Longing in Louisiana (At the Altar Book 8) Read online

  They headed down to the boat dock and she leaned against him in the line. “Why does a day of fun have to be so exhausting? My legs ache.”

  “I could give you a foot massage when we get back.” The offer was past his lips before he could think about it. He really shouldn’t touch her, and he knew it, but once the offer was out there, he couldn’t take it back.

  “That would be fabulous. I can return the favor when you’re done.”

  He nodded. The only thing that sounded more torturous than touching her was her touching him. It was going to be a long night. “I’d like that.”

  They were on the boat as the sun set, and they watched it happen over the water. “So beautiful,” she whispered, leaning her head against his shoulder.

  He slipped his arm around her waist, supporting her. "I'm glad we had the day to share this, and I'm really happy I was there to see your face when you were first introduced to my favorite place on earth."

  "We're going to be bringing our children here every year for the rest of our lives, aren't we?" he asked, a grin on his face.

  "I can't think of a better place to take them. Can you?"

  He didn't answer that, because he had no idea what it had cost for the whole trip. The cost of the meals so far had scared him a bit, and he couldn't help but wonder how she'd been able to afford to go there on a principal's salary. "I guess not."

  She was dragging when they got off the boat at the back of the lodge. "My legs do not want to walk another step."

  He laughed. "Mine are sore as well, but we'll make it. Maybe we should get massages. I'm sure there's a place to do that around here."

  "Yeah, we could go to The Grand Floridian to their spa there if we wanted. I don't feel the need to spend the money, though. The whirlpool tub in our room is good enough for me."

  He tried not to imagine her in the tub with bubbles up to her neck. "I'll have to try that as well then. I'm sure we can make it without the massage." He really was sore, though. He'd thought he was in good shape until he'd been asked to walk that much in one day. He didn't know how people did it.

  When they got back to the room, she smiled sleepily. "I'm going to get in the tub if you don't mind. I need the magic of the hot water on my aching muscles." She knew from experience they'd be much worse the next day, but she hoped to keep them from getting terrible.

  "Sounds good." He watched as she grabbed the romance novel she'd been reading and carried it into the bathroom with her. He settled down with his mystery and waited for her to make an appearance. He didn't even like to be separated from her when she bathed. He had it bad. What was it about her that was so special? He was already falling in love.

  After her bath, Michelle realized she'd forgotten to take a nightgown into the bathroom with her, so she wrapped the towel around her, securing it with a knot just above her breast. Walking out of the bathroom into the bedroom, she dug through the top drawer to find something to wear.

  Seth had his eyes on her from the moment she left the bathroom. "Are you trying to kill me?" he asked as she rummaged through the dresser drawer.

  "Sorry. I forgot to take my nightgown in. I'll be decent in a second."

  "No you won't. You're going to wear one of those sexy little things again that are guaranteed to raise my blood pressure."

  "If you don't like it, you're welcome to close your eyes. Or if you want, I can sleep in one of your T-shirts."

  He shook his head. Seeing her in his clothes would be even worse, although he wasn't sure why. "No, wear the nightgown."

  She disappeared into the bathroom with it in her hands and came back a minute later wearing a pretty pink nightgown that ended at the middle of her thighs. "You look so beautiful in those," he told her before he disappeared into the bathroom.

  Michelle collapsed on her side of the bed, carefully forming the Berlin Wall with pillows again. She knew he didn't want to touch her, and she'd acquiesce to his wishes, even if she did think he was crazy. She opened her book and read, having finally reached the sex scene in the story. She didn't look up when she heard him come out of the bathroom, refusing to notice what he was wearing to bed. She wouldn't give him the pleasure of reacting to his nudity.

  "Thanks for arranging the Berlin Wall," he said as he slipped between the covers. In truth, he wasn't sure why he was thanking her. He wanted to throw the pillows out of the way and make love with her. The fact that she'd obviously decided he was right and was willing to accept the sex moratorium made it that much worse in his head. What was wrong with him?

  "No problem." She kept her eyes on her book, reading every word of the sexy scene.

  "What are you reading?"

  "Same thing I was reading this morning. Remember? The book on how to make your man want you in six easy steps."

  "I'm going to look and see if there's really a book like that out there."

  "You do that." She still refused to look up.

  "Are you ready for sleep?"

  She flipped through her book to find the end of her chapter. "Just six pages to go and I'm done for the night."

  "I'll read a few pages then." He opened his book and stared at the words, not turning any pages, because he didn't really care what it said at all. All his attention was focused on her and what she was doing.

  When she closed her book and set it on her nightstand, he closed his own, reaching out to shut off the light. "Aren't I even allowed to kiss you goodnight?" he asked.

  "You were the one who enacted the Berlin Wall law. I was happy to sleep in your arms, but you said that it wasn't a good idea."

  "Maybe I was wrong."

  "Does that mean you want to remove the wall and sleep in each other's arms? Or does that mean you're ready to have sex again?"

  He thought for a moment. "I'm not sure what it means." Running his fingers through his hair, he sighed with frustration. "I should probably just give up on my silly idea of not having sex. I mean, it's a crazy idea, right?"

