Tangled Hearts (Evermore 4 Book Box Set)

by ANDREA SMITH

  Starting new chapters in our lives together. Building on our dreams and aspirations as a couple. Planning for our future and our children’s future.

  Whatever pain and sorrow I’d suffered in the past was well worth the end result for me. At the age of twenty-three, my life officially had begun.

  Chapter 18

  August 9, 2001

  “I officially have something to tell you, Jazz, and you’re the third to know.”

  “What, wait? Did you say I’m the third to know, girlfriend?” she asked, her irritation ringing out loud and clear. “Lemme guess…you’re getting divorced?”

  “Nooo,” I replied, giggling. “Quite the opposite. I’m pregnant. Nearly three months.”

  “Oh my God!” she squealed, and I swear it sounded as if she were jumping up and down at the other end. Then there was abrupt silence. “Whoa, wait a minute. Do you mean to tell me you were pregnant when you got married? So…it was a shotgun wedding?”

  “Oh, puhleeze,” I replied, laughing. “The answer is yes, but I didn’t even know it the day of my wedding so chill with the shotgun wedding theory, okay? Seth asked me to stop taking the pill a couple of months before the wedding, but I didn’t think a thing about it. And for the record? We are thrilled about it.”

  “Oh and I am too, Neely,” she squealed, “This is so fantastic! I can hardly wait to spoil my godson or goddaughter—whichever you choose to give me!”

  “Oh, I know you will,” I replied. Jazzy was going to be the best aunt and godmother any child could possibly want. I knew that, and I also knew that when it came time for Jazz to bless the world with her offspring, I’d be the same with hers. “And before you ask, the doctor said that everything is going fine. There’s no need for me to worry that what happened before will happen again.”

  “I didn’t ask,” she retorted, “But I’m glad you told me anyway.”

  “You should see Seth,” I continued, “He’s like reading and researching everything online. He talks to my belly and kisses it. He even wants to start playing classical music so the baby will have a head start on being well-versed on that sort of thing.”

  “Oh Neely, that is so sweet,” she replied, and I could tell Jazz was getting choked up. But then again, she knew how much I’d gone through with Drake’s passing and how much I’d done some of the same things that Seth was doing now.

  “Don’t go there,” she said hoarsely from the other end.

  “What? Go where?”

  “I can tell what you’re thinking, Neely. Don’t go there. Your doctor already confirmed it. This pregnancy is going to be fine. You will deliver a healthy son or daughter, I promise.”

  “I know you’re right, Jazz. It’s just that…I don’t know I just keep having this feeling of impending doom, you know?”

  “Hun that’s natural with what you’ve gone through. Perfectly natural. And think about it, huh? You’ve been on and off the road for damn near a year. Once you get back to Cali everything will be fine. You’ll rest and bloom and those worries will take a permanent hike, I promise. Now that Seth’s film has wrapped, when are you two coming back?”

  There it was. The question I’d been expecting from my best friend. The question my father had been asking; the question Seth’s family had been asking as well.

  I might as well get used to answering it starting with Jazz.

  “Well, we’re not exactly…”

  “What? You aren’t staying in New York, are you?”

  “No. Definitely not staying here. This place drives me nuts,” I replied. “But we’re not making our home in California either, Jazz. Hear me out.”

  And once Jazzy got over her immediate distress hearing that part of my news, I calmly provided the details and by the end of our conversation, while she was still bummed we wouldn’t be moving back, she had to admit Seth and I had contrived a great plan for the future.

  “It’s not like we won’t be back to visit, Jazz. Or that you won’t come to see us,” I’d responded more than once.

  Seth was finishing up the final scenes of ‘Taz’ in DC this week. Next week, he and I were leaving to house hunt in Pocatello, Idaho of all places. In fact, he was breaking the news to Diana before he left D.C.

  With his last movie wrapping, our finances were secured. And the best news was that he’d landed a job very easily with the help of his contacts teaching theatre at the University of Idaho when the Fall Semester started in mid-September.

