Hide 'N Seek (33 page)

She turned on the interior light and checked her lipstick in the rearview mirror. She was nervous but ready.

Markie headed for the building silencing the voice that kept telling her it was too late. She wanted to find out if it was too late for them.

“Hi, I’m Marklynn Brooks,” she said to the security guard sitting at the desk when she entered the building. “I’m here to see Dalton Beck.”

“One moment please.” He dialed the number and waited. Then said, “Yes sir. I’ll send her up. Go on up.”

She smiled inward. He wanted to see her. Good sign. Beck’s door was ajar when Markie got off the elevator and it was a woman’s laughter she heard over the Temptations’ song,
Ain’t too Proud to Beg.

Dressed in the outfit she had worn the night he had made his stir fry was part of her plan on winning him back. He’d liked the dress. Told her it was sexy. She went further, paired it with the black stilettos Syd had given her and was pretty much all legs. He liked her legs. It didn’t matter if he had found someone else. She would have her say and beg if need be.

Markie pushed the door open and saw a woman swaying in a man’s arms. The man was the older version of Beck. His father? The woman screamed when the man dipped her.

Markie heard Beck’s voice from the balcony. “I think you two should get a room.”

“Hi,” the woman said, breathless with a smile when the man had her upright again. “Come in. I’m Anika and this is my husband, Jack, Dalton’s father. Marklynn right?”

“Yes.” Markie extended her hand to Anika. “Nice to meet you. Beck speaks fondly of both of you.”

Anika pushed her outstretched hand away and hugged her. “We are thrilled to finally meet you.”

Beck’s stepmother was polished, refined, but not in the country club type of way. She didn’t look down on you like the Daniels’. Her smile was warm. It pulled you towards her and embraced you in it.

“Dalton can’t stop talking about you,” Anika said looking at Markie with a look of intrigue.

“Sweetheart—”

“Okay, moping then. And I can certainly see why. Honey, I think she came to get her man,” Anika said looking at Markie again. “It’s a good thing you came to your senses or I would—”

“Do you think you should be threatening the woman before she has straightened things out with Dalton?”

Jack smiled and Anika melted. Markie knew how the woman felt.

“You’re right, sweetheart. Dalton is out on the balcony flipping burgers.”

“It’s not just burgers…”

“I forgot.” Anika’s hand went to her chest. “It’s the Beck’s Burger.”

“Okay dad, the burgers are almost—”

Beck came in from the balcony. His jeans were ripped at the knees, the apron that covered his white T-shirt said,
“Kiss the cook.”

If his parents weren’t standing in front of her, she would have.

Anika looked at Beck then to Marklynn and laughed. “Look who needs a room.”

•  •  •

Beck’s heart just about stopped when he stepped through the balcony doors and saw Marklynn. In the last week he’d picked up the phone more times than he cared to remember, but put it back down again. She wasn’t interested he kept telling himself and forced himself to let her go. The only thing was his heart and head weren’t on the same page.

The impromptu barbeque was for his benefit, planned by his father. Just family his father had said to get him out of the funk he had slipped into. He had thought about Marklynn, but never had he dreamt she would show up at his condo.

“Marklynn? What… We…” He couldn’t string a sentence together to save his life at that moment. She was wearing the dress that he’d…

“Hi, I should’ve called first.” She started backing up towards the door.

“Nonsense,” Anika said. “We were just about to sit down and eat. Join us. Come Jack,” she pulled him towards the balcony. “You can show me how to flip the burger with that metal thing with the flat bottom.”

“The metal thing with the flat bottom is called a spatula.”

“Please, everyone knows you didn’t marry me for my kitchen skills.”

With a throaty laugh Anika pulled Jack from the living room to the balcony and Markie doubted they would be flipping burgers.

“They seem really nice.”

“They are.”

Beck didn’t say anything else, just stood there staring at her. All he could think of was the night when he’d taken the dress off her and she stood before him proud and naked. Now she looked like she was ready to bolt.

