Forever's Promises (Forever In Luck Series Book 1) (7 page)

“It’s
kind of scary isn’t it,” Bev whispered, as Linnie continued to stare.

Nodding
rapidly, Linnie swallowed hard.

“I
worry some,” Bev said softly. “It’s only been a couple days, but I’ve heard him
up late into the night, but nothing else. So I hope… We better put this away.
He’ll be home soon, and well, he doesn’t know we’ve seen these. I found them
when I was cleaning out his room. He has yet to talk about any of it. All he’s said
is that he left and joined the Army, became a Ranger, and was in Iraq and
Afghanistan. Oh, and that he’s not the father of Naomi’s boy.”

 
“I’ll clean this up if you want to start
dinner,” Linnie offered, getting up from the table, feeling weak.

“Sounds
good. Will you stay and eat with us? We’re having spaghetti.”

Oh
yeah, she was staying, she wanted to talk to Nate. “Sure, if it’s not too much
trouble.”

Bev
clucked and shook her head, as she went to the fridge. “Linnie, you’re never
too much trouble. I love having you here, and besides, us girls have to stick
together.”

“Thanks,
Bev,” she said, with a smile. Then taking one more look at the pictures of Nate,
she asked, “Where do these go?”

“Bottom
drawer of his dresser, left side, under the clothes.”

Entering
his room was surreal. Despite having been in it many a time, it seemed odd. Putting
the photos back, she went to leave, when she noticed a picture of her on his
nightstand. Her in her prom dress. Ugh, he definitely needed a new picture.

**********

The
paparazzi was alive and well, and living large in Luck, Wisconsin. Nate had to laugh,
no privacy here in this little town, he thought. The Knitting Brigade had set
him up to meet Linnie at the gazebo, and now they had pictures to prove it. He’d
been receiving text messages, with images of the two of them, on his phone ever
since the swing incident. He loved these pictures, and was downloading them
onto his computer. He planned on taking them to the photo department in St.
Croix, and having them printed on good photo paper, then he’d get some nice
picture frames to hold them in. Moving the images around, he set them up to be
a changing screensaver on his computer. He really loved the one where he was
holding her up in the air, and then the one where she was finally in his arms. Sitting
back, he thought about it. He’d been so worried she wouldn’t listen, but she
had. He’d had to strong arm her, yes, but it was all he could think of, and it’d
worked.

Closing
his eyes, he recreated the moment she let go of the chains and fell into his
arms, and then those church bells ringing. Then he fast forward to last night,
the first full night they’d ever spent together, and he didn’t know if he could
contain his joy. It had felt so good, so right, to have her there in his arms,
and he'd laid awake watching her long after she’d fallen asleep. He’d almost
lost her, and the thought of it now took his breath away, while making his heart
race in a panic. He hated this feeling, the panic, the anxiety, the constant
worry of danger, the need to be hypervigilant. Stop, he told himself, you need
to stop, big breaths, deep and slow. You’re safe, and now you know she is too,
big breaths. Think of Linnie, focus on Linnie, just Linnie.

It
was helping. Smiling, he remembered them spooned together on the couch, and then
when she’d turned to face him. She’d snuggled up close, then let out a long
blissful sigh, and he’d found a tremendous amount of comfort in that. Then there
was the make out session. He laughed to himself. It was like they were
teenagers about to be caught doing something they shouldn’t be doing. Well,
they almost had been. She was a moaner, and wasn’t that a turn on. Oh, yeah, just
the thought of it now affected him. Whoa! He adjusted his pants and loosened
his collar. Hell, he needed to get a place of his own. Fast.

Pulling
into the driveway a few hours later, Nate was beyond pleased to see Linnie’s
car still there. Walking in, he found her setting the table for supper. Going over
to her, he bent and kissed her on the lips, then whispered that he’d missed her
in her ear before placing a kiss, or two, on her neck. Did he have to stop, he
wondered. He had to admit, he loved her hair cut like this, it left her ear,
neck, and shoulder open for his perusal. Going back to her ear, he whispered “I
love this hairstyle.”

She
blushed. “Umm, your mom’s here,” she whispered.

“And
your point is what?” he teased, as he nibbled on her neck.

She
gave him a playful shove.

Chuckling
low, he moved away, but not till he taunted her a little more, “Later, kitten.”

“Stop
it!” she whispered, elbowing him, then promptly started rubbing her elbow.

Grabbing
her arm, he brought her elbow to his lips and kissed it, then wiggled his
eyebrows at her. He laughed, when she gave him a look of warning. Turning, he
headed for the shower. Man, she didn’t have to do anything but breathe, and she
got him going.

