“You can’t,” she whispered. “You’re a fantasy.”
He pinched her and laughed when she said, “Ow.” “Does that feel like a fantasy?”
She rubbed her arm. “No.”
“Does this?” He covered her mouth with his, persuading her with his lips what he could not do with words.
“Wow!” she breathed against his mouth.”I’ve still got it?”
“Yes. It’s better than I remembered.”
“So you have been thinking about me.”
“How could I not?” Maggie asked as she pulled away from him. “You were so great, Jeremy. It was the best adventure I ever had.”
“I know you think you wrote the end of our story, but I’m convinced there should be a sequel,” Jeremy said.
“Really?” she asked, unable to stop the surge of impossible hope from spreading through her body. “What would it be about?”
“You and me and your kids, learning how to be a family.” He touched her face. “I’m not letting you go, Maggie.”
She didn’t want him to let her go. She wanted him to hold on to her forever, make love to her, make her laugh, make her be silly, make her feel wanted. But what could she give him but a complicated mess of a life?
“Mom,” Dylan cried, as he and Sally ran down the hall. “Sally found a dead lizard. Look.”
Sally dropped her offering at Maggie’s feet and barked excitedly.
Maggie made a face at the mangled bit of lizard lying on her hall floor. She couldn’t stand to look at it. “Dylan, how many times have I told you not to let her in the house with those things. Make her take it out of here.”
“She wanted to give it to you, Mom,” Dylan said earnestly. “She missed you.”
“I missed her, too. Make her take the lizard away.”
When Dylan tried to pick up the lizard, Sally grabbed it with her teeth and headed back toward the yard with Dylan following at her heels.
“That was my son, Dylan. My middle child. Still want to stay?” she asked Jeremy.
Before he could reply, Roxy skipped down the stairs in a very short skirt and enough makeup to cover half of San Diego. She stopped when she saw Jeremy.
“Who’s he?” she asked suspiciously. “He a friend, and you’re not leaving this house with all that makeup.”
“I’m only wearing blush,” Roxy protested.
“And eyeliner and shadow and lipstick. Go and wash.”
“You know, Aunt Lisa is more cool than you,” Roxy said, as she stamped her way up the stairs.
“I know. Everyone is more cool than me.” Maggie looked to see if Jeremy had left yet, but he was still standing in the hall, smiling.
“Is that it?” he asked.
“Mommy, can I take my dolls to the cemetery?” Mary Bea asked from the upstairs landing, her arms filled with four big dolls.
“Just one, honey.”
“But they’ll be lonely.”
“Why don’t you put them down for a nap while we’re gone?” Maggie suggested.
“Okay.” Mary Bea toddled off to do as requested.
“Are you still here?” Maggie asked, throwing up her hands with a helpless laugh.
“I told you I’m not leaving—not unless you tell me that you don’t love me.”
She met his gaze in one long, heart-stopping look. “I do love you, Jeremy, but that’s a long way from turning you and me into some sort of family. I’m still trying to convince myself you’re not a fantasy.”
“Let me stay. Let me prove to you I’m real.” He put his hands on her shoulders. “I wrote more on the road with you than I have in months. And since I’ve been home, I haven’t written a thing. You’re my inspiration, Maggie.”
“I’ve never been anyone’s inspiration.”
“I’ve never been anyone’s fantasy,” he said with a smile. “I’ll try it if you will.”
“Jeremy, you have no idea what my life is really like.”
“Show me. Don’t shut me out. Give me a chance.”
How could she say no when her heart was screaming yes? “Are you sure? I’m just an average, run-of-the-mill mom with stretch marks and a real weakness for chocolate. “
Jeremy laughed. “As long as you’re willing to share that chocolate, I have no problem with it. But you’re not just anything, Maggie. I’ve seen you in action. I know you have a wild imagination, but you’re also a fighter, and you’re loyal. You don’t quit, Maggie. I like that about you—among other things.”
“Really?” Maggie smiled at him for a long moment, just enjoying the connection that had begun that first day. “I guess I should tell you then that I am totally in love with you.”
“Thank God,” he breathed.
Maggie suddenly realized that Jeremy had not been sure of her answer. “Are you that surprised?”
