Worth Waiting For (17 page)

***

Brock had a way of
making everything okay, and that’s what she loved so much about him. They’d
snuggled under the covers again, and she had her butt backed into his crotch,
his arms wrapped around her like the cozy hand-knitted blanket she always took
naps with when she was young.
 
Just like that
blanket, Brock made her feel safe and secure.

“So when did you find
out you couldn’t have children…that’s if you want to talk about it?” asked
Brock.

She didn’t, but
seeing how they’d moved into a new phase of their relationship, she wanted them
to know everything about one another and their past histories. “David and I
decided we wanted to start a family about a year after we got married. I got
pregnant right away but I was in my second trimester when I started getting bad
cramps and then starting bleeding. They rushed me to the ER, thinking I was
having a late miscarriage but I had an ectopic pregnancy.”

“Ectopic?”

“The baby was growing
in one of my fallopian tubes instead of my uterus. It happened because that
tube was partially blocked. Anyway, I lost the baby and they also had to remove
my tube too.”

“You got another one
of those, right?” He kissed her cheek and pulled her in closer.

“The other one is
also blocked so the doctor said my chances of getting pregnant again are slim
if not impossible.”

“Honey, I’m so sorry,
but let me say it doesn’t affect the way I feel about you, or us, in the
least.”

She rubbed his arm
and then drifted off to sleep.

Chapter Fourteen

Kate was brought back
to reality Monday morning when the mail arrived. The first letter was from the
bank, reminding her that the payment for the loan she’d taken out was due at
the end of the month.

She sat down with a
distinct
plonk
, letting the chair take her weight. If
only it could bear her burden, too. She didn’t have that sort of money, and
she’d lose this place. Kate looked around at Henri, singing in French as he
went about his business. She couldn’t close the restaurant and put him and the
others out of work. She’d go to the bank and ask for some sort of extension or
another loan. Explain her situation. They’d understand, right? Loads of people
were in her same situation these days so they’d probably eased up on folks.

Brock walked into the
kitchen so she quickly slid the letter into the back pocket of her jeans.

“I thought I’d take
Kate
out for a trial voyage, you want to
come with me?”

“I’d love to but I
have an errand to run.”

“I can wait while you
do that.”

“It might be a while.”

“
Kate
and I aren’t going anywhere.”

“Okay, I’ll meet you
over at the boat in a couple of hours.” She watched Brock stroll over to his
boat. She’d get dressed in her best outfit and go out for her meeting with the
bank president.

***

Kate tapped her foot
and wound her hair around her finger as she waited for the bank president to
see her.

He opened the door
and smiled. He was tall, too thin for his frame in Kate’s opinion, and in his
mid-50s. “Ms. Byrne.”

She stood and walked
toward him.

“Come in and have a
seat,” he said after shaking her hand, which she
thought
felt kind of creepy.

He’d gripped her hand
like he wanted to break a few bones and clung to it a bit too long for her
liking.

Kate walked into the
plush office with a window that overlooked the harbor.
Pretty nice.
No wonder we pay so much interest on our loans.

“Can I get you any
coffee?”

“No, I’m fine.”

“And what can I help
you with today?”

Kate took out her
loan papers. “My ex—um, soon-to-be ex-husband and I took out a loan last year
for our restaurant, Sunsets…soon to be my restaurant. One of your loan officers
suggested it go in my name and well, as you can imagine, business hasn’t been
that great.”

He nodded and sat at
his desk.

Kate pulled out the
letter she’d received from the bank that morning. “I got this in the mail today
reminding me the loan payment is due at the end of the month. Well, I know I’m
in no financial shape to repay it at that time, so I was wondering if I could
extend it or perhaps get another
loan?
”

He signaled he wanted
to see the letter.

The chair was too far
away from his desk for Kate to reach so she stood and walked over to it and
handed the letter to him.

He looked at her from
head to toe as she did so. He glanced at the letter and then back to her.

She was growing more
uncomfortable by the second in his presence, and if she wasn’t in such dire straits
she’d have fled his office instantly.

“Yes, Kate, I think I
might be able to help you out here.”

“You can. Oh, thank
you. You don’t know what a relief that is to hear. I love the restaurant and I
can’t even think about not running it. If you give me the paperwork, I’ll go
straight home and fill it in.”

“No paperwork needed.
I can do all that for you.”

When did banks get this nice?

“Of course, there
will be new requirements for this new loan.”

“I understand that. Really,
I do.” She stood.

He stood and walked
directly in front of her. He lifted his hand.

Kate lifted hers,
thinking he was about to shake it again, but the next thing she knew, it was on
her right breast.

He gave it a painful
squeeze.

She slapped his hand
away. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”

“Oh, I’m sorry. Didn’t
I explain? The new requirement is that you have sex with me.”

“What?”

“Right
here, right in this office, every week.”
He was
about to reach for her breast again.