He should say something to calm her fear, but he pulled back. She came to him and he wanted her to tell him why. He would not give her a way out. Not this time and he sure as hell was not going to let her bolt. Even if he had to nail the door shut.

“Dalton, I…”

“Dalton?”

“That is your name.”

“Yes.” He had to admit he liked the way it rolled off her tongue, but he still kept his distance as his heart hammered in his chest. “You’ve never used it.”

“I should start using it. I…” She hesitated then swallowed. Anika’s laughter drifted from the balcony and she turned her gaze towards the open door then back at Beck. “I realized this past week that I love you.”

Beck wanted to pull her in his arms, but something stopped him. There was more she wanted to say and he would let her while his heart exploded with love for this woman.

“The night after the shooting when you left, I wanted to come after you to tell you I was sorry. I never,” she shook her head, “meant to call you Jared.”

Her voice cracked. She was nervous. He had seem her angry, frustrated and happy but not nervous. He watched the pulse jump at the base of her neck.

“When Jared called off our wedding I was devastated. That’s when I came to the conclusion that having a child would define me as a woman. Because I couldn’t give Jared what he wanted he left me. I was afraid you would eventually. I guess I didn’t want you to think less of me because I can’t have…”

“I never thought less of you because of that, Marklynn.” He had to say something before they both fell apart.

“I know. I wanted you to think that, but you didn’t. And when you didn’t I decided to push you away before you pushed me away. If it’s not too late I would—”

Beck cut her off with a kiss that left them both breathless. His hand found the zipper of her dress and pulled it down guiding her towards the bedroom.

She pulled away laughing. “Your parents…”

He had forgotten about them. “Come on.” He kissed her again on a groan. “Fine.” He took her hand pulling her towards the balcony. “Let’s go eat then wish them a nice evening.”

“Aren’t you forgetting something?”

“What?”

“My zipper.”

Two Months Later

M
arklynn was lying on the sofa waiting for Michael Blake’s television show to begin. He didn’t tell her what it was about but she knew. The only thing his email said was that Jeffrey Booker was no longer employed with Boston PD. That she already knew. O’Malley had already filled her in.

Booker was gone and so was his boss. They’d cleaned house from top to bottom. O’Malley was also one of the casualties. She had offered O’Malley a job at Brooks Investigations. He declined and said he was moving to Florida.

She raised her head when the front door opened and dropped it back down again when a wave of nausea hit her.

The transition moving into Dalton’s condo was easier than she had expected. She had decided not to sell her house and had given it to Sydney when she’d returned from Israel to attend their wedding a month ago.

Sydney had enlisted Anika’s help to redecorate the house once her assignment in Israel was completed.

Markie loved being Mrs. Dalton Beck and they had a great time on their honeymoon in Belize. However, picking up a bug that she couldn’t shake was taking all the fun out of her wedded bliss.

Even the smell of Dalton’s cologne made her stomach queasy. The poor man had to shower before he could touch her.

“What did the doctor say?” Dalton asked as he loosened his tie. He dropped his laptop and keys on the dining room table.

Since returning from their honeymoon, he’d been interviewing for a replacement for Malcolm so they could spend more time together.

“Thanks to you I spent the entire afternoon getting poked and prodded like some animal. Oh, and I tried to go into the office today, but Jamie changed the lock on my door. Cate is in on it too. Thanks to you.”

Dalton sat on the coffee table in front of her shaking his head in disbelief as if she was some wayward child.

“You need to take better care of yourself and if I have to enlist the help of everyone you know to do it then I will.”

“I think you’re overreacting.”

“Am I? You’ve been living on crackers and ginger ale for the last three weeks. You don’t sleep at nights. It may not bother you, but it sure as hell concerns me.” He leaned over, kissed her on the lips then got up, but she held on to his tie extending the kiss.

“Mmm… Mint. Nice.”

