“There’s more though, I thought Simone was the perfect woman. I thought I’d finally found the person who’d make me happy.”
“But something happened.” Seth prompted.
“When I called to tell her that I was going on the trip, she freaked out. It was weird, I mean it’s only two weeks and I told her that, then when she continued to push, I told her that I wanted a chance to get to know you better. She didn’t understand, all she could talk about was the theatre and the play. She even mentioned that someone else might buy the theatre, it was almost like she had more at stake than just getting her play produced.”
“I’m sorry to hear that, but what do you really know about her?” Seth asked, thinking that this was the perfect opportunity to share his suspicions about Simone, but before he could, Marshall continued.
“As if that wasn’t enough, I can’t get Heather out of my mind. I’ve even been dreaming about her. None of it makes sense. Suddenly I’m no longer the man I used to be.” Marshall said, running his hands through his hair. “I want to be a better father to Chloe, I want to do something that counts, like you. What you’ve done with the land and the business is amazing, I had no idea.”
“I appreciate you saying that. It has been a lot of work, but every second was worth it.” Seth said, shrugging his shoulders. “Does this mean that you’ve changed your mind about coming on as our spokesperson?”
“I don’t know maybe, but first I have to figure out what it is I really want.” Marshall said, leaning over and putting his face in his hands.
Seth patted him on the back, “Welcome to adulthood kid. Sit up and look at me, I’m going to give you some advice, and believe me if you’d told me we’d be having this conversation a few years ago I would have laughed, but I’ve learned a lot since dad died.”
Marshall sat up and looked at his brother, feeling exactly the same way. “I could use some good advice right now.”
“The biggest thing I’ve learned is that life has a way of giving you what you need, even if you think you don’t need it. I never wanted to be the head of Montgomery Mining, but suddenly that’s where I found myself, at the time it seemed like the worst thing that could have happened to me but it wasn’t.” Seth said, then paused wanting to get his words just right.
“But that’s different, you didn’t have to give up your dream.” Marshall said, shaking his head.
“Of course I did. Just because you couldn’t understand how I wanted to live my life doesn’t mean it wasn’t my dream. But Marshall, dreams can change, that’s what I need you to understand, sometimes life turns upside down on you and all you can do is go with it.”
“You mean give up my dreams of Broadway, settle for less.” Marshall asked.
“I mean that maybe it’s time to have some new dreams. You’ve been trying to live your life through the theatre, Marshall. Life isn’t like a play, sometimes crazy things happen and all you can do is adjust.” Seth had said all he wanted to for one night, they’d have to deal with the reality of Simone, but not until he knew who she was.
“Go to bed and get some sleep, this will all still be waiting for you tomorrow.” Seth said, getting to his feet then holding out his hand to help Marshall up. “I have one more thing I want to say, Heather is a wonderful woman who deserves a man who really cares for her, don’t screw it up.”
Heather woke to someone knocking on her door, it wasn’t an insistent knock, more like a gentle tapping, but was just loud enough to wake her. She stumbled to the door, and opened it to find Marshall standing on her porch unaware of the picture she presented dressed only in a long tee-shirt.
“Marshall what’s wrong?” She asked, instantly awake. “Is one of the kids sick?”
“No, the kids are fine. I just need to…” He couldn’t explain why he’d shown up at her door in the middle of the night, but one look at his face told her that something was wrong.
“You’d better come in.” She said, opening the door farther to let him in.
When he got inside, he looked around the little cabin for someplace to sit, but all there was in the room was the bed so he began to pace the room. Heather watched him silently for several minutes before crossing the room and grabbing him by the arm.
“You’re clearly upset.” She said, then led him over to the bed and made him sit down. “What’s wrong?”
Marshall took a deep breath, then asked, “Have you ever had your life turned upside down and you never saw it coming?”
Heather looked at him, not sure what had brought on this melancholy mood in Marshall, he’d never shown this side of himself to her. Switching on the bedside lamp, she looked at him, shocked to see his eyes rimmed in red, and his hair rumpled and messy, then she remembered where he’d been that night.
“Have you been drinking?” She asked, trying to assess the situation, wondering why her door was the one he’d knocked on.
“A little, but I lost my buzz a long time ago.” Marshall said, leaning forward and putting his hands over his face.
Heather went to the kitchen and switched on the coffee pot, “I think you need some coffee.”
Marshall waved his hand in the air, “I don’t need any coffee, what I need is to understand what’s happening to me.”
Heather crossed the room and sad down next to him, “Okay then let’s start over. How has your life been turned upside down?”
Marshall thought about that, trying to decide just when his life had begun to slip out of his control, then realized that it had all started the night Heather had yelled at him about Chloe. Before that, things had been going just as he’d planned, well maybe not exactly as he’d planned, but close enough.
“I think it might be your fault.” He finally said.
“My fault?” She asked, confused and beginning to get a little angry.
“I didn’t mean that in a bad way, at least I don’t think I did.” Marshall said, then shook his head and added. “I’m not making any sense.”