  And as for me? I’d finished my degree. Seth was determined to invest in some sort of an art gallery/studio for me. He had even contacted the firm that handled his portfolio and had them looking for investment opportunities in the area.

  My pregnancy wouldn’t interfere with any of it he assured me as if I was going to make that an issue! No freaking way!

  We were going to be parents and we were both ecstatic at the thought. Seth had truly amazed me with how much he was focusing on the baby. Even at this early stage, he was totally beside himself with not only pampering me at every opportunity, but spoiling our son or daughter in utero!

  Our lives were finally going to be everything we’d ever dreamed.

  Two days later Seth walked through the door of our leased apartment that I wouldn’t miss for a minute once we left for good with a huge smile on his face. His dimple intrigued me when he smiled that way.

  “We are officially free,” he said, holding a bouquet of dark red roses in one hand, and two boxes bound together with a yellow ribbon; one box was wrapped in pink paper and the other was wrapped in powder blue paper.

  “What have you done, husband?” I asked quirking a brow at him. God I loved him so much.

  “I, Mrs. Drake, have bought us all something in recognition of the new life we’re starting together. This is for you,” he said, handing me the bouquet of roses. “And these...well these are for Junior or Juniorette.”

  “Hold up. Junior or Juniorette?”

  “Well, yeah, honey. I mean, we don’t know whether we’re having a son or another daughter,” he said, and my heart swelled with the way he used the word another to preface daughter. Most people don’t get it that the miscarriage or stillborn loss of a child still counts. Seth got it. “So, I want to make sure I’ve got my bases covered here,” he finished.

  “Oh, baby,” I sighed, walking towards the kitchen. “Can we open them now? I want to see what you’ve bought.”

  “I was hoping you’d say that,” he replied.

  “Give me a minute to put these in water, and then we’ll do the honors together.”

  Once we were both seated on the sofa, Seth handed me the pink wrapped box to open.

  “You first,” he said, shooting me his lopsided grin.

  I tore the paper off and lifted the lid on the oblong-shaped box, and immediately drew in a gasp. It was the most beautiful princess doll I’d ever seen. The gown she wore was deep emerald brocaded silk, and it looked as if it were hand-stitched. Her blonde ringlets were perfectly curled, resting below the shoulders. “Oh Seth,” I breathed, “she’s beautiful, but I’m not sure this is the type of doll a child should play with, you know?”

  “Of course she’s not,” he said laughing, “But it is a collector’s doll so every little girl should have at least one, don’t you agree?”

  “Oh, absolutely,” I agreed, fingering the doll’s gown carefully. “This is exquisite, Seth.”

  “As will be our daughter,” he replied. “Now, my turn.”

  I laughed. “But you already know what it is. No fair.”

  He cocked a brow. “You’re right, babe. You go ahead,” he replied, handing the blue box over.

  I tore off the paper and opened the box, lifting out a small version of an official football from the looks of it. “Ah hah,” I squealed, “Looks like Daddy has some distinct plans for our son here.”

  Seth smiled and nodded. “No pressure, just opportunity. That’s my motto no matter girl or boy. I want them
to pursue whatever they have a passion for, the same way we did. The same way we are right now.”

  I set the box on the table. “Are you sure you want to give all of this up, Seth?” I asked quietly. “You’ve worked so hard and fame is yours now for the taking. More opportunities are on the horizon. Is it really that easy to walk away from that now?”

  He frowned pulled me closer to him on the sofa. “Baby, we’ve been through this before, remember? How can you still question that?” he asked. “Haven’t you been paying attention all this time? You and me? That is my dream. It’s always been my dream even when I didn’t show it. Didn’t know it. It was always there, Neely.”

  “I just want to make sure you don’t have future regrets. Part of me worries that you’re doing all of this for me.”

  “That’s just crazy, babe. I’m doing this for us. Now, I’ve had a day. Diana had her 19th nervous breakdown this afternoon when I gave her the news. I’m sure she’s decompressing as we speak.” He gave a soft chuckle.

