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My Stepbrother the Seaman
(A Caribbean Cruise Romance)
By: Grace Valentine
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Prologue
The woman lying in the hospital bed was still so beautiful, even with all of the weight and hair that she had lost. Hannah Silva was too young to be dying, but when life gives death a gift, age isn’t a concern that goes through his mind. Hannah had known that from the youngest years of her life when her family cat gave birth to a dead kitten. That tiny grey and white kitten had never even had a chance to breathe life. Death is the most unbiased of all beings. He only sees the life that dwells within, and Hannah was beaming with it. She was the kind of woman to go rock climbing without any gear or go sky diving on a whim. She lived every moment to the fullest, and for some reason that made it even harder for Mitch to watch as his wife was taken from him, her book of life had so few pages, but each and every one of them were completely full from top to bottom. Hannah looked at her husband with her striking blue eyes. They looked at him with an undying and eternal love that death could never steal. Hannah’s son didn’t understand the light in her eyes. At the tender age of four, he only could understand that his mommy was sick. Mitch had spent so many months trying to convince Hannah that they needed a baby in their lives. When she finally accepted, Mitch’s heart was so intensely in love that it almost hurt. They were blessed almost immediately with baby Sabin. He was such a beautiful baby boy. He had his mother’s eyes and his father’s nose. They found the tumors that same day. On Sabin’s day of birth, when Hannah tried to nurse her new son, the pain was indescribable. All mother’s go through pain when trying to breast feed their children, because after all, there is nothing that isn’t painful about new motherhood, but this was different.
Mitch thought back on the day that the light in his wife’s eyes flickered away with agony. That was two long years ago. She left the world in silence, with a morphine drip. There was no blood, there was no screaming and there was no pain when Hannah was taken. Mitch had a new light in his eyes. It wasn’t the same, it wasn’t brighter or darker, and it just simply was. That light came in the form of his new wife and his new stepdaughter. He had found love again, a love that brought him from out of the dark and bottomless pit of depression. His son, on the other hand, wasn’t taking to his new family as well as Mitch had hoped. The young boy threw temper tantrums and refused to listen to anyone. He would scream for his mother at night, waking up all of Mitch’s demons along with him. Mitch was hoping today would be different. He sat watching his son and his step daughter from the next room, keeping a keen eye out for distress.
Sabin Silva looked at his new stepsister with a fuming and unquenchable hate. Colette Winters had long curly blonde hair that hung in pigtails to frame her baby face. The pigtails were held tightly to her head with perfectly tied ribbons that the six year old wanted to tear out of his sister’s head. He knew that if he had, the two year old would scream and cry, only to get attention from his father or her mother; it would land Sabin in timeout. He wasn’t about to allow that to happen again. The boy opted to hit the little girl in the jaw with his firetruck. She still screamed with her big bright blue eyes flooding as blood gushed from the large open wound on her chin. Fear rose in Sabin as his father ran into the room right behind Colette’s mother Rachel. Sabin’s father picked him up by his tiny arm and smacked his butt which would be sore for days. It’s was Sabin’s turn to cry. His father picked him up as Colette was taken by her mother to be comforted. Sabin was brought into his room and his father sat him down on his bed. He sat next to him and held the crying Sabin in his arms and rocked him.
“I miss her too buddy.” Mitch said in a soft voice that wasn’t normal for the tall brawny policeman, but it was all that worked when Sabin cried for his mother. “Do you think your mother would want you to behave this way though, son?” Sabin shook his head and buried it into his father’s chest. “One day, you’re going to love your sister. I promise.”
Mitch picked up Sabin and held him close. No one but Sabin knew why he hated Colette so much. He had warmed up to Rachel rather quickly, and Rachel was eight months pregnant with Colette when he met her. Rachel’s boyfriend took off, leaving her as soon as she told him that she was pregnant. Rachel and Mitch met when Mitch pulled Rachel over for speeding. They fell in love rather quickly. In Mitch’s mind, Colette and Sabin should have been just like any siblings, but the opposite had been true. Mitch also made the mistake of thinking that his son was too young to remember his mother. Mitch brought Sabin down to the play room that Colette was currently sitting in as her mother bandaged her wounded chin. Mitch sat Sabin down and Rachel did the same with Colette.
“I’m sorry Lette.” Sabin said using his version of Colette’s complicated name.
Colette clumsily stood and walked to her step brother. She held onto him tightly and hugged him around his neck as she nuzzled her hurt face into her brother’s chest. Sabin hugged her back and the two sat down and began to play with blocks as their parents kissed both of them on the head. Mitch sat down again holding his wife’s hand, watching his son and hoping for the best.
