by Marie Force
“Wouldn’t that be a miracle?”
“Truly.” With his free hand, he caressed her face and then kissed her. “This is our life, honey. We’re in charge. I know you love your parents. Hell, I love them, too. But don’t feel bad about your decision, no matter what they might have to say about it.”
“I’ll try not to. Thank you again for understanding.”
“I love you. I want you to be happy. No matter what it takes. And your folks will be thrilled that you and the baby will be here this year.”
At times like this, Janey was secretly grateful to David for cheating on her. If she’d married him, their marriage wouldn’t be anything like the one she had with Joe. She had no doubt whatsoever that Joe was the man she was meant to be with. “And you, too.”
He rested a hand on her swollen belly. “I’m a distant third to you two.”
“You’re first with me,” she said, curling her hand around his neck and bringing him in for another kiss.
“For two more months anyway.”
“Forever.”
“Don’t make promises you can’t keep, honey. I fully expect you to fall madly in love with this little person when he or she arrives.”
“I will, but I’ll still be madly in love with my baby’s daddy, too.”
He closed his eyes and rested his forehead against hers. “I never get tired of hearing you say that. I’m so glad you called me the night everything happened with David. I’m grateful every day of my life for that phone call.”
The doorbell rang, and he let out a deep, ragged sigh before he released her to get up.
“Joe?”
“What, hon?”
“I’m grateful every single day that you answered the phone that night.”
Giving her a warm smile, he went to answer the door with the dogs hot on his heels.
“Where’s my baby girl?”
Her dad’s booming voice made Janey smile. “Back here, Dad.”
Big Mac came strolling onto the sun porch, wearing a faded McCarthy’s Gansett Island Marina T-shirt with shorts, deck shoes and his trademark Ray Bans nestled in his gray hair. He already had a dark tan from the hours he spent on the docks every day. “There she is,” he said, bending to kiss Janey. “How’s my grandbaby today?”
“Busy. Want to feel?”
“Um, no, I don’t think so.”
“Oh, come on.” Janey placed his hand over her rolling belly. “Don’t be silly.”
“I’m still trying to get my head around the fact that you’re pregnant in the first place,” he said with a scowl for Joe.
“Don’t look at me,” Joe said, hands up in defense.
“Who should I look at?”
“Daddy, knock it off.” The baby gave a good swift kick that made her dad smile.
“Well, would ya look at that? He’s a kicker.”
“He might be a she.”
“Either is fine with me, as long as everyone is healthy.”
“Here I am,” Linda said as she came in. “Hope it’s okay that I let myself in.”
“Of course it is, Mom.”
“Lin, come get a feel of this,” Big Mac said, drawing his wife into their little circle to feel the baby doing its daily gymnastics.
“Wow,” Linda said. “I can’t wait to meet him or her.”
“Neither can we,” Janey said.
“How about some lunch?” Joe said.
“I won’t say no to that,” Big Mac said. “I’m starving.”
“Did Stephanie only let you have three donuts this morning?” Linda asked her husband.
“She cut me off at four,” he said with a pout that made his wife and daughter laugh.
“Good thing Grant is marrying her,” Janey said. “We need to keep her in the family to manage his cholesterol.”
“Absolutely,” Linda agreed.
Joe delivered a tray of sandwiches he’d made earlier and took drink orders as Janey sent him a grateful smile.
“You’re really feeling all right?” Linda asked as they enjoyed the sandwiches.
“For the most part. My blood pressure was up a tiny bit, so Victoria wants me to take it as easy as possible.”
“You’re not on bed rest, are you?”
“Not officially. We’re keeping an eye on it, so don’t worry. Catch me up on everything that’s going on. I feel so out of the loop.”
“Let’s see,” Linda said. “Grant is almost done with the screenplay, Evan is recording at the studio for the first time this week, and Adam is officially moving into your old house with Abby.”
“Oh, good,” Janey said. “I’m so glad they’re making a go of it. I love them together.”
“I do, too, now that Grant knows about it and doesn’t seem to mind.”
“Why would he care when he’s crazy in love with Stephanie?” Big Mac asked.
“People are funny about their exes,” Linda said. “Even when they’re happy with someone else. I’m thankful there was no trouble between them when Adam fell for Abby, and I’m thrilled to have everyone back at home again.”
“I owe Abby and just about everyone else in my life a phone call,” Janey said. “Did Seamus’s mother get here yet?”
“She’s due in later today,” Linda said.
“I’d love to be a fly on the wall over there tonight,” Janey said.
“Not me,” Joe said to laughter from the others.
“Can’t say I blame you there, son,” Big Mac said.
Joe glanced at Janey and nodded for her to get on with what she wanted to talk to her parents about.
“So there was a reason I wanted to see you guys today,” Janey said tentatively.
“I knew it!” Linda said. “There is something wrong with the baby, and you didn’t want to tell us.”
“Honestly, Mother, there’s nothing wrong! You’re worse than my husband!”
“I’m in the room,” Joe said.
Janey gave him a sweet smile. “I want to talk to you about school.”
