by Julie
"All right, you got plenty of pics of me," Isaac complained. "Now let me take one of the two of you."
"Don't be silly," she protested. "We have to cut your cake. And you have presents to open."
"That can all wait. I want a picture of you two. I'll put it in that frame on the TV to replace the old one."
The one on Gareth's uncle's TV had been taken about three years ago when they'd all gone to the River Walk for the day. Over the past year time had been at a premium. Either Gareth was working, or she was, and they hadn't spent a day with his uncle in a long time.
Feeling regret about that, she decided, "We'll have to go to the River Walk again soon, or maybe to the Alamo and out for dinner."
"Or," Uncle Isaac drawled, "maybe the next time Gareth goes to Tokyo, we could take a vacation and go along."
The silence that fell over the patio seemed to extend to the whole neighborhood. Not a bird chirped. Not a car door slammed. Not a mower buzzed.
Still with a smile on his face, Isaac went on, "I suppose that's a very different life from over here. It would be interesting. What did you see over there? What did you like most?"
Tension had ratcheted up a few more degrees. Gareth said quickly, "I didn't have much time for sightseeing. I was mostly involved in meetings and putting together reports at night when I returned to my hotel room. I revamped every department in a laptop-computer company."
When they were first married, Laura had gone along on a few of Gareth's business trips. But he was working the whole time, and she'd had to sightsee on her own. That was okay once in a while, but she'd missed him. She wanted to be sightseeing with him. So she'd stopped going.
"You can't tell me you didn't see anything!" Isaac pressed.
After a quick glance at Laura, Gareth responded, "I spent some time on the Ginza Strip, that's theaters and restaurants and shopping. I also passed one afternoon at the National Science Museum and the Museum of Western Art." He looked excited about that for a moment, then turned to Laura. "But I missed you."
"You didn't ask me to go with you," she murmured.
"Maybe that's because I knew you wouldn't. Your calendar was booked with catering gigs." Then, as if he knew this wasn't going to get them anywhere, as if he knew this would only make matters worse, he turned to her on the bench, the nerve in his jaw working. "But the Tokyo trip is over now, and I'm home. I'm glad to be home."
Gareth might be glad to be home, yet she knew he'd leave again. And after this six-week trip, how long would the next one be? She was afraid their marriage was headed down a dead-end road. She didn't want a child getting hurt if they crashed into a barrier at the end of it.
Although the steaks were grilled just right, and the salad was crisp and the carrot cake had come out well, Laura had just picked at her food. It was that time of day when her stomach was upset and crackers would have made her feel better than carrot cake. She had pushed her food around and made it look as if she were enjoying it.
Isaac was like a kid when he opened his presents. She had bought him a new baseball cap with the Astros emblem and a CD of sixties hits. Those were his favorite.
After he gave her a hug and his thanks, he said, "And Gareth's present arrived this morning."
Laura didn't want to admit she didn't know what it was, so she waited.
"Did you see the lawn mower he picked out for me?" Isaac asked her.
"No, I didn't."
Scrambling from the bench, he motioned to her. "Come on, I'll show you. You, too, Gareth. I want to show you what I got myself for my birthday."
Isaac's car had been parked in the driveway when they arrived, and as they went inside the one-car garage, Laura could see why. In a place of honor, smack-dab in the middle, stood a shiny red motorcycle.
"Uncle Isaac! What are you going to do with that?" Laura asked, grinning.
"I'm going to ride it!" He took the black helmet from one of the handlebars. "Get a load of this." After he put it on, he beamed at them from inside the helmet. "It's a hoot, isn't it?"
Gareth was already examining the machine and he smiled as he admired the chrome instrument panel, the bucket-type front seat and the metallic red finish. "I bet you've been saving for this for a long time."
"Yep, I have. Wanna take a ride?" He wiggled his eyebrows at Laura.
