by Terri Reid
She pulled some thick white socks out of her dresser drawer, put them on and padded downstairs for her shoes. She was tying her shoes when the front door burst open and Bradley entered.
“Hi,” he said, a big smile spreading across his face. “You look wonderful.”
“Wonderful?” she asked, looking down at her sweats.
Laughing, he pulled her into his arms and kissed her. “Perfectly wonderful.”
She stepped back and stared at him. “You haven’t been drinking or exposed to a chemical contaminant have you?”
He shook his head. “No, I’m in control of all of my senses, I promise. Now let’s grab your coat and get going. We’re running out of time.”
“Running out of time?”
“You’re spending a lot of time repeating what I’m saying,” he pointed out.
“Repeating...”
His raised eyebrow stopped her.
“Fine,” she said, grabbing her coat and slipping it on. “Let’s go.”
The cruiser was at the curb, the engine running. Bradley hurried her into the car, drove down the street to Empire Street and turned left.
“But there aren’t any restaurants down this way,” Mary said.
Bradley nodded. “We can grab something to eat later,” he said. “We have to do this first.”
Within minutes they were entering the long drive to Krape Park. “I got special permission to enter the park after hours,” he teased. “I know the Chief of Police.”
“I hear he’s really good looking,” Mary said.
“Yeah, I’ve heard that too,” he said, with a grin.
“Too bad his ego is out of control,” she replied.
“Well, he hangs around with this gorgeous woman who keeps him in line, so it’s really not a problem.”
He pulled the car into the parking lot near the bandshell. “Okay, ride’s over.”
He got out of the car and slipped off his overcoat. Mary was surprised to see that he was dressed in sweats and running shoes too.
“What’s going on?” she asked.
“I thought we could run a little.”
For a moment she couldn’t even form words. “You thought that it would be a good idea to go running on a freezing February night at 11:45 p.m.?”
He nodded, clearly unabashed. “You did say I could pick any kind of date I wanted, right?”
She stepped out of the car and took her coat off. “Yes, I did,” she said. “So are we racing?”
His mouth spread into a grin. “What else?” he asked, before dashing off towards the path.
“Wait!” she yelled after him, breaking into a run. “I wasn’t ready!”
She saw him disappear around the first bend and stopped yelling so she could concentrate on making up for his head start. She scanned the area as she ran, but realized the snow and ice on the ground would hinder any cross-country shortcuts.
Reaching the top of the first hill, she saw his lead wasn’t as great as it had been at first. She was catching up with him. She ran down the hill at breakneck speed, hoping she didn’t have to stop suddenly. He glanced over his shoulder, saw her coming and increased his speed. However, her downhill momentum was giving her the advantage and she knew she would catch up with him within the next few yards. Suddenly, he veered off the path and headed toward her favorite shortcut, but it required vaulting over two park benches.
“Don’t try it, Bradley,” she called, her voice lost in the night air. “You’ll get hurt.”
She ran after him, her shoes slipping on the snow covered field, her breath appearing as puffs of white steam. “Bradley, wait!”
He dashed toward the first bench, grasped the top and vaulted over it without a problem.
Impressive, Mary thought, running after him. But he hasn’t won yet.
Turning to her right, she angled her run downhill, towards the playground. The ground was covered with chunks from recycled tires and would have better traction than the ground. She watched from the corner of her eye as Bradley took the other bench with ease and headed toward the carousel.
She darted through the entrance of the wooden fortress play area. She dashed around the tire run, hopped over the balancing bar and jumped off the edge of the structure, propelling herself toward the carousel from a slightly difference direction.
Her lungs were burning, but she put her all into the last few yards. Glancing over, she could see Bradley was doing the same. Both just feet from their goal, the chain-link fence that surrounded the carousel, she watched in amazement as Bradley threw himself forward and smashed into the fence seconds before she was able to touch it.
“I won,” he gasped, as he slid to the frozen ground. “I won.”
“You cheated,” she panted.
He turned to her and grinned. “Yeah, I know.”
Her laugh sounded more like wheezing. “That was a brilliant move.”
“I’m sure I learned it from you,” he huffed.
“Probably.”
“So,” he started, turning towards her. “Since I won, I get a prize.”
“You admit you cheated and you still want a prize?” she asked, inhaling deeply to catch her breath.
“The prize is why I cheated,” he confessed.
“Ah, the ends justify the means?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.
He nodded. “In this case, yes.”
“Well, then, I suppose you worked hard enough for it,” she said. “What would you like for a prize?”
Snow began to softly fall on them. Big fat flakes that landed on their faces and then melted away. Bradley looked up at the sky and laughed. The full moon appeared from behind a cloud and the snowflakes were suddenly a thousand sparkling points of light. He dug into the pocket of his sweat pants, pulled out a small box and pushed himself up and away from the fence. He knelt on one knee in front of Mary.
“You,” he said softly. “You’re the prize. Mary O’Reilly, will you marry me?”
He clicked the catch on the lid and held the open box out to her. The diamond ring caught the moonlight and sparkled brilliantly.
Mary shook her head. “But, I don’t understand,” she stammered.
