Enchanted Heart (35 page)

On Saturday morning, at nine o’clock, Caid kissed his wife soundly on the lips. The ceremony had lasted all of twenty minutes, minutes which were filled with promises to love, to cleave, to cherish, to obey; for richer or for poorer, until death would part their union. A non-ceremonial ceremony, to say the least. But the end result was what the couple urged Father Dunham to hastily convey from his Bible and his droning sermon. They had waited long enough to finally become man and wife, lovers and partners, a family of two.

Hugs from Greta, handshakes and good wishes from Buck and the pastor were exchanged. Hunts-with-a-knife and Rising Sun stepped up to congratulate their ‘Big Brother’ before easing back to watch from the shadows of the large church. Then their new buggy carried the new couple to their new home, followed by Buck and Greta’s surrey and the two paint ponies that ‘Sunny’ and ‘Hunter’ rode. Linda had stayed on the little farm to get it ready for the small celebration that followed the wedding. The picnic and a small wedding cake were enjoyed by all in the shade of the massive pecan tree in the back yard. And then, after the day waned; Greta and Buck, Linda Blue Sky and the boys wished them well and left them alone.

Fleeting as it was, their wedding day would be remembered by Marty and Caid for the rest of their lives. It was a story to be told to grandchildren, the prelude of the many blissful years. It was a memorable tale that would reach across life’s horizon into Heaven itself to be marveled at by cherubs and angels alike. This was their path, mapped out by the hand of God and followed by the lovers who walked together in idyllic harmony until death would separate them.

Marty stood on the covered porch and watched the sun slowly set over the distant mountains and she sighed contentedly. Then, her eyes fell upon the bobbing surrey that carried her family away from her and her new husband. She could not stop the beaming smile that matched the brightness of the persistent sun that refused to set upon the distant horizon.

Finally, after what seemed like a lifetime of waiting, she had married the man who loved her more than his own life. She leaned into him, her back absorbing the warmth of his chest and she closed her eyes, remembering the first time that he had told her that he loved her.

Then, as if reading her mind, he held out his hand and asked her to do the same. He dropped a gift into her opened palm, saying, “A piece of our past and hopefully a part of our future.”

Marty drew in a joyful breath when she recognized the sparkling pink, dome-shaped rock fragment in her palm. It was a part of the pervasive Enchanted Rock where they had first professed their love for each other. She brought it to her breast and tilted her head in reverence at that simple token of the unbreakable affection that they shared.

“I will cherish it always,” she declared, looking into his deep blue eyes as he smiled his boyish grin at her. She ruffled his silken black curls, which caused them to fall into his eyes as they had that day on the giant rock.

Even though this was uncomfortable for him, Caid left his hair in that position as he leaned down to find her lips with his. When he drew back, he ran his fingers through his curls and pushed them back into position before he declared to her, “I will always cherish you.”

Caid bent down to take his wife into his arms and he carried her through the tiny house to the back room where they would sleep and then he gently eased her onto the fluffy feather bed. He pulled away from her long enough to stand before her and marvel at the incredible beauty that was Marthe McAllister.

Her hair tumbled about her shoulders, a cascade of rich, gleaming copper in the afternoon sun that streamed into the room. Her eyes, as blue as the sky that peeked through the window behind her, sparkled with everlasting joy and her mouth reflected her happiness in a smile of pure, Heavenly bliss. Her cheeks blossomed with a rosy glow that outshone the setting sun. Her bosom, though covered with creamy satin fabric, swelled with anticipation above her small waistline, which tapered ever-so gently to rounded hips that were covered with the same sleek material, which fanned out around her legs on the soft mattress. Her small, delicate hands reached for him in eagerness to please him and to be pleased.

In response, Caid removed his shirt and knelt upon the bed with one knee while stroking the long auburn hair that she had let flow, except for the thin bundles that she had pulled to the back of her head with the silk ribbon that matched her wedding dress. The waves of red-brown hair fell across her bosom, which rose and fell with her every excited breath, silently begging him to cover them with the heat of his hand. Daring to delay obliging her unspoken wish, his fingers tugged upon the ringlet on one side of her face and allowed it to snap back toward her ear while his forefinger caressed her flushed cheek. Soft as a feather, that same finger slid down her tilted chin to the concave of her neck, pausing slightly to assess the rapid beating of her heart beneath her skin. He curled his fingers and let them gently glide over the mound of her breast, his deft knuckles barely brushing the softness of her satin dress that separated her from his hungry, yet patient touch.

