Child of Their Vows

“Yes,” she said firmly, to convince herself as much as her daughter. “We love each other. And we’re not getting divorced.”

She pulled to a halt in front of the ballet school and turned to touch Robyn’s cheek. “Your father and I have some problems, but they’re work related. There’s nothing big enough or bad enough to stop us from being a family. Don’t worry, honey. Okay? I’ll see you in an hour.”

Robyn shook her head. “Janie’s mom’s picking us up and I’m staying overnight. Dad said it was okay.”

“All right, then. See you tomorrow.”

When she got home, the TV was off and Max was reading to the twins from their favorite Richard Scarry book. Beth was probably in her room, playing her Game Boy. Kelly glanced at the uncleared dining table and the two bowls of uneaten chili con carne and shook her head.

Were she and Max still going out? She wasn’t even sure she wanted to any longer. Tension had tied her stomach in knots and ruined her appetite.

“I’m going out to the plant room,” she said to no one in particular. Time spent with her dried flowers always soothed her nerves.

The plant room was an addition to the already sprawling outbuilding Max had built in the northeast corner of the property. The main shed housed the gardening equipment and barbecue. To that, Max had added a chicken coop with nesting space for three chickens, and finally a long narrow section in which Kelly dried flowers and worked on her floral arrangements.

She pushed through the door, comforted by its familiar creak, and was enveloped by the mingled scents of drying flowers. French lavender, roses, Sweet Annie, strawflowers, yarrow, baby’s breath, blue larkspur, Marguerite daisies and more, hung in bunches from overhead wires strung the length of the room.

She’d settled onto a high stool at the bench and was working on an arrangement of barley, oats and red rosebuds to the comfortable sound of hens clucking as they roosted for the night, when she heard a knock. The door opened and Max came in. Kelly’s hands stilled on pale gold stalks, as she tensed for another argument.

His outstretched hand held a glass of wine. “I thought maybe you could use this.”

“Thanks.” She softened; this was his way of apologizing. “I’m sorry about earlier.”

Max came closer, cupped her face in his hands and kissed her until her knees felt as soft and warm as soap melting in hot water. Kelly’s spirits lifted. They hadn’t made love in weeks. Or was it months? She’d lost track as their sex life had gone from fireworks to fizzle, but this weekend could still turn out to be special.

“Your anniversary present is in my briefcase,” she told him when at last he drew back. “I’ll go get it.”

“Stay here,” Max said. “I’ll do it.”

He returned a few minutes later, bearing a square yellow envelope inscribed with his name. Anxiously, Kelly watched him open it. He was always saying she should be less practical and more romantic, but was this going too far? She hadn’t had a lot of time to consider the matter.

Max pulled out the card and a gift voucher fell out. His first reaction, quickly covered, was one of dismay. “Latin-dance lessons?”

“Okay, so it’s really for both of us. But it’ll be fun, I promise you. And it’s something we can do together.” She smiled slyly. “Tango, the salsa, the lambada… Latin dancing is very sexy.”

“Sexy? Maybe we could use a little…ahem, exercise. Thanks, Kel.” He tucked the card back in the envelope. “I’m afraid you’re going to have to wait awhile for your present.”

In other words, he hadn’t gotten around to buying her anything. Kelly hid her disappointment. He’d given her those beautiful roses, after all. “That’s okay.”

He kissed her again. “Are you going to be long? Nancy’s here.”

“I’ll be right out. Where shall we go for dinner?”

Casually he brushed a finger over the silky fringe of an oat head. “I hope you’re not too hungry….”

“I’m starving. Don’t tell me you ate with the kids.”

“No, no. But maybe you’d better have a snack before we go. It’ll take a couple of hours to get to the restaurant.”

“A couple of hours? Where are you taking me?”

A grin widened his angular jaw, his first full-on smile of the evening. “I made reservations for the Salish Lodge at Snoqualmie Falls. We drive up tonight for the weekend. Kind of like a second honeymoon. That’s my present to you. To us.”

“Oh, Max! That is fantastic.” She rose and threw her arms around his neck. “I love you!”

Max lifted Kelly right off the ground and held her tightly against him. “Don’t ever stop loving me, Kel,” he whispered against her neck. “I couldn’t bear it.”

CHAPTER TWO

MAX OFTEN SURPRISED HER with a romantic gesture, but a weekend at the Salish Lodge was positively inspired. The roaring wood fire with its scent of burning pine, the warmth and elegance of the rustic furniture, and the hot tub for two…all promised a weekend of cozy intimacy.

Kelly accepted the crystal flute Max handed her. “Heavenly. But can we afford Dom Pérignon?”

“Sometimes you just have to say to hell with the cost, Kel.” He shifted closer to her on the love seat and held her gaze. “To us. Whoever said thirteen was an unlucky number was wrong.”

Clinking glasses, Kelly repeated, “To us. And to another thirteen years.” Thirteen had better not be unlucky; they needed all the help they could get.

Max sipped his champagne and set the glass on the coffee table. “Did I tell you I sent off my entry for the Stonington Award today?”

“Really? Which house? What category?”

“The split level in Falkner’s Cove. Luxury domicile. If I win—heck, even if I get nominated—my career should take off. I’d finally be able to keep you in the style to which you’d like to become accustomed.”

“I always knew you’d make it.”

“With a boost to our income, we could hire a cleaner,” Max said. “Stop you from spreading yourself too thin.”

“I can manage. I always have.” Hiring a cleaner would mean she wasn’t doing her job at home, and Kelly took pride in being a good mother and housekeeper. “There’s no reason I can’t do it all.”

“Come on, Kel. We’ve had this argument before.”

“Too many times,” she agreed. “Let’s drop it for now.” She took Max’s sigh for acquiescence and snuggled up to him, enjoying the weight of his arm draped around her shoulder. “This is just like our first honeymoon.”

“Not quite,” Max murmured, nibbling her ear. “The first time we came here we were in bed before we could unpack.”

She glanced over her shoulder at the king-size bed and back at Max. “Down your bubbly, soldier. We’re going in.”

Kelly stripped off her clothes, recalling how, on their first honeymoon, Max had removed them for her. Thirteen years on, lovemaking wasn’t the mad, passionate event it once was, and a long time had passed since they’d gone to bed with the express purpose of having sex. Nowadays they mostly fell asleep right away, exhausted by a full day of work, chores and responsibilities.

But whether it was the champagne or the romantic setting or the promise of a weekend to themselves, once beneath the down comforter, with her bare breasts pressed to Max’s chest, Kelly forgot everything except the heat moving through her veins and the gladness in her heart that they were here, making love, instead of warring at home.

She trailed kisses beneath his jaw, testing the texture of his skin with her tongue. “Mmm, you taste good. You did remember to bring condoms, didn’t you?”

“Uh-huh.” His hands slid down her back and over her hips, bringing her closer. “But do we have to use them?”

“Until I get fitted with another IUD, yes. Dr. Johnson said my body should have a short rest from the device.”

Max nudged a knee between hers. “It’s been a while since we’ve made love. You feel really good, Kel.”