An Officer, a Baby and a Bride

by Tracy Madison

  “Maybe a little, but that’s fine! I love having visitors.”

  Jace’s lips trembled in an almost laugh. “I’m sure you do.” Then, motioning to the honey-haired, brown-eyed woman beside him, he said, “This is my fiancée, Melanie.”

  The woman nodded in greeting. Another man stepped forward, and one look identified him as the eldest Foster brother. He had the same angled jaw, dark hair and ridiculous good looks as Seth. Well, Jace, too, but her mind instantly compared any man to Seth.

  He held out his hand, saying “I’m Grady. It’s a true pleasure to meet you, Rebecca.”

  At a loss for words, she met his hand with hers and smiled harder. There were simply too many people here, and all of them were standing and staring and fidgeting.

  “I… Well, isn’t this nice,” she managed to say. “It’s so nice!”

  A pregnant woman with long chestnut hair and sapphire eyes eased herself in front of Grady. “I’m Olivia, Grady’s wife. Forgive us for showing up this way. We…were very excited.”

  “Oh, this is wonderful,” Rebecca enthused, hanging on to her composure for dear life. Had Seth mentioned his sister-in-law was pregnant? From the size of Olivia’s stomach, Rebecca guessed their due dates weren’t too far off from each other. Which meant her daughter would have a cousin close in age. “Nothing to apologize for. Really.”

  “That’s very gracious of you considering how we’ve barged in,” said the older woman standing to John’s right. She tossed a questioning glance toward Seth, who seemed to be frozen in place. “And very sweet. I’m Seth’s mother, Karen. We are sorry for this, but we thought—”

  “You’re pregnant,” Seth interjected, his tone somehow accusatory and shocked. As if this came as a huge surprise. As if they hadn’t already covered this topic extensively.

  “I am,” Rebecca said calmly, even though her heart was racing. “Exactly like the last time you were here. And the time before that, and… Oh, the time before that.”

  “You’re still pregnant.”

  “Pregnancy isn’t the twenty-four hour flu, Seth.” Rebecca kept her voice light, but inside she was seething. What was his game this time? “It isn’t a virus that goes away with plenty of liquids and rest. In case you don’t know, it actually takes about nine months to grow a baby. So I’m not sure what you were expecting, but—”

  “I was expecting to meet our daughter.” Seth ran his free hand over his jaw. “Everyone here was expecting to meet our daughter. You told me she was born tonight. You told me she was born here, at home, where you were safe and snug.”

  “I most certainly did not say our daughter was born tonight! I told you…” She let her words fade while she went over their phone conversation again. His concern. His odd questions. Her vague responses. The way his voice dipped in awe. Oh, no.

  “That something important had happened,” Seth prodded. “That you were writing your birth announcements and thought you could write mine, too. For the people in my life who would want to know about—”

  “Our daughter’s birth,” Rebecca finished his sentence, seeing his side of it and feeling like a complete moron. Seth hadn’t brought his family here to make her uncomfortable. They were here to meet the newest member of their family. “Except I’m still pregnant.”

  “I noticed that.” He shoved the bag he held toward her. “I forgot the addresses, but I bought you ice cream. Chocolate marshmallow isn’t that easy to find, by the way.”

  Heat flooded her as she accepted the bag. “Thank you for the ice cream,” she said, once again channeling Ms. Ingersoll. “And I’m sorry for making you think…I was only addressing the announcement envelopes, so they’d be ready to go when she is born. And…um…I thought while I was at it, I could address yours, too.”

  Seth stared at her. She stared right back. She saw his mouth twitch and felt hers do the same. The twitching became smiling, which quickly turned into laughing. Seth wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her head. In barely a breath, everything was okay.

  “I can’t wait to share this story with my granddaughter,” John said, breaking into the laughter. “I’m sure she’ll love to hear how her grandparents, uncles and aunts created a ruckus in their excitement to meet her.”

  Rebecca’s good humor disappeared. Right here, standing all around her, were the people in Seth’s life who would love and cherish their daughter. These were the connections she’d almost stolen from her child, from Seth’s family. Thank goodness Jace had seen through her charade. Thank goodness she’d been forced into doing what she should have done all along.

