Treading Water

by Marie Force

  “Oh, Jack, of course she would. I’m so sorry that being here is hard for you.”

  Reaching for her hand, he brought it to his lips. “Being with you is never hard for me. Don’t worry about me.”

  Betty joined them a few minutes later. “How is he?” she asked.

  “About the same,” Andi replied. “Still sleeping a lot. They’ll lower the pain medication tomorrow to keep him awake. He’ll be getting up, too.”

  “Did the doctor say when he could go home?”

  “A couple of days. He should be back to normal in two to three weeks.”

  “Well, the worst part is over,” Betty said with relief. “Why don’t you two take a break? It’s nice outside.”

  “Are you sure you don’t mind staying?” Andi asked.

  “I’m fine. I have my book and my knitting. Go on along for a while.”

  Andi kissed Eric’s forehead. “We’ll be back in a few hours. Call my cell if he wakes up or if you need me.”

  “I will. Don’t worry.”

  Jack held the door for Andi and kept his arm around her while they walked to the elevator. Outside, the city bustled with limousines headed to the theater district and people venturing out for dinner. The crisp air held the promise of a chilly evening as they walked hand in hand along the busy street.

  “Are you hungry?” he asked after they’d gone a few blocks.

  “Not really, are you?”

  “I’m good for now.”

  “I hope you’re not missing anything important at home. I haven’t even thought to ask you.”

  “It’s a good weekend for me to be gone. Jill had a lacrosse game, but they’ve already clinched a playoff berth, so the game was a formality. We have some clients in town, and Jamie’s taking care of them. Don’t worry, honey. I’m right where I need to be.”

  They wandered into a small park, and he steered her to a bench where they sat to watch an older couple with two young girls who had to be their granddaughters. The girls giggled as they fed the pigeons. When the birds chased after them, the girls shrieked with delight.

  “They remind me of Jill and Kate at that age,” he said as he caressed Andi’s fingers absently.

  “Jack…”

  “Hmm?”

  “I’ve been doing a lot of thinking.”

  That got his attention. “Oh, yeah?” He’d gone out of his way not to mention “the question” to her.

  She looked down at their joined hands. “David offered me the Newport property.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Managing the hotel. The job is mine if I want it.”

  Jack sat up straight, his grin stretching from ear to ear. “Are you serious?”

  She nodded, smiling at his reaction. “I’m glad I waited to tell you in person.”

  “Oh my God! This is fabulous! When did it happen?”

  She focused again on the girls and the pigeons. “A couple of weeks ago.”

  “You weren’t going to tell me?” Jack asked, surprised and hurt that she’d kept such big news from him.

  Turning her attention back to him, she brushed the hair off his forehead and ran a finger over his cheek. “I was thinking about the big picture, trying to decide what’s best for Eric and me. And what’s best for you and your girls.”

  “I’ve told you what’s best for me—and the girls.” He hoped they’d agree if it happened, but he’d seen no point in broaching the subject with them until Andi decided.

  “You’ve been so patient about giving me time to think, and I appreciate that.”

  “Do you want the Newport job?”

  “I think I do,” she said sounding almost surprised. “I love what I’m doing now, but I’m ready for a new challenge and less travel now that Eric is getting older.”

  He could feel her edging toward a decision and had to resist the urge to push. “Let’s get going.”

  “Good evening, Ms. Walsh,” the uniformed doorman said as they stepped into her building. “How’s Eric?”

  “Much better, Joseph, thank you.”

  “That’s real good news. You have a nice evening.”

  “You, too.”

  In her apartment, Jack stopped her when she reached for a light. He took her hand and kissed it as he brought her into his arms, kissing her neck and working his way up to her lips.

  She pulled him closer, desperate with need after so many weeks without him. Pushing his jacket off his shoulders, she unbuttoned his shirt and kissed his chest and neck, while her fingers caressed his back, making him tremble.

  He startled her when he suddenly lifted her and headed for the bedroom.

  He set her down, worked fast to get rid of their clothes, and brought her down so she faced him on the bed.

  Sighs became moans, arms and legs became tangled, two became one. Cupping her bottom, he held her tight against him as he slid slowly into her.

  Only when she needed to breathe did she pull her lips free.

  Jack shifted so he was over her and picked up the pace. Hooking his arm under her leg, he pushed it up to her chest and sank deeper than he had ever been before.

  “Jack!”

  He opened his eyes to find hers glistening with tears and froze. “Honey, what is it? Does it hurt?”

  “No.” She arched her back and fought to absorb the staggering array of emotions and sensations. The sorrow he’d shown her earlier had touched her deeply, and she wanted so badly to help him forget his pain, even if the relief was only temporary. “Nothing…”

  He brushed his lips over her face. “What? Tell me.”

  “Nothing has ever been like this. Ever.” She reached for him to bring his mouth back to hers. The thrusts of his tongue matched the motion of his hips. He filled his hand with her breast and rolled her nipple between his fingers.

  She cried out when the climax hit, her hips surging up to meet him, and her hands clutching his shoulders.

  “Andi.” He trembled as he pushed hard against her and groaned with his own release. They lay panting in the darkness for several minutes afterward.