He turned his palm toward her, gently pushing aside the silky auburn hair and gliding his hand across the softness of her breast to slowly cup the heaving mound while he watched her face for signs of fear or uneasiness but he only saw desire. Feeling her heartbeat quicken in his hand, his own heart raced to an uncontrollable pace, causing his breath to rush in quick, exhilarated gasps. When he raised his eyes to meet hers, he saw his reflection in their light blue haze and felt her languid gaze draw him into her soul as if those fathomless pools could drown him in their alluring depths. He dragged in a ragged breath, mesmerized by her beauty and he could wait no more.

He had respected her determined stance on honoring her deceased husband and the promise that she had made to herself to be faithful to his memory as a prudent widow. But she was his wife now and he would spend the rest of his life proving it to her by his actions in their life together and as many times as necessary within the blankets of their marriage bed.

While he leaned near her face to kiss her, his eyes darkened by the anticipation of what was to come, Marty obstructed his advances with outstretched arms and with palms against his heaving bare chest. Her expression stopped him cold while she wriggled from beneath him.

“Caid,” she said shyly. “There is something that I have to tell you.”

“It can wait,” he said, almost irritated at the way she had torn herself from his grasp to curl up on the edge of the bed as if she were afraid of him.

“No,” she said, and seeing his changed expression, she crawled back toward him and sat in front of Caid as she said sadly, “This can’t wait.”

She drew in a decisive breath and finally told him what had made her heart heavy these past months, those past years that had torn the life from her heart, her body and her soul. She lowered her eyes and said, “You know that I’ve had two miscarriages. My last son died even before he took his first breath.”

Caid nodded. He remembered but wondered why it was important enough to bring it up at this time, in the middle of—before they—while they…

Marty continued before he could find the words to protest, “I found out just recently that it was caused by an incurable disease that makes my blood thin and when I get pregnant, there are…complications. I could bleed to death or the baby may die, as it has happened before. ”

Caid watched a tear slip from one of her light blue eyes and roll down her soft cheek and his heart melted with her sadness. He wiped the tear away and kissed that cheek with all the tenderness that he felt in his heart and whispered, “Then you won’t get pregnant.”

“It’s not that simple,” she argued, her lips trembling. “Now that we are married, I want to give you everything that a husband deserves. You deserve to have children, heirs to your Grammy’s fortune. I need to have them in order to feel complete.”

She fell into his chest, wrapping her arms around his neck and sobbed, “God, Caid. I want so much to give you a son, but I know in my heart that he may never live to be a father himself.”

“I don’t understand,” Caid said as he caressed her racking back. “A son, a daughter, I would love either one. But, we don’t want to take the chance of you bleeding to death trying to give birth to either.”

Marty shook her head as she stared at him through tear-thickened lashes before she explained, “You see, Buck told me that any son of mine, but not every one, could have a chance of being a hemophiliac, a bleeder. My case is minor, which is why I am still alive. A son with the disease will not be so lucky. If we have a daughter, she may not even show signs of the disorder, but her sons may. And her daughter will carry the condition, too.”

“What is this hemo-whatever you called it anyway?” he asked, putting her at arms’ length to study her face.

“Hemophilia is a blood disorder where a person who has it could bleed to death because their blood is too thin to clot and even a minor cut could kill them,” she explained. “As I said, mine is a mild case, which causes me to bleed during pregnancy and ultimately, I lose the baby. In the last pregnancy, I thought that I would finally have a child to love, but it was a son and Buck said that he probably died while he was being born because the pressure on his head had caused bleeding, which took his life.”

“So, there is always the chance that you will have another miscarriage,” Caid said with a slow nod. “And if you do carry the baby until birth, if it is a boy, it will die right away?”

