Now and Forever
Now and Forever – PrologueCecilia looked up at the tall, dark, and handsome man who was currently waltzing her around the room. “I love you,” she told him.
He smiled down at her. “I know you do, Pet.” His eyes shifted back to the room in general. There was plenty of fresh meat for him this night.
“Well?” She urged him.
“Well what?” He asked her.
“Don’t you love me too?” She asked innocently.
“Do you really need to ask?” He asked as he gave her another of his winsome smiles.
She beamed up at him. “No, I suppose I don’t.”
“Damian is already looking for another conquest,” a pretty young girl commented to Little Corey.
Little Corey, who was no longer little, looked daggers at the man whom he considered his closest friend aside from James. “If he knows what’s best for him, he’ll let her down very gently. He’ll have me to deal with if he doesn’t.”
“Come now, Corey,” she laughed. “Don’t pay any mind to him, pay attention to me.”
Corey obediently shifted his gaze back down to his partner.
“I’ll kill him,” James commented to the group he was standing with. “Look at him, he obviously doesn’t care about her at all. I don’t know what she sees in him.”
“She’s a young girl in love, James,” Jessica told him. “It happens to the best of us,” she added looking up at her husband. “Even if the man happens to be a terribly stubborn Scottish laird who only worries about when his next meal is coming.” The group laughed at this.
“What did you say to them?” Todd asked her in Gaelic.
She smiled sweetly, “I was just telling them how wonderful you are.”
“You really are quite mean, Jess,” Jasmine accused her. “Why don’t you teach him English?”
"It’s much more fun this way,” Jessica replied matter-of-factly.
“You are very mean, little sister,” Josh told her.
“I’m older than you,” she said as she smiled her most innocent of smiles.
He leveled a finger at her nose and glared at her. “If you say that any louder I’m going to be forced to see you in that…thing that Todd has built for himself.”
"It’s called ‘the lists’, Josh. Maybe if you would pay more attention when I tell you things, you would know that.”
“Will you four stop your arguing?” James demanded. “You’re giving me a headache. And Jessica, please teach that husband of yours at least some English. It really is very mean of you not to. He’s been here two months, and the only one he can talk to is you. As self-absorbed as you are, even you have your limits.”
“You’re lucky I consider you a friend, James,” Jessica told him. “I might have to send my Laird after you,” she finished with a smile.
“Why don’t you send your Laird after Damian?” James ventured. “It would save us all a whole lot of trouble in the end. We all know that he’s only going to hurt her.” He took a deep breath. “I only wish that we could somehow spare her the heart-ache.”
“We all do,” Josh told him.
“Something isn’t right,” Audrey commented to the adults around her.
“What is it now?” Percy asked her.
"Something with the kids. Something is brewing, I can feel it.”
“As long as you and Torie don’t plan on teaching any more lessons, I think they’ll be safe,” Corey laughed.
“Stop it,” Victoria told her husband. “There was no harm done there. In fact, things turned out for the best, didn’t they?”
“Yes,” Katherine agreed. “They did. But I agree, something isn’t right.”
Cecilia looked adoringly at Damian as he spun her around effortlessly. No, she thought, things can’t get much better than this.Now and Forever – Part OneCecilia sat across from Damian and next to Alexandra in their carriage. Little Corey was smiling at Alexandra from his seat next to Damian. The four rode in a companionable silence to their destination. They were going into town for some shopping, as they did every Saturday afternoon.
When they arrived, Little Corey lifted first Alexandra and set her on the ground, and then Cecilia. He glared at Damian, who only shrugged in response. “You ladies begin your wish-lists. Damian and I are going to have a few drinks to lesson the shock of the price tags first,” Little Corey told them as he offered them a mock bow and turned away.
Cecilia sighed as she watched Damian’s retreating back.
“You really could do much better than him,” Alexandra noted. “He treats you badly. If Corey ever treated me that way,” she trailed off.
"Corey and Damian are two completely different people,” Cecilia pointed out. “Corey is a very courteous man, and that’s why he’s so charming. Damian is charming because he’s so gruff all of the time. It’s a very endearing trait.”
“It’s a very bad trait,” Alexandra corrected. “I think you’re mistaking a challenge for love, Cecilia. It’s impossible to love someone who’s not capable of love. He’s only stringing you on, I know that you know that.”
Cecilia glared at her companion. “He is capable of love, he does love me, he’s not just stringing me on. You’ll see,” she added as the men started making their way back towards them.
Corey kissed Alexandra’s cheek. “Miss me, Darling?” He inquired.
“Of course I did,” Alexandra replied.
"Let’s go, Cecilia,” Damian commanded as he took a none-too-gentle hold on her arm. “The sooner we take you two women through here, the sooner we can leave.”
