Leanne Banks: Trouble in High Heels

“You did good,” he said. “You rescued that little boy. You’re a hero.”

She met his gaze from beneath the hood of her raincoat and smiled. “Me? A hero?”

His heart turned inside out. “Yeah, baby. You.”

“Don’t tell Virginia, but I was afraid I was going to throw up right before I mounted Lady.”

“But you did it anyway.”

“Yeah, I kept pretending that you were there talking to me. You kept saying, you can do anything you want.”

“I would have given anything to do this for you,” he said.

“I rode a horse again,” she whispered as if she still couldn’t quite believe it. “All by myself.” She cleared her throat and winced. “My throat hurts.”

“Be quiet,” he said and carried her up the stairs into the house. He took her directly into the bathroom and turned on the hot water. He helped her strip off her clothes and dried her wet, shivering body with a towel before he ushered her into the tub.

She sighed as she relaxed in the warm water. “I could go to sleep right this minute.”

“Not yet,” he said. “I just want to get you warmed up.”

Lori felt as if she were having an out-of-body experience. So weary she could barely stay awake, she felt herself drowning in Jackson ’s tenderness.

“Am I dreaming this?” she asked him, the warm water surrounding her, his concerned gaze latched on to her. “Are you really being this nice to me?”

He chuckled. “I guess.”

She sighed. “Do you know how much I’ve missed you?” she asked. “I want you around even if you’re fussing at me.”

“Is that so?” he asked, his lips lifting in a half smile. He pushed a wet strand of hair from her cheek. “Why is that?”

Dizzy from stress, she shook her head. “I don’t know. I just know I want to be with you all the time,” she confessed. “Twenty-four seven. I’m crazy, aren’t I?” She paused, wondering if she should have said all that. “I’m so tired. I must be half-dreaming.”

“You’ve earned it, sweetheart,” he said. “Time for bed.” He coaxed her from the tub and dried her again, wrapping her in a big fluffy towel. He carried her to her room, and Maria appeared with a nightgown.

Everything blurred together after that.

“I’m sorry for every bad thing I’ve said to you,” Maria said, her eyes wide with regret.

“’s okay,” Lori said as she snuggled under the covers.

“Go to sleep,” Jackson said, and she felt his lips on her forehead.

Drifting off, she whispered, “Love you…”

Or did she?

When she woke up the following afternoon, she immediately looked for Jackson. “Jackson?”

Maria gently squeezed her arm. “He had to go back to Dallas, but he promised he’ll be back soon. How are you feeling, sweetie?”

Disappointed that Jackson had left, she closed her eyes. “My throat hurts,” she said in a husky voice.

“ Virginia has some medicine that will make you feel better,” Maria said. “I’ll go get her.”

Lori shook her head. “No, not now.”

“Why not?”

Lori just shook her head. It required too much energy to do more at the moment. She drifted off again.

Sometime later, she awakened again. Her room was dark and Maria was curled up on a chair beside her bed. “Is Reese okay?” she asked.

“Reese is fine,” Maria said. “Here, drink some water.”

Lori lifted her head and sipped the cool water through a straw. “Why is it dark?” she asked in her croaky voice.

Maria laughed. “Because it’s midnight.”

Lori shook her head. “So late. Where’s Jackson?”

“He’s gone to Dallas, but he’ll be back soon. He’s called several times to check on you.”

Lori sighed and closed her eyes.

“Drink some more before you go back to sleep,” Maria coaxed.

Lori lifted her head and took several sips. “Did I dream that you apologized for being mean to me?”

A long silence passed. “No,” Maria said. “You didn’t dream it. I was very worried about you. You spent too much time in the rain. When I heard Virginia had sent you out to look for Reese, I was afraid you wouldn’t survive.”

“I’m stronger than I look,” Lori said.

Maria laughed softly. “Yes, you are. Now you should take some of the medicine Virginia has for your throat.”

Lori shook her head.

“You must take it. It will make you better,” Maria said in a stern voice.

Woozy, but mostly cognizant, Lori recounted the days since her last period. She was late. “I need you to get something from the drugstore for me.”

“No problem,” Maria said. “I will stay with you, and Geoffrey will get it.”

Lori shook her head again. “No. You. I need a pregnancy test.”

“Dios,” Maria said.

“Yeah. I could use His help, too,” Lori said and closed her eyes.

When Lori awakened the next morning, a plastic bag waited in the chair where Maria had previously sat. She reached for the bottle of water on the nightstand beside her and drank half of it in no time.

She glanced at the plastic bag again, knowing what it held. She wasn’t that late, and her body hadn’t always operated like a Swiss watch when it came to her period. Her lateness could be due to stress. Getting married, falling in love, being apart from her husband, staying out all night in the rain…

Okay, enough of the procrastination. She rose from bed and felt reasonably stable. Amazing what more than twenty-four hours of sleep could do for a person. Grabbing the bag and a robe, she padded down the hall to the bathroom.

She read and followed the instructions for the test, pacing the small bathroom as she waited. When she saw the results, she took another test and waited. Same result.

“Dios,” she whispered.

It took several moments to collect herself, but she finally managed it and took a shower. Wrapping herself in the cozy terry-cloth robe, she returned to her bedroom and found Jackson waiting for her.

“Well, hello,” she said, her stomach jumping at the sight of him. Her voice still held a tinge of huskiness, but she no longer needed to whisper.

Jackson looked bone weary but gorgeous to her. Dressed in a dark business suit, he was leaning forward with his elbows resting on his knees.

“Are you okay? Maria said you had to go back to Dallas. It sounded urgent.”

“I had to take care of the SUV first. I left it on the side of the road because I couldn’t get through the temporary river in the middle of the road.”

She patted her hair dry with a towel. “Is it okay?”

He nodded. “How are you?”

“Much better.”

“You sound better. You had me worried.”

“Sorry for the scare,” she said, sitting opposite him on the bed.

“I have something to tell you,” he said.

“I have something to tell you, too,” she said.

“If you don’t mind, I’d like to go first.”

She felt a twisting nervousness at his ominous tone. Was he going to tell her he didn’t want to be married to her anymore? Was he going to tell her he wanted out?

He squeezed the bridge of his nose. “I think I got in over my head.”

Relief rushed through her. “You need more money? That’s no prob-”

He lifted his hand and shook his head. “No. I meant I didn’t know how being married to you would affect me and how much the money part would bother me.”

The twisting nervousness returned. “You know my financial situation, so you know that in the scheme of things, it’s not a burden.”

“Maybe not to you, but it is to me,” he said.

Lori bit her lip, bracing herself. Here it came. The big dump.

“I didn’t expect to have such strong feelings for you. And I don’t want the money thing hanging over my head, so I found someone else to back the project. I’m returning your money to you.”