by Julie
Pulling his cell phone from his belt, he went to her window. "Do you have your membership number for roadside service?"
Silently, she slipped a card from her wallet and handed it to him.
As the minutes ticked by, Laura became more agitated. Because of the eighty-five-degree heat, they'd gotten out of the van, gone to the back and opened the doors. While they sat there, he noticed Laura's face turning a shade pinker. "It will be all right, Laura."
"I don't know it will be all right," she said, her voice pained. "What if the tow truck doesn't come for a half an hour? I can't be late. The mother-to-be's sister is counting on me."
"Accidents happen. I'm sure she'll understand - "
"I have obligations, Gareth. I can't just blow this off as if it doesn't matter. If clients don't know they can depend on me, they won't hire me."
Her voice had risen and perspiration beaded on her forehead. He laid his palm on her thigh. "Calm down. It won't do you any good to get all stressed-out about this."
Jumping out of the van, hands on hips, she faced him squarely. "Would you calm down if you had a business appointment you couldn't get to? Would you calm down if you knew your reputation was at stake - "
Suddenly she stopped, whirled away from him and dashed to a line of brush near the driver's door. When he saw what was happening, he was on his feet and racing to her.
She'd lost her lunch.
Taking a tissue from her pocket, she stayed bent over for a few moments as he held her shoulders. After giving her time to compose herself, he turned her around. "Laura, what's the matter?"
She was perspiring even more now, and her cheeks were much too rosy for his peace of mind. Nevertheless, she said, "I'm fine. Sometimes that happens when I get overheated and stressed."
Sometimes that happens? They'd been married for five years and he didn't even know that.
"How often does this happen?"
She laid her hand on her stomach. "Now and then. Not often. I just got really hot, and I'm worried about getting to the baby shower on time. I don't want to call my client and tell her I'll be late when there's a chance I won't be.'
Draping his arm around her shoulders, he led Laura to the back of the van. "Sit in the shade."
She shook her head. "I have a bottle of water up front. I'll get that and - "
Gently, he caught her arm and motioned again to the back of the van. "Sit. I'll get the water."
Before he gave her the water, though, he poured a little into his palm. Then he used his hand like a cloth and held it to the back of her neck under her hair. "I'm sorry if this drips down your back, but it'll help cool you off."
Then he poured another trickle into his hand, and using his fingers, wiped over her face. Her skin was hot, and he didn't think he'd ever touched her exactly like this. With her face turned up to his, he saw worry in her eyes that made his chest tighten. Why was she driving herself so hard? In case they split up? Did she want to make sure she could survive without him?
"You've got to cut back," he decided in a low voice, thinking she was doing too much, rushing too fast, growing her business much too rapidly.
At his words, she closed her eyes. Then she opened them again.
He realized she had probably taken those few seconds so she wouldn't blurt out something she'd regret.
How many times had she asked him to cut back?
That was different. His health wasn’t affected.
A voice in his head reminded him, But the health of your marriage was.
Taking the bottle of water from his hand, she took a few swallows. She was patting her cheeks with more of the water, when a tow truck rumbled up behind them.
"Thank goodness," she breathed and checked her watch once more. "Hopefully I can still make it."
After Gareth closed the back doors of the van, he made sure they were locked. "I can call Nancy to come to the garage and pick us up, but you'll have to leave the supplies in the van."
"Don't call Nancy," she said quickly. "I'll call Mom. Maybe Tony's there. Everything might fit in his car. I hate to leave the supplies in the van at the garage overnight."
"Maybe you should phone Corrine and see if she could take over the baby shower."
While the tow-truck operator hooked up the van, Laura shook her head. "This is my event, Gareth."
"You're not feeling well."
"I'm feeling fine. It's just the heat. Hopefully I can pack the food into coolers, get a five-minute shower and be as good as new."
The tow-truck operator motioned to his air-conditioned cab. "You folks comin'?"