  “You okay?” Seth asked, his voice soft. “I really didn’t mean for everyone to come over all at once. They insisted and…I was too dazed to object.”

  Karen laughed. “You should have seen his face when he got off the phone, Rebecca. He was in another world. Once I got him to speak, I took it upon myself to call everyone.” She stepped forward and offered Rebecca a warm smile. “This is my fault. Not Seth’s.”

  “I’m happy you’re all here,” Rebecca said, meaning every word. “I know it’s not as exciting as meeting a newborn, but I really do have cookies and lemonade.” She held up the grocery bag. “And chocolate marshmallow ice cream. Any takers?”

  There were. Everyone sat down and Rebecca excused herself to dish out the snacks. Seth followed her to the kitchen, going directly to the sink to splash cold water on his face.

  After he dried off, he let out a lungful of air. “I really thought she was here.”

  “She is here.” Rebecca gave Seth a stack of bowls and the ice cream scoop. “Just not in the way I led you to believe. I’m sorry for that. You must be so disappointed.”

  “I am,” Seth said as he scooped ice cream into bowls. “Don’t hate me, but I’m also a little relieved. I…ah…don’t know how to be a father yet.”

  “I don’t know how to be a mother.” Rebecca finished pouring the lemonade and opened the container of chocolate-chip cookies she’d baked earlier that day. “So I understand.”

  “You’re nervous?” Seth asked, sounding astonished. “I thought you had it all together.”

  If only. “I haven’t started childproofing the house, I haven’t finished reading even one baby book and I’ve changed less than a dozen diapers in my entire life. So, no, I’m not nervous. I’m…petrified.” She hadn’t planned on sharing that with anyone, let alone Seth. But now that it was out in the open, she felt better somehow. “I tell myself that I’ll figure it out as I go along.”

  “You will. We will.” Seth dropped the ice cream scoop in the sink. Turning toward her, he touched her chin with his fingers. “You’re not alone in this, Becca. Not anymore.”

  “I know. And…I’m beginning to see how our daughter will have a better life because of you, because of your family. Seth, I really am sorry about everything. So sorry. I…would change what I did if I could. You need to know I mean that.”

  Long, inky lashes dipped in a heavy blink. Every ounce of common sense deserted her. Her plan to keep Seth at a distance vanished into thin air. Standing on her tiptoes, she pushed his head forward until their lips met. The kiss was hesitant at first, as if Seth was waiting for her to mumble an apology and push him away.

  But not this time. For reasons she didn’t wish to speculate on, she wanted this kiss.

  His hands fell to her hips as his mouth pressed against hers. Warmth tumbled through her, inch by inch, until her entire body was awash with a soft, thrumming heat. Need and want and an emotion too large to name tangled together, freeing her long-ignored desire for Seth.

  Sliding his hands up her back, a low moan growled from his throat. It was an elemental, hungry sound. One that told her his longing was as high as hers. She reveled in this knowledge. Took power from it, too. Teasing his lips open with her tongue, she deepened the kiss. The taste of him mad
e her stomach flutter and her legs soft and her skin tingle with pleasure, with passion.

  She was lost in the pleasure, in the passion, when the kitchen door swung open. Startled, she tried to pull back, but Seth held her tight.

  Jace cleared his throat. Twice. And if she wasn’t mistaken, it was humor she heard when he said, “Sorry about this, but—”

  “Get out,” Seth said without letting go of Rebecca. “You’re a big boy. You can wait another five minutes for ice cream and cookies.”

  “Sorry about this,” Jace repeated. “But there’s a guy with a baseball bat on your front porch, Rebecca. He says he’s your father, but Grady won’t let him in until you confirm it.”

  Before Rebecca could make sense of that strange statement, she heard her father’s voice, loud and commanding, yell that he was calling the police if his daughter wasn’t presented to him in exactly twenty seconds. Oh, hell. The message.

  The only thought in Rebecca’s mind as she raced—well, waddled—toward the living room was that this was a story she would never, ever live down.

