by Debra Webb
Shannon grinned. “You look right at home. Are we buying today?”
She should come back with Joe and his truck, Lisa supposed. Besides, it wouldn’t be fair not to ask his opinion. “I guess not.” She stood. “We’ll just check everything out and get an idea of what I need. Then Joe and I can come back and make the purchases.”
Shannon wrapped her arm around Lisa’s and guided her toward the bedding. “So what happened last night?” She started to laugh but tried to cover it by clearing her throat. “I…uh…heard that the poker game landed at your house.”
Was everyone at the station talking about her marital problems? With all that was going on in the world today, there were certainly more pressing topics.
“They were smoking cigars,” Lisa explained. “In the house. Secondhand smoke, you know?”
Shannon laughed outright then. “Sorry.” She managed a fittingly outraged expression. “You’re right. That’s terrible. I heard Joe was a little startled by your reaction.”
Lisa might as well fess up to the whole story. “I think I scared him.” She glanced around to make sure no one would overhear. “He was so worried about how upset I got that he agreed to counseling.”
“What?” Shannon looked absolutely flabbergasted. “I don’t believe it.”
“Shannon,” Lisa scolded, “that’s not fair. He’s really trying to make this work. For a little while last night, we connected on a level that had nothing to do with…well, you know.”
“Okay, okay. I know.” She stopped at a display and checked out the colorful comforters decorated with cartoon characters. “It’s just that I can’t help getting a kick out of his misery. He’s had this coming for weeks now. Ever since he broke up with you.”
Misery.
That’s what this marriage was for him, Lisa realized with sudden blinding clarity. Joe hadn’t really wanted to get married. He’d admitted as much. He wasn’t the marrying kind. She had known that up front, and yet she’d gone along with this harebrained idea.
“Uh-oh.” Shannon was staring at her as if anticipating some sort of complete meltdown. “I didn’t mean it that way.”
“You’re right.” Lisa breathed the words, scarcely able to dredge up the necessary energy to push them past her lips. “He is miserable. So am I.” That’s why those special moments were so few and far between.
“I’m sorry, Lisa. I shouldn’t have said that.” Shannon looked really worried now. “Let’s pick out a cute comforter. Something that doesn’t have wacky characters all over it. Come on.” She dragged Lisa deeper into the store’s baby department, which was filled with lace and frills and every color imaginable.
Lisa pretended to be interested, but nothing could divert her attention from the single word that so very accurately described this marriage.
Misery.
Joe would grow bitter all right. Before long, even the physical attraction would fade and then he would hate her.
How could she do that to him?
To herself?
IT WAS HIS DAY OFF, and what was he doing?
Grocery shopping.
Joe tossed a couple more cans of soup into the cart. The fridge and cupboards were still half-empty, leaving him no choice but to stock them. Admittedly, Lisa had picked up a few supplies. She’d told him that cooking for one had always seemed a waste so she hadn’t bothered much when she lived alone. But now they were together and he wanted to do this the right way. He wanted to stock their kitchen and do a little cooking. He could survive without dropping by the Bar and Grill for a few days. Besides, he’d had all the ribbing he could take about Seaborn’s lucky shot.
The shiner had gone from black to a nasty purple and green.
Truth be told, Joe felt damn green on the inside.
At five-thirty this afternoon, they had an appointment with Dr. Serena Carlisle, marriage counselor. He groaned. He did not want to discuss his marital problems—specifically his lack of a sex life—with some stranger.
He wanted Lisa to be happy, but he’d just about decided that might be impossible.
He’d done everything he knew how to do, and nothing was right—absolutely nothing. Well, there had been a moment last night. Why couldn’t it be like that all the time? Why couldn’t they just enjoy each other?
At this point he was embarrassed to ask his brothers or his buddies for advice. He’d been married a week and already he was afraid to make even the slightest wrong move.
Surely it wasn’t supposed to be this way.
Doubt weighed heavily on his shoulders.
Enough feeling sorry for yourself, he railed. It wasn’t as if this was easy for Lisa, either.
They just had to find common ground. From what he’d been told, every couple had problems adapting at first. A marriage couldn’t grow without growing pains, right?
He wasn’t ready to give up just yet. Not for one second would he admit defeat. Not with a guy like Seaborn waiting in the wings for just such an opportunity.
Fury kindled in his gut. No way.
Lisa was his. The baby was his.
He wasn’t giving up on anything. Not now. Not ever.
He would make this marriage work if it killed him.
Shoving the cart down the aisle, he tossed at least two of each item he thought they could use into the basket. He didn’t know jack about grocery shopping for Lisa, since he didn’t have a good grasp of her likes and dislikes just yet, but she would have to give him points for effort.
He would cook and clean and shop until she admitted that he was the best husband a woman could want.
Until she threw herself into his arms and begged him to take her to bed.
A need so urgent that it took his breath away stopped Joe in his tracks. Lisa was worth the wait and the effort.
He cared a great deal for her…for their child.
He would make this work.
AS DETERMINED AS Joe was, he almost faltered when faced with the marriage counselor’s advice.
