41. Lake

LAKE

I shattered in his arms.

My body trembled from our lovemaking. Bronson knew just how to make my body sing with pleasure. When he slipped out, a whimper slid past my quivering lips. It was hard to lose the connection but I knew we had dinner plans.

"We should probably get ready for our date," he said, rolling to his back, but taking me with him so I was draped over his chiseled chest.

I smiled up at him. "This is the date, we just did it backwards."

After dropping Stormi off with River as we'd planned, we headed back to our place to get ready, but unsurprisingly, we got sidetracked. It wasn't hard to do with Bronson. The man could just walk up and tell me hi and I'd melt into a sappy puddle of goo.

And it wasn't just that he was a master at working my body, a bit of a dirty talker, and knew every inch of me like it was his own, but my husband was a lover. He was sweet, caring, considerate, and gentle a lot of the time too.

He was my dream guy.

The perfect match for me.

"That we did. And it was amazing." He placed his hands under my arms and pulled me up to capture my lips, giving me a passionate kiss. "Now I want to take my girl out before we go pick up my other girl from your sister's."

I gave him a knowing smile. "You're worried about Stormi."

It wasn't a question, but a statement because I already knew the answer. Even though I trusted River, as a parent it was always hard taking your child somewhere new. I had to leave Stormi when I worked so I'd had a little more practice than Bronson, but I was a bit jittery anyway.

"Of course I am, she's mine."

My heart pumped with love.

Bronson could have any girl he wanted but he chose me and Stormi to make a family with. She was officially his now that the adoption papers had been finalized and we both had his last name. But even if we hadn't done that, I knew he wouldn't have treated her any different.

He was one of a kind in my eyes.

"And you're hers," I whispered. "That little girl loves you to the moon and back just like her mother does."

My husband's eyes moistened and I knew he was touched. "I love you both too. So damn much. And when we have another child, I will love that baby with all my heart also."

Now I was working to hold back tears. I'd planned on waiting until after dinner to give him my gift, but I couldn't wait after what he'd said. Pushing up on his chest, I got up and out of bed.

"Where are you going?" he asked. "Not that I'm not enjoying the fabulous view."

I glanced back at him as I walked toward the closet where my surprise was hiding. Giving him a saucy smile, I put a bit more sway in my hips as I sauntered across the room naked. When I heard him let out a deep groan, I snickered.

Once I had what I was looking for, I walked back toward the bed with my husband's eyes glued to me every step of the way.

"I want to give you my gift now," I told him.

He positioned himself so he was sitting up against the headboard, the sheet falling from his chest to pool in his lap. Damn him for being so sexy. It was hard to think of anything else when his skin was exposed. But bless him at the same time, I thought.

Nervous excitement buzzed through me making my hand shake as I thrust the small, white bag his way. His fingers brushed mine as he grabbed the handles and a zap of electricity zipped up my arm.

He stared into my eyes as he set the gift in his lap. "Thank you, sweetheart."

I lifted my leg and swung it over him so I could straddle his strong, powerful thighs. "You didn't open it yet."

Reaching up he traced a finger tenderly down my cheek. "Doesn't matter, it's the thought and that it came from you." Ever so slowly he slid it down my neck, the side of my breast and stomach before reaching for one of my hands.

"I really need you to open it now," I told him, the anticipation killing me.

Bronson picked up my hand, turned it over, and brought it to his lips where he pressed a soft kiss to the middle of my palm. A shiver rushed through my body. He set my hand back down and pulled out the tissue paper that was shoved in the top of the bag.

This is it.

He pulled out the men's navy-blue t-shirt and held it up. I couldn't stop the laughter that bubbled up when he said, "This is nice."

My husband was so grateful over a plain old shirt because the words were backward facing me so he wasn't even looking at it correctly.

"Turn it around, babe," I told him.

He did as I asked, holding it up so I couldn't see his face. I could hear him mumbling and then the fabric ever so slowly lowered inch by inch, drawing out the moment until I could see him.

"We are?" he whispered, eyes swirling with emotion.

The shirt I'd bought him read, ‘We're Pregnant But Mostly Her' in big white letters.

Nodding, tears slipped down my cheeks. "It didn't take long. I guess you have Olympic swimmers after all." And then I was sobbing, I was so happy.

Bronson set the bag and shirt to the side and pulled me up higher on his lap, placing both of his hands on my cheeks. "I can't believe it. We're going to have a baby." Tears shimmered in his eyes and he wrapped his arms around me, hugging me to his chest.

We held each other as we both cried tears of joy.

I pushed back a little and grabbed something out of the bag. "There was one more thing in there."

Handing him the small scrap of material he held it up between us. It was a tiny, white onesie that said, ‘Hi Daddy. See you soon,' in black letters and had a small, red heart under the words. It was another way to announce the bundle of joy coming.

Bronson put it on top of his t-shirt and grabbed my hips, then rolled us. I found myself on my back, with him hovering over me, tears still glistening in his eyes. "I love you. I love Stormi. And I love the baby." He slid down my body and pressed a tender kiss to my belly.

