Home on Seashell Island

by Brenda Kennedy

  “If you did, I don’t think I’ll notice.”

  I lift her hand to my mouth and kiss it. “Thank you.”

  The engines roar as they come to life.

  Lacey comes from around the corner and says, “Would you like to have a seat and start on your drinks and appetizers?”

  “Sounds wonderful.”

  We follow Lacey and sit near the back or the stern of the boat. She picks up a bottle from the ice bucket and pops the cork. Carly’s eyes get big.

  “Don’t get too excited; it’s just sparkling cider.”

  “I wasn’t.” I know she’s trying to refrain from excessive sinning, but I also know she’ll mess up time to time. After all, none of us is perfect.

  Once the sparkling cider is poured, Lacey disappears. Carly looks behind her. “Where does she come from?”

  “She’s been asked to be seen as little as possible. I want tonight to feel like it’s just you and me.” I pick up my crystal champagne glass filled with non-alcoholic bubbly and hand Carly hers. “Shall we make a toast?”

  “We definitely should.”

  “Here’s to the woman of my dreams.” I see a blush on her cheeks that wasn’t there earlier.

  “To my soulmate.” She clinks her glass to mine and we both sip.

  As the boat picks up speed, we enjoy the breeze while having tropical fruit and sparkling cider while watching the waves crash into the shoreline. Sitting together on the two-person couch, she rests her head on my chest. “This is perfect.”

  “Thank you, but it’s just the beginning.” And I’m not talking about the date.

  “I don’t ever want it to end.” I have a feeling she isn’t just talking about the date either.

  I kiss her forehead. “It doesn’t have to, baby.”

  We have dinner in the formal dining room, and then we have dessert and coffee on the uppermost deck as we watch the sunset. I hope to take advantage of the private jacuzzi near the back later.

  She leans up from the recliner to remove her heels.

  “Here, let me help you.”

  I kneel down in front and carefully place one hand behind her calf, raising her leg slightly off the ground. An instrumental version of “Somewhere Over the Rainbow” comes on over the surround-sound. Music’s been playing throughout the night, but this is the only song by name that I can recall that’s played all evening. Carefully I undo her delicate buckle on her shoe before sliding it off. Then I slowly repeat the process on the other foot. Her eyes darken at this intimate moment.

  When the last shoe’s off, while I’m still holding her leg in my hand, she leans in and kisses me. It’s soft, slow, and passionate. Placing one hand on her face, I caress her cheek with my thumb. She moans as she wraps her arms around me. I don’t pull away but I slow the kiss. Not because I want to, but because I have to. If only I wasn’t a man of God.

  When the kiss ends, I search her eyes. It’s as if we’re speaking to each other without saying a single word.

  I finally say, “I love you so much, Carly.” Before she says anything, I pull the velvet box out of my inside jacket pocket. Tears stream down her cheeks before I even say the words. I’ve always been honest with Carly and I plan to always be. “I can tell you ‘I love you’ all day, but I thought the best way to show you how much I love you is to marry you. That is if you’ll have me as your husband.” Suddenly, I realize I never opened the box to show her the ring. I quickly fumble with it and hold it out for her to see. Through her tears, I’m not sure she can see me or the ring. I take it that her tears mean yes. I take her hand, and we both stand.

  “Carly, I promise to love you every minute of every day.”

  “I love you, Beau.” We seal our words with a kiss that’s just as good putting the ring on her finger. Well, almost as good.

  After the tears and the kiss, I ask, “Since you haven’t answered me, should we see if this ring fits?” She laughs so I decide to add a little humor. “Not to add any unnecessary pressure to your answer, but this ring is non-refundable.”

  “Yes, nothing would make me happier.”

  I slowly slide the ring on her slim finger and it’s a perfect fit. I asked her Pap, Gram, and her mother the day of the grand opening if I could marry Carly. They seemed pleased that I was ready to move into the next step of our relationship. Grace also gave me Carly’s ring size, which was a plus when buying her ring. She leans in and kisses me. This time there are no tears, just love and intimacy.

