“Not yet…”
But before he finished his thought Geni was asking, “Why not, Matthew?”
“Because she blew it off…”
Again she interrupted him, “This hesitation to go to the doctor may be because she’s scared. You need to take the lead on this and gently force her to make that appointment, and make sure she goes.”
Matthew thought for a moment and suddenly he understood; if it was something bad Carlee didn’t want to know.
“No other symptoms?” she asked.
“Not that she’s mentioned, but I noticed no appetite when she wakes up, but she ate a good dinner last night, said she was ‘starving!’” he laughed.
“Does she seem depressed or sad?” Geni’s mind was racing, thinking of questions to help Matthew, as well as Carlee.
“No, not really; I called a while ago, and she was up and sounded better than when I left this morning.”
“Maybe it’s a pressure thing, the weather I mean,” she said, explaining.
“Yeah, maybe. I’ll see how she is in the morning. What’s been going on there?” He knew; he had messages from both of his brothers that Andy was coming to town every few days.
“Lots, but we’ll talk more about that soon. Call me later and tell me how she’s feeling. I love you both.”
“Love you, too.”
He hung up and dialed Carlee.
“Hey beautiful, feeling better?” he asked when she answered.
“Much!” she replied.
He listened, and she really did sound better. “I’m here by the market. Can I bring you anything special?”
“Yes!” she said her voice full of merriment. “Oh! I’m so glad you asked!” He loved hearing the excitement in her voice. “There’s something I’ve been wanting all day. I think it’s there.”
“Name it…”
“Well, I’ve seen it there before, so let me describe it. It’s something de’lish, tall, dark, and luscious…” she laughed.
“One of those chocolate torte things?” he laughed.
“No, you!” she laughed. “Please just come home. I’ve got something already cooking for dinner. I’m missing you, just come home.”
“Five minutes…” he said.
~ ~ ~
She’d showered and slipped into the blue pair of the satin pajamas that he’d gotten her. When he entered, he put his things down, and she came from the other room. She stood on tiptoes and wrapped her arms around his neck. He lifted her off the floor, and she wrapped her legs around his waist as she kissed him. He put his hands under her bottom to support her and shared her kisses. Walking to the kitchen, he set her on the kitchen counter.
“Wow, this is a nice surprise,” he said.
“I feel so much better! Wait ‘til you see what’s for dinner!” she said with a happy voice.
“With you in those PJs,” he said kissing her again, “I’m far more interested in dessert.”
After dinner they were on the sofa snuggling, I really do feel much better, she thought.
Her phone rang. “Hello,” she said and was happy to find that it was Geni. “How are you?”
“Actually, I’m calling to see how you are,” Geni said.
“I’m good; I guess you talked to Matthew,” she smiled.
“Is he close-by, because I want to ask you something… a couple of things actually,” Geni asked.
“Yes,” but as she said it, Matthew’s phone rang. “Hang on a sec.” She whispered to Matthew that she was going to go in the other room.
“He had a call too, so I came in the bedroom. What’s up?”
“I want to talk about you first, and then I have something else. This headache thing, it’s new, right?”
“Yes,” Carlee replied.
“And you don’t have any other symptoms? Matthew said something about a swimmy-head.”
“I know what you are going to say. If it happens again, I will make a doctor appointment. It’s just in the morning, and by around noontime it’s kinda gone. I really think I just have too much on my mind. I know I can tell you this - all of a sudden, I’m struggling about school. I think I’m dreading the whole idea of going back,” Carlee told her.
“Why the struggles? You can talk to me, Carlee.”
“I know that, I’m not sure I can explain it, though. It’s become a dread that I keep trying to push aside. I’ve got my schedule pretty much set – just can’t seem to put my finger on the button to submit it.”
“And you aren’t depressed or sad?”
“I don’t think so; I feel happy! I think that’s the problem,” she giggled. “I love being here waiting when my husband comes in from work. I’m so happy being married to him!”
