Libby lay on the bed and made room for him to cuddle with her. He ran his palm up and down the flesh of her arm. She rested in the feel of his touch, then woke to the sense of his finger grazing her cheek.
"I can't believe I dozed off."
"I'm really wowing you, aren't I?"
"I'm sorry."
"Don't be," he said. "You've been tense for a long time. You're going to learn you don't have to be afraid of men. You can trust me, and you can relax from now on."
She fingered his chest, playing with the curly blond hairs.
"Whew. It's been a long time."
"Me, too, but I bet you'd like to get back to Kelly."
He kissed her forehead. "You read me so well. While you were dozing, I couldn't stop thinking about her wanting to know if I was coming back." He glanced at the clock. "What a wonderful date I am. I bring you to my bed, and I'd rather leave than make love to you. But, look, Libby, I don't want to rush this. When we make love, I want to give you 100 percent."
"We have plenty of time."
"Then we have something to look forward to, and believe me, I look forward to loving you." He pressed the small of her back. "Don't ever forget how much I want you."
"Let's go and see Kelly."
He moved off the bed and helped Libby up. She stepped into her dress, and he reached around from the front and worked the zipper up her back. He hugged her against him and ran his hands up and down her spine. "I'm having second thoughts. I want to go, but I want to stay."
Their lips touched and they kissed deeply. His cologne overwhelmed her again. She hungered for his touch, and by the feel of his body pressing into her, he more than hungered for her. She closed her eyes and imagined their naked bodies entwined. She whispered in his ear, "Let's go see your daughter." But it took every ounce of willpower to let go of him.
* * *
At Libby's house Kipp parked next to Charlie's truck. Lights from the TV flickered through the curtains. Before they went inside, he took Libby into his arms and kissed her. "I can't believe how this happened."
"You can thank your grandmother."
He looked puzzled, then smiled in recognition. "Those mysterious visions."
Libby kissed his cheek. "Visions of hope."
He opened the door, and Ellen came toward them with a huge smile on her face. "Have we got good news for you. I mean, Charlie does. Tell 'em, Charlie."
Charlie got up from the couch. "Yeah, Libby. Seems your ex is going to be in jail for quite some time. Got him on a drug charge."
"Isn't that great, honey?" Ellen gave Libby a hug.
"This has been quite a day." Libby glanced at Kipp.
"Why are you home so early? I thought you'd be out half the night," Ellen said.
"How was Kelly?" Kipp said.
"She woke up a couple of times and wanted to know where you were, but she seemed satisfied when I assured her you were coming back soon."
Charlie shook Kipp's hand. "Hey, buddy, I haven't seen you in a while."
"We're going to have to remedy that."
"It looks like the five of us will be seeing a lot of each other," Ellen said.
"This is amazing," Libby said. "The four of us, and Kelly."
"As if you didn't know," Ellen said.
Libby waved her off.
"How was dinner?"
Kipp and Libby exchanged glances.
"You mean you didn't get dinner? Man, I couldn't go without dinner."
"Oh, Charlie." Ellen gave Libby a smug grin. "Kipp, why don't you go look in on Kelly? I know you're dying to. And I'll make us some popcorn. We can watch a movie together, or our resident psychic can give us all readings."
"Ellen, you never stop."
Kipp wandered toward Ellen's bedroom while Charlie looked through Libby's movie collection.
Ellen grabbed Libby's arm and led her into the kitchen. "Okay, spill."
Libby whispered, "It's going to be all right."
"That's rather vague. Can you be more specific?"
"He saw them, and everything's okay." A surge of emotion just about overpowered her, but she held it back.
"I knew it," Ellen said. "I told you he's a good man. I knew him to be that way in high school. We've both got good men." She hugged Libby. "Why don't you look in on Kelly, too? She asked if you were going to be her new mommy."
"She did?"
"She likes the idea. She told me she likes you better than any mommy she ever had."
Libby held her hand over her heart. "That sweet thing."
"If you play your cards right, girl, you'll have that child you've always wanted. Now, go on."
Libby entered Ellen's bedroom as quietly as she could, and Kipp rose from the bed. "She woke up for a minute and wondered where you were. I told her you were here, and you were going to be with us for a long time." He held Libby and kissed her. "She loves you, and so do I. So, what does my psychic say about that?"
