Taken By You

by Carlie Sexton

“Dude, I appreciate you wanting to set me up with someone, but it seems a little soon for her to meet anyone. She’s grieving,” Mac said, taking a sip of wine.

  “Ah, you figured it out. Well, maybe you could just be her friend for right now and see where it might lead in the future. She’s a quality woman and I don’t see her as someone who would only like you for your money.“

  “Yeah, I can tell, but we all know how easy it is to be friends with a woman you are attracted to. I haven’t been able to take my eyes off of her. Could you be just friends with Kate?”

  “Point well made. No chance I could just be her friend. I want her too badly. Speaking of Kate, I want you to be the first to know that I am going to propose to her tomorrow.”

  “Wow, this is serious. Are you sure? You have only known each other for a short time. I mean… You know what I mean.”

  “I’m ready man. I want her to be my wife. I want the next phase of our lives to begin. She’s changed everything for me.”

  Mac nodded. “I’m happy for you. You deserve to have a good woman in your life. I can see how much she loves you.”

  “Thanks. I want the same for you. I think that Natalie is as attracted to you are you are to her.”

  “I kind of got that feeling too. I’ll just see what happens. Who knows, maybe you just found the right girl for me like I did for you.”

  As the words left Mac’s mouth, Kate and Natalie returned. “Your mom said that dinner is almost ready. Probably another ten minutes or so.”

  Neil and Mac shared some funny childhood stories. “Do you remember that time that we found a barrel?” Neil asked laughing.

  “Yeah, we almost killed ourselves,” Mac chided.

  “What happened?” Kate asked.

  “A neighbor threw out some old barrel and we took it out of the trash. We totally thought we had found a treasure. Then one of us,” Neil said, pointing at Mac, “got the brilliant idea to use it as some sort of vehicle. Mac got inside of it and rolled down the street. Cars were honking their horns and swerving to not hit the barrel.”

  “How old were you guys?” Kate asked.

  “I think we were about ten,” Mac responded.

  “Anyway, when it was my turn, my dad was just about to pull up the driveway when he saw me getting into the barrel and Mac in the ready position to give me a push. He started honking and yelling for me to get out of it. Of course I did. Boy, were we in trouble that night. I think we both got grounded for that one, huh?”

  Mac nodded. “We both got grounded often for the crazy ideas that we came up with.”

  Natalie listened intently but she hadn’t said a word since she returned from the bathroom. Kate had done her best to console her but Natalie’s emotions were just too raw. It was too soon after her sister’s death for her to be social. She figured that Natalie probably wanted to leave but was too polite to say so. She’d talk to Neil about leaving early so that Natalie could go home and rest.

  Sophia came to the terrace door and announced that dinner would be served momentarily. They all got up and proceeded to the kitchen. Sophia and Jessica began dishing up all of the sides and asked Neil and Kate to deliver them to the dining room. Magnus began carving the turkey. In under a minute, the table was adorned with food and they all sat down to begin their Thanksgiving meal together.

  “It’s Thanksgiving and I want to give thanks for our many blessings. Would everyone please join hands and bow your heads?” Magnus said, looking around the table to see that everyone was ready. “Dear Lord, we want to thank you for the many blessings that you have bestowed upon us this year. Please keep us all safe, happy, and healthy. Thank you for my wonderful family and bless this food to our bodies, amen.”

  Everyone around the table repeated amen and began eating. After his first bite, Magnus picked up his glass of wine to make a toast. “I want to toast the wonderful woman who prepared this sumptuous meal for us. Sophia, you are a blessing to all of us and we are so lucky to have you in our lives.”

  “To mom,” everyone repeated together and began clinking each other’s glasses. The next minute or so was spent oohing and awing over the delicious meal. Natalie got up abruptly and excused herself to the bathroom again.

  “I better go check on her,” Kate said a minute later, breaking the awkward silence that hovered over the room.

  “Why don’t you let me? I’m pretty sure that I understand what she is going through,” said Mac.

  Kate nodded as Mac got up to find Natalie.