The truck was high, but Laura scrambled inside without a second thought. It was obvious she didn't want his help. It was obvious she might not even want his concern.
But that was just too damn bad. They were still married, and he was going to watch over her, whether she wanted him to or not.
Chapter 4
On Friday night, students, parents and teachers milled about in the high-school lobby. Laura had bought a new dress for her brother's graduation. It was cream, and slim with short sleeves, a royal-blue collar and a royal-blue band around the tight waist. She didn't think it had been that tight a week ago when she'd tried it on, but that could be her imagination.
Her mother was talking to Tony over by the trophy cases. He looked so handsome and grown-up in the navy graduation gown. Their father was speaking to the high-school principal and both men were laughing. During dinner, Vickie's beeper had gone off and she'd had to leave. Now she rushed through the doors of the auditorium lobby, waved to Laura and came to stand beside her.
As always, her sister looked beautiful in a little black dress. "I was afraid I'd miss this. Tony would never forgive me."
Her brother was used to his father and sister being late for family gatherings and special occasions.
"Well, he wouldn't," Vickie repeated after a glance at Laura. "You've never forgiven Dad for missing your high-school graduation."
"Of course I have," Laura protested. "He couldn't help it. A patient needed him."
"I saw your face that night. I even saw the tears. And you never mentioned it afterward."
"That's because I forgot about it."
"Uh-huh. That's because you never forgot it. I know how that works. I can read you, Laura. We're sisters, remember?"
"I remember." Smiling, Laura changed the subject. "You're the one who saves the world, and I'm the one who feeds it."
After studying her for a few moments, Vickie finally said, "You have this habit of pretending nothing's wrong when something is. Take the situation with you and Gareth, for example."
Her sister had a tendency to lecture, and Laura simply wasn't in the mood for it. "I think I'll go give Tony a hug."
But Vickie caught her arm. '"Are you going to stay separated? Are you going to get a divorce?"
Defensively, Laura returned, "I don't know what I'm going to do yet. But it's none of your concern. I'll handle it."
"Well, you'd better handle it soon. I stopped in at Gareth's office this morning after rounds at the hospital."
"You did what?" Vickie had often poked into her life but had never downright interfered.
"I just wanted to check and see how his attitude was running. I wasn't obvious. I made the excuse I wanted to know what he'd gotten for Tony for graduation."
"You could have called him for that."
"He didn't seem to think it was unusual I stopped by. We've always been friendly."
From the first, Gareth had gotten along well with her family, maybe because he didn't have much of his own. Still, this time Vickie had overstepped her bounds. "Just what did you say to him?"
"About you? I didn't say anything. But I got a good look at what was going on there."
In spite of herself, Laura had to ask, "What was going on?"
"His office manager has her sights set on him. It was obvious in the way she smiled at him, looked at him and
even worked for him. She wants to please him down to the last comma, and you'd better watch out."
After the other night when Nancy had stopped in at Gareth's house, Laura had pushed her feelings about the woman into the background, believing her own insecurities were making her suspicious. But now Vickie was holding up a mirror, and she couldn't ignore it. "How did Gareth respond to her?" She'd never really seen her husband and Nancy in a working situation.
"I don't think he noticed. Not yet, anyway. He probably just thinks her attention is flattering. You know how men are. But Nancy has more than flattery on her mind."
"I can't control what happens when he's working."
"No, but you can make him happy when he comes home. The problem is - you have to be at home."
Vickie, like her mother and the rest of her family, didn't understand how she felt. "If I go home now, nothing's going to change in our marriage. For the past year it's been like we were driving on parallel highways, never meeting. I don't want a marriage like Mom and Dad have. I want more than that."
Again, Vickie studied her for a long time as the rumbles and chatters of many conversations swirled around them. "If you're not careful, you won't have a marriage to go back to."