Alexandra and Corey exchanged looks, but didn’t say a word; their looks said it all. Corey had grown up with Cecilia, their parents had been best friends after all, and he had come to think of her as his little sister. He hated seeing her being led on by Damian, but he also knew her well enough to realize that whatever he had to say, she didn’t want to hear it. So instead, he just exchanged glances with people and pretended he knew nothing of what was ultimately going to happen.
Alexandra on the other hand had just recently met Cecilia. Alexandra thought of Cecilia as a very shy; very introverted person. She had only known Cecilia after she had fallen for Damian, and she saw no trace of the reckless girl that Corey told her about. She could not, in her wildest dreams, imagine this young blond-haired, blue-eyed beauty pulling half of the stunts that she allegedly pulled with Corey’s sister, Jessica. She wondered what, exactly, Damian had done to her to make her so docile.
“That shade of blue looks lovely on you,” Alexandra told Cecilia. “It matches your eyes almost perfectly, doesn’t it, Corey?”
“Yes,” Corey smiled. “She looks like an absolute vision.”
Cecilia modestly lowered her head. “I’m not that pretty,” she told them.
“Nonsense,” Corey admonished her. “Would I lie to my favorite little pest?” he asked, referring to the nickname he had given to her when they were children.
“You’re just being nice, Corey,” she told him.
“Damian, tell her how wonderful she looks,” Alexandra suggested innocently.
“Yes,” Corey jumped in. “Tell her Damian, she’ll believe it coming from you.”
“I’ll tell her no such thing,” he told them. “Her head is full enough of fantasies, you mustn't lie to her. She looks passably well, yes, I wouldn’t be seen with her if it was otherwise, but she isn’t anything special. Don’t go making her believe she is. Her modesty is the one good thing about her that hasn’t been tainted, leave that trait in tact,” Damian finished.
Corey and Alexandra looked at each other in shock; they had never expected that reaction from him. They then turned their gazes to Cecilia, who looked as though she was about to burst into tears.
“I told you,” she said to them, and walked on ahead of them, with her chin held high.
“Dammit,” Damian swore. “I didn’t mean to hurt her.”
“You could have fooled us,” Corey said coolly.
Damian gave them an exasperated look, “I suppose I should go after her now and make it up to her. Why do women have to be so emotional?” he sighed as he weaved his way through the crowd. When he finally caught up to her he apologized with a simple, “I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be,” she told him. “You were only stating the truth.”
“I still shouldn’t have said it so harshly,” he told her. “Forgive me?”
She smiled at him. “Of course I do.”
“How about, will you marry me?” He asked as he pulled a small box from his coat pocket.
She smiled broadly and threw her arms around his neck. “Of course I will,” she told him. “Of course, I will.”Now and Forever – Part Two“She was so happy,” Damian laughed as he threw his last dart toward the board. “You should have seen her.”
"You had just better watch your step where she’s concerned,” Corey warned his friend. “She has a whole mess of people who love her dearly, myself included. None of us are going to be too thrilled if you hurt her or cause a scandal with her.” He prepared to throw his third round of darts. “James especially. He’s about ready to slit your throat.”
“James?” Damian laughed. “That little thing? Forgive me if I’m not exactly terrified of him.”
“What about his father?” Corey ventured. “Are you afraid of him? Or how about Cecilia’s father? Or maybe mine? And how about me, Damian, because I wouldn’t hesitate to kill you for a second if I thought you were going to hurt her.”
Damian looked at his friend. “What has gotten into you all of a sudden? I’m telling you right now that I already have a mistress lined up. You didn’t honestly think I’d give up my way of life just because the girl I intend to marry knows you, did you?”
“All I’m saying is,” Corey said through clenched teeth as he whipped another dart across the room, “if you hurt her beyond repair, you’re going to pay very dearly.” The last dart hit perfectly on the red dot in the center; Damian gulped imperceptibly. “That’s a promise,” Corey threw over his shoulder as he stormed out of the tavern.
Damian collected all of the darts and put them back where they had been retrieved from. He sat back and called for another drink as he mentally contemplated what he was going to do with Cecilia the next day.Now and Forever – Part ThreeDamian showed up at Cecilia’s house early the next morning. He was let in, and Cecilia was sent for. She came bounding down the stairs as happy as a child on Easter Morning in anticipation of all the chocolate they were going to be able to eat unhindered by their parents.
He shook his head, “Cecilia, don’t come jumping down the stairs like that. You’re a young lady, not some hellion child.”
She lowered her eyes. “I’m sorry, Damian.”
“It’s all right,” he told her jovially. “Let’s go out, eh?”
