A Bridge to Love (30 page)

“Randall,
they've got half the highway stopped for us.”

He
surveyed the scene. “So they do. Let's go take a look at their car.”

The
soles of Kate's feet were beginning to throb painfully, but she was not about
to lose the comfort of Randall's arm around her shoulders, so she bit her lip
and matched his stride.

Men
in uniforms and suits were swarming around a sedan pulled up against the
railing farther along the bridge. “Don't touch anything please, sir. But take a
look in the back. Does that mean anything to you?” an officer asked.

Randall
drew Kate down with him as he bent to peer into the shadows of the car's
interior. There on the backseat, coiled like a rattlesnake about to strike, lay
a bullwhip. Kate instantly remembered Gill Gillespie's earlier comment. She had
a sudden horrifying vision of Randall's back bleeding under the lash of it. It
was with amazement that she heard him say, “No, I have no idea why they'd have
a whip in the car.”

She
opened her mouth to protest, but she felt his arm tighten around her shoulders
in a silent command. So she changed the subject by saying to the policeman,
“May I please sit down? My feet are sore from climbing around on the bridge.”

Instantly,
she was swept up into Randall's arms. “I'm so sorry, darlin'. I forgot about
your bare feet. Let's get you into a warm car.”

“I
can walk,” Kate said without much conviction.

Randall
ignored her and strode over to the Jaguar. It seemed to crouch against the
barrier. Depositing her gently in the front seat, he said, “Turn on the heat
and stay here while I talk to the police. I'll get us out of here as soon as
possible.”

“Wait,
Randall. Gill must have sent those men with the whip. Why didn't you tell them
that?”

“I'll
deal with Gill privately. And I promise you that he will never bother us
again.”

Randall's
expression left no doubt in her mind that she would never again encounter Gill
Gillespie in this lifetime. Having chosen not to destroy the man once, she
supposed that he was again protecting Lucinda and her family from public
disgrace. However, she found it much harder to be sympathetic after her
experience tonight.

As
the heat blasted and her shivering subsided, Kate watched Randall walk over to
the man who appeared to be directing the operation. After a brief exchange, the
man nodded and waved a uniformed policeman over to escort Randall back to his
car. “Are you sure that you don't want someone to drive you home, sir?” the
officer asked as Randall slid into the driver's side.

“Thanks,
but I'll be fine. I'll see you all in the morning,” he said, shifting into
gear.

“Go
slowly,” Kate said as Randall pulled onto the roadway.

He
looked questioningly at her.

“I've
never been the only car on the bridge,” she explained. “I want to enjoy the
view.”

He
started to laugh. “You are a strange woman, Kate Chilton. After what you've
just been through, you want to look at a bridge.”

“It
took care of us, didn't it?”

“I
guess it did.” He looked around himself. “Look at the size of those cables.”

As
the Jaguar rolled majestically down the middle of the empty lanes, Kate
silently gave her own thanks to the great span of concrete and steel. It had
not only protected her, but it also had given her the answer to an important
question.

They
enjoyed the view in silence until they passed the tollbooths spread across the
eastbound lanes. Then Kate spoke. “I'm sorry I lost it on the fence.”

Randall
reached for her hand. “You saved my life, darlin', or at least my back. You
don't have anything to apologize for.”

Kate
turned her hand into his and held on. “Do you think they meant to kill us?”

“I
don't know, but I'm sure as hell glad not to have found out.”

“Me,
too.”

They
cruised along the highway at what seemed a snail's pace after their earlier
headlong flight. Kate looked down at their clasped hands. Despite the fact that
Randall's hand dwarfed hers, she felt no threat from his strength. Instead she
drew comfort from it as she had on the bridge. She shifted her gaze to the road
unfurling before them. “Randall? You know that proposal that you made and
withdrew earlier in the week?”

“Yes.”

Kate
glanced toward him out of the corner of her eyes. He was grinning.