“You want us to what?” he asked, almost choking on the words.
Lisa looked as mortified as he did.
“The courtship ritual,” Dr. Carlisle repeated. “It’s a crucial part of the bonding process. You cannot move forward as a couple until you’ve made all the proper connections on all the necessary levels. As far as I can tell, the one common link thus far has been purely physical.”
Well, duh, Joe thought. It didn’t take a psychology degree to figure that one out.
“That’s a start,” the doctor allowed.
“What, exactly, do we do?” Lisa asked cautiously.
“Go out to dinner. Hold hands. Talk about your likes and dislikes. The same things you probably did on your first date.”
Joe’s gaze met Lisa’s and they instantly looked away from each other. They hadn’t done much talking…not even on their first date. Things had gone from hello to hotter than Hades in mere minutes.
“Start tonight,” Dr. Carlisle encouraged. “Take Lisa out to a nice restaurant,” she said to Joe. “Go to a movie afterward. Something warm and romantic. When you get home, try giving each other a massage. I have videotapes for instruction.”
When they left the counselor’s office, videos and pamphlets in hand, Joe tried to think of something witty to say, but nothing came.
After he’d settled Lisa into the passenger seat of his truck, he skirted the hood and climbed in behind the wheel. He tossed the bag of goodies into the back seat.
A kind of numbness had set in on him, and from Lisa’s expression, she suffered the same.
What the hell were they going to do?
Everybody had advice, but none of it felt right.
“So,” he ventured, “where would you like to have dinner?” In a flash, an image of his well-stocked kitchen zipped through his mind. The fridge was full of milk, juice, cheese, meat and other fresh items. He’d even picked up an assortment of fruit. He’d read that it was good for the mother-to-be and the baby.
B
ut the doc had said to go out to dinner. A date.
“Wherever you’d like to go is fine with me.”
Well, that was a lot of help.
He pulled out onto the street. “How about John Paul’s?” It was French, ritzy and cost an arm and a leg. Surely that would be acceptable. They’d missed having dinner there after the wedding. Seemed like a good place to start.
“Don’t we need a reservation?”
“I know someone who works there. Maybe he can get us in without one.”
Joe’s friend came through. They only had to wait about twenty minutes.
LISA WASN’T SURE what she had expected from a marriage counselor, but somehow this wasn’t it. She’d wanted someone to tell her what the problem was and how to go about fixing it. Prescribing a courtship ritual definitely wasn’t what she’d anticipated. Not that she had an actual problem with it, but it seemed a waste of time.
Didn’t they need to talk? To work out their issues so they could move forward? What good would dinner and a movie do?
She didn’t need anyone to tell her where the massage would lead.
But then why torture herself like this? Why not just jump into the sack with him and be done with it! At least they would have some kind of intimacy in common. Some sort of link.
She felt like a stranger sitting here with Joe. Two strangers thrust into an unbearable situation without a thing in common.
Talk about something…anything. Tell him what you did today, a little voice urged.
“Shannon and I went shopping for nursery furniture and accessories today,” she said, her voice far too perky.
“Really?” Joe’s interest looked every bit as forced as her own. “Did you pick anything out?”
She thought about that. “Yes.” She nodded thoughtfully. “I saw a lot I liked. Maybe we can go on the weekend—pick up a few things. I’d like to paint the second bedroom and get everything into place before physical activity becomes limited.”
There she went, making all the decisions. Not to mention that the term physical activity seemed to depress Joe all the more. “Unless you’d rather look somewhere else first,” she said. “You might have something in mind already.”
He waved off the suggestion. “No. Whatever you picked out will be fine.”
Did that mean he wasn’t interested?
“Okay.” The baby had to have a room, Lisa assured herself. Whether or not Joe got excited about the decor didn’t change the bottom line.
“How were things at the clinic today?”
Lisa looked up from the stemmed glass she’d been fingering. Did he really care how her day had gone, or was he just following the doctor’s orders?
Did it even matter?
“Great.” She shrugged. “We’re really busy like always. Just routine procedures today—no emergencies or unexpected surgeries.”
Silence fell. What did she say now? Technically it was her turn to keep the conversation going.
“What did you do today?” The question lacked originality but at least it filled the gap.
“I went to the store and stocked up on food.”
“Really? I should have gotten more the other day, but I wasn’t sure what you wanted.”
“I tried to pick up a wide selection so I’d be sure and get items you liked, too.”
How sweet. The thoughtfulness of the gesture made her smile. “Thanks.”
Wow. Joe shopped. Who knew? Come to think of it, he’d been doing laundry and dishes, as well. He really was working at this. “I appreciate all the things you’ve been doing around the house. I don’t know where my head has been.”
He smiled. “I don’t mind.”
Her tummy did a funny little flip-flop, and warmth spread through her. She appreciated that he’d taken the initiative.
“Would you like to go to a movie after dinner?” he asked.
The waiter’s arrival postponed her answer.
Lisa took the waiter’s suggestion of grilled salmon since she hadn’t gotten around to viewing the menu. Joe did the same.