  When we finally end the kiss, she says breathlessly. “You don’t want a long engagement, do you?”

  Trying to catch my own breath, I say. “How soon can you throw a wedding together?” I’m a man of God, but I’m also human and it takes all I have to walk away from her at the end of the day.

  “Is a week soon enough?”

  “Perfect.”

  Chapter Ten

  Carly

  Beau and I married on his private beach outside his home on Seashell Island. It was small, intimate, and perfect. It’s amazing how fast you can plan a wedding when you have to. Well, we didn’t have to, but we wanted to.

  The next day after we got engaged we told our families over lunch that we wanted to marry in a week, and no one seemed surprised. They knew the reason was intimacy or the lack thereof, but they also knew we deeply loved each other and didn’t see a reason to wait.

  Because I didn’t wear a white wedding gown, that sped the process up.

  Beau wore a white linen shirt and matching pants and we both decided to go barefoot. I wore a pale-yellow tea-length sweetheart neckline sundress with white lacey barefoot beach sandals.

  Myra was our flower girl, Sarah was my maid of honor, and Beau’s dad was his best man. Since Pap is already an ordained minister, it seemed only fitting for him to marry us.

  The entire church’s congregation was in attendance although we wanted something small.

  We would have married in the church, but a few of the older members voiced their concern since this wasn’t the first marriage for Beau. Beau seemed okay with it as he just wanted to progress quickly with the wedding plans. God’s everywhere and it doesn’t matter where you are because He’s there with you.

  The week of the wedding, Beau and I mostly stayed away from each other. The temptation was too much. It seemed that every time we saw each other, the air around us immediately heated up twenty degrees. It was just easier keeping our distance than fighting the urge.

  Our honeymoon was a weekend alone at the Ritz Carlton in Charlotte. We brought clothes, but we didn’t need them. We never left the room. Two days alone with Beau was enough. I could barely walk out of the hotel when we checked out. I’d hate to think what a week alone with him would have been like. I smile at the memory. There’s something to be said about waiting for your wedding night. Waiting was definitely worth it.

  Then, we took Myra on a five-day trip to Disney World. She loved it. Our wedding, our honeymoon, and the marriage is a family affair, with Myra being the center of it.

  It’s been nearly three months since the wedding, and everything for Beau, Myra, and me is falling into place. Today, I drop off Myra with my mom while I work at the bookstore and Beau works on his sermon for Sunday.

  The bookstore has taken off. Not just with the locals but also with the tourists. They love getting new books to read while soaking up the rays or just relaxing poolside at their vacation home.

  The bell over the door rings, alerting me I have a customer. Walking out of the back room I’m surprised and happy to see my sister. Then I immediately see the sadness in her eyes.

  “Oh, Sarah. What’s the matter?” I hate to see her crying. I take her hand and lead her to one of the seating areas. Pulling a few tissues from the Kleenex container, I hand her a few.

  “I need a place to stay. Is the apartment upstairs still vacant?”

  “Yes. It’s been empty since Beau and I married. What happened?” I also want to know why she wouldn’t go to the family beach house. It m
ight be because Gram, Pap, and Mom moved into it full-time. I love them, but I’m not sure I could live with them.

  “I just needed to get away and I didn’t know where to go.” She laughs a sad laugh. “I’m not making any sense, am I?”

  “You didn’t want to go to the beach house?” She shakes her head vigorously. “You’re my sister and you can stay as long as you want.”

  She leans up and hugs me. “Thank you.” She sniffles and dries her eyes. “Will Beau mind? I’ll pay rent, help out in the bookstore. Hell, I’ll even watch Myra for y’all.”

  “Oh, Sarah. He won’t care and you don’t have to do any of those things. Just get to feeling better and maybe you can tell me what’s going on.”

  “Thank you.”

  “Did something happen between you and Chloe?”

  She looks at me in confusion. “What do you mean?”

  “Did you guys break-up or have a fight?”

  “Carly?” she says slowly. “Do you think Chloe and I are a couple?”

  “Aren’t you?”

