Chapter Nineteen:

Nora sat up and shifted on the bed so that she was looking at Bo. He could sense that there was something bothering her, “Honey, what’s wrong.”

“We need to talk about Matthew…about what happened while he was gone.”

“They didn’t hurt him did they?”

“No…not physically”, she lays her hand on his; “No, it’s nothing like that. He’s afraid you’re going to die and he thinks that it’s his fault that you were so sick.”

“Why would he think that?”

“He thinks it’s his fault because he believed Gabrielle’s lies.” Bo looks at her questioningly, “She told him that,” her voice begins to crack as she thinks about the pain their little boy must’ve been in; thinking he’d lost his parents once again, “She told him that we had died. That God had taken us from him and that God had given him to her to be her new son. He thinks that because he believed her, and he didn’t try to run away, that it’s his fault you had to share your liver with him. He hasn’t said this but I think he overheard the doctor when we were discussing your fever and he thought you were going to die.”

Nora could see the anger in his eyes and she wanted to make it go away. She leaned in and kissed him, before she stood up, “Well I told Matthew that I would bring him in here as soon as you woke up so that he could see for himself that you were okay.” Nora leaned in and kissed him once more before leaving for Matthew’s room.

Matthew’s eyes lit up when Nora walked in the room, “Is daddy awake now?”

“He sure is sweetie and he can’t wait to see you.”

Asa scooped Matthew up and carried him over to Bo’s room. Bo looked up and smiled his “dad” smile as Asa set Matthew down on Bo’s bed. Nora snaked her arm through Asa’s and looked back over at Bo and Matthew, “We’ll leave the two of you alone. We’ll be out in the hallway.”

Bo waited until Nora and Asa left before motioning for Matthew to sit next to him against the pillow. Bo leaned down and kissed the top of Matthew’s head, which lay against his shoulder. They sat there for a few minutes in silence. After a few more minutes Matthew sat up and looked up at his father, “Are you going to die?”

Bo reached out and pulled Matthew back against him and hugged him tight, “No, champ. I’m not going to die. Your old dad here is going to be just fine.”

“You promise?”

“I promise.”

Matthew nodded and reached out and slipped his hand inside of Bo’s. They sat together like that until they both fell into a peaceful sleep. Nora found them in that exact place when she stuck her head back in the door a few minutes later. She smiled and walked over to the bed. She pulled the blankets up and covered them before leaning in and kissing Matthew on the cheek. She walked around the other side of the bed and kissed Bo lightly on the lips. She stood there for a moment, watching them sleep falling more and more in love with the father of her children, and feeling more and more blessed to have Matthew in her life.

*~*

Matthew and Bo were released a week later. They quickly settled back into their lives as they waited for the baby’s arrival and the upcoming trial. The case had been turned over to one of the senior ADA’s and Nora trusted him to present a firm case against those involved in Matthew’s kidnapping. Matthew was getting stronger and stronger every day and he soon returned to school.

Nora had been placed on bed rest shortly after they had come home from Argentina. The stress of the kidnapping and the weeks in the hospital worrying about Bo and Matthew had finally taken its toll on her and she had gone into premature labor. Luckily Dr. Conklin had been successful and they had stopped the labor before it progressed too far but she was restricted to bed and had to turn over all pending cases to the same ADA that was handling the kidnapping trial. She hated to be confined to bed for the next two months but if it meant bringing the baby into the world without the problems Matthew had had she would do it.

Bo had returned to the LPD a few days after they came home. He was working on a case that was keeping him extremely busy and at the station from early in the morning until late at night. He would come home most nights well after midnight. He would come home each night, check on Matthew and then carefully slip into bed beside her. Most mornings he was gone before she woke, a quick note left on his pillow telling her how much he loved her and that he would try to come home early…but coming home early never happened.

Nora woke early one morning and found Bo sitting on the edge of the bed rubbing his hands over his face in frustration. Nora sat up and moved closer to him laying her arm around his shoulder, laying her head against his other shoulder, “Penny for your thoughts, Commish.”

Bo sighed, knowing she wanted to be there for him but he couldn’t tell her about this case. If she knew what he was involved in it would just add more stress and Dr. Conklin had been specific about her avoiding stress. He reached around and pulled her onto his lap. She laid her head against his chest as he kissed the top of her head, “I’m just tired, honey, that’s all. I don’t want you to worry.”

“But I do worry, Bo. Don’t you realize that by now? This is the first time in three weeks that you’ve been home when I wake up in the morning. You come home well after midnight and are back out the door a few hours later. What’s going on Bo?”

“It’s nothing really, just a really long case that’s all it is, I promise.” He leans in and kisses her once again, “I’m sorry, honey. I’ve got to go.”

Bo stood up and walked into the bathroom. Nora lay back down onto the bed, pulling his pillow close against her chest. She heard the water begin to run in the shower and she finally gave in to the tears. Bo walked out of the bathroom ten minutes later and found her asleep, the trails of her tears still evident on her cheeks. He kneeled down in front of her and brushed a few strands of hair out of her face as he ran his fingers along her cheek, “I’m so sorry sweetheart. I wish I could tell you what’s going on but I can’t.”

Bo kissed her once on the forehead before picking up his jacket and walking out the door. Nora opened her eyes and listened as the front door closed. She rolled over and pulled his pillow even tighter, “Can’t tell me, Bo…or won’t.”

A few more days have passed and it’s now Valentine’s Day. Bo had been planning a special surprise for Nora and he had cleared everything with Dr. Conklin. Once again Bo was up before dawn but this time he wasn’t at the station, he was out putting the final touches on his surprise.