"She says she feels very, very blessed, and she sees a long and happy future for the three of us."
* * *
CHAPTER 36
Three weeks later Kipp was on his way to Harbordale from Seattle where he had spent the afternoon at the Federal Building. Special Agent Watcomb had called and asked him to come to the FBI office because there were new leads in his daughter's kidnapping case.
The sky was dirty dishwater gray and threatening rain, but the weather didn't dampen Kipp's spirit; he was too charged with a jumble of emotions to sink into melancholy. He had much to tell Libby.
As he approached her house, she stepped up to the picture window and waved to him, her smile radiating a welcoming warmth. She disappeared, and the screen door opened. He barely made it inside before she caught him in an embrace.
He pressed the small of her back, drawing her close. "I've missed you," he whispered in her ear, then kissed her.
"It's only been two days."
He stroked her hair and looked into her mysterious blue eyes. "Two days too long."
"I've had this underlying agitation all morning," she said, "and now I know why. It's you. I can feel your energy. It's electrified. What's happened? What did they tell you?"
"Let's sit down."
"Let me get you something to drink." She went into the kitchen and returned with a tall glass of cold well water.
He laid his jacket on the rocker and sat at the table. She sat near him. Despite the dismal day, the house was bright from the large windows and skylights.
"Are you done working for the day?"
"I just finished up with my last client. Do you need to call about Kelly?"
"I called from Seattle before I left," he said. "Charlie and Ellen are building a tree house for her when she visits. They're all having a wonderful time."
"Then tell me what happened."
Kipp took a long drink of water, quenching the thirst he'd developed on the drive back. "I don't know where to begin."
"You said they had a new lead."
"They found one of the kidnappers."
"How? Where?"
"They showed me a picture of a woman. She looked young, no more than thirty, thirty-five. They asked me if I recognized her, which I didn't."
"How did they find her?"
"They mentioned interviewing Rebecca and Grace. Other than that, they didn't get specific, except they did tell me the woman had ties to the town of Grand. They must have tracked her down."
"I thought they told you the kidnappers fled to Canada."
"That's what they said, but something changed."
"What about the other kidnapper. I saw two, a man and a woman."
"They told me there were others involved besides those two. And then they started questioning me about Tanya. They asked me all the old questions they'd asked before—where she was, who she was with, who her friends were, how she acted at the time."
"Tanya."
"They wanted to know what her behavior was like before and after Kelly came home. What kind of mother she
was. They even asked about our relationship. They wanted to know how close we were. Of course, I had to tell them about her recent threat to sue me for custody."
"I can't believe you had to answer all those questions again."
"By then I had the feeling they thought she was a prime suspect, and I asked them as much. Instead of answering me, they showed me a picture of a man--well-dressed, trim haircut--a Wall Street type. I'd vaguely remembered seeing a man who looked like that talking to Tanya at a party once. Then Agent Watcomb asked me pointblank if I had any reason to believe Tanya would hire someone to kidnap Kelly."
"Oh, Kipp, they really thought that? What about the lie detector test?"
"I asked him about that, too," Kipp said. "He just gave me a sharp look and said polygraphs aren't always infallible. If they held a belief about her involvement, I wanted to know why they didn't pursue it before. He said they'd been watching her back then for about six months, but she was never seen with a child. Then the trail went cold. I'm just glad I had someone in Charlie's position to vouch for me. But now, with one of the kidnappers in custody, they have more to go on. She must be giving them names."
"Do you think Tanya is capable of such a thing?"
"I don't want to think that. It's too painful for me to even go there," Kipp said. "But, Libby, I wondered why you didn't pick up on the fact that there were others involved."
Libby paused to consider. "When I got the impressions of the kidnappers, the picture was fuzzy. Their facial features weren't clear at all. That indicated to me I was supposed to focus on getting Kelly back, not on finding the kidnappers. I don't know why I didn't pick up on Tanya. I think I just couldn't imagine a mother being that cold. Could you?"
"Normally, I'd say no," he said, "but today I heard on the news a woman threw her child in the Hudson River just to get back at her ex. I think Tanya may have been focused on getting to me through some crazy scheme with Kelly." He took another swallow of water and stared at the table top, lost in the possibility of Tanya's complicity in such a horrendous act of having their daughter kidnapped.
