my feet hit their target. It was short lived as the deceptive marsh gave way beneath my feet and I went down into the freezing water.
It turns out I didn’t need Google after all. I figured out what a flotant was all on my own.
Chapter One
Wednesday
Two Days Earlier…
On a scale of one to awesome, marriage was right up there with the Constitution, orgasms, and free samples at Costco.
I’d been married to Nick Dempsey for a little over a month, and we’d spent most of that time in a tiki hut on the water in Tahiti. Neither of us had tan lines, which should tell you a little something about how we spent most of our time.
On this particular morning, the marriage part of being married was amazing. It was the tiny person growing inside of me that I wanted to file a complaint to the manager about.
“Are you feeling better?” Nick asked, wrapping my hands around a mug of hot tea. “I brought you some toast.”
“You’re the best,” I said and meant it. I tried not to look at the toast. I might as well have thrown it directly in the toilet.
“It seems like the least I could do, considering.” The corner of his mouth twitched.
I’d hit the jackpot with Nick. He was movie-star handsome with dark hair and Irish blue eyes. He had a body sculpted by the gods, a wicked sense of humor, and he lived to serve and protect. And best of all, he’d chosen me.
“It seems unfair that men get to have all the fun of making the baby, but they don’t get the pleasure of the vomiting, hemorrhoids, and irrational mood swings.”
“Yeah,” he said, his smile going wider. “It’s a real bummer. I appreciate you taking one for the team.”
“You’re hilarious,” I said.
“I’ve been told that before.” He leaned down and kissed my forehead. “Are you going back to bed or are you getting up?”
I thought about it for a second. I was tempted to curl back up under the covers and sleep the morning away. Growing a person was exhausting. But I saw Nick was dressed in dark gray slacks, a royal-blue shirt, and a blue-and-gray-checked silk tie. He wore his shoulder holster and his badge was clipped at his belt.
We’d been home from our honeymoon for three days, and it had been magical. We hadn’t told a soul we were back, and we’d spent our time watching movies, eating whatever we wanted, and making love. But today was his first day back at work, and the party had to end.
“I’m getting up,” I said, tossing back the covers. “I’m told my energy will come back eventually.”
“Yeah, in eighteen years,” he said cheerfully. “Come on, you can walk me out.”
He grabbed his sport coat, and I looked out the window at the miserable weather. We’d had nothing but clear skies and warm days in Tahiti, only to come back to the longest and coldest winter Georgia had ever had. It was still in the upper thirties, and the precipitation couldn’t decide between drizzle and slush. Whatever was falling from the sky, the clouds were gray and it was cold and nasty.
I looked down at my flannel pajama pants and white T-shirt and stuck my feet into the slippers next to the bed. I shuffled after Nick down the stairs and watched him fill his to-go cup with coffee. He took a sip, grabbed his bag and his keys, and took his long wool coat from the hall closet.
I eyed him up and down, and then caught him staring at me. “Are you sure you have to go into work today?” I asked. “I could have all of those very nice clothes off of you in thirty seconds.”
“As tempting as that is, you should probably brush your teeth first.”
“Huh,” I said, pressing my lips together.
“But I’ll take a raincheck for later.” He grabbed the umbrella out of the stand, and I opened the front door for him. “Oh, and I should probably mention that there’s a taxi sitting out front. You might want to see what that’s about.”
I narrowed my eyes and looked past him into the dreary mist. Sure enough, there was a yellow taxicab idling behind his truck.
“How long has it been there?” I asked.
“It pulled up just as I was moving the truck from the garage.”
“And you just left it there?” I asked, suspicious.
“I wanted to make sure you were up to visitors,” he said. “And then I forgot it was out