Chapter 16
“Hey…can I come in?” Nick said
softly. “Fuck me…” He looked around the bedroom. Well-meaning friends had tried
to restore some type of order to the room, but it was still in shambles.
Everything broken lay in a pile in the corner - lamps, pictures, mirrors.
Jeanie held an 8x10 picture taken on their wedding day. The glass was now
missing and the glossy finish on the photograph stained from where a bottle of
perfume had shattered against it. Jeanie looked exhausted.
He sat down next to her. “Do you
need something to eat or drink?”
“I’m not hungry, thanks.”
“When’s the last time you slept?
You look like you’re about to fall over.”
“I dunno… I guess before I left
for Vegas. I can’t remember.” She laid her head on his shoulder. “Oh, Nick…”
“I know…” He put his arm around
her. “He’s hurtin’. Man, you don’t know how much he loves you and Madi.” It was
killing Nick to say it, but she needed to hear it. She had to hear it from
someone…
“What will we do without Madi? I
can’t even fathom life without her…I can’t…” Her voice quivered as she shook.
“I’m so cold…”
Nick jumped up and grabbed a
blanket and wrapped it around her. “It’s probably nerves. You can’t imagine
life without her because it’s not gonna happen. She’s gonna be here…”
“But Tiffany…”
“Tiffany won’t hurt her…” Nick
wanted to tell her the real truth. She deserved the truth, but he was scared.
“I’m tryin really hard to think about where she woulda gone. This is what I
told the cops…” Nick told her the same story he’d told Kevin and the police.
That she’d telephoned him during rehearsal saying that she’d stolen money. That
he’d offered to buy her an airline ticket if she’d just leave and that she must
have panicked, thinking he was going to turn her in.
“Why would she steal from us? If
she needed money that bad, I’d have given it to her. Anything…just leave Madi
out of it!” Jeanie cried.
“Shhh, I know…I know…” Nick began
to cry. “I’m sorry. This is my fault.”
“NO! Don’t you say that Nickolas
Gene Carter! NO!” Jeanie sobbed. “You’ve been here for Madi and I when no one
else was. You loved me when I didn’t feel I deserved anyone’s love. Don’t say
that, Nick…please don’t say it. Madi loves you so much...ick…” she sniffled.
Hearing that, Nick broke down.
He’d forgotten that Madi had started calling him “ick.”
Through her tears, Jeanie tried to
smile. “You know h-how she d-drops the first letter?” Nick, his face buried in
her shoulder, couldn’t look up. He just shook his head. “Jessie is “essie” and
Daddy is “addy.” And y-you’re “ick.”
He laughed a little. “Yeah…there’s
“Upe” and “Rian” and “J” and “Indswee."
Jeanie giggled, wiping her face,
“and poor Howie … she calls him “owie!”
Nick grinned, “And Mac…”ack.” I
always think she’s choking when she says that!”
Placing her hands on his damp cheeks,
Jeanie kissed one cheek then the other. “Nick…ick…I love you. Madi loves you.
Don’t ever forget that.”
* * *
Tiffany handed Madi another french
fry. Madi had ketchup in her hair. Great…another damn bath. Madi took a bite
then held it out for Tiffany to take a bite. She was sharing…
Tiffany began to cry. Tears filled
Madi’s green eyes. The last thing Tiff needed was a crying baby. Tiffany handed
her the rest of her shake. That snapped Madi out of it. No one ever let her
have a big cup before…
Madi’s picture was everywhere. So
was the description of the car as well as Tiffany’s picture. She thought she
was being smart by driving north. She’d planned on driving to Lubbock then
flying out of Lubbock. She knew if she’d flown out of Dallas that her flight
could have been easily traced. Lubbock wasn’t that far, or at least it didn’t
look that far on the map.
She drove until she couldn’t see
straight from exhaustion. A small motel in a small town…safe enough or so she
thought. Now, she was trapped here. There was precious little traffic in these
small towns. She’d be easily spotted by the local sheriff, the Texas Rangers,
or the DPS. She needed to figure something out, but what?
Madi turned the large cup straight
up trying to get a drink and squealed as a blob of chocolate malt plopped down,
hitting her squarely between the eyes. Tiffany’s first urge was to slap her.
God, she was such a friggin pig. When she finally pried the cup out of her tiny
fingers, Tiff burst into laughter. Madi’s whole face was covered in chocolate
malt. Madison kept blinking and batting her eyelashes thickly coated in ice
cream.
“God…didn’t anyone ever teach you
to feed yourself?” she muttered as she grabbed for a towel.
To her surprise, Madi answered.
“Momma.” It was the only name she ever said right.
* * *
The FBI had installed wiretaps on
their phones. Megan ran interference and answered questions from reporters.
Everyone found a place to sleep and Lupe kept cooking… Nick tucked Jeanie into
bed, despite her protests that she couldn’t sleep…not now…not ever again. Kevin
remained locked in his office.
