Fighting for the Edge (34 page)

Sergei gave me a pensive look and then started laughing. “Well, there’s always our favorite artist and the first concert we went to.”

I threw my head back with laughter. “I’m not naming my son Sting.”

“As amazing a singer he is, I whole-heartedly agree. So, let’s move on to the Russian names. What do you think of Alexander?”

“Alex Petrov,” I stated, and the image of a little boy with blond hair and Sergei’s big blue eyes flashed through my mind. “I love it.”

“Now we need a Russian girl name and an American boy name.”

“I like Anastasia,” I said. “Stasia for short.”

Sergei nodded. “That’s a good one.”

“Maybe we can just stick with one boy name for now.”

“You’re hoping we don’t have two boys.” He ruffled my hair.

“I just want two healthy babies, but if I had a choice, I’d love to have at least one girl.” I smiled. “I have so many dolls and books to give her!”

“I’ve seen the boxes of books in your parents’ attic. We’re going to need a library in our new house.”

I tapped my fingers on his thigh. “And where will that house be… that’s the big question.”

“Should we revisit our pros and cons list?” Sergei asked.

“I don’t know… I’ve been thinking a lot about it, and as convenient and better for our careers living in Boston would be, every time I picture our future, I see us on the Cape, living on the water like we’ve always dreamed.”

“I have the same picture in my head.”

I turned to look into his eyes, and I saw the certainty I was feeling. “Then I think we have our answer.”

Sergei kissed my forehead. “I’ll find a realtor on the Cape, and as soon as the rink is rebuilt, we can move home.”

“Home.” I sighed.

“Fresh air, lots of land for the kids to run around, maybe a romantic terrace for Mom and Dad to escape to after the kids are asleep.” He grinned.

“I’m loving this house already.”

“We might not find one that has everything we want, but as long as you and the twins are there, it’ll be my dream house.”

I smiled and softly kissed his lips. “I feel exactly the same. You and our babies… you’re the best dream come true I could ever have.”

Epilogue

The light, late summer breeze fanned through the trees and across the back deck of the house. I swaddled the blanket tighter around my perfect baby boy and gently rocked my chair, lulling Alex to sleep. My own eyes drooped a little, and I rubbed the corners with my fingers. We had company coming, so I had to stay awake.

Sergei opened the sliding door from the kitchen while cradling Quinn in one arm. She looked so tiny when he held her, which was often since he seemed to calm her fussiness much quicker than I could. She was already a daddy’s girl for sure.

“Who was at the door?” I asked.

“The mailman. It was another package from your Aunt Rafi.”

“She must be knitting hats and blankets twenty-four hours a day.”

The doorbell chimed, and Sergei turned back into the house. “That’s probably Aubrey and Chris.”

I smiled as the breeze tickled my cheeks again. This was my favorite spot in our new house – under the shade of the covered part of the deck with a view of the sparkling blue pond just beyond our yard. We’d found our dream house on the water, and it even had the terrace off the master bedroom and a library with the window seat we’d wanted.

Sergei reemerged with Aubrey and Chris close behind. Aubrey peeked over my shoulder at Alex and touched the fuzz of his golden-colored hair.

“He always looks so peaceful every time I see him,” she said.

“He’s definitely the calm one of the two. Even though he’s technically older, I think Quinn will be bossing him around. She makes her presence known.”

Sergei sat next to me while Aubrey and Chris took seats on the big swing. Quinn stirred in Sergei’s arms, and he placed a soft kiss on her forehead.

“Look at the proud papa.” Chris grinned.

“It doesn’t get much better than this,” Sergei said. “You’ll find out.”

Aubrey laughed nervously, and Chris said, “Not any time soon. Your kids will be in college by the time we finish.”

“It won’t take you that long,” I said.

“No, but it’ll be awhile. Six or seven years for you to get a masters in design?” He put his arm around Aubrey and she nodded. “And the same for me to get my physical therapy degree.”