When
he returned to the table, his dad was there. They said grace, and were enjoying
the meal, when his dad turned to him and said, “Ted’s stopping over after
dinner. He has some papers for you to sign, and he’s working on getting you an
appointment in Minneapolis to give a sample.”

Looking
at Linnie, Nate really wished they’d been able to talk about this before now.
“Ted’s our family's attorney and he’s helping me obtain DNA testing,” he
explained.

Focusing
on her plate, she swirled around some noodles, then looked at his mother and
said, “I love the spaghetti. It’s really good.” Then she took a bite, ignoring
him.

Nate
wanted to yell, kick something. Hell, breaking something would work. He was
practically back to square one with this woman. He knew it. She’d just closed
up shop, and put up the
gone fishin
sign. That she wouldn’t talk about this, made him bat shit crazy. Hell, he was
ready to hog tie her, carry her off, and make her listen. Then he’d refuse to
let her go till they talked it all out. He was so damn mad right now, he could
bend his mother’s sterling with one hand.

As
the meal came to a close, they cleared the table, and she washed while he
dried. Once done, he grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the house. Just
then, Ted drove up and Nate’s temper went nuclear. “Damn it, Linnie, we have to
talk!”

Ted
got out of his car. “Hey, Nate.”

“Hi,
Ted. Go on in, I’ll be there in a minute,” he ground out, trying to cover up
his anger. Linnie was trying to get out of his grip. “Oh no you don’t.”

“Nate,
let go of my hand,” she said quietly.

Awww
hell, he had to let her go. Damn it! He had to get in the house. “Linnie, talk
to me,” he said, as he reluctantly let her go. Walking with her to her car, he
said, “Linnie?”

Turning,
she looked at him and calmly said, “You better not keep your guest waiting.”
Then she got in her car and drove off.

He
sure hoped his mother wasn’t fond of that lawn ornament because it would be a
bitch to glue back together.

CHAPTER
7

Nate
and his dad were on their way to Minneapolis the next morning. He wanted this
over with now. Ted had drawn up papers, and then had them delivered to Naomi
three days ago. She either volunteered to a DNA sample from her son, or Nate
was going to court to force the issue. She’d agreed, after letting Ted know she
was so happy Nate was finally willing to acknowledge his son. Yeah right, you
betcha babe. That was not his son. He was still furiously pissed. Ted had
stayed a while, and by the time he left, Jake said Linnie was asleep when he’d
called. It took all his control to stop from going over there and waking her
up, just so they could start World War III. He’d pretty much decided there was
no point in trying to talk with her until he had proof he hadn’t slept with
Naomi. Fortunately, DNA testing only took about a week to complete once the
samples were received, and were ninety-nine point nine percent accurate. Naomi
had agreed to an appointment that afternoon.

Crossing
over from Wisconsin, to Minnesota, Nate looked out the passenger window, and
was shaken by the sight of a road sign on their assent up the hill. Highway 8.
Oh man, he really didn’t need this right now. Closing his eyes, he tried to
stop the on slot with no success. Memories inundated him. Gone were the wide
open stretches of Minnesota farmland, and wholesome living. He was on a
different Highway 8, and heading straight into the heart of Baghdad.

Having
spent the night engaging enemy forces, there’d be no rest. The order had been
given to move out. Nate’s muscles screamed for the rest, he and his platoon
were being denied. Bumping and jostling along in the scorching desert heat,
Nate listened to his comrade’s easy banter as they traded highlights from the
fight. The consensus, none of them had ever experienced anything like it
before. High from adrenalin, and the smell of victory, they congratulated
themselves.

Coming
upon the stretch of road they’d fought so hard to capture, he turned his head
to take in his surroundings. Traversing the ruins, his Company lay witness to
the carnage of war. Littered with a night’s work, the roadway proved with
perfect clarity, what he was expected to do when the need arose. Various forms
of death surrounded him, and its enormous stench overwhelmed his senses,
forever imprinting on his mind. Bodies were everywhere. Some burned to a crisp,
others blown apart, and more riddled with bullets. Men, women, and children
alike. Utter devastation, stunned silence abound.

Taking
it all in, Nate couldn’t help but think, in quiet disbelief, that he’d done
this. Whether from the pull of a trigger, or a turn of the head, lives had been
forever altered. Divested of his humanity, he was forced to leave his innocence
there, on Highway 8 in Iraq, never to be seen again. Home had never seemed so
far away.

“Nate.
Nate!”

He
was being touched. A bolt of fear struck him, making him jump with a start, as
he came out of his inner hell with heart pounding. “What?” he hollered.