Heather waited, not sure what she could say to help Marshall through whatever was happening to him. “I was so sure that the path I was on was the right one, but ever since you came into my life I’ve been questioning what I need from life. I think I’ve been fighting for the wrong thing, striving for something that is beyond my reach because I’m afraid to do anything else.” He said, beginning to make sense for the first time since he’d shown up at her door.
“I’m tired of fighting, I just want to find a place in the world that fits me.” He said, feeling a huge weight lift when he said the words. “It’s not the theatre, at least not on the stage, but I don’t know where that leaves me and I’m scared.”
Chapter 10
“It’s okay to be scared sometimes Marshall, it’s not a sign of weakness, it’s a sign of strength. The most important thing you can do is understand that life sometimes throws something at us that we might not be completely ready for, but I think if you give it some time everything will begin to make sense.” Heather said, sitting down next to him on the bed and taking his hand, trying not to react when a wave of desire washed over her.
“I wasn’t ready for you.” Marshall said, quietly, looking into her eyes.
Heather opened her mouth to ask what he meant, but the look in his eyes told her everything. “You can’t mean that you…” She trailed off, jumping off the bed. “I think you’re just confused.”
Marshall got to his feet and followed her, “I’m confused about a lot of things but not about you.” He said, then went on. “I feel different when I’m with you. I don’t have to be perfect around you, I can just be myself.”
Heather’s heart was pounding in her chest, “Marshall, I think you’re confusing friendship for something else.” She said, wishing that what he was feeling was more than that, but knowing that it couldn’t be.
“I’ve never felt this way about a friend before. Heather I want you. I want you more than any woman I’ve ever met, it just took me a while to realize it.” He said, then w
alked over to where she was standing and took her face in his hands. “Don’t you feel that? When I touch you, something happens to me deep inside, something so wonderful that I can’t begin to describe it.”
Heather wanted to just go with the moment, but in the back of her mind her conscience was screaming at her to stop this before it went any further. “Marshall, you’re supposed to be in love with Simone and besides that we’re just not right for each other. We’re too different.” She said, then pulled away and went to stand at the window, needing some space between them.
“Heather, one thing I know for sure is that I was never in love with Simone, she showed up out of the blue with that play and I was so sure that she was going to save me, give me what I’d always wanted that I couldn’t see reality. But you stripped all that away, made me see the reality of my life and part of that reality is what I feel for you.” Marshall said, coming up behind her.
When she didn’t answer right away, he gently turned her around to face him. “If you can look me in the eye and tell me that you don’t feel the same way, I’ll leave you alone.”
Heather couldn’t believe that his was happening, wondered if it was some kind of dream, but then Marshall hooked his finger under her chin and tipped her head up. Looking into his eyes, she saw nothing but honesty and desire, a raw desire that spoke to something inside of her. As waves of desire washed over her, she knew that the next few minutes of her life would change it forever, if she followed her desire and slept with Marshall nothing would ever be the same. But if she chose to turn away from him, it could be equally devastating.
Pulling away from him again, she crossed the room, then whispered, “I can’t.”
Marshall closed the distance between them in a few steps and pulled her into his arms, “I’m so confused about my life, but one thing that I know is that we’re meant to be together.” He said, then lowered his mouth to hers, growling in his throat when Heather wrapped her arms around his neck.
Marshall parted her lips with his tongue and explored her mouth, sure that he’d never tasted anything as wonderful as Heather. He pulled her tightly against him, her breasts pressed up against his chest, then let his hands roam over her back. Heather’s nipples hardened under her shirt and delicious waves of pleasure washed over her as Marshall’s tongue explored her mouth.
When he slid one hand up to cradle the back of her head, fingers threaded into her hair, that pleasure increased until a hard knot began to form deep inside her. Marshall broke the kiss, scooped her up into his arms, crossed the room and laid her down on the bed. Heather still wasn’t sure this was the right decision, but couldn’t stop what was happening, she wanted Marshall too much.
When he laid down on the bed and pulled her into his arms, she could feel his erection pushing against her hip and desire raced through her. Suddenly all she wanted was to feel his naked skin against hers so she pulled his shirt off over his head. Running her hands over his chest, she couldn’t help the little purr that escaped her lips. Marshall moaned deep in his throat when he heard it and pulled her shirt off exposing her breasts which he quickly covered with his large hands, pleased to find that they fit perfectly as he’d imagined.
Unsatisfied with just the shirt, she began to pull at the button on his pants, but her hands were shaking so much she couldn’t manage it. Marshall released her breasts then quickly shed his pants, freeing his erection which sprang free to rub against her leg. It was more than she could resist so she took him in her hands and began to stroke him. He groaned her name, then dipped his head down and captured one of her hard nipples in his mouth. Heather gasped at the contact, the pleasure that flowed through her more intense than anything she’d ever felt before.
When his hand slid down her stomach and slipped into her panties, she realized that she was wet and ready for him. But instead of touching her, Marshall teased, running his finger over her folds but no deeper until she was writhing under him desperate for his touch. When he did finally delve between her folds, the knot of pleasure deep inside her grew until the pleasure was pounding in her blood, making her whimper with its sheer force.