“How was your first week of classes?” I asked.

“It’s weird being back in school,” Aubrey said. “I feel like I have to relearn how to study.”

“I feel like an old man,” Chris said. “I walked into my Intro to Psych class and all the other students looked like they were twelve.”

I laughed. “You
have
to take my mom’s English class next semester.”

“No way. She’d probably call on me all the time.”

Sergei’s phone vibrated on the patio table, and he reached for it to read the text.

“Court’s at the seamstress,” he said. “She says their short program costumes came out great.”

“When are you going back to work, Em?” Aubrey asked.

“In a few weeks. Courtney’s aunt is actually going to watch the twins for us. She used to have a little daycare in her house, so she has a lot of experience.”

“What are you gonna do when you have to travel to competitions?”

“Aunt Deb is coming with us to Skate America in Hartford and probably nationals, too. She’s all excited to play nanny.” I pushed a strand of hair out of my eyes. “I don’t think I’ll make any of the overseas trips this fall.”

“I bet you’re itching to get back to the rink,” Chris said. “I know you. You’ve always been a rink rat.”

I smiled. “I do miss it a lot, but it’ll be hard leaving the babies. Good thing is, I’ll be done in the afternoon every day at the rink, so I’ll only be gone from them half the day.”

A flock of seagulls squawked as they flew over the pond, and Chris gazed out at the water. “I miss the sounds of nature. All we hear are honking horns outside our apartment.”

“We’ve been talking about buying a summer house out here, so if you hear of anything reasonable nearby…” Aubrey said.

“Buying property together? Should we expect a ring soon?” I asked with raised eyebrows.

They gave each other little smiles, and Chris said, “You’ll be the first to know.”

As the four of us talked and the twins slept, I thought about how far we’d all come since our early days on the Cape. I never would’ve imagined us like this – two couples starting blissful new lives together. The future held so many amazing possibilities for all of us.

About the Author

Jennifer Comeaux is a tax accountant by day, writer by night. There aren’t any ice rinks near her home in south Louisiana, but she’s a diehard figure skating fan and loves to write stories of romance set in the world of competitive skating. One of her favorite pastimes is travelling to competitions, where she can experience all the glitz and drama that inspire her writing. Jennifer loves to hear from readers! Visit jennifercomeaux.blogspot.com for contact information and to learn more about her books.

Also from Astraea Press

Chapter One

“I think Abel is going to ask me to marry him,” said Catherine.

Lynell rested the spade next to Daniel’s tombstone and looked at Catherine in silent wonder.

Catherine couldn’t quite look the former Mrs. LaMont, now Mrs. Geller, in the eye. Her gaze wandered from the urn, where she and Lynell had just planted red and white impatiens, to the gravestone itself. “What would you think of that?” she asked, then added with a hesitant smile, “I could wind up being your daughter-in-law after all.
Step
-daughter-in-law, anyway.”

Mrs. LaMont did not answer. There was a far-away look on her face.

Tears misted Catherine’s eyes as she gazed at Daniel’s headstone, dappled in sunspots beneath the sprawling oak. Daniel had been lost to them both, so long ago.

“Lynell?” Catherine asked weakly, fearing she may have revealed something terribly wrong in telling her about the possible proposal. She summoned the courage to lift her eyes and look steadily at Daniel’s mother, terrified to find a hurt or some form of betrayal on the lovely woman’s face.

She still looked so much like Daniel.

But Lynell was now smiling. Joy glowed on her face as she said, “That would be a dream come true.”

Catherine’s shoulders sagged in relief. “You really wouldn’t mind?”

She shook her head. “It’s time, Catherine. It’s been seven years now.”

“Seven years,” Catherine whispered.