Normally she would have jumped at the chance to take a ride, feel the wind in her hair and against her body, especially if she could have her arms around Gareth.
Now, knowing she was pregnant, she couldn't take the chance. "I think I'll pass."
Gareth gave her a questioning look.
"I'll clean up supper," she added. "You two take it out." She hugged Uncle Isaac. "But be careful."
"Are you saying I'm too old for this?" he asked with a twinkle in his eyes.
"Not at all. I'd tell Tony to be careful, too," she said in a wry tone.
Gareth laughed. "I guess it's a compliment that she's putting you in the same category as Tony."
"She's about got it right. I feel young again when I'm on this machine." He patted it lovingly.
After Laura had taken a quick look at the mower, which Isaac liked almost as much as his new motorcycle, she cleaned up the remains of supper and put the cake in the refrigerator. Uncle Isaac would be enjoying that for the next week.
The men were gone about half an hour. When they returned, Gareth looked as energized as his uncle. "It handles great. I'd forgotten what it's like to go for a joy-ride."
"Thinking about buying one?" she teased. "No, but I am thinking about you and I doing something fun for a change.”
“Fun?"
"Yes. Like taking a river taxi on the River Walk and sightseeing like tourists."
Maybe Gareth was getting her message. Maybe there was some hope.
They took iced tea out onto the patio and visited with Isaac for another hour or so. Then, with hugs all around, they left.
Isaac had made conversation easy, and the tension between her and Gareth hadn't been as noticeable while they'd talked with him. But now it was back, and Laura wasn't sure what to do about it. She wasn't sure what to do about anything.
Obviously feeling the strain, too, Gareth switched on the CD player. When he pulled up in front of her mother's house, he flicked off the ignition and unfastened his seat belt, but he didn't make a move to climb out. "Glad you went?"
"Yes," she assured him. "I wouldn't have missed Uncle Isaac's birthday." Unfastening her shoulder harness, she angled toward Gareth. "I'll be cooking at the house tomorrow. I bid on the contract to make desserts for the Spring Fling and got it."
Switching on the light on the visor, he studied her. "That's quite an event. How do you prepare food when you don't know for sure how many guests will turn up?"
"I just guess," she joked, then added more seriously, "They sold tickets, so I do have some idea. But anyone who wants to come can buy a ticket that night, too."
Silence wrapped around them in the car again, until she said, "I'd better go in."
"Afraid your brother will come out here with a flashlight to see what we're doing?"
Laura flushed. Her brother had actually done that when they were first dating. "I don't think that will happen."
Reaching out, he took the ends of her hair between his fingers and slid his thumb over them. "The best part of tonight wasn't the motorcycle ride."
He'd moved closer and his face was very near hers as she asked, "It wasn't?"
Now he ran his thumb over her bottom lip. "No. The best part of tonight was kissing you again."
The deep sincerity in his voice unsettled her. The touch of his finger on her lips made her tremble. All she could do was gaze into his eyes as he bent toward her.
"Gareth - " His name was meant to be a soft protest, but he didn't take it as that.
The next moment, his lips were covering hers. Gareth was virile, with strong needs, and that had always excited her. He liked to kiss
, and that had always awakened all of her passion. Now, as his tongue slid into her mouth, as she realized he could still make her world spin, she braced her hands on his shoulders and pushed away.
"What?" he asked with some frustration.
"You're making this harder."
There was an amused twinkle in his eye now. "That's the idea."
Moving even farther toward the door, she responded, "It won't work. We have problems that can't be solved with a kiss."
"Maybe they could be settled in bed."
"No! That's the one really good part of our marriage, and if we don't solve our problems and we take them into bed with us, that will disintegrate too. I don't want that to happen."
His shoulders were squared now, his voice gruff as he asked, "What do you want to happen?"
That was the first he'd asked her, and he seemed to be listening, really listening. "I want more time with you. I want you to cut back on traveling. And I want - " Tears came to her eyes. "I want the old connection back. The one we had at the beginning."
