Lost

“What?” I ask, my voice hoarse.

“What?” she asks in confusion after craning her neck to look back at me.

“You love me?” I ask.

“Yes,” she says after thinking about it for a minute.

“I love you too,” I say, realizing it is the truth. It doesn’t matter that I barely know her, My soul recognizes hers.

“Really?”

“Yes.”

“So what do we do now?”

“Finish what we started,” I growl, leaning down to kiss her.

“And then what?” she asks, looking dazed.

“We live,” I reply, getting back into the rhythm.

Fucking crazy as it is, she’s just what I need and the fact that I know that makes it that much easier to dive into this headfirst. I used to think that solitude would save me, but that's not true. She saved me and she doesn't even know it.

Chapter Four

Sarah-Jane

Being six months pregnant, they finally put me on desk duty, and I hate it. I’m cranky, hot, and above all bored. Nothing ever happens when on desk duty. My desk phone rings, and I answer it.

“Constable Hart.”

“Yes, I’d like to report a kidnapping,” the deep masculine voice I know so well says.

“Oh, really?”

“Absolutely. Can you come to 735 Hillside Drive?”

“What’s at 735 Hillside Drive?” I ask, the address unfamiliar to me.

“The scene of the crime. What kind of cop are you?” Daniel asks and I laugh loudly. “This is no laughing matter, officer.”

“Right. I’ll leave right away.”

“See that you do,” he says and hangs up. I grab my stuff and walk out of the office to my car. Inside, I struggle with the seatbelt and realize this will probably be the last time I drive with this belly. I make the twenty minute drive over to the address he gave me. I moved into Daniel’s five bedroom cabin the day after we met. It was a huge step up from the crappy efficiency apartment I live in. My parents live in British Columbia, which is where I grew up, so when I was transferred to Whitehorse for work five years ago, I was all alone. I went home every chance I got because my place was too depressing to invite my parents too. In the last six months, they’ve been out here ten times already. They love Daniel who honestly doesn’t know what to do with that love. He grew up alone in a shitty orphanage in Toronto and then was in the army. Then he was all alone, until he met me, and we’ve been inseparable ever since. Hence, being knocked-up so soon after meeting. He asked me to marry him right away but once we found out about the baby, I wanted to wait until I could wear the dress of my dreams. That pretty much went out of the window when he gave me two weeks instead. A quiet ceremony and brunch was all I wanted so it was just my parents and us.

I pull up to the mansion and I am surprised by it. Getting out of the car, I enter the open front door.

“Daniel?” I call out.

“Hello wife,” he says coming out of the kitchen.

“What are we doing here?” I ask.

“I want to buy the place. What do you think?”

“Um… what’s wrong with the house we have?”

“It’s too far away from town. What if something happens to you or the kids?”

“Kids?”

“Surely you don’t think this will be the only one.”

“Well no,” I begin.

“So I am thinking about the safety of our family.”

“But we have a house. This might be too much.”

“You hate it?”

“No, but I love the house we have already. It’s only seven miles from town.”

“You don’t want to live in town?”

“No, I want to live with you out in the woods,” I tell him firmly.

He’s always so sweet to me, looking after me, but I don’t need or want anything extravagant like this. I just want him and the family we create.

“Are you sure? I am prepared to put an offer on this house today.”

“I’m sure.”

“I love you so much wife,” he says.

“I love you too.”

While he may be ready to socialize again after five years of self-imposed solitude, he’s definitely not ever going to like having neighbors who are so close again. Shit, I won’t either. I’ve gotten spoiled out in our wooded hideaway and I wouldn’t change it for anything.

Who said that natural childbirth was the way to go? Me, it was me. I said it and I regret it as I try to push this watermelon out of my body. I should have listened to my mother and she’ll never let me forget that now. I am screaming in pain, and squeezing my husband’s hand, but nothing is helping and it’s too late for drugs.

“Push, Sarah-Jane,” Doctor Kildare says from her position between my legs. God, whoever thought of this was crazy.

“I am pushing,” I whimper.

“You’re not pushing. Push now,” she says but I am so weak I can’t do it.