Ragan's Song (Fairfield Corners #2)

by L. A. Remenicky

  Cassie winked at Ragan as she raised a duffle bag in her hand. “Come on, little mama. I have some clothes for you in here. Let’s go get you ready to get married.”

  A short time later, Cassie wheeled Ragan onto the elevator for their trip to the chapel, “I don’t know what it is about those two that we are willing to marry them anytime, anywhere. I was really looking forward to planning your wedding.”

  Hurried footsteps at the end of the hall caught their attention, and Mel appeared with a bouquet of flowers tied with a blue ribbon. “Here’s your something blue; now for something new and something borrowed.”

  Cassie pulled the pearl ring off her right hand and handed it to Ragan. “I’m sure Gram is looking down and smiling, and I would love for you to wear this ring as your something borrowed. It meant so much to her.”

  Ragan sniffled, trying to keep the tears from falling and ruining her makeup. “I would be honored.”

  “Oh,” Mel said, “I also stopped and picked this up on my way here for your something new.” She pulled out a blue garter and helped Ragan pull it up her leg.

  “Thanks, Mel,” Ragan sobbed as she hugged her. “What would I do without such wonderful friends?”

  Arriving in front of the chapel, the trio were joined by Ragan’s mom and dad. Her father slipped his arm over her shoulders and asked, “Hey, baby girl. You ready to walk down the aisle?”

  Considering the question, Ragan ticked off the list, “New, blue, borrowed…”

  “Now, just hold on a minute, you almost forgot something old. I have the perfect thing,” her mom said as she opened a box she’d been fiddling with in her hands. “This is the veil I wore when I married your dad.” Her eyes glistened with unshed tears as she put it on Ragan’s head and adjusted it. “There, you’re all set, sweetie.” She gave her a quick kiss and slipped into the chapel.

  Ragan stood and smoothed out the skirt of the dress Cassie had brought for her to wear. “You ready to do this, Dad?”

  He pulled her into a hug, “Love you, baby girl. Let’s get you married.”

  The chapel door opened and everyone turned to watch as the smiling pair walked arm in arm down the aisle. Adam stared at Ragan, his gaze locked on hers.

  Ragan’s pulse sped up when she saw the look of love in Adam’s eyes. She wanted to pinch herself to make sure she wasn’t dreaming. When they reached the front of the chapel, she wiped away a tear from her father’s face. “Love you, Daddy.”

  He put her hand in Adam’s and kissed her cheek. “Be happy, baby girl.”

  The ceremony went quickly, at least until the preacher had Adam put the ring on her finger. The sleeve of her dress rode up, showing the abraded skin from her hands being tied behind her back. Adam’s eyes darkened as he pulled her hand up and kissed her wrist before putting the ring on her finger. “No one will ever hurt you again, Baby.”

  She smiled up at him as she slid a plain gold band on Adam’s finger and repeated the vows that would bind them together for eternity. Then Adam pulled Ragan into his arms and kissed her, and finally feeling that it was safe to breathe normally, he murmured in her ear, “Love you forever.” Forgetting where they were, they stayed locked in the embrace until the minister cleared his throat. “Oh, sorry. Carry on.”

  Nodding, he turned to the small group that had assembled before him, “I am happy to present for the first time, Mr. and Mrs. Adam Bricklin.”

  Chapter 38

  With his feet up on the porch railing, Adam strummed the guitar, working out the special melody in his head as he wrote the lyrics on the pad of paper. Marveling at the sight of the ocean, the beach, and his children building a sand castle in front of the cottage with Will and Colt, he was glad the kids had accepted the bodyguards as a part of their lives, at least for now. Adam hoped that life would settle into some form of normal once the press moved on to another story; the sensationalism of Ragan’s kidnapping and rescue wouldn’t last, and some else would garner their attention.

  The screen door squeaked and Ragan’s arms wrapped around his neck, her chin resting on the back of his head.

