| She set the candlesticks on the mantle and turned to check the rest of the room. The coverlet on the bed was turned down and the pillows fluffed. The small round table was set for two with a bottle their favorite wine, some cheese and bread. As she checked her appearance in the mirror she slowly ran her hands down over her abdomen. Rob was due home any minute and she was ready to burst. She had questioned the nurse repeatedly on the phone earlier in the day making sure there was no mistake. There had been too many false alarms before. But she had been assured that everything was correct and the all the tests came back positive. She was nervous, excited and so wanted to shout it from the rooftop. They would share this good news in due course with everyone, but right now they would give themselves some time to make sure everything would be all right. They had endured so many disappointments in the past and had finally agreed that their lives were complete with each other. But deep down they both felt the ache and void of not having a family. This house would finally ring with the laughter and sounds of a child. The sound of a car door brought her back to reality and she ran down the stairs, her negligee billowing out behind her. As she reached the front door, she demurely fixed the garment revealing only the slightest swell of her breasts. She was out of breath as the she flung the door open. "Ba…" She caught herself as she took in the tall presence filling the space in front of her. "Garrett. What a surprise." Her brother-in-law stood with a somber expression on his face. "May I come in?" His eyes raked over her, causing her to pull the sheer fabric around her tight. She pulled the door back and he entered the foyer. "What's going on?" He turned to face her and his eyes told her the news was not good. "It's not Catherine or William?" knowing how they each had not been well lately. He shook his head. "No, They're fine." He began a slow pace. She went to close the door and noticed a police car behind Garrett's. "Garrett?" Her heart began to pound in her chest in a steady rhythm and suddenly she didn't want to know. She began to wring her hands and Garrett seeing her dismay went to take her hands but she stepped back distancing herself from him. "Tell me now." "Sit down." He motioned to the small chair but she waved him off. He cleared his throat and set his gaze on her. "There's been an accident." She let out a gasp. "No! Rob?" He nodded. She stood stone still and Garrett turned his back momentarily to avoid her gaze. "I must go to him and see him and tell him about…" Garrett turned and grabbed her before she reached the door and held her as she cried out begging to let her go. "You can't. It's too late. I'm sorry." There was a crack in his voice, "he's gone." She stared up at Garrett and screamed. "Gone? No! No! No! Rob!" The cry echoed around her as suddenly she felt her legs give out as the room swirled around and blackness engulfed her. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~ All sorts of visions floated through her mind. She was surrounded by a heavy mist and Rob was there calling to her. She could see him all dressed in white beckoning her to come to him. The image faded and she was back in college. It was the day she met Rob. It had been a frat party in the spring of her second year at UK that Colby McGuire met Robert Winthrop Spencer. The entire campus was celebrating the Wildcats win earlier in the day and her friends had convinced her to come with them to the party. Against her better judgment she agreed and just as she suspected things got a bit out of control and after an hour she left. It was on her way out of the house that she saw him sitting alone on the front porch with a beer can in his hand. When the door slammed he turned as Colby headed down the steps. She said hello and kept on walking. He walked her back to the dorm that night and they spent an hour chatting on the steps of her building. He was in his senior year and sharing an apartment, near the university, with three other guys. Colby didn't know what to expect. She thought he was one of those rich kids whose daddy was footing the bill and he was just riding the coattails of old money. As it turned out she was wrong, well almost wrong. He had money and his daddy was paying but Rob was also working part-time to pay for his share of the apartment and his car. He had insisted on UK rather than an Ivy League school like his father and brother. Rob told Colby on one of their many 'dates' to the local coffee house that he wanted to go to school close to the heart of the community where he planned to live and work. He was totally opposite to anything she imagined. His family was 'landed and gentry' to use old southern terms but Rob shook it off. He believed in hard work and listening to the people. He had accepted his family's help with his tuition but wanted his independence too, thereby he worked in one of his father's factories alongside the family man of four and learned the business from the employees' perspective. If you only saw his good looks you missed the person underneath. Colby just knew her dad would have enjoyed Rob's frankness and honesty. Colby herself had lived a comfortable life growing up in the suburbs of New York City. Her dad's business had afforded them the simple luxuries, not on the scale of Rob's family, but Colby never wanted for anything. She had been their surprise child coming very late in their marriage and both her parents doted on her. The emptiness she felt from their death two years before still caused her deep pain at times. Her first year at UK had been so difficult having lost them only a few short weeks before classes began. Except for a couple of maiden aunts in upper New York State Colby was alone. She had been taken with Lexington and the surrounding communities and decided that she would make this her home having nothing to return to in New York. So she spent her free time traveling throughout the city and the outlying countryside, becoming familiar with the land and the people. Financially she was secure. Her father had set up a trust fund for her