“I didn’t want to ask you on Valentine’s Day, everyone does that. I wanted it to be special,” he explained, glancing down at his watch. “We made it by three minutes.”
“Oh, Bradley,” she said, her voice cracking.
“Mary, just say yes,” he said, leaning towards her. “That’s all you have to do.”
She pushed back into the fence. “But there are so many questions, we don’t have answers to,” she said, panic creeping into her voice. “I may never be able to have children. I’m still not over what happened to me. I’m still having flashbacks.”
With tears streaming down her face, she jumped to her feet and slowly stepped backwards. “I’m sorry, Bradley. I just can’t.”
She turned and ran away from him, knowing the path before her was mirroring her future; dark, cold and alone.
Chapter Fifty-two
Mary had taken about five steps when a hand clapped down on her shoulder, stopping her midstride.
“No,” was all Bradley said.
She took a deep shaky breath and swallowed back her tears. “Bradley, I really can’t...”
“I won the race, I get the prize,” he said simply. “No.”
She twirled around, anger and hurt replacing sadness. “This isn’t a game,” she hissed.
Then she saw his face; calm, serious and determined.
“No, you’re damn right, this isn’t a game,” he said softly. “This is our lives.”
“But I told you why...,” she began.
“But you didn’t give me a chance to respond. You gave me your reasons, fair enough, but now you have to listen to me.”
She wiped her arm across her face, brushing away her tears, and nodded.
“You’re right, I want children,” he said. “But the only children I dream of are the ones we have together.
The only child I want is one who is nurtured and loved by both of us. If we can’t have children of our own, then we can adopt. I don’t want a child if you’re not the mother.”
He pulled her gently into his arms. “I need you in my life Mary. You hold my heart in your hand. If you walk away, you walk away with my heart. I’ll never be whole again.”
Crying softly, she laid her head against his shoulder and placed her hands on his chest. This was not fair, she thought. She was trying to do the right thing for both of them. She was trying to protect him. Why couldn’t he see that?
He lightly rubbed her back and laid his head on hers. “Mary,” he whispered. “What are you worrying about now?”
“But, what if...if I can’t...” she began.
“I told you that I was not going to ever let fear and doubt stand in the way of our love,” he interrupted. “I’m more afraid of facing life without you than I am of helping you work through the flashbacks.”
He placed his hands on her shoulders and leaned back, meeting her eyes. “Our love has been strong enough to overcome obstacles much bigger than this. You have to have a little more faith in both of us.”
She thought about what he’d said and realized that he was right. She had let fear rule her life lately, instead of faith. She’d nearly let Gary win again. When in the hell had she turned into such a wimp? An O’Reilly never runs from a good fight!
Taking a deep breath, she met his eyes. “You cheated,” she said.
Relief spread over his face and he grinned down at her. “Darn right and I’d do it again.”
“I have to admit, it was a pretty impressive run,” she said.
“It was the most important race of my life,” he replied seriously. “And I won.”
She shook her head and watched the happiness leave his eyes for a moment. “No, I won,” she said softly, as she reached up and kissed him softly on the lips.
He wrapped his arms tightly around her and lifted her off the ground, spinning in a circle as the snow flew around them. Then he kissed her until she was breathless. “Say it,” he insisted, lowering her feet to the ground, but keeping his arms firmly around her. “Please say it.”
“I love you, Bradley Alden,” she said, her eyes glowing with love. “And, yes, I will marry you.”
Chapter Fifty-three
The sun was barely up when Ian came down the stairs to the kitchen. Mary was already busy in the kitchen. He stopped at the bottom of the stairs and sniffed the air. “What is it that we’d be having for breakfast this morning?” he asked.
“Waffles,” Mary said, with a quick smile.
“Waffles?” he repeated. “That’s a fine way to greet the day. Are we celebrating?”
Mary tried to hide her smile, but the joy she was feeling was too great to hold in.
“Yes,” she said with a wide grin. “Yes, we certainly are celebrating.”
“Ach, do you think you’ll be hurting the wee bairns feelings acting this way?” he asked.
“What? What do you mean?”
“Oh, that’s right, I dinna tell you,” he said. “While you were getting ready for your fancy date last night Katie called. They were getting in late last night and would be coming over this morning to pick up Andy and Maggie.”
“Oh,” she said, her light mood slightly diminished. “Oh, well, I’m going to miss them.”
“Aye, like a splinter,” Ian teased.
“Come on,” she said. “Admit it; you loved every moment of it.”
He nodded, straddling the kitchen chair, and looking longingly up stairs. “Andy’s full of wit and Maggie, well she’s wrapped my heart around her wee finger.”
“Do we really have to give them back?” she asked.
He chuckled. “Aye, I’m sure Katie’s just as fond of them,” he said. “So, if we aren’t celebrating being free and single once again, what are we celebrating?”
She held her left hand out, displaying her new engagement ring. “Not being single,” she said.
Ian got up, walked over and took her hand in his. “Well, look at this shiny rock,” he said. “But it’s no competition to the sparkle in your eyes. I ken you’re happy.”
“So happy,” she admitted.
“Aye,” he said. “And it’s about time.”
