Six
Carter
Over the next few weeks, my company made leaps and bounds. Marshall Marketing became Marshall-Nudel Marketing, and we were in the process of revamping Nudel Marketing’s main building in Germany to turn it into our headquarters. The price had been paid, Nudel Marketing had been downsized to our specifications, and I had sent Logan over to Germany to train the staff left in the new techniques we were going to use. It had been a whirlwind over the past six weeks, but a great deal of weight had been lifted off my shoulders.
And things were wonderful with the kids.
Natasha was there every morning at five thirty. She had the kids eating breakfast by the time I came downstairs and always had a black coffee waiting for me with an apple. Her and the kids were off to school around the same time I left for work, and she was there every evening when I came home. She always had some form of dinner cooked, whether she cooked it herself or ordered out. And she always had a pitcher of that wonderful lemonade in the refrigerator for us to drink.
She had become part of our family, and we were all better for it.
“How are things going with Natasha?” Logan asked.
“I’m trying to find an appropriate way to thank you for bringing her into our life,” I said.
“I told you she was good with kids.”
“How are things in Germany?” I asked.
“I don’t know near enough to communicate in society around here, but I’m getting the hang of it. The training only started yesterday, but it looks promising. Not much here is different from how we do it, but a few things could be changed. The biggest changes are going to have to be to who’s employed where.”
“What do you mean?”
“We can’t have people with thick German accents picking up phone calls from our U.S.-based customers. They’ll never be able to understand one another,” he said. “So I’m having a company-wide meeting today to get everyone’s input on where they actually want to work in the company before I start switching around job titles.”
“Good luck with that,” I said. “Don’t blow things up before we can get it off the ground.”
“Don’t worry. I have a plan in place. Give me three weeks and I’ll have this place up and running the way it should be.”
“That’s why I sent you out there for it. Keep me in the loop.”
“Check your email and it won’t be that hard,” he said.
I hung up my office phone before my cell phone started ringing. It was Clara’s school, and I looked over at the clock to see what time it was. It was only ten thirty and the only reason they would be calling me was if they couldn’t get in touch with Natasha.
Was everything all right?
“Hello?” I asked.
“Mr. Marshall, it’s Mrs. Canny.”
“Hello there, Mrs. Canny. Is everything okay?”
“I’ve been trying to get Miss Natasha on the phone, but she isn’t picking up. Clara’s sick and I need someone to come get her.”
“Have you tried the house phone? Maybe her cell phone’s off,” I said.
“I don’t have your house number here. Only your cell, your work, and Natasha’s cell phone.”
“I’ll give the house a call and see if I can get her. If I can’t, I’ll leave work immediately. What’s going on with Clara?” I asked.
“It’s not that bad. A slight fever, she’s not eating her snack. She’s sleeping in the corner on one of our cots right now.”
“Yep. Sounds like she’s sick. Give me fifteen minutes and one of us will be there.”
“I’ll get her ready,” she said.
I hung up the phone and promptly called the house. Worry was bubbling in my gut. I couldn’t be upset for Natasha not keeping her cell phone by her, but during times like this I needed her to be available. Even though things with the merger were going well, there was still mounds of paperwork I had to take care of and get filed away and I couldn’t get it done if I was constantly having to track her down.
“Marshall residence, this is Natasha speaking.”
“It’s me,” I said.
“Carter?”
“Where’s your cell phone?” I asked.
“I’m having it replaced. Joshua had a bit of a tantrum this morning and my cell phone was collateral damage.”
“What?” I asked.
“Don’t worry about it. I’ve got it under control. It happens sometimes with kids, but I’m currently cell phone-less. Do you not remember me telling you that this morning?”
“Apparently not,” I said. “Listen, Clara’s sick. Her school just called.”
“What’s going on?” she asked.
“Small fever. Not eating. She’s sleeping through the day.”
“I’m grabbing my things right now. Carter, I’m so sorry. I’ll be at her school in ten minutes.”
“Calm down. Take a breath. I don’t want you behind the wheel of the car-”
The phone call went dead and I heaved a heavy sigh. Shit. Of course I would’ve missed a detail like that. Now the woman probably thought I was upset with her over not having her cell phone. I looked down at the paperwork on my desk and began to pack it up before a notification flashed on my computer.
Fuck. I had a damn investor’s meeting over lunch.
I packed everything in my briefcase and endured the grueling meeting. It was a bunch of rich men bitching about small things. Logan was video-conferenced in to help mitigate and answer their questions, but my mind was elsewhere.
I was worried about Natasha and Clara.
I rushed out of the meeting, taking my paperwork with me. I drove home like a bat out of hell, whipping through traffic and running through yellow lights. My daughter was sick and I wanted to be there for her. I wanted Natasha to know that I wasn’t upset with her for not having her cell phone.
I also wanted to have a talk with Joshua once he got home from school.
I parked my car and raced up to the porch. I barreled through the front door and tossed my briefcase of paperwork off to the side. I shrugged my coat off and hung it up, then strode up the stairs to Clara’s room.
“Clara?” I asked. “You awake, honey?”
But when I pushed her door open to see my sweet little princess, she wasn’t there.
