A final explosive burst wiped out everything except an incendiary realm of white light. He felt as if he had been reconfigured right down to the cellular level.
Despite the narrowness of the couch, neither of them seemed inclined to stir afterward. Kevin lay holding her atop him, relishing the pressure of skin on skin, until the kinks in his back threatened to turn into a medical emergency.
Alli rolled away. Sitting on the edge of the couch, she flipped her hair out of her face. “What did you mean earlier? About starting with the coffee table?”
“I’m sorry?” Kevin couldn’t think of anything—didn’t want to think of anything—except the sensations lingering in his body.
“You said the couch needed reupholstering, and then you mentioned the coffee table.” She collected her clothes from where they’d landed: on the floor, a chair and a lampshade.
“Look out the window,” he said.
“Why?”
“Just try it.”
Going to the front window, she peered between the blinds.
“Kevin!” Dodging back in alarm, Alli exclaimed, “There’s a van down there!”
“A green van,” he said. “Not gray.”
“Right, but—you mean that’s yours?”
“That’s right. I rented it for the weekend.” This wasn’t the kind of conversation a man wanted to have lying down, particularly not with metal coils digging into his ribs. Stiffly, Kevin maneuvered into a sitting position. “Would you mind if we didn’t take the couch? These springs are shot.”
“Take it where?” Alli asked.
He’d conducted this conversation backward, Kevin reflected. “I was hoping you’d move in with me. You said gestures of affection were supposed to be spontaneous. I figured I should rent the van before I asked so we could get started at once if you agree.”
She turned her panties right side out before putting them on. “You planned ahead to act spontaneous?”
“Something like that.” He tried to stop the words that sprang to his lips, because they would be too revealing. But that was the point, wasn’t it? “I haven’t been sleeping well since you left. I was afraid you’d leave town and I’d never see you again. Then when I saw your byline in the paper this morning and realized they’d rehired you, I got so excited I couldn’t work.”
“And your response to these strong emotions was to rent a van?” Alli sat beside him, looking splendid in nothing but her underpants.
“That’s not all I did,” Kevin said. “But I’m a man of action, not words. I’ll have to demonstrate.”
“Okay.” She folded her arms across her bare breasts.
It wouldn’t take much to inspire a rematch of their love-making. “Not here,” he managed to say, reminding himself that he had a plan. “Let’s load the van and head out. We can retrieve the rest of your things later.”
Alli shook her head. “I’m not ready to decide about moving in with you.”
“Fair enough. Let’s go for a ride.”
She shrugged into her bra. “To where?”
“It’s a surprise.” He ignored a crumpled spot on his jacket as he put it on. In a way, he kind of treasured it, because that was where Alli had grabbed him.
“So surprise me,” she said.
“Whenever you’re ready.” Kevin watched her get dressed, and, despite his impatience, enjoyed every minute.
AS THEY WENT OUT to the car, it impressed Alli that Kevin seemed willing to accept her ratty furniture in his spotless house. She didn’t even like most of the scarred old stuff.
But he hadn’t suggested anything long-term. True, it was early—only a week had passed since they first got shot at, which might be said to mark the beginning of their bond. Still, unless he intended more than a temporary arrangement, living together would be too dangerous.
She could easily start to count on him. To trust that he’d always be there. To believe in fairy tales, and end up with a sack of cinders.
As she plopped into the van’s passenger seat, Alli observed two boxes almost lost in the cargo space behind them. One bore the name of a local bakery. The other came from Paris Avenue Toys ’N Stuff.
“What’s this?” she asked.
“You’ll find out.” He grinned.
She wanted to give him a shove because he hadn’t answered her question, but she found him almost irresistible. Alli wrapped her arms around herself protectively. Maybe she could hold on to her heart that way.
“This better not be a long drive,” she said.
“Don’t worry.”
A few minutes later, they halted in front of his parents’ two-story house. Alli glanced at the boxes with a wrench of disappointment, realizing they must be for his family. She’d been hoping for something romantic.
“Should I come in with you?” she asked.
“It would help.”
Help with what? she wondered, but kept silent as she picked up the toy box. He took the baked goods.
The last time Alli had mounted these steps, she’d been gleefully contemplating an evening of fun. Now she felt a little lost. Where did she fit in to these people’s lives?
She really liked the Vickers family. She wished she and Kevin were a real couple. However, they weren’t, as far as she knew.
He rang the bell once. Without waiting for an answer, he escorted her inside.
Heloise, a napkin stuck in her waistband, stopped in the dining-room archway when she spotted them. “Oh, hi!” she said. “We’re nearly finished. You should have told me you were coming.”