“I’m going to grab a shower, and then make us dinner or order out. Please think about what you’d like to eat. Crackers are not—”

The ringing of the phone cut him off in mid-sentence. “Saved by the bell.” He swatted her on the behind and she laughed reaching for the phone on the glass side table.

“Hello? Yes this Marklynn.”

It was Dr. Scott’s office and she sat up straight on the sofa swinging her feet to the floor. She reached for the remote muting the television.

Markie stiffened when he told her that one of the tests he’d ordered was a pregnancy test. She and Dalton had discussed adoption, but that was as far as they’d gotten. He had to be joking about ordering a pregnancy test. But she wasn’t laughing.

“I don’t understand. Why would you? Oh my God!”

A sob tore from her throat. She started fanning herself with her hand. Dalton ran back into the living room. She was speechless.

“Marklynn what’s wrong?” He asked, fear in his voice.

She sat there staring at the phone shaking her head. Dalton had to pry her fingers from the cordless.

“This is Dalton Beck. Yes Dr. Scott. Really?” He looked down at Marklynn. “Are you sure? Yes. We can see you tomorrow afternoon.”

Markie was in shock. Dalton joined her on the sofa pulling her into his arms. “Are you okay?”

“They said I couldn’t. How?”

“Dr. Scott said a woman could get pregnant with one ovary.”

“Only if the other ovary is healthy, my odds were not good.”

“He also said miracles do happen.”

She started to cry and realized he was crying as well.

“I’m going to be a mother. Nan?” She knew. What had she said?
If you stop running long enough to let him catch up to you, you’ll be pleasantly surprised.

“You can call her if you like,” Dalton said misunderstanding her cry for her grandmother.

“No. She knows about the baby. She predicted it.”

“I don’t understand. Is she a psychic or something?”

“Or something,” Markie said with a laugh. She would have to tell him about that one day but not now.

“What powers do you have?”

“Let me show you.” She snuggled up closer to Dalton unbuttoning his shirt.

“Hey I need to shower. I’m wearing cologne and…” His protest was cut off by a long wet kiss when she pulled him down on the sofa on top of her. Her nausea had suddenly vanished.

“What about dinner?”

“I’m not hungry for…wait there’s Michael,” Markie said when she glanced at the television over his shoulder.

Dalton reached for the remote turning up the volume. Markie straightened up on the sofa and Beck pulled her onto his lap.

“…Tonight you will hear a story that mimics the game of Hide and Seek. The players are Jeffery Booker,” a picture of Booker red race flashed across the screen. “Cape Cod socialites Roberta and Kennedy Daniels,” a picture of the couple flashed across the screen. “And the death of three people, that could have been prevented. Our story begins…”

Markie turned off the television and shifted on the sofa so Beck was on top of her.

“Don’t you want to watch the rest of it?”

“That’s not what I’m in the mood for,” she said against his lips.

“Tell me, Mrs. Beck what are you in the mood for?”

If you enjoyed
Hide ‘N Seek
, follow Samuel O’Malley’s adventure in Florida. What happens when a washed up cop meets a rich Daddy’s Girl? A heart-stopping romantic suspense in,
Cat ‘N Mouse.

W
ith an overactive imagination from an early age, Yvonne created vivid stories in her mind in which she was the lead character. It wasn’t long before she decided to take these stories from her mind and pen them to paper.

A romantic at heart, Yvonne loves short stories and romantic suspense. She writes primarily about relationships. At first, she wrote only for herself. Out of her passion for writing evolved a beautiful collection of stories.

Yvonne has published two collections of short stories, “
The Wedding and Other Short Romantic Stories
,” showcasing her romantic collection, “
The Invitation and Other Short Stories,
” a more dramatic collection.

Her debut romantic suspense novel, Hide
‘N
Seek is the first in her suspense series. Look for
Cat ‘N Mouse
August 2012.

Yvonne enjoys hearing from her readers so please email her at
[email protected]
or visit her website:
www.yvonneharriott.com