Chapter 35

The next afternoon Sully and Michaela walked quietly along the Charles River, neither saying a word. They had been that way for the last hour and a half and Rebecca was growing restless with the tension. She had tried to give them space, more space than a chaperone ought to by Boston standards, but she had figured that they had once been married, and so they should receive the benefit of the doubt when it came to controlling their own affections in public. At that moment, however, she wished that Sully would reach over and grab Michaela's hand, possibly even kiss her, just so that the romance could once again be present and the couple who so forlornly now walked the path besides the water.

For their part, Sully and Michaela had been talking of nothing—the weather, the changes in Boston since they had been there that last winter. Sully had even inquired about the health of Martha and Harrison, both of whom Michaela said still worked for Rebecca. After 45 minutes though, they had fallen into the silence which had failed them now with a vengeance and both was buzzing with their own insecurities.

'Does he not wish to speak to me, to inquire about me?' Michaela wondered, noticing that she herself was beginning to sound more stilted in language as the days in Boston wore on. She longed for the days when Sully would merely hold her hand, even after they'd had an argument, letting her know that even if they didn't see eye to eye, they were still in love. This had become especially important during the period after he'd come to Boston the first time. The couple had been so tentative with each other then, but nothing compared to the shyness each felt now and Michaela feared the cloud of doubt might never lift.

Sully, for his part, was terrified to reach out and grab Michaela's hand for fear that she would pull away from him like that night in the barn, pull away from him and out of his life, rip herself from his heart altogether and wash her hands of him, and yet he could feel that he was making her more nervous by saying nothing and doing nothing. Finally the tension proved to be too much and he turned toward her, smiling.

The smile caught Michaela off-guard and she stopped in her tracks waiting for Sully to speak. She knew that smile, it meant that he had something he wanted to share with her and after such an uncomfortable morning, she was desperate for something that would bring them together and end her weeks of sorrow and guilt.

Gently Sully spoke, 'I don't know about you, but I'm getting hungry. How about we find a street vendor and see if we can buy some corn on the cob to eat by the river? Like ya told me about when we were first courtin', remember?"

Michaela giggled slightly at Sully's use of his Colorado dialect and she felt some of her nervousness dissipate. She was still uncomfortable being with him, but it was hard not to want him close after how much she'd missed him since she and the children had gone to Boston.

Sully realized his mistake almost immediately, but to hear Michaela laugh was too precious a sound to ruin with a correction, and so he merely smiled wider and led the way to the section of the path where he had seen street vendors the night before when he'd taken this walk alone, preparing for the day.

As they sat munching on their corncobs and listening to the soft tides of the river ebb and flow, Michaela softly asked, "Do you remember when it was that I mentioned missing this?"

"Course I do," Sully said. Over the last few hours Sully had returned to using his western drawl in conversation and Michaela had to admit that she liked him better that way. This changed occurred of course long after Rebecca had feigned some excuse in order to return to her household and after she had begged to be allowed to pick up Katie on her own. When both parents are expressed reluctance and Michaela had reminded her about feeding the twins, Rebecca had gently told her the twins were sometimes used to a bottle now, a fact that Michaela was not proud of considering their age, but that had been a reality because of her mental breakdown and subsequent weeks spent in the woods with Sully as well as her continuing depression in Boston. Not willing to tell Sully all of his, however, she had merely nodded and let Rebecca take her leave.

Now as they sat, side-by-side, alone, by the river's edge, Michaela waited for Sully to finish his remembrance. "It was when Brian ran away and we had to enlist the Cheyenne's help to find him. You'd asked me if I ever got homesick and I said 'nope.'"

"As I recall, you said it in the gruffest voice possible," she whispered, smiling a bit at the remembrance.

"I didn't mean to be short, I was just bein' honest with ya."

"Well Mr. Sully," Michaela said nervously. "Are you homesick now?"

"I miss my children, but here is the only place I want to be right now." Slowly Sully tentatively reached over and sought Michaela's hand with his own. Upon finding it he gently linked his fingers with hers, making sure that her palm was fully encased in the soft skin of his own hand. Sully's action surprised Michaela, but what frightened her even more was her own body and heart's reaction to his closeness. She began to pull away and Sully let her go, content with just the moment of closeness between them.

When a few minutes had passed, they stood up to return to the main street, tossing away their corncobs into street receptacles and hailing a carriage to take them home.


This is my first fan fiction and I would appreciate any and all feedback, so please feel free to review the chapter and any subsequent chapters if you think they are of interest either here or be orginal and comment on the "Stand By Me" thread of the fanfiction section of the Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman forum The link to the thread is: http/forum.drquinn.us/viewtopic.php?t3949

Thanks, Corinna