She smiled and nodded in agreement. “I’m so excited about the wedding,” Cecilia told him once they were out of sight of her house. “All my life I’ve dreamed of a big wedding, and now, finally, I get one.”
“Don’t get your heart set on too big of a wedding, Pet,” he warned her. “I don’t like big crowds of people all in one place. It’s enough to make anyone feel claustrophobic.”
"Of course,” she conceded. “If it’s going to make you uncomfortable, we won’t have a big wedding. It’s nothing to fight over. Where are we going to go for a honeymoon?” She asked excitedly.
He sighed heavily. “I don’t want to leave Barbados. Honeymoons are such an extravagant way of doing exactly what we can do right here, don’t you agree?”
“If you say so,” she smiled at him. After a few moments of thought she added, “I suppose you are right. I mean what do you really do on a honeymoon besides…” she trailed off.
“My point exactly. We can do that well enough out here. Besides, this is where most come for their honeymoons, why should we travel is this is such a perfect spot?”
She smiled at him, “Once again, you’re right.” She sighed as she leaned against him. “How many children do you think we’ll have?” She asked in a dreamy voice.
He stiffened and she turned to look at him. “Not even one,” he told her in an icy tone.
“But Damian,” she began to protest.
“Not one, Cecilia. I hate children and I won’t have any running around my house. Not now, not ever, is that clear?” She nodded with wide-eyes. “Good,” he said as he relaxed again.
Cecilia didn’t mention another of her hopes for the future for the rest of their ride. She didn’t think she could bear to hear any more of them shot down that day, but in her heart, she still believed that he was right.Now and Forever – Part FourCecilia heard a knock on her door, and she yelled for the person to come in. “James!” she yelled as she crossed the room to hug her closest friend. He gently hugged her back, not wanting to wrinkle the pristine white gown she was wearing.
"You look breathtaking,” he told her as he kissed her forehead.
She looked down at what she was wearing and gasped. “No one is supposed to see this until tomorrow,” she shrieked. “Get out of here, James, get out this instant.” She ushered him out the door, and he waited patiently while she changed into her normal clothes. She came out moments later and pulled him into her father’s study. “James, I’m so nervous,” she confided.
“It’s not too late to back out,” he said, only half jokingly.
She gave him a warning look. “I’ve been getting enough grief from people about marrying him, please don’t you start on me too.”
“Look,” he began, “if it’s what makes you happy, then it’s what makes me happy. You know how much I care for you, I just want you to be happy. That’s all any of us wants.”
“I know,” she assured him as she leaned in to hug him. “He’s not so bad as all that, he really isn’t.”
He smiled at her, pityingly. “You are so innocent, Cecilia. He treats you so poorly, and you don’t even realize it. There are dozens of men who would love to have you for their bride; men who would treat you as well as they would treat their own mothers, but you pick the man who humiliates you and dashes all of your dreams to pieces.” He stroked her cheek affectionately, “I wish you would reconsider this.”
“Please don’t spoil tomorrow for me,” she pleaded with him. “Please just let me have my day, that’s all I’m asking, James.”
"Then you shall get it,” he assured her as he got up to leave. “I promised I’d meet Todd out in the lists today.” He rolled his eyes. “Why I ever agreed to learn how to fight is beyond me. In case I don’t make it back alive today, good luck,” he told her as he kissed her cheek and prepared to leave.
As he was leaving, there was a knock at the door. A sailor was standing there. “Yes,” Cecilia inquired in a baffled tone.
“Is this the residence of Stephen, son of Audrey and Percieval?” the sailor asked.
"Yes it is,” James answered. “Do you have news of him?”
The sailor took off his hat and looked very remorseful. “I hate to have to be the one to tell you this, but Stephen has been lost, and is believed to be dead. We lost track of him weeks ago, he could be anywhere and it’s very unlikely he’s still alive.”
“Thank you, sir,” James said as he closed the door again. He turned to Cecilia who was white enough to rival the dress she had been wearing only a short time before. “Cecilia,” James began.
“No,” she yelled at him. “Stephen is perfectly fine. Nothing can hurt him; he’s invincible. He used to tell me so all of the time. Nothing can hurt him, James, nothing. He’s only lost, they’re going to find him soon. They’re going to find him,” she said as she crumpled to the floor.
James got down next to her and pulled her into his arms. “Shhhh,” he soothed her. “You’re going to be OK. You’re probably right,” he lied to her. “Stephen was wonderfully able to always get out of trouble. After all, he survived a band of gypsies, didn’t he?”
Cecilia smiled up at him. “Yes, he did. He’s going to come home. I know he is.”