“I didn’t know,” Kevin replied. “Besides, we already ate.”
Behind his mother, around the table, sat his father, Betsy and Barbara and their husbands and children. Under the table, Mindy snapped up morsels.
Everyone greeted the new arrivals with warmth, but also a measure of uncertainty. Obviously, their visit had aroused speculation.
“I brought a few things.” Kevin placed the bakery box on the table. “This is to celebrate the fact that I’ve asked Alli to move in with me, although she hasn’t given me an answer.”
“I remember when people didn’t admit such a thing to their parents, let alone announce it,” his father said.
“Don’t make an issue, Frank,” warned his wife.
“Just pointing out the obvious,” he grumped. “If you ask me, our son ought to grab this young lady while he has the chance. ‘Moving in’ doesn’t cut it.”
“That brings me to my point.” Opening the box, Kevin lifted out a wedding cake. Pink and blue flowers ornamented the single layer, surrounding small plastic figures of bride and groom.
Alli hadn’t expected the sudden ripple of longing. She’d never played bride as a kid, never fantasized about lace and flowers and walking down the aisle. Until now. She hoped this wasn’t Kevin’s idea of a joke.
“The other day when Mom and my sisters found out Alli had been staying with me, I should have told them to mind their own business,” he said, adding, “No offense intended. But what’s between us is private. If you’re in a hurry for a wedding cake, here it is. Enjoy it now.”
“I hope it’s chocolate,” said one of the boy triplets.
“It is,” Kevin confirmed. “With butter-cream icing. But never mind that. Alli’s very special to me. If she wants a cake, we’ll get whatever flavor she prefers. Where’s the other box?”
Had he meant that? Was it his roundabout way of hinting that he wanted to marry her? Alli’s heart was beating so fast, she forgot she was holding the box until everyone turned toward her.
Startled into motion, she handed it over, giving the children their first clear view of the logo. “Toys!” shrieked Fleur. Her brothers poked their parents urgently, obviously hoping to be the lucky recipients.
Kevin extracted a green baby jumper appliquéd with a whiskered bunny, followed by a package of baby bottles, a bib, a pacifier and a receiving blanket. “I had no idea what to get, so I asked the clerk to pick these out. If anyone’s eager for a b
aby shower, let’s throw one right now and get it out of the way,” he said.
“Alli, are you…?” Betsy left the question hanging as she caught the negative headshake.
“No, but I am,” Barbara said.
A stunned silence fell over the room at this news. “You are?” cried Heloise. “Oh, honey! That’s fabulous.”
“And you told Kevin first?” Betsy squawked.
“I didn’t know,” their brother protested. “My point was that Alli can decide if she—if we—whatever. I just wanted everyone to back off. Barbara, congratulations. I guess this stuff’s for you.” He handed the baby things to his sister.
“I can certainly use them,” she responded. “I gave my things to Betsy.”
“The triplets wore them out,” her sister admitted. “I’ll throw you a shower, Barb.”
Heloise turned to Alli. “You’re a good influence.”
“I don’t deserve the credit.” She laughed. “I think Barbara’s husband gets that.”
Ernie cleared his throat. “I did my share.”
Happy chatter filled the room. A baby on the way! Alli didn’t exactly envy Barbara, but that little jumper was adorable. She wondered how you fit those tiny arms and legs into it, and how it would feel to hold such a small, precious person in her arms.
“Can we eat cake now?” asked Barbara’s daughter, Rebecca.
Everyone turned to Alli, wordlessly asking permission. A wave of emotion nearly rendered her mute, a wonderful sense of acceptance and belonging, as if it really was her wedding cake.
“Sure,” she managed to answer. “Let’s dig in, if Kevin doesn’t mind.”
“That’s why I brought it,” he said.
Beneath the frosting, the cake turned out to be chocolate with a stripe of raspberry filling. “It’s like jam!” burbled the boy whom she recalled had adopted the name Monster.
Afterward, Alli hated to leave, but Kevin appeared to have further plans, so she said goodbye and accompanied him out. Heloise walked them to the door.
“That was an excellent cake,” she told her son. “For the real one, you’ll need at least four tiers, what with all the guests we’ll be inviting.”
“Mom!”
“I mean, if and when.” She squeezed Alli’s arm. “We do promise to call before we come over from now on, too.”
Alli didn’t bother to remind her that she wasn’t living with Kevin yet. “I hope it’ll be often.” Feeling the man beside her flinch, she amended, “Not too often.”
“I understand.” Heloise winked.
Kevin didn’t speak as they drove away. Alli barely had time to register where they were headed when they arrived at his house. “I thought we’d stop here to open the other box,” he said.
