Charlotte's Dilemma

by Diane Leyne

  “Oh my god, that was your stomach? I was about to get up and find out where that wild animal was hiding.”

  She sat up and punched him in the arm. He’d just laughed and sat up.

  “I supposed the facilities are…?”

  “Pick a tree, any tree. Actually, I promise not to peek and there’s no one else on the island, so you don’t even have to get dressed.”

  He watched, amused, as she wiggled her ass at him as she slid on her shorts. Come to think of it, he was hungry, too. He got up to see what supplies he could find in the hut when he heard her shouting.

  Dropping the water bottle he was chugging, he flung the door open and ran outside to see her flinging herself into Mike’s arms. And at that very moment, the sun chose to come out from behind the cloud and shine down on Charlotte. She was beautiful, but she wasn’t his.

  She was motioning for him to join them, but he held up a finger and went back inside to don his shorts and pick up his bottle and gathered what he’d brought with him, including the radio, and headed back outside. Charlotte was already aboard Mike’s boat, greeting Cy and Lydia, and then she disappeared below decks, presumably to find the washroom.

  Mike was waiting for him on the beach.

  “What do you want to do, JJ? You can come back with me and I can bring you back later to get your ride or…”

  “Nah, man. Storm’s pretty much passed and the sun’s starting to come out. I want to have a look at the Libertine 3, and then I’ll head back. I’ve got the radio in case I have any trouble.”

  Mike didn’t argue as his plan was the only sensible one. He watched from the beach as Mike waded through the water and climbed up on board. JJ waited for Charlotte to disembark, but she never did. He waited as Mike pulled up the anchor and minutes later was on his way. JJ stood in the water watching until the boat disappeared from sight and then he boarded his own boat. He didn’t do anything for a long time.

  The afternoon had ended up being magical, but it had ended the way it started. Him alone with Charlotte walking away. He knew that he’d made the right decision to leave. Roy and Andre’s party was in ten days. He’d stay for that, and then he’d be gone. He would be sorry to miss the birth of Kristoff and Sandy’s new baby, but he’d send a nice gift from uncle JJ. And then, when Charlotte had left the resort and gone back to regular life, he might return again, but he wasn’t coming back while she was on the island. He couldn’t. He needed to put as much distance between them as possible. He wondered what Bora Bora was like this time of year.

  Chapter 13

  Charlotte was closing up the door to the head, as the washroom on the boat was called, when she heard the engine start. Hurrying up to the deck, she realized that they were headed toward open water and JJ wasn’t with them.

  She wanted to tell Mike to stop and take her back, but what was the use? He could have come with them or he could have told them to wait for Charlotte to get off. JJ clearly still thought she was just using him for sex and this afternoon had changed nothing. Hell, maybe she had been using him at first, but somewhere along the way, she’d fallen in love with him. He was funny and smart, and what did it matter if he wasn’t ambitious? She wasn’t either, not really, not in the material sense. She liked her job on Libertine Island. She loved her job at the Jesperson Clinic.

  When her contract was up, she wasn’t sure where she would work, but it would be at a place like the Jesperson. In the meantime, she had just over eleven months to win JJ back and prove that she wanted more than just a boy toy.

  * * * *

  Her plan to win JJ back was not going well. He’d managed to avoid her for the past two weeks. He seemed to spend an inordinate amount of time on his boat and away from the resort. She’d only seen him four times, in fact, three times in the play room training Cy and once on the docks. She’d been waiting over an hour for him, hoping to break the ice, but he had just walked past her, nodding like she was a stranger.

  She couldn’t get over how much it hurt. She’d asked for it, though, telling him she just wanted a fling and not wanting to be seen in public with him. He’d told her from the beginning that he was a relationship kind of guy, and she’d seen how much it had hurt him when he thought all she wanted him for was sex.

  She’d been lying to herself as well as him. She wanted more. She’d just been afraid of it. She’d grown up in a traditional family where men were supposed to be older than their girlfriends or wives and any woman who dated a younger man was a cougar or worse. And men had to pay the bills, earn the money, while women stayed home and looked after babies, or at least earned less than their men.