  She sighed. “I don’t want you to go against what you’ve decided is best. If you want to make love, I’m all for it. If you want to lay here and pretend we’re not married and have no feelings for each other, then we can do that too.”

  “What do you want? Truly?”

  “Honestly? I want to make love with you. I wanted to make love with you last night. I don’t think it’s going to help us to withhold sex from each other. From what I hear, it’s the best way to make up.”

  He grinned at that. “I’ve heard the same thing.” He reached out and ran his hand down her arm. “And I have to admit, I do like to touch you.”

  “Really? I hadn’t noticed.” She grinned in the dark at his silliness.

  She felt rather than saw him throw the pillows of the Berlin Wall to the floor before moving across the bed to take her into his arms. “I think this is the best thing for both of us.”

  She pressed her lips to his. “I’m sure it is. I mean, the Berlin Wall was such a hindrance.”

  “Definitely. No man should have walls between his wife and himself in bed. Even if they are made of pillows.”

  “I think you’ve made a very wise decision.”

  Seth smiled as his hands stroked over her body. “I know I have.”

  She knew then he’d forgiven her for not telling him about Bob, and she was thankful. She didn’t know how she’d have been able to keep acting as if everything was all right when it wasn’t.

  Chapter Six

  The week of Michelle and Seth's honeymoon flew by. Before Michelle knew it, it was time to fly home to Louisiana. She always got sad when it was time to leave. Sure, she was ready to get back to her real life, but she hated to say goodbye to the magical world.

  Once home, things would get a bit more complicated. They would only have two days at home, and then they had to fly to Boston. She definitely wanted to go with him and make the most of their summer together. She also wanted to get to know his friends and see where he'd spent his entire life.

  When they ar
rived home on Sunday afternoon, they beat the moving truck with all of his things by about an hour. Michelle was working on getting the laundry going so they'd have clean clothes for their next trip when the moving truck got there, and she had to abandon her task to help get everything settled. He wouldn't need most of his furniture, and really there was no place for it, so she had the men put it into the garage while she went to work putting away his clothes and unpacking the boxes.

  She was exhausted by the time they went to bed that night, and she settled against the pillows with a sigh. "That was a lot of work. Can we go back to Disney now?"

  He looked over at her. "How often are you going to ask to go back to Disney?"

  "Why? Does it bother you?" If it does, I’m going to be bothering you a lot!

  "Not particularly. I'm just asking."

  "Oh, probably every day or two for the next seventy years. Is that too often?"

  "I guess not..."

  She moved across the bed and snuggled into his arms. "Thanks for humoring me and my Disney addiction."

  "As long as you humor my addiction, I think we'll be good." He kissed her forehead, pulling her even closer.

  She propped herself on one elbow looking down at him. "Oh? And what addiction is that?"

  "You."

  She shook her head but managed to catch herself before she argued with him. "That I can do!"

  *****

  They flew out Tuesday morning for Boston, and she was surprised at how nervous she was. They were in the air, and she was getting more nervous by the minute. "What if your friends and family hate me?"

  He raised an eyebrow. "How could anyone hate you? They'll be thrilled that I care about you, and that'll be enough."

  "I don't know. I've heard terrible things about mothers-in-law. Will she be mad we're not staying with her?" She was nervous enough about meeting her new mother-in-law that she wasn’t sure how she’d handle it if she met an angry in-law.

  "Not at all. She's downsized to a one-bedroom apartment since I went off to college. There's no room for us. She'd be the first to tell me to go stay with Daniel."

  When he spoke about his mother, he had a slight grin on his face. She must mean more to him than he admitted. "How long has she been a single mom?" He’d mentioned once that it had been just him, his twin brother, and his mother most of his life.

  "My dad died when I was ten, but she was a single mom for a long time before that."

  "They divorced?"

  He shook his head. "No, he was just never there. He had business trips every week, and he worked on the weekends too. He died of a stroke. I think he just worked so hard it finally killed him."

  "That's really sad." She couldn't imagine losing either of her parents, and thankfully, they were both still very healthy.

  "I never really knew him." He didn't want to continue on the subject, though, so he changed it. "I think you're going to love Brenda. I asked for someone just like her, and you're not just like her, but you're just right for me." He caught her hand and brought it to his lips.

  She blushed. "Do you really think so?" She'd never felt like she was just right for anything or anyone. It was good to hear someone disagreed with her assessment of herself.

  He nodded. "Truly. I can't imagine being happy with anyone else."

  Michelle didn't comment on that, feeling that he must just be humoring her. She had always considered herself completely unlovable. She couldn’t tell him that, though, so she changed the subject. "Tell me about her."

  Seth looked at her for a moment before answering, trying to figure out what he'd said that bothered her. She got a look when she was upset, and she already had it. He couldn't imagine what he'd said or done wrong, though. "She's a caring little thing. Very family focused. She holds premature babies in a hospital as a community service."

  "Oh, that's so sweet! I've heard about that and thought about it, but I'm so busy during the schoolyear that I want my free time during the summers. I guess I'm too selfish."

  He shook his head. "You need to recharge during the summer so you can give so much of yourself during the schoolyear."

