Love Me Carefully

by A. C. Arthur

  “Shhh, Mama it’s alright, everything’s gonna be alright now.” Terrell tried to console her, but wasn’t sure what to think of this turn of events himself.

  The paramedics came into the room, rolling the stretcher toward the door. Rosie stood and prepared to follow them, but a bulky man stopped her. “Ma’am, I’m going to need you to stay here for now. They’re going to take him to the hospital, but we need to ask you some questions first. Then you can go and be with him.”

  “No, I’m going with him now! I don’t have any answers to your questions, so you might as well save them. I don’t know anything except that man came in here and shot him, that’s all I know. Now I gotta go be with him. He needs me.” She tried to push past the man.

  Terrell rose, pulled on her arms and begged for her to listen. “Mama, come on, sit down. You’ve been through an ordeal, just sit down and get yourself together.”

  “No, Terrell, I’ve waited too long for happiness, and I won’t let him go. I won’t let him leave me like…” Her voice trailed off.

  “Like Daddy left you,” Terrell finished, his heart aching for her, for all that she had lost and for the undeniable fact that he dreaded. She loved Donald.

  “I have to go with him, you have to understand.” Rosie was pleading with the agent who looked from Leah to Terrell in question. Terrell walked out onto the balcony and Leah looked away, unable to speak. Agent Blum came into the room then and went to Rosie.

  “Ms. Pierce, you can ride to the hospital with me.” Taking her by the arm, he led Rosie to the door. “Combs, you can question her later,” he told the bulky man who stood in the middle of the floor with a stunned expression on his face.

  Leah, who had watched the whole scene from an outsider’s point of view, wondered how she was going to console Terrell. How was she going to make him see that he’d been wrong about Donald? He had never liked the idea of his mother re-marrying and, the moment he’d come up with a valid reason, he’d grabbed hold and clung to it for dear life because for him, that’s what it was.

  Donald was a threat—he was taking his mother away from him, just like that car accident had taken his father. And Rosie loved Donald, just as she had loved his father. Would he understand that he needed to let his mother go to find her own happiness? Would he understand that if he didn’t, he’d lose her forever?

  Leah joined him on the balcony. His back was to her and his hands gripped the banister. She was a little leery of touching him, but then discarded her own anxiety and went to him, wrapping her arms around his waist.

  “I guess I was wrong,” he said with a shrug of his shoulders. “Dammit, how could I have been so stupid?” He pounded his fists on the railing. “What do I do now?”

  With her cheek against his back, she wished she didn’t have to say the words she knew he didn’t want to hear. “You have to let her go, Terrell. She loves him.”

  “I know she does,” he admitted quietly.

  “She still loves you, Terrell. You’re her son. But she needs Donald, she needs the man who will become her husband. She loves him.”

  Terrell took a deep breath, understanding now, more than ever, how it felt to love someone so completely. Leah’s warmth was pressed against his back as she soothed him, and he knew he never wanted to lose her. That’s what his mother felt for Donald. That was the love she had for this man, and, as much as it pained him to accept it, he wouldn’t deny her that feeling, not for anything in the world.

  He turned, taking Leah into his arms. “I guess you have a wedding to plan.”

  Leah smiled up at him, burying her head in his chest. “Yeah, I guess I do. But first we should go to the hospital. Your mother shouldn’t be alone.”

  “You’re right. I owe her and her fiancé an apology.”

  They didn’t break their embrace as they moved through the agents still cluttering the room toward the elevator. “You’re a good man, Terrell Pierce,” she told him once they were in the elevator alone.

  “Really? You think so?” He feigned ignorance.

  Leah smiled. “I know so. You made a mistake, and now you’re going to admit it. Not many people are good with admitting their mistakes.”

  He brushed his knuckles over the smooth skin of her cheek. “Just let me know when you’re ready to admit that your four-step plan was a mistake and that you believe in our relationship. Then I’ll believe I’m a good man.”