Marshall slid her panties off allowing Heather to spread her legs for him, when she did he found her clit with his finger and began to rub her in circles until with a strangled cry the world exploded in a rush of pleasure. Trembling and whimpering, she clung to him, unable to move as her body convulsed, but Marshall wasn’t going to let her come too far down. Sliding between her legs, he positioned himself just outside her throbbing core, and waited only a second before driving himself into her in one long powerful stroke.
He filled to almost to the point of pain, but in that instant a connection between them was born, a connection that fused them both body and soul. Heather gasped as the feeling washed over her, one that she’d never experienced before, one that all women dreamed of finding someday. Looking into Marshall’s eyes she could see that he felt it too, first his eyes widened almost as if he was in shock, but then he seemed to understand what had happened.
Buried deep inside her, he lowered himself until his mouth was just inches from hers and said, “Heather, I was definitely ready for you.” Then kissed her, stealing her breath and her heart with only those words.
Heather was only dimly aware of the world around her, so wrapped up in what was happening between them that nothing else mattered. When he began to thrust his hips, sliding in and out of her, even that awareness disappeared as another tight knot of pleasure began to form deep inside her. Marshall too was beyond thought, his only awareness of the woman underneath him, so slick and hot, he knew that it wouldn’t be long before he’d lose control.
When Heather wrapped her legs around him and began to grind her hips against him, he knew that there was no holding back, but he wanted to feel Heather writhing under him in pleasure once more so he reached between them and began to rub her swollen nib. With each gentle stroke the pleasure spread, fanning out in waves from deep inside her, each wave stronger than the last until the last wave crashed over her like a dam breaking. Digging her nails into his back, she cried out his name as her body shuttered and gripped him deep inside.
Marshall let go then, drove himself into her over and over, until his pleasure washed over him, so intense that for a moment he couldn’t breathe and the world went dark. When he emerged from the fog, it took all his strength not to collapse on Heather, his body was limp and his breath came in shallow gasps. Laying down on his back, he pulled her with him and nestled her on his shoulder, then let oblivion take him, marveling in the pleasure that was still coursing though his body.
Heather woke with a start when the door of the cabin banged open. The sun was streaming through the window and she realized that she’d overslept, and then she remembered the night before and sat up in bed. She looked over to where Marshall had finally collapsed after they’d made love, dismayed to find the bed empty. But she was distracted by Tyler who came bounding over to the bed, clearly raring to go.
“This is your official wake up call.” He said, then began to make a noise like an alarm. “Breakfast is in half an hour.”
Heather smiled at her son, who was hoping from foot to foot clearly ready to take on the day. “You look like you had a good night’s sleep. Come over here and give me a hug.” She said, holding out her arms.
Tyler rolled his eyes, but came over and hugged her. Then he looked at the empty pillow on the bed and his eyes got wide. “What’s that?” He said, pointing to a piece of paper on the pillow.
She hadn’t noticed it before, but quickly picked it up and stuffed it under the covers. “It’s…it’s a note from the tooth fairy. I sent her a message that you were about to lose a tooth.” She lied, knowing that the lie sounded stupid but unable to think of anything better.
Tyler gave her a strange look and opened his mouth, but just then a chorus of voices called out his name. “Oh, I have to go. We have more lazy parents to wake up. See you at breakfast.” He said, then ran out of the cab
in, slamming the door so hard the little building shook.
Heather retrieved the note from under the covers and read it, smiling to think how much things had changed between she and Marshall. That first moment of panic when she’d woken up and he’d been gone had faded, replaced by a warmth that told her she was in real trouble. He’d left so that the kids wouldn’t find them together, explaining that it might be better if they talked to them first and she couldn’t have agreed with his assessment of the situation more. Chloe wouldn’t be that much of a problem, she wasn’t used to having her father’s attention all to herself, but she and Tyler had been alone for a long time, it might not be so easy for him.
Getting out of bed, she threw on some clothes, deciding that a shower could wait until after breakfast. The kids would be going out on an adventure with some of the villagers that day, leaving the rest of them with some much-needed time to do laundry and get ready for the next leg of their trip. They wouldn’t be leaving for several days, but the rest of their time here was going to be spent learning more about how to live a self-sufficient life.
As she made her way to breakfast in the women’s lodge, she couldn’t seem to wipe the smile off her face, she’d been smiling so much that her face hurt, but she decided that it wasn’t a bad thing to be this happy. But that happiness didn’t last, just as she was about to go into the lodge her phone rang, it made her jump since she’d gotten so accustomed to being without it. Frowning she pulled it from her pocket looking at the number on the screen, it was a number she didn’t recognize, but she answered it anyway.
“Is this Heather?” A woman’s voice asked.
“Yes. Who is this?” The voice sounded familiar but she couldn’t place it.
“This is Simone Peters and I want to know where Marshall is. He was supposed to call me days ago.” Her voice had gone from smooth as butter to holding a sharp edge.
You're Not Alone Page 10
