by Lori L. Otto
“Nate?”
“Yes, my love?” I place my ear on her stomach, hugging her sides.
“Let’s go back to the party.”
“What? No, Emi, I don’t think we’re… presentable.”
“But you said I look beautiful.”
“In my eyes, you always do… but it looks like we’ve been doing exactly what we’ve been doing… which, in all honesty makes you look even more beautiful to me.”
“But they had that amazing looking chocolate cake down there… and I really, really wanted some.”
“Chocolate?” I ask. “You don’t even like chocolate.”
“I’ve been craving it.”
“Just the cake, or chocolate in general?”
“Any chocolate.”
“Well, there’s a twenty-four-hour superstore a few blocks down… I went by there earlier for some socks… the sign on the door said they were open tonight… why don’t I just go get you something from there?”
“I wanna go with you.”
“No, you can stay here. Rest up… midnight will be here before you know it, and I want the kiss to last all night.”
“No, I’m coming. I don’t want to be apart from you.”
“Fair enough,” I say, crawling up her body and kissing her sweetly. “Let’s get dressed.”
We climb out of bed and dig through our suitcases for jeans and t-shirts, hoping to sneak out of the hotel unnoticed. I call down to the concierge and ask them to have my car ready. I grab my wallet, and we walk hand-in-hand to the elevator. Once inside, she pushes the button for the lobby, and I put my arm around her, kissing the top of her head. She’s silent, smiling, radiant.
We look both directions in the lobby, making sure none of the party guests are wandering around. The valet has my keys waiting as soon as we step outside.
In the car, Emi fastens her seatbelt but angles her body toward me. “I love you.” She shakes her head. “Those words aren’t even enough.”
“I know, Em,” I smile, squeezing her hand and pulling away from the hotel’s driveway. “I love you, too.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Sorry for what?”
“For reacting like I did about the news. For acting like it’s a mistake. I don’t ever want our child to think they were a mistake.”
“Emi, there’s no need for you to apologize,” I say soberly.
“Yes, there is. Just know that I will never resent you for this. I am grateful… I know it’s not what we planned… but it will be the most cherished little baby in the world.”
“Yes, she will.”
“She?”
“Did I say she?” In my mind… it’s a girl. “Seems like a girl.”
“Why do you say that?” she laughs.
“I don’t think anyone up there would trust a man like me to raise a boy… but He probably took one look at you and thought you would make the perfect role model for our little girl.”
“Nate,” she sighs. “That’s so sweet… and I’m sure you’re right.” She giggles, squeezing my arm. I give her a sideways glance as I park the car, attempting to look offended but unable to hide the smile. “If you weren’t a good man,” she begins as she opens the door, “I wouldn’t be with you.” She shuts the door quietly and meets me at the back of the car, offering me her hand.
Once in the store, I tell her I’ll meet her in the candy aisle.
“Where are you going?”
“I’m just going to get something… nothing you need to worry about.”
“Honey, we don’t need condoms,” she jokes.
“Funny,” I say, rolling my eyes at her. “Candy aisle.”
“Don’t be too long,” she seems to sing to me. I head to the baby section and look around at the store’s offerings… lots of clothes, tiny shoes, bottles, blankets… I stumble across a stuffed giraffe hanging all by itself on a peg. I look at the label, intrigued. Inside is a digital recorder… This is the gift.
I find an out-of-sight register and quickly pay for the toy, then head to a quiet corner of the store to record a message for our baby. It isn’t hard to find a place, since we seem to be the only two customers in the entire store.
When I’m done, I wrap up the giraffe in the bag and head toward the candy aisle. There’s no sign of Emi there, or on either of the aisles around it. I find an employee and ask if there’s another section where they sell candy, but she tells me no.
I pull out my cell phone and call her.
“Hey, Nate.”
“Hey, where are you?”
“I’m looking at some books.”
“Okay, I’ll be right there.” I find her a few minutes later. “What did you find?”