“Would
you be willing to, um, put it on the table again?”

“Consider
it reissued.”

“You're
not making this easy,” she complained, then grabbed for the door handle as the
Jaguar swerved off the road and came to a sudden halt on the shoulder.

Randall
put the parking brake on and leaned back against his door with his arms
crossed. “I think we have some negotiating to do, but I'm willing to make an
agreement in principle.”

“What
does that mean?” Kate asked, crossing her arms in turn.

“Will
you marry me?”

“Yes.”

“That's
an agreement in principle. In a business deal, we'd shake hands and let the
lawyers work out the details,” he said, reaching for her and somehow dragging
her around the gearshift and onto his lap. “In this deal, there will be no
lawyers, and I can do a hell of a lot better than a handshake.”

Kate
snuggled happily against his chest as he enfolded her in his arms. “I love you,
darlin',” he said into her hair. “I keep forgetting to say that at the critical
moment.”

Kate
raised her head, knowing that her feelings were plain in her eyes. “I love you,
too. I knew that, but it wasn't until tonight that I trusted you.”

His
half-smile vanished. Kate felt the heat of his focused gaze as he said, “I
promise I will never give you cause to regret your decision.”

“I'm
not worried,” she said with a soft smile, “because I know this is a good deal.”

She
had no time to see if Randall smiled back, because his mouth came down on hers
and all she could do was
feel
.

Passing
cars regularly rocked the Jaguar with the wind they created, but it was a long
time before the sleek car purred back onto the highway.

A Year Later...

“I'm home,” Kate said, dropping
onto the mudroom bench to unlace her work boots.

Clay
and Patrick thundered down the stairs. “Hey, Mom! Is everything ready for
tonight?” Patrick asked.

“It
looks like it,” Kate said as she wiggled her freed toes. “We just have to cross
our fingers that the precast roadbed arrives. I've checked with the shipper
about four times today, and they swear it's on schedule.”

“Are
we really going to be on television?” Patrick said, dancing with excitement.

“Stick
with me, kid, and you'll be on camera,” Kate promised. “Hi, Georgia,” she
greeted her friend who had followed the boys at a more leisurely pace. “Thanks
so much for coming.”

“I
wouldn't have missed this for the world. It's not every day that you get to
christen a brand new bridge. And I want to be on television too,” she said,
ruffling Patrick's hair.

He
bore it with an embarrassed grin. “I'll bet that Randall's helicopter will be
on TV. He says he's flying in from the airport just in time to see the
ribbon-cutting.”

Kate
reached down to put her boots under the bench so she missed the significant
glances exchanged among Georgia, Clay and Patrick. “Let's hope his plane from
Tokyo gets in on time,” she said, as she straightened.

“You
have your choice of pizza or lasagna for dinner,” Georgia said, opening the
oven in which two dishes were warming.

“Pizza,”
Kate said. “I don't have the energy to cut the lasagna.”

“You
eat and then go right upstairs to get dressed. I'll clean up and make sure
these two young hooligans look respectable,” Georgia said.

Kate
followed her advice. When she sat down on the bed to pull off her socks, she
allowed herself the luxury of flopping backward to close her eyes for a few
minutes.

What
a year it had been! Her bridge was going to be completed tonight amid much
fanfare from the press and the politicians. The politicians loved it because
the project was on time and on budget. Not a single commuter had been
inconvenienced as the traffic flowed uninterrupted under the new construction.
In fact, the old bridge would still be carrying cars up until nine o'clock this
evening. Then the barricades would go up and the detour signs would be
uncovered for just twelve hours. Any late drivers would be rerouted through a
nearby town as the cranes and pavers worked through the night. By Sunday
morning, traffic would once again cruise straight along the highway and over
her creation, the old bridge beneath already forgotten. If she hadn't been so
bone weary, she would have been leaping around the room with joy.

