Part 22: Disaster
John smiled as he looked down to see Shane's head on his leg, his eyes slowly drifting shut. "Okay little man, time to get you up to bed."
Shane sat up and shook his head, rubbing his eyes as he protested, "Not sleepy."
John chuckled as his face scrunched up into a yawn. "'Not sleepy' huh? Well, you know what?" Shane just looked at him inquisitively, and John felt a burst of love as he realized just how much the little boy looked like his mother in that moment.
"John's getting sleepy." He faked a large yawn to get his point across. "So how about we go lay in Mommy's bed until we fall asleep?"
Shane's face scrunched up for a moment as he thought, and then another yawn overtook him as he nodded his head yes.
John smiled and stood up, scooping Shane into his arms and putting him on his shoulders as Shane shrieked and giggled with delight.
Ten minutes later, John was smiling down at the sleeping child. He couldn't believe how quickly he had fallen in love with this little boy – it had only been two weeks since Jenkins had made his phone call and nothing had been heard from him since. The entire state was on high alert, but it was like the man had just vanished into thin air.
He slowly stood up when he heard the door open and close, drawing his gun as he slowly walked out. He knew that it was probably just Natalie, back from her family dinner at Llanfair, but he was taking no chances.
"John, it's just me. You can put the gun down," Natalie called from around the corner, amusement clear in her voice. John grinned and shook his head as he stepped into her sight, replacing the gun in his holster.
"How did you know?"
She smiled. "Because you've greeted me the same way every time I come home for the past two weeks?"
"You know me so well."
She grinned back. "Shane asleep?"
John nodded. "He's been out for a good five minutes, at least. He's in your bed though – want me to move him?"
Natalie hesitated for a moment before she shook his head. "No, he's fine for tonight. Why don't you come on into the kitchen and keep me company while I dig out a little junk food?"
John smiled. "Sounds great." He took a final look into the bedroom to see Shane sleeping peacefully before he followed Natalie into the kitchen.
He noticed with a grin that she already had two bowls and spoons sitting on the small kitchen table as he walked in. Her back was to him as she dug through the freezer, trying to find the quart of ice cream she had just bought.
John walked up behind her and reached into the freezer, his arm brushing hers as he pushed aside a few things and retrieved the ice cream he and Shane had eaten from earlier that day. The slight touch sent tingles rushing through both of them.
Natalie turned around as he pulled his arm back, finding it hard to breathe as she stared into his eyes. Her tongue darted out to lick her lips nervously as John slowly began to lean in his eyes focused on her lips.
Just before John's lips touched hers Natalie's cell phone rang and they jumped, John moving back slightly. Natalie took the chance to duck around his arm and walk into the living room, her heart racing as she sat on the couch and pulled her cell phone from her purse.
"Hello?"
John sighed as he set the ice cream down on the table with a hard thud and gripped the edge of the table tightly as he tried to calm himself. He had seen the relief in Natalie's eyes when that phone rang, and it spoke volumes.
She wasn't ready for what had just almost happened. He knew that, but it was so damn hard to be around her constantly, day and night for the past two weeks, and not be able to touch her. He knew that once he did, he wouldn't be able to stop.
Natalie took a deep breath as she shut the phone and walked back into the kitchen. She frowned at the sight of John. She knew him well enough to know that he was warring with himself to regain control for her sake.
Her hand drifted to gently rub her stomach as she frowned. She still wasn't quite showing, but her belly continued to grow with each passing day and she knew that she couldn't keep the truth from him for much longer.
Then her last excuse for denying the truth about her feelings for John would be gone… and she would have to tell him the truth. She loved him. She had always loved him, and although she had loved Michael she now knew that she had still loved John at the same time.
Now that she no longer held either of them responsible for Michael's death, Natalie knew that there was nothing standing in their way except for her secret.
"John?" she asked softly. He turned around and smiled painfully. "Ice cream's melting. We should probably get to it," he replied, and Natalie breathed a silent sigh of relief at the familiar slip into their old routine.
"Yeah, guess so." She smiled as she took her seat and reached for the tub of ice cream. She scooped a healthy amount into her bowl before handing it to John, sucking in a deep breath as she felt the electricity jolt through her when their fingers brushed.
They ate their ice cream in comfortable silence, and then Natalie gathered the dishes and carried them to the sink. She began to hum quietly as she washed the dishes, and John felt a sense of normalcy as he sat at the table and studied her back. It was as though he and Natalie had been living this way for all of their lives, and it just felt so right.