  “Did the music wake you? I’m sorry,” he apologized while stroking her affectionately.

  “No, I was awake. I was just thinking about how you need to get that song written so Logan can sing it at our wedding reception.” She pulled the guitar out of his hands and leaned it against the house. Climbing onto his lap, she leaned back against him and sighed. One of his hands went to her stomach, rubbing the slight swelling of their child growing there.

  “You still look tired. Why don’t I have one of the guys go pick up some dinner so you won’t have to cook tonight?”

  “Sounds good to me. I’m always tired these days, but I think it’s to be expected. It’s the same as when I was pregnant with Skylar.” She turned in his lap to face him and kissed him long and hard. “I’m going to get a glass of water and go play in the sand with our kids.”

  “I love the sound of that. Our kids. And I can’t wait to meet our next one.” She went back into the beach cottage and he returned to working on the song.

  After finishing the verse he was working on, he stood and stretched, deciding family time took precedence over songwriting. A scream came from inside the house, followed by the sound of breaking glass. His heart thumped in his chest as he ran inside the house yelling Ragan’s name.

  Running into the kitchen, he spotted the glass shattered on the floor, but didn’t see Ragan anywhere. He darted around the breakfast bar and found her sitting on the floor with her head on her knees. He picked her up and carried her into the living room, ignoring the small glass shards had cut into his feet. “Ragan, what is it?”

  The screen door slammed shut. Will stood there, his gun drawn, scanning the room.

  She looked up, her eyes haunted. “I need my phone. Where’s my phone?”

  He handed her his instead. “What’s wrong?” Motioning to Will that he could stand down, he focused on Ragan as she dialed a number and looked up at him with an expression of fear on her face.

  “Something’s wrong with Robbie. It’s bad…” her face paled when the call went to voicemail. Scrolling to another number, she waited for the call to connect. When Cassie answered, Ragan asked her to go down and check on Robbie. “I can feel him slipping away, please hurry.”

  “Logan just pulled into the driveway. I’ll send him down. Don’t worry, Cassie, I’m sure he’s fine.”

  Ragan shivered and grabbed her arms. “Hold on, Robbie,” she whispered, “help is coming.”

  Adam frowned at how cold her skin felt and reached for the throw off the back of the couch to wrap it around her. After a few minutes he asked, “Do you know what happened to him? Is he hurt or sick?”

  “I can’t tell. It’s got something to do with his leg…” she jumped when the phone in her hand rang. “I’m too scared to answer it.”

  Adam took it from her. “Is he okay? What happened?”

  “Adam, it’s bad. Robbie fell into the glass doors of the antique built-ins in the dining room at his parents’ place and cut himself up pretty good. He nicked his femoral artery. Logan had to use a tourniquet to slow the bleeding. If Ragan hadn’t called when she did, he might have died.”

  “We’ll be there in a couple of hours.” He ended the call. “It’s bad. We need to get home as fast as possible. I’ll call the airport and have them get the jet ready.”

  “Is he dead?”

  “No, Baby, you saved him. I’ll explain once we get in the air; right now we need to get packed. Will, go get Colt and the kids; we’re leaving as soon possible.”

  A short time later, they were on the jet waiting for takeoff. Adam finally had time to explain to Ragan what had happened to Robbie.

  “He was drunk, wasn’t he?” she moaned. “I knew I shouldn’t have left him. Something’s been off with him ever since he came home.”

  “Yes, he was.” He took her hand, gently raised it to his lips and kissed it, then squeezed it when she s
tarted to tremble. “How did you know? Was it a vision?”

  “No. I’ve always known when something was seriously wrong with him. Probably a twin thing.”

  Later that evening while Ragan sat in a chair next to Robbie’s hospital bed, she held his hand and waited for him to wake up. She frowned at the stitches holding the jagged cut on his face closed. The blanket hid the bandages wrapped around his leg.

  “Just when my life is finally back on track, you go completely off the rails. I knew I shouldn’t have left,” she whispered as she wiped a stray tear from her cheek.