Geni smiled, newlyweds. She thought a minute and finally said, “OK, I want to preempt this with the ‘I am not a meddling mother-in-law,’ speech, but I called a friend who’s a physician’s assistant a little bit ago, and she had a question I couldn’t answer. I haven’t, and won’t mention this to anyone else; it’s between us, but I’m asking, and you can tell me to mind my own business or whatever, but I’m asking,” she said again.
“OK,” Carlee responded cautiously.
“When was your last period?” Geni asked.
Carlee started to laugh. “It’s not that it’s funny, it’s the whole speech before-hand,” she said still snickering. “I already thought of that, and we took another pregnancy test last week. Geni, I’m not pregnant.”
“You know you can be pregnant while you are on birth control, even if you’ve taken it correctly, even if you’ve had a period.”
“I know, but…”
“You need to make a doctor’s appointment and find out what the heck is going on, Carlee.”
“I’m not ready to think about that again,” she started to cry.
“Don’t cry; listen to me, something is going on. I believe I know your fears. Go find out what this is and get it behind you. I haven’t, and I won’t say a word to Andy, but it’s important to find out so that you can figure out how to fix it,” Geni told her, kicking into Mama Bear mode. “This is between us.”
“Thank you,” she walked into the bathroom and washed her face while they were talking. “What was the other thing?”
“I know Andy has already talked to you, but I want to talk to you now. Just us,” she said. “Just you and me, heart-to-heart… Are you OK with him and me seeing each other?”
“Yes,” Carlee said quickly. “Geni, it’s been a very long time since my mama passed away. He may never stop loving her; they shared so much, but it’s time for him to move forward. He should have the company of a woman in his life. I know why he hasn’t all these years - he thought he was being loyal to both her memory and to me. But I would have been OK with it if he’d dated, even if he fell in love - as long as he still loved me, and there’s not an inch of my being that doesn’t believe that he would ever not love me.” She started crying again.
“He gave me so much, Geni. I want him to be happy. I’ve watched you two any time you are together, and it makes me smile each time I observed it. I saw you dance at our wedding, at the ball, and I saw you hug at camp. I saw you when you were here, and I liked it. You should explore it and see where it goes. Matthew thinks so too.” Suddenly, Carlee was giggling, and hard as she tried, she couldn’t stop.
“What’s so funny?” Geni asked.
“Well,” Carlee tried to regain her composure, unsuccessfully. “I was trying not to go there, but after our earlier conversation, when I just said ‘you should explore it,’ all I can think of is that I need to tell you to practice safe sex!”
She was lying back on the bed, no longer giggling, she was laughing and Geni was laughing just as hard on the other end.
“No wonder Matthew fell in love with you,” Geni said.
Carlee heard a voice in the background and said through her laughter, “If that’s my Papa, put him on the phone!”
“It is, but before I do I want to tell y
ou, I love you. Figure out this thing with your health, Carlee. It’s important” Geni said.
“I love you, right back!” Carlee said. As Matthew came in the room, she held up a finger to quiet him.
“Well, hello Papa!” she said in a teasing ‘you’ve been caught’ tone.
“Busted…” he said and laughed. “What on earth were the two of you laughing about? Geni is laughing so hard she has tears in her eyes!”
“That,” Carlee said emphatically, “will be our secret! Hey, do you know that in three weeks I will be 21? Twenty-one. Papa! You’d better plan to take me out to a nice place to eat where I can legally consume alcoholic beverages when we come home for Christmas!”
“It’s a date. I’ll call you Saturday. I love you sweet girl.”
“I love you right back,” she said and hung up.
Matthew joined her, stretching out beside her on the bed. “What was so funny?” he asked, caressing her arm as he asked.
