by Lisa Carter
“Mr. Seth’s” eyes ping-ponged from Caroline to Weston. She couldn’t be sure, but she thought she saw his mustache twitch. “Sure thing.”
Caroline’s eyes widened. “But, Dad…” What she wanted to say was, Please don’t leave me here. Take me with you.
Her father saluted Weston as he and Izzie squelched toward the lighthouse stairs. They disappeared from sight.
Caroline’s heart sank to her bare toes. And then cringed. Spots of blood also dotted Weston’s hitherto white rug.
She scowled. At the rug. At her feet. At him.
And what she actually said was—
“You’re real good at giving orders, aren’t you, Commander Clark?”
He leaned back, his arms folded across his chest. Those true-blue eyes of his glinted. He clamped his jaw tight, a muscle jumping in his cheek.
And Caroline’s heart skipped a beat.
Chapter Nineteen
The pipes squeaked overhead as Izzie filled the bathtub with water. With Seth also occupied upstairs, Weston studied Caroline, unsure how to reach her. Unsure how to tell her everything in his heart.
She crossed her arms over her wet shirt. Her hair hung in disheveled hanks to her shoulders. “I must look like a drowned rat.”
He hunched his shoulders. “Even drenched, you’re still the most beautiful woman I’ve ever known.”
She blushed. Not what she’d expected him to say? His chest ached with the desire to cradle her. But first, he had to know.
“Why did you come back, Caroline?” He rocked on his heels. “Did someone call you about Izzie?”
“Yes, but no…” She shook her head. The hair flew into her face and covered her features. “I mean…”
Because he couldn’t help himself, he crouched beside the sofa and brushed a wisp of hair from her forehead.
At his touch, she stilled.
“I’d already turned around on the Bay Bridge and was heading home to Kiptohanock when Dad called,” she whispered.
He grunted and abruptly stood.
Striding into the kitchen, he rummaged underneath the sink for a pan. Placing the pan in the sink, he turned on the faucet, ran his hand under the water and adjusted the valve for a warmer temperature. “Why were you already headed back?”
Caroline didn’t answer him, but her fingers fretted at the bracelets on her wrist. He gritted his teeth. Her subconscious habit gouged at him.
He dumped half a carton of salt into the pan of water. Lifting the pan out of the sink, he carried it around the island to where she slumped on the sofa. As he knelt on the rug in front of her, some of the water sloshed over the sides of the pan. He settled the pan below her dangling feet.
“What are you doing?”
“Your feet are cut. The salt water’s going to sting, but we’ve got to make sure we kill any bacterial infection.”
She gulped. “I’m sorry, Weston. For yesterday. And for endangering Izzie. For putting her life in peril. Just like Jess—”
“You’re nothing like her. I’ve told you that. And what happened today wasn’t your fault. Izzie made her own illadvised choices.”
Taking hold of her ankles, he eased her feet into the pan. With a quick indrawn breath, she bit her lip. Twin dots of blood trembled on her bottom lip.
“I’m also sorry for yesterday.” Her eyes glistened. “For everything.”
Keeping one hand on her legs, he brushed the pad of his thumb across her mouth. “Everything?”
She closed her eyes and nestled her lips into his palm.
Weston’s heart turned over in his chest. “Is sorry all you need to say to me, Caroline?”
Her startled gaze shot up to his. “No… I…I…”
Leaning over her, he removed the quilt from the couch and tucked its folds around her shaking body. He moved toward the kitchen. “You could change into one of my shirts.” He extracted a dish towel from a drawer.
“I don’t want your shirt, Weston.”
Weston slung the towel across his shoulder. “What is it you do want, Caroline?” His eyes flared. “Really want? Tell me, because I don’t know. And I want to know.”
*
Time to face the truth. Weston deserved the truth. No more half-truths or mixed signals. No matter how hopeless everything was, Caroline respected him too much for anything less than total disclosure.