Libby touched his arm. "Kipp?"
He shook loose from his thoughts. "I was thinking back on the time Tanya and I spent together and her relationship with Kelly. She never loved that child as a mother would. I think I told you that. She was into her own dream world of fancy clothes, fast cars, and men. I remember, after we split up, how she kept hounding me to take her back. It was always 'I love you, Kipp. I want us to be together, Kipp. Please, Kipp.' I mean, she really turned up the heat. It was suffocating. But I wouldn't budge. After the abduction, she seemed obsessed with my lack of warmth toward her. That's one reason we argued so much. Then after Kelly's return and we were together, she wouldn't stop nagging me about being a family again, but I saw the jealousy in her eyes whenever I held Kelly or paid attention to her. Tanya's a selfish woman. I saw right through her. It hurts to think she would mastermind the kidnapping of her own child, but is she capable?" He paused. "I'm afraid I'd have to say yes."
"Why would she do it, Kipp?"
He shook his head. "I guess in her own twisted mind, the only thing keeping us apart was Kelly."
"Kipp, that's so sad. She will have ruined her life. But you seem so level about this. Knowing you as I do, I'd think you'd be bursting with anger."
"All the way here I went through every emotion imaginable, but right now, I don't know how I feel. I'm not excusing what she did when I say this, but when I think about her past, she had a tough upbringing and practically had to beg for everything she got, even love. Then she grew up to be this incredibly beautiful woman and suddenly she had everything, even a beautiful child. She wasn't stable enough to handle it. But am I angry? Anger is too mild a word."
Libby rose from her chair, draped her arms over Kipp's shoulders, and gave him a hug.
"How do you think this is going to play out, Libby?"
She got quiet, and he could feel her breathing deepen. Finally, she said, "I'll be honest with you. I had chills running up my spine when you asked me earlier if I thought Tanya could have done it. Let's just say, I don't think you're ever going to have to worry about that custody suit." She gave him another hug. "No matter what, I'll be here to help you through any fallout from this."
He got up and embraced her, the fragrance of roses captivating him again.
"I know what will make you feel better," she said.
He lifted his eyebrows, wondering what she had in mind.
She took his hand, led him to the rocking chair, and handed him his jacket. "Let's go see your daughter."
With an amused smile he slid his arm around her waist and tugged her close. "You mean our daughter."
* * * * * *
Thank you for purchasing Visions of Hope. If you liked the story, please consider writing a review at the retailer of your choice.
Other books by the author:
The Day Mel Quit Dreaming and Other Stories
An eclectic group of stories dealing with the disappointment of lost hopes and dreams. In coping, some of the characters move on, hoping for better times ahead; some face difficult challenges; and some simply accept their fate. Several of the stories are edgy, but all are spirited and entertaining. Eight stories. Quirky characters.
Rose from the Grave (a tale of mystery, romance, suspense, and the supernatural bond between sisters)
Ever since the untimely death of her sister, Brianna, strange phone calls and ghostly visions have haunted Kat Summers. Weary and grief-stricken, she returns to the sleepy town of Rosswood to dispose of Brianna’s property and to gain closure. Instead of the relief she seeks, she uncovers disturbing secrets about Brianna’s life and encounters suspicious characters that cause her to question Brianna’s alleged suicide. On a quest for answers, Kat confides in Chance Eliason, a rancher with secrets of his own, who has more than a passing interest in Kat. Can Chance convince this fiercely independent woman to open her heart again before the truth about Brianna leads Kat into an unexpected trap?
Coming soon: Tangled Affairs, sequel to Rose from the Grave (and includes characters from Visions of Hope)
For the last nine months, Chance Eliason and Kat Summers have been lovers. Kat lives in Seattle, and Chance lives three hours away in the little town of Rosswood. Of late, this distance between them has put a strain on their relationship. One Sunday in August, Chance confronts Kat about her refusal to return to Rosswood where she’d suffered a frightening ordeal. In the heat of the argument, bitter words are spoken that send Chance back to his ranch and into the arms of his past, a past fraught with danger and deception, a past that will change his and Kat’s relationship forever.
To find out where to purchase print copies or to learn more about me, visit my website at http://www.candacemurrow.com.
Connect to me online:
http://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/candacemurrow
http://www.facebook.com at Candace Murrow Author Page
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