James held her tighter. “As much as I hate to tell you this, you need to be prepared for the fact that he might not come home,” he told her as he gently brushed a tear from her cheek.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” A voice sounded from the doorway. Cecilia and James looked up to see a very angry Damian standing in there. “Get away from her,” Damian ordered James.
“Damian,” James began to fight back.
“Don’t,” Cecilia told him. “I’ll see you tomorrow, ok?”
“Are you sure you’re all right?” James asked her.
She nodded. “I’m fine.”
Only then did James get up and walk out the door, completely ignoring Damian. “What was that all about?”
“Stephen is-”
“I don’t care about Stephen,” Damian told her. “You better dry your eyes, and get happy by tomorrow. The world isn’t going to stop because you’re unhappy with something that has to do with a brother who is never home, you hear me? Our wedding is tomorrow, and I want to see a smiling bride walking down that aisle,” he finished as he stormed from the house.
Cecilia sniffed and wiped her eyes. If Damian wanted a happy bride, he would have a happy bride. She walked up to her room determined to not think about Stephen until the day after the wedding.Now and Forever – Part Five“You are so beautiful,” Jasmine told Cecilia wistfully. “I wish I had your hair and complexion.”
“Don’t you ever wish any such thing,” Cecilia told her. “I always wanted your hair and complexion,” she laughed.
“Cecilia, hold still,” Audrey demanded of her daughter. “How do you expect me to do something with your hair if you’re laughing like that?”
“Sorry, mother,” Cecilia said, only half apologetically.
“Are you nervous about tonight?” Jessica ventured.
“Why should I be?” Cecilia asked.
“Don’t you listen to them,” Torie assured her. “There is absolutely nothing to worry about.”
“Speak for yourself,” Katherine commented. “I was scared to death on my wedding night, and for a good reason too. Do you have any idea how-”
“No, Katherine, and we don’t want to know either,” Audrey interrupted. “Don’t you listen to any of them,” She told Cecilia. “It’s going to be wonderful.”
“The second time around, anyway,” Jasmine laughed. The rest of the girls joined in, until Audrey gave them all a warning look. “That’s it, all of you out.”
"Oh Audrey, we were only teasing,” Torie protested.
“Out,” Audrey once again ordered. She ushered all of the girls out and went back to sit behind her daughter. “What’s wrong? I can tell that something is bothering you, what is it?”
“It’s nothing, Mother, really,” Cecilia lied.
Audrey hugged her daughter. “I know you’re worried about Stephen, and I admit that things aren’t looking too good for him right now, but you know that he always comes through. Why wouldn’t he this time?”
Cecilia turned to her mother and smiled. “You’re right. I should just not think about it for a while.” Cecilia mentally reminded herself that Damian wanted a smiling bride to walk down the aisle. That was all the encouragement she needed. She put a dazzling smile on her face opened to door to her room. “They’re almost ready,” she told her mother, and she led the way down the stairs.
James watched Cecilia as she walked down the carpet toward her future unhappiness. She looked so happy. He then shifted his gaze to the groom, he had a sneering smile on his face. James’ hand clenched.
“Easy there, Son,” Andrew whispered to James. “You can’t very well kill him for no reason. Relax, things probably aren’t as bad as they seem.”
James unclenched his fists, but didn’t relax. Instead, he pictured the different ways he could kill Damian without leaving a trail that would lead back to himself.Now and Forever – Part SixTodd, Jessica, Percy, Audrey, James, and Katherine were all sitting around a bonfire one night, about two months after the wedding. They all had noticed that Cecilia had become a sort of recluse, and they all blamed Damian for it.
“I don’t know why you won’t let me do something,” Audrey told Percy. “She’s my daughter and I don’t want her being exploited like that. It’s common knowledge that he has a mistress, he parades her all over the place. Cecilia hasn’t received a visitor in weeks, and you won’t let me do anything about it. I’m beginning to wonder why I married you.”
“You married me because I have such a level head,” Percy reminded her. “If you intervene, Cecilia will see it as you sticking in your oar where it doesn’t belong. She’ll only rebel and claim that everything is perfectly fine, and retreat even farther into that shell of hers. Don’t you know your own daughter by now? You need to let her find her own strength. Give her time, I’m sure she’ll get it soon enough.”
“Not soon enough for me,” James threw in. “From the day those two got married, I knew it would be nothing but trouble. I want to go get her and bring her home. I know she’s unhappy there.”
“Did you hear Percy?” Katherine asked her son. “If you do that, she’ll retreat even farther back and it’ll be all that much more time before she makes it out on her own. I know you want to rescue her, we all do. But Cecilia isn’t the kind of girl who wants rescuing, you know that James. You know her better than anyone else here.”
“I know, but I don’t have to like it,” he announced.