“I want you and Izzie and…” She flung wide her hands. “A life here with you, but—”
“But what?”
Her heart thudded. She had to make him see, to understand why it would be wrong for them to plan a life together. Wrong for him.
“I can’t be the wife you deserve. I can’t give you the children you want.”
His eyes narrowed. “What are you talking about?”
“After what you went through with Jessica—”
“Is that what this has been about?” His face convulsed. “You are nothing like Jessica, Caroline.”
She desperately wanted to not tell him. But only then could Weston gain closure. And be free to live the life he deserved. “When my father told me about my grandmother, I realized we could never be a family.”
A line appeared between his brows. “What is it exactly you think you know about your grandmother? Are you sick?”
“Yes, I am.”
His eyes widened. “Cancer, like your mother? Because if it is, I’m not about to let you face that without me.”
“It’s not cancer, but the diagnosis is as horrible and as incurable as what killed my mother.”
Weston eased next to her on the sofa. “You told me about the past. There’s nothing so terrible we couldn’t handle it together.” He took both her hands in his. “I love you, Caroline. Izzie loves you, too. For better or worse, we want to be there for you no matter what.”
“But it would only be for worse, Weston. Don’t you see?”
“No.” He clenched his teeth. “I don’t see.”
“My grandmother battled depression until the day she finally took her own life. After my mother’s death, the grief sent my father into a tailspin it took a decade for him to extricate himself from. I’ve inherited a predisposition for chronic depression. A genetic curse.”
She fretted at the bracelets until he frowned, and she dropped her hand. “I believed I’d finally conquered the anxiety and depression. But now I realize there will be no getting well. Only stretches of time between breakdowns.”
Caroline hardened her voice. “I won’t put you through that. And I’d never pass that terrible genetic weakness on to a child.”
“I don’t believe what happened to your grandmother will happen to you.”
She stared at him. “You don’t know that. None of us knows that.”
“Exactly.” He took hold of her hand. The bracelets jangled. “People were less accepting of depression in your grandmother’s time. There were fewer resources.”
He rubbed one of the beaded bracelets against her flesh. “She probably felt so alone. Never shared her struggles until she was in so deep she couldn’t see a way out.”
Caroline’s gaze flitted to her hand in his. “But—”
“Your father is one of the best, strongest men I’ve ever known. Despite this dark enemy he battles, he lives a rich, full life.” Weston threaded his fingers through hers. “You can live a rich, full life, too. You have friends. You have family. You have God.”
A vein pulsed in his throat. “You can have me, too. Don’t you understand how much I love you? I love you, with or without any potential children.”
“You say that now.” Her heart hammered. “But what about when I drag you and Izzie into the abyss with me?” Her mouth trembled. “I could never live with that.”
“If you’re so afraid…” He fingered the woven cord tied around her wrist. “Then why did you come back, Caroline?” His touch was featherlight against her scar.
The feel of his hand… The tender look in his eyes. Something broke in her heart.
“Bec
ause…” Tears cascaded down her face. “Because despite what my head tells me, my heart won’t let me forget how much I love you, Weston.”
In a way, it was freeing to finally say the words. And oddly enough, she felt free to breathe for the first time since her dad had told her about their family heritage.
Weston slipped off the couch and knelt once more at her feet. He draped the towel across his knees and moved aside the pan of water. Lifting her feet, he placed them in his lap. Tears dripped off her chin and plopped onto the towel in his hands. Gently, he dried first one foot and then the other. As if she were beloved, precious, cherished.
He held her barefoot in the palm of his hand. “I don’t know what the future holds for anyone, Caroline. But what I’ve learned is that all any of us can do is face the future with trust in the One who holds us—our hopes, our dreams, our love and our lives—in the palm of His hand.”
Weston ran his finger across the top of her foot. “The safest place we can rest. Secure in the knowledge in our faith that no matter what comes, He will somehow bring us through for our ultimate good.”