  She laughs a genuine laugh. “No.”

  “I just thought since you spent so much time together.”

  “Well, I imagine you’re not the only one who thinks that.” She falls back into the leather tan sofa. “Why didn’t you tell me you thought I was a lesbian?”

  “Because it didn’t bother me. I just saw how happy you were and that’s all I cared about.”

  “And Beau? Does he think his sister-in-law’s a lipstick lesbian, too?”

  I can tell Sarah’s already feeling better. “If he does, he’s never said anything.”

  “And Gram, Pap, and Mom. Do they also think I’m a muff diver?”

  I raise my hands and shake my head, trying to conceal a laugh. “I have no idea. If you want to know, you need to ask them. But you might want to change your wording, I don’t think they’ll know what a muff diver is.”

  “I think I’ll leave that one alone.” She adds, “I’m feeling better. Let’s go to Jo’s Tiki Hut for some tacos and margaritas.”

  Standing to get my purse from behind the counter, I say, “I’ll have the fish tacos.” I change the sign to “Out to Lunch” before locking up.

  “And I’ll have the margaritas,” Sarah adds.

  Over dinner she tells me that her ex-boyfriend Slade stopped by her apartment and wanted to get back with her. I can’t say if I ever saw my sister sad. I’m sure I have but not like this.

  “What did you tell him?”

  “That I’m fine with being his friend, but I wasn’t interested in anything more.”

  “Good for you. What did he say to that?”

  “He was sad, which made me sad.”

  I look at her and there’s something she’s not telling me.

  “You didn’t sleep with him, did you?”

  “I may have.”

  “Why would you do that?”

  “It was break-up sex. People do it all the time.”

  “No, they don’t. Couples have make-up sex, not break-up sex.”

  She laughs and it makes me laugh. “Personally, I liked the break-up sex better.”

  Beau

  If I knew how great it would be with Carly, I would have asked her to marry me the very first day we reconnected. Everything about her completes Myra and me. Life is good in the Romano home.

  Myra spent last night with her grandpa, and this morning I made Carly her favorite breakfast. Just as I’m dishing out blueberry pancakes onto her plate, she turns green. I’m talking the shade of olives. Holding her hand to her mouth, she takes off running to the bathroom.

  Concern takes over me as I run after her. She tries to shoo me away as she heaves into the commode. Standing closely, I hold her hair away from her face offering comfort.

  “Beau, please get out. I don’t want you to see me like this!”

  Ignoring her plea, I stand close. “I’m not going anywhere.”

  When she’s done I hand her a cold washcloth and then a glass of cold water.

  “Thank you,” she says, patting the cold cloth on her forehead, cheeks, and neck.

  “Should I call Sarah to run the shop for you today?”

  She shakes her head quickly. “No, I’ll be fine.”

  “Are you sure? You don’t look fine.”

  “It’s nothing. At church on Wednesday a few of the kids had the sniffles. I probably just caught whatever germ they had.”

  Her coloring has now returned to normal.

  “Do you feel like trying to eat something?”

  “I can try.”

  “Let’s see how you feel after breakfast before we make a decision to call your sister or not.”

  I take her hand and she leads me into the kitchen, where her face quickly morphs into the shade of Shrek. She takes off running into the bathroom again. Instead of chasing after her, I call Sarah.

  “Hey, Beau,” she answers with more pep in her voice than she’s had in a few days.

  “Good morning, feeling better?”

  “Much better, thank you. What’s up?”

  “Your sister seems to be coming down with something, and I was hoping you wouldn’t mind too much running the shop until I can get over there later this morning.”

  “No, I’m glad to help. She isn’t pregnant, is she?”

  “What?” Pregnant? We never talked about having children. We also never talked about not having children either. “What?” I ask again.

  “You know, bun in the oven, with child, you’re gonna be a daddy… again.”

  “I gotta hang up.”