“No one ever said you had to,” Katherine told him.
“I wish I could order Damian out to the lists,” Jessica said suddenly. “I’ve learned enough from Todd to take care of him very quickly. How dare he do that to my best friend and think he can get away with it. He won’t even let her show any signs of grief over Stephen, did you know that? If she even looks a little bit upset about something, he yells at her for it. Oh, how I’d like to take a sword to that man.”
No one spoke about Cecilia anymore that night.Now and Forever – Part Seven“Damian, I’m sorry,” Cecilia reiterated. She wondered what had set him off this time. He smelled of cheap liquor. He had been with his mistress again.
He continued screaming incoherent things at her in his drunken slur.
"Damian, I’m going to get you upstairs.” She wrapped his arm around her neck and proceeded to lead him up the stairs. She hated when he came home drunk.
She laid him down on the bed and got a cold cloth to press against his forehead. “You’re going to feel this tomorrow morning,” she told him.
He caught her hand and brought it down to his lips. “You’re too good to me,” he told her drunkenly as he kissed her palm. He slowly trailed his kisses up her arm until she pulled away.
“Damian, you’re drunk. One minute you’re screaming at me, the next you want to have your way with me. No, not when you’re drunk, Damian.”
"Damn you,” he screamed as he slapped her across the face. “You are the wife, it’s your duty to be there when I want you. You have no choice,” he said as he dragged her down.Now and Forever – Part EightAudrey sat in the sitting room of her daughter’s house. “I’m so scared, Mother,” Cecilia sobbed. “He told me he didn’t want any kids. He’s going to be so angry.”
“He’s not going to be angry. Who knows, maybe a child is what this family needs,” Audrey suggested.
“A child is the last thing this house needs,” Cecilia said. “He doesn’t love me, what makes you think he’s going to love a child?”
“It brought Victoria and Corey back from a pretty tight spot,” Audrey rationalized.
“Corey loves Victoria, and Victoria loves Corey. There is no love for me coming from Damian. He never loved me; I can see that now. Unfortunately, I’ve discovered that a little too late. I don’t want to bring a child into this,” Cecilia said as the tears began to course down her cheeks once again.
“You’ll be OK,” Audrey assured her daughter as she embraced her.
“Leave me alone with my wife, Audrey,” Damian commented from the doorway.
The two women jumped at the voice of the man they didn’t even realize was home. Audrey stood up between her daughter and Damian. “I’m not going to leave her alone with you. God only knows what you do to her,” she said with more than a hint of contempt.
Cecilia, who feared retribution later on, tugged on her mother’s sleeve. “Please just go,” she pleaded.
Audrey saw the fear in her daughter’s eyes and decided she had better just leave. She kissed her daughter on the forehead and squeezed her hand reassuringly, and left the house.
Damian glared at Cecilia, and she braced herself for the explosion she knew was coming. “Get out of my sight,” he ordered her. “I’m so angry with you right now I can’t trust myself with you.”
Cecilia, saw this is a reprieve and ran up the stairs into the sanctuary of her room. She sat down in her window seat and gazed out at the ocean. She loved the view from her room. She would sit for hours on end just staring out at the endless expanse of water and sand, mostly remembering the fun she had as a child.
She wondered where all of that fun had gone. Here she was, married to an unfaithful drunk that, despite her better judgement, she still cared a great deal for. She wondered if that was why she hadn’t left him yet. She realized that no matter how much she tried, she would never gain his affections. It was then that she made her decision. She couldn’t spend the rest of her life like this.
She heard Damian’s footsteps coming toward the door and she knew that is was now or never. She got up and she slowly made her way toward the door. When she was within a hand’s reach of the handle, she locked it.Now and Forever – Part Nine"Open the door Cecilia,” Damian demanded. His voice was so calm that it scared her out of her mind.
“I’m not unlocking it until tomorrow morning when you’ve calmed down,” she yelled through the door.
“Damn you, open this door if you know what’s good for you.”
“I do know what’s good for me, and that’s keeping the door locked,” she shot back at him.
He kicked the door and she staggered back several feet. “If you don’t open this door, I’ll break it down, and believe me things will be much worse for you if I have to break the door,” he promised her.
Cecilia began to panic. She knew he wasn’t lying, and she knew that if forced, he would break that door down within five minutes. She didn’t stand a chance. She slowly made her way toward the door, and took a deep breath. She flung the door open, causing Damian to fall flat on his face and raced out of the house. Pure fear was fueling her, and she found more speed than she thought herself capable of attaining. She ran down the beach toward the closest house she knew; James’ house. She knew that Damian would be closing in on her so she didn’t bother to knock, she just opened the door, got inside and shut the door as quickly she could. She sat against the door, panting, trying to catch her breath.
