They stopped at the same time and stared at each other. After a moment, he said, "You were going to call me?"
"Uh-huh. Yes. I was going to wish you a happy new year."
"Oh. Well, I guess you don't have to call to do that now."
There was another long pause, which enabled Lindsey to hear the gurgle of the coffeepot as it completed its task.
"Oh! The coffee's ready. I'll be right back."
By the time she returned with the coffee, Lindsey felt a little more composed. She handed him his cup and sat down again. After another rather lengthy pause, they spoke in unison.
"I wanted to apologize—"
Lindsey grinned, he grinned back, and they both began to laugh, which cleared some of the tension in the room. She waved her hand at him. "You first."
"I just wanted to apologize for going off and leaving without telling you. I guess I wasn't thinking too clearly at the time."
"And I wanted to apologize for my behavior that day. You'd done nothing wrong and I was inexcusably rude. I'm so sorry that I blamed you and your father of lying about my father, when, in fact, you were telling the truth."
He looked surprised. Of course he was surprised—how many lectures had he been forced to listen to extolling her father's many virtues?
"Then you do believe your father was behind my ending up in your bed?"
"I know he was because he freely admitted it, thinking he'd done me a real service—and himself, too, of course."
"I'm afraid I'm not following you."
"I can't tell you how humiliated I am over his actions. You see, he decided—without discussing it with me, of course—that I should marry a Crenshaw, and you happened to be available. You made it easier for him by asking me out a few times, which fit perfectly with his plans. He wanted to compromise us and shame you into marrying me. Which he did."
He didn't comment right away. Instead, he studied his coffee intently as though he might find in its depths something polite to say. It was her turn to be surprised when he said, "I want to be completely honest with you, Lindsey, so there will be no misunderstanding later. That wasn't why I married you."
"It wasn't?"
"No. My initial reason was to help my family deal with your father. They've spent months trying to get a water rights bill out of the committee your father chairs. Things were finally moving forward when all of this happened. After that, your father didn't seem to have time to accept or return their phone calls."
"My father's manipulations never end, do they?"
"There's something else that I need to tell you where your father is concerned and, believe me, I'll understand if you kick me out the door when I do."
"I can't think of anything you could say about my father that would cause me to defend him."
"The Crenshaws are looking for a qualified candidate to challenge your father when the next election rolls around. Dad had the investigator he hired to find out who was behind my abduction continue to follow one of the leads he happened to come across. What he found would be enough to put your father behind bars."
Jared shook his head wearily. "I figured I owed you the truth. I can't tell you how sorry I am that you're caught in the middle, but the fact is, my family is going to go to great lengths to put him out of office."
"For good reason, it appears."
His eyes narrowed. "I figured you'd be upset when I told you."
"Believe me, upset doesn't begin to cover what I've been feeling since I spoke to my father on Christmas. That's when he admitted—actually bragged about—what he had done. Since then I've had to deal with who my father really is. I've had to look at my entire life from a new—and very depressing—perspective." She smiled at him, although now that she knew Jared's real reason for marrying her, she felt like crying.
When she first saw him there in the apartment, she'd had a wild hope that he'd come to tell her he didn't want to continue their original plan to divorce, that he wanted to stay married. Still not ready to face reality, are you?
Their marriage had never had a chance to work. "I appreciate your being honest about why you married me."
"I said that was my initial reason." He tugged on his earlobe, and she knew that he only did that when he was nervous. Nothing else had given her a clue to what he was thinking and feeling since he'd arrived.
"You had others?" she finally asked.
"None of them particularly admirable, but since we're being honest with each other I have to admit that."
She was intrigued by the fact that his ears were red. "Care to confess?" she asked lightly, as though his answer really didn't matter to her.
He cleared his throat. "The truth is that I wanted to make love to you since the night I met you. When everything happened, I figured that I might as well marry you because I knew that would be the only way I could get you into bed."
Her face felt hot and she knew her embarrassment was apparent. "Mission accomplished."
He nodded, looking grim. Without looking at her, he said, "Except the joke's on me."
"Oh?"
He looked down at his hands. "Yeah," he said in a low voice. "I did something really stupid. I fell in love with you." He glanced at her and then away, staring at the Christmas decorations that were still in place.
He couldn't have said that he was in love with her. She must have imagined those words coming out of his mouth. "What did you say?" she asked faintly.
"I know," he said with disgust. "Falling in love wasn't part of our agreement, but I wanted you to know. I guess I wanted you to know all the truth, as long as I was confessing everything else." He stood and said, "Look, I've got to go."
She sat staring up at him in complete and total shock. Jared loved her? Could this really be happening to her after all the pain she'd gone through?
She stood as he walked back from the hall pulling on his coat. He reached into one of the pockets and brought out a small box. "I've been in Houston for the past few days. While I was there I happened to see this and it made me think of you." He glanced down at the gift. "It's nothing, really."
Numbly, she accepted the box. He was leaving. He'd said what he came to say and he was leaving, despite telling her that he loved her! She had to stop him from leaving.