Marty shook her head, saying, “He may live through birth. He may live a few years. Buck said that there are even some boys who live to be fathers, but they have to be very careful not to hurt themselves.”

She sniffed before she went on to say, “My little brother, God rest his sweet soul, had the condition and we didn’t know it. The doctors in our town in Germany did not realize it, and even if they had, they couldn’t help him anyway. He died shortly after he’d fallen out of the tree. Buck says that it was probably internal bleeding, intensified by the disorder.”

“So, if we have a boy who lives through birth, we’ll be careful with him,” Caid said with a reassuring smile.

Marty ducked her head and then shook it with a forlorn expression, saying, “I don’t know if I can handle another miscarriage. And if I have a live son and then I lose him after I’ve fallen in love with him—I would certainly take my sanity.”

Marty began to cry again, the possible impending tragedy of her child’s future weighing heavy on her heart.

Caid thrust her to his chest and squeezed her with all the love that he felt in his heart and he promised, “I’m here, my love. We’ll get through anything that happens. I’ll always be here.”

Marty sniffed against his bare chest, clinging to the muscles in his back while her voice was muffled against his body, she cried, “Don’t leave me, Caid. I need you to get me through this.”

“Shhhh,” he whispered into her hair as he rocked her in his arms. “I won’t, Sweetheart. I won’t.”

Then, as he held her, he promised, “When I go to get Sera Dear, you can ride along with me.”

“Oh, Sera Dear,” she whispered, using his nickname for her niece, when she realized that he had promised Greta that he would retrieve her daughter. “I forgot about dear Seraphina.”

“You can go with me. It will be like a second trip to paradise,” he said with exuberance in his voice. “We’ll stop at the Enchanted Rock and tell the world that we love each other all over again!”

She giggled at the thought of reliving that moment in their lives and she pulled her face away to look into his eyes as she declared, “I do love you, Caid McAllister.”

Caid pulled her back into his arms and hugged her, relaying the emotion in his heart while he breathed, “I do love you, Marty McAllister.”

He eased her onto the bed until her flowing hair surrounded the pillow beneath her head and he leaned on one elbow as he stared down at her in wonder. Then, he kissed her nose, her cheeks, her forehead and finally her lips.

This act of physically promising her that they would face any adversity together made Marty realize that unlike her first husband, Caid would help her through any problems that she might have during a pregnancy. She saw the true and fervent love in his concerned face, felt it in his tender touch and the soft kisses that he rained upon her face, which she tipped up to meet his adoring lips with hers. She wrapped her arms around his neck, drawing him into her body as she moaned in pure pleasure at the weight of him above her, “Make love to me, Caid. Make me complete.”

When he remembered the complications that she had suffered as a result of this very act, he paused, appealing to her with his eyes, asking her to refuse him the God-given right to find pleasure in the body of his willing wife, yet yearning for that very promise with every fiber in his.

“But we shouldn’t. Not yet. Not until we find a way to prevent your grief,” he groaned as he prepared to make the decision for them both.

Marty pulled him back into her arms and declared, “I want this, Caid. I need this. I need
you
.”

Her urgent words echoed in Caid’s hungry heart. His selfish body needed her as much as she needed him. But, still, he hesitated until she clutched his bicep in her hand with insistent firmness.

Her eyes told him that she didn’t care anymore. Her voice muttered her desire to fulfill the promise that marriage to this man meant true and honest love, no matter what transpired to cause her sadness as she groaned, “Whatever happens, I know you will be here to see me through it.”

It was all he could do to keep his hands from tearing her wedding dress from her arched body while he leaned above her, aching to show her just how much he needed her. But he refrained. He held back. He stared at her beauty for long moments while she begged him with her eyes to make love to her. Still, he waited.

Finally, Marty pulled at his bare shoulders until he was nearly on top of her as she fumbled for the buttons on her wedding gown. Beseeching him for help, she dropped her hands to his waist and began to tug upon the buttons on his breeches. Taking in a lungful of air, Caid moved her hands aside and nodded as if to tell her that he would take over of the necessary task of undressing both of them. Almost relieved, she lay back onto the pillow and watched him with attentive eyes.