“Yes. I know you loved Keith very much. I saw how much it hurt you to know that he was really gone.”
“It did hurt, and I will miss him, Jeremy. But this isn’t about Keith anymore. It’s about me and my life and whether or not it could ever mesh with yours. You once said you weren’t sure if you wanted children,” she reminded him. “I have children.”
“I know what I said, Maggie, and you’re right, I’d never really thought much about kids. But that’s because those kids didn’t have names or faces, and they didn’t belong to a woman I love.” He paused. “I don’t know if I’d be a good father, Maggie. I’m sure I’d make a lot of mistakes, but I’d like to try to make you happy. I’d like to try to make all of us happy, if you’ll let me. I don’t want to lose you. Give me a chance?”
“Yes. Oh, yes, I’ll give you a chance.” She kissed him on the mouth with a renewed sense of joy and hope and love. “You might as well come with us, then. We have to go to the cemetery.”
Jeremy looked a bit disturbed at that comment. “To visit your husband’s grave? Maggie, I don’t want to intrude.”
“No, not Keith. My brother lost a child, years ago. His mother-in-law believes in a special celebration for the dead. It’s a long story.
I’ll tell you on the way. Just be prepared for anything. ”
“Who else is going to be there?” he asked.
“Everyone.” Her smile faded. “Except Lisa.”
F
ROM THE CEMETERY
Nick could see the blue of the ocean in the distance, glistening in the sunshine. The blue reminded him of Lisa’s eyes. A heavy, familiar weight settled around his heart. He tried to shake off the feeling of loneliness, but it covered him like a heavy winter coat.
He shouldn’t have made love to her again. Now his memories were vivid, sharp and painful, not old and faded the way they’d been before.
A soft chirping drew his gaze to the nearby tree. He smiled at his old friend, the robin. “She’s gone, buddy. Flown away.”
The bird chirped in response and hopped up to another branch, flapping his wings, sending his mating call out over the hillside, but there was no reply.
“Maybe you should get used to being alone,” Nick said. “If I can do it, you can.”
He sat down on the grass and pulled out his guitar. The others would be arriving shortly, but he always came early to spend his own time with Robin. He played a few notes, strumming the guitar softly with his fingers. He remembered when he’d first played the melody for Lisa. It had been her song then. Later it had become Robin’s song.
He played it now for both of them, for the two girls he had loved more than anyone else in his life. When he finished, he set the guitar down and looked up, wondering if the bird had flown away. He didn’t see the robin. He saw Lisa.
“Hello, Nick.”
“Lisa.”
His sharp intake of breath nearly undid her. “I heard your song, and I—I came.”
“I’d almost given up.”
“It took me a while to really hear you. I guess I didn’t want to.”
Lisa turned her head toward the small headstone where her daughter’s name was written—Robin Nicole Maddux, child of our love.
Her eyes filled with moisture at the sight. She hadn’t been to the cemetery in a long time, because this vivid reminder of Robin’s death was almost too painful to bear. But she was here now, because she could no longer run away from her heart—or from Nick.
Nick stood up and set his guitar down on the ground. “Why did you come back, Lisa?”
Lisa turned to face him. She took a deep breath, knowing she was about to open herself up for the biggest rejection of her life. But she had to do it. “I love you, Nick.”
He didn’t say anything for a moment, and her heart almost stopped. What if he’d changed his mind? What if she’d waited too long?
“Say something,” she begged.
“Are you still marrying Raymond?” he asked, with a curt note in his voice.
“No. I just told you I love you.”
He shook his head, his eyes still guarded. “It isn’t enough.”
“What more do you want?” she cried.
“Everything. I want you to marry me again. I want us to have children. I can’t settle for anything less.”
“You’re asking for the sun and the moon and the stars.”
“And you,” he said softly. “I can’t promise that nothing bad will ever happen to us again, but I can promise that I’ll never let you down the way I did before. And I’ll never let you go. No more leaving me behind, Lisa. If you’ve come back to stay, then you’re staying forever. It’s your choice, but you have to decide now.”
You never take a risk. You always play it safe.
Raymond’s words echoed through Lisa’s head. It was the most honest thing he’d ever said to her. And she knew he was right. But she was about to take the biggest risk of her life.
