Danielle Steel - Changes

“I love you too.” He said it close to her ear, and a porter helped them with their bags. It was a good thing they had a station wagon. With seven of them and the Adamses' bags, the car was crammed to the gills on the way back to the condo. And everyone seemed to be talking at once, even Pam seemed to be slowly coming out of her shell, with Jessica devoting her attention to her.

She didn't even seem to object as vehemently as Peter had feared when he explained the sleeping arrangements. Pam, Jess, and Val would share the room with two sets of bunk beds. It was cramped, but the girls didn't seem to mind it. Pam was actually laughing by then, as Jessica teased her about something. And the two boys shared a room with twin beds, and Peter and Mel each took the two smallest rooms, which both had one single bed. Usually, Peter's children had their own rooms, but this year it had taken a little creative arranging to fit them all in and manage separate bedrooms for himself and Mel, but that was crucial on this first trip with the children.

“Everybody all set?”

“We're fine.” Valerie was quick to answer, looking admiringly at Peter, and later she whispered to her mother. “He's cute,” as Mel laughed. Unfortunately, she also clearly thought his son was. But Mel had already warned her that another romance would only complicate everyone's life for the next two weeks. And Val had dutifully agreed on the flight to Denver, but by the time they were all cooking dinner that night, and she and Mark were in charge of the salad and the baked potatoes, Mel was beginning to lose hope of dashing a potential romance. She only hoped they'd get good and tired of each other in the next two weeks. Val wasn't known for the length of her romances, as Jessica said to Pam with a laugh as they sat near the fire, after she had helped Pam put Matthew to bed. She seemed sensitive to Pam's threatened feelings.

“I don't think Mark has uncrossed his eyes since you two got here.” Peter grinned, appreciating the efforts of the older twin to put his daughter at ease. She seemed like a very special girl, and he remembered much of what Mel had said about her. It was funny to see them now after hearing so much about them, but they were very much as Mel had described, especially Val, whom one could almost imagine as a centerfold in Playboy, instead of a junior in high school. But there was a pleasing innocence about the girl, despite her spectacular body. “I hear you're interested in going to med school, Jess.” Her eyes lit up at his question and Pam looked bored.

“How disgusting.”

“I know.” She looked placatingly at Pam. “Everyone thinks that. I want to be a gynecologist or a pediatrician.”

“They're both good specialties, but very demanding.”

“I want to be a model,” Pam assumed an aloof stance and Jess smiled.

“I wish I could be, but I don't have your looks.” It was not true, but Jessica genuinely believed it. She had lived too long in Val's shadow.

“You can be anything you choose to, Jess.” Mel was sitting by the fire, relaxed, and happy just to be near Peter again. It seemed a thousand years since she had last seen him.

“Anyone for a walk?” Mark bounded into the room with the suggestion, and after working on them all for a while, the whole group agreed, except Matt who was sound asleep in his bed.

“Will he be all right here alone?” Mel looked concerned, and Peter nodded with a smile.

“He'll be fine. He sleeps like a rock. Mountain air does that to him. Anne always said …” He stopped, visibly pale. Mel felt a tremor up her spine. It was odd to be following in Anne's footsteps, to be here with her children now that his wife was no longer alive. She wondered if that was part of Pam's reaction, and made a point of trying to talk to her as they wandered in the cool mountain air, but Pam seemed much more interested in chatting with Jessie, and they walked in three comfortable pairs for about half an hour, Val and Mark, Jessie and Pam, and Melanie and Peter.

“See? It all worked out fine, didn't it?” He sounded supercilious and Mel laughed.

“Don't count your chickens yet. We just got here.”

“Don't be silly. What could happen now?”

She pretended to shield her head from the wrath of the gods, and then glanced at Peter. “Are you kidding? Anything. Let's just hope there are no murders, broken bones, or unwanted pregnancies after this little adventure.”

“Such an optimist you are.” And with that he pulled her behind a tree and kissed her quickly, unseen by the children, and they giggled softly as they began walking again. It felt so good just to be together again, and there was something nice about seeing their children together, no matter what horrors Mel predicted.

They returned at last to the condo, happy, relaxed, tired from their trip and from settling in, and everyone went to their assigned rooms, apparently without problem. Each room had its own bath, so there was no massive lineup to brush teeth, and Mel could hear the girls giggling in their room after the lights were turned out. And she was dying to tiptoe down the hall to Peter, but she didn't think it was wise. Not yet. Not with the children so close. And just as she lay in bed, thinking of their time together in New York, she saw her door open and a shadow cross the room, and she sat up in bed in surprise, just as he slipped beneath her covers.

“Peter!” She was startled to see him.

“How do you know?” He was smiling in the dark and she put her arms around his neck and kissed him.

“You shouldn't… what if the children …”

“Never mind the children … the girls are too busy thinking we don't hear them, and Mark is probably as dead to the world as Matt by now … it's time for us now, kiddo.” He put his arms around her and let his hand slip beneath her nightgown as she fought not to make a sound. “God, how I've missed you.”

But Mel said not a single word, and what she showed him told him that she had missed him too. Their bodies blended in exquisite pleasure for hours, and then, reluctantly, he left her. She tiptoed to the door to kiss him good night and watched him pad softly down the hall. And there was no sound from the children's rooms. They were all sound asleep, and she couldn't remember ever being so happy. She tiptoed back to her bed, which still bore the sweet smell of their passion, and drifted off to sleep, holding her pillow.

CHAPTER 21

The next day they went on a five-mile hike, and picnicked on the way. They stopped beside a small stream, and went wading and Matt caught a snake for Mark, which sent all three of the girls screaming back to Peter and Mel, who laughed at them. But eventually Matthew let the snake go, and they continued their hike until the late afternoon, when they went back to the condo for a swim in the pool, and the kids cavorted like old friends, but Mel noticed that whenever Jessica wasn't talking to Pam, Pam was watching her with Peter.

“They make a nice group, don't they, Mel?”

There was no denying that. A handsome one too. They were all beautiful children, but there was still that unhappy light in Pam's eyes, particularly whenever she saw Mel with her father. Mel was particularly grateful to Jessie for keeping her distracted. And of course Valerie and Mark had been inseparable since breakfast that morning. “They do make a nice group.” Mel agreed with a tired smile. “But one that bears watching.”

“There you go again. What are you worrying about now?” He was amused by her reactions. She seemed to be ever watchful over their joint brood, but he liked that about her too. He could easily see that she was a wonderful mother.