Lindsey opened the gift and found a bracelet. When she picked it up, she saw why he'd thought of her. Interspersed with delicate diamonds and rubies were tiny dolphins, dancing and leaping, with the sweetest smiles on their faces.
"Oh, Jared," she whispered brokenly.
"I hope you like it," he said, sounding diffident.
She looked him in the eye and said, "I love it, Jared Crenshaw, so very much, but not a tenth as much as I love you."
He blinked and his impassive expression changed to a look of wonder. And of hope. Cautiously, he said, "You know, just because I told you how I feel doesn't mean you have to—" She effectively cut him off by covering his mouth with hers, with what she hoped he'd recognize as all the love and passion she had inside her.
He wrapped his arms around her and took over the kiss as though he were a starving man at a banquet. By the time he lifted his head from hers, they were both breathing hard.
"When does your plane leave?" she asked.
"Tomorrow evening. I have a room at one of the hotels near the airport."
"Stay here tonight. Please."
"Are you sure?"
"I've never been more certain of anything in my entire life."
With a shout of joy, Jared picked her up and strode toward the hallway. She put her arms around his neck, kissing his chin, his cheek, his ear and along his jaw, pausing only long enough to say, "Second door on the right," before she continued.
They were out of their clothes and beneath the covers in record time. Their coming together was explosive. They held each other with fierce pleasure, never slowing down, until they fell over the edge of passion into climactic bliss.
Jared continued to hold her close. He kissed and caressed her,
bringing them both to a state of arousal yet again.
Lindsey couldn't believe what had happened tonight. Jared had searched her out and now he was here in her bed—an obvious miracle that she refused to question.
This time they made love lazily, moving slowly, sharing languid touches and sweet kisses, murmuring words that only lovers can say until their movements finally quickened and they climaxed once again.
They lay quietly, her head on his shoulder. He smiled at her and said, "Tonight reminds me of some of the dreams I've been having since you left. Only much, much better because I know this is real and not some dream."
"If I'd waited until tomorrow to call, you would have already been gone."
"Do you have any idea how difficult it was for me to come see you when I had no idea what my reception might be? Then Janeen seemed to be gone forever and I thought you'd refused to see me."
"I'm going to have a little talk with my friend, Janeen. She stood there chatting with me without telling me you were here. As soon as she mentioned a good-looking cowboy in our living room, I practically knocked her down getting out the door."
"You hid your enthusiasm quite well. You were at your most regal when you greeted me—all polite manners and no way for me to tell how you felt about my being here."
She grinned. "I believe you know how I feel now, don't you?"
He frowned. "I'm not all that sure. Maybe if you could show me once again…"
She had no trouble at all convincing him by the time they finally fell asleep, toward morning.
* * *
The next morning Lindsey and Jared tiptoed into the kitchen to make coffee. Lindsey hadn't heard Janeen come home. There had been too many distractions at the time, she supposed. Regardless, she wanted to give her the chance to sleep in. Janeen had to go to work tomorrow. For that matter, so did Lindsey.
Exciting thought, but no more exciting than to have Jared here for a few more hours.
They were seated at the kitchen table drinking coffee when Jared said, "I have to admit that I'd hoped you'd be willing to listen to me when I arrived, because I wanted to ask you if you'd be willing to start over with me."
"Start what over?" she asked, puzzled by his expression.
"Our marriage."
"Oh. Well, I thought we already had. Wasn't that what last night was all about? Making new commitments to each other?"
"There's no question we're compatible in bed, sweetheart, but, generally speaking, when a couple marries they've spent enough time together to get to know each other really well. Other than a few dates and a week in Cancun together, we know very little about the other."
"I disagree. We were thrown into a crisis situation and we managed to get through it. You've had to deal with my blind spot where my father is concerned. I've had to deal with the fact that you don't want to be married. So what's your idea of starting over? Go back to the 'Hello, I'm Jared Crenshaw' stage?"
"Of course not. We're married. I want us to continue on from here as a married couple starting on a new adventure, without the specter of your father hanging over us." He lifted her hand and pressed her knuckles against his mouth. "Besides, I may not have wanted to get married at first, but now I can't face the thought of not being married to you. I fell hook, line and sinker for you. That's not going to go away, nor do I want it to."
"Well," she said, trying to be pragmatic about their situation, "we'll have to postpone sharing our life histories until you come back, won't we? Do you know how long you'll be gone?"
"Not really, no. Hopefully no later than September, possibly October. However, I'm not dropping off the planet, you know." He smiled. "We can e-mail each other. In fact, that may be the only way I can concentrate on what you tell me. I find your presence to be more than a little distracting."
From the look in his eye, he was ready to be distracted yet again.
"I'm not looking forward to nine months without you," she said wistfully. "Two weeks was bad enough."
"Nine months? You trying to tell me something?"
She chuckled. "No. That's how long you'll be gone."
"Oh. Well, you'll tell me if there's going to be a change in our family status, won't you?"
"You'll be the first person I tell. You can count on it." Lindsey got up and poured them more coffee and when she sat down, she said, "How can you sound so accepting of the separation, Jared?"