His voice dropped to a whisper. “Because you, me, Izzie, we are His beloved, cherished, always precious children.” He closed his eyes.
Praying for her, she realized. Praying for her as she struggled to come to terms with what she’d learned about herself and her family. Should she trust in Weston’s love? Could she trust in a God who loved her that much?
Weston’s eyes gleamed. “Give me a chance. Let me love you, Caroline.”
Was it possible for someone like her? Truly possible? Help me, God, to believe… To risk loving them and being loved.
A silence hung suspended between them. A long moment fraught with fear, trembling hope and the possibility of unexpected joy.
She fell to her knees beside him. “Oh, Weston…” Her breath shuddered.
“Will you be my one true love, Caroline? Will you come home to me and stay with me forever?”
Her eyes never leaving his, one by one she removed the bracelets from her wrists. Allowing them to fall away onto the floor. “You are the one my heart’s waited a lifetime to love.”
Weston’s face transformed, flooded with light and love. He leaned in—
Feet clomped on the stairs. “Have you asked her to marry us yet?” Izzie bellowed.
Smiling, Caroline imagined the little redhead hanging over the curving baluster of the railing.
Weston made a face, but his eyes twinkled in the lamplight. “Trying to, Monkey Girl, if you’ll give me a chance,” he yelled.
A loud, protracted sigh. “Well, hurry up, then.”
Caroline smothered a laugh at his expression.
“Are you on one knee like they do in the movies, Daddy?”
Caroline arched her eyebrow. “What about it, Commander Clark?”
“You’re enjoying this way too much.” His lips grazed her earlobe.
She gave a delicious shiver.
Weston smirked at the lighthouse wall. “I think I can take things from here, Isabelle,” he called.
“If you say so, Daddy. But please don’t screw this up.”
Weston sputtered, and Caroline gave in to the laughter.
“Just so you know, I had this really romantic beach picnic planned in my head,” he growled.
“Since when?”
He pushed back his shoulders. “Since I kissed you on the Ferris wheel.”
But Weston obligingly propped on one bended knee. “Caroline Victoria Duer, would you do me the honor of becoming my wife—” he glanced toward the wall “—and Izzie’s mother?”
She captured his face between her hands and nodded.
He gave her that lopsided grin that tumbled her insides. “It doesn’t count unless you say the word, Caroline.”
The special word.
“Yes…” She smiled. “Yes, please.”
And then he kissed her.
Epilogue
On the beach six weeks later, Caroline scanned the ocean waves off the lighthouse point. With the cottage lights darkened, she, Izzie and Weston waited for Turtle Mama to emerge.
She glanced over to Weston stretched out beside her on the beach towel. Legs extended, he leaned back on his elbows, his face upturned to the moonlight.
“Wake me when Turtle Mama gets here, Turtle Lady.”
“Hush, Daddy,” Izzie hissed, sitting cross-legged between them.
Caroline stifled a laugh. “Yeah, Daddy…”
His eyes opened and he sat up. Wrapping his arm around Caroline’s waist, he tugged her closer. “I’m not your daddy.”
“No.” She kissed his chin. “You’re not. You are my heart’s desire.”
“Shhh…” Izzie rounded her eyes at them both.
His smile fluttered Caroline’s insides.
“Better enjoy the silence,” he whispered in her ear. “Egg laying is about the only time we can get your new daughter to stop talking.” His mouth brushed across Caroline’s earlobe.
Caroline giggled, which earned another glare from Izzie. Her brand-new, beloved daughter. As for her brand-new husband? Life with Weston was more wonderful than she could’ve imagined.
She’d surprised and pleased Weston by not wanting to wait more than a few weeks to get married. Which, Honey mock-complained, put her and Amelia in a bind if they were going to throw together the wedding of Caroline’s dreams.
But her dreams were simple. Her dream had already come true in this man now at her side. Still, she thought her heart would burst from joy when her father walked her down the clamshell path to where Reverend Parks and Weston awaited. Another dream realized, the restoration of a relationship with her father.
