in this world and move on whenever it suits me.”

  • • •

  Many people, unfamiliar with the area, considered the Chesapeake a town on a bay. The Chesapeake Bay, a long water mass, stretched for miles with petite towns and major cities littered along the way.