Winter Prey

Chapter 32

Chapter 32

Kymbria stroked Scarlet, who sat beside her as she gazed upon her tiny daughter and waited for her to wake up. Although she searched for it daily, the baby didn't appear to be developing a resemblance to either one of her parents. Perhaps a bit of Rick in that dimple in her chin, though Rick's dimple was definitely more prominent. And...she sighed. If she were honest, she couldn't really tell how much Marie's daughter had inherited of her mother's appearance. Kymbria hadn't paid much attention to Marie in the infrequent glimpses she'd had of her over the years after the other woman joined Rick's unit. There had been a couple joint Christmas parties, that one time at the German hospital....

She couldn't prevent herself from wondering once in a while what Rick would have wanted for his daughter, if he had lived. No doubt about one thing for sure. Rick had wanted a divorce to marry the mother of his child, take care of them, make a life with his new family. He'd want his daughter taken care of. Would he want Kymbria to be the one who did that?

Did she care? For some crazy reason, she did find herself wishing for his approval, even from the grave. Perhaps that feeling, too, was the beginning of some healing.

She couldn't completely forget the first years of their marriage; honestly, the majority of their time together. How much in love she and Rick had been, despite minor flare-ups now and then. Or, she had thought them minor, up until that last year or so. Still, the good times outweighed all that: trips and R&R together, the sharing, the companionship, the friendship between them, all part of the love they shared. She'd never been tempted to cheat on Rick, even during their periodic separations.

She couldn't hate him, although those last few days before he died, she'd thought hate her prevalent emotion. For something to do while she waited for Risa to open those beautiful eyes, she reached into her robe pocket to pull out the picture she'd found this morning when she cleaned out her purse. Every other picture of her and Rick's life together was in storage, but she'd forgotten about this one until long after the funeral. The one she carried in the hidden compartment, the one taken at the state fair where she and Rick had met.

She'd known the group of men were military. There was an air about them. She and a friend had finagled a day's leave from the base and gone alone, just wanting to get away for a while, away from the stress of dealing with patients. Half drunk on both beer and freedom, the men had spotted them and descended.

"You two look way too somber for such a festive atmosphere," the one she learned was Rick said, zeroing in on her. "I'll bet we can cheer you up."

Nearby was one of those photo booths that gave five pictures for each dollar deposited. Rick had drawn her in with him, closed the curtain, then teased and tickled her until she laughed. The strip of pictures had shown the two of them clowning and happy, heads together. Rick had wanted to keep all of them; she talked him out of one. The sepia tones had darkened somewhat over the years, but she still treasured it.

They'd dated, although right from the first, she informed him that she wasn't interested in any sort of permanent relationship. Then later, she'd even admitted that she was barren, although at the time, that was an attempt to widen the distance between them, which was closing in way too fast. She'd started missing him when they were apart, looking forward to seeing him again.

They'd made love. Even though she knew she would never marry, she wasn't about to lead a celibate life. But lovemaking with Rick was a lot more than she had counted on. More than sex, much more. A melding of their minds as well as their bodies.

He'd started asking her to marry him a month after they met. He counteracted all her objections, even her inability to become pregnant. It wasn't a good idea, anyway, he justified, to have children, given their career choices. They both were subject to tours in dangerous military hot zones. Should they change their minds later on down the road, Rick promised, they could adopt. They'd seen hundreds of children in need of homes over the years, both in the U.S. and during duty tours.