Chapter 23
CHAPTER 23
C hristopher pulled back the cloth under the newborn’s chin and smiled at his sister. “With a middle name like Christopher, it’s no wonder he’s as handsome as he is.”
“Whoa, wait one minute. I might have something to do with his looks,” Lauren said. “Well, maybe Jeff too, but mostly me.”
“Thanks a lot,” Jeff said.
“Is Becca with you?” Lauren asked.
“No, she left early this morning. I didn’t even see her before she left. When I woke up, she was gone.”
“Is everything all right between the two of you?”
“Yeah, of course. Why do you ask?
Lauren shrugged. “I don’t know. She seemed off to me last night.”
“Don’t read much into it. She’s been doing rotations at the hospital. She tells me all the time that third year in medical school is the hardest. She said she loves finally walking the hospital halls feeling like a doctor.”
“That’s great,” Jeff said. “I’m glad to hear she’s happy. Medical school can be tough.”
“She says it’s the hands-on clinical training that is so enlightening. It’s one thing to read and study what’s in the books and from the lectures, but a completely different experience to apply that knowledge.”
“Does Becca know what specialty she wants to go into after graduation?”
Christopher smiled. “Pediatrics,” he said, looking down at Daniel.
“I love it. I think she’ll be a wonderful baby doctor, and I for one, am glad to have a pediatrician in the family.”
Lauren looked at Jeff. “Didn’t you have something you wanted to ask Chris?”
Jeff cleared his throat. “Chris, Lauren and I talked about this, and we both agreed that we’d like you and Becca to be Daniel’s Godmother and Godfather.”
“We hoped that Becca would be here, but it’s been hard to catch her when she’s free. I know it’s a big responsibility. I hope you’ll both accept.”
“Are you kidding? I can speak for Becca as well as myself. We would be honored. Come here, Daniel. Let Uncle Chris hold you.”
Lauren passed Daniel to her brother. She grabbed her cellphone and snapped a picture of the two of them cuddling in an embrace.
“So, what time is everyone getting here?” Lauren asked.
“Michael is at Logan now. I’m not sure if any of them are checking a bag, so it depends on the luggage situation. It doesn’t take long to get here from the airport. I know Sarah has an appointment at two o’clock downstairs. She’s getting tested today. Beyond that, I’m not sure who’s coming. I think they wanted to video with Grandma though.”
“Oh, that’s perfect. How is Grandma? Does she still love her place? I worried about her not fitting in.”
Christopher laughed. “Don’t worry about Grandma, Mom tells me she’s got a social life to be envied.”
Lauren smiled. “I’m not in the least bit surprised. That’s Grandma for you.”
Nolan couldn’t get a flight back to San Diego that afternoon. The first one he could book was for the next day at four o’clock. He wanted to ask Kat if she’d let him in the cottage, but after their talk, it didn’t seem right. The last thing he wanted to do was pressure his wife.
Instead, he went inside to the inn, and found Millie in the office.
He waited for her to finish her conversation with someone named Riley. She turned to him and smiled.
“Can I help you?”
“Yes, I’m Nolan Chandler…Kat’s husband.”
“Oh, right. Nice to meet you. We didn’t know you were coming to Captiva.”
“Yes, well, it was a surprise to me too. I wonder if you might have a room available for the night. I can’t get a flight back to Boston until tomorrow, so I need a place to stay.”
Millie looked confused.
“My wife needs quiet so I don’t want to disturb her.”
“Of course. We do have a room available. This is a slow time of year…that is, until we get to Christmas, which is just around the corner.”
He smiled and waited.
Millie went to her computer and typed in his information. “Oh you’ll love the blue room. It’s so airy and you can see a little of the water from your window. Let me get your key and we can go upstairs.”
Nolan would have to let Kat know that he was staying at the Key Lime Garden Inn and had little choice. He didn’t want her to think he was stalking her.
“Do you have any luggage?” Millie asked.
“Just my carryon…that’s all.”
He followed Millie up the stairs to the first room on the right.
“Isn’t this room lovely? It’s my favorite.”
He nodded. “Thank you, this is nice.”