Just then Natalie dried the second bowl and turned around with a bright smile. "So, now that we've had our ice cream what do you want to do?" Her breath caught in her throat, as the words brought up all sorts of mental images.
She saw John's eyes darken slightly for a moment before he coughed and struggled to regain control. "Well," he replied after a moment, his voice slightly shaking as he suppressed the urge to take her into his arms. "We could go into the living room and watch a movie."
He laughed when he saw Natalie's nose wrinkle up and she shook her head. "Okay, how about some poker?" Her eyes lit up.
"I've got a deck of cards in my room," she offered.
He smiled as he stood up, the chair scraping against the floor as he did so. "Well, what are you waiting for?"
Natalie smiled and walked into her room, trying to calm her pounding heart as she opened a dresser drawer and pulled the cards out. She had just turned to leave when she felt a need to check on Shane. She smiled and shook her head as she saw that he had pulled the covers up over his head again.
Suddenly a jolt of fear shot through her that made it hard to breathe as she stared at his still form… or what appeared to be his still form.
The playing cards dropped to the carpet, forgotten, as her mind raced.
What if Jenkins had somehow gotten in while she and John were talking and grabbed Shane? What if her baby wasn't lying under those blankets at all, but this was some type of sick joke that bastard had planned for her?
Her heart pounding in fear, Natalie practically ran to the side of the bed and pulled the blankets back. She sat down, closing her eyes and breathing a sigh of relief at the sight of Shane's sleeping form. She leaned down, smoothing the hair back from his forehead as she pressed a gentle kiss to it.
"I love you, baby," she whispered as she covered him back up, this time making sure that the blankets allowed a tuft of his brown hair to peek out.
John was sitting on the couch when she returned, looking very much at home. She smiled weakly at the thought as she sank down on the couch next to him. He looked concerned as he asked, "What happened?"
Natalie shook her head numbly as the first tear rolled down her face. John was at a loss as her tears starting to come faster and harder. He pulled her into his embrace and began to gently rock her as he stroked her hair.
"Shh, baby. It's all right," he whispered helplessly as he continued to offer her the only comfort that he could.
After a moment, Natalie finally pulled back. John relunctantly released her and watched as she took a deep breath and wiped her tears away. His hands clenched into fists as he fought the effort to reach out and brush them away for her.
"What happened?" he asked softly. Natalie shook her head. "When I went into my room I was watching Shane sleep… and he had the covers pulled up over his head, just like every other night. Only tonight – I freaked. I started to think of a million 'what ifs' and I had to pull the blankets back to reassure myself that he was all right. Then I guess that everything just hit me when I walked back in here, you know?"
John nodded quietly, sensing that she wasn't finished. "I hate this. I hate that Jenkins can reduce me to this… that he has this power over me. I just hate it, John." Her eyes pleaded with his and he couldn't help himself – he reached out and pulled her back into his arms.
He took a deep breath as he felt her slowly relax against his chest, his hand rubbing soothing circles on her back. After a moment she pulled back slightly, staring into his eyes for what seemed like an eternity before she leaned in and pressed her lips to his.
The kiss was soft and full of electricity. John, desperate to taste what he had thought he never would again, slid his hands through Natalie's hair, deepening the kiss as he pulled her even closer to him.
Natalie moaned as his tongue probed her lips, parting them and slipping inside. Their tongues touched, eliciting a soft moan from both of them as they instinctively moved closer.
John groaned as he felt Natalie's fingers tangle in his hair, her nails lightly scraping his scalp as he began to lay her back on the couch. She went willingly, pulling him with her and sighing contentedly when she felt his weight on her.
It wasn't until his hand began to move underneath her shirt that Natalie came back to her senses. Her stomach wasn't noticeable to the naked eye yet, but the difference between it now and when John had last touched her was enough to be felt… and she knew that he would feel it.
That was why she gently pushed John's hand away and pulled out of the kiss, making no move to leave their current position as she gazed up at him.
She lifted a hand and brushed a lock of his hair out of his face. "John, I have to tell you—"
Natalie's confession was stopped by the loud crash that resounded from her room. Her eyes were wide with fright as she looked at John.
"Shane," was the only word she had time to utter before John was standing up and making his way towards the room as he pulled the gun out of the holster.
TO BE CONTINUED