  ***

  Mac checked the bathroom, but Natalie wasn’t there. He decided to go outside, where he found her sitting on the terrace. He sat on the sofa next to her. She was crying and had her head down, resting it on the back of the sofa. She barely noticed his presence.

  “Are you doing okay?” he asked, taking her hand.

  She looked up him with a trembling lip. “No, I can’t take it. It’s only been a few years since my parents passed and just about two weeks since my sister was killed. I just can’t stand that they are gone. It was a mistake for me to come today. When Mr. Statton prayed about being thankful all I could think about was what I have lost. I feel so alone without my family.”

  Mac nodded and kept holding her hand. “I can understand to a degree how you feel. I felt the same way when my parents died but for me it was many years ago. I miss them but I’m not grieving anymore.”

  “When does the grief end? I just want it to go away.”

  “I hate to say it but it’s going to take time. Years probably. You’ll think that you are fine and then something will hit you and you’ll miss them. I’m not sure it ever completely goes away.”

  Natalie exhaled loudly. “I had finally felt okay with it being just Jessica and me. We had made it through the darkest part and were moving on. Now that she’s gone, I feel like I have fallen down a deep well and there is no way out.”

  Tears continued streaming down Natalie’s face.

  “Come here,” Mac said pulling her closer. He put his arms around her and held her as she cried, her head resting on his chest. He didn’t know why, but he felt strongly connected to Natalie. Perhaps it was their similar pasts. He felt a need to protect her and watch over her. He wasn’t sure where it came from.

  “Do you want me to take you home?” he asked.

  She pulled away far enough to look him in the eyes. “Would you? I really want to go. I can’t stay and do small talk.”

  He got up and held his hand out to her. She took it and he escorted her back into the house.

  Mac and Natalie entered the dining room. “I’m going to take Natalie home. She’s not feeling well,” he said.

  “Let me make a plate for each of you. Give me two minutes,” said Sophia.

  “I don’t want you to go to any trouble,” Natalie said.

  “It’s no trouble and I insist. I’ll be right back with some containers so you can have something to eat even if you save it for later.”

  “Thank you. I appreciate it,” Natalie said, nodding slightly.

  “Nat, let’s get your coat and purse while Sophia gets the containers,” Kate suggested.

  They walked into living room, where they found their purses on the sofa console table and their coats on the rack. “If you prefer that Neil and I take you home, we will,” Kate said, putting her hand on Natalie’s arm.

  “No, it’s okay. I feel comfortable with Mac. He understands what I’m going through. This might sound strange but I think I need him right now.”

  “I’m glad he can be a comfort to you. I’m sorry. I didn’t think when I invited you how hard it would be. I just didn’t want you to be alone,” Kate said, her eyes filling with tears.

  “I know. I appreciate you asking me to join in. It means a lot to me to have you and Charlie in my life.”

  Mac walked up with a bag of food. “Are you ready?” he asked.

  “Yes. Please say goodbye to everyone for me. I really just need to go,” Natalie virtually whispered, and she gave Kate
a hug.

  “No problem. I’ll call you later,” Kate said.

  With that, Mac escorted Natalie out the front door.

  ***

  Kate returned to the dining room. She explained to Neil’s family what was happening with Natalie and they all felt dreadful for what she had endured.

  “I didn’t realize that being here would be so difficult for Natalie, but I should have. I just love her so much and the thought of her being alone on Thanksgiving was more than I could bare. She has always been there for me,” Kate said shaking her head slightly.

  “It’s difficult to know what to do when someone is grieving. I’m sure Natalie was grateful to be invited. Mac will take good care of her. He is a very kind man,” Sophia said.

  Everyone continued enjoying their food and the conversation was light-hearted with Neil’s parents taking the lead. Kate was relieved that Magnus and Sophia were so gregarious; they kept the conversation lively. It took the pressure off her.

  After eating dinner, dessert was served in the living room. Sophia had made pumpkin pie and brewed a pot of decaf. Kate had a chance to visit with Jessica and get to know her and her husband a bit better. Overall, it had been a wonderful day, even though Kate was worried about Natalie.