When he moved back up, I reached around and pinched his firm butt. "Yup, it's real and not just a dream."

He grinned. "You just like pinching my ass."

I didn't get to say anything before he spoke again. "You've made me the happiest man in the world."

Leaning down, he brushed his lips over mine tenderly before placing his mouth next to my ear. "Thank you, Cupcake. I'm gonna be the best husband and dad that anyone can be."

I closed my eyes in contentment as his warm breath tickled my neck.

"You already are."

We barely madeit through dinner.

After eating, my husband graced me with open-ended tickets to anywhere my heart desired for a honeymoon. Having never been out of Oregon, he knew I'd dreamt of traveling one day. We had even talked about going on trips together when we were teens.

Another dream would soon come true.

It was a magical night, but Bronson and I were so hyped and happy about the news that neither of us could keep it contained. I did tell River a few days after the sleepover. And my husband wasn't upset at all that my sister and friends had known. It made the Carson and brown paper bag story even funnier when I finally got to tell him all the details.

But we were both dying to tell Stormi so we found ourselves eating faster and calling it a night earlier than planned. We'd said we would pick our daughter up by ten, but it was only nine and we were almost to River's house.

I dialed my sister to let her know that we'd be there in just a few minutes, but she didn't pick up. When I tried again with no answer, my stomach turned over with worry. We'd called a few times throughout the evening—River being a good sport about it and always answering—to check on Stormi, so getting no response now was unsettling.

Bronson held my hand. "Maybe they didn't hear it or she fell asleep. We'll be there in just a minute, sweetheart."

Squeezing my husband's hand like a vice, I tried to tell myself that everything was fine, but something felt so wrong.

And when we pulled up to River's house the scene that was playing out in front of my eyes wasn't just wrong.

It was heart-stopping.

A sea of dancing red flames devoured the home, shooting from the windows and swallowing it up before my eyes, as dark-gray smoke smothered the sky around the property. Firemen were just barreling out of the fire trucks that lined the front yard.

Without waiting for the SUV to stop, I jumped out of the moving vehicle, not bothering to shut the door and raced toward the home—toward the last place I'd seen my daughter.

"Dammit, Lake, wait! Don't get near that house please!" my husband yelled, panic clear in his tone.

I heard him, but I couldn't stop. Not with my baby inside.

My feet were thundering across the lawn as fast as I could go but before I could get too close someone stopped me in my path. I looked up to find Huntley staring down on me.

"Lake?" he asked, confusion crossing his face.

Pounding on his chest, I screamed, "Let me go, Stormi is inside with River!"

The smell of smoke burned my lungs as tears streamed down my face, clouding my vision. Then strong arms were circling me from behind, holding me tight.

Firemen were barking orders, getting ready to go inside, and pulling out their hoses. But it wasn't enough.

"Please let me go, please!" I pleaded as I wailed. "Oh my god, my baby and my sister!"

"I'll get them," Huntley said, turning toward the house. "I swear I'll get them, Lake."

Before he got five steps away, the front door burst open, and someone appeared. In a blaze of glory, my sister, with streaks of soot covering her face, emerged from the house holding Stormi in her arms. It was the most surreal scene I'd ever witnessed in my life.

River wasn't a big thing, but in that moment with destruction whipping all around her, fire licking her back, she seemed larger than life. Like an angel. Our angel.

The firemen rushed toward them, Bronson and I hot on their heels.

"I'm so sorry," she cried as one of the men tried taking my daughter from her arms, but Bronson pushed them out of the way and took our little girl.

Before I could register what was happening, River gave me a sad but panicked smile and turned toward the house. She ran like the wind and in what felt like a split second she disappeared back into the burning flames, taking a piece of my frenzied heart with her.

"River!" I shouted but there was no way she could have heard me.

Cursing up a storm, Huntley was right behind her along with a couple other men. Water was hitting the house now and all I could do was pray with everything I had in me.

Dave, my friend and partner I usually worked with, appeared beside me. He coaxed us toward the ambulance. Bronson wasn't letting go of his baby girl who was covered head to toe in soot and coughing so hard, she could barely breathe. Tears poured from her fear-filled eyes, as she wheezed and gasped for breath, her asthma flaring almost beyond control.

Her strangled cry as she tried to talk to Bronson and me, broke me into a million tiny pieces I wasn't sure I'd ever put back together again.

"Shh, baby, don't try and talk, we're right here," I whispered to her.

The EMTs burst into action, covering her face with a mask, pushing both oxygen and albuterol into her smoke-filled lungs as they clipped a pulse oximeter onto her right middle finger. They were good guys and knew what they were doing. It helped that they knew Stormi's history with asthma being friends and co-workers, but It was hard not to take over when it was my daughter's life on the line.

I'd always wanted to help people, but having a child so young, and one with asthma, made the profession I'd chosen have a double meaning for me. I thought back to the time when she was barely two and had a big attack that I wasn"t sure she'd survive.