Chapter One
Colette thought to herself the thought that no wife ever wants think. She knew that she didn’t love her husband anymore. Michael O’Hare was not at fault and Colette knew that. After all, their relationship had been an example of everything not to do. They began their marriage with no money and no life experience. She was only eighteen when the handsome man that she did in fact love at the time, said his vows to her. Things had certainly changed in the two short years that Colette and Michael had been married. The disintegration of the once happy marriage hadn’t been loud, obscene or violent. It had only slowly died over a long period of time. In fact, Colette couldn’t quite put her finger on the exact moment that she fell out of love with Michael. It could have been when she looked at the hundredth negative pregnancy test, at least that’s when she realized that she didn’t really want to have Michael’s children. It may have been when she had found the sexual emails to his secretary. No, surely it wasn't then. A wife whom had loved her husband would have felt anger, betrayal or heartbreak having seen what she had. Colette had only though about what other people would say about his infidelity. It must have been a million tiny things that made her heart jaded to her husband. She no lo
nger wanted to kiss him. She didn't even really want to look at him. Michael had become a roommate in Colette's frosty eyes and nothing more. He was simply a way to pay the rent. She began to cry, as her head hung over the letter that she was writing, proposing the idea of divorce. She wept not from a broken heart, but for her shattered dreams. She had made the bold and advised against choice to be Michael's wife instead of going after her dream as a painter. She had opted for a dish sponge instead of a paintbrush, and a baking dish instead of an easel. The regret hurt her as she knew that time was irreplaceable, and she had wasted so much of it. Colette signed the letter with 'Love, Colette'. Then she quickly used her pen to scratch out the word love, and replaced it with sincerely. She grabbed her two suitcases and tossed them in the trunk of her white Dodge Nitro before taking one last look at her marital home. Still, she felt nothing.
The drive to Colette's mother's home was long but thoroughly enjoyable. She left the town that she had been calling home for two years in her rearview mirror and looked out her windshield to Riverdale. The town hadn't changed a thing since Colette's twenty years of life. Everything from the paint on the houses to the well cared for gardens stood still in time. There was no reason to change Riverdale. It was beautiful the way that it was and people loved it. Colette had loved growing up in a small and cozy town like Riverdale. The horrors that news casters would talk about seemed impossible in a town such as Riverdale. The worst thing that had ever happened here was a young boy caught trying to sneak a candy bar from the local convenience store. People in their yards waved excitedly at the familiar car and Colette waved back with a smile. She pulled into the driveway that belonged to her mother's ancient two story home. It was a dark blue with a white deck and white windows. The dark grey roof had been sagging a bit, more than likely from the harsh winter that had just ended. Rachel looked out her parted curtains and excitedly ran out to greet her daughter. Colette welcomed her mother in her arms and Mitch came out to grab Colette's bags before kissing his beloved step daughter on the cheek.
"How long are you staying sweetheart? And where is Michael?" Rachel asked as she held her daughter's face.
"Michael and I are getting a divorce mom." Colette said making it a reality.
Rachel held her daughter's beautiful face in her liver spotted hands and kissed her on the nose wanting desperately to hold her and comfort her. She only held her little girl in her hands and hugged her tightly. The action was wordless but said everything to Colette. Her mother was going to support her in her endeavor to leave her husband and pursue happiness.
"Sabin will be home tonight. He just got finished with a cruise. He'll be happy to see you." Colette nodded and followed her mother into the house.
The last time Colette had seen Sabin was on her wedding day. Sabin begged her not to go through with the wedding and Colette stubbornly refused, something that she now regretted.
"The person you marry at eighteen isn't the person you marry at thirty, Colette. You're too young." At the time, Sabin's advice had only annoyed her, now she wished she had listened to her older brother. She dreaded the moment that her mother told him the news and Sabin's handsome face contorted into a smug smile.
Colette followed Mitch into her childhood room. Nothing had changed from the day that she left it. The walls were still pink and a herd of stuffed animals hung in the corner of the room. Her desk still sat organized with a blank piece of paper sitting on it anticipating use. The bed was still made with a pink silk duvet and the pillows still sat askew. The room was like a time hop into the past. Mitch helped her unpack and organize her clothes as Colette's phone began to ring. Mitch awkwardly left the room as she answered it.
"I found your note." The bitter voice said on the other line. "I'll file for a divorce tomorrow morning." Michael said spitefully as he hung up the phone. Colette laid back into her bed and shut her eyes, ready for the relief of sleep.
Chapter Two
Sabin’s voice was what woke Colette up. It was late at night when she rolled over and groggily checked the time. Her mother and Sabin had been talking about her. The voices suddenly stopped when she noticed that she felt uncomfortably dirty in the clothes that she had worn the day before and yesterday’s makeup. She undressed herself and opened the bathroom door. Sabin turned and looked at her with wide eyes. Collette screamed and slammed the door behind her. She cringed as he spoke to her.