  Neil leaned over and whispered in Kate’s ear, asking her if she was ready to go. She nodded.

  “Well, we’re going to go ahead and make our goodbyes,” he said to his parents.

  “We’re going to go as well,” Jessica chimed in.

  As Neil drove them home, Kate rested her head against the car door, gazing out the window the entire time.

  “Are you okay?” he asked as they were turning onto the street where they lived.

  “Not really. Today was a tough day. It was really hard to see Natalie in so much pain and I thought about my mom quite a bit too.”

  “When we get upstairs, why don’t you draw yourself a bath and give Natalie a call?”

  “That’s a good idea. I really want to check on her. She has been through so much. I’m glad Mac took her home early.”

  “Yeah, it seemed like Mac could really empathize with what she was going through.”

  Neil parked the car and they made their way to the elevator. “I really enjoyed meeting your family today. They were so welcoming to me,” Kate said, putting her hand to her chest. “Your mom went out of her way to make today great. I can see why you are so special. You have an amazing mother.”

  “Well, I could tell that my family loved you. You made a great impression on them,” Neil said, kissing Kate.

  Once inside, Neil followed Kate upstairs. Before she could say anything, he pulled the tie on her dress, causing it to open up, revealing her body. “I’ve been waiting to do that since you got dressed,” he said his eyes blazing. Neil swept Kate into his arms and began kissing her, his tongue stroking hers in sweeping motions. His hands glided over her waist and Kate was lost in her sexy man. The feel of his touch made her weak in the knees. Her phone calls could wait as she had the man she loved embracing her, loving her, intoxicating her. She felt like the luckiest woman alive.

  ***

  Kate turned on the water to fill the bathtub. She was more than ready for a long soak. She had her cell phone and had two calls in mind. One to Natalie to check on her, the other to Charlie to hear all about Mitch’s proposal.

  “Hi, Nat. I was calling to see how you are doing.”

  “I’m okay. Mac stayed for a while. We ate the food that Sophia sent with us and talked. He’s a really good guy. We watched a movie and then he left.”

  “Oh, that’s good. Did talking to him help?”

  “It did. He can relate to what I’m going through.”

  “Nat, have you thought about getting some grief counseling? I could ask Dr. Cox for a recommendation.”

  “Mac brought that up, too. Maybe I should see Dr. Cox myself. He has really helped you. I think he might be able to help me. Give me his number.”

  Kate rattled off the doctor’s number. Natalie said she was tired and had to work tomorrow with it being Black Friday, so their call was on the shorter side.

  Next, Kate called Charlie. “Happy Thanksgiving, Charlie! How was your day?”

  “It was the best day ever, Kate! Mitch proposed!”

  “That’s so exciting,” Kate squealed. How did he do it?” Kate asked, not wanting to expose that Mitch had told her ahead of time. She didn’t want Charlie to think that she had put Mitch up to proposing.

  “It was so sweet. We had just finished having our first Thanksgiving meal with my family and it was time for dessert. Actually, I decided to pass on dessert because I knew that we had another big meal to eat with his family. But Mitch presented me with a dessert plate covered by a silver lid. I had no idea what he was doing and I told him that I was too full for dessert.”

  “What did he do?” Kate questioned.

  “He smiled at me and said, ‘I think you are going to want this dessert. Trust me.’ So I opened it and inside was a ring box. I sat there frozen for a minute.”

  “Then what happened?”

  “Mitch got down on one knee. He picked up the box from the plate and opened it, showing me the ring. Then he told me how much he loved me and wanted to spend the rest of his life with me.”

  “Oh, Charlie! I am so thrilled for you. You and Mitch make an amazing couple.”

  “Thanks, Kate. I am so happy. Having my family there made it so special to me and my dad secretly videotaped the whole thing. I’ll bring it over so you can see it for yourself. I also want you to hear what Mitch said. His proposal was so heartfelt. We were all crying by the time he was done. I couldn’t think of a better way for him to propose.”