Furrowing my brow, I went back downstairs. I knew Natasha was here because I had parked behind her, but I didn’t know where they were. I walked around upstairs, thinking maybe they had fallen asleep in one of the guest rooms.
But it wasn’t until I made my way into the living room that I found them.
The two of them were fast asleep on the couch. Natasha was propped up with some pillows and Clara’s face was smashed into her chest. Natasha was cradling her close, protecting my daughter even while she slept.
I grinned at the scene as I pulled a blanket from one of the chairs.
I fluttered it over their bodies, but the sensation woke Natasha up. She jerked and her eyes flew open, and I jumped back as she shot up. Her arm was held up in front of her face and she tucked Clara into the crook of the couch. Protected between her body and the couch cushions.
And she was panting for air.
Like I had startled her.
“It’s just me,” I said.
Natasha’s eyes grew wide as she whipped her head over to me. She looked down at Clara who was still sound asleep against her body. She quickly put her arm down and raked her hands through her beautiful brown hair, and I saw the fear still percolating behind her eyes.
Who did she think I was?
What had she been reacting to?
“Sorry,” Natasha said breathlessly. “I didn’t hear you come in.”
“Just wanted to make you guys comfortable,” I said.
“Let’s go get Clara in her bed. I think she’s going to sleep the majority of the day.”
I helped Natasha off the couch before I gathered my daughter in my arms. I could feel her hot on my heels as the two of us walked up the stairs. I settled my daughter into her bed and Natasha tucked her in, then leaned over and kissed my her heated cheek.
It felt natural to do this with Natasha.
Like she was a part of our family.
“Should we get her to a doctor?” I asked.
“Let’s talk in the hallway,” she said.
The two of us stepped out of Clara’s room and I shut her door behind me.
“I took her straight to the doctor after I picked her up,” Natasha said.
“What did Dr. Rosenbaum say?” I asked.
“They drew a bit of blood and took a urine sample to make sure there was no infection or anything, and after ruling all that out he thinks it’s simply the changing of the seasons. Tylenol to help with the fever, Benadryl at night to help her sleep, and I’m steaming her sinuses over the sink to open her up.”
“You’re what?” I asked.
“It’s when someone boils water and then pours it into the sink. The steam comes up, Clara breathes it in, and she drains. I’m teaching her how to blow her nose with it.”
“And she lets you do that,” I said.
“Eh, she’s a bit combative with it, but it works. I’m not a fan of pumping her full of medication at such a young age.”
“Neither is Dr. Rosenbaum, which is why I like him. And if it works, then it works.”
I stayed with Clara while Natasha went to go get the boys from school. We settled into our afternoon routine of letting the boys rest before they did their homework. I insisted we order pizza for dinner so Natasha could have a break, and after a little argument about it she finally relented.
She helped the boys with their homework while I woke Clara up to drink some water, then all of us settled at the table for dinner.
Clara didn’t eat much. She was more thirsty than anything. I felt terrible that she didn’t feel well. Clara slid from her chair and walked over to Natasha, then crawled in her lap and burrowed into her body.
I watched Natasha rock my daughter side to side in her arms while we all ate dinner.
“I’ll clean this up and get the boys to bed,” I said.
“I’m going to steam Clara’s sinuses one more time before I put her down. Then I’ll head out,” Natasha said.
I watched her get up and leave with Clara and the boys helped me clear the dinner table. I was proud of them for taking some responsibility for their dirty dishes. Nathaniel pulled out tupperware in the lower cabinets to put the pizza in and Joshua stacked the dishes in the sink. They had grown to be big helpers around the house ever since Natasha came six weeks ago.
While I tucked Joshua in we had a serious discussion about Natasha’s cell phone. And how he would do extra chores for the next two weeks to “pay” for it. He cried a little, mostly because he was embarrassed, but still progress.
I tucked Nathaniel in and found Natasha gathering her things at the front door. I walked over to her and put my hand on the small of her back. She looked up at me with those beautiful amber eyes and a smile blossomed across her face.
“She didn’t fight this time.”
“That’s good,” I said.
“Her mucus is still pretty cloudy, but that’s to be expected for something like this. If it changes to yellow or green, I’m going to have to take her back to the doctor,” she said.
“Whatever you have to do. I trust you,” I said.
“How did the boys go down?”
“Just fine, thanks to you.”
“I didn’t put them down tonight. You did.”
“Yes, but you’ve transformed them over the past six weeks.”
Her eyes fluttered up to mine as my hand reached up to cup her cheek.
“You’ve transformed all of us,” I said.
Her eyes danced between mine as I guided my lips to hers. I watched her eyes flutter closed as her hand came up and wrapped around my wrist. My lips settled onto hers in a soft kiss and I felt fire shoot up my spine. She tasted like tomatoes and lemonade, and the feel of her skin underneath mine made me feel powerful.
Strong.
Commanding.
A small whimper escaped from her lips. She opened for me, allowing my tongue entrance as I backed her into the door. Her body was pinned against me. Trapped between the large double doors of my house and my body. Her hands slid up my chest, gripping the fabric of my tailored shirt.
She deepened the kiss. Tilting her head off to the side as our tongues danced. And I knew then and there I had to have her.
I couldn’t let her leave without feeling her skin against mine.