  * * *

  If Seth had given thought to the most appropriate way to meet Rebecca’s parents, he would have chosen a nice dinner out—with him buying, of course—or perhaps an informal get-together over coffee and dessert.

  He certainly wouldn’t have chosen to meet her mother at a baby shower for a baby he hadn’t known he was having, where she then witnessed what had to be the most absurd proposal of all time. But even that, Seth was forced to admit, was better than being introduced to Mitchell Carmichael while the man was holding a baseball bat.

  Seth had, after all, impregnated Mitchell’s daughter. And then Rebecca had lied to her entire family about said pregnancy. Which, to Seth’s frame of mind, meant that Mitchell was probably wondering what the hell was wrong with Seth. Or what kind of crap Seth had pulled to make his daughter believe she had to lie.

  So, no. Not a good scenario. Especially with Seth’s entire family in attendance.

  Once the introductions were complete and the explanations given, Allison and Jocelyn, who had been waiting in the car, joined the fracas. Over ice cream, cookies and lemonade, the two families attempted to get to know one another.

  Seth’s and Rebecca’s mothers sat in one corner. Grady and Olivia were grouped with Jace and Melanie, talking to Rebecca and Jocelyn. Seth was squashed in between his father and Mitchell. Everyone seemed to be getting along well enough, but all Seth wanted to do was steal Rebecca away and take her someplace where they could be alone.

  Feeling Mitchell’s gaze on him, Seth decided to go for honesty. “I’d wager that you’re thinking of a hundred ways to kill me right about now.”

  “Don’t need a hundred ways, son. If it’s the right method, only one is necessary,” Mitchell said with a straight face. So straight, Seth couldn’t determine if the man was joking or serious. “I suppose a good backup plan never hurts. Tell me, do you have any food allergies?”

  “Strawberries,” Seth’s father offered with a grin. “The boy gets a boatload of hives if he eats even one strawberry. Not quite sure what would happen if he ate a handful.”

  “Gee, Dad. Thanks,” Seth said. “Glad to know you got my back.”

  John Foster shrugged. “I do have your back, but us dads need to stick together. You’ll figure that out for yourself soon enough.”

  “Well, we’d love to have you over for a barbecue, Seth,” Mitchell said, his blue-green eyes as steady and severe as the set of his shoulders. “Allison makes a…killer strawberry shortcake. Best I’ve ever tasted. You’ll have to try it.”

  “Shame on you, Mitch,” Allison said from across the room. She aimed a wink at Seth. “Don’t spend a second worrying about my husband. His bark is far worse than his bite.”

  “I don’t know, Mom,” Jocelyn’s teasing voice entered the fray. “I seem to recall Dad’s reaction when Jesse asked for permission to marry Rebecca. He sort of flipped out. Of course, once he understood that they weren’t planning to marry until—”

  “Jocelyn! Ah…would you like more ice cream?” Rebecca, who had been deep in conversation with Olivia and Melanie, shot a heated glare at her sister. “Or another cookie?”

  Blindsided, Seth could only stare at Rebecca. In all of their letters, with everything they’d shared, she hadn’t thought to mention she’d almost gotten married? This shouldn’t surprise him. She hadn’t deemed it necessary to inform him about his baby, either, so why mention she once loved another man so much that she agreed to marry him?

  He couldn’t react now. Couldn’t ask the questions he wanted to ask. Returning his attention to Mitchell, Seth pretended all was right with the world. “I happen to love barbecues, so I accept your invitation. But how about if I bring dessert? I’m an ace with brownies.”

  Mitchell straightened his tall, lean form and regarded Seth silently for a few seconds. With a wry shake of his head and the slightest of smiles, he said, “Brownies it is, then. We’ll have Allison and Rebecca work out the details.”

  Ten minutes later, Grady and Olivia said their goodbyes. Seth overheard Olivia and Melanie make plans with Rebecca for some sort of a beauty day at Melanie’s mother’s salon. That was good. He wanted Rebecca to feel comfortable with his family, and becoming friends with Olivia and Melanie was a great beginning.