"Easy. I've just gone through two weeks thinking I'd never see you again, much less make love to you. That I would never again fall asleep with you in my arms, or hear you laugh, or see your eyes sparkle or watch you when you get excited. Not having you in my life at all is my idea of hell. I can stand to be away from you for a few months knowing that you'll be waiting for me when I come home." He looked at his watch. "I'm going to have to leave in another hour. Do you think we could continue our conversation in the bedroom?"
"Certainly, Mr. Crenshaw. What subject shall we discuss?" she asked, following him back to the bedroom.
"Anatomy," he said, slipping her robe off and leaving her bare.
Taken aback, she said, "Why that particular subject, if I may ask?"
He scooped her up and fell into bed with her. "I've discovered how much I enjoy learning anatomy by the Braille system," he said, and proceeded to demonstrate his expertise.
Thirteen
January 15th
Hi sweetheart. Sorry I haven't written sooner. There's been a lot of changes since I was here before. Things have settled down a little so I'll be able to write more frequently. I'm sending my love with this. Tell your crazy roommate hello for me. Jared
January 15th
What a relief to hear from you. It's been a very long two weeks since you were here. I kept checking to see if Oscar the cat had stopped swishing his tail.
I love working at the museum. Being there every day has been such a joy and I'm already learning so much about the behind-the-scenes work that goes on. The security is absolutely amazing, but not surprising considering what a treasure trove of art we have here. Please take care of yourself for me. Your loving wife.
February 14th
Will you be my valentine? I bought you something to celebrate the holiday and then decided to wait until I got home to give it to you. I remember the bracelet gift and how lavishly affectionate you were. Figure it wouldn't hurt to hang on to this one for a while so I can receive your marvelous way of saying 'thanks' in person. Miss you, too. Love, J
February 14th
Hmm. Lavishly affectionate, am I? That's good to know. Of course, I may have forgotten everything you taught me by the time September rolls around, and you'll have to teach me again.
I'm still enjoying work. I really like the woman who supervises me. I'm still amazed at how busy we are. Thank you for writing every day. Hearing from you gives me such a boost. Sometimes I catch myself wondering if I'd dreamed the time we spent together. If so, I want to keep on dreaming.
Love you, Me
March 26
Glad you finally spoke to your dad again. You don't have to spend time with him if you don't want to, but he does love you in his own possessive way. I'm sure the man has some good points, even though I haven't seen them. (Trying for a little humor there.) As always, you sound as though you were polite enough.
Dad e-mailed to say they've found a highly qualified man with integrity to run for your dad's office, and he's already getting a lot of support. Playing games with our lives is one scheme that turned around and bit him in the, uh…butt. I keep reminding myself that I benefited from his scheming. I was too stubborn to give marriage a thought until you stepped into my life. Now, I couldn't be happier.
Which leads me to a question. What are you wearing right now? I've got to figure out a way to sleep at night. Picturing you in something sexy could help—or could make things worse. Never can tell. Your homesick husband
March 26
Well, I'm sitting here in front of the computer in my frilly, frothy…naw, you'll never buy that
one. We actually had snow today, can you believe it? It's almost April. So I'm in my flannel pajamas and heavy socks. That should turn you on. Besides, I'm saving all my sexy nighties for when you get back home. For some reason, they're all practically brand-new. They rode in my luggage to and from Cancun and, except for the gown I wore our first night there, were seldom (read: never) used.
It's late and I need to get to bed. I'm still learning a lot at work. With the experience I'm getting, I'm hoping to eventually qualify as a curator for a smaller museum. (Let's face it, most any one of them would be smaller!) I want to be able to be with you wherever you're sent. If there's a museum, I can always do something. If nothing else, volunteer some of my time when you have a short assignment.
Love you, love you, love you. Mrs. Jared Crenshaw
April 2
Had a sandstorm today. Not pleasant. The sand gets into everything. I keep the computer in a sealed container and it still has sand on it when I open the box. I don't understand how anyone would want to live in a place like this, not when they could be living in God's country—Texas, that is. Missing you, J
April 2
Yes, Texas is definitely God's country. With the dust storms (Saudi Arabia doesn't have a monopoly on them, you know), droughts, floods (all in the same year), locusts, tarantulas and scorpions, Texas is straight out of the Old Testament.
Janeen has been dating a guy for several weeks now. I reminded her that you were going to introduce her to some Crenshaws and she told me to pass on to you that you'd better start getting them lined up in a hurry, 'cause her biological clock is making bonging sounds—forget ticking.
I had lunch with Dad today. I will never feel the same way about him, but that's probably for the best. I had him on a pedestal and now I see him without either rose-colored glasses or blinders. I certainly have no intention of being in his company more than absolutely necessary.
Oh, and you should hear his version about what's shaping up in the coming election. I sat there thinking that he's probably never told a complete truth in his entire life. Oh, excuse me. In Washington, his brand of communication is called spin. I'm so glad you aren't in politics. Love, love, love, etc. you, Lindsey
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