“Cecilia?” James asked in an astonished voice.
“Don’t...wake…parents.” she panted.
He knelt down beside her. “What on earth are you doing out here this late? It must be nearly one in the morning.” Suddenly, his features grew hard. “What did he do to you?”
Cecilia shook her head. “Didn’t do anything…found out I’m pregnant…I ran away.”
"You’re pregnant?” James asked her.
She nodded. “Please don’t wake your parents,” she pleaded with him.
“Of course I won’t. But you have to tell me exactly what happened, OK?” She nodded, and he led her to the kitchen.
After he had brewed her some tea, and she had calmed down she began to tell him everything from his being drunk, to him forcing her, and finally the scene that had taken place just a few short hours ago.
He wiped the tears from her eyes and pulled her down onto his lap. “It’s going to be OK,” he whispered to her as he stroked her hair. She lifted her head up to look into his eyes.
He saw a longing there and wasn’t about to deny it. He leaned into her and kissed her. When her arms encircled his neck, he knew that he had guessed her longing right.Now and Forever – Part TenKatherine ran down the hallway toward her son’s room and burst in without knocking. The sight that greeted her eyes was both relieving and infuriating. She shut the door and turned to her husband, “Tell Damian that James doesn’t know where she is.”
“But you didn’t even ask him,” Andrew pointed out.
“Just go,” she said as she headed toward the sitting room. “Then come meet me in here, I want to talk to you.” Andrew did his wife’s bidding, and then met her in the sitting room.
“Why didn’t you ask James where she was?” Andrew demanded.
“Because she’s in there with him,” Katherine told him. Andrew looked at her in shock. “You heard me,” Katherine confirmed. “The two of them are in that bed as if they were the married ones.”
"What are we going to do about this? We can’t just turn our heads,” Andrew told her.
“I know,” Katherine admitted regretfully. “I’ll go wake them up, and we’ll go from there.”
James woke up and pulled Cecilia closer to him. She burrowed into the warmth his body offered and sighed her contentment. He began to nuzzle her gently to get her to wake up. “Cecilia,” he called softly.
“Just five more minutes,” she pleaded with him.
“No more minutes,” Katherine told them both.
The two sat up bolt straight in the bed, and attempted to act as if they hadn’t done anything more than sit and discuss crops all night.
“Get out of bed and dressed, both of you. Andrew wants to see you two in his study in ten minutes,” she said and walked out of the room, closing the door behind her.
“This nightmare keeps getting worse,” Cecilia said, holding back a new batch of tears.
James hugged her, “I’m sorry. I never should have let things go as far as they did. This is my fault, Cecilia, I’m so sorry.”
“No,” she told him. “This isn’t your fault, and don’t you dare be sorry. There is nothing to be sorry for.”
“Wait until you get an earful from Father. Then you’ll understand why I’m sorry I’ve put you through this. He’s not exactly going to be merciful, I can tell you that much.”
“It’ll be ok,” she told him as she took a hold of his hand. “You’ll be there with me.”
"Yes,” he assured her, “I will.”
A short while later, the two guilty ones meekly entered Andrew’s study. “Sit down,” Andrew ordered them. They sat in chairs opposite his. “What were you two thinking?” he demanded. “Or were you even thinking at all? Cecilia, you’re a married woman. If you were still on the marriage market that would be bad enough, but you’re not even up for sale anymore. Do you realize that this makes you as bad as Damian and his mistress?”
“Don’t compare her to Damian,” James shot at his father.
Andrew looked at his son in shock. “James, you watch your mouth. You’re still my son, full grown or not. What was going through your head, by the way? You knew she was married, and you knew that it was wrong, why did you do this anyway? Have your mother and I taught you nothing about propriety and morals?”
“This has nothing to do with propriety and morals,” James told him. “Cecilia came stumbling into here around one in the morning, she truly believed that Damian was going to kill her. I took her into the kitchen and made her some tea to calm her down and one thing led to another. That’s all there is to it.”
“I’m not yelling at you because she’s here, James,” Andrew told him. “I’m angry because she cuckolded her husband.”
“He’s not a husband,” James defended. “He’s a man who happens to share a last name with her, he’s nothing that a husband is. She deserves ten times better.”
“I know she does,” Andrew agreed, “But that still doesn’t give you the right to do what you did, don’t you understand that? Cecilia,” he said, turning back towards her. “You have to tell him what happened. Tell him you want a divorce, or beg for his forgiveness. Either way you have to tell him.”
Andrew then got up and left the two alone to think about what they had done.
“What are you going to do?” James asked her.
“The only thing I can do,” She replied.