He leaned back against the seat. "We're not just meeting for the first time. We've been married for five years, and the novelty's worn off."
"Maybe we should pretend we're starting all over again. Because if we can't feel those old feelings, if we don't want to spend time together, if we can't light up each other's lives, then we don't have anywhere to go."
Silence filled the car until he concluded, "Maybe you want too much."
She shook her head. "I know what we once had, and I want it back."
Because she thought he might ask her to come home with him again, she braced herself. But he didn't ask.
After a very long pause, he inquired, "Will you be at the house all day tomorrow?"
"I don't know. It depends how far I get with the desserts."
"Maybe I'll see you when I get home. If not, I'll be in touch."
There was nothing definite about that. Wasn't that what she wanted? Time apart for them to think? But now Gareth seemed to be withdrawing, and she wondered just what he was going to think about.
When she opened her car door, he climbed out, too. They walked silently up the brick path, and at the porch steps, he didn't climb them with her. He didn't make an attempt to kiss her. He didn't even say good-night. He just watched her use her mother's spare key and go inside.
After Laura closed the door behind her, she leaned against it, wondering if everything she wanted was so different from what Gareth wanted.
If it was -
A tear rolled down her cheek.
Laura's assistant, Corrine Ramirez, who was petite with black, short-cut curly hair, worked with her all day Wednesday, helping her prepare desserts for the Spring Fling. They made everything from cookies to petit fours to cheesecake tarts. Now Laura washed up the last of the cookie sheets while Corrine labeled plastic containers before she stowed them in the freezer.
As Corrine layered the tarts in a container, she remarked, "I'm glad we were working in here today. What's the summer going to be like if it's this hot now?"
Corrine and her husband had moved to San Antonio from northern Arizona so he could take a promotion with a pharmaceutical company. She hadn't yet gotten used to San Antonio's weather. "We survived last summer. We'll survive again this year. I'm just glad the van's refrigerated." Laura turned off the spigot. "Will Joe be coming to the Spring Fling?"
"No, he doesn't like to hang around while I'm working. What about Gareth?"
"I don't know."
"You're still staying at your mother's?”
“Yes."
Corrine gave her a sympathetic look. "Six months after Joe and I were married, we had an argument to end all arguments. I stayed with my sister for a few weeks, and he lived like a bachelor."
'The argument was that serious?"
"Back then I thought it was. He wanted to buy this fancy new SUV. I wanted to use the money for a down payment on a house."
"How did you get back together again?"
"It shouldn't have been so hard," she admitted with a shake of her head. "But when I left, this pride thing happened - to him and to me. It was like neither of us could admit we were wrong."
"It's not wrong to want a house."
"It wasn't wrong to want an SUV," Corrine said with a wry smile, "but somehow the issue became a monumental obstacle. It turns out there was more to it than a car or a house. Joe didn't want to go into debt. His parents had had trouble making ends meet and they were always afraid the bank would foreclose. He remembered that."
"How did you find out that's what was behind it?"
"After three weeks of being separated, my sister invited him to dinner. Afterward, she wouldn't let either of us leave the house until we talked. We should have done it the day after the argument."
"Did you compromise or give in?"
"We decided not to buy the SUV or the house. Not right then. We knew his truck was good for another couple of years, and our rent was reasonable, so we decided to save for another year at least. It worked out because when we moved here, we had a good-size down payment. Now neither one of us leaves the house when we have an argument. We might need cooling-off time, but we don't leave. And eventually we talk and work out whatever it is."
Laura didn't know if she'd made a mistake by leaving, but it seemed to be the only way to get Gareth's attention. Their marriage had needed a wake-up call, and she was hoping the separation was exactly that.
However, she was about to confide in Corrine about her doubts, when she heard the garage door open. A few minutes later, Gareth was striding through the family room toward the kitchen. "You're still here." He looked surprised, and Laura couldn't tell if he was pleased or not.