  I was biting my lower lip.

  “Stop that,” he said softly. “This is what we’re gonna do. I’m going to take my beautiful wife into the bedroom and make mad, crazy love to her. Then we’re going to order Chinese takeout for delivery, and relax in front of the fireplace and lay out our plans for the next few weeks. And, the real estate agent my investment firm contacted emailed some homes in Pocatello for us to look at together. How does that sound?”

  “That sounds like a perfect evening to me, Mr. Drake,” I replied, standing up and taking his hand. He launched himself from the sofa, and pulled me behind him into our bedroom, where he made mad, crazy love to me as promised.

  Chapter 19

  August 14, 2001 Pocatello, Idaho

  As Seth and I walked through the third bedroom of the four bedroom home in the University District of Pocatello, I knew this was the one.

  “Oh Seth,” I said, glancing out the bay window and gazing at the panoramic foothills of the Rockies, “this is just breathtaking. I can’t believe the views this house has in almost every direction possible.”

  “I know. Beats the hell out of New York for sure, and rivals Malibu in some respects. No ocean, but then the snow makes up for it, right?”

  I giggled at his logic. “Do you know that I haven’t been around snow since I was a little kid? And even then, nothing like what they get around here.”

  “Is that a good thing or a bad thing?” he asked, quirking a brow.

  “Oh, definitely good,” I squealed. “Think of the landscape opportunities, the textures the bold contrasts—” I stopped abruptly seeing the amused look on my husband’s face. “What?” I asked, narrowing my eyes. “Are you making fun of me, Seth Drake?”

  “No way, babe,” he said smoothly, “I knew you’d love it, that’s all.”

  I smiled and closed in on him, giving him a hug. “Oh I do, I really do. I love it, Seth!”

  “Shall we make an offer on this one then?”

  I nodded enthusiastically. “I think it’s perfect for us and our family.”

  “Good. I like the fact that we have a five acre lot. Plenty of room for all of us to play. Maybe even get a couple of horses. I always wanted horses,” he continued.

  “Really?” I asked, “I never knew that about you.”

  “Oh yeah, I’m a cowboy at heart, Neely. Can’t you tell?”

  I was puzzled. I’d never really pegged Seth as a cowboy type at all. I shook my head. “Well…no.”

  He nodded. “Yep. And I want the whole world to know that a cowboy lives here in this house, with the ride of his life.”

  “Oh Seth!” I squealed, giving him a playful smack, “That was just wrong,” I giggled.

  He gave me his lopsided grin and swept me up in his strong arms. “Come on, there’s one more place I want to take you before we go back to the real estate office.”

  Seth stopped our rental car in front of a cute little A-Frame building that was located several blocks from the downtown area. There was a parking lot to the side, and several other A-Frame shops that sold collectibles, Indian pottery, and hand woven rugs and wall hangings. He used one of the tagged keys the lady at the real estate office had given him to unlock the door, ushering me inside the empty storefront.

  I looked around. It was totally empty, but damn if it didn’t have possibilities. Hardwood floors polished to perfection, a stone fireplace against one of the walls, and a carpeted staircase in the corner that led up to the loft that had a wood spindle railing around the perimeter, giving it an open, airy feel.

  “I don’t understand…” my voice trailed off as I continued to gaze at my surroundings.

  “Your art studio slash gallery,” Seth said. “I figured you can give lessons, sell your work, and show other area artists’ work who wish to sell on consignment. The lady I talked to at the office said there’s a lot of Indian art in the area. She seemed to think this would be a great way for them to sell their oil paintings, sculptures, and hand painted pottery. You can work your own hours, and look back here,” he said, taking me by the hand to the back of the room. “There’s a bathroom, and an office here,” he explained opening a door to a nice size room that had thick carpeting on the floor, and a lovely bay window along the back wall. “I figure there’s room for a crib or playpen, so you can bring the baby along with you.”