  She thought about his words even as they stepped off the elevator and moved toward the lobby door. Once they stepped outside into the bright sunshine, she stopped, held both his hands and looked into his eyes. “I believe in you. And because I do I now see the error of my own thinking.”

  Terrell grinned. “You couldn’t just say, ‘I was wrong and you were right’?”

  “No, because you’d let that go to your head.”

  Tobias had left a car to take them to the hospital so they climbed in and rode hand in hand to see Ms. Rosie and Donald.

  * * *

  At the hospital Rosie sat in the small waiting room alone. So much had happened today she didn’t know whether she was coming or going. Terrell was here. Leah was here. Donald had been shot. Her heart was still pounding in her chest. Waves of mild relief washed over her when she saw her son approaching.

  She stood, and Terrell instantly hugged her tightly. “Mama, I owe you such an apology,” he began immediately.

  Over his shoulder Rosie saw Leah look away, but not before noticing the feelings in the young lady’s eyes as she’d looked at her son. “I’d say you owe me an explanation first,” Rosie told him, then motioned for him to take a seat next to her.

  “I’ll just go and see if I can find us some drinks,” Leah said hastily. This was a private moment between mother and son. Besides, it was hot as all get out in this tiny building, and she wanted to find some sort of relief.

  “No.” Terrell reached for her hand, pulled her to sit on the other side of him. “You said you couldn’t let me do this alone. Don’t leave me now.”

  He was right, she had told him that, but she hadn’t really thought he’d want her to hear what he said to his mother. Still, she found herself sitting down, placing a hand on his knee and offering him a consoling smile.

  The exchange was not lost on Rosie.

  “It’s like this, Mama. When you told me you were getting married I wasn’t overjoyed,” Terrell began.

  “That’s an understatement,” Rosie huffed.

  “I couldn’t readily accept that another man was going to take Daddy’s place and so, even though Donald was really cordial with me and tried to assure me that he was good for you, I still resisted.”

  “Even after I told you he made me happy. You know, Terrell, you were always such a good boy, but there were times when you tried my patience with your stubbornness,” Rosie interrupted again.

  Terrell almost smiled—Rosie talked just as much as Leah did. It seemed the two women never wanted to allow him a word. He covered her hands with his. “I know, Mama. Can you let me finish?”

  “Well, go ahead, I’m not stopping you,” she said with a flustered look.

  “I had Donald investigated.”

  “You did what?” Rosie’s voice became so loud that two young ladies at the front desk looked over at them in concern.

  Terrell sighed in exasperation. “I had a friend of mine look into Donald’s past. I know it was wrong, but at the time I felt obligated to do something. I found out things that I didn’t like, and then I followed him.”

  “We followed him,” Leah chimed in.

  Rosie’s eyes went to her suspiciously. “But you’re planning our wedding. How did you get involved?”

  Terrell looked at Leah, then back to his mother. “I got her involved. I went to Leah because she was working closely with you and Donald and I wanted her thoughts on your relationship. To her credit, she stood up for you two the entire time.”

  That wasn’t exactly true, Leah thought, but wisely kept her mouth shut.

&n
bsp; “At any rate, we ended up at Donald’s house in Baltimore with the FBI and then we figured out where you two had gone. I was worried out of my mind that you were in danger, so I came here to save you.”

  “And I tagged along to save him,” Leah added.

  Rosie looked at both of them, then gave in and giggled. “The two of you sure are a sight, I’ll tell you that much. I didn’t need any saving, but Leah, I reckon my son did.”

  Leah smiled, feeling a bit more comfortable about being included in this conversation. “Actually, he’s done his share of saving this time around.” She was thinking of how Terrell had gotten that basement door open, but mostly how he’d saved her from a lonely life with her four-step plan.

  “Baby, I know all about Donald’s past,” Rosie said to Terrell. “But that’s just what it is, his past. Donald was very up front with me when we started dating. Now, I know to you it must have looked pretty bad, but you should have just come to me. I would have told you everything was alright.”

