Unforgettable (24 page)

“Breezy, I think there’s a guest you need to see to,” Susan said when she noticed Patrick in the doorway.

Breezy automatically turned and headed for the door. When she looked up and saw Patrick standing there, she stopped dead in her tracks. Everyone else in the room ceased to exist. She’d known the costume would look good on him, but she never expected him to look so devastatingly handsome in it.

How in the world am I going to be able to keep my distance and protect my heart when he looks that gorgeous,
Breezy wondered.
That’s easy,
she answered herself.
I’m not!

Unable to move a muscle, she just stared at him, taking in the gray slacks, white ruffled shirt, gray tie and gray vest. The black tailcoat set off the ensemble and gave him an air of superiority without being overbearing.

Damn!
she thought.
If I make any more costumes for that man, I’m going to have to be a little sloppy about it. My heart can’t take much more of this.

He was as wonderful on the inside as he was sexy on the outside, she’d already discovered. The costume only made it blindingly obvious. She’d made it from scratch and, knowing his sizes, she just couldn’t help imagining the body hidden beneath it. She knew the strength of those well-muscled arms because he had held her in his embrace. She could feel the muscles ripple beneath his shirt even when he was relaxed. His broad shoulders looked as though they could carry the weight of the world and not be burdened by the load. She remembered all too vividly the solid steel wall of his chest and the feel of his thick black hair beneath her fingertips.

The rest of his body was a complete mystery to her, but her imagination spent many happy hours thinking about what he might look like. Those vivid images conjured up by her mind sent waves of heat rocketing through her body and left her trembling and longing to find out if her imagination was as good as the real thing.

“Hello, angel. You are absolutely breathtaking,” he said, moving closer.

Losing himself in her luminescent blue eyes, Patrick lifted her hand to his lips and gently kissed it. Then, unable to wait a second longer, he pulled her into his arms, pressing her firmly against his body, and kissed her slowly and deeply, caressing her neck and back with his warm hands. He poured all his love into that kiss intending, if nothing else, to make sure it would be a kiss she wouldn’t soon forget and one she’d feel for a long time after their lips parted.

Breezy melted against him, her body pressing as close as she could get. She hadn’t realized until that moment she’d been craving his touch and his kiss all day, like a starving person craved food. When Patrick released her lips, Breezy clung to him for support, his lapels crushed in her small fists.

“My God!” she whispered breathlessly.

“I know, angel, I know,” he murmured.

He fought hard to control his emotions and his body. He’d intended to get a response from her but he never expected to have his socks knocked off in return. Good Lord! After just one blissful kiss, he wanted her. Right now! God have mercy on him if she ever
tried
to turn him on. There’d be no way he could refuse her.

“You are absolutely devastating in those clothes,” she said, looking up at him.

“I don’t know what’s happening here,” she whispered, mesmerized by the passionate desire she saw in his eyes which matched her own.

Yes,
she thought.
I do know what’s happening. I have fallen in love with you.

It was that simple. She’d admitted it to herself and accepted it in the same instant. She only needed some time to grow accustomed to it before she could show him how much she truly loved him and how desperately she wanted and needed his love in return.

Patrick watched as her eyes changed. Desire was written in their cerulean depths as plain as day, but now there was something new in them… something that made him want to shout out loud with joy. He hoped it was love he saw in her eyes and he hoped she realized it, both in herself and in him, for he loved her with every fiber of his being.

“I think we both know what’s happening between us but now is not the time or the place to discuss it. We need time to talk…alone,” he said.

“After the dance? My place?” Breezy suggested.

“Absolutely,” Patrick smiled down at her.

“Ladies and gentlemen, may I have your attention,” Tom said from the stage, his natural Southern accent so fitting in the room full of Civil War costumes.

All eyes turned to Tom and the crowd gathered closer to the stage.

“Some of you may have noticed that Susan I have been a little off our game lately. Honey, would you come up here with me?” Tom continued.

The room fell silent as they all watched Susan walk on stage to stand next her husband. He wrapped his arms lovingly around her waist and kissed her on the cheek. They looked at each other for the longest time and a palpable change swept through the crowd.