Now and Forever – Part Eleven
Cecilia slowly made her way up the stairs that led to Damian’s study. He always went there to brood, so she knew that that’s where he would be. She stood in the doorway for a moment and looked at him, his back was to her and his head was in his hands. Cecilia could smell the whiskey, and began to second-guess her decision to come back.
“Where were you?” He asked her without turning.
She was slightly surprised, he had shown no signs of knowing she had been in the room, and she hadn’t made a sound. She took a deep breath, it was now or never; she knew that if she waited another second she would lose her resolve. “I slept with James,” she said matter-of-factly. “And I want a divorce.” Damian turned to her and had a look of pure hatred on her face. Cecilia began to panic, what had possessed her to try to do this alone? She began backing up until she was on the other side of the room; her back against a wall.
“Get over here,” he commanded her in a tone that sent chills down her spine. When she shook her head he yelled more forcefully, “Get over here now!”
“No,” she told him calmly. “I want a divorce, I want to get out of this house.”
“You stupid girl,” he sneered. “What do you think will become of you if you get a divorce? You will be shamed, and pitied, and mocked. What kind of a life is that?”
“It’s better than living in constant fear for my life. I will not be shamed or mocked. Pitied, maybe, but not shamed and mocked. You think no one knows how you are, Damian? Everyone knows how you treat me; there are dozens of people who want to help me get out of this mess. No, no one will think ill of me for getting a divorce,” she finished with conviction.
“If you demand a divorce, I will make it common knowledge that you slept with James. I will tell everyone that God only knows how long it has been going on, and the reason you want a divorce is because you believe that thing,” he said pointing to her belly, “is his.” He looked at her as if challenging her to come up with a plan to rival that.
Cecilia laid a protective hand over her child. “You think people will believe you over me?” She laughed in his face. “I’m the victim here, Damian, not you. Everyone knows that. You go ahead and try your paltry tricks, we’ll see where they get you. Besides, if you try anything like that, I’ll tell everyone about your,” she cleared her throat, “how shall I put this? You’re shortcomings?”
Damian began breathing more quickly, and Cecilia at once regretted having said that. “I’ll kill you; you and that child,” he screamed as he lunged for her.
Cecilia screamed.
A shot rang out.Now and Forever – Part Twelve“Stephen?” Cecilia asked in amazement.
“Hello there, Kiddo,” he said as he held out his arms to her.
She stepped over Damian and went into her brother’s welcoming embrace. He squeezed her tightly, and the realization of everything that just happened hit her. “Oh my God,” she sobbed into his arm.
“It’s ok,” he told her. “I only killed him because he was going to kill you. I doubt I’ll be hung for that.”
Cecilia picked up her head and looked at him through the tears in her eyes. “You idiot, I’m not crying about that. You’re alive. You are really and truly alive. I was sure I had lost you.”
“Hey there, don’t you ever doubt your big brother. I’ve made it out of worse messes than the one I was just in,” he told her.
“Why don’t you ever stay just stay home?” She asked him.
"Because I couldn’t give you and mother heart-attacks if I stayed home,” he laughed. “Let’s go home,” he said more seriously.
He led her out to the beach and the two walked the mile to their home. “How did you know I was there?” Cecilia asked him.
“When I arrived here this morning, all I kept hearing was how my poor little sister was stuck married to a real brute of a man who kept treating her very poorly. I decided that no one can treat my baby sister poorly, except for me of course, and so also decided to go and teach this brute of a man a lesson. It didn’t take much thought to figure out that the only brute of a man you would marry is Damian, and so it wasn’t very hard to find you. You are just lucky I happened by when I did,” he said as he gave her shoulders a squeeze.
“Cecilia?” Audrey called to her daughter. “What on earth are you doing here? And who are you with?” Audrey walked from her small porch out to the beach to meet her daughter. She stopped dead in her tracks when she saw Stephen. “Stephen?” she asked in amazement.
Stephen walked up to his mother and picked her up to hug her, “Yes, Mother, I’m home.”
She slapped him on his shoulder and gave him a hard look. “Where on earth have you been? You had me worried sick, do you know that? Stephen, don’t you walk away when I’m talking to you,” Audrey called as she chased her son into the house.
Cecilia smiled to herself and walked into her home, knowing that everything would be OK.Now and Forever – Part ThirteenCecilia and her mother flanked Stephen where they were sitting, and Percy was sitting across from his family.
“You saved her life?” Percy asked his son.
“Yes. I walked in right as they were having that argument she told you about, and I saw him dive at her. I knew that he would truly kill her if I didn’t do something,” Stephen told them.
“Who would kill who?” James asked as he walked into the foyer.