  “You’re right, Mama. I should have come to you first. Anyway, I wanted to apologize for not supporting you immediately.”

  Before Rosie could answer him, the doctor came through swinging double doors. “Are you the family here with Donald Douglas?”

  Rosie stood first, Terrell standing right behind her and Leah behind him. “Yes, we are,” they replied in unison.

  The doctor with the shiny bronze skin smiled. “He’s going to be just fine. The bullet went straight through his shoulder. There was a lot of bleeding, but we’ve managed to stop it, and he’s resting quietly now. You can go in and see him, but don’t stay too long.”

  Rosie moved first, while Terrell and Leah stayed behind. Then she turned. “Come on you two, you owe Donald an apology as well.”

  Terrell groaned and Leah poked him in the ribs. “You’re a good man, remember.”

  With his hand on the small of her back he let her go through the doors ahead of him, then leaned down to whisper in her ear, “And as soon as we get back to the hotel you’re going to show me how good.”

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  “Can you believe Donald was actually working with the FBI?” Leah asked when they finally made it back to their hotel.

  They’d spent the bulk of the afternoon at the hospital with Rosie, then had finally convinced her to go back to her room and get some rest before returning to their own rooms. Tobias had already come down and talked to them, apologizing for not being able to tell them everything.

  “Nah, I’m still trying to digest that one. But I guess it makes sense. That’s why the FBI was so concerned with his disappearance. They thought his cover had been blown. I’m just glad Cable was the one who did the shooting in the alley, and not Donald.” Terrell watched as Leah fell on the bed, toeing each of her shoes off.

  “Cable was a monster. I’m glad Donald was able to convince him to leave us alone.” She dropped an arm over her forehead and closed her tired eyes. Today had been so eventful that now all she wanted to do was get a good meal and fall asleep, but only after she had a cool shower and some fresh clothes.

  Terrell sat on the bed beside her. “I’m glad Donald thought to lock us in his basement.”

  She turned toward his voice and glared at him. “What? You like being drugged and locked up? You are so weird.”

  “No, that’s not what I liked about it. I liked having that time to be alone with you.”

  Leah gave him a slow, tired smile. “I kind of liked sharing bologna and cheese rolls with you too. Speaking of which—”

  “Uh oh, here it comes. You’re hungry, aren’t you?” Terrell joked.

  “Well, I haven’t eaten all day. I’ve been on this island for two days now and haven’t once had a traditional Jamaican meal. You’d think somebody would take me to dinner or something.”

  Grabbing her by the waist, he rolled her over, aligning himself with her on the bed. “Calm down, I have every intention of taking you out to dinner and to see the island. That’s why I booked the room for a few more days.”

  “A few more days?”

  “Yeah, I don’t want to wait to come back here with you. I want us to take a few days together now, to enjoy it. We still have a lot to talk about.”

  He was making lazy circles on her back, the motion clouding her mind. “You want to stay a few more days? I have a wedding next week,” she said sadly.

  He understood the need to get back to work, even though SISCO had assured him things with his project were going along smoothly. “Then I’ll make a deal with you. We stay one more night on the island. Then when we return to Baltimore, we spend all our remaining nights together.”

  Her heart pattered quickly at his words. Was he suggesting they move in together? “I have my own place and you have yours. We’ll have to compromise.” Leah wasn’t ready for that step. Even though she readily admitted how good it felt to be with him, to wake up with him, she wasn’t about to jump that quickly.

  He was only mildly disappointed. He hadn’t really expected her to go for the idea of living together that easily. But she hadn’t outright shot it down either. She was still game to spend their nights together. He was getting close. “Three nights at your house and four at mine. How does that sound?” His hand moved to her butt, cupping the voluptuous mound.

  “It sounds one-sided. Weeknights at my house and weekends at yours,” she countered.