Seven years since she’d received Daniel’s final letter. Longer since she’d actually last seen him — when he’d tried so hard to be cruel and make her hate him. But that wasn’t the memory she held of him now. It’d taken months to understand what he had done and why he’d done it, and many strange, recurring dreams, dreams she didn’t even like to think about, before her memories of Daniel had at last blurred into a cozy fog of peace. And the dearest memory she still held was him standing next to her by the door of the rooming house at MSU the first night they’d met, bundled up in that old hat and scarf, snowflakes glittering on his eyelashes.

It was hard to imagine snow on this calm, sweet spring morning on a hillside. And at a graveside where Catherine had never gotten to see Daniel laid to rest. She swallowed hard against a tightening in her throat. For so long, that hadn’t seemed fair. Even after Daniel’s final explanation in his letter, which she’d finally… after many years, understood. He’d wanted to protect her from his illness, so she could move on.

And at last, she was.

Lynell took Catherine’s hand, and their dirty, flower-planting fingers entwined. “Daniel would want you to marry Abel,” she said. “He appreciated Abel’s friendship. There was some kind of understanding between them I think only creative souls can connect with.” She squeezed Catherine’s hand, and a stream of light broke through the leaves and settled on her face, making it seem angelic and much younger than her fifty-eight years.

“You truly think Daniel would understand?” asked Catherine.

“He’d be doing cartwheels in heaven.”

Catherine smiled and gently reached forward to trace Daniel’s name on the tombstone. As she did so her long braid fell forward and settled in the grass.

“Maybe you can cut your hair at last,” said Lynell. “That is, if you want to.”

Catherine straightened and pushed back the braid. She hadn’t cut her hair since Daniel had died, and the thick, four-foot braid she always wore had become a burden to her sometimes. A burden she’d willingly imposed upon herself. Daniel had loved his long hair, and when she’d found out he’d had to have it shaved off near the end of his life, she’d grown hers as a kind of compensation.

“Maybe I’ll shorten it one day, soon,” said Catherine. “Although, Hazel would miss batting it around.” She looked to her left, where a scrappy, older white cat basked in the sun on top of another headstone. Catherine had taken Hazel, the feline, with her after leaving the VanHoofstryver estate in Maryland five years ago to begin her own veterinary practice in Daniel’s hometown in Michigan. She’d grown so fond of Daniel’s mother that, in the absence of Mrs. VanHoofstyver, Lynell became much like the mother she had never really known well.

Simply put, they’d needed each other.

And so had JoAnne and Joey, college friends of Catherine’s. They were now married and lived in a nearby town. An added delight was little Juliette, their adorable four-year-old daughter. Juliette had inherited so many of both her parents’ goofy mannerisms that it was impossible to remain blue any time the child was within range.

It had become a good life, just as Daniel had honestly wanted for her. So good, in fact, that her memories of Daniel became fragmented. Even when she’d wanted to cling to them, hold onto them for dear life and wedge them deep into her soul, they’d begun to slip away. Now, some of her memories were mere memories of memories, and it shocked and saddened her when she’d first realized it. It seemed she was losing him all over again, although it didn’t hurt in the same way. For the longest time, just looking at Lynell would fling her back into the past… and Mrs. LaMont’s eyes would become Daniel’s eyes… her hair, Daniel’s hair, her nose… Daniel’s nose. But now, she was just a beautiful, compassionate woman Catherine couldn’t imagine not having in her life. Finally, when looking at Lynell now, Catherine saw only Lynell.

And that was how it should be. How it was meant to be, she supposed.

A smile nudged Catherine’s lips as her eyes wandered past Lynell to the lazy cat still hanging over the edge of the tombstone. “I think it’s time Hazel leaves her unconventional new sunning spot and we get back to the clinic. I’ve got two more cats to spay and a black lab’s hip to check on before Abel comes over this afternoon. He said he wants to take me someplace, ah…
interesting
.”

Lynell lifted a knowing eyebrow. “With Abel, it’s probably not going to be a new restaurant or trendy hangout.”

“No, as a matter of fact, he said I should bring my medical bag. Just in case.”