Chapter Forty-One
V ickie couldn’t believe it. After Kristy and Ainsley had gone on and on about how Vickie always fell for men who were simply not interested, Thatcher had called her last night after the wedding. And thanks to that one gesture, she knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt—or at least beyond a shadow of much doubt—that this time was different.
She’d wanted so badly to run into the room where Ainsley and Faith were sleeping and share the news. In fact, if it hadn’t taken forever to get Faith to finally fall asleep, she probably would have. The episode of Friends where they couldn’t get the baby to stop crying after Rachel woke her up was all that prevented Vickie from throwing caution to the wind. So she’d held it in.
Until morning.
And now that she’d spilled her news, Ainsley was giving her the look.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” Vickie semi-snapped.
“I just don’t want you to get too excited. A phone call and an offer to pick you up from the airport aren’t exactly big commitments.”
Vickie took a deep breath and counted to five. They’d had a wonderful time together and she refused to ruin it by biting her friend’s head off. Especially when she knew what a hard time Ainsley had been having. And especially when she knew that for Thatcher, those things did constitute a commitment. “I’ll keep that in mind.”
Ainsley laughed softly. “Okay, good.” She deftly changed the subject and they talked of other things until time to go to the airport.
During the flight, Vicky couldn’t believe how easy it was to keep her mind off the fact that she hated flying. All she had to do was remember the shift that she’d heard in Thatcher’s voice. He’d missed her. He was ready to take a step forward. She could tell.
She was glad her friends couldn’t see her as she exited the plane and made her way to baggage claim. She was downright giddy.
She waited impatiently beside the luggage carousel. Thatcher was supposed to be outside at noon to pick her up. A glance at her watch sent her pulse rate soaring. Five minutes ‘til noon. She took a breath. Get a grip. Finally, after what seemed like eons, her navy blue suitcase came out of the shoot. She snagged it from the conveyer and headed out the door, grinning when she saw the time. She’d only been waiting for five minutes. Perhaps patience was a lesson she’d never quite learn.
She spotted Thatcher’s truck immediately and rolled her suitcase in his direction. Just as she got next to the truck, he looked up and grinned.
“Hey.” He hopped out. “Let me get that.” He grabbed her suitcase and effortlessly lifted it into the space behind the seats.
“Thanks.” She climbed inside the truck. Once he was seated, she grinned. “And thanks for picking me up. I could’ve taken the Metro.”
“I know what a pain it is to lug a suitcase on there.” He glanced in her direction. “Besides, I needed to talk to you.”
Vickie couldn’t read his tone.
“And I have a surprise. Are you up for a little field trip or do you need to get right home?”
She thought of the mountain of laundry waiting at home. And the cats, who’d probably been acting ugly to Dawn whenever she’d gone over to feed them. But neither of those things were enough to keep her from finding out what Thatcher’s idea of a surprise might be. “A field trip sounds nice. I might need to grab something to eat though.”
He nodded. “I think that can be arranged.”
They sat in silence for a moment.
Thatcher merged the truck onto 395. “So, tell me about the wedding. Was it just as good as it would’ve been at the beach?”
“Oh, it was even better. Ace did the most amazing thing.”
“Showed up?”
She shot him a glare. “Should I regret telling you about Kristy’s humiliation?”
“Sorry. I couldn’t resist.” He grinned. “Go on.”
“You know how I told you she’d always dreamt of having her wedding on park grounds?”
“Yep.”
“Well, he surprised her with a ceremony there. It was awesome. We thought we were on the way to the church. He’d arranged for a limo to pick us up from Kristy’s house.” She glanced over at him. “But instead of taking us to the church, it took us to Rhea Springs.” She sighed. “Isn’t that romantic?”
Thatcher chuckled. “Are you getting all teary-eyed over there?”
“No. But I easily could. It was a very sweet gesture. I wish you could’ve seen it.” As soon as the words left her mouth she wanted them back. “I mean, you’ll have to see the video.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
“How about here? What’s gone on since I was gone? Did you secretly find the documents and forget to tell people I was your assistant?”
Thatcher was quiet. “We’ll talk about work soon. But first. . .” He pulled into a parking space. “Check it out. I sure didn’t expect to find a space so close.”
“What are we doing?” Vickie looked around. They were on the National Mall.
“Come on.” Thatcher hopped out of the car.
She followed him. “Where are we going?”
“How about an afternoon at the Museum of American History?” He raised his eyebrows up and down. “Look at me being all touristy.”
Vickie laughed. “I’m impressed.”
Once they were through security, Thatcher grabbed a guide book. “Okay, I know what I want to see.”
“Jerry Seinfeld’s puffy shirt?”
He grinned. “How about Abe’s hat?”
They reached the escalator and stepped on. Vickie wavered for a moment between steps and toppled backwards. She felt strong arms grab around her waist to steady her.
“Easy there.” Thatcher’s breath ruffled against her hair. “Let’s try not to cause a scene at the Smithsonian.”
Vickie felt the blush rise up her face and she was glad she was in front of him so he couldn’t see his effect on her. “Sorry. Escalators have never been my friend.” She grabbed the rail and looked at him over her shoulder. “Once when I was a little girl, I decided it would be a good idea to sit down while I was riding.”
“Did you get off unscathed?” he asked as they stepped onto solid ground.
She grinned. “I did, but my blue jeans didn’t. My mother was furious.”
He chuckled. “Just stick by me and I’ll protect you from the mean escalator.”
“Thanks.”
An hour later, they’d seen several bits of American history. “Why do I get the feeling you’re buttering me up for something?” Vickie asked.
“One more exhibit and we’ll go.” He grinned. “How about the original Star-Spangled Banner?”
“Lead the way.” Vickie followed him into the exhibit. Along the right side of the wall, displays depicted the War of 1812.
Thatcher paused in front of a glass case. “Look at that.”
Vickie stopped next to him and peered inside where he was pointing.
A charred piece of wood sat beneath the glass. “Part of the White House after the British burned Washington,” Vickie read from the display board.
Thatcher let out a low whistle. “I’m beginning to think you were on to something. This place is pretty cool.”
She grinned. “I don’t like to say I told you so, but. . .”
They followed the corridor to the end and turned left into the next room. Vickie blinked. It was almost totally dark in the room. She bumped against Thatcher. “Sorry,” she murmured.
“That’s okay.” He guided her to a bench that ran along the right wall. “Let’s sit.”
They sat down opposite a glass wall that ran from the floor to the ceiling. Behind the wall, was the gigantic flag, illuminated by special lighting.
“Wow,” Vickie breathed. “It’s amazing.” The flag itself was huge. It seemed to fill the room.
“Incredible. I read in the guide book that it’s thirty feet high.”
“Isn’t this worth braving the crowds of tourists?” Vickie whispered.
Thatcher leaned close to her ear. “We’re the only ones in here right now.”
She grinned. “Pretend it’s the middle of summer. There’d be a full house.”
“I like it better this way.”
Vickie turned her attention from the flag to the man sitting next to her. “Me too,” she said softly.
“I have to tell you something.”
Her heart fluttered. “Anything.”
And then out of nowhere, Thatcher reached over and took her hand.