“What about it?” Big Mac asked, his brows narrowing. He was always touchy on the subject of veterinary school, because no one wanted to see her become a vet more than he did. His question indicated that her brothers had, in fact, kept her news to themselves.
“I’ve decided to take this next year off from school,” Janey said, her stomach twisting with nerves as she said the words.
“Oh, thank goodness!” Linda said.
“Excuse me?” Janey asked, shocked by her mother’s reaction.
“We’ve been just beside ourselves at the thought of the two of you and the baby so far from home, especially during the first year of the baby’s life,” Linda said.
Janey looked at Joe, who seemed as surprised as she was. “You have? Why didn’t you say something?”
“What could we say, honey?” Big Mac asked. “You’re off pursuing a dream we’ve wanted for you for so long. We’d never stand in the way of that, the way David did all those years ago.”
Her parents had never gotten over David discouraging her from going to veterinary school while he attended medical school so they wouldn’t be overly burdened with debt afterward. Her dad had been particularly incensed about it, so to hear him say now that he was thrilled she was staying home was surprising.
“I’ve thought a lot about that,” Janey said, choosing her words carefully. “David wasn’t entirely to blame. If I’d wanted it badly enough, I would’ve moved mountains to make it happen. It’s true he discouraged me, but I was easily discouraged.”
“Still,” Big Mac said. “It wasn’t his finest hour.”
“Let’s not talk about him,” Linda said. “I have another question.”
“Which is?”
“Do you think you’ll go back to school in a year?”
With the eyes of the three most important people in her life on her, Janey found that she couldn’t lie—not to herself and certainly not to them. “I don’t think so.”
“What?” Joe said. “You s
aid one year, and then you’d finish.”
Dismayed by his reaction, Janey said, “I know. I did say that, and I felt that way at the time, but the more I think about it, the more I want this.” She gestured to the airy sun porch and the house. “I want to be here, with my family. I want my baby to grow up with his or her cousins and grandparents and all the people who love him or her nearby, not a thousand miles away.” Janey’s throat tightened with emotion. “You all have sacrificed so much to help me make my dream come true, but my dream has changed. Dad, I’ll never forget the way you insisted on paying my tuition, even though you certainly didn’t have to.”
“Aww, shucks, honey, I was happy to do that.”
“And Joe, you moved heaven and earth to make it possible for me to go and to come with me. I know you probably don’t understand—”
He got up and moved to sit with her on the chaise, putting his arm around her. “I do understand. How could I not? No matter where we go in the world, this is our home. It’s where we belong.”
Janey rested her head on his chest. “All I keep thinking about is that we’ve got two years invested there, not to mention the tuition money.”
“Don’t give that another thought,” Big Mac said. “Things change. I get it.”
Janey released a deep sigh as an overpowering sense of relief swept through her, making her teary eyed. “Damned hormones,” she said, brushing away the tears. “I want to be with my baby. I can’t do everything. I’m only just now realizing that.”
“Welcome to motherhood,” Linda said. “The sacrifices never end, but they’re the best sacrifices you’ll ever make. Nothing matters more than your children.”
“It’s your fault, you know,” Janey said with a watery smile. “You set such a high standard that I’ll never be able to live up to it.”
“Oh shush. You’re going to be a wonderful mother.”
“Thank you.”
“Do you feel better?” Joe asked.
“Much.”
“You know you still have the right to change your mind when you’re not pregnant and hormonal.”
“Good to know, but I don’t think I’ll change my mind. Now I have to find a way to tell Doc that he’s going to have to turn his practice over to someone else.”
“He’ll understand, honey.” Big Mac cleared his throat loudly and dramatically. “So, I happen to have a bit of gossip you all might be interested in.”
“Is that right?” Linda said acerbically. “Do you need an engraved invitation to share?”
“No, I do not.”
“Guys have no clue how to gossip properly,” Linda said to her daughter.
“I think Daddy might be the exception to that rule,” Janey said, making the others laugh.
“Thank you, Princess,” Big Mac said. “I might’ve talked to Uncle Frank this morning, and he might’ve asked if it’s okay if he comes back for the weekend, and he might’ve also asked if Betsy is still staying with us.”
“Mac!” Linda said. “That’s huge! Why didn’t you say something?”
“I am saying something.”
“How’s Betsy doing?” Joe asked of the woman who’d been staying with them for a couple of weeks now. Her son Steve had been killed in the boating accident that had nearly claimed the lives of Mac, Evan and Grant and left Grant’s friend Dan Torrington badly injured.
“She seems a little better every day,” Linda said.
“It’s nice of you guys to have her at the house,” Janey said.
“We love having her around,” Linda said. “She’s no trouble at all and so thankful for the change of scenery. Lord knows we’ve got plenty of empty bedrooms these days.”
“So Uncle Frank and Betsy, huh?” Janey said, intrigued by the possibilities.
“Wouldn’t that be something?” Big Mac said. “I’ve been hoping he’d find someone new since Joann died all those years ago, but he’s never even had a serious relationship that I know of.”
“I don’t know about you guys,” Janey said, “but I suddenly can’t wait for this weekend.”