“Then I choose you,” she said. “I’ve come back to stay, and I’ll give you everything I have. I’ll even give you another baby, because—because I want one, too.”
Nick suddenly let out a long breath, and she realized that he was as scared as she was. She flung herself into his arms and kissed him over and over and over again, until they broke apart with a breathless, loving laugh.
Nick smiled at her. “It took you long enough. I’d almost given up. I’ve been sitting on my porch, playing that damn song every night, hoping you’d come back to me.” He paused. “I love you, you know. I never stopped.”
“Me, either.” She glanced toward the headstone, then back at Nick. “There’s one thing, though.”
“What?”
“Robin…” She smiled as the name finally crossed her lips. “There, I finally said it.”
“Say it again.”
“Robin.” She grinned. “It suddenly seems so easy. Robin, Robin, Robin.” Lisa took a breath. “She’ll always be a part of us. You can talk about her, and I’ll listen. You can put her picture on the dresser, and I won’t turn it over. And I’ll even help you think of some good advertising campaigns for your business using her name. But—” She licked her lips. “I can’t live in that house again, Nick. I can’t go back. I will go forward with you, but somewhere else.”
He nodded. “That’s fine with me. If you want me to move to L.A. I’ll do it.”
“You will?”
“Yes.”
She kissed him again. “Thank you, but I’ve missed the beach. There are advertising agencies in San Diego. And I happen to have a great reference from my former boss.”
“I take it you didn’t break his heart.”
“We weren’t getting married for the right reasons. We both realized that. In fact, I think Raymond is interested in another woman. He said he needed someone older, someone who made him feel like a kid. I guess I wouldn’t have made a very good trophy wife.”
“You’re too smart to be any man’s trophy.”“I still have to call everyone on our list, though. You had to mail those damn invitations, didn’t you?”
Nick threw back his head and laughed. “Hell, no. I didn’t mail ‘em. I threw them in the trash.”
“You didn’t?”
“Sure did.”
“You’re terrible.”
“I wasn’t about to let you marry anyone but me.”
Lisa turned her head at the sudden chirping. “I see our friend is back.”
“And lonely as hell. Too bad, buddy. I found my mate.” Nick put his arm around Lisa’s shoulder and held her close.
“Nick, look.” Lisa pointed to another bird that seemed to have come out of nowhere. It lit on the branch next to the male robin. “She heard his song, and she came.”
They turned as three cars pulled up and parked along the street. The kids hopped out of the first car, followed by Maggie and Jeremy.
“Looks like someone else heard the mating call,” Nick said dryly.
Carmela and Silvia got out of the second car, and Bill and Kathy stepped out of the third. Lisa felt a rush of joy and pleasure as their families walked toward them. Today they would celebrate their daughter and their love.
Her arm started to tingle, and she looked down at the bracelet, which had grown warm against her wrist.
“Oh, Nick, look,” she whispered, her voice laced with the same wonder that filled her heart.
Nick took her hand and held it up in the sunlight. Next to the pair of gold baby shoes was a tiny gold robin.
Epilogue
“How long are you going to watch him sleep?” Nick asked as he came up behind Lisa in the shadowy bedroom.
“Just a few more minutes.” Lisa leaned her head against Nick’s shoulder and smiled down at the child before her. Samuel Robert Maddux uttered a brief snore and turned over, his little thumb sneaking into his mouth as he once again fell back to sleep. “I can’t believe he’s a year old today.”
“Maybe you better wake him up so he doesn’t miss his party.”
“Let him sleep for a few more minutes. He looks so peaceful.” Lisa turned into Nick’s arms and smiled up at him. “Thank you.”
“For what—last night or this morning?”
Lisa laughed. “For giving me another baby to love. And another,” she added, patting her rounded stomach.
“You’re not scared anymore, are you?”
“Oh, yes, I am. Every day and every night, but the joy Sam brings into our lives is worth every worry line on my face. I love being a mother, and I love being your wife.”
“As much as you love advertising?”
“More, but it is nice that I can work at home three days a week. You fixed everything, Nick. I’m so glad we took another chance.
Sometimes, I wonder what would have happened to us if I’d never come back. I’d be married to Raymond, and you’d be married to Suzanne.”