and the money was available for her education. Upon graduation she would receive a small allotment each year until she was 30 at which time she would receive the bulk of her parents estate. With the knowledge that she could still pursue her studies, Colby set her mind to complete her education and make her parents proud. Voices faded in and out. She couldn't make them out. They were talking about her as if she wasn't in the room. They kept saying she was fine, just in shock. Shock from what, she didn't know. Everything was fine. She could see Rob he was laughing as he called to her. What started as a simple friendship became deeper as the months moved on. Rob and Colby spent all their free time together. They studied and went to the movies. Ate pizza and rooted the Wildcats to victory. Rob graduated and convinced his father to let him take over a small division of the company his father wanted to sell. Rob was sure he could turn it around and show a profit without forcing people out of their jobs and cutting back on production. He worked long, hard hours but never too long that he didn't make time to spend with Colby. At the end of her third year Rob surprised her with an engagement ring. Even though she had not expected it, Colby knew she loved him more than anything and wanted to spend the rest of her life with him. They planned the wedding to take place a month after Colby graduated. The planning of their wedding was almost their undoing though. On two occasions Colby stormed out of the Spencer home, even going so far the second time to giving Rob back her engagement ring. It took all his charm, calm reserve, gentleness and deep love for her to convince her that once they were married they could carve out a life for themselves away from the domineering presence of his family. Rob persuaded her to meet them half way. So reluctantly Colby let her wedding become one of the social events of Lexington. She still wasn't sure how they felt about her. They were cordial and greeted her warmly but Colby always sensed that they would have preferred someone different for Rob. Rob told her she was imagining things, but Colby would catch them watching her to see if she would slip up or something. So she did her best to be kind and attentive for Rob's sake. But the only warmth you felt in the Spencer household came from the fireplace! William Spencer took charge as if it was a business project, barking out instructions to everyone involved. She never saw him show any affection to either of his sons and his wife got the perfunctory kiss on the cheek when he saw her. Rob's mom was a dear woman, strong and independent, who accepted her husband and all his flaws. Colby noticed how when he came into a room her eyes would brighten yet she craved more than the sparse attention he gave her. She patted Colby's hand assuring her that it would be a beautiful wedding. And Garrett, well he was Rob's opposite. He was a carbon copy of his father, a shrewd businessman with a heart of steel. So all this fuss was something he would endure for the sake of the family. She felt a pinch on her arm. Voices again. She could hear Rob's mom questioning someone about her. She was fine a deep male voice told her. Of course she was fine. She could tell them if she wasn't so sleepy. I need to wake up and tell Rob about the baby, but her eyes were so heavy. His hand reached out to her. He looked so peaceful. There was a beautiful aura around him. Rob was true to his word. With the wedding behind them they moved into a beautiful house just outside the city limits. They didn't sever their ties with the family completely but they lived their own life, much to the dismay of William. Rob proved himself in the company and saw his hard work pay off. With some internal revamping the division he took over showed a small profit that first year and by the time they celebrated their fifth wedding anniversary the profit margin was staggering. His father didn't approve of the way Rob dealt with the employees, getting down on the production floor with them and on occasion working side by side with them. But it paid off. Production was up along with employee morale and everyone loved Rob. They held company picnics each year and a Christmas party. His father chided him on spending the money, but the ledger showed more receipts than expenditures and that was enough to keep his father at bay. Their life was perfect except for one thing. They weren't able to have a baby. In the beginning they just let nature take its course, but after a couple of years Colby sought a doctor's help. He assured her she was fine and not to worry. They took a Caribbean cruise and two months later Colby got confirmation from the doctor. She was pregnant. They were ecstatic and celebrated. William patted Rob on the back and talked about the next line of Spencer's to carry on the family business while Catherine cried and envisioned the sounds of a child's laughter ringing throughout the house. Their happiness was short lived when Colby suffered a miscarriage in her fifth month. They were both devastated and it took months for them to get over their loss. The room set aside for the nursery had been in the progress of being decorated and when Colby returned home from the hospital she closed the door blocking it out of her mind. It was hard but their life went on. Colby started her business and eventually the nursery door was opened and all the baby items were boxed and stored in the attic. Her small business thrived and she and Rob realized that maybe their lives held a different path than being parents. They traveled and shared their love of Wildcat basketball and the arts. They had come to terms with their inability to have a family when Colby got the surprise of her life. She kept her suspicions to herself and took a test at home. With positive results, she went to the doctor. They had called today to confirm her findings. And now she was going to tell… Suddenly she remembered Garrett and the police and… Oh no, no. It couldn't be. Rob was here she had seen him. He was all in white. Oh God, he was in white and there was that glow all around him. The realization of what happened hit her and she woke and sat up screaming out Rob's name. