the surge of affection for his new son, any more than he could hold back his feelings for her. They were part of the fiber that made him who he was. From this day forward, he would never be the same again; he knew it as surely as he'd ever known anything in his life.
Glancing one last time at his sleeping wife, Jason carried his son to the hammock in the corner. Carefully he climbed in and lay on his back, the baby resting on his chest. Both hands securely around the infant, he closed his eyes, dreaming of the years to come, years of watching his son grow and teaching him the things his own father had never taught him. Before long he settled into a peaceful sleep, the first he had known in seventeen years.
Jason steered the small boat through the early morning quiet. The river spread before it, as smooth and benign as silk. Peaceful, serene.
Caroline lay sleeping in the bed he'd left on deck, her left arm in a sling lying beneath her breasts. Her strong, rhythmic breathing caused the injured arm to rise and fall gently. Her long, dark hair spread around her white face, mangled and matted with mud, despite his efforts to clean it.
Cradled in her right arm, she held their sleeping son against her warm, soft body. Jason's stomach did a somersault as emotions pummeled him faster than he could repel them, piercing his every defense—pride, love, tenderness.
The baby moved, and Caroline's eyes flew open immediately. Jason jerked his head away before she could read the undisguised emotion in his eyes, before she could see into his soul. But they drew him like a magnet, this woman -and child, this perfection.
Against his will, he turned to gaze at them once again, and Caroline smiled weakly.
"How do you feel?" he asked, his voice strange in his own ears.
"Tired," she murmured.
Caroline drew the child to her breast, gasping as the tiny mouth closed over her tender nipple. Awkwardly, she supported the babe against her shoulder so she could caress his head with her good hand. Her eyes glazed with an emotion that touched him like a shadow.
His own feelings must pale when compared to hers. She'd known this child for nearly nine months, carried him beneath her heart, felt him move inside her body. They were still connected in a way that made him feel like an outsider, an observer with no part in the miracle.
He turned away from the warmth reflected in her eyes. Within minutes, his own pier would come into view and they would be faced with the same world they had left behind two days ago. The same problems would be waiting for them. But for a few more minutes, he reveled in the closeness that had grown between them last night.
When he glanced at Caroline again, both mother and child were asleep.
"Caroline," he murmured. He hated to wake her, but they would be docking soon and she needed to cover her exposed breast and prepare herself before they met the rest of the world.
"Caroline," he said more insistently.
Smiling languidly, she opened her eyes, and the love and contentment reflected there took his breath away.
"We'll be docking soon," he told her. "I think you should, ah—"
Suddenly, inexplicably embarrassed, he could only gesture toward her exposed flesh. She understood and drew her blouse together awkwardly, a touch of pink staining her cheeks.
"We should name him, you know," she said weakly.
"There's plenty of time for that," he assured her, concentrating on the river now that there was, blessedly, something to take his attention away from the yearning in his chest. "We can talk about it when you've regained your strength."
They accomplished the rest of the journey in silence. As they drew near, the pier exploded in activity. Men had already gathered and had begun preparations to send a search party after them. Now they stood at the end of the dock, craning their necks to see whether he was returning alone.
"I see a Senhora!" someone shouted, and a cheer went up from the small group.
Jason scowled, even though his heart swelled with pride at their admiration. Cutting the engine, he moved to the side of the boat and tossed a thick rope to one of the men on the shore. Quickly the boat was secured and boarded.
"Easy," Jason said as the men tried to crowd around Caroline. "She's still weak."
Ines shouldered her way through the silent, gaping men. "My poor Senhora!"
"Take the