  "You think?" She liked his theory, but she didn't know if he was right or not.

  "I do. It sounds like you work so many hours that you practically run yourself into the ground. No one can keep up that kind of pace forever. Not even you."

  She sighed. "I wish I could."

  "I wish we all could. There's a reason God said to take the seventh day off. Working six days in a row is more than enough for anyone."

  She nodded. "You're probably right."

  "I hope I'm not too much extra to add to your schedule once August rolls around. I worry that I'll take up too much of your time."

  "No way. I just hope I have enough time for you to give you the attention you deserve. If I don’t, I’ll make it up during the summers."

  He laughed. "Are we both always going to want to give so much? This marriage thing isn't going to be too hard with the way we work together, is it?"

  She shook her head. "Not at all. I hope we can both continue to put the other first. Of course, during school, I put my students first. That may mean staying late with a student in crisis. It will mean constant ball games and track meets and debate team meetings."

  "I'll go to what I can with you. We'll have date nights with your school obligations."

  She laughed, assuming he was joking. "Yeah, we'll go to a high school football game instead of going to a nice restaurant. Who needs to go to a professional play when you can go to one put on by a high school of one-hundred twenty students! It'll be great."

  "It sounds good to me!" He shook his head. “I don’t think you understand how little I care about what we do as long as we get to spend time together.”

  "What did I ever do to deserve someone who would be so sweet to me?"

  He grinned, touching her nose with his finger. "I think your students would have a long list of wonderful things you’ve done." The flight attendant stopped with the drink cart, interrupting their conversation.

  "I think you may be right. They seem to have an over-inflated opinion of me," she said after the flight attendant had moved on. "Are you excited to be going home?"

  He shrugged. "I haven't been gone all that long. I guess I'm excited to get to spend some time with my mom and with Daniel."

  "Is Daniel picking us up from the airport?"

  "Yeah. He said he and Brenda would both be there."

  She knew the trip would be a quick one, because they were flying back on Saturday. "Are you working for Daniel on this trip?"

  "That's part of why we're here. I have a job to do for Daniel's company, and there's a job with one of my old clients here. I don't see a need to get rid of any of the work I built up while I was here. I can always fly in for it. I'm not sure how much demand there will be for my work in Louisiana."

  She shrugged. "We're less than an hour from New Orleans. I'm sure there will be a lot of work to do there."

  "I guess I can start marketing there. I was going to try to concentrate in Hammond. Didn't you say there's a college there?" He’d prefer to drive a shorter distance to work in a smaller community.

  "Yeah, I went to school there. I guess it's as good a place as any to start. Will you be renting an office? Or working out of one of the spare rooms?"

  "Both of the spare rooms have beds. Would it be a problem for me to transform one of them into an office? It would save me some money."

  "Not at all. We can move the bed out to the garage. I think I need to have a quick garage sale for all of our excess furniture anyway."

  He nodded. "Most of my stuff consists of garage sale finds I got right after college anyway. I never really cared enough to spend a lot of money fixing up my apartment."

  "That's what we'll do then." She rested her head on his shoulder. "Do you mind if I sleep for the rest of the flight? I'm tired."

  He shook his head. He'd noticed already that flights tended to knock her out. "You
sleep." He kissed the top of her head, watching as her eyes drifted closed. It was hard for him not to watch her sleep all the time, but he didn't want to be that kind of creepy guy. Of course, maybe husbands were allowed to be creepy.

  *****

  Daniel and Brenda met them at baggage claim, and Brenda hugged Michelle as soon as she saw her, while Seth and Daniel talked. "I'm so glad you came with Seth. I can't wait to get to know you better."

  Michelle smiled. "I've heard a lot of really good things about you. Seth went to Dr. Lachele asking for a wife just like you."

  Brenda laughed at that. "Seth and I would drive each other crazy in the space of a week. No, he needs someone more independent than I am."

  "You don't see yourself as independent?"

  Brenda shrugged. "I guess I am, but I had no problem quitting my job and not working as soon as I got married."

  "Well, from what I understand, there was no point at all in you working."

  "Not financially, there wasn't, and I find I'm really happy doing volunteer work. I might even buy myself a little white tennis outfit and hang out at the country club all day hitting tennis balls."

  Michelle laughed at the image that sprang to mind of Brenda doing just that. "Somehow, I can't see that happening."

  Brenda wrinkled her nose. "It's not me at all. I do not belong in the hoity-toity world of the rich and famous. At all."

  "But you're there anyway."

  "Nah. Daniel's rich. I just go with him when I have to and pretend I'm supposed to be there."

  Michelle grinned at that. "Do you think Seth will go to school dances and hang on my arm like a decorative toy?"

  Brenda giggled. "If he does, you have got to send me video. Daniel would never let him live it down."

  "I might just do that."

  The four of them walked out to Daniel's Lincoln Navigator together, and Daniel slid behind the wheel, while Brenda and Michelle got into the backseat. Seth frowned at Brenda. "Are you sure you don't want to sit in front?"

  "Seth, my legs are a tad bit shorter than yours. There's no need for you to turn into a pretzel just so I can sit in the front. Besides, I'll enjoy talking to my new friend."