“You sick son of a
bitch.” She backed away. Kate, shaken and scared, couldn’t get out of the
office quickly enough. As she turned and ran, her dress caught on a rough piece
of wood on the edge of the door. She heard the fabric rip.
Shit, can anything else go wrong? That’s my best one. Now it’s
shredded and torn up to the thigh.

She rushed to her
car, slid into the seat, leaned over the wheel, and took a deep breath. If she
didn’t have Brock in her life, she’d honestly think about driving miles away
and never coming back.

***

Brock looked at his
watch. Kate had told him she’d meet him on the boat in a few hours. He’d
noticed she’d returned to the restaurant over an hour ago, so where was she?

He nodded to Henri
and then made his way to the back and up the hallway to the stairs. When he got
to the top and walked along the landing, he noticed Kate was lying on her bed.
It didn’t take him long to see that her skirt was ripped and by the look of it,
so were her pantyhose. “Kate.”

She looked over at
him.
“Brock.
I’m sorry. I forgot all about the boat
ride with you.”

“Something
wrong?”

“Nothing.”

“What happened to
your dress and leg?”

“I fell over.”

“Where?”

“While
I was out.”

“That the truth?” She
was lying. He knew it. She couldn’t look him in the eye. She’d never done that
before.

She shook her head. “The
bank president wanted to have sex with me.”

Brock walked over to
the bed and sat down beside her. “I’m going to kill him.
So
exactly what happened?”

 
“You don’t want to know.”

“I might.”

“Oh, Brock…I wanted
to get an adjustment on my loan as I’m behind with my payments. I’m going to
owe more than I can afford at the end of this month, and I thought he might give
me some breathing space or offer a new loan, but it came with a pretty high
interest rate.”

“Him
wanting sex?”

She nodded.

“Okay, what bank, and
I’ll go kill him?”

She put her arm on
his. “No, Brock, he’s obviously a sick pervert.”

“I’d say. He
touch
you?”

She didn’t answer.

“Did he?”

“Just
my breast.”

He stood up.

“Brock,
no.”
She pulled on his hand again.

Brock sat down and
put his arm around her. “I hope you’re at least going to file a complaint about
him?”

“I think I should in
case he tries it on someone else, but it’s not going to help me get my loan to
save this restaurant.”

***

 
Brock couldn’t sleep. He wanted to toss and
turn but didn’t want to disturb Kate. She’d seemed a bit restless herself but
once he’d put his arms around her and cuddled her, she’d fallen asleep. She’d
muttered something under her breath a few times, but had quickly become
peaceful in her sleep once he’d begun stoking her hair. The run-in with the
bank president had upset her more than Kate had owned up to.

He’d seen her hand shaking
when they’d been working together in the kitchen that evening. She hadn’t
touched her meal, and usually she had a good appetite. He’d finally convinced
her to report him. No doubt she was worried about her restaurant and the loan.

He’d thought about
telling her to call it a day, sell the place, and start something smaller when
the economic climate got better, but she loved the place and he loved her. So
whatever her heart wanted, he wanted it, too.

The wind picked up
outside the window and some rain hit the shutters. Kate stirred a little and
then her head flopped on his shoulder. He smiled, laughed almost.

Millions of thoughts
were spinning around in his mind. She’d told him how much money she needed. He
could get that amount for her. He’d ask his
father,
tell
him that he’d fallen in love, and that the love of his life needed some money
to tide her over.

He was a businessman
so he’d understand completely.

Tomorrow he’d go to
Boston
and ask for a loan
on Kate’s behalf. It would be his gift to her.

***

Brock stepped out of
the shower. “I hate to leave you short-staffed but I need to go and get some
parts for my boat. It’s in the next town so I’ve rented a car. I’ll be gone
most of the day.”

She hadn’t even heard
him get up and run the water. “Sure, whatever you have to do.”

“I’ll try and be back
before the dinner crowd starts pouring in.”

She walked over to
him and kissed him.
“Such a positive thinker.”

“Maybe I can be this
weekend’s entertainment.”

“You play any
instruments?”

“Only
my armpit.”

Kate shook her head.
“I can’t imagine that’s a great sound for people to hear while they eat.”

They both burst out
laughing.

“You
gonna
miss me today?” He pulled her in close. He was still
wet from the shower, his face full of stubble where he hadn’t shaved yet.

“I’ll be counting the
minutes until you return.”

They rubbed noses.

“I’d really like to
stay and make love but I have to get on my way.”

“Okay. Drive
carefully.”

***

Brock rehearsed what
he was going to say to his father all the way to
Boston
. When he got to the offices, he went up
to the top floor.

Lorraine
, the
receptionist, smiled when he walked toward her. “Well, well, look
who’s
back.”

“You missed me?”

“Who wouldn’t?”

Brock smiled.
“My dad around?
Yeah, I know.
Stupid
question.”

“Sure, he’s in his
office with one of your step-brothers.”

“I’ll go in there
then.”

“You want some
coffee?”

“No,
maybe later.”

Brock opened the door
and both his father and Simon turned to look at him.