But Stormi was strong. She'd made it through then.

She will make it through now.

With Stormi on the stretcher, propped up in a sitting position, we stood outside at the back of the ambulance as my co-workers worked to stabilize our daughter. It killed me to not be able to touch her.

"Hey, Muffin," her daddy whispered. "Daddy and Mommy are right here, you're going to be okay."

His voice was soft and soothing, but it held certainty. He was no doubt worried, I could see it in his gaze, but he also believed what he said.

And I believed him.

She was breathing easier now and some of the terror had left Stormi's beautiful brown eyes. She tried to say something, but I stopped her. "Sweetheart, don't try to talk," I told her softly just as people started shouting.

My head spun toward the house as firemen came running out, part of the roof collapsing behind them, sending sparks and ash flying into the night air. I gasped at the burnt wreckage and then almost crumbled to the cool ground, Bronson catching me at the last second.

River. Huntley.

My sister's kids were not home for the night, leaving her and Stormi alone to bond, so why did she go back into the house? Sorrow ripped through my body as I screamed, my hands flying to my mouth.

River had to be okay.

Had to be.

I'd just found my sister.

I couldn't lose her now. Or ever.

"Lake, look!" Bronson pointed toward the side of the house. "Baby, he has her!"

Huntley, looking larger than life just as River had minutes before—even though it had felt like an eternity had gone by since they'd rushed back into the house—cradled my sister in his massive arms. She had something clenched in her arms, her face buried against it.

They moved further into view as he took her to the other ambulance.

"A dog?" I asked out loud.

I heard Stormi whimper and turned back to her, my knees quaking. My baby"s face had been pale, but some of the color was returning and I felt a smidge of relief wash through me.

She seemed upset as she worked to say something behind the mask but it came out garbled. Before I could try and soothe her and get her to try not to speak once again, she said, "Puppy."

I realized what she was asking. Stormi was worried about the small ball of fur that River was holding. Not sure how anyone was fairing, including the puppy, I wasn't sure what to say, but Bronson beat me to it.

"They got the dog out of the house, sweetheart. You just rest now," he said soothingly.

My lips quivered, tears threatening to burst free again. I needed to see my sister but I couldn't bring myself to leave Stormi. "River."

It was all I said and my husband knew what I needed.

"I'll be right back. Let me go check on River and I will let you know what's going on, but it looks like everyone is getting ready to head to the hospital."

I watched as he took off running in my sister's direction and I was stunned at what I was seeing. Before Bronson made it to my sister, Huntley ripped off part of his gear, took the puppy from her grasp, handed it off to another fireman, and jumped into the back with River.

Stormi whimpered again, dragging my focus back to her so I didn't know what was happening, but what I'd just seen looked like something straight out of a movie.

"It's okay, baby. Daddy will be right back."

True to my words he returned to us in a few minutes. "They have her on oxygen, she has some burns, and they are heading out in a second to the hospital. And she's not alone."

"Huntley?" I said just his name, raising a question.

Bronson was shaking his head in disbelief almost and let out a small chuckle. "That man was barking orders for someone to take care of the dog and drive it to the emergency vet while telling the others there was no way he was sending River to the hospital alone. He did look a bit shocked when she mentioned her kids, but he said he'd handle that too."

There was no way for Huntley to know about her kids. Nobody did but Bronson, me, and Capri, I didn't think. It wasn't my information to share and I had kept her personal life quiet.

Looks like the cat is out of the bag now.

I was thankful he was with my sister, but there was still a crushing weight on my chest.

Bronson reached out and took my hand in his, always knowing the second I needed the comfort. "We will be there with both of them, Cupcake. Your sister and our girl will be okay."

Dave cut in right then, drawing my attention his way. "Lake, we gotta go. Are you coming with us?"

I looked back at my husband to confirm but his gaze was elsewhere.

"Bronson, what's wrong?"

He shook his head as if clearing it and turned back to me. "Sorry, I was thinking about something Huntley said," he mumbled. "Go with our girl and I will follow you."

My face scrunched in confusion but then Dave was telling me again to get in. I gave Bronson a quick kiss and jumped into the ambulance. He was distracted and his eyes were once again off, scanning the area around the house.

I shouted at Bronson so he could hear me over everyone racing around, the hoses going with water still blasting the house, and the chatter, and asked him again, "Is something wrong?"

He gripped the back of his neck with one hand. "It's just something Huntley said about getting an anonymous call about the fire that's bothering me. It wasn't River that called it in."

He still wasn't looking at me.

I watched as my husband's eyes narrowed and his body went rigid, vibrating with what I thought was anger. Dave slammed the doors on the ambulance just as Bronson took off running in the direction of the group of gawking neighbors who'd been watching everything.

"Bronson!" I tried to yell, but it was no use, he couldn't hear me.

"Daddy," Stormi cried from behind her mask.

I held her hand as I whispered soothing words so she wouldn't worry. But that didn't mean I wasn't.

For the second time that night, the same feeling plagued me.

Something was seriously wrong.