“I guess we should,” Derek agreed. Neither one of them made a move to leave though. They ended up standing there in each other’s arms for another fifteen minutes before they were both finally convinced to go back to the party.
When they got back, the dance floor was full and everyone seemed to be having a great time. Chloe sought out her parents first and once she found them, Derek said, “I’ll be right back.”
“Okay,” she told him, turning back towards her parents. She could tell by the looks on their faces that they already knew. Trevor looked like he was trying to control his smile and Samantha looked hardly able to contain herself.
“Derek told you that he was going to propose?” Chloe asked.
“He asked me for your hand,” Trevor said with a chuckle. “I know we’ve only really known each other a short time, Chloe...but I was honored by that.”
Samantha couldn’t stand it any longer. “Let me see the ring!”
Chloe laughed. She looked as if she would burst. Chloe held out her hand and Samantha gasped. “Oh honey, it’s gorgeous.”
“I know, huh?” she smiled and looked back over at Trevor and said, “I’m glad he asked you. Thank you for saying yes.”
“He would have had to deal with me if he said otherwise,” Samantha said. “You and Derek belong together.”
Chloe’s parents both hugged her at the same time and after several seconds Jake and Roxi approached and Jake said, “Is everything okay?”
Chloe pulled back with a tear-stained face and she could tell by the worried look on Jake’s face that he didn’t know. She searched for Derek and saw him leading his dad over towards them. When they approached Chloe said, “Can I tell them?” Derek smiled and nodded.
Chloe held out her hand and said, “We’re engaged!”
The party went on into the wee hours of the night, especially after everyone heard the announcement about the engagement. There was more to celebrate then and celebrate they did. Chloe cut her cake and they all enjoyed that and then she was once again the center of attention as she opened her gifts. She’d never got so many presents before in her entire life...maybe all total in her life but the most special one of all...besides Derek’s of course, came from her parents. It was a journal, but it looked like an antique. The cover was brown leather and so soft that Chloe imagined it melting like butter in her hands. The lock was an emblem of two baby owls, and it was studded with tiny little rubies and emeralds. She opened it and on the first page in Samantha’s beautiful handwriting it said,
To our beautiful Chloe,
We’ve loved you from the second we found out you were growing inside of me. Our hearts ached for you every moment of every day that you were gone. The woman you are amazes us and we are in awe of your strength. We will love you and be proud of you until the day they lay us both to rest. Happy Birthday! May this be the first of many celebrations to come.
P.S. Thank you for the grandchild you’re bringing into this world. No greater gift was ever given or received.
Much Love,
Mom and Dad.
That night, when the party was over and everyone in the house was asleep, Chloe opened her new journal and she began to write.
September 29th
It’s been quite some time since I’ve written, but tonight my parents got me this new journal for my birthday so I wanted to break it in. The last time I wrote in my journal was the night I was preparing to face Jesse one final time. That seems like a lifetime ago now...but that makes sense, since this seems like a brand new life that I am living now. I’m free. It doesn’t matter to me if Jesse’s father continues to have his hissy fit and if he sues me for wrongful death...I’m free. Killing Jesse was my only choice and I believe my creator knows that. If I hadn’t killed him, he would have killed me. If not that night, another. I know that as sure as I know I need air to breathe. It was me or him.
Sometimes I think back to the days before he unleashed the monster and I wonder if all of that back then was an act...and something just snapped inside of him then...or if he’d been that good of an actor. I know that it doesn’t matter now, but I wonder if it would make me feel better to think that I didn’t see the monster in him when we fell in love, because it simply wasn’t there yet. I don’t know, but I guess I’ve wasted enough of this pretty new book on Jesse. Until the court mess with Vince is over, I suppose I’ll still have to think about him sometimes...but I wasn’t going to let him ruin my every day again in spite of him not being alive.
The most important things I want to document in this book so that my grandchildren or great-grandchildren might find it someday and know about me is this: I’m going to have a baby in March. I’m having Derek’s baby! This baby is a miracle because I’ve been told by more than one doctor that the chances of me getting pregnant were very, very slim. I will do my absolute best to be a good mother. I know that I have a lot to learn since I’ve never really been around kids. It’s funny though, because I don’t even feel afraid. I’m just excited. I can’t wait to meet him or her.
The second thing I need to document here for posterity is that Derek proposed to me tonight. I felt like Cinderella earlier but in this case, the magic didn’t end there. Derek and I will be joined together as man and wife and the magic will continue. I can feel that in my heart and soul.
If this is my child reading this years from now, I hope that you are still holding me and your father dear in your heart. I hope that you’re dancing in the rain and holding your tongue out to catch it.
All my Love,
Chloe
Chapter 14
“Were going to look at houses today,” Chloe told her parents at breakfast on Monday morning. Samantha looked sad. Trevor looked at Chloe and said, “You’re not still thinking of buying a plot of land and building on it?”
“We talked about it. We will probably look into it in the future sometime, but we would really like to have a home that’s ready by the time the baby’s born.”
