The relief had been joyous and staggering. I would be able to keep both the men in my life. Yes, we were going to have a boy. Daniel Mitchell Benjamin was due in March.
There’d been so many signs that I’d missed, the first being my unexpected bout of seasickness, which never before had I experienced. Now I could attribute the episode to erratic hormones and low blood sugar, both known causes of morning sickness. Clothes were getting snug, and my phoenix tattoo was comically distorted due to my expanding tummy. I could no long blame the Twizzlers; in fact, they were high on the list of my pregnancy craving foods, second only to peanut butter. The pleasant scent of burning sugar had also been inescapable—especially when Laura visited. It appeared that Percy and Celeste were as excited as we all are that our babies will arrive within a couple months of each other.
One late Sunday afternoon, I was in my studio, painting a picture for the nursery, when I received a text from Daniel: Meet me down at Percy’s Bluffs.
Be there in five, I replied after cleaning the paint from my hands. I stood back and assessed the work in progress on my easel. The image was of a gleeful little boy being carried over the waves by two dolphins. It was my tribute to the lost boy of Whale Rock.
When I got close to the cliffs, I noticed Daniel was sitting next to a large box. As I approached, the box seemed to wobble.
“An early wedding present,” he said, lifting aside the loose lid of the box to reveal the most adorable bundle of black fur.
“A puppy?” I squealed, as he placed it in my arms. “For me?”
“For us. And for little Danny Junior.”
“Oh my goodness, you are the cutest thing.” I nuzzled my little friend. “Where did you find him?”
“Johnny’s dog had a litter of puppies right after the storm. All of them black as coal. I picked this little guy out because he was the only one with any kind of distinguishing marking.” He pointed to the puppy’s chin. “See the ghost of white there?”
That’s when I noticed the little velvet bag tied to the puppy’s collar. “What’s this?”
“Your second early wedding present.”
I sent him a puzzling look as I pulled at the ties of the bag.
“It was your mother’s engagement ring,” he told me as I peeked inside.
“Here let me,” he said and then slid it onto my left ring finger.
I held out my hand to admire Mama’s ring as the sun caught the glimmering diamond. I couldn’t put into words the thrill it gave me to have this connection to my parents. Papa had given it to Zoe after Mama died, perhaps in hopes of bridging the divide that had formed between my sister and The Bluffs. But Zoe had never worn it.
“Your sister sent it to me. Said you should have it.”
When Daniel proposed the first time, I’d insisted I didn’t want an engagement ring. But this was different. I would cherish Mama’s ring—for many reasons—not the least of which was that Zoe understood how much it would mean to me.
“Zoe’s planning to come for the wedding,” he told me.
“Really?” I remained skeptical.
“That’s what she said in her note when she sent the ring.”
I was overwhelmed by happiness and the scent of burning sugar.
“Does this mean you still want to marry me?” Daniel pulled me to him.
“More than anything.” I was still holding the puppy when I leaned in to kiss Daniel, and we both received tickling tongue licks.
“What are we going to call him?”
“Ghost, of course.”
“You’re going to call a black dog Ghost?” He laughed as he scratched the puppy’s chin.
“Isn’t that ghost of white on his chin why you picked him?”
I smiled up at the man with whom I’d be sharing my life, thinking that maybe someday I’d tell him the real reason I chose the name. Meanwhile, I sent a wink to the mischievous spirits who always hovered closely. They knew.
ALSO AVAILABLE BY LORETTA MARION
House of Ashes
The Fool’s Truth
AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY
A true bibliophile, Loretta Marion’s affection for the written word began in childhood and followed her like a shadow throughout her life as she crafted award-winning marketing and advertising copy and educational brochures. When not whipping out words on her laptop, she is traveling, enjoying outdoor pursuits, or curled up with a delicious new book. Loretta lives in Rhode Island with her husband, Geoffrey, and their beloved Mr. Peabody, a sweet, devoted, and amusing “Corgador“ (Corgi-Labrador).
This is a work of fiction. All of the names, characters, organizations, places and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to real or actual events, locales, or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2019 by Loretta Marion
All rights reserved.
Published in the United States by Crooked Lane Books, an imprint of The Quick Brown Fox & Company LLC.
Crooked Lane Books and its logo are trademarks of The Quick Brown Fox & Company LLC.
Library of Congress Catalog-in-Publication data available upon request.
ISBN (hardcover): 978-1-64385-175-4
ISBN (ebook): 978-1-64385-176-1
Cover design by Erin Seaward-Hiatt
Book design by Jennifer Canzone
Printed in the United States.
www.crookedlanebooks.com
Crooked Lane Books
34 West 27th St., 10th Floor
New York, NY 10001
First Edition: November 2019
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Storm of Secrets Page 32