furious, though.”
Charlotte closed her eyes for a moment then looked back into his. “I know. I knew when I told you that you’d be angry at me.”
“At you?” he asked. “Why the hell should I be angry with you? You discovered a miracle and were excited to tell me and I wasn’t there. Nor was I there when you had to suffer the loss and mourn on your own. My God, Charlie, how could you ever think I’d be angry at you when you’ve obviously been through hell…in private, I might add.”
“You’re upset with yourself?”
Charlotte eased back onto the cushions, relieved he didn’t flat-out hate her or worse…blame her for the loss.
He came to his feet, shoved his hands in his pockets and shook his head. “We both know I haven’t been there for you and this just proves it. I was so out of tune with your feelings that I didn’t even pick up on your sadness when I returned. I don’t recall anything about that time that makes me think you were upset.”
She slid her feet over the side of the chair and stood, as well. “I cried in private. I was angry that you weren’t there so I kept it all to myself. To be honest, I didn’t feel you deserved to know about the baby because you hadn’t been there when I needed you.”
Anthony’s face crumbled, he looked down to the stone patio and sighed. “Have I ever been?” he asked, voice thick with emotion.
Charlotte had never, ever seen Anthony upset. He hadn’t cried for his sister, at least in her presence, but here he stood obviously upset that she’d faced the miscarriage alone and he hadn’t been there to help her through.
“When we first got married you were,” she told him, crossing her arms over her sundress. “We were both different people then.”
Anthony turned, walked toward the pool and kicked off his flip-flops. He sank to the edge and let his feet dangle in the water. Charlotte followed him, wondering what thoughts were swirling around in his mind. He was talking. More and more each day he talked to her about important things in life.
She sat beside him, letting her own legs dangle in the water.
“I want to be the husband and father this family needs to survive,” he told her, kicking a pool toy as it floated by. “I never want you to feel that you have to keep something from me or that you have to do everything on your own. I want you to trust me again, to trust the team that we can be.”
“That’s all I’ve ever wanted,” she agreed. “I just need time. I want this to work and I don’t want to rush into another chapter of our lives without really thinking about how we can fix the past.”
Anthony rested his hands on his knees and nodded. “I visited Mia and Bronson right before Rachel passed. They were just home from the hospital with baby Bella. They seemed so happy, so in love. For once in my life, I was actually jealous of what Bronson had.”
Intrigued at his choice of words, Charlotte smiled at the image of Mia and Bronson. “They seem so happy together. I hope they don’t fall prey to the Hollywood hype and lose sight of what’s important.”
Anthony glanced up at her. “The way we did?”
She hadn’t meant to say that, hadn’t meant to make this another vulnerable moment for either of them. They’d had a good day and she wanted to relish it.
But her emotions had other plans. And obviously her subconscious wanted to dive into another layer of emotional angst.
“Yeah.” She sat beside him and toed a floating duck that drifted by her dangling feet. “The way we did.”
“We’ll get through this,” he told her, resting a hand on her bare thigh where her sundress had slid up. “If I learned anything this past year with finding the Danes and losing Rachel, I know how important family is, Charlie. I need you. We have so much at stake now.”
Did that mean before, when only she was “at stake,” their marriage wasn’t worth fighting for? She wasn’t going to ask; she didn’t want to hear the
Charlotte closed her eyes for a moment then looked back into his. “I know. I knew when I told you that you’d be angry at me.”
“At you?” he asked. “Why the hell should I be angry with you? You discovered a miracle and were excited to tell me and I wasn’t there. Nor was I there when you had to suffer the loss and mourn on your own. My God, Charlie, how could you ever think I’d be angry at you when you’ve obviously been through hell…in private, I might add.”
“You’re upset with yourself?”
Charlotte eased back onto the cushions, relieved he didn’t flat-out hate her or worse…blame her for the loss.
He came to his feet, shoved his hands in his pockets and shook his head. “We both know I haven’t been there for you and this just proves it. I was so out of tune with your feelings that I didn’t even pick up on your sadness when I returned. I don’t recall anything about that time that makes me think you were upset.”
She slid her feet over the side of the chair and stood, as well. “I cried in private. I was angry that you weren’t there so I kept it all to myself. To be honest, I didn’t feel you deserved to know about the baby because you hadn’t been there when I needed you.”
Anthony’s face crumbled, he looked down to the stone patio and sighed. “Have I ever been?” he asked, voice thick with emotion.
Charlotte had never, ever seen Anthony upset. He hadn’t cried for his sister, at least in her presence, but here he stood obviously upset that she’d faced the miscarriage alone and he hadn’t been there to help her through.
“When we first got married you were,” she told him, crossing her arms over her sundress. “We were both different people then.”
Anthony turned, walked toward the pool and kicked off his flip-flops. He sank to the edge and let his feet dangle in the water. Charlotte followed him, wondering what thoughts were swirling around in his mind. He was talking. More and more each day he talked to her about important things in life.
She sat beside him, letting her own legs dangle in the water.
“I want to be the husband and father this family needs to survive,” he told her, kicking a pool toy as it floated by. “I never want you to feel that you have to keep something from me or that you have to do everything on your own. I want you to trust me again, to trust the team that we can be.”
“That’s all I’ve ever wanted,” she agreed. “I just need time. I want this to work and I don’t want to rush into another chapter of our lives without really thinking about how we can fix the past.”
Anthony rested his hands on his knees and nodded. “I visited Mia and Bronson right before Rachel passed. They were just home from the hospital with baby Bella. They seemed so happy, so in love. For once in my life, I was actually jealous of what Bronson had.”
Intrigued at his choice of words, Charlotte smiled at the image of Mia and Bronson. “They seem so happy together. I hope they don’t fall prey to the Hollywood hype and lose sight of what’s important.”
Anthony glanced up at her. “The way we did?”
She hadn’t meant to say that, hadn’t meant to make this another vulnerable moment for either of them. They’d had a good day and she wanted to relish it.
But her emotions had other plans. And obviously her subconscious wanted to dive into another layer of emotional angst.
“Yeah.” She sat beside him and toed a floating duck that drifted by her dangling feet. “The way we did.”
“We’ll get through this,” he told her, resting a hand on her bare thigh where her sundress had slid up. “If I learned anything this past year with finding the Danes and losing Rachel, I know how important family is, Charlie. I need you. We have so much at stake now.”
Did that mean before, when only she was “at stake,” their marriage wasn’t worth fighting for? She wasn’t going to ask; she didn’t want to hear the
Similar Books