  “It sounds wonderful. Have you discussed a date yet?”

  “I would like to get married during the summer. We talked about this June or July. There’s so much to plan. Would you be my maid of honor?”

  “Of course, I will. I can’t wait to go shopping for everything. It’s going to be so much fun. What are you doing on Saturday? We can go to David’s Bridal and look at gowns.”

  “I’d love to do that. We can invite Natalie too, if she’s not working. Maybe a change of scenery will do her some good. I want her to know she is included in our lives.”

  “Today was really tough on her. She left early with Neil’s friend Mac.”

  “Oh no. Well, she’ll probably say no, but at least she’ll know she is wanted. Not inviting her could hurt her feelings.”

  “That’s a good point,” Kate said.

  “I need to get started on making decisions right away. I only have about seven months.”

  “I think we can get it all done by then. We just need to make a list to stay organized.”

  “I’m way ahead of you. I already started a list. I’m going to pick up a wedding planner so I don’t miss anything.”

  “Do you think you are going to have a big wedding or a small one?”

  “I really want something on the smaller side. I’ve been to both types, but I enjoyed the smaller one more and the bride seemed to have more fun at the smaller wedding. I want Mitch and I to enjoy ourselves, not be overwhelmed by hundreds of guests.”

  “Yeah, I think I would want the same thing,” Kate responded.

  “Well, you’re next,” Charlie chided.

  “I would marry Neil tomorrow if he asked me, but it’s probably too soon. We’ve only known each other a few months. Plus this whole Roger thing has made our relationship move faster. I doubt that we would be living together if it wasn’t for me being in danger.”

  “I think that Neil is head over heels for you and definitely wants to marry you. If he didn’t, he wouldn’t have flown out to your dad’s funeral to clarify your relationship. He would have just waited for you to return home. He’s willing to fight for you and that tells me he is serious.”

  “I know you’re right. I just don’t want to get my hopes up. He may take a year or two to ask. It’s fun to imagine being his wi
fe. But I can live vicariously through you right now. It’s a good distraction from all that’s been going on.”

  “I don’t know how you are getting through all of this with Roger after you.”

  “I feel safer now that I have security with me every time I leave the house. At least he doesn’t know where I am. It would be pretty hard for him to find Neil. They never met and he doesn’t know anything about him.”

  “Well, thank God for that. Listen, I better go. I am going shopping with my mom tomorrow. It’s our tradition, as you know, for us to shop on Black Friday.”

  “Okay, well, have fun. I’ll see you on Saturday.”

  “See you then.”

  They ended their call and Kate was still soaking in the tub when Neil came in.

  “So, how was Charlie’s proposal?” he asked.

  “It was wonderful. She is so happy. We’re going shopping on Saturday. She wants to have a summer wedding. I’m going to be her maid of honor,” Kate responded.

  “That’s great, baby. Is the water still hot?”

  “Why? Are you planning on joining me?”

  “Absolutely,” he said with a sly grin and began removing his clothes.

  “If it’s not hot enough for you, let me know,” she said. “I can always heat things up for you,” she said with a sly grin of her own.

  Chapter 19

  Paulina washed her hands for the hundredth time. Her obsessive-compulsive disorder had kicked into high gear after her conversation with Darcy yesterday. She was exhausted after tossing and turning most of the night. Her brain was trying to come up with a plan to evade Roger long enough to go back to Germany with their son. She had managed to stay in the kitchen most of the afternoon, slaving away while Roger was in the living room entertaining Rose. She had shown up with a store-bought pumpkin pie and all Paulina could imagine doing was spitting it in her face. Even though Paulina did her best to be civil, everything she said came out with a bite to it. She just couldn’t be gracious and engaging with Rose even after she had told Roger it was okay to invite her for Thanksgiving dinner.

  If that wasn’t enough that she felt goose bumps rise on her arms and neck every time she and Roger made eye contact. She kept telling herself to relax, but she was certain that a permanent furrowed brow had remained no matter how hard she willed herself to smile. All she had to do was get through today.