Sometime in the middle of the
night, Kevin finally came out. He spoke briefly with the officers on duty…no
news. No ransom calls. Nothing. Nick and Brian were playing video games. Leighanne
was asleep in Jessie’s room. Kevin almost laughed…he could only imagine the
righteous indignation on Jessie’s face when they broke that little bit of news
to her. First Leighanne “stole her man” and then she “stole her bed.”
He made his way upstairs
half-expecting Jeanie to have locked him out of their room. He could tell by
her breathing that she was asleep. He undressed and slipped into bed next to
her. Kevin pulled her toward him and she willingly let him surround her with
not only his strong arms, but his love.
She nuzzled, kissed, and burrowed
into his chest. Kevin closed his eyes, stroking her silky hair. He’d forgotten
how much he loved holding her. His world was always right when he held Jeanie.
His voice was a throaty whisper, all that was left after hours and hours of
crying. “I’m so scared…”
She lazily opened her eyes. Tears
broke free again and inched their way down his cheeks. Using her thumbs, she
wiped them away. “Me, too…”
“I always take it out on you. When
I’m scared or mad or hurt. I love you so much. I don’t know why I do that,” he
apologized.
Jeanie scooted up and cradled his
head against her breast. She stroked his hair and tenderly kissed his forehead
as he wept.
“I’m sorry, baby. I always take it
out on you…” he repeated.
“Shh. It’s okay…”
“No. It’s not okay. You just keep
loving me…”
“Kevin…honey. Listen to me,” she
sat up and forced him to look at her, his emerald eyes searching for
forgiveness. “I’m your wife. Baby, if you can’t let it out around me…what’s the
point? I’m here for you, Kevin. I’ve always been here if you’ll just let me…I
love you…” She began to cover his face with tiny kisses. “I love you…I love
you…I love you…” she murmured over and over alternating “I love you’s” with
delicate love-laced kisses. She ran her fingertip down the bridge of his nose
and to his lips. Then lightly traced his lips with her fingers followed by her
tongue, ever-so-lightly brushing his top lip, and then his bottom lip.
“…love…you…” she moaned once more.
The only light in the room was
from the full moon. As Jeanie pulled her teddy over her head, her skin seemed
almost like porcelain bathed in the moonlight. She pulled him to her and Kevin
buried his face into the base of her neck. She smelled so good. Only in his
imagination did he know what angels must smell like...for Kevin, they smelled
like Jeanie. She smelled innocent yet seductive. His lips played against the
sensitive skin on the sides of her neck leaving a trail of tiny kisses up and
down and up again. Tiny waves of pleasure began washing over her as he kissed
her, slipping his tongue inside her mouth.
“Make love to me…” she whimpered.
Soft loving kisses gave way to
crushing, lust-filled hungry kisses as his lips captured hers over and over.
Her hands slid down his torso as she cupped him in her tiny hands eliciting a
guttural groan. Kevin broke their kiss, his mouth finding her tender
breasts…suckling first one then the other. She writhed with pleasure under him,
her back arching to raise her tiny hips up to him.
“Baby…” he moaned as he knelt
between her legs spreading her with his fingers then swirling his tongue over
her clit then sucking her hard. Jeanie’s hips rose up to meet him once again as
his tongue plunged into her. She began to grind into him as his fingers and tongue
drove her into the outer limits of ecstasy. She could feel her orgasm building,
tiny uncontrolled tremors…here and there.
“Kev…don’t…stop…” she moaned, her
fingers entwined in his dark hair. The gentle rocking of her hips gave way to
uncontrolled bucking.
Kevin looked up at her from
between her legs. Her face was flushed, tiny beads of perspiration dotted her
face…she was the most beautiful, sensuous woman he’d ever known. She was HIS
woman…
He slowly slipped inside her. She
was warm and wet and he gulped for air as he felt her take in his entire
length. Her strong muscles seemed to envelop him and coddle him, slowly and
gently at first, then she began to push him. He groaned and pulled her up.
Jeanie opened her eyes for a moment as she snaked her legs around his waist and
ground her hips down and around. He seemed to fill every inch of her yet she
needed more and moved seductively back and forth trying to take in as much of
him as she could.
Eyes closed, they sat and nuzzled
each other…perspiration mixed with tears…tiny “I love you’s”…slowly and gently
they moved in rhythm with each other. Kevin’s large hands holding her tiny
waist as she let herself fall back just a little…letting him take over…take her
over the edge again. He was thrusting harder now, his breathing jagged. Never
breaking free, he pushed her back onto the bed.
His buried his face into her the
soft of her shoulder as his scream shattered the quiet of the night. An orgasm
so powerful he felt as if he would never stop and he thrust harder and harder,
trying to give her everything he could.
When they were spent, they lay
softly entwined in a lover’s embrace and wept. They wept for Madi…they wept for
time lost. They wept as they each silently thanked God for giving them one more
chance to love each other.
This was not the end for Jeanie
and Kevin. This was the beginning.
This was the first day of the rest
of their life…together.