Chapter 5
Daisy couldn’t recall a day that went by as slowly as Tuesday did. Every time she glanced at the clock, it seemed only a few minutes had passed. Even though she was busy at the hotel, the day still dragged on endlessly. While she couldn’t wait to see David later, she was anxious about the conversation they planned to have.
Worries about what he might say and how she would feel about it weighed on her as she walked home from the hotel. It stayed with her in the shower and as she dried her hair. Standing before her closet pondering her limited options, she could think of little else but how this night might unfold.
She so wanted him to be different from the men she’d known before. There was something about him that appealed to her on the most basic level. It went beyond his dark good looks. She sensed the same kind of loneliness in him that she’d known herself.
During the evenings they’d spent together, she’d found out what it might be like to have a normal relationship for once, one in which she didn’t have to constantly be on guard against emotional or physical abuse. She’d made bad choices in the past. They were her choices, and she owned them, but she didn’t want to make bad choices anymore. She’d promised herself after the mess with Truck that she’d be more wise and discerning about who she spent time with in the future.
David had seemed like a wise choice, and she hoped she hadn’t been wrong about that.
In the far back corner of her closet, she found a dress she’d forgotten she had. It was basic black with a cowl neckline, a cinched waist and a skirt that came to just above the knee. She’d had it forever but hadn’t worn it in ages—mostly because she hadn’t had an occasion where it might be appropriate.
Feeling uncertain, she hung it on the outside of her closet and took a picture with her phone that she sent to Maddie.
Is this too much for dinner at Domenic’s?
While she waited to hear back from Maddie, Daisy took the dress into the kitchen to iron it on the counter.
Not at all, Maddie replied. It’s perfect.
I’m nervous. We’re going to talk before dinner, and I’m afraid of what he’ll say.
It would matter to me that he’s telling you himself and not letting you hear it through the grapevine.
I know… Still. I like him. A lot.
Hear him out and then decide how you feel. You don’t have to decide anything right away.
That’s true. Thanks for the consult.
Any time. Hope you have a good time!
Thanks! I’ll report in tomorrow morning.
I’ll be waiting. And Daisy…it’s okay to be a little afraid of falling for someone new after what you’ve been through. Just don’t be too afraid to take a chance.
I’ll try… Thanks. Xoxo
The pep talk from Maddie helped, and Daisy tried to stay focused on all the positives of her relationship with David as she got dressed and found some earrings and a bracelet to wear with the dress. She pulled on black, high-heeled sandals and then checked the ensemble in the mirror with a critical eye.
“I guess you’ll do,” she said as she looked over her shoulder at the back of the dress. She’d lost weight she couldn’t afford to lose since the attack and was more waifish than ever thanks to Truck’s punch to her jaw that had made it difficult to eat for weeks.
Remembering that awful night, Daisy told herself that whatever David had to say it couldn’t possibly be worse than what she’d already been through—and survived. Not just with Truck, but with a string of men who liked to be in control of the women in their lives and hadn’t hesitated to exert some muscle to bend her to their will.
No matter what David might’ve done in the past, he would never harm her physically. That much she already knew for sure. No, with him she had to be far more vigilant about her emotional well-being than her physical safety. It hadn’t taken long for him to become an important part of her daily life. The connec
tion she felt with him wasn’t one she’d experienced before, and that was enough, on its own, to strike a chord of fear in her.
“You’re going to be strong, listen to what he has to say, and make the best decision for you,” she told her reflection.
Satisfied with her self-lecture, she went downstairs and realized it wasn’t even six o’clock. She had more than half an hour to kill before David would arrive, so she sat down to flip through a magazine and enjoy a glass of lemonade while she waited.
A few minutes later, a disturbance outside her door had her rushing over to peek out the window to see if David had arrived early. At the thought of seeing him, her heart beat faster with excitement and adrenaline. She was surprised to find an older woman sitting in one of the rockers on her porch.
“What the heck?” Mindful of safety, especially lately, she opened the door slowly to get a better look.
The woman’s hair was standing on end as if it hadn’t been brushed in days. She wore a sweatshirt with flannel pajama pants, and her feet were bare and caked with dirt. Something was very wrong here, Daisy thought as she stepped outside the door. “May I help you?” she asked softly, trying not to startle the woman.
“No.”
“Are you lost?”
“I don’t know.”
Daisy glanced down at the woman’s feet, which were cut and bruised, and wondered how far she had walked before landing on the porch.
“I’m Daisy. What’s your name?”
“Marion.” She had blue eyes that looked past Daisy vacantly. Between that and the cuts on her feet, Daisy was concerned that the woman was in some sort of danger.
“Is there someone I could call for you, Marion?”
“My husband is coming for me. His name is George Martinez. He’ll be here soon.”
“Could I offer you a drink while you wait?”
“Some water would be nice.”
“I’ll be right back with it.” Inside, she debated about what she should do and finally decided to call Blaine Taylor. After Truck attacked her, Blaine had programmed his cell phone number into Daisy’s phone in case she ever needed help.
“Hi, Daisy,” Blaine said when he answered. “Everything okay?”