“You know that you don’t have to rush off,” Samantha said with a catch in her voice.
Trevor winked at us and said, “They’re newly engaged Samantha and in seven months or so they will never have another private moment...I think we’re lucky they’ve stayed this long.”
“Oh! I know. I’m just going to miss you, both of you.”
“We’re going to try and stay close, Sam. The properties we’re looking at today are within a ten mile radius of you.”
Samantha actually smiled. “Well, that sounds better. I should be thankful it’s not Mid-Town or even worse, Rhode Island.”
“We’ll do our best to find one we like up close,” Chloe told her.
The first house they looked at was the closest. It sat on five acres and had a grove of apple trees that grew along the cobble stone drive that led up to the house. It had white fence that separated the trees from the driveway and there were wildflowers growing all along underneath the fence. It was beautiful, like something out of a magazine. Before they even reached the house, Chloe said, “I like this one best.” Derek laughed at her and said, “Okay, but we’ll go ahead and look at the inside of this one and the other two, just to be sure.”
“If you insist,” she said with a smile.
The house was as stunning as the drive leading up to it. It was a traditional stone home, two-stories with a balcony that wrapped around the entire upper floor. The doors were heavy and oak and one entire wall was made of floor to ceiling windows.
Chloe stepped out of the car and looked up at it in awe. “It takes my breath away,” she said. “Is it too much?”
Derek laughed again and said, “No baby, not unless we go in and find out it comes with a butler.”
Derek had the key to it and they went inside. The foyer had highly polished wood floors and a wood and stone chandelier that looked handmade. The stairs went off to the left and there was a long hall to the right of it and straight in front. Derek took the straight one first. It led them into a large,
step-down living room. Like in the front of the house, one entire wall was floor to ceiling windows. Another wall was all stone fireplace. Outside the windows was a huge terrace that led out to a large backyard. The lawn looked lush and there were a lot of fruit trees and bushes.
Derek led them back the way they came and took the other hall. They came to a formal dining room and a modern kitchen beyond that. The kitchen had heavy granite counters and what looked like all brand new appliances, including an extra oven for gourmet cooking and a built-in stone pizza oven.
The room that faced the front of the house was a den.
“Oh look at the bookshelves!” Chloe told Derek.
One of the walls of the room was made of built-in bookshelves. It was all oak and it added character to the room. There was a bathroom just outside of that room and they were back in the long hall that led back towards the stairs. The upstairs was even nicer than the first floor...according to Chloe. She flitted from one room to the next, pointing out the things that were “different” from most other houses, like the fact that the master bedroom had a fireplace in it too...or that the two walk-in closets adjoined in the center. The bathroom here had a deep Jacuzzi tub and double sinks with white granite counters and floors.
There were three other bedrooms, none of them as impressive as the master bedroom however Chloe was able to find one she thought would be “perfect” for the baby. Derek could see the wheels turning in her head as she looked at the blank walls. He had a feeling that it would be like giving an artist a blank canvas.
When they finished exploring the house, they went out back and walked around the property. There were some stables in the back with a fenced off pasture and a shop that could probably be converted to a home office, Derek thought. He could definitely see what Chloe saw in the house, but he always advised his clients not to just buy the first one you saw. You should always see at least three...so that’s what they were going to do.
Chloe was coerced to leave, reluctantly and they drove the ten miles to the next house. As they drove up to it, Derek noticed Chloe was making a face. “What is it?”
“Nothing...it just looks naked,” she said.
“Naked?” he asked with a chuckle.
“Yeah, no trees or flowers...you know, just naked.”
They went inside anyways. The rooms were all a lot smaller, but it was still a nice house and well-maintained also. Derek could see that Chloe was looking at this one with a lot less excitement in her eye than she had the other. After they made it through all of the rooms he said, “So what do you think?”
She looked up at him. “What do you think?” she asked.
“I asked you first.”
“Okay. I think it’s fine, if it’s cheaper...”
“It costs the same as the first one.”
Derek told Chloe repeatedly that she didn’t have to worry about expressing her own thoughts and opinions to him. He knew that she wasn’t afraid of him, but considering how she grew up...it was just an ingrained habit now. Derek put his hands on her shoulders and said, “I’m going to just ask you a simple question. Do you like the first one best?”
“Yes, but it’s going to be your home too...”
“Wherever you and this baby are,” he said, resting his hand on her belly, “That will be home to me.”
She smiled, “Then yes, definitely the first one.”
“Okay, noted. Are we still going to see the last one?”
“It couldn’t hurt,” she said. Once again, he was seeing a new experience through her eyes and he loved it.
The third house was a beautiful colonial and on the surface, Chloe admitted that she might be swayed into changing her mind. Once they got inside, she didn’t feel that way for long. The entryway was small and cramped and for some reason, all of the windows faced the east. That meant when the sun was coming up, it would be blinding and when it was going down, they would barely able to feel it’s warmth at all. The bedrooms were just plain and boring and Derek could see Chloe growing more disinterested by the minute.