In a white sheath dress that trailed in the sand, she and Weston pledged their love for each other forever on the lawn beneath the towering lighthouse amid the sounds of the surf crashing on the rocks below.
Her sisters acted as her bridesmaids. Her brothers-in-law stood as Weston’s groomsmen. Izzie had her big moment in a frilly sundress as she scattered flower petals to the wind. Max served as ring bearer—when he wasn’t chipping seashells into the ocean.
Caroline had been nervous meeting Weston’s parents for the first time. But his mother had taken Caroline aside at the rehearsal dinner.
“Thank you for loving my son,” his mother whispered with tears in her eyes. “And for loving Izzie, too. I was so afraid he’d never allow himself to love anyone ever again. That he’d always be alone.”
But it was Caroline who was grateful. Grateful for Weston loving her. Grateful most of all to God for the second chance He’d given them to love each other and Him.
She’d come full circle. Back to the most enduring of family legacies—her heritage of faith. Back somehow where she’d begun. Home on the Eastern Shore of Virginia. Reconnected with her family and, of all things, a mom. A title she’d never imagined could be hers.
As for the future? She faced each new dawn hand in hand with God. Praise God, from whom every blessing flows.
It was quite a party afterward with their Kiptohanock friends, church family and Roland, her new boss at the Kiptohanock Marine Rescue Center.
A smile tugged at her lips as she thought of that splendid day only a month ago. Sweet tea, hush puppies and beach music. Nothing better. A real Eastern Shore–style celebration.
Something glimmered on an incoming wave.
“Look, Izzie.” She gestured toward the sea creature slowly rising from beneath the foaming surf. “Turtle Mama has returned to lay her final eggs for the season. We probably won’t see her again for a few years. But when it’s time, she’ll come home.”
Izzie wormed her way into somehow being in both Caroline’s and Weston’s laps. “Like us.” She let out a sigh of contentment that Caroline could feel all the way to her own toes.
She kissed the top of Izzie’s red head. “Yes, Ladybug.”
Weston hugged both his ladies. “Home just like us.”
*
&nb
sp; If you loved this tale of sweet romance,
pick up these other stories from author
Lisa Carter:
COAST GUARD COURTSHIP
COAST GUARD SWEETHEART
Available now from Love Inspired!
Find more great reads at www.LoveInspired.com
Keep reading for an excerpt from THE SOLDIER’S SURPRISE FAMILY by Jolene Navarro.
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Dear Reader,
Years ago, a teacher friend gave me a nautilus shell. This friend struggled against the darkness and battled sadness, but told no one. Tragically, one day he chose to end his life. I’ve since pondered the meaning behind the unique design of the nautilus. This story is an outgrowth of that takeaway. I believe it is important to talk about depression to combat the lie that we are alone. I hope this story illustrates the truth that it’s okay to ask for help. Life is often hard, but God is always good.
Like King David, the prophet Elijah and the Apostle Paul, Caroline struggles with depression. She grapples with the implications of her family heritage. If Caroline’s story describes your current situation, I pray you will seek the advice of a medical professional and wise, spiritual counsel, too, so that you might take partake of the richer, fuller, abundant life God desires for you to experience. Life is worth living.
During the writing of this story, I’ve cared for my aging father, who suffered with advanced Alzheimer’s, and I’ve pondered the legacy I will one day leave my children. My father’s homegoing occurred on February 12, 2016. I don’t know what the future holds for you or for me. But I’ve learned that I must trust in the God who holds us—our hopes, our dreams, our loved ones and our lives—in the palm of His hand. The safest place we can rest.
Why? Because you and I, we are His beloved, cherished, always precious children. Ultimately, a heritage of faith is the best legacy I’ve inherited from my family. Like the multichambered nautilus, I hope the cross section of your past will encourage you as to how far you’ve traveled. And inspire you as to how far you may yet go.