  Robbie gripped her hand. Her heart finally seemed to settle back into its normal rhythm when she noticed his eyes were open. “Hey, little brother.”

  “Hey, Sis,” he croaked. “What happened?”

  “You were drinking and had an accident; you almost bled to death. What the hell, Robbie?”

  He turned his face away from Ragan, “I don’t want to talk about it.”

  “Whatever ‘it’ is almost killed you,” she said with a sob. “Do you know what it was like, feeling you slipping away?” She stood and stared out the window, tears silently running down her face. “It was awful. I thought I had lost you.” She wiped the tears away and turned to face him. “I was so freaked out that Adam thought I was going to lose the baby. I had to have a checkup before Adam would let me in here to see you.”

  Ragan’s mention of Adam’s fears for their unborn child finally forced Robbie to see what his actions were doing to those around him. “God, I just want the hurt to go away,” he breathed.

  “What hurt, Robbie?” she asked as she held his face in her hands.

  “They’re dead, and it’s my fault,” he stammered.

  “Who, Robbie?”

  Unable to look Ragan in the eye, he took a deep breath to hold back the emotion and finally let the truth out. “Madison and our baby.”

  Ragan crawled into the bed and pulled Robbie into her arms, rocking him as she would when Skylar needed to sleep. “I’m here Robbie. I’ll share your pain. Let it go…”

  Ragan listened as Robbie poured out his grief, and with some prompting, he told her the whole story. He explained about getting married in Las Vegas after he and his girlfriend, Madison, had discovered that she was pregnant. Deciding to come home to announce their marriage and the baby, they had been so happy.

  But when it came time to leave, he’d sent Madison to the airport without him so he could finalize a deal and catch a later flight. Tears streaked her face when he shared how the police had shown up at his door, destroying his whole world. For eighteen months he had held in his anguish before convincing Ragan to meet him at their parents’ place.

  Chapter 39

  Three days later Ragan drove into the pub’s parking lot with Robbie in the passenger seat. “Are you sure you’re up for this, Robbie? You’ve only been out of the hospital for a day.”

  “I’m sure, Ragan. There’s no way I would miss this party. You and Adam deserve it. Everyone knows about my drinking problem, so I’m sure no one will be offering me anything other than soda. Besides, I’m leaving for rehab tomorrow and I know you don’t want to wait twelve weeks to have your wedding reception.”

  “Promise me you’ll tell me if it gets to be too much for you. This is just a small party and everyone would understand if we have to cut it short,” she insisted. She walked around the car and pulled his crutches out of the back seat. “Let’s go. I’m sure Adam is wondering where we are.”

  Robbie pulled her into a bone-crushing hug. “Love you, Sis.”

  “Love you too, little brother.”

  Neither one of them saw Cassie sneaking back into the pub, a huge smile on her face at the moment she had just captured with the camera on her phone.

  Ragan opened the door and let Robbie make his way through first. Inside, she gasped at the beautiful surprise that awaited her. Hundreds of twinkle lights had been strung around the pub, giving the appearance of a starry night sky. “Oh my,” she breathed as she surveyed the room. Everyone she loved had gathered together to celebrate her marriage to Adam. Her eyes glistening with tears, “Damn, pregnancy hormones,” she muttered with a sniffle.

  Streamers and banners hung everywhere. She was preoccupied with admiring the decorations when Adam walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her. “Hey, Baby; you ready to get this party started?”

  She pulled him around to kiss him. “Does that answer your question?” She blushed when everyone clapped.

  Motioning to Logan, who was standing up on the stage, Adam indicated that it was time for Ragan’s Song; the song that Adam had finally composed.