More than once Laura had thought about confiding her pregnancy in both her mother and Vickie, but now she was glad she hadn't. She didn't need more pressure. She needed to follow her instincts and her heart.
Out of the corner of her eye she noticed Tony broke off his conversation with their mother. A teacher called him over.
"I'm going to tell Mom I'm here," Vickie remarked, then moved toward their mother.
Just then, a deep baritone over Laura's shoulder said, "I didn't think I'd find you in this crowd."
Turning, she gazed up at Gareth. "I thought maybe you got held up."
They were standing very close, and Laura could tell Gareth had recently shaved. His end-of-the-day beard stubble wasn't in sight. His aftershave drew her closer to him. 'Tony will be glad to see you."
"How about you? Are you glad to see me?"
When she felt her cheeks redden, she spotted Vickie looking at her with interest. "Yes, I am. I wanted to thank you for being so patient yesterday. I didn't have time last night when I had to rush to shower and then leave."
"Speaking of showers..."
His tone said he might be thinking about her naked in one. A teasing smile curved the corners of his lips for a moment, but then he turned serious. "How did the baby shower go last night?"
The talk of babies and the sight of the mother-to-be getting stuck in a chair that was too low had filled Laura with anticipation. She couldn't wait for the whole pregnancy experience. The problem was, she wanted to be sharing it with Gareth. Yet she knew she couldn't right now.
"It went fine. I was fine. The stress and the heat just got to me yesterday afternoon." That was true. She'd had a chance to take a nap this afternoon, and she felt great tonight.
They weren't alone in the midst of the crowd, yet it felt as if they were. Now, however, Laura's mom and dad and Vickie came to join them. Laura knew Vickie had kept one eye on them.
"We'd better find our seats," Janice advised all of them. "The ceremony will be starting soon."
Gareth's hand went to the small of Laura's back to protectively guide her into the auditorium. An usher took their tickets and showed them to their seats.
Beside Laura, about twelve rows back from the stage, Gareth leaned close to her, letting his lips graze her ear. "I brought an extra handkerchief if you need it."
When Laura turned toward him, their lips were almost brushing. "I'm not going to cry. I'm happy Tony's graduating."
Although Laura might not think so, Gareth knew her better than that. Fifteen minutes later when the music started playing, she surreptitiously swiped at a tear that rolled down her cheek. Instead of giving her a handkerchief, he dropped his arm around her shoulders. She didn't lean away, and he felt a great surge of relief. Maybe they could fix what was wrong. If he bided his time, maybe she'd realize again she belonged with him.
After the ceremony he invited Laura to ride with him back to the Bateses' house. Tony was going to spend a short time there with his family, change and then head out to a party.
The drive to the house took only five minutes, but before Laura could exit Gareth's car he asked her, "Did I tell you how pretty you look tonight?"
Her green gaze sparkled as she shook her head. "No, you didn't."
"Well. I'm telling you now."
"Thank you."
To his surprise, he saw her eyes becoming moist. Caressing her cheek, he said, "A compliment isn't supposed to make you cry."
"It's just tonight... Tony's graduation and all..."
She was wearing makeup this evening, and that was rare because Laura liked the natural look. "I want to kiss you, but I'm afraid I'd smear your lipstick, and your family would know we've been making out in the car."
With a small self-conscious laugh, she offered, "My family's a bit too interested in us right now."
"What do you mean?"
Looking sorry she'd brought it up, she murmured sadly, "Vickie thinks our marriage is on the rocks.”
“What do you think?"
Her gaze stayed fixed on his. "I think we have to work our way back to each other."
That statement gave him pause.
Spotting Laura's parents, Vickie and Tony pulling into the driveway, he nodded toward the house. "We'd better go in."
Although Tony had protested that he didn't want a party, Laura's mother pulled one from the refrigerator. There were trays of meats and cheeses, two cold salads, a vegetable tray and, of course, Laura had made a cake.
Tony grinned at his sister. "I guess it's double chocolate, huh?"