“You
okay?” his dad asked, leaning back quickly. “You seemed pretty far away there.
It took some to get you to respond.”

“I’m
fine, just tired,” he answered abruptly, feeling confused. Were they there
already? The last he remembered they were going up the hill, and now… Well, an
hour must’ve passed. He ran a hand over his face.

“Anything
you want to talk about? I’ll listen,” his dad offered.

Nate
looked over and stared at his dad, then looked away, avoiding the issue. “Let’s
get this over with, I need this to be done, then on the way home, can we stop
at Johnson Motors in St. Croix and talk to Matt? I need a vehicle of my own,
and Matt will be sure I’m treated right. I trust him.”

Nodding
his head, his dad answered, “Sure thing, sounds like a plan. Let’s do it.”

**********

Linnie
felt a little better. The water aerobics class had helped to work out some of
the stress in her tense muscles. She hadn’t slept well the night before, and
was feeling irritable and edgy. Walking over to the hot tub, she stepped in.
Ohhh, does that feel nice. Finding a water jet, she positioned herself in front
of it, so it would massage her achy muscles. Leaning back, she closed her eyes
and prepared to relax.

“Well,
hey there gorgeous.”

Okay,
so that lasted all of about two nanoseconds, she thought. Opening her eyes, she
looked up to see the twenty something bartender from the Bon Ton. He had a
fading bruise around his right eye. Ugh, couldn’t he just go away. “Oh hi,” she
replied.

Looking
around, he said, “Imagine that, running into you here, in a hotel of all
places. I thought you wanted to get out of Luck?” he asked, with a gleam in his
eye, as he stared at her chest.

He’s
going to be a pain in the ass, she thought. Pulling herself under the water
more, she answered, “Yeah, I’m going to be leaving soon. My dad wanted me to
stay a bit longer, so I did.”

He
smiled a slow lascivious grin. “Long enough for us to get together? Maybe have
dinner, a few drinks? You know, hangout or something.”

He’s
trying to look at me under the water, she thought with extreme irritation.
Searching for her towel, she was annoyed to see it on the other side of the
pool. The closest one was a hotel towel, and those were about as big as postage
stamps. Shrinking under the water more, she prayed the timer on the hot tub
didn’t run out. “Oh, gosh, thanks for the offer, but yeah, I’m leaving soon. In
fact, I’m meeting my brothers for lunch, here in the hotel restaurant, before I
go home to pack.”

“Oooh
joy,” he said in snide derision.

“Hey
Linnie,” Wendy interrupted loudly, as she was about to leave, “you staying or
going?”

Thank
God. “Going,” she yelled back. “Hey, Wendy, you mind bringing me my towel? It’s
going to be cold getting out.”

“Sure,
no problem.”

As
Wendy came over, Linnie prayed he wouldn’t take the towel from her. Focusing on
Wendy, she mentally begged her to look at her. Come on, Wendy, look at me. Come
on. He started to move towards Wendy as she neared, and Linnie began to panic. Pretending
to be distracted by something on the floor, Wendy ducked around him and snapped
the towel open, rescuing her. Linnie leapt from the pool, throwing the towel
around herself before he could get a peek.

I
need a new swimsuit, she thought, one that goes from neck to knee. She just
wasn’t used to this. She wasn’t a flirt, and this was uncomfortable. She'd always
been surrounded by men that respected her, making her feel secure in who she
was, but this leering yuck made her feel icky. She wasn’t changing out of her
wet suit, she decided. She was putting her clothes on right over her suit, then
taking off fast.

Smiling,
she turned to leave. “Well, gotta go. Have a good day,” she said, as she began walking
away with Wendy. Her heart pounded. She was such a horrible liar. Had he seen
through the ruse?

Chuckling
as she went by, he asked, “Didn’t you forget something, gorgeous?”

Closing
her eyes, she wanted to die. She just couldn’t get away from this guy. Stopping
and turning, she asked in confusion, “What’s that?”

“You
know, to thank me for taking special care of you the other night.”

She
didn’t need to see it to know the ears of community had just gone on high alert,
and conversations had just come to a screeching halt. She wanted to find a hole
and hide. “Well, yes,” she answered, “thank you. The Bon Ton is fortunate to
have a bartender that knows various drink combinations. Thanks again.” Turning,
she made a mad dash for her things. She needed a nun’s habit. Maybe then nobody
would notice her.

Getting
in her car, she drove across the lot to the Holiday gas station. She was going
to pay at the pump, and then get home fast. She didn’t want to see anyone.
Pulling up, she got out and opened the gas cap, only to turn and find the card
reader wasn’t working on the pump. She was so damn irritated, she growled
inside. She needed gas, she was on fumes. Filling up, she headed inside to pay.
Stopping at the beverage cooler to get a pop, she heard it, and froze. No way.
This just couldn’t be. Seriously, this just could not be happening. Could this
day get any worse?