They could see the backyard from where they stood. It was wide open without any fencing around it and it opened up into a field or a pasture at the back of the house. It was hard to tell where one ended and the other began. When they finished there Derek looked at Chloe and said, “Okay, my vote is with you. I like the first one best.”
“Yes!” Chloe looked ecstatic.
Derek called his office before leaving the last house and asked them to put together and offer for them. Chloe wanted this house and he was going to make sure that she gets it....
*****
Three weeks later, the owners accepted their offer. A month later, they were given the keys and began moving in. It was right before Thanksgiving that they were able to move in. Chloe’s belly was finally starting to look pregnant...and she told Derek that she couldn’t wait to get started decorating the nursery for the baby. The one thing she needed first was to know if she was decorating for a girl or a boy.
Derek went with her to her next O.B. Gyn appointment. They were doing a sonogram and Derek and Chloe would be able to find out the sex of the baby and get some four-D photos of their child. Chloe was lying on the exam table and the nurse squeezed cold goo onto the small paddles and flipped on a switch. She started moving the round paddles around slowly until she heard the heartbeat.
Chloe was so fascinated by the rhythmic sound of her baby’s heart beating that she almost missed the fact that the baby was on the little monitor in front of them. Derek was staring at it with awe in his eyes.
“Is that our baby?” he asked the nurse.
“Yep, that’s her right there.”
“Her?” Chloe asked. “It’s a girl?”
“Yes, it’s a girl.”
Derek was glued to the monitor. He couldn’t take his eyes off of the little peanut that almost didn’t look human. He was just so amazed with the fact that Chloe was growing a live human in her body. He’d known all along of course...but here was proof.
“She’s beautiful, like her Mama,” he said. He squeezed Chloe’s hand and looked up at her. She had tears in her eyes.
“Look what we made,” she said. “A little girl.”
He brought her hand to his lips and kissed the back of it. “Thank you,” he said. “Trevor and Samantha were right; it’s a gift that can’t be topped. I’m so happy.”
“Me too,” she said.
Chapter 15
Four and half months had already passed by. Chloe had been having what she referred to as “flutter pains” all day long. She had called the doctor’s office before she told Derek, because she knew that he would want to insist on rushing her into the hospital right away. They’d only moved into their new house in January and she had been working hard to get things ready to bring the baby home. She thought that was probably all that it was, she over-exerted herself. When she called them, she was told to time them, how far apart they were and how long they lasted and call them back. She did and she timed them and they varied from fifteen minutes apart to an hour. They told her to just keep an eye on things, they wouldn’t admit her yet. She was excited and nervous anyways because things were beginning to happen. She still didn’t tell Derek. She didn’t want to stress him out. He already seemed like he was having a convulsion each time she had the slightest flutter.
He had been so cute through her pregnancy. When the baby started kicking especially. He would sit with his hand resting softly on her belly for hours sometimes just waiting for it and then he would say,
“Did you feel that? She’s so strong!” He gave her foot rubs and he walked with her every morning that he was able to, when he didn’t have to go to Rhode Island. Then towards the end, he refused to go, just in case. He was scared to death that he would miss it.
That night Chloe had a dream about being in labor. When she woke on Saturday morning, her first thought had been that the dream seemed so real. That was about the time she had another contraction and realized t
hat it wasn’t a dream. She was still having them and they were getting closer together. She begged off breakfast which made Derek suspicious. She was trying to time them and have them without him knowing it, but he followed her around with that panicked expression. By about nine that morning they were about ten minutes apart, but still really mild in her mind. She went about her routine, still not telling Derek. He’d calmed down and was finally working in the nursery and leaving her alone.
It was around one o’clock that afternoon when they started to be about five minutes apart. That was when she went into the nursery to find Derek.
“Hey baby, I think we should head for the hospital.”
“What? Why?”
She giggled. “Because we’re having a baby.”
“Now? Did your water break?” Derek had read everything he could get his hands on regarding childbirth.
“No, but I’ve been having contractions...”
“You’ve “been having” them? For how long? Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Baby, maybe we could debate this on the way.”
“Shit! I’m sorry. Yeah, where’s your bag?” Chloe had shown him where the bag was at least five separate times.
“It’s okay; I’ll just get it...”
“No! I’ll get it.” He swept past her in the hallway and then he turned back around and said, “I’m sorry. I wasn’t yelling at you.”
She smiled. Derek never yelled at her or anyone else. The closet she had ever heard him to raising his voice was the day when Vince Donavan came to the hospital. Vince hadn’t moved forward so far with the civil suit. Jesse’s case had gotten a lot of publicity in Rhode Island and Jake thought that was probably why. He still had some time, but Jake and Kevin both thought he’d probably given up.
“It’s okay. I know you’re not yelling.” He went into the bedroom and came out with her bag. By that time she’d gone down five steps.
“Chloe! Let me help you.”
“I can maneuver the stairs honey, thank you.”
SCARRED - Part 6 (The SCARRED Series - Book 6) Page 8