  But she watched Lydia and Cy together. He was right. Their age difference was larger, and it didn’t bother them or anyone else. Why should Charlotte let the smaller difference with JJ bother her? And so what if he wasn’t interested in climbing the corporate ladder. He was right. He could be a house husband while she worked. Plenty of couples did that nowadays. They’d both be happier in those roles. She just had to let go of her upbringing. It was the new millennium, and she was stuck in her parents’ decade.

  She just had to convince JJ that she was ready to take a chance. First, though, she had to get a chance to talk to him. He could avoid her here, but Roy and Andre’s birthday party was in three nights and he would have to talk to her there.

  * * * *

  In the end, it had been Lydia and Sandy who had taken her shopping. Mike had ferried them over to the mainland the morning of the party. Sandy was more than seven months along, but she wasn’t going to be left out of the fun. It seemed that she and Lydia had bet at the clinic and the two of them were determined to help Charley win back JJ, and it was Sandy who took charge, directing their cab to a local store she knew well, allowing Lydia to begin the interrogation.

  “You love him. Don’t try to pretend you don’t.”

  “But he doesn’t love me!”

  Lydia rolled her eyes and deferred to Sandy.

  “Then why would he want you to come to Roy and Andre’s party?”

  “Because Roy put him on the spot?”

  “Then you really don’t know JJ. He could have dodged the question if he wanted to. Besides, Roy would never have invited you if he didn’t expect you to be joining the family.”

  “But I barely knew JJ at the time. Hell, I still barely know him.”

  “The heart wants what the heart wants. He wants you. You want him. Case closed.”

  “But what do I do? I won’t push, and I won’t embarrass him by chasing him.”

  “Why not?”

  “Huh?”

  “Why not, Charley? I chased Cy when he thought he was too old for me, so I chased him down until he gave in. And when he didn’t know about, er, my alternative lifestyle, I convinced him to give it a chance. Now…” She blushed. “Now he’s talking about building our very own playroom back home.”

  * * * *

  Three hours later she was ready to scream, but she had to admit she looked damned good. Charley’s dress was artfully designed. At first glance, it looked like a simple sun dress that could be bought anywhere, but if one looked closer, they could see how it hugged her curves and revealed some cleavage subtly without being trashy. She even bought the matching shoes, handbag, and jewelry.

  She let them talk her into getting her hair trimmed. She’d been cutting her own hair for the past few years, and the hairdresser threw her hands up in despair before going to work, tidying it up and giving it a cut that would look good growing out. Then she’d whipped out a makeup kit and had completely transformed Charley, making her eyes look huge but natural.

  Charley looked at herself in the mirror. “Am I fooling myself? I’m eight years older than he is. It doesn’t matter how young I look, I’ll…”

  “Damn it, Charley. Is that what you think this is about, trying to make you look young enough for JJ?”

  “Isn’t it?”

  “Of course not. We’re just trying to help you feel confident. You are a b
eautiful woman, Charley. I have no idea why you are obsessed with the age difference.”

  “I know. Intellectually, I know. And I look at Lydia and Cy and I know that age really is just a number. But then I look at JJ. He’s so young, with his life in front of him. I’ve come back from the wars. I’ve seem so much blood and death that sometimes I feel like I’m a hundred.

  “JJ deserves someone, okay, not younger, but carefree, without the baggage I have. He’s moved to the island and dropped out of the rat race to live a no-pressure lifestyle. I love Libertine Island, but I can’t be a resort doctor all my life. I need more challenge. The next year will be great to unwind, but I’m going to need more.”

  “Does more have to mean a war zone? I saw you at the clinic. Do you enjoy the work there?”

  “Yes, but…”

  “But what? Think about it. You have options. Just don’t make any quick decisions. You’ve only been here for a month. Take your time. Wear him down. JJ can be stubborn, but he’s no fool. He knows a good thing when he sees it, and when he sees you in this dress, he’ll fall to his knees and beg you to take him back.”