“Susan has been feeling under the weather for quite some time. There were moments when she was downright violently ill. At first, we thought she was just sick with the flu, or maybe she got food poisoning. But, as time went on and she didn’t get any better, we decided it was time to go to the doctor. We finally got the results back yesterday morning.”

Without realizing what she was doing, Breezy placed her hand in Patrick’s and held onto his arm for support. Susan and Tom were the closest thing she had to real family. They
were
her family. Of all her many friends, they were the closest and dearest to her heart. If anything ever happened… if Susan were to…

Patrick pulled her close against him, wrapped his arms around her lovingly and held her tight. He never thought he’d ever see fear in her eyes.

“We wanted to wait until tonight, when all of our loved ones were together in one room, to explain our behavior,” Tom said.

Breezy covered her face with her hands as tears began to trickle down her cheeks. Her entire body shook against his and Patrick heard her whisper, “Please God, please…”

Patrick tightened his grip as tears of his own began to sting his eyes. Breezy turned in his arms and buried her face in his chest, her hands still covering her face. She’d been through so much already, and Susan… she didn’t deserve for anything bad to happen to her. He recalled how Susan had looked the morning he’d gone to talk to her about Breezy and how she had seemed so tired and pale lately. Her condition hadn’t improved over the past few weeks and, like Breezy, he’d begun to fear the worst. He said a silent prayer of his own for all of their sakes.

A low murmur arose from the large crowd, growing louder by the second.

Susan looked up at Tom’s adoring gaze and they smiled at each other.

“I don’t know why you all look so upset,” Susan laughed. “I’m only pregnant.”

“With twins!” Tom added, a wide grin splitting his face.

The crowd cheered, laughed and applauded their joy and relief at the news. Someone even gave a rebel yell loud enough to be heard over everyone.

Breezy’s head snapped up to look at Patrick. “Did she… did she say she was pregnant?” she gasped, looking completely stunned.

“Yes! With twins, no less!” Patrick laughed.

“Oh, Patrick! Thank God! Thank God!” she exclaimed, throwing her arms around Patrick’s neck, laughing and crying at the same time. Patrick picked her up and swung her around, relieved for all of them and overjoyed for his friends as he said a silent thank you to God. When Patrick set her down, Breezy kissed him with such pure joy and love he’d never forget it.

“Hey, Breezy! How about you getting up here and singing us a song to celebrate? I wanna dance with my wife before she gets too fat to jitterbug!” Tom called out from the stage.

“Excuse me, Patrick, while I go kill my best friend for giving me a heart attack.”

As Breezy went up the short flight of steps onto the stage, she stopped to hug and congratulate Susan and Tom. Then she teased her for not telling her sooner and for scaring everybody half to death. As they made their way off of the stage and through the crowd full of friends offering their congratulations, Breezy sang “Jingle Bell Rock” and “Rockin’ around the Christmas Tree.”

Patrick made his way through the crowd as Breezy began to sing “The Christmas Song.” When he reached the side of the stage, he placed one foot on the bottom step and leaned his elbow on his knee as he looked up at her admiringly. To Breezy, he looked very much like the cheeky Rhett Butler in the barbecue at Twelve Oaks scene when he first saw Scarlett O’Hara going up the stairs, only Patrick looked better, sexier, more tempting, more sexually…everything! She wished she knew in her heart how he felt when he looked at her that way but, for now, the only thing she knew for sure was that she loved him. As she sang, she walked across the stage and bent down to reach for his hand. He came up one step until they were eye to eye and he took her hand in his. She sang the final line of “Merry Christmas to You” as she looked lovingly into his eyes.

“I think I saw Santa Claus in the hall earlier. Why don’t we get the choir up here to sing for us while Santa hands out the presents?” she said into the microphone as she returned to center stage.

Everyone applauded as the choir and Santa Claus appeared on stage. Santa made his way through the crowd to the huge tree in the center of the room while the choir began singing Christmas carols. When all the presents had been handed out, they all resumed dancing. Patrick had excused himself to talk to Paul, so Breezy took the opportunity to talk to Susan.