She put the key on the desk and pointed to the bathroom. “I also love this one because you don’t have to share the bathroom with anyone.’
Nolan looked out the window, and although Millie was right about the view, she omitted that he could also see the cottage where Kat was staying.
“Dinner is at seven o’clock in the dining room, and breakfast is ready at seven in the morning. If you need anything, please don’t hesitate to ask. There is always someone here twenty-four, seven.”
He nodded. “Thank you.”
He waited for Millie to leave, and then went back to the window to look at the cottage again. He only had another twenty-four hours before he had to leave Captiva. He wanted to respect his wife’s request for space, but he felt there had to be something more he could do. He needed to find a way to leave a different impression on her…one that wasn’t like any other time in their marriage.
His eyes scanned the horizon and the Gulf water just beyond the inn.
Think, Nolan! Think!
He suddenly had an idea. It would be scary, but it was nothing compared to the fear of losing Kat forever.
Nolan stepped onto the cottage porch. This time, he was wearing his swimsuit and sandals. He took his sunglasses off when Kat came to the door.
“Nolan. What are you doing here? I thought you were going back home this afternoon?”
He shook his head. “I tried. I couldn’t get a flight back today. I’ll have to leave tomorrow. I’m booked on the four o’clock with JetBlue.”
“Oh, well…”
He could tell that she was uncomfortable with the idea of having him stay with her.
“I got a room in the main house here. I figured you need your space and I don’t want you to feel rushed in any way.”
“Thank you, Nolan. I appreciate it.”
She was about to close the door when he stopped her.
“Listen, I’m only here for the day, and as you know, I’ve never been to Captiva before. Would you at least spend a little time enjoying the beach with me?”
He stepped back and raised his arms out to the side. “I’ve got my bathing suit on. We can enjoy the afternoon, and I promise not to talk about our situation at all. Maybe we can have dinner later?”
Kat shook her head.
“Okay, never mind dinner. How about just a couple of hours sitting on the beach?”
She hesitated, but eventually gave in. “Okay, but no more than two hours.”
“Perfect. It looks like the inn has a few lounge chairs free. I’m going to sit over there, and I’ll see you in a bit?”
She nodded. “Okay,” she said as she closed the door.
Nolan put his towel over his chair, took his sandals off, and walked to the edge of the water. It was colder than he expected, given it was Florida water. Nonetheless, he was thrilled to be at the beach on Captiva Island with his wife. It wasn’t the most ideal situation, but it was progress in his eyes.
Kat joined him, putting her towel on the back of her chair. She didn’t go to the water; instead, she lay back on her lounge chair and looked at her watch.
Nolan wanted to tease her about having a two-hour timer set but thought better of it considering she didn’t seem in the best of moods.
When he sat next to her, he couldn’t ignore how much more relaxed she seemed. Kat had insisted that he’d never paid much attention to her back home. But, that wasn’t entirely accurate. He did pay attention, and more than once noticed how tense she was. Captiva had erased the perpetual frown, and that was a good thing.
Looking over the water, he pointed to the parasailing boat. “Look at that. Could you ever imagine yourself going up in one of those? I think I could.”
“Don’t be ridiculous. You would never go parasailing. Besides, it’s mostly for young people.”
He looked at her and smiled. “I’m serious. Do you want to go up with me?”
“Stop teasing, Nolan. It’s not funny,” she said.
He stood and looked down at her. “I’m not teasing. I think we should do it. I’m going to ask the driver a few questions when they come in.”
Kat laughed at him. “I know the people who run that thing…the Powells. They have a store up the road. Paolo’s sister Ciara is married to the owner. His sons Joshua and Luke run the parasailing boat.”
“Joshua and Luke are their names?”
“Nolan don't embarrass me. This is not a joke.”
Within minutes, the boat, operated by a young man, was driven onto the beach.
“The driver is Joshua…the other one is Luke,” Kat said, as Nolan walked toward the boat.
“Hey, I’m interested in going out…me and my wife,” Nolan said.
“Sure. Where is she?”
Nolan turned and pointed. “She’s sitting over there. Her name is Kat. She’s Maggie Moretti’s sister. I’m Nolan.”