Carlee rolled to face him. She put her arms around him, fingers lightly rubbing his back, she moved in closer. Nibbling his ear, she kissed him, “If I tell you, I won’t be able to concentrate on this,” she said. “And I want to concentrate on this…”
~ ~ ~
After he hung up, Andy told Geni he’d talked to Matthew - now he’d made the rounds with Geni’s family. Geni shared part of what she and Carlee discussed. So now, the two of them were ready to explore a new path, but Geni wasn’t ready to explore too quickly. She didn’t think Andy was yet either, so they just enjoyed being together.
They sat in the quiet a moment. The windows were open, and evening filled the senses; the rustle of leaves from a light breeze, the sound of the river lapping the bulkhead, and the sun, just below the horizon cast a soft golden glow in the room.
“Carlee gave me a piece of advice,” Geni said, finally. She leaned toward him, put her hand on the back of his head and drew him near. She braced herself and leaned closer to kiss him. This was the first time that she’d initiated a kiss; she’d hugged him, but this time it was a kiss. His arms went around her, and he kissed back.
“She said that I should explore. I’m not too adventurous so that’s enough. For now.” She smiled at him and backed away.
“No, wait,” he said and pulled her back. “Just one more.”
“Good night, Andy,” she said as they rose from the sofa, knowing his kisses would be on her mind the rest of the evening.
She lay in bed thinking about him, but she was thinking about Carlee, too. Worried that she’d overstepped her boundaries as a mother-in-law, but more concerned that something wasn’t right.
~ ~ ~
Friday morning, she woke up feeling pretty good. “Hey,” she said over coffee, “How ‘bout I take you to work today? I have a couple errands I want to run.”
“You sure you feel up to that? You’ve been kinda puny for a few days.” Matthew said.
“Feeling better than I have in a while! I’ve been cooped up here for days, and I’m ready to get out.”
“If you’re sure,” he said scooting his chair closer to whisper in her ear. “Just don’t forget to come get me.” His breath was warm and sent a shiver up her spine. He left a trail of kisses from her neck, down her jawline, moving in for a kiss. She sucked in a breath, and as she did, felt Matthew’s tongue slip in to dance with her own.
Wide-eyed, she told him, “Well, there’s NO chance of that, now!”
“I love you, Carlee.”
~ ~ ~
She dropped him off at the college and made a few stops, making her way to the U.K.’s version of Wal-Mart, ASDA. She grabbed groceries and some things they needed, plus a few things she wanted. She made a quick stop by the pharmacy and hurried back to the flat to drop off her purchases - and take another pregnancy test.
‘Rapid Response’ she read on the label. Here goes, she thought. A minute later - a negative reading. “Whewww…” a wave of relief washed over her.
She buried the packaging and test in the kitchen waste can. She really wasn’t ready for Matthew to be thinking about that again.
Later, Carlee pulled up to the curb just as Matthew exited the building. “Well, hello handsome! Going my way?” she laughed.
He got in the car and kissed her. “You seem happy this afternoon.”
“I feel good. I just picked a handsome man up on the street corner… what’s not to be happy about?” she laughed.
“You sound good! It’s Friday night – do you wanna go out? Maybe a movie tonight and sit in the back and make out?”
“We can do that on the sofa at home, naked if you want!” she laughed, and he let out a moan.
~ ~ ~
Monday evening, Andy and Geni were on the sofa in her living room, sharing a glass of wine. He’d been there a couple of days and was heading back south the next morning to take care of some things at home.
“Would you like to join me?” he asked.
“Not that I don’t want to, but I’m gonna stick around here. I have some stuff I need to get done,” she told him.
After a few minutes she asked, “How long are you gonna be?”
“How long can you stay?” he asked, knowing she was reconsidering.
“If we can be back Sunday afternoon, I’ll join you,” she told him.
“Then we’ll be back Sunday afternoon.” He smiled as he said it, glad to share her company for a few more days.
~ ~ ~
Andy and Geni made their way south on Tuesday. Before going to his house he made a stop. “My studio,” he said. “I’ve got something I need to do.”