“Linnie?
Linnie, that you?”

Looking
up, Linnie saw Naomi holding a young boy. If looks could kill, they would’ve been
dead right then and there. Linnie shook inside, she was so beside herself. She
had to leave. Now.

“Oh,
it is you,” Naomi said. “Wow, you’ve changed. I didn’t know you were back. You
aren’t planning on staying are you?”

Hell
no, she wasn’t! Alaska, here I come. That little boy had blond hair and green
eyes! Oh God. Stunned speechless, she ever so slightly shook her head.

“That’s
good,” Naomi answered, as she hoisted the little boy up more on her hip, “cause
Mikey and I are here looking over our new place. I think it’s important for him
to get to know his dad, and with Nate being back and all, we’ll need some
privacy.”

Aha,
right. Linnie wanted to bawl. Naomi had used Nate’s middle name. She just stood,
stuck and staring. Her heart was pounding so fast, she felt like she couldn’t
breathe. She just wanted to die. She couldn’t do this.

“So,
yeah,” Naomi continued, “it’s probably good you’re not staying, cause things
could get complicated. You know, now that Nate’s fighting to declare
paternity,” Naomi finished, turning the knife in Linnie’s heart a little more.

Just
then, Jake walked up, and put his arm around Linnie’s shoulders.

Looking
at Naomi, he said, “Hey Naomi, good to see you. I need to talk to Linnie. You
look good. Take care.” Then, helping her as she stumbled out of the store, he
turned and said, “Don’t do it. Stay. See this through. Give Nate time to
straighten this out.”

“Where’s
Daddy?”

“Linnie.”

“Jake!”
she said sharply, then demanded, “Where’s Daddy?”

Groaning,
he answered with a sigh, “At home, working in the barn,”

Turning,
she got in her car, slamming the door in the process, then left in a rush. Getting
home, she headed straight to the barn. Her dad was busy looking over some milking
equipment, when he saw her coming.

“Baby
girl?” he said with great concern, as he sensed her discord.

She
started bawling. Hard.

Taking
her in his arms, he held her. “Okay. It’s Okay. Come here. It’s okay. Let it
out, just let it out.”

 
She sobbed and sobbed. Finally, after what
seemed like infinity, her sobs gave way to sniffles. This was going to kill
him. “Daddy, I need to go.” She started to cry again.

“What
happened, honey? Help me to understand.”

Trying
to explain, around her fits of crying, she said, “Nate’s got an attorney to
help with DNA testing, and…and he’s angry with me, because I don’t want to hear
about him with Naomi. And then this guy hit on me today, making me feel icky,
gross. I felt like I needed a shower and…and in my haste to get away, I ran
into Naomi, and the…” More crying. “He has blond hair and green eyes, Daddy,
and…she named him after Nate.” Way more crying. “She’s moving back to Luck, and
thinks it best I not be here, because Nate’s ‘fighting to declare paternity’, and
I’d just make things awkward and complicated. People saw us, were watching us,
listening to it all, and I just wanted to die, just die.”

“Okay,
I understand,” he said, rubbing her back. Where you going to go? I need to
know. Don’t leave without telling me, please.

“Daddy,
I don’t want anyone to know, especially Jake. He’ll tell Nate, and I need a
break from all this.”

“It’ll
be our secret honey, I won’t tell. I promise.”

Taking
some deep breaths, and gaining a little control. She looked around, wondering
if she should tell him. Then finally, going up on tiptoe, she whispered her
destination in his ear.

Looking
at her, he smiled in relief. “I can live with that, I sure can, and I won’t
tell anyone. Take your phone, so I can reach you if needed, and call me if you
need help?” Giving her a hug, and a kiss on the cheek, he said, “Take care of
you. Always.”

“I
love you, Daddy.”

Then
she was gone.

**********

Nate
had been gone all day. First, he’d had to wait for his appointment at the testing
center, since he’d been an add-on to the schedule, then an hour drive back to
St. Croix Falls, and an afternoon at the car dealership. He’d been right
though, Matt did right by him, even paid for lunch for him and his Dad, while
they waited for papers and stuff to be straightened out. He was picking up his
new truck in a couple days, once some custom work he’d ordered was done.

Dinner
was on the table when they arrived home. Going to his chair, he pulled out his
wallet and phone, setting them down. They said grace. Once he was finished
eating, he’d go see Linnie. Grabbing a dish, he started serving himself.

“Jake
called,” his mother said.