“I don’t think so. It probably just would have taken a little longer for us to find each other again.”
Lisa walked to the doorway, then sent him a teasing smile. “Can I go change my clothes—or do you still need to leave the room first?”
“You have a very smart mouth, Mrs. Maddux,” Nick said, as he walked over and kissed her on the lips. “I’ve begun to enjoy watching you leave. You have a great—”
“Nick!”
“Well, you do. But it doesn’t bother me to see you leave anymore, because I know you’re coming back.”
“Always. You’re stuck with me forever.”
“I’m not sure that will be long enough.”
The doorbell rang, and Lisa groaned. “You know, ever since Maggie married Jeremy, she’s become incredibly punctual. Although, how she does it with four kids, I can’t imagine.”
“Maggie has changed,” Nick said as they walked toward the front door.
“For the better,” Lisa agreed. “She’s still funny and scattered and can never find her car keys, but she’s so happy.”
“Maggie said she had an announcement to make. I wonder if she’s pregnant again.”
“Kristin is only four months old.”
“So?” Nick said with a grin. “In case you haven’t noticed, my sister seems to have turned into a sex maniac.”
“It must run in the family,” Lisa replied, as she opened the door to greet Maggie and Jeremy. “Hello. Hello.”
“Hello, yourself,” Maggie said, as she gave Lisa a hug. “Where’s the birthday boy?”
“Still asleep.”
Maggie raised an eyebrow. “And you’re not sitting in his room watching over him?”
Lisa gave her a sheepish smile. “I was. But I’ve gotten better. Come on in. How are you, Jeremy?”
“Just great,” he replied, as Lisa kissed him on the cheek, then bent down to kiss her niece, who was asleep in Jeremy’s arms.
“Where are the other kids?” Lisa asked.
“They took Sally around the back,” Maggie replied, as they walked into the house and put their things in the living room.
“So, what’s the news?” Nick demanded.
“Goodness, Nick, give Maggie a chance to catch her breath,” Lisa said.
“I don’t think that will happen even if you give me the next year to catch my breath,” Maggie replied.
“Why? What is it?” Lisa searched Maggie’s face for some hint of trouble, but all she saw was glowing happiness.
Maggie looked over at Jeremy. “Can I tell her?”
“Can I stop you?” Jeremy asked with a laugh.
“We sold our story to Paramount Pictures,” Maggie said in a rush.
“What do you mean, your story?”
“The story of how we met, my search for Keith, my brother’s reunion with his first love—everything,” Maggie said with delight. “Jeremy and I wrote it together, and my name is going to be in the credits. Can you believe it? I’m a screenwriter.”
“Wow. That’s incredible. I had no idea you were writing something together,” Lisa said, glancing over at Nick. He hadn’t said a word, and she wondered how he felt about the idea of their personal love story making it to the big screen.
“Maggie wrote this on her own,” Jeremy said. “I was just the backup.”
“No, you were my partner, my equal partner,” Maggie said. “So, what do you think, Nick?”
“Who’s going to play me?”
Lisa laughed. “More importantly, who’s going to play me?”
“I have no idea,” Maggie said. “But the story is fictionalized, so it’s not really you two, exactly.”
“It sounds great,” Nick said. “I think your going crazy two years ago was the best thing that happened to all of us.”
“Well thanks, I think.”
Before Maggie could say anything more, the back door opened and the kids ran into the room.
“Come see, come see,” Dylan cried.
“See what?” Lisa asked.
“The robins,” Mary Bea said. “The babies are starting to fly.”
Lisa rushed through the door, followed by Maggie and Jeremy and Nick. She stopped on the deck and looked at the nest the robins had built earlier that spring. Sure enough, the baby robins were flapping their wings, getting ready to fly. The first one moved to the edge of the nest. Lisa held her breath.
Nick took her hand and looked into her eyes. “She’ll make it, Lisa. We all will. Happily ever after.”
“I know. I just wish Robin were here to see all of this.”
“She is—right here.” He placed his hand on her heart. Lisa put her hand over his, and together they watched as the baby robin took off on wobbly wings, only to soar high above their heads, into a world that held so many promises.