She laughed. “Yes it is.”
The sound of small footsteps on the stairs was almost bittersweet.
“Guess what, Mary?” Maggie said. “My mom is coming home today.”
“That is so wonderful,” Mary said. “I’m sure she missed you.”
Maggie nodded. “Yes, I’m sure she missed me too.”
Ian laughed and ruffled her hair. “What do you think about waffles?”
Her eyes widened. “Really? Waffles? I love waffles.”
Ian pulled some plates from the cabinet and set them on the counter. “Well, we’re celebrating this morning,” he said. “So we’re all having waffles.”
“Do you want butter and syrup or strawberries and whipped cream?” Mary asked her.
“How about...,” she said, lengthening the word as she made up her mind. “Both.”
Ian laughed out loud. “Aye, darling, you can have both.”
Andy hurried down the stairs carrying his suitcase and his backpack. “My mom is coming to get us today,” he announced. “I told her we could stay longer, but she said she missed us too much.”
“Well, I can understand that,” Mary said. “I’m going to miss you when you’re gone.”
Andy slipped onto a chair at the table. “I could come over every day and eat breakfast with you,” he offered. “So you wouldn’t miss me so much.”
Mary grinned. “Well, we need to work something out with your mother, so we get to see you more often,” she agreed.
“I like your ring,” Maggie said, as she stuffed her mouth with waffle.
“Thank you,” Mary replied. “Bradley gave it to me.”
Andy stopped buttering his waffle for a moment and looked up at her. “Are you guys getting married?” he asked, delighted.
Mary nodded. “Yes we are.”
“That is so cool,” Andy said.
“Why thank you, Andy,” Mary said, a little surprised at his reaction.
“So, he’s going to move here, right?” he asked. “Chief Alden is going to be my neighbor?”
Ian laughed. “Now I see why he’s so excited.”
“Well, it’s okay,” Mary said. “I can totally understand his infatuation.”
A little while later, both of the children were washed up and ready to go.
“Your mom will be here in a moment,” Mary said, blinking back tears. “Thank you for staying with me.”
Maggie came over and gave her a big hug. “You are my favoritist place to stay,” she said. “I love you.”
“I love you too, Maggie,” she said, returning the hug.
Ian squatted down and Maggie hugged him too. “Remember now,” Ian said, his voice cracking slightly. “You promised you’re going to marry me when you’re older.”
“Will you get me a pretty ring, like Mary’s?”
Laughing, he gave her a quick squeeze, “Aye, just like Mary’s.”
Andy walked over to Mary. “I guess I’m too old for a hug, right?”
Mary shook her head. “Well, you might be too old,” she said. “But I’m not.”
She gave him a hug.
“I’m glad the Chief is marrying you,” he whispered to her. “He’s like a hero.”
Nodding, she wiped away a few stray tears. “Yeah, he is.”
When she heard the knock on the door, she gave Andy another quick hug and stood up. “I think that might be for you,” she said.
She opened the door and Katie came inside. The children threw themselves against her. “Mom, you’re home.”
Katie hugged them and held them for a few moments. “I missed both of you so much,” she said. “Did you behave yourselves?”
Maggie nodded. “I was so good. And gu
ess what? Mary got a ring from Bradley. She’s getting married.”
Katie looked up at Mary. “Really?” she asked. “That’s wonderful.”
“Yeah, Chief Alden is going to be living here,” Andy said. “That’s so cool.”
Katie laughed. “Yes, that is cool,” she agreed.
“Can I go tell dad?” Andy asked.
“Yes, you may,” Katie said.
“Me too?” Maggie asked.
“Yes, but be sure to say thank you and good-bye to Mary and Ian.”
“Thank you. Good-bye,” both children repeated obediently as they rushed out the door.
“Well, I love emotional good-byes,” Ian laughed. “Katie they were a delight. Sometime we’ll have to tell you about Maggie’s guardian angel.”
“I’d love to hear more about him,” she said.
“Aye, I’m sure you will,” he said. “Now, I’ll go and clean up the waffles. Welcome home, Katie.”
“Waffles?” she said to Mary, “You really did spoil them.”
“It was my pleasure. Really.”
Katie took Mary’s hand and looked at the ring. “Oh, well, that’s just beautiful,” she said. “And was it romantic?”
Mary grinned. “It was perfect,” she said.
“Daddy!” They both heard Maggie’s cry of delight and peeked out the door to see Maggie throw herself into her father’s arms.
A shadow of sadness passed over Mary’s face.
“What’s wrong?” Katie asked.
Mary shrugged. “Nothing really.”
Katie laughed. “You’re not a very good liar, Mary. Now tell me.”
“I don’t know if Bradley and I will be able to have children,” she said. “I don’t know if I’ll ever be able to be a mother.”
Katie hugged Mary. “My mother always told me never to borrow troubles,” she said. “Just wait and see what happens, you might be just fine and you’ve worried for nothing.”
“Mom, come on,” Andy yelled.
Mary smiled. “You’re right, and you’d better get going.”
She squeezed Mary’s hand. “Things will turn out the way they are supposed to,” she said, moving to the door. “Besides, there’s always adoption.”