She
desperately hoped that Randall would be there. He had assured her that his trip
to Japan was unavoidable, but she had missed him this week. She hadn't had time
to visit the big rambling Victorian he had bought to replace Eagle's Nest, and
she wondered how the kitchen renovation was progressing. She blushed as she
remembered how the general contractor had almost caught them as they made love
on the new window seat. Randall liked to try out all the home improvements in his
own way.

Once
the bridge and the house were finished, they had a wedding to plan. A small
one, but Randall wanted it done right. She smiled as she thought about her
hard-nosed CEO wanting a romantic ceremony. While he sometimes surprised her
with his sentiment, he still drove a hard bargain.

She
remembered their argument about her engagement ring. Randall had wanted to get
her a major diamond. Kate had preferred a more modest ring that she wouldn't
feel ostentatious wearing. So they had agreed “in principle” on the smaller
ring and then Randall had bought her a matching pin and earrings. When the
saleswoman tried to show him a bracelet, he said, “I don't give diamond
bracelets anymore.”

Kate
laughed and sat up. She had to shower and change. Her mood of taking stock
stayed with her as she worked her shampoo into a lather. This time Oliver came
to mind. She had not seen him for months after the Beaux Arts Ball. He had even
absented himself from the final signing of the partnership sale papers. Then
one day he had called to say that C/R/G was opening a branch office in Boston,
and he was moving there. Even as her throat tightened with regret, she had
breathed a sigh of relief. Now she could begin to remember him as a friend. She
rinsed away her sad thoughts along with her soap bubbles and stepped out of the
shower.

When
she slipped on the jacket of her wonderful new russet-colored suit, she once
again felt on top of the world. She had decided that she owed herself a great
outfit to wear in her great moment and this was it. The wool was so fine that
it felt almost like silk. The double-breasted jacket fit her like a glove,
emphasizing all the right curves without being blatant about it. A cream silk
blouse draped softly in the vee of the jacket. She had to wear low-heeled shoes
since she would have to walk around the construction site after the press
conference, but she had splurged on new flats in a rich brown. She fastened a
heavy gold circle pin on her lapel and added gold twisted knots to her ears.

“Dynamite!”
Georgia said when Kate came back down the stairs. “You'll be the best-looking
engineer there.”

Kate
laughed. Then she whistled in appreciation as Clay and Patrick appeared in the
kitchen. They were wearing navy blue blazers over khaki slacks. Clay's yellow
paisley tie looked elegant against his light blue shirt. Patrick wore a pink
shirt paired with a tie sporting an eye-popping pattern of electric blue and
purple.

“You
guys look so handsome. Did Randall take you shopping?”

“Yeah,
he didn't really like my tie,” Patrick said, “but he had promised we could pick
out our own. I think it's cool.”

“As
long as you wear sunglasses,” Clay said.

Patrick
punched him halfheartedly in the shoulder.

Kate
slung her pocketbook over her shoulder and grabbed her car keys. “Let's go,
gang.”

“I
think you should look out the front window,” Georgia said.

Kate
threw her a questioning glance and walked into the living room. She pulled
aside the lace curtain to see a long black limousine parked across her
driveway. Kate rolled her eyes in a mixture of amusement and exasperation.
“Sometimes Randall gets a little ridiculous. I'm perfectly capable of driving
to the bridge myself.”

“He
knows that, but he thought it was a special occasion,” Georgia said.

“So
you knew about this, and you didn't warn me?”

Georgia
smiled mysteriously. “I know lots of things.”

“I
should tell the driver to go home and take the minivan anyway,” Kate muttered
but she knew she wouldn't do it.

The
boys spent the beginning of the trip pushing every button in the limousine to
see how the roof opened, the lights flashed, the television worked, and what
the bar had in it. Kate refused to let them make a call from the car's built-in
telephone.

When
they had finished their explorations, Patrick poured himself a Coca-Cola, and
after taking a sip, leaned back and said, “So Mom, you and Randall are going to
get married now that the bridge is done, right?”