  “You can turn the light on now.”

  Laughing, she said, “What was that?” She had never before felt such a fierce need and was almost frightened to accept that she’d never again feel it for anyone but him.

  “That,” he said, kissing each of her fingers, “was you and me and our love. Something comes over me when I’m with you.”

  “The same thing comes over me.”

  “Whatever it is, I love it, and I love you.” He gazed at her. “You’re all I want in the world, all I’ll ever want.”

  She caressed his face. “Ask me again, Jack.”

  It took a second for him to understand, and then he seemed to know. “Andrea,” he said, his voice heavy as he gazed into her eyes, “will you come live with me and be my love?”

  “Yes,” she whispered.

  He closed his eyes and rested his forehead on hers. “Thank you.”

  Chapter 15

  “So when did you decide?” Jack asked on the walk back to the hospital.

  “I think it was the minute you stepped off the elevator when Eric was in surgery. I was so upset, but everything became crystal clear in that moment.”

  “That’s not why I came, you know.”

  “I know that.” She tucked her hand into the crook of his arm. “I already told you if I hadn’t had Eric and my job to think about, I would’ve said yes the first time you asked me.” She reached up to kiss him. “I’ve never doubted us. Not for one minute.”

  “Neither have I.”

  “What would’ve happened if I just couldn’t do it?”

  He thought about that for a minute. “I guess we would’ve kept doing what we’re doing until Kate graduates next year. Then Maggie and I would’ve moved out here.”

  Startled, she said, “But Clare and your business…”

  “I would’ve figured it out.”

  “Now you don’t have to.”

  He le
aned down to kiss her as they walked. “I think we should keep this to ourselves until after Frannie and Jamie’s wedding.”

  “I agree. This is their moment—and they’ve certainly waited long enough for it.”

  “That doesn’t mean I wouldn’t like to shout it from the rooftops,” Jack said with a devilish grin as he stopped to look around at the people on the street. “Matter of fact, I don’t see anyone I know…”

  “Jack…”

  He smiled and restrained himself. “She loves me.” Against her lips he whispered what he wanted to shout. “She loves me, and she’s coming home with me.”

  “Oh, yes, she loves you. Even though you’re crazy, she loves you.”

  When Andi and Eric arrived in Rhode Island for Thanksgiving, everyone was relieved to see him fully recovered from his surgery. Andi got to meet Jack’s parents and Jamie’s parents, who had flown up from Palm Beach for the holiday.

  On Thanksgiving morning, Jack and the girls left for an hour to visit Clare.

  “How’d it go?” Andi asked him when they got home.

  “It was okay. They were good,” he said, referring to the girls.

  With her hand on his cheek, she asked, “How about you?”

  “I’m fine.” He kissed the palm of her hand and smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes the way his smile normally did. “Let’s eat.”

  As everyone sat down for dinner, Jack proposed a toast.

  Jill folded her arms and scooted down in her chair. “Get comfortable. Here comes the annual speech.”

  He swatted at her with his napkin while the rest of them laughed. “That’ll be quite enough out of you.” In that moment, he realized how far they’d come from the somber holiday they’d observed a year ago. “I’m thankful for my girls, even the bratty one,” Jack said, raising an amused eyebrow at Jill.

  She stuck her tongue out at him.

  “There’ll be no speech except to say I’m thankful to everyone at this table who helped me through the worst time in my life. Better days are ahead for all of us, so let’s drink to that.” Glancing at Andi, he raised his glass.

  The others followed suit.

  Neil barked out “Hear, hear!”

  After dinner Frannie corralled the women into the study to look at the books she’d brought from the dress shop so the girls could pick their bridesmaid dresses.

  “Are they gone?” Jamie peeked around the corner and reached into the pocket of his tweed jacket. He pulled out a fistful of cigars and passed them around.

  “Let’s enjoy them while we can,” Neil said in what he considered to be a whisper. The others shushed him.

  Jack rounded up ashtrays and poured brandy as the others lit up.

  “When do you leave for Tokyo, son?” Neil asked Jamie.

  “Monday. I’ll be back Friday night, though. I tried to put it off until after the wedding, but the account needs some attention.”

  “You’ll need two full days’ sleep after doing it that fast,” Jack said, taking a deep drag on his cigar. Clare never would have allowed them to smoke in her house, a thought that gave him a pang of guilt, so he opened the sliding door to let out the smoke.

  The gorgeous day was unseasonably warm for late November in Rhode Island, and the yard was littered with large yellow leaves dancing in the sea breeze.

  “I’m going to get some air,” Jack said. “It’s so nice out.” The mild November had put them ahead of schedule on the hotel, and the foundation had been poured earlier in the week.

  Jack walked past the now covered pool to the edge of his property to look down at the shoreline. Light seas hit the rocks, launching salty spray into the air but not high enough to reach him. He was enjoying the roar of the ocean and his cigar when his father walked out to join him.

  “Beautiful day,” John Harrington said.

  “Sure is. Won’t be many more like it before winter.”

  “So how are you, Jack?” John puffed on his cigar and placed a hand on Jack’s shoulder.