“I’m out Lette. It’s nice to see you again sis.” Sabin said before closing the bathroom door.
Colette awkwardly opened the door and checked the bathroom. With Sabin gone she began the shower and stepped into the steam. The water cleaned her makeup and opened up her skin. The hot water helped her forget about Michael’s phone call, and the embarrassing moment with Sabin. She took off a pink plush towel from the wall and began to dry herself. ‘When did I get so thin?” She thought to herself looking at her body. Her legs and her arms were long and toned, and her stomach was tight. “Have I been forgetting to eat?” The thought shocked her. She replaced her dirty clothes with an oversized comfortable and cotton shirt and clean pair of cotton panties. She returned to her old room and made the bed before walking down the long staircase to the bottom floor. Sabin, Mitch and Rachel sat at the table talking and drinking what smelled like Earl Grey tea. Colette joined them and sat next to her mother. Her mother grabbed her hand and looked at her daughter.
"Sweetheart, we were thinking that you could go with Sabin. He's going on a cruise to the Bahamas and we thought it would be good for you." Sabin nodded at what Rachel was saying.
"I'll have to think about it mom. Thank you though." Collette looked down at her lap and let her heavy head fall into her arms.
Rachel and Mitch excused themselves and retreated from the awkward moment and went to their safe haven bedroom. Sabin awkwardly sipped at his tea and didn't look at Colette. An odd tension hung in the air as the two sat silently. Colette picked at her nails and avoided eye contact. She couldn’t help but think about what Mitch was doing. He had sounded so angry about the divorce. It was the most passion she had seen come from the man in years. Sabin’s voice brought Colette back to reality.
"Do you want to talk about it?" He asked in his husky voice.
"No, I don't want to talk about it. I just left him. There was no big thing that made me do it. I just don't love him anymore." Colette was on the verge of tears, and Sabin laughed. She shot him a look that made his laughter stop.
"I meant about the cruise. That really is too bad though. I'm sorry." His voice sounded sincere and genuinely apologetic.
"No I told you so?" Colette asked looking at her brother with perplexed eyes.
"Not from me." He shrugged. "If you decide that you want to talk about it, I'm here, it should be really relaxing.”
Colette got the feeling that he wasn't talking about the cruise anymore. Sabin excused himself, got up and went into his bedroom. He had looked so different from the last time she had seen him. His hair was cut short and he no longer wore a beard, and the navy had done his body well.
He had been out of the navy for nearly two years now and from what Rachel had told Colette, he missed it but he was enjoying being a cruise ship captain. He got to travel to his favorite destinations and get paid well for doing it. Colette shook her head as she remembered how long that she had been out of the work force. Nearly as long as her marriage lasted. The thought concerned her. After all, it was unlikely that people were hiring an artist with no formal training or a failed housewife. Colette regretted taking that long of a nap because now sleep alluded her and she desperately looked for a method of distraction. Sabin had obviously had the same idea. He was sitting in the den with his feet up and his well-defined torso exposed. He was watching some movie on the flat screen. Colette tried to sneak away but failed.
“Do you want to join me Lette?" Colette cringed and sat next to him. He restated the movie and tossed a blanket at her. She tucked herself in and tried to avoid his stare, but couldn’t. She wasn�
�t sure if it were pity in his eyes or something else. Either way, it made her exceptionally uncomfortable.
He attempted but failed to break the awkward silence.
"You really should come. They're a lot of fun. You could relax and really enjoy yourself." He said smiling.
"If I go, will you all quit bothering me about it?" She asked irritated.
"Yes." He confirmed with a crooked smile.
"Fine." Colette stood and headed to her bedroom.
"Colette, I'm here if you need to talk about it." Sabin was looking over his shoulder at her as he said it.
"Sabin, no offence, but you have no idea what I'm going through right now."
The words were harsh but also absolutely true. Sabin had never even been in a serious relationship, never mind a marriage. He left straight out of high school to join the Navy. There was no time for a serious relationship in his complicated and busy life. The closest thing to a serious relationship that he had ever had was when he was eighteen. Just before he went off to the Navy, he thought about proposing to his girlfriend of only three months. He admitted later that it was his nerves getting to him, like having a fiancée gave him some sort of immunity to death. Lucky, at the age of only 13, Colette had convinced him not to go through with it. He thanked her a million times for not letting him make that mistake. Why he was single now eluded her. He had everything possible going for him after all. He had the wit of a poet, the body of a god and the face of an angel. He also worked a well-paying job that allowed for family time and free cruises. "Maybe he's gay" Colette thought to herself as she fell asleep.
STEPBROTHER ROMANCE: My Stepbrother the Seaman (A Caribbean Cruise Romance) (A Steamy Forbidden Contemporary Holiday Romance Short Story) Page 1