“I’ve been thinking that you should consider buying a new car,” he said when the waiter had left.
She needed to do that. It surprised her that Joe had even bothered to think about it. “I guess I should.”
“I’ll be glad to help you pick something out, if you’d like.”
“That would be nice.”
He smiled, and she did the same.
Things only got better from there.
They chatted about everything from the weather to the latest reports of mild aftershocks related to the quake that had crumpled the parking garage. It felt good just to be with Joe. Maybe the counselor was right about what they needed. At two hundred bucks an hour, she ought to be, Lisa mused.
She and Joe had decided to see a romantic comedy after dinner. Again, she was surprised that he hadn’t wanted to head straight home and try out the massage video. She had to admit that going along with the counseling was above and beyond the call for him. Maybe she should go the full distance, as well.
It wasn’t as if she didn’t want to have sex as much as he did. Why fight it any longer? It was only making them both miserable.
They had to find common ground someplace. It might as well be a place they both could enjoy.
Lisa’s courage rallied. She refused to let this misery eat at her—or Joe—a moment longer. Things were going to be different from now on.
JOE FELT GREATLY RELIEVED that Lisa appeared to be enjoying their date. Though he’d thought the whole idea was ridiculous when the counselor first suggested the courtship thing, he had to admit that it might just work.
He’d always been good at dating. All he had to do was relax and let things flow naturally. A part of him was already primed for the massage part. On one level, it seemed a little foolish to get so excited over the prospect of sharing such a superficial intimacy with his wife, but on another level—the one that had been starving for attention—it felt damn right.
He couldn’t wait to get Lisa home. But first he had to sit through the movie. A grin slid across his face. He remembered soft whispers and holding hands in the dark. The movie idea could turn out to be more stimulating than the dinner.
The evening was going more smoothly than he could ever have anticipated. Lisa talked about her plans for the nursery and seemed to come alive right before his eyes as she told him about turning his backyard into a retreat for their child, as well as the animals she took in from time to time.
Joe let her talk. He didn’t want to say or do anything that would slow the momentum. He loved listening to her voice and watching how animated she became. He couldn’t help remembering that she was very much like that in bed. More than once he caught men in the restaurant staring at his beautiful wife. His chest swelled with pride. She was his.
Tonight…if he was damn lucky…he intended to show her how grateful he was to have her.
BY THE TIME Joe pulled into the driveway after the movie, he felt like a new man. Holding hands with Lisa in the dark theater, nuzzling her ear each time he whispered to her, just sitting next to her had his entire body humming with anticipation. That she was equally affected made the whole night a success. Maybe they’d finally hit their stride.
He unlocked the front door and allowed her to go in ahead of him.
She tossed her sweater onto the back of the sofa. “Would you like to watch the video now?”
For one long beat he couldn’t answer. He could only stare at her and be amazed all over again at just how beautiful she was. The navy blue sheath fit her like a glove. The hem, just a few inches above her knees, showed off those toned legs, and he wanted nothing more than to kiss her from ankle to hip.
“I don’t think I’ll need any video.” He moved up behind her and started to knead her shoulders. “I think we can figure this out on our own,” he whispered against her ear.
She made a soft sound and leaned against him. “I think you’re right.”
; Taking that as his cue, he swept her silky hair aside and kissed her neck as he’d longed to do for days. She tasted so good. His arms slid around her waist and he pulled her more firmly against him. He groaned at the feel of her nicely rounded bottom pressing into his throbbing loins.
“Lisa, I want you so much,” he murmured, nuzzling her satiny skin.
“Joe.” His name was a mere whimper, a wanton breath on her lips.
His hand slid up to her breast and she gasped at his touch. His body reacted in kind, hardening like granite at the lush firmness of her breast, despite the layers of fabric separating them.
“Oh, God!”
Lisa jerked out of his arms and ran toward the bedroom.
Joe just stood there for several seconds, dumb-founded. The bathroom door slammed and he blinked.
What the hell had just happened?
He’d thought they were headed toward the bedroom, all right, but not quite at a dead run.
When he’d regained full control of his senses, he walked up to the bathroom door and tapped softly on it. “Lisa, are you okay?”
“I—”
He frowned as what sounded like some serious upchucking interrupted whatever she’d intended to say.
Nausea.
Damn.
He’d read about that, too. Morning sickness didn’t always occur in the morning.
“Can I get you anything?” he offered, feeling awkward and helpless. He’d never stood in the hall and listened to a woman lose her lunch—or dinner, as it were. It didn’t sound fun. He grimaced.
“No!” She uttered the word breathlessly. “Just…go away. Okay? Please.”
He frowned. Surely he could do something to make her feel better. Another round of heaving pretty much ruled out that possibility. Shaking his head in defeat, he wandered from the room.
Talk about bad timing. Just when things had started to look up.
No way would they be able to recapture the mood, he thought, plopping down on the sofa. Not that he could blame her.
But it really did suck.
He reached for the remote and clicked on the sports channel just in time to hear the commentator relate that a hockey player from his favorite team had gotten injured and would be out for the rest of the season.