“That's
the plan,” Kate said.

“And
we'll move into the new house?”

“As
soon as the workmen are out.”

“Should
we start calling Randall 'Dad'?”

Kate
was taken aback. She glanced at Georgia who just raised her eyebrows and
smiled. Kate and Randall had held long discussions about his relationship with
the boys. He planned to adopt them but he didn't want to force anything on them
that they weren't prepared to accept. So they had told Clay and Patrick to call
him by his first name.

“Would
you like to call him 'Dad'?” Kate asked carefully.

Patrick
looked at his older brother. “Well, we don't want to upset you, and we weren't
sure how Randall would feel about it; but if he's married to you, we think that
he should be 'Dad,'“ Clay said.

Tears
pricked Kate's eyes. “He'd be honored if you would call him that.”

“Cool,”
Patrick said. “My dad owns a helicopter,” he tried out.

“Don't
be a dork,” Clay said.

“You
know,” Kate said, “it would be really nice if you would tell Randall what you
just said to me.”

“No
problem,” Clay said.

As
they rolled onto the temporary parking area at the bridge site, Kate felt that
her day could not possibly get any better. She could see the silver and blue RJ
Enterprises helicopter sitting squarely in the middle of the southbound lanes
of the new bridge. Randall was here. She opened the limousine's door before the
driver could do it for her and jumped out to look for her fiancé.

“Hello,
darlin',” he said, magically appearing at her side.

Kate
threw herself into his arms and kissed him. “I'm so glad you made it on time. I
missed you so much. How was your trip?”

His
arms locked around her and he kissed her back for a long time. Randall used her
hair to mask a quick nip on her neck. “This is torture for a man who's been
away from you for a week.” He released her and Kate got a chance to survey the
scene.

The
arrays of construction floodlights bathed the bridge in a brilliant white glow
so the crew could see to work. Kate checked that the giant cranes were in
position to lift and deposit the last eight pieces of the roadbed in place. The
slip form pavers stood ready to smooth the connection between the old highway
and the new bridge. A police cruiser sat ready to coordinate the closing of the
road.

Beyond
that she saw Lieutenant Governor Lidden Hartley's entourage clustered around a
table laden with drinks and sandwiches. The construction crew lounged by the
bulldozers. Kate waved to the foreman who had become a good friend during the
project.

Her
brow creased when she saw Denise Costanza and her three boys standing next to
Janine Tanner, the helicopter pilot, who was chatting with Brigid. Tom Rogan
emerged from the driver's seat of a car at the same time that a man who
appeared to be a priest got out of the passenger side. Tom nodded to her with a
grin and then escorted the priest onto the bridge. Halfway across the
structure, rows of white folding chairs were neatly arrayed between huge
baskets of flowers.

Kate
turned back to Randall. “What's going on? What's Tom doing here?”

“He's
my best man,” Randall said.

“What?”
Kate squeaked.

“He's
my best man,” Randall repeated patiently.

Kate
glared at him.

“Having
second thoughts about marrying me?” Randall asked.

“Only
at times like this,” she said.

“This
is your last chance to have them, darlin'. Once you say 'I do,' you're stuck
with me for life.”

Kate
softened instantly. “I'm counting on it.”

Randall
smiled in a way that made her want to laugh and cry at the same time. He strode
around to the limousine's trunk and came back to hand her a bouquet of yellow
and peach roses.

“I
love you,” Kate said.

“I'm
counting on it,” Randall said, offering the bride his arm. The entire assemblage
of people – the lieutenant governor, construction crew and all – moved to the
folding chairs and waited.

As
Randall and Kate stepped onto the bridge, bagpipes skirled to life behind them.
Randall looked down at her with an expression so filled with love that Kate
could hardly breathe.

“You've
built your bridge, darlin'. Now we're going to cross it together.”

The End