“What other box?”
From behind her seat, he plucked a small red gift bag she hadn’t noticed. “This one.”
Excitement curled through her. She didn’t want to expect too much, though. It might be something typically Kevinish, like a personal organizer. “Fine with me.”
When they reached the entrance, he tapped in the security code—1776—and said, “That’s the new one.”
“Since Wednesday,” Alli surmised.
“Right.”
“I’ll never keep them straight,” she said.
“I could change it once a month if that’s easier,” he offered.
“Sounds reasonable.”
The living room had a forlorn air with only the chairs and the pristine entertainment center. “You really do need a couch.” After a moment’s reflection, she added, “But not mine.”
His shoulders gave a twitch. Alli could have sworn they sagged. She realized he’d interpreted her remark to mean she was declining his offer.
“I meant, mine’s too ugly,” she clarified. “We’ll have to buy a new one.”
Kevin caught his breath. “You’re saying yes?”
She wanted to say yes to a whole lot of things, she realized. “How could I hold out?” Although tempted to add more, Alli couldn’t, perhaps because she was afraid to.
Kevin had taken a noble stand in front of his family, making up for the way he’d acted on Wednesday. But the cake and baby gifts had only been tokens. Asking her to move in didn’t mean he felt ready to be tied down.
She’d almost forgotten the red bag until he removed a velvet jeweler’s box. “This is for you.”
Her throat tightening, Alli accepted it gingerly. Too long for a ring box, she noted. But she couldn’t expect anything like that at this point, anyway.
Gently, she pried open the box. Inside sparkled a diamond-eyed seagull in flight, suspended from a gold chain. “It’s beautiful.”
“It reminded me of you.” Slipping one arm around her waist, Kevin stood so close she could have buried her nose in his shoulder. “Seagulls are free. They’re a little messy, too—forget I said that. If you want a ring one of these days, we can pick that out together. But you said a gift should be a surprise and it has to come from the heart. And this did.”
Tears slipped from her eyes. The gift told her what she needed to know: that he’d held back because he thought she didn’t want to be tied down.
“Did I do something wrong?” he asked.
“You did everything right.” Alli fumbled with the chain until he intervened, his fingers lingering against her skin as he fastened it around her neck.
“It might be too soon to make a commitment. Still, I thought we could make a commitment to make a commitment,” he explained.
“Like moving in,” she finished.
“It’s my nature to plan things.” Kevin nuzzled her hair as he spoke. “But I’m enjoying following my instincts.”
“What do your instincts tell you?” She could hardly breathe.
“That I can’t put you in a box like a gift tied up with ribbon,” he said. “That life is supposed to be messy. That I love your strength even when you drive me crazy.” He paused before adding, “And that you’d make a terrific mother one of these days. I promise not to pressure you, but I don’t promise not to drop hints.”
It might be fun to have a little boy with a cheeky air like Kevin’s. And a smart-mouthed little girl to keep him in line.
“That’s okay,” Alli answered, “because one of these days I might take them.”
He swept her into his arms and she nestled close. When they finally released each other, they wandered through the house discussing which of her possessions to bring and which to donate to charity.
By the time they reached the bedroom, they’d finished talking. Kevin took his time undressing her and they made slow, tender love that she wished could last forever.
HER CELL PHONE RANG at about 10:00 p.m. Alli, who’d brought it to the bedside in case of an urgent news development, grabbed it fast. Kevin stirred drowsily.
“Gardner,” she said softly.
“Alli? It’s Heloise.” His mother cleared her throat apologetically. “I didn’t want to disturb my son, and you gave me your phone number, so I hope you don’t mind. I couldn’t go to sleep without finding out whether you said yes.”
“I did.” She touched the seagull resting against her throat.
“Oh, good! I won’t disturb you further. I just love happy endings.”
“So do I. Good night.” That was amazing, Alli thought. His mother called me.
She’d been drawn into a precious circle. Kevin might resist it, but she understood now that it wasn’t a coincidence he’d stayed so close to home. He was a man who belonged in a family.
And he’d made it clear he wanted one with her.
After she rang off, Alli lay basking in his presence beside her. Even in sleep, he exuded a rock-solid steadiness.
Her hand closed around the seagull. He’d said it symbolized freedom, because he knew that was something she needed. But she also needed a nest to come home to, and now she’d found it with a man who would be here tomorrow, and the morning after that, and for all the mornings to come.
Then Kevin woke up and reached for her, and she forgot everything except him.
ISBN: 978-1-4603-6941-8
THE BABY SCHEME
Copyright © 2005 by Jackie Hyman.
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The Baby Scheme Page 23