"You guessed right."
"Then I guess I don't mind." When he hugged her, she hugged him back and Gareth heard her murmur, "Congratulations! I'm proud of you."
In spite of Janice's preparations, Gareth knew Tony wouldn't stick around long. He was anxious to be off with his friends and really celebrate. He proved that by diving through his supper.
When he was on his last bite of chocolate cake, Laura placed a present beside his glass of iced tea. It was a square box, and he eyed it curiously. "It's too small for a satellite-radio system." He grinned. Then he glanced at Vickie's box over on the sideboard. "But that's the right size for one."
"As if you hadn't been telling me you wanted one for the past few months," Vickie grumbled.
Gareth saw that Laura looked worried, as if she might not have bought her brother the right gift. However, Tony took the package in hand, unwrapped it quickly and lifted the lid. Then he pulled out a baseball, “Wow! Barry Bonds autographed it. Where'd you get it?"
"On eBay," Laura said with a smile. "Do you like it?"
"It's great." He got up from the table and gave her a peck on the cheek. "Thanks."
While Tony opened presents from his parents and from Vickie, Gareth went out to his car, popped the trunk and pulled out the guitar with the blue bow. When he entered the kitchen, he tried to hold it behind him.
When he finally brought it out into the open for Tony, Laura's brother's gaze met his. "Awesome! This is even better than a new car!" Taking it into his hands, Tony strummed it.
After he handed him an envelope to go with the gift, Gareth explained, "It comes with six lessons. I thought you could get them in before going to college."
"You're the best, Gareth!" Tony gave him a grin that said he really believed that. The boy had wanted a guitar for the past year, but his parents hadn't thought it was important enough to consider. However, Gareth knew Tony wrote music on the side and had been saving up for the instrument.
When Gareth's gaze met Laura's, there was a softness in hers that he hadn't seen since he returned. He knew it had nothing to do with the amount of money he'd spent on the guitar, but rather his thoughtfulness in reading Tony. Maybe
that's where he'd come up short with Laura the past couple of years - he'd forgotten to be thoughtful. Or he'd taken for granted that she'd be around even when he wasn't. As long as they'd been married, she'd made him feel special with I-Love-You notes in his wallet, cards on holidays, preparation of his favorite foods. Considering the other person's needs had always been a part of who Laura was. Why hadn't he realized that givers needed to receive, too? He was beginning to see that their careers were part of what had gone wrong between them, but they weren't the whole extent of it.
As Tony went upstairs to change, conversation around the table veered toward the eighteen-year-old's college selection. He'd accepted a spot at a university in Illinois, and Janice hadn't been happy about that.
"I wish he wasn't going so far away," she said for about the hundredth time.
Her husband shrugged. "It's a good school. That's what matters."
"He could be attending the University of Texas," Janice grumbled.
"It'll do him good to see a different part of the country," Vickie interjected. "He wants to see what life is like outside of Texas. I came back after med school. Maybe he will, too."
"Of course he'll come back," Janice insisted. "This is his home."
"He might want a life somewhere else," Laura suggested quietly.
"Don't be ridiculous," her mother returned. "He'd miss us all too much, and no place has more to offer than Texas. I just wish he'd settle in his mind what kind of degree he wants. He can't rattle around undecided very long."
"He has a year to make up his mind," Vickie mused. "He ought to opt for a business degree. He'd have the most doors open to him with that."
"He's interested in engineering," Janice put in. "That would be a wonderful career, too."
Throughout the discussion, Laura remained quiet, and Gareth realized now, she was often quiet with her family. Maybe that was because they didn't seem to value her opinion.
He didn't know how that had come about, but he knew that it had. She'd always taken a back seat to Vickie and Tony. Had her family set her up for that with him? After they'd married, had she taken a back seat to him because that had seemed the natural thing to do? Had he ignored her feelings because she didn't express them forcefully enough? Why should she have to?