  “I’ll settle for him talking to me again.”

  “See, there’s your problem. You are settling too easy, right, Lydia?”

  “Listen to the girl, Charley. She knows what she’s talking about.”

  “I do…oof!”

  “What’s wrong?”

  “Baby kicking. I’ll be fine in a second.”

  Charley placed her hand on Lydia’s stomach. “Active little guy you have in there.” She smiled.

  “Yeah. I haven’t gotten much sleep lately. He’s been extra active, and when I lay down, he likes to kick me in the kidneys. I’m up to the bathroom half a dozen times each night. I am counting down the days.”

  “How many more?”

  “If the doctor is right, six weeks. I think he’s wrong. I think it’s less.”

  Charlotte placed her hand on Sandy’s stomach. “I think you might be right.”

  “That would be nice. As long as I don’t go into labor at the birthday party, I can go any time after that. I’m ready to get this baby out.”

  “What does Andre think? Does he understand what’s going on?”

  “Not really. He just thinks mommy’s big stomach is funny.”

  * * * *

  “Aaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!” JJ looked at Sandy, his eyes wide open and frightened, and Sandy screamed in pain.

  “Are you okay?”

  “Of course I am not okay! I’m trying to push a bowling ball out through my vagina! God dammit! Where’s Kristoff?”

  “Everyone else is down at the dock saying good-bye to the rest of the guests and looking at Roy’s new boat. I offered to stay behind so you wouldn’t be here alone…”

  “And?” He hesitated, and she answered for him. “So you wouldn’t have to be on a boat with Charlotte. Right?”

  “It kills me to be so close to her and know she’ll never be mine. But I didn’t stay behind to avoid her. Not exactly. I stayed behind to tell you that I’m leaving Libertine Island. Don’t try to change my mind. I told Duncan, and he’s looking for a replacement. I’d hoped to leave right after Roy and Andre’s party, but the new guy just started. I promised to stay for a few days to get him settled, but come Friday, I’m out of here. “

  “No! Oohhhhhhh!”

  “Yes, Sandy. I have to go.”

  “No, you idiot. I’m in labor. Go get Kristoff!”

  JJ looked around frantically. She’d seemed fine for a few minutes, conversing normally, and now she was screaming like a banshee and squeezing his hand so hard he was worried she was going to break something, but then the pain seemed to pass and she was Sandy again.

  “I don’t think I should leave you alone. Maybe I should bring you with me. I can carry you down to the boat if you don’t feel up to walking.”

  “Go now! The contractions are four minutes apart. The baby’s coming, and I want my husband, and also Dr. Charl…Aaaaaahhhhhhhhhh. Go now!”

  JJ looked at Sandy and the spreading puddle of water at her feet.

  “Crap, what’s that?”

  “My water just broke, which means this the baby is coming now.”

  JJ swallowed hard and then started running. Even as he approached the dock, he would see that the boat had almost disappeared out of sight. He started yelling, but they couldn’t hear him over the motor.

  “What’s wrong?”

  JJ nearly jumped out of his skin at Charlotte’s sudden appearance.

  “They leave you behind?”

  “The wrong shoes.” He looked down and saw the elegant strappy shoes she was wearing. He’d already noticed just how great they made her ankles look, but they were certainly not something you wore on a boat.

  “Sandy’s in labor.”

  “What?”

  “Sandy’s having the baby now, and I don’t know what to do.” Then he realized. “Hey, Charlotte. You’re a doctor. You can do it. You can help Sandy. And I’ll just take out the other boat”—he sidled past her—“and I’ll go get Kristoff and Roy.”

  “Oh no you don’t.” JJ looked down as Charlotte grabbed his arm. “You are coming with me. I need a helper and you are it.”

  “Maybe the baby isn’t coming just yet. She’s not due for a few weeks. Maybe, maybe, I should go get her husband.”

  “You can radio him from the house. Now tell me why you think she’s in labor?”