  I sit down with a smile on my face. A baby. Nothing would make me happier. Is Carly pregnant? Is she on the pill? We never discussed this. We were abstinent prior to marriage so there was no need for her to be taking any contraceptives. Then the proposal and marriage happened so quickly. There wasn’t time for her to get put on anything. Most contraceptives take thirty days to be in your system before they work.

  I sit here for I have no idea how long, leaving Carly alone in the restroom. When she walks out she’s covered in a blanket and carrying a wastebasket.

  “Maybe I should call Sarah. I’m not feeling so well.”

  “I already called her. She said she’ll open the shop.”

  “Thank you, Beau,” she says, sitting at the other end of the couch. “I hope Myra doesn’t catch it.”

  There’s a knock at the door, but when I stand to get it Sarah walks in.

  “The whole island is going to be talking now,” she says as she makes her way into the living room.

  Carly sits up a little straighter. “Why, what did you do now?”

  “I just went to Tony’s market and bought this.” She pulls out a pregnancy test from the brown paper bag. “I go in there all the time and not one person is in there. Today, there must have been fifteen people shopping.”

  Carly looks at Sarah and then at the pregnancy test in her hand. “Mom, Pap, and Gram are going to kill you.”

  Sarah looks at me before looking back to Carly. “Why?”

  “Because you’re so irresponsible. A pregnancy? Really? Do you even know who the father is?”

  Sarah keeps a straight face and says, “It’s Beau.”

  “Beau?”

  Sarah tosses the pregnancy test across the room and Carly catches it midflight.

  “This isn’t for me. It’s for you.” Carly looks at me in shock. I remain silent. Maybe I’m in shock, too. “You have morning sickness, don’t you?” Sarah asks still standing.

  “No. I’m not feeling well. The kids were sniffling at church on Wednesday during choir practice.” Carly tugs on her blanket a little tighter.

  “I see.” Sarah sits down in the chair nearest to Carly. “And are you sniffling?”

  My eyes are on Carly. I haven’t noticed her cough or sniffle.

  “No.”

  I can’t tell what the look on her face is. Fear? Worry? Dread? It sure doesn’t look like happiness or excitement.

&nb
sp; “Are you on the pill?” Sarah asks at once.

  Carly’s eyes close as she shakes her head. I scoot over to Carly and take her hand in mine. When she opens them, she looks sorrowful.

  “I didn’t think about it. Beau, this is my fault. It was my responsibility and it didn’t even cross my mind.”

  “Your fault?”

  She starts crying and I hold her closely. “Don’t cry, Carly. Nothing would make me happier than to have a baby with you.”

  “But now. So soon after our marriage? Shouldn’t this have been planned or at least talked about first?”

  I wipe the tears from her cheek and kiss her nose.

  “That would have been ideal, but a pregnancy is still a miracle, planned or not.” I stroke her hand with my thumb. “This could all be for nothing. Go take the test then we’ll know if you’ll need an obstetrician for contraception or for prenatal care.”

  Carly looks over at her sister. “Couldn’t you have been more sensitive?”

  “I’m sorry. Even you have to admit this is exciting.” Carly glares at her sister. “Not even a little bit?”

  Carly looks at me and I make sure to smile. Since it is a genuine smile, it comes naturally. “You have to admit this is pretty exciting.”

  “It’s scary, that’s what this is.” She stands, drops the blanket before carrying the box into the bathroom. “Here goes nothing.”

  Once she’s out of hearing distance, Sarah says, “This is so freaking exciting.”

  “How long does that test take?”

  “Three minutes. I read the box on the way over here. But seriously, your dad was throwing me all kinds of looks while I was paying for this.”

  “Don’t worry about Dad. I’ll clear it up with him. Somehow.” I think about Carly. “The look on your sister’s face is a bit alarming.”

  “She takes after our dad. He was a planner. Mom said he planned everything and he even tried to have the doctor schedule a cesarean section before we were born so he could plan precisely for our deliveries.” She laughs. “We were both born naturally.” She looks over at me with a friendly smile. “She’ll be all right.”

  Sarah and I wait quietly until Carly walks out of the restroom. “False alarm,” she says, looking relieved. “It’s negative.”