"We're just finishing up. We'll be out of your hair in a few minutes."
Corrine emerged from the pantry and greeted Gareth. "I've got to get home and start supper." Turning back to Laura, she asked, "Are you sure you can handle the baby shower yourself tomorrow evening?"
"I'm positive. It's fifteen women, hot hors d'oeuvres snacks and a cake. I'll make that tomorrow morning It's a sheet cake and I just have to decorate it with baby carriage and some balloons. I will be going for supplies tomorrow afternoon, though. I need to pick up those new glasses along with everything else. If you need anything, just call me in the morning and give me your list."
"Will do. See you, Gareth." Then Corrine was heading toward the front door to let herself out.
Finding herself alone with her husband, Laura was at an absolute loss for words.
He'd loosened his tie and opened the top two buttons of his dress shirt. His suit coat was slung over his arm Her pulse sped up as she thought about brushing her fingers through his short hair. Her fingers tingled with desire.
She checked the clock on the wall. "You're home early." It was only four o'clock, and Gareth rarely returned home before six.
"I thought I'd go for a swim. How about joining me?"
When she considered swimming with Gareth and seeing him in his trunks, she got hot all over. "I don't know if I left my bathing suit upstairs or took it along."
"Why don't you check. Mine's in the mudroom. I took a swim last night."
A swim by moonlight. She wanted to think they might do that sometime in the future together, but she just didn't know.
She motioned to the cookie sheets and the cake pans sitting on the counter. "I really should put all this away."
"It can wait. Come on, let's cool off. If you don't have your suit we can live dangerously and skinny-dip."
"Even with the privacy fence, that's still a little risqué for me."
"Then I hope you find a swimsuit. I'll meet you out at the pool."
Gareth's attitude today had a cool edge to it. Was he withdrawing to protect himself? Was pride going to get in their way on both their parts?
After he set his briefcase on the kitchen table, he tugged off his tie and headed toward the utility
room and his trunks.
Laura hurried to the master suite and into her walk-in closet. There she found her bathing suit in the back. Quickly she skimmed off her sandals, shorts, top and underwear and slid into the yellow-and-black one-piece bathing suit. When she stepped into the dressing room, she stood in front of the full-length mirror, running her hand over her tummy. She felt different. Her breasts felt fuller. But at seven weeks, she didn't look different, did she?
Gazing into the mirror again, she wondered if her waist looked just a little thicker.
Thinking this might be the last time Gareth saw her in a bathing suit for a while, she grabbed a towel and went down to join her husband in the pool.
Chapter 3
While Gareth waited for Laura, he swam laps. He wondered if she might decide to go back to her mother's without ever getting in the pool, even if she found a bathing suit. She might decide she didn't want to be with him tonight.
As Gareth's arms sliced through the water, he realized this separation, as well as Laura's pulling away, had made one very huge dent in his ego. He used to be able to predict her every action and reaction. He'd thought the house he'd given her, the life he'd given her, would be enough to make her happy. He'd thought he was enough to make her happy. Maybe that had been arrogant. But, damn it, he'd made promises he'd intended to keep for a lifetime.
Last night, when he'd finally realized she was serious about this separation, he'd been more than frustrated by desire he'd wanted to fulfill. He'd been angry that she'd put either of them in this position. He'd been resentful that even his uncle could see the crack in their marriage. He'd been disappointed that she didn't have enough confidence in him and in herself that they could work this out.
That's when a monumental question had stared him in the face. Did she want to work this out?
He heard the sliding door open from the dining area of the kitchen to the poolside patio. Stopping his lap marathon in midstroke, he moved to the shallower water and went to the side of the pool. His body responded to the sight of Laura in her bathing suit as she came through the gate. The yellow bands down the side of the suit leading to the high-cut legs drew his gaze first. Then his focus was drawn to the yellow band across her breasts.