“Oh, nice. We love Maggie. Our sister Becca is married to her son, Christopher…your nephew,” Joshua answered.
“We’re ready to go out if you want to get your wife,” Luke said.
Nolan nodded. “I’ll be right back.”
Beaming, he ran back to Kat. “Let’s go. They’re ready for us.”
“You’re not joking?”
“Nope. Come on, Kat. We’ve never done anything spontaneous. Do it for me. I’m leaving tomorrow. Do it now before I lose my nerve.”
He couldn’t believe it when she got up and followed him to the boat.
“Hello, Mrs. Chandler. I’m Joshua Powell and this is my brother, Luke.”
She nodded. “Nice to meet you.”
“Have you ever parasailed before?” Luke asked as Joshua steered the boat away from the shore.
She shook her head. “No. This is my first time,” she answered.
“Okay, I’m going to explain a few things to you, and then we’ll get you up in the sky.”
“We’ll secure you both in these seats with a harness and life jacket. You’ll sit at the back of the boat as we secure you in place. Now, when you’re up in the air, we need you to use hand signals to communicate with us. Are you with me so far?”
Kat and Nolan nodded.
“Great. Thumbs up if everything is fine. Thumbs down if you have a problem or want to come down. If you want to come down immediately, you’ll need to pat the top of your head. If you have an emergency, I want you to cross your arms over your chest.”
“What kind of emergency?” Kat asked.
Luke shook his head, and then smiled.
“We haven’t had one yet. If you want to go higher, then just use your index finger and point up. Can you remember all that?”
Kat nodded. “I think so.”
“Okay, just to make sure, let’s practice.”
They went through the signals again, this time as Luke adjusted their harnesses.
“When we pull you back into the boat, I want you to keep your legs straight as you descend. Do you see the bar above your head?”
Nolan and Kat nodded.
“I want you to reach for it. Let me see you reach for it right now.”
They did as Luke asked.
“Good. I think we’re ready to go. What do you think? You can still change your mind if you want.”
Nolan smiled and shook his head. “No way.”
Kat, who seemed to still be in shock that her husband would take this joke so far, agreed. “If he’s ready, then I’m ready.”
Luke gave a thumbs up to Joshua, who upped the boat’s speed and propelled Nolan and Kat Chandler up toward the sky.
Kat screamed the entire way to the farthest point. She wrapped her hands around the straps and never let go. Nolan more felt nervous on the boat than he did in the air. He assumed it was the anticipation of the ride, as well as his wife’s reaction.
“I can’t believe you got me up here!” Kat yelled.
Nolan laughed. “I can’t believe it either. It’s pretty quiet though. If you look around, it’s easy to appreciate the beauty.” He looked down at the water.
“What are you looking at?” she asked.
“I wonder if we can see sharks from up here.”
“Great, something else to be afraid of…wait, what’s happening? Are we going down?”
Nolan smiled and nodded his head. “Yeah, I think this is where they dunk our feet in the water. Hang on.”
Their legs dropped into the water, but they were wet up to their waists. As they started heading for the sky, Kat laughed louder than Nolan had ever heard before. He couldn’t tell if she was laughing because she was having fun or was scared out of her mind.
“Thank heaven I left my sandals on the boat, or they’d be in the water now,” Kat said.
Within minutes, they were headed back down toward the boat.
“Don’t forget to straighten your legs, and reach for the bar over your head,” Nolan reminded her.
“Got it.”
Kat was still laughing when they reached the boat. Luke unhooked them from their harness.
“How was it?” he asked.
“I’ve never been so scared in all my life,” she said, her face red and her eyes sparkling.
“It’s an adrenaline rush, that’s for sure,” Nolan said.
Kat pulled out her cellphone and handed it to Luke.
“Will you take our picture?” she asked.
“Of course.”
Kat put her arm around Nolan’s waist. She looked at him and smiled.
He knew the next day he’d be on the plane headed back to California. But he’d forever remember this moment. He’d made a memory that they’d both share long after he’d returned home. For Nolan, nothing mattered except the look on her face and the few moments he spent in the sky with the love of his life.