“The Pregnancy Book,” she says, holding on to three different chocolate bars in one hand and the book in the other, “Month-by-Month, Everything You Need to Know… ”
“Let’s get it,” I tell her, taking the candy from her. She smiles and half-skips out of the book section of the store. She keeps her nose down, reading some of the pages as we walk to the register. “Pssst… she needs to scan the book,” I nudge her.
“Oh, sorry,” she smiles, blushing. The early-twenties clerk is careful to save her page, and hands it back to Emi in the same place. “Thank you.” I give her cash and wait for the change.
“How far along?” the clerk asks.
“Six weeks tomorrow,” Emi glows. “Still early… ”
“I’m eight weeks. I just got that book… it’s really good.” She hands me my change.
“Good… thanks… and good luck to you,” Emi says.
“You, too,” the young woman says.
“Good luck,” I add, taking the bag of candy as Emi goes back to reading. I hold on to her arm, guiding her to the car and opening the door for her. I look at my watch as I cross to the driver’s side.
“Eleven-thirty,” I say to her, getting in the car and closing the door. “We should be able to make it back to the room by midnight.” She closes the book and digs in the bag that holds the candy, taking a bar out and opening it.
“I don’t care where we are at midnight,” she tells me. “Honestly, all that matters is that I’m with you.”
“I’ll always be with you,” I vow.
“Thank you. Want some?” she asks as I pull out of the parking lot.
“No thanks,” I tell her. “Hey, what’s in that other bag?” I encourage her.
“I don’t know… ” She looks confused as she sees the small stuffed animal. We stop at a red light and I reach across the console, pulling the cord for her.
“Hi, little one,” my recorded voice begins. Emi looks at me in anticipation of the rest of the message.
“Thirteen years. One night.
Nine months. One small baby will
deliver true love.”
“Oh, Nate,” she says, stepping on my last line as her eyes tear up.
“I can’t wait to see you.”
“I can’t wait,” I reiterate my recorded message aloud in case she missed it, a lump in my throat making it difficult to speak. “I can’t wait for us to meet her.”
“Or him,” she corrects me softly, tugging the string again and holding the toy next to her stomach. “That’s your daddy’s voice,” she says quietly, wiping a tear away before leaning in to kiss me. When she pulls back, not more than a few inches, the look in her green eyes is confident and comforting. Her dimples become more pronounced as her smile grows wider.
I tuck a strand of hair behind her ear before moving in to kiss her again, never more certain of our future together.
She sighs happily and looks at me adoringly, placing her delicate hand to my face. Her thumb traces my cheekbone lightly. I take her hand in mine, touch my lips to the soft skin of her palm and weave my fingers between hers. Clutching the stuffed toy, she moves it close to her heart. We smile at each other as I notice the traffic signal changing from red to green out of the corner of my eye.
I smile as the seemingly prop
hetic green light tells me it’s time to go. I don’t need a signal to tell me anything; I’m ready to move forward with Emi, to start our future together. Still holding her hand in mine, hoping my gaze communicates my abiding commitment to her, I stroke my thumb across her finger. Knowing someday soon she’ll let me put a ring there, I smile inwardly and put my foot on the pedal, optimistic and assured and ready to go.
“Nate!”
~ * ~
SPECIAL THANKS TO
John T. Perry
Jim and Shirley Otto
Clarinda Alcalen
Trisha Duke
Melissa Dean
Kristina Bradshaw Evans
Trina Robinson
Mitzi Clark
Angela Pritchett Meyer
Linda Shasberger
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
After graduating from the University of Texas at Arlington in 1997 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Communications, Lori L. Otto worked in the billboard industry for ten years. Frustrated with trying to communicate entire messages in “seven seconds or less,” she decided to leave outdoor advertising and return to her love of creative writing.
Emi Lost & Found Series
Book One: Lost and Found
Book Two: Time Stands Still
Book Three: Never Look Back
All books are available on major ebook reseller sites.
Those of you who read this using Andiko, you can get the other two in the series, too!
Visit http://www.loriotto.com to find out how to find the books in the format that's right for you!
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