  I felt my eyes well up as I gazed around at this perfect place that Seth had found for me. “Oh Seth,” I murmured, my voice cracked with emotion, “This is absolutely perfect. I really love it. Thank you.”

  He pulled me up against his strong, warm body and wrapped his arms around me in a hug. I felt his lips kiss the top of my head as he murmured, “I’m so glad, babe. I can hardly wait until we get settled here. It’s like all of our dreams are coming true.”

  I nodded against him. “That’s exactly the way I feel. This is a perfect place to raise our children. I don’t know how I ever could’ve questioned you. This is so much better than anything we’ve ever had. The town. The people. The mountains. The snow. I love it all.”

  He kissed me tenderly, his fingers running through my hair. “Let’s go back to the office and sign all the papers. Tomorrow we’ll go furniture shopping. We need furniture to fit into that big ass house, and you’ll need some for your studio. Neely, unless you think it’s bad luck, I’d like to go ahead and get at least one thing for the baby.”

  “What is that?”

  “A proper wooden cradle. I think it would look fantastic in front of that stone fireplace in the great room of our home, don’t you?”

  I nodded, still choked up. “I do.”

  So, we spent the next day shopping for furniture for our new home, and ordering supplies and equipment for my studio. I couldn’t believe how generous Seth was in that respect, even though I kept telling him I still had that big chunk of money from my paparazzi days we hadn’t touched.

  “That’s your money, baby. We’re spending our money for now.”

  By the time we flew back to New York two days later, we were both counting the days until we’d be back in Idaho. It seemed like home to both of us, and we were both super excited about getting our home ready for our family.

  The personal items we’d put into storage in California before going on location this last time would be shipped to Idaho upon instructions from Seth. We would take possession of the house on September 6th, which was barely three weeks away.

  As soon as we got back to the city, we called our parents to share the good news…about everything. We’d delayed telling them about the baby just until I got past my first trimester, which had been at my insistence. Only because I had this nagging feeling about jinxing myself which Seth found totally ridiculous.

  “I can’t help it,” I’d replied to him. “I just don’t want to jinx this pregnancy.”

  “Babe,” he’d argued patiently, “the doctor has told you time and time again that you’re healthy and everything is goin
g to be fine.”

  “Just humor me, please?”

  He’d grinned and pulled me into a bear hug. “You realize we’re making two sets of parents grandparents for the first time? How cool is that?”

  “Way cool,” I replied, snatching the ball cap from his head. “And by the way. You can’t wear your ball cap backwards once you’re a father, Seth,” I teased.

  He’d looked at me kind of dumbstruck. “Why not?”

  “Because,” I continued, “It just isn’t…parental.”

  “Whatever,” he said with a grin and eye roll. “We’re not over the hill just because we’re going to be parents, babe.”

  “Still,” I argued, “we do have to keep up certain appearances. It’s expected.”

  “Does that mean you’re gonna stop flipping off drivers that cut you off?”

  “Oh shoot,” I said, laughing, “Not a problem. I’m sure Pocatello drivers are nothing like those in L.A.”

  Needless to say, Laura and Kent were ecstatic about the news of my having a Drake “bun in the oven” as Kent put it; Laura said they’d make the trek to Idaho for Christmas so I didn’t have to travel. My father got really emotional, which kind of surprised me, and Mama said she was much too young to be a granny, which didn’t surprise me.

  Chapter 20

  September 4, 2001

  It was two days before we were due to leave New York City for Idaho, and Seth got a call from his agent. I was in the bedroom, packing up our clothes when I heard his voice get louder from the living room.

  “What the hell do you mean?”

  There was a moment of silence and then, “Oh for shit’s sake, Diana. This fucks everything up. You realize we’re leaving in two fucking days, don’t you?”

  There was a pause, where I could only presume Diana was talking.

  “You don’t have to read the boilerplate on my contract. I know what it says. Yeah. I’ll be there.”

  A few moments later he appeared in the doorway. I could tell by his expression he was not a happy camper.