  “That’s not even, but I’ll take it.” He’d take anything she was willing to give him at this moment.

  A few hours later they managed to go down to the hotel restaurant for dinner. “Let’s go for a walk,” Terrell suggested.

  Reggae music played in the background as they walked along the cliffs headed for the beach.

  “I love the sunsets here,” Leah said after they’d walked a bit in silence.

  “They’re extraordinary,” Terrell agreed with her.

  When they came to the beach, they slipped their shoes off and let the warm sand sift through their toes. Holding hands, they walked along the water’s edge watching as the sky turned a deep red and the fiery sun sank into the stunningly blue-green water.

  “Remember I told you I wanted all or nothing?” Terrell asked her.

  Leaning her head against his shoulder she sighed. “I remember.”

  “I meant it.” He stopped abruptly, turning her to face him. There was a light breeze and the gold sarong she’d tied around her waist moved with it, showing so much of her leg it was almost indecent. “I don’t want to go backwards or forwards with your four-step plan. I want to be with you, all the time, for always. I love you, Leah.”

  The moment could not have been more perfect. The sky glowed brilliantly with the sun’s descent, the water was crystal clear at their feet, the cliffs were alluring, the little huts, charming. And the man. The man was all she’d ever dreamed of—funny how now ‘all or nothing’ didn’t seem quite so elusive to her. “I love you, too, Terrell. And I completely understand what you want.”

  He sensed a ‘but’ coming so he put a finger to her lips. “Don’t deny it, Leah. Don’t deny us. I won’t believe you. We’ll be coming back here just as soon as you can plan our wedding.”

  Leah couldn’t speak.

  “That’s right. I’m marrying you, Leah Graham. And I’m marrying you right here in Negril, where we both finally let go of our past issues and found each other.”

  “Weddings…in Negril…are…um…expensive,” she stammered, unable to believe her own ears.

  “I told you I’d give you everything I had, and I meant it.” He cupped her face in his hands, pulled her closer. “Just say that as soon as my mother’s wedding is over you’ll start planning ours, and I’ll take care of everything else.”

  “I…I don’t know what to say.”

  For once she was speechless, and Terrell found he liked her talkative better. He kissed her lips lightly, nipped her bottom lip. “Say, ‘I love you, Terrell and I’d like nothing more than to marry you here on this gorgeou
s island.’ ”

  Her hands went around his waist as he tried to deepen the kiss, and she pulled back. “I can’t say all that with you kissing me.”

  “Oh, sorry.” Terrell smiled and pulled back so she could speak.

  Leah cleared her throat. “I love you so much, Terrell. Marrying you on this beautiful island would be the best decision I’ve made thus far in my life.”

  Terrell let out a whooping laugh as he picked her up, spinning her around until she screamed for him to let her down. “I’m going to make you so happy.”

  “You already have.”

  And as they lay entwined in their bed that night, she realized she was truly very happy and thought how nothing could spoil this for them, absolutely nothing.

  * * *

  They were all packed and ready to leave. Terrell was paying their hotel bill, and Leah was enjoying the scenery one last time. She’d already picked up all the brochures in the gift shop she could squeeze into her overnight bag to look at on the flight home. She definitely wanted the ceremony outside, with the light breeze and the swaying palm trees as their backdrop.

  She was getting married. Butterflies danced happily in her stomach at the thought. Just wait ’til Nikki hears this.

  She was so deep in thought that she almost missed the tall figure standing outside the hotel. He wore dark glasses and a baseball cap. His jeans were worn at the knees and his long- sleeved shirt uncharacteristic for the Jamaican heat.

  He was looking at her. Of course she couldn’t see his eyes, but she could feel they were on her. But the moment she turned toward him, the moment she caught him staring, he disappeared behind the trees, making her wonder if he’d ever really been there at all.

  “You ready, baby?” Terrell came up behind her, tucking the receipt into his back pocket.