Marco wasn’t there; Andy had called earlier, and he told him that he was headed out so he knew it would just be them, and in his thoughts he was glad. He hadn’t thought about how to broach the subject of him and Geni – yet. He didn’t want to hide that they were exploring a relationship; he just wanted to know how to talk about it with others. Geni agreed. It was part of the ‘take it slow’ path that they’d agreed on.
When they arrived, he showed her around and then showed her where to have a seat. He went behind the glass, set some equipment and went to the piano. He was facing where Geni was sitting when he started playing and liked that he could watch her, as he did. She’d heard him play before - there was a piano in his home, but she recognized this as the tune he sang to her the other evening. He began singing the words. She thought about what he was singing - It’s not because I’m lonely. It was a beautiful song, but a more beautiful sentiment. When he was done, he came and sat with her and did a playback.
“Rough cut,” he said. “But I needed to get it started,” he told her and explained the process. “Next, Marco has a listen; we talk about variations, and then think about accompaniment, other instruments, background vocals, that kind of thing.”
“It was very beautiful just like that,” she said. “Interesting to see how it begins.”
“Come on, we’ll lock up now - just needed to take care of that while it was fresh, and this was on the way to the house.”
Her phone rang; she looked at the display, “Sorry, I need to take this,” and she walked across the room.
“Hey there, how are you feeling?” she asked, seeing it was Carlee.
“Good, no headache, no nuthin’. I haven’t had a chance to call before now because Matthew’s been around, but I wanted to tell you - I took him to work Friday and made a stop. I’m not pregnant. I needed to know,” Carlee said.
“Well, part of me says ‘great’ and another part of me thinks differently,” she laughed.
“It’s good,” Carlee said. “Way too soon, and we haven’t really talked about it. The last time, I think we both felt relief; a ‘surprise’ wouldn’t have been my choice.”
“I’m with Andy, I’ll call you later,” Geni told her.
“I love you, Geni.”
~ ~ ~
Several days passed with no headaches, nausea, or swimmy-head, and Mathew felt relieved. He didn’t push the doctor visit, because sh
e seemed OK. Thursday was Thanksgiving, and they planned a dinner, inviting their friends, Deb and Michael, to join them. Having guests come for dinner excited Carlee, and she was cooking the ‘feast’ that Matthew requested. She was sad that they wouldn’t be with family, but she knew that Andy was going to Geni’s.
Carlee was on the phone with Geni several times on Tuesday before the big meal preparation, asking questions about things she was unsure of. “They don’t celebrate Thanksgiving here, so I’m learning that things like pumpkin pie aren’t a big deal here, like at home. No frozen pies that I can track down, so I’m going to attempt homemade, but the recipe I have calls for stuff I don’t have. I got the cheater crust. Homemade pie crust was waaaay over my head,” she said drawing the word out.
“Cheater?” Geni laughed.
“Yeah, the kind you unfold so it looks like you made it, but what the heck is evaporated milk, and…”
Andy listened as the two women talked. He arrived that morning and was there for the holiday weekend. He’d been spending a lot of time with Geni and her family. It seemed that they were both comfortable rolling into what they were sharing at a slow pace. He slept down the hall, and they spent the days talking, going out to lunch or dinner, and Geni was showing him all that she loved about Jacksonville.
He watched as she talked with Carlee that morning. Noticing that she liked sharing this experience with Carlee, he assumed that both Malia and Angela’s mothers taught them to cook, and sharing this experience with Carlee was a special treat for her.
“My son really, really likes homemade whipped cream on his pumpkin pie.”
“Ah, but there are limits to my culinary abilities,” Carlee laughed. “It’ll be the squirt can or nothing!”
“There’s a package on the way; according to the email I received, you should get it tomorrow in time to practice before the big day.”
“I love surprises! What is it?” Carlee giggled.
“I call mine the boat motor,” Geni laughed and Andy looked up. The more he heard that sound, the more he wanted to.
Feel Like Makin' Love (Rock and Roll Trilogy #3) Page 3
