Part 35 (2/2)

She wanted to believe him, but his stooped shoulders and worried expression gave him away. ”You sure?”

”Yep.” He drew a slow breath. ”I have some papers to check. I'll be upstairs.”

319 It was an hour after dinner when he found her in the living room writing in the baby book. A Celtic instrumental arrangement played in the background, and the smell of roast chicken still lingered in the house.

Kari tilted her head back and met his searching eyes. Whatever was eating Tim had not dissipated, and again she felt her stomach tighten. ”Finished with your papers?”

”No.” He drew a deep breath and shoved his hands in his pockets. ”I have to go back. I forgot a stack on my desk.”

”Oh.” Immediately Kari wondered if Tim was lying to her, if he had plans to go somewhere else instead of back to work. She dismissed the thought. Tim was beyond lying to her; it was one reason their reconciliation was going so well.

She stood and stretched, forcing her voice to be casual. ”Want me to come?”

”That's okay.” For an instant he seemed frozen in place. Then he came to her and took her hands in his. ”May I tell you something?” His voice was quietly intense.

”Sure.” She held her breath, desperate to know what was going on in his head.

His grip on her hands tightened. ”What happened to us was my fault, Kari.

Completely my fault.”

She felt herself relax. Was that all this was? A bout of delayed guilt? ”That isn't true, and you know it.” Her thumbs gently ma.s.saged the tops of his hands.

”We both made poor choices.”

Tim shook his head. ”Your being busy didn't make it okay for me to have an affair. No matter how lonely I felt.”

An expectant silence lay between them, as if Tim still had something important to say. She lowered her brow. ”That's why you're so distant tonight?”

”No.” He searched her face, her eyes. His mouth was open, but he didn't seem to know what to say.

”What?” He let his gaze fall to the place where he held her hands. When he looked up, his eyes were wet. ”Nothing. It's just-” She 320 waited, trying to read him. ”I'm so sorry, Kari. I'm sorrier than you'll ever understand.”

She gently pulled her hands from his and wrapped them around his waist. She had to stretch out her arms to do it. ”I know.”

He held her as close as her protruding belly would allow. Their faces were inches apart, and Kari wondered if this would be the moment when their lips might finally meet. They hadn't done more than hug or hold hands since they'd been back together. But with his emotions so raw, a kiss seemed possible.

Instead, Tim smoothed a finger over her eyebrow and traced it gently down the side of her face. ”I want you to remember something.”

Kari waited, her heart beating hard.

”No matter what else happens, I never want to hurt you again.” Their eyes held, and gradually the distance between their faces dissolved until their lips came together. Tears stung at Kari's eyes and spilled down her cheeks. The salty taste mingled with their kiss, and the feelings between them grew.

It wasn't the type of pa.s.sion they'd once shared, though Kari imagined one day it would be. Instead, it was a kiss of infinite sadness for all they'd loved and all they'd lost and all they'd never have again. But it was something more as well. It was a kiss that hinted at a hope that was from G.o.d alone.

Kari pulled away first. She reached for the car keys on the coffee table. ”Go get your papers. I'll be waiting.”

”You're so beautiful.” He studied her face as if he were trying to memorize her.

”You're the best thing that ever happened to me, Kari.” He kissed her once more.

”Do you believe me?”

”I do.” She wiped at her tears and handed him his keys. ”I believe you with all my heart.”

As Tim bid her good-bye and drove away, Kari realized it was true; she really did believe him. And with everything inside her 321 she prayed that his days of lying were over. Because after all she'd been through since summer she was sure of one thing.

If Tim Jacobs ever betrayed her trust again, it would kill her. Even if it took decades for her heart to stop beating.

Tears streamed down Tim's face as he drove toward his office. He clutched the steering wheel, furious with himself. He'd had the perfect opportunity to tell Kari, but he couldn't. It had been physically impossible-not with her spirit opening to his and sweet trust written boldly across her face.

He exhaled through clenched teeth. Now he'd have to wait until he got back home.

He'd rather drive off a cliff than look into Kari's beautiful eyes-eyes that believed in him again despite his affair-and tell her that Angela Manning was pregnant with his child. It was the worst possible situation he could imagine, and he had no idea how any of them were going to survive it.

He was racking his brain for possible solutions long after he reached his office and gathered up the stack of papers. He was about to leave when an idea struck him.

Maybe Angela was wrong about the pregnancy. Maybe she only suspected it and wanted his support just in case. Either way, suddenly he knew he didn't want Angela Manning in his office tomorrow at noon. He needed to get this over with tonight. He set the stack of papers down on his desk.

What if he wrote her a note telling her how committed he was to Kari? Then he could drop it by her apartment tonight, hand it to her, and tell her he had to go. He wouldn't even step inside. Just hand her the note, tell her Kari was expecting him, and leave. When he got home, he'd tell Kari the truth, and somehow they'd find a way to handle the situation.

The plan continued to take shape as he sat down, pulled out a sheet of paper, and scribbled a letter to Angela. Enough to tell 322 her he was sorry and yes, if she was pregnant, he was responsible. But no matter what else she might need from him, he could never again give her his heart.

Because whether or not she was pregnant, his heart belonged to his wife, where it should have been all along.

He tucked the note in his pants pocket, grabbed the stack of papers once more, and headed for his car. As he started the engine, he had the strongest impression that he should sc.r.a.p the plan and go home instead. That somehow G.o.d himself wanted him to avoid seeing Angela Manning that night at all costs.

Well, that feeling was probably because of the counselor's insistence that he stay away from Angela no matter what. Tim knew that was sound advice. But the reason for the rule was the danger of repeat affairs, and there wasn't even a remote danger of that tonight.

Seeing Angela now was merely his way of avoiding a public meeting with her and perhaps a scene.

Surely G.o.d wouldn't have a problem with that.

He turned onto her street, parked his car, and closed his eyes. Please, G.o.d, let Angela be wrong. But either way, please be with me. Slowly, moving like a man twice his age, Tim climbed out of the car and took the first steps toward his future. A future he desperately prayed did not involve Angela Manning and an illegitimate child.

Dirk Bennett pulled up in front of Angela's apartment and turned off the engine.

He saw no point in sitting outside. He clutched the ring box in his left hand, more determined than he'd ever been.

He opened the car door and made a motion to get out, but then he remembered the gun. The professor hadn't been around for weeks, months even. But what if he was here tonight? What 323 if after all of Dirk's plotting and planning and waiting for the perfect moment, Professor Jacobs was with Angela tonight?

Rabid anger flooded his being at the very possibility, and in a flurry of motion he grabbed his revolver from the pa.s.senger seat. Dirk's hands trembled at the thought of seeing the man and putting an end to the affair once and for all.

<script>