  “Well, after all that water, she said…”

  “Her water broke?” He could see Charlotte take a deep breath as if she was trying to control her annoyance with him. “Did she say how close together the contractions were?”

  “Four minutes.”

  “Jeez, JJ.” Charlotte dropped his arm and started moving quickly back to the house. “Get your ass in gear. You’re going to help deliver a baby.”

  He was afraid of that. Reluctantly but steadfastly, JJ followed Charlotte up the path, wishing he were on the boat and Kristoff were here. He’d never wanted anything more, in fact, than to be anywhere but where he was, having to work with Charlotte but not being able to be with her. The decision to leave had just about killed him, but it was the right thing to leave before he fell even deeper in love with a woman who only thought of him as a boy to play with.

  He stopped. Maybe, just maybe this might be a good thing. He could show her he wasn’t a callow boy. He was a man, and they could work side by side to bring a new life into the world. Maybe, she’d look at him differently then.

  Chapter 14

  Charlotte held baby Kristina in her arms. She was perfect. There was no scale around, but Charlotte estimated that she weighed almost six pounds. She was perfect in every way, including her little lungs. She handed the baby to her mother, who checked her little fingers and toes and gave her a kiss and then handed her back to Charlotte and took the cell phone to tell her husband about his new daughter.

  Everything had gone so quickly that there had been no time for Charlotte or JJ to call Kristoff. She’d sent him to boil water and find clean towels while she attended to Sandy, who’d gotten herself situated on the couch while she waited. She’d been a bit nervous, but it wasn’t her first baby and she knew how labor worked.

  So she had washed up and checked and by the time JJ got there with the towels, the baby was crowning. It had all moved really quickly, especially when Charlotte had realized that he was about to pass out.

  “JJ, do you see it?”

  “Oh my god. Is that the baby’s head?”

  “Yup, and it will soon be followed by the baby’s body!” She turned to smile at him and had seen him go pale. She glanced back at Sandy.

  “Almost time to push. When the next contraction hits, I want you to bear down for me, Sandy. JJ, how are you doing?”

  “I’ll…uh…” She turned, and JJ was swaying now. Covering her hand with one of the towels, she reached out and gave him a carefully calibrated shove, and down he went like a giant redwood, ri
ght into the easy chair where Roy had held court earlier.

  By the time the baby was born, he was awake again and bright red with embarrassment. She tried to hold back a chuckle. The bigger they were, the harder they fell.

  “Here.” She’d cleaned off the baby and wrapped her in a blanket. She handed the baby to JJ while she checked on Sandy. She was fine but tired and wanting her husband. She retrieved the baby from JJ, who released her almost reluctantly.

  She’d just handed her back to Sandy when the door burst open and Kristoff rushed in, carrying Andre. Handing him to JJ, he greeted his wife and new daughter. Roy and Marie and Cy and Lydia followed at a slower pace.

  The birth of a baby was always a special celebration, no matter what the circumstances. And here, today, Valentina was born into a loving family. She looked over at JJ and was suddenly overwhelmed with need to hold the baby.

  Kristoff took that opportunity to hand her the baby. Andre had been introduced to his new baby sister, but it was time to let him cuddle with his mom and dad for a few minutes before they all headed to the doctor to get Sandy and Valentina checked over.

  She had to sit down as she cradled the baby. She’d never desired children before. She’d always thought that she just wasn’t a maternal person when she was younger, and then she saw so many babies born and die during the last five years that the thought of one of her own hadn’t occurred to her, but now it did. In fact, it slammed into her like a freight train, the desire deep down in her bones to carry JJ’s baby, give birth, and hold a little boy or girl that they made together, tangible proof of their love.

  She looked over at JJ, but he wasn’t there. She looked around. Lydia came over and placed a hand on her shoulder.

  “I’m sorry. He said he had to go. He slipped out while you were holding the baby. I’m sorry.” She wanted to cry. She wanted to be alone to lick her wounds. She felt so empty inside. She couldn’t be around all this love.