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Four people appeared at once. The Spencer family doctor was at Colby's side immediately checking her pulse and urging her to stay put. Garrett came around the other side of the bed to offer assistance but Colby pushed him away. She wanted nothing to do with him. It was his fault. He told her the news. She glared at him and he backed off. Yet he still sat on the edge of the bed. As the doctor prepared another syringe, Colby did her best to get out of the bed, but the medication from the last injection still left her sluggish and her energy was at a minimum. "Now Colby just relax," the doctor advised as she watched the liquid escape the needle. "No! Leave me alone. I don't want that. I can't," she screamed at him. "It might not be safe in my condition." She blurted the last part out not thinking. The doctor just stared and turned to look for some kind of support from the elder Spencer's. William nodded giving his consent to keep Colby sedated as long as necessary but Catherine stepped forward. "Don't," she said solidly. Her husband went to override her response when she looked him squarely in the eye. "William, Garrett, Dr. Hampton please leave us now. I need to talk with Colby privately." All three men started to speak at once, but she shooed them out of the room and locked the door behind them. Catherine came and sat on the edge of the bed. Colby was shaking and tears began to fall on her cheeks. Both women looked at each other and in one fluid movement they were in each other's arms, tears flowing as they wept for the loss of their beloved husband and son. As their tears subsided and Colby's sobs lessened, Catherine asked the question burning in her heart since Colby's comment. "Are you going to have a baby?" Her gaze was soft and loving. Colby had never seen such tenderness in her eyes before. "Yes, I was planning on telling Rob…" She couldn't finish the sentence. Catherine gathered her into her arms and rocked her like a small child. "Oh, my dear. Oh my." Catherine felt her eyes fill again. A grandchild, Rob's child. Her heart swelled with love for the unborn child. "Please Catherine, call my doctor. I need to make sure the baby is all right." Colby tugged at Catherine's arm. "Please?" Catherine nodded and placed the call. Within twenty minutes Colby's doctor arrived and confirmed that the baby was fine and that Colby should come in for a check up in a few days. They sat in silence after the doctor left. Both were lost in their thoughts. "I loved him more than anything." Colby looked at her mother-in-law, as the tears fell again. "I know you did dear. I knew it from the first time I met you. He was so special. I often wondered how he could be so different from his father and brother until I realized he was like my father in so many ways. And he loved you too, Colby. He talked about you incessantly. You were his life. And now he will live through your child." Catherine took her hand and held it tight. "I know we're not what you expected Colby and William and Garrett mean well in their own way. They just don't know how to show it. I'm here if you need me." Catherine placed a kiss on Colby's cheek and went to leave. "Wait, Catherine. " Colby reached for her hand. "I need a mother right now. Please?" She extended her arms. Catherine expelled a breath and sighed. "Oh Colby, my child." They embraced each other as their tears fell on the other's shoulders. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~ The last of the mourners left. It had been a long three days. Colby went through the motions and today they laid Rob to rest in the family plot. It was over and now the hard part began. Living. She put the plate of barely touched food on the table and went up to the bedroom. She packed up her things and started down the stairs when Catherine stopped her. "Colby? Where are you going?" She noticed her bag and a sadness crept into her eyes and voice. "You need to stay a few more days and rest." "I can't Catherine. I need to go home. I need to be there. You understand." Colby would miss her presence but she had to get out of this house. She needed to be around their things, hers and Rob's. "I'll call and come visit but I can't stay here." "Well, let Garrett take you." Catherine entreated knowing full well Colby didn't want anything to do with Garrett. "No. I've called a cab. I'll be fine. I'll call you later." She kissed the older woman just as they heard the car horn. William and Garrett appeared and questioned Colby's decision to leave as well. She ignored their attempts at getting her to stay, hugged Catherine and left. As the cab wound its way down the drive, she let out a sigh, relieved to be out of that house. She closed her eyes and tears began again and a soft sob escaped her mouth. "You just let her go." William demanded of his wife. "Why?" "William, she needs time alone. I would have loved her to stay but she needs some space. Time to grieve among her things in her own home." She saw that this man who had shared her life for 40 years had no idea what that young woman was experiencing. "She'll visit and call and keep us informed about the baby." Catherine assured him. "Oh don't worry. I'm going to see to that," William interjected. "Garrett, I need to talk to you." He motioned to his son to join him in the study. "William? What are you scheming?" his wife queried. There was a scowl on her face and suddenly she was very concerned about Colby. "Nothing my dear. Just doing what needs to be done for Rob's son," she glared at him, "or daughter. Don't worry yourself, my dear. Garrett and I will take care of everything." Catherine began to ascend the stairs when she turned and said to him, "That's what I'm afraid of William," she spoke in a steady, even voice. "Don't do anything to that girl, because if you do, you'll have to deal with me." With that she continued to the top of the stairs and entered their room. William and Garrett looked at each other, obviously unaffected by her words, as they both went into the study and closed the door. |