“Stephen? Cecilia?” he asked in shock as he saw them sitting there. “I thought you were,” he trailed off.
"Dead?” Stephen supplied. “Sorry, no such luck.”
James then moved his gaze to Cecilia. “What are you doing home? I thought you went back to Damian.”
“Back to Damian?” Audrey asked in surprise.
Cecilia gave James a look. “Yes, I sort of spent the night at James’s house. I went back home early this morning and that’s when everything started happening.” Cecilia was glad she was able to get out of that without lying to her parents.
Stephen on the other hand, knew exactly what his little sister had meant and looked straight at her and told her so with his eyes. “Cecilia, James, can I talk to you two for a moment?” Stephen asked. He didn’t wait, instead he got up and left the room, assuming that they were going to follow him. Which they did.
“Cecilia,” Stephen began as soon as they were out of the hearing range of their parents.
“Stephen please don’t tell Mother and Father. They’ll be so disappointed in me. Please don’t tell them,” she pleaded.
“Of course I won’t tell them,” he assured her. “But that doesn’t mean I’m not going to settle a score,” he added as he turned to James.
“Stephen, don’t,” Cecilia ordered as she grabbed his arm.
“I want to talk to Cecilia about that,” James cut in. “Stephen, could you please leave us alone?”
Stephen grudgingly left the room.
“There’s nothing to talk about,” Cecilia said. “What’s done is done. No one can change it now.”
“What do you plan on doing now?” James asked her. “Damian is dead. You’re left with child and are living alone in that great big house.”
“I was thinking of selling the house and moving back in with Mother,” she told him. “I don’t want to raise this child on my own. I’m scared to raise a child on my own.”
“You’re going to be a wonderful mother,” James told her as he embraced her. “And I was wondering,” he began slowly, “if you would let me attempt to be a father.”
Cecilia pulled away from him and looked him in his eyes. She saw affection where she expected to see pity. “James,” she said slowly.
He put a finger to her lips. “Please say yes. Don’t say anything at all, if your answer isn’t going to be yes. I don’t think I could handle any other answer.”
She smiled and brushed a lock of hair from his forehead. “Yes.”Now and Forever – EpilogueCecilia sat in the window-seat of her childhood bedroom. She turned to her mother. “I’m so happy, Mother. Look at how handsome he looks,” she giggled.
“Cecilia, you step away from that window right now,” Audrey ordered. “Do you want your groom to see you before the ceremony? It’s bad luck.”
“What a sight the three of you make,” Victoria laughed. “This wedding is going to make the front pages of the newspaper. I can see the headlines now. ‘Pregnant Bride and two Pregnant Bride’s-Maids walk down the aisle.’ We’ll be the talk of all Barbados,” Victoria said as she collapsed with laughter.
“You’re not funny, Mother,” Jessica told Victoria as she defensively rubbed her protruding belly. It’s not our fault we all got pregnant at the same time, and that time happened to be seven months before Cecilia got married.
“Damn those men anyway,” Jasmine added. “I think they did this on purpose.”
“I wouldn’t doubt it,” Katherine laughed. “Men are always scheming one thing or another with each other.”
“Ok everyone, enough with this senseless chattering. We need to get this bride to the altar.” Audrey ordered as the women began to file down the stairs.
Victoria and Katherine took their seats next to their husbands and children as the bride, two bridesmaids, and the matron-of-honor walked down the aisle.
Cecilia looked adoringly at the man waiting for her. She felt as though she were walking on air. She knew that this time it was going to be different. This time she would live happily ever after.
James watched the love of his life walk slowly up the aisle, his eyes shifted momentarily to where her dress perfectly framed the life growing within her. He smiled to himself in anticipation of what his new life would bring for him.
“Isn’t she beautiful?” Alexandra whispered to Little Corey.
"You’re the only one to rival her,” Corey replied as he wrapped his arm protectively around his fiancé’s waist.
Jasmine and Jessica smiled at each other. Cecilia was finally on her way to true happiness, and they knew it. They gave thanks that the hard times were over, and life would settle back down…at least for a little while.
Andrew and Corey looked at each other and rolled their eyes. “Why must women always cry at these functions?” Corey asked.
Andrew shrugged his shoulders. “It’s in their blood,” he laughed.
“Behave yourself,” Katherine told her husband as she jabbed him in the ribs. She glared at him only momentarily before she went back to sniffling and dabbing tears from her cheeks.
“You better watch it before you get the same,” Victoria whispered to Corey.
Andrew and Corey looked at each other and rolled their eyes again before shifting their gaze back to the bride who had just joined her future husband at the altar.
“I love you,” Cecilia whispered to James.
“I love you too,” he whispered back to her with a smile.
Email: Starsweeper3478@aol.com