All the Waters of the Earth (Giving You ... #3) (31 page)

Again, that was my son.

“I have a few things to tell you and they’re important.” His dark eyes got big, and I took a deep breath and continued. “First of all, you need to know that I love you, and I have always loved you, and I always will love you.”

He looked at me suspiciously and said, “Yeah?”

“What do you think of Mister Jake?”

“I like him.”

“Me too, mijo. Me too. He is very special to me. In a different way than you are special to me.”

“Are you going to marry him, Mom?”

Smart kid. It didn’t surprise me that he’d figured it out. Kids know.

“Yes,” I answered. “I am.”

“Does that mean we’re gonna live at his house?”

“Yeah, it does.”

“Do I have to switch schools?”

“No.  I checked it out. You don’t.”  He visibly relaxed.  “What do you think, mijo?”

“Okay, I guess.” He shrugged his narrow shoulders.

I gave him a smile. “There’s more news.” Looking back up at me blankly, he set his hand on his book in a comforting gesture. “There’s going to be a new brother or sister.”

“Yeah, Dad already told me.”

This surprised me. “He told you he was having one?”

He nodded. “He says it’s a girl.” Rob grimaced. “Great, a sister. Guess that will be okay, though.”

“Roberto, I’m pregnant too,” I said quietly.

My son’s lower lip started to quiver and he visibly grayed under his tan skin.  “No.  
No
. You can’t.”

“What? Why?” I asked before I could help myself. Then I recovered. “Tell me what you’re thinking, mijo.” He shook his head and a tear stuck at the corner of his eye. I reached over and held him in a big hug, which he didn’t return, his arms held limply down. “C’mere,” I muttered into his hair. “Just because we have big changes coming up doesn’t mean that my love for you will change.” He nodded into my torso. “Are you scared that the baby is going to get all of the attention?”

“Both babies,” he whispered.

“You’re a smart kid,” I said. “To figure out how you feel and to tell me. Babies do take a lot of time and things will change.”

I leaned back so I could study his face and watched the tear threaten to escape his tear duct. But he wiped it away with the back of his hand.

“It’s a big change,” I repeated. “I am scared too. And it surprised me too.”

“It did?”

“Yeah. But it’s a good surprise. It just takes some getting used to.” I pulled him back to me in a hug.

Rob nodded, and I continued, “Just think about it, mijo. Jake and I are going to get married by a judge next week.”

“Okay.  Can I read my book now?”

“Yeah.” And I ruffled his hair. 

Just then I heard the front door open. Jake was home. He knew that I was going to tell Rob today and he’d wanted to know if he should be there or not. I’d told him that I wanted to tell Rob by myself and he’d stayed away, even though he was in the habit of coming home earlier these days. I got up and kissed his forehead. “We can talk about it more if you want, okay?”

He nodded.

Pausing a moment at the door to look at him, I steadied myself. I hadn’t realized it, but my pulse had been racing the whole time and I’d felt flushed—not from the pregnancy. I’d been nervous to tell him. Things were going to change, and I was scared, too.

It was hard to be a parent when you wanted someone to hold onto yourself. I leaned my head against the door and heard Jake call out, “Lucy?”  Some of the fear evaporated when I heard his baritone.

Righting myself, I went to the front door and got a kiss on the mouth and then a Jake kiss on my nose. “What’s up? How was your day?”

Wrapping his arms around me, he lifted my chin and looked at me intently. He was my someone to hold onto. “How did it go telling Rob?”

“He needs to get used to it.  But good.”

He nodded and his eyes were dancing. I wondered why.  “I’m glad you told him. Keeping secrets is stressful.  It’s a relief now.”  He paused.  “Still gonna be an adjustment for us all.”

“Yeah it is, but now we can tell everyone else.” Like my parents. And my friends. The same feeling that I’d felt when I told Rob returned. I wasn’t done with my uncomfortable announcements by a long run.

Then Jake spoke. “And I’ve got some more news.”

“We had a meeting at work.”

His eyes seemed to get deeper, a blue that was almost black. He looked like a kid dying to tell the answer in class, but who knew that he had to wait until he was called on. Well, a kid in a dark gray business suit with a blue and silver striped tie.

“What? Tell me.” I gasped.

“A few things,” he said, teasing me, making me wait. I put my hand on my hip in my classic sassy-Lucy posture. “We voted to make Amelia Crowley a partner in my law firm.”

I squealed. “That’s great! She totally deserves the promotion.”

“She does. She’s already taken over most of my cases. She put in her time. She’s due.”

I did a little dance, shaking my booty.
Amelia, breaking the glass ceiling.
He watched me dance until I stopped moving, and then I smiled saucily up at him. But I thought of something.

“She’s not going to work too hard is she?” I asked, suddenly worried about my lawyer.

“No. We hired another young attorney, a woman, to help her.”

Excellent
.

“There’s more,” he continued, eyes still dancing.

I pushed his chest. Oh, yum, his chest. “Oh yeah? Hit me with it.”

He leaned over and got right in my face, a beaming smile on his marvelous one. I almost expected him to do a happy booty dance. Heck, I wanted to see that. “I have a new job.”

Awesome!

“What? Where?”

