by James, Sandy
She wrote their story, labeling it fiction and naming it In River Bend.
Who knew she had five more books swimming around in her brain? Five at last count. She’d been wrapping up number six when the contractions started.
When she’d landed the agent right after she finished In River Bend, James had hoped she’d get it published just so she could have something all her own to be proud of. But when she’d sold not only that first book but the three sequels as well, she’d been on top of the world.
Susan insisted that every dime of her advance go to buying the restaurant and turning it into James’s own version of the Golden Nugget. The grand opening would be in a few weeks, but the buzz was already out. The Chicago Tribune had even done a feature story about the teacher turned romance writer and her husband investing in a bar and grill with a Wild West theme.
James had turned in his two-week notice on Monday, finally feeling secure enough to not work all day as an engineer and then try to finish the renovations to the Golden Nugget at night. While they were eating up some of their hard-earned retirement savings, both he and Susan had never been happier. He itched to get back to the job he’d loved in River Bend, and his own Golden Nugget was as close as he could get.
“James?” Susan’s voice broke into his happy thoughts.
“I’m sorry, Suz. What were you saying?”
“Did the piano arrive yet?”
He grinned at his wife. “Sure did. An antique upright, just like you asked for. At least this one’s been properly tuned.”
Lynne threw Susan a quizzical stare. “You’re really going to sing there sometimes? After that Christmas fiasco, I didn’t figure you’d ever try to sing for people again.”
“Well, I am. You’d be amazed what you can do when you try.”
“Let me hold my baby sister,” John said as he reached for Destiny. “I’m going to have to give her a nickname so kids don’t make fun of her. I mean, Destiny? Seriously? She’ll get mocked on the playground.”
Lynne laughed. “You guys suck at picking names now. How about calling her Desi?”
James laughed right back at her. “As in I Love Lucy? And you think that’s better than Destiny?”
Reaching in to caress the baby’s cheek, Lynne grinned. “What do you wanna be called, Peanut?”
“That’s it,” Susan said. “Peanut. We’ll call her Peanut.”
John rolled his eyes. “Geesh, Mom. That’s even worse than Destiny.”
Taking Destiny from John’s arms, Lynne held her close and kissed the top of her head. “Whatever we call her, she’s the prettiest baby I’ve ever seen.”
James brushed a kiss over his wife’s mouth. “That’s ’cause she has a beautiful mother. No, we’ll just call her Destiny.” The baby scrunched up her face and let loose a wail that made everyone in the room laugh. “She must be hungry.”
Lynne passed the baby back to her mother. “If she’s hungry, I can’t help you there.” Giving John’s shoulder a push, she said, “Time for us to leave. We’ll be back later.”
Once the door closed, Susan set Destiny to her breast. James wrapped an arm around his wife’s shoulder to watch his new daughter nurse. Contentment like he’d never known filled his heart. “I love you, Suz.”
“I love you too, James.” She stared at her daughter. “I feel so blessed. You know, she was conceived in River Bend. How many kids are created in one century and born two centuries later?”
He chuckled. “Quite an accomplishment. Are you sorry we came back? We could have raised her in that era, away from all the horrible things kids face nowadays.”
A shake of her head came in answer. “I loved our time in River Bend, but we have so much more to offer her here. No, Destiny was meant to be here, in this place and time. Destiny, true destiny, has great plans for this little girl, only the best. I just know it.”
“Destiny, true destiny, already gave me the best.” James pressed a kiss to Susan’s lips. “Destiny gave you back to me.”
THE END
WWW.SANDY-JAMES.COM
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Sandy lives in a quiet suburb of Indianapolis with her husband of over twenty-five years. She started writing when empty-nest syndrome stared her in the eye, completing her first book the year the younger of her two children graduated from high school. Her family owns a small stable of harness racehorses and enjoys spending time at the two Indiana racetracks.
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