Nora woke that morning to the same empty bed that she had been waking up to most mornings. She lay back down with a sigh and pulled out the new book she had begun to read. She fell asleep an hour later, the book lying across her stomach. Hours passed and she tried to keep her mind focused on the few briefs and plea bargains that the office had sent over for her approval. Morning quickly turned to late afternoon. Nora put the last case file on the nightstand and picked up a picture of her and Bo. She ran her fingers over his face, and the tears began to fall, “What’s going on with you, Bo? I miss you so much, Happy Valentine’s Day, my love.” She lay back down onto the bed holding the picture tight against her chest. A few minutes later there was a knock on her bedroom door, “Come in”, she said as she placed the picture back on the nightstand, “Renee what are you doing here?”

“I’m here to help you.”

“Help me with what?” Renee reached into her pocket and pulled out an envelope. She looked up at Renee and back down at the piece of paper she held in her hand, “Happy Valentine’s Day, Red. I bet by now you were wondering if I even remembered what today was and what’s going on. All I’m going to say is I would never forget this day in a million years. Now I need you to trust me and let Renee help you…Oh and Red, I love you.” Nora put the note back in the envelope and looked up at Renee who was now carrying in a garment bag and a few boxes. Nora raised her eyebrows as she walked over to Renee, “Renee what’s going on?”

“I can’t tell you. I’ve been sworn to secrecy.”

Renee laid the garment bag across the bed and slowly unzipped it revealing the most beautiful black silk dress Nora had ever seen. She ran her hands over the smooth material, her hand stopping when she felt the corner of another envelope. She pulled out the envelope and sat back down on the bed as she opened it. She looked up at Renee and smiled as she read the note out loud, “Get ready for a special night out. Put on the dress and meet me at our destination.”

“I’m going to be right downstairs if you need anything.”

“Thank you, Renee; I’ll be down in just a bit.” Renee leaned in and kissed Nora’s cheek before closing the door behind her. Nora laid the note down on the bed and lifted the dress out of the garment bag. She stood up and walked into the bathroom to start getting ready. Forty five minutes later she was standing in front of the mirror taking one last look at her reflection, the diamond heart she wore around her neck, sparkling as the light reflects off of it. She walked down the stairs and found Renee sitting on the couch with Asa. They turned when they heard her making her way down the stairs. Nora walked into the living room and stepped right into Asa’s warm embrace. She looked up at her ex-father in law, “What are you doing here?”

“Renee and I are the babysitters. MaryAnn picked Matthew up from school and then took him out for a special dinner. He should be home in just a little while, but you my little lady have a date with destiny.” He held his arm out for her to take. She placed her arm in his and let him escort her to the door after hugging Renee goodbye. He opened her front door and led her over to the waiting limo. The driver opened the door for her and waited as she kissed Asa goodbye, “Thank you, Asa.”

“Have a good time, darling and don’t worry about anything.”

Asa helped Nora into the back of the limo and watched it disappear down the road. Nora looked around the back of the car, her eyes finally resting on another letter propped up against the seat across from her. She reached out and picked up the letter. She smiled through her tears as she read the third note, “By now you’re probably wondering where you’re going, well my love just a few more minutes and all your questions will be answered. I love you so much, Nora and tonight is going to be a night neither of us will ever forget.”

Nora sat back and closed her eyes, reliving in her mind the past six months. A few minutes later the limo pulled up in front of the Palace Hotel and her door was being opened. She slid across the seat and carefully climbed out of the car. She looked up and saw him standing there in front of her. He had one single red rose in his hand. He reached out and took her hand in his pulling her close. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he pulled her into a passionate kiss. They broke their kiss; her arms remained around his neck as she laid her forehead against his, the tears falling down her face. He reached out and wiped the tears from her cheeks, “I bet you thought I forgot all about Valentine’s Day.”

She nodded and reached out and laid her hand against his cheek, “Yeah, I did and I’m so sorry…”

He silenced her with a kiss, “Nothing to be sorry about, Red.” He leaned in and kissed her once again and led her out of the lobby of the hotel and into their own private room.

Nora gasped as she took in the sight before her. Bo had filled the room with every kind of flower possible. There was a table for two set off in the corner and candles adorned the room. He led her over to the table and pulled out her chair for her. She turned to look at him and found him no longer beside her but down on one knee. She smiled through her tears as he held out the most beautiful diamond ring she had ever seen in her life, “Bo…”

Bo struggled to find his voice as the tears began to fall. He took her hand in his and brought it up to his lips, “Nora, I proposed marriage to you once before and on that day you made me the happiest man in the world. We exchanged those vows and then we threw it all away. Since then I have proposed marriage to three different women and you have agreed to marry two other men since we lost our love. We never made it to “I do” and the reason is obvious. When I asked you to marry me all those years before it was supposed to be forever, now we took a detour on that road to forever but we’ve finally found our way back and this one, this time there’s no more detours in our way,” he took the ring out of the box and took her left hand in his, “Nora Buchanan will you do me the honor of marrying me…again.”

Nora nodded and watched as he slipped the ring on her finger. She reached out and took his face in her hands, “Yes, I’ll marry you, Bo Buchanan.”

He leaned in and kissed her, pulling her upright…he nodded and the waiter pushed the button filling the room with music, “Dance with me…”

Nora wrapped her arms around Bo as he pulled her close. She laid her head against his chest and together they celebrated their love…a love that had overcome it all and proved that when you have an unstoppable love anything is possible…

THE END…for now!!!