He wrapped his hands around my waist, pulling me to him. “The court has a program for helping people who don’t have attorneys and a staff position opened up. It’s got limited hours—ten to four—and I’ll be helping people directly. People who can’t afford lawyers.”

“That’s fantastic!”

“It’s a pay cut but I have money saved.  I think we’ll be fine.”

I squealed again and jumped up and wrapped my arms around his neck. He swung me around, as jubilant as I was.

“I’m gonna have time, Lucy honey. Time for you, for Rob, for our baby.” He paused. “Time to paint.”

“
Yay
,” I whispered, and he kissed me again, this time pressing me against the wall, his legs between mine, caging me in with one arm on the wall next to me and the other one on my ass, pulling my leg up.

When we broke apart, I wasn’t breathing.

“That’s too hot for right now,” I said, whispering again.

“It’s a promise for later,” he replied, whispering back.

Just then Rob came out of his room, thankfully when we weren’t entangled, and we set to work making dinner.

The next week, on Friday morning, Sara and Georgie sat on my bed, watching me dress.

“I still can’t believe you didn’t tell us you were pregnant,” Georgie charged, a sassy-Lucy hand on her hip.

“I told you I was sorry, chica, but I needed to get things squared away with Jake before I could tell anyone. And then I wanted to get through the first trimester.”

“But we could have helped you,” Sara said sensibly.

I kissed the top of her hair. “You’re helping me now.”

My parents camped out in the living room with Rob, who I’d taken out of school for the day. My son had his hair slicked down, slacks and a dress shirt on, and his shoes shined. He looked sharp. Jake had already left for the Santa Barbara courthouse, bringing his dad with him. His mother, stepdad, brother, and sister were going to meet us there.

I slipped on my dress. It was a bigger size than usual, but still fitted, strapless, knee length, and very me. Simple. Elegant. And white. Sara zipped me up the back and fastened the buttons.

Shoes on, hair down and straight, lip gloss applied. I was ready to get married.

Teetering, as usual, in high heels, I walked out of my bedroom and looked at my parents. My mom, dressed up in a navy skirt suit, came over to me with tears in her eyes. “Lucinda, you are a beautiful bride and you make your mama very proud.”

I mock-complained, “Don’t make my mascara run.”

My dad came over and without a word, wrapped me in a hug. “Dad, not you too,” I said, this time fighting tears for real. He took my hand and walked me outside, all of us leaving. I locked the door and then we all climbed into a black limo that waited at the curb.

Walking into the courthouse, I had an entirely different feeling than I did the last time I was here. Last time, of course, I was nervous with anticipation. This time, yes, I was also nervous with anticipation. But it was the delicious, happy kind.

We found the courtroom and walked in, the door unlocked for us.

My handsome Jake was standing up front, talking with the clerk. He wore a well-tailored black suit, black skinny tie, and looked like a Tom Ford ad.

Mine.

My dad held my hand and walked me up to Jake. My eyes locked on his, I held onto my dad for support, but I discovered, as I got closer to Jake, that I didn’t need it. My mom, Rob, my friends, and Jake’s family found seats in the audience. I held Jake’s artist’s hand, which was warm, firm, and comforting.  As usual.

The clerk called the judge, who came out and spoke to us about how marriage was not to be entered into lightly, but with careful thought. And how the most important things in a relationship are love, communication, trust, honesty, respect, and understanding.

I looked back at my parents, holding hands, my mother daubing her eyes with a handkerchief. Those qualities were what my parents had and what I had with Jake. Glancing around, I saw Rob holding Georgie’s hand, looking serious. And Jake’s family, all with pleased looks on their faces. We had everyone’s support. 

The nervous anticipation disappeared. I was in the right place with the right people. I wanted to do this and I was so, so happy.

The judge continued.

“Do you, Jacob Slausen, choose Lucinda Figueroa to be your lawful wedded wife? Do you promise to love and comfort her, and to honor her and keep her in sickness and in health, in prosperity and adversity, and hold her needs above all others, so long as you both shall live?”

“I do.” Jake’s words rang out, filling the courtroom with authority. My statesman lawyer in the courtroom.

“Do you, Lucinda Figueroa, choose Jacob Slausen to be your lawful wedded husband? Do you promise to love and comfort him, to honor him and keep him in sickness and in health, in prosperity and adversity, and hold his needs above all others, as long as you both shall live?”

“I do.” And as I said the words, I knew that all of that was true and would be as long as I lived. I would love this man who loved me back, who sacrificed for me, and who put my needs first before his. He’d done so already, in every way possible.

Rob came up and handed us our rings. I kissed him on his cheek and then watched him sit back down. And Jake and I exchanged rings.

The judge continued. “The groom has informed me that he has something to say.”

“I made a promise to Lucy today, but I am also making a promise to her son, Roberto.” He turned and looked at him. “Rob, I promise to care for you and put your needs above mine. I promise to read with you, play with you, and guide you. I love you.”

And the nerves and the tears that had been in check came bursting out of me, and judging by the rustling noises behind me, out of others. Jake loved me. But he also loved my son. He had drawn his way to my heart.

“Inasmuch as Jacob Slausen and Lucinda Figueroa have thus consented together in marriage; by virtue of the authority vested in me by the State of California, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss your bride.”

And my husband very gently, very slowly, and while looking me in the eyes, kissed me in front of our friends and family. And he was mine.