“Susan, I’m in serious trouble here,” Breezy said. She was standing on the opposite side of the room from Patrick and she still couldn’t take her eyes off of him.

“What’s up, kiddo?” Susan asked with a smile. She could see right through her and knew exactly what Breezy was thinking.

“What’s up?” Breezy asked incredulously, “Oh, nothing much! I’ve just fallen in love with Patrick Day, that’s all.”

“Fallen in love? Tonight?” Susan asked, somewhat smugly. She’d been expecting a playfully snarky reply so she was surprised when Breezy answered in such a soft, serious tone.

“No, Susan. I’ve been in love with him my whole life and I’ve waited for him that long, too. I only just realized it tonight.”

“Then what’s the problem?” she asked, placing her small hand on Breezy’s shoulder and squeezing gently.

“I don’t know, really. Old fears, I guess. All the ‘what if’s’ keep popping up, but love keeps telling me it doesn’t matter…it’ll be alright. Love tells me it’s worth the risk.”

“It
is
worth the risk, Breezy. Patrick is worth the risk. Besides, old fears are just that…old and in the past. Time to put away the old and begin anew. Listen to your heart, honey. Listen to love,” Susan pleaded.

“You know, I think you’re right. He is worth any risk I will ever have to face and, if I can find the courage, I’m going to tell him so tonight,” she declared, smiling at her lifelong friend.

“It shouldn’t be too hard to find. I’m sure, if you look close enough, you’ll find love staring right back at you,” Susan said, her eyes locked on the man approaching Breezy from behind.

Before she could ask her what she meant by that, Patrick was at her side.

“May I have the pleasure of dancing with the prettiest belle at the ball?” he asked, slipping an arm around her waist.

“Sure thing. Let me go find her for you,” she teased.

“Ha ha! Very funny. Now come and dance with me, beautiful girl.”

“As long as it’s not the Virginia Reel,” she chuckled, allowing him to lead her onto the dance floor.

“It’s not. I asked your friend Paul to play a special song just for you,” he said as the music began to play to “The Lady in Red.”

“Listen to the words, sweetheart. They’re meant only for you,” he murmured against the soft curls beside her ear as they swayed to the music.

“I already know them. I’ve known all the words to all the songs you’ve given me by heart. They are the songs of my angel,” she said, looking up at him.

“The songs of
my
angel. You are so very beautiful, Breezy. I’ll never forget this night when I danced with an angel right here on Earth,” he replied, losing himself in the depths of her sparkling blue eyes.

Not knowing what to say, she hid her blushing cheeks against his shoulder as they danced.

“You know what else? I love your singing. You have such a lovely voice and it does something magical to me when you sing.”

“You’d change your mind if you ever saw how frumpy I am in the mornings, or how weepy I get over sad old movies,” she replied, still unsure of how to respond to his glowing compliments.

“Somehow, I doubt that. At the very least, I know you are Heaven sent…an angel of mercy sent to rescue me from the black hole that was my life.”

“Patrick,” she said, looking up into his eyes once more. “I have to tell you something very important and there’s something you need to know. Can we go home now? I think we have to talk.”

They managed to get away without being stopped by dozens of people saying goodnight. Rather than driving their cars, Mr. Garrison drove them home in the horse drawn carriage where they sat in silence the whole way, listening to the hypnotic jingle of the bells attached to the harness.

Once back at her house, Breezy put on a CD and joined Patrick on the sofa. He put his arm around her shoulders as she snuggled up against him.

“You know, when I first saw you tonight, I wanted nothing more than to be alone with you. I wasn’t sure how I was going to make it through the evening without pulling you away,” he told her.

“I know what you mean. I felt the same way when I saw you,” she said.

Their eyes met and he placed his hand gently against her cheek, tracing the outline of her cheekbone with his thumb. She turned and kissed the palm of his hand, holding it against her cheek to revel in the warmth, strength and tenderness of his touch.

He lowered his head to kiss her…a slow, tender kiss that quickly became impassioned, filled with desire, longing and need. Compelled to have her even closer, he shifted their position until he was holding her on his lap, her legs curled up on the sofa.