Breaking Brandi (16 page)

She supposed he was awkward because he
hadn’t gotten a lot of hugs when he was young.

Actually, probably none.

It occurred to her abruptly that, just as
she’d been raised to think and act like a free person, Ulrich had
probably been taught to submit from the time he was born, to expect
no consideration and no freedom—even of thought.

Until the moment that occurred to her she
hadn’t considered how much it must have taken for Ulrich to go
against everything that had been pounded into him from birth—to
think
differently.

Of course, she didn’t know if he’d decided
that it was wrong that the sect of Nhewa demanded that he submit
his woman and she submit her body to their desires or if he’d
simply decided she belonged to him and he wasn’t going to
share.

She didn’t suppose it mattered. The result
was that she was free of the religious nuts and he was—the world
was, she supposed.

Ulrich hadn’t talked about it, of course,
but she figured, considering how bad he’d looked,
they
had
to look worse. Beyond that, she didn’t think he would’ve come back
if he’d thought there was any chance they were still after him and
would follow him to his special place.

He’d brought her and left her to keep her
safe. She didn’t believe he would’ve risked her after going to that
much trouble to protect her.

She became more certain that she’d correctly
interpreted the situation as the days passed into weeks and the
weeks into months.

Not that she was really aware of the passing
time for the most part. They worked from daylight to dusk on
producing the things they needed for survival and comfort. It was a
learning experience for her—a hands on training period that she was
grateful for when she wasn’t too tired to think at all. Because the
more adept she became, the more skills she learned, the easier her
life was and the more secure she felt that she
could
survive
whether Ulrich was there or not.

Oddly enough, the more certain she was that
she’d developed the survival skills she needed, the less inclined
she was to consider escaping.

She never consciously decided to stay with
Ulrich. She simply accepted that she was where she wanted to
be.

The only timekeeping she did at all was to
keep a rough tally of the days between her periods. She never
allowed herself to acknowledge
why
she was keeping tabs when
she had no birth control, but when, after nearly a year with
Ulrich, she missed a period and felt a surge of joy and excitement,
she knew.

And she was still cautious about accepting
until she’d missed a second period.

And her waist began to fill out and her
belly to take on a decidedly basketball shape.

She didn’t know how long it took Ulrich to
notice but there was more concern than joy in his eyes when he
examined the growing mound. “What is dis?”

“What?” Brandi asked, teasing.

His frown deepened as he examined her. “You
are skinny everywhere but in dis place.”

Indignation deflated Brandi’s mood. “I am
not
skinny!” she said irritably, but then she really noticed
his expression for the first time. “You aren’t happy about it?”

He looked at her like she’d lost her mind.
“I should be happy?” he asked cautiously.

She let out an irritated huff. “You
said
you wanted a baby!” she snapped.

He turned as white as a sheet. For a few
moments she thought he was going to pass out. “This is … this is
…?”

“Well, obviously I can’t guarantee that it’s
a son, but it’s definitely a baby!”

He looked torn then. “You are certain?”

Brandi frowned. “What did you think it
was?”

He shrugged. “Something growing ….”

That
was why he’d looked so
anxious?

She decided to forgive him for his lack of
enthusiasm. “Well it
is
something growing. It’s a baby—which
is a good thing. I think so anyway. I’m happy about it. I’d hoped
you would be.”

A slow grin spread across his face.
Abruptly, he grabbed her and squeezed her so tightly she began to
think he was going to squeeze the baby out the bottom and her brain
out the top of her head.

The man didn’t know his own strength!
Instead of complaining, though, she hugged him back and then, when
he allowed his arms to drop, she lifted her hands and placed them
on his cheeks to frame the face she’d come to think of as being one
of the dearest to her heart, ever. “It might sound crazy, but I’m
pretty sure I love you.”

His face turned so red she was almost sorry
she’d said it. “You tink?”

Brandi felt a sudden urge to cry at the
mixture of doubt and hopefulness she saw in his expression. She
lifted up on her tiptoes, pulling at him to urge him to meet her
half way and kissed him on the mouth. “Yeah. I think so. We’ll give
it a few years and see, ok?”

He studied her face and nodded. “I tink I
love you also.”

Brandi burst out laughing. “You think?”

He frowned. “I am not sure. What does it
feel like?”

Brandi studied him, trying to figure out how
to explain it, feeling her love for him expand in her chest like a
hot air balloon. “Like the joy of coming home,” she said
finally.

The End.