  Jack looked down at the hand and then up at his father with surprise. His hair was now all silver, and his brown eyes were filled with unusual warmth. “I’m much better. We all are.”

  “I’m so glad to hear it—and to see it. Much different than last year.”

  “We still miss Clare very much, but life goes on.”

  His father nodded in agreement. “I like Andi. She’s a beautiful girl. I never could fault your taste in women.”

  “Well, at least there’s something,” Jack said dryly.

  “That’s not all.”

  Jack stared at his father as if he had never seen him before.

  “Don’t look at me like that. I’m trying here… You shouldn’t have had to wait almost forty-five years to hear this, but I’m proud of you, son.”

  Jack’s mouth almost fell open with shock, but when he saw the effort his father was making, he kept his expression neutral.

  “You’ve done all this yourself.” John waved a hand to encompass Jack’s home. “You never touched a dime of the money I gave you. You built a business from the ground up, whereas everything I have was handed to me. I’ve, uh, I’ve read every word of what’s been written about your work and, well, I’m proud.”

  “I appreciate that, Dad. I’m…I don’t know what I am.” He was flabbergasted but couldn’t say that.

  “You were right to stand up to me all those years ago. I wish I had it to do over again, because I made a big mistake. I’ve wanted to say this to you for a long time, for years, in fact, but somehow we let all this distance get between us, and there never seemed to be a good time.”

  “Thank you for saying it now,” Jack said, trying desperately to absorb it all.

  “I also admire the way you took care of Clare after the accident and yet, I’m glad to see you moving forward with Andi. Quite a spark between the two of you.”

  Jack smiled. That “spark” had all but consumed him.

  “Chicago’s an awful long way from Rhode Island,” John said.

  “I’ve discovered that over the last few months,” Jack said with a touch of sarcasm that made the older man laugh. Jack had almost forgotten the music of his dad’s laughter, a sound that softened years of curt conversations and silences when so much went unsaid. In that split second, Jack decided to take a risk. “Want to be in on a secret?”

  “Absolutely.”

  “I’ll tell you something I haven’t told anyone else, not the girls or even Jamie or Frannie.”

  John let out a low whistle. “This ought to be good.”

  “After the wedding, Andi and Eric are moving here to live with us. We’re waiting until after the wedding to tell the kids.”

  “Wow, that’s a big step, Jack. Are you sure you’re ready for that?”

  Jack looked out to the ocean. “If someone had told me six months ago that this would be happening, I would’ve said they were crazy.” His gaze drifted back to his father. “All I can say is I feel like myself again when I’m with her, and as you pointed out, Chicago’s pretty far from here.”

  “You’ve weathered a storm that would’ve brought a lesser man to his knees and kept him there. Your instincts have served you well so far. I can’t imagine they’d fail you now.”

  Andi walked up to join them and put an arm around Jack from behind. “Are you giving away our secrets, love?”

  John laughed. “Uh-oh, we’re busted, Jack.”

  “Yes, you are,” she said with a smile. “Can we trust you to keep it quiet until after the wedding? This is Frannie and Jamie’s moment, not ours.”

  “No one will hear it from me—well, except maybe your mother, but she won’t tell,” John assured them. “I’m happy for both of you, and I wish you well.” Clapping Jack on the shoulder, he said, “I love you, son.” He kissed Andi’s cheek and went inside.

  “Okay, what just happened here?” Jack asked in amazement after his father had walked away.

  “You tell me.”

  “I think he just sa
id he’s proud of me, he was wrong to fight my career choice, he admires me, and he loves me,” Jack said, counting off the compliments on his fingers, still stunned by it all.

  “Wow, all that in ten minutes?”

  “Yeah,” Jack said, still reeling.

  “I’m happy for you, Jack. You’ve waited a long time to hear that.”

  “Only my whole life. I hope you don’t mind that I told him our news.”

  “Of course not. I all but told David yesterday when I accepted the new job. I didn’t say anything else, but he knows.”

  “No second thoughts?”

  “Not a one. How about you?”

  “None.”

  They spent Christmas Eve putting the finishing touches on the enormous tree Jack had brought home. Since Christmas had always been Clare’s favorite holiday, they hadn’t bothered with a tree the year before because no one had been in the mood. A year later, the girls enjoyed getting out the decorations, even if they stirred up a lot of emotions and brought back memories of Christmases past.

  Jack spent most of the evening on a ladder with Andi and the girls directing the placement of every item. Andi had brought a box of Eric’s favorite ornaments from home, and he hung them on the lower branches while Maggie arranged and rearranged the presents under the tree until she was satisfied with how they looked.

  “Okay, that’s it,” Jack said. “I’m coming down. I’m getting a nosebleed up here.”

  Andi laughed and took his arm to check his watch. “It’s almost eleven thirty. We’d better hurry if we’re going to make midnight mass.”

  Jack sat close to Andi in church, feeling the pointed looks directed at them from people he knew through church and the girls’ school. Tongues would wag after their appearance together, and Jack felt a twinge of anxiety over that, even though he knew he couldn’t prevent it. Halfway through mass, Eric crawled into Jack’s lap. He shared a smile with Andi when the boy dozed off on his shoulder.