  Logan picked up his guitar and stepped to the microphone. “Hey everyone, can I have your attention, please?” He tuned a few strings and continued, “A little over three years ago, my cousin, Adam, came to Fairfield Corners when I ended up in the hospital.” Logan looked at Cassie, blowing her a kiss. “He met a girl who knocked him for a loop, and that wasn’t easy to do. You all know about Adam’s other life as a famous singer, but he found Fairfield Corners a place to call home. For years, Adam heard this tune in his dreams, but was unable to put it down on paper until he finally married Ragan. So, here it is, the world premiere of Ragan’s Song. It’s fitting, because this is their first dance as husband and wife.” He strummed the opening chords and said, “Congrats cousin,” and then he began to sing:

  Our destinies started so far apart

  Fate drew us ever closer together

  You are my heart, my soul, my life

  The melody in my heart as light as a feather

  The melody of our love

  Flowing through this song

  My heart is on the line

  Where we both belong

  You destroyed our lives without a second thought

  How could I tell you I love you

  When you disappeared without a trace?

  My world was grey, so lonely and blue

  The melody of our love

  Flowing through this song

  My heart is on the line

  Where we both belong

  The days without you hardened my heart

  Living through the pain and sorrow

  Taking it day by day as my heart learned to beat again

  Thoughts of you getting me through to tomorrow

  The melody of our love

  Flowing through this song

  My heart is on the line

  Where we both belong

  Now you’re back, with a crash of metal and cold

  Reminding my heart why I was so broken and lost

  I fought the feelings not wanting to lose you again

  But our love won out, love no matter what the cost

  The melody of our love

  Flowing through this song

  My heart is on the line

  Where we both belong

  Adam and Ragan swayed, barely moving as they stared into each other’s eyes.

  “When did you have time to finish it?” Ragan asked, her head tucked under his chin and her hand wrapped in his, over his heart.

  “While you were with Robbie at the hospital. Logan just started practicing it with the band this morning.”

  “It’s perfect. The melody is just how I remember it from my vision. I am so glad that was the vision that came true. I love you, Adam.”

  Two hours later, Ragan walked out of the ladies’ room and spotted Adam in front of the office, talking to another blonde. His eyes widened when he caught sight of Ragan heading their way with a frown on her face. The woman threw her arms around Adam’s neck and kissed him passionately.

  Ragan stormed over and seized the woman by the wrist, pulling her away from Adam.

  “Let go of me you crazy bitch,” Krista yelled as she tried to pry Ragan’s fingers off of her.

  “I’m not the crazy one here, Krista. Adam chose me. You don’t get to come in here and do this today, of all days.”

  Adam leaned back against the wall
and watched his wife defend what was hers with a smirk on his face and his arms lying across his chest.

  “You will leave and never set foot in this pub again. Better yet, why don’t you just leave town? No one wants you here.” Ragan took Adam’s hand and led him down the hall while calling over her shoulder, “Hey, Logan! Will you please help Krista find her way outside?”

  “No problem, Ragan. Come on Krista, fly your broom back to LA where you belong.” He forced her towards the door as she muttered obscenities about him, Adam, Ragan, and Fairfield Corners.

  Adam followed Ragan back to the main room of the pub, wondering if Ragan’s anger was going to be directed at him next.

  Ragan stopped and turned to face him, “I want you to tell me if she ever contacts you again, so I can really let her have it.” She inhaled a long, deep breath to calm her racing heart and smiled when the band started to play the cover of God Gave Me You. Settling into Adam’s arms for a dance, she said, “My heart is yours, forever. Here, where we both belong.”

  About the Author

  L.A. Remenicky writes love stories with a twist. A forty-something wife and mother of three fur kids, she works as a payroll professional by day and writes out the stories in her head by night.

  An avid reader all her life, she finally put pen to paper (or fingers to keyboard) during NaNoWriMo in 2012 and has never looked back. When she’s not typing away on her latest tale with music playing in the background, she can usually be found spending time with her family and friends.

  You can follow L.A. at these locations:

  Website/Blog: http://www.laremenicky.com

  Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/laremenicky

  Google+:http://www.google.com/+LARemenickyauthor