  But he couldn’t get the engagement revelation out of his head. Who was this Jesse she’d said yes to? Where was he now and why hadn’t the two gotten married? Well, Seth assumed a wedding hadn’t happened, but maybe he was wrong. Maybe they had married. Could Rebecca be divorced? Did she still love this man…this Jesse? Is that why she’d refused Seth’s proposal?

  His blood grew hot in jealousy and in temper. Images of Rebecca loving another man, choosing another man, crowded his brain. It was enough to give a man a heart attack. He held on to his control with everything he had and barely managed to do so. By the time everyone else took their leave, he was hanging on by the slenderest of threads.

  Seth knew Rebecca was probably exhausted. And he knew that this crazy, impromptu gathering of their families was as much his fault as hers. The honorable action would be to leave so she could get some rest. The sensible action would be to wait, to see if she chose to come to him on her own, to give him some necessary distance to chill out.

  But damn if he could walk out that door without his questions being answered.

  “Tell me about Jesse,” Seth demanded within seconds of their being alone. “And I’d like to know why you never bothered mentioning him or your engagement before.”

  “I don’t care to talk about Jesse.” Rebecca lifted her chin in that stubborn way of hers. “Not now. Maybe not ever. Besides, you had your chance to hear everything and you rejected it.”

  “What chance? As far as I can recall, you’ve never said word one about a man you loved enough to spend the rest of your life with.”

  Her chin raised another mulish inch. “You told me clear as day that any explanation I gave you was about relieving my guilt. Jesse was—is—a part of that explanation.”

  “You didn’t tell me you were pregnant because of another guy? That’s what you wanted to explain? What does Jesse—” Seth’s heart rammed into his throat as the unthinkable occurred. He stumbled backward, collapsing on a chair. “Were you uncertain who the father was?”

  “Never.”

  “Then explain this to me.”

  “You said you didn’t want any explanations! At one mention of a man from my past, you do?” Rebecca huffed out a breath and sat down on the sofa. “And they say women can’t make up their minds.”

  “Not just any man. A man you were engaged to. And if he had anything to do with your attempt at keeping my daughter away from me, then I have the right to know.” Seth vaulted to a stand and paced the length of the floor, trying to calm the storm inside. “
Are you two dating again? Does he want to raise my child?”

  “Stop! Please stop.” Rebecca’s eyes took on the watery sheen of unshed tears and her voice bobbed with emotion. “Jesse doesn’t want anything.”

  “Everybody wants something, Becca.”

  She covered her face with her hands. “Not Jesse.”

  “How has Jesse impacted your decision not to tell me about our baby?”

  “You’re in the Air Force,” she said, her voice muffled. “And I don’t see that changing.”

  “I am in the Air Force,” Seth confirmed, confused and wary. “And no, I don’t see that changing, either. But what does that have—”

  “Jesse was in the Army.”

  “Why is that information important to this conversation?”

  Rebecca curled her arms around her stomach and lifted her gaze to his. Sadness and fear lurked in the depths of her eyes, along with a yearning so profound that Seth’s heart ached. A tear slid down her cheek, and then another.

  And that made him feel like the schoolyard bully who’d stolen some poor kid’s lollipop. Hating that his questions, his attitude, had upset her so, he stepped forward to comfort her. But she held up a hand, stopping him.

  “Jesse joined the Army directly out of college,” she said quietly, tearfully. “He was so committed, so sure that was where he was supposed to be. I supported him. I…I even urged him to go. When he came home after basic training and proposed, I said yes. I loved him, Seth. I loved him so much that I couldn’t imagine my world without him in it.”

  An invisible fist slammed into Seth’s gut. In that second, he believed she’d never love him, would never agree to marry him. She loved Jesse. And that was the reason for every decision she’d made. What other explanation could there be?

  “Then why aren’t you happily married to Jesse with two-point-five kids and a dog?”

  Rebecca’s face crumpled and tears poured down her cheeks in fat, never-ending rivulets that tore into Seth as if it were his grief. As if he were somehow taking on her pain for himself. And dammit, if he had that power, he would do that for her.