Their Miracle Baby

With a great deal of patience and teaching, the men of the village had managed to turn Lewis into a hunter. It had been a long and difficult process, but after weeks of training he’d finally made his first kill. He’d been worried that he’d feel bad about killing something, but the knowledge that he’d managed to provide food for the village over ruled his reservations.

Hunting would never become his passion at home, but here where it could mean the difference between life and death, it became a part of his daily life. After his night at the fire ring with the men, he’d opened himself up to a new way of thinking and found that with practice he could enjoy the moment instead of thinking about the next one. Hunting had gone a long way toward helping him make the mental transition.

Venetia too was enjoying herself; working in the clinic was more gratifying than it had been at home. She found that her favorite patients were the expectant mothers. She especially loved when she got to help with a birth. Her study of medicinal plants was going well; she’d filled several notebooks with notes and drawings of the plants and an entire section on ways that the plants could be used back home.

When they were together, Venetia avoided touching Lewis because no matter how much she fought it, she was still powerfully attracted to him. Even the slightest brush of his arm on hers started the butterflies in her stomach and a longing in her loins. Many times, she’d had to step outside to get away from him for a second, to get herself under control before she did something stupid.

To say that there was some kind of chemical attraction between them was an understatement, but there was so much more to it than that. But Venetia was afraid that having s*x with him would only confuse the situation. She wanted to more than she could describe but also knew that he had a hold on her body that was stronger than her will at times.

After an especially difficult day in the close confines of the medical hut, she decided she needed some advice. In the constant struggle to resist Lewis’ magnetic pull, she’d almost decided that she should sleep with him. Just get it over with. She’d been so carefully avoiding his touch that it was beginning to wear her out.

And if she had to be honest, their relationship had blossomed in the last month. Lewis had gone back to teasing her, which she found that she enjoyed, but even more important he’d changed. The hunting trips he went on daily seemed to have changed him, mellowed him out. It was almost as if Ronnie had talked to him about balance, but that didn’t seem possible.

But whatever it was that had changed him, she found herself even more attracted to the laid back man who was slowly emerging in front of her eyes. When he once would have been full of plans for the future, now he’d tell her stories about his hunting trips or listen to her while she talked about her new love of holistic medicine. With a shock, she realized that when the s*xual tension wasn’t getting in the way, they’d become comfortable with one another.

That night as they were getting ready for bed, she broached the subject with Ronnie. “I need some advice about Lewis. Do you mind?” she said, a little embarrassed.

Ronnie wasn’t the least bit surprised to hear Venetia’s request. She’d been watching the two of them, and it was clear that they’d formed a new closer bond, one that was based on more than just the chemistry between them. The strong s*xual attraction between them had begun to mellow into a true passion, a passion that would have the foundation to survive.

“Ask away,” Ronnie said, sitting down next to her.

“Well, this thing between Lewis and I is about to drive me crazy. I avoid even touching him for fear of what will happen and on those days like today, when it’s impossible not to, I’m exhausted by the end of the day.”

“Whether you like it or not, you share a powerful physical connection with Lewis. It’s a rare and wonderful thing, but if it’s not supported by more it will destroy you both,” Ronnie said, patting her arm.

“I know that, and I think maybe that is happening, but I just don’t know how much longer I can resist sleeping with him. I can’t fool myself into believing that we can go back to anything less.”

“No, I don’t think so either. You have to look into your heart and decide if you’re ready to trust him that much because that’s what’s holding you back. Do you trust him?”

“I’m not sure yet, I never thought about it that way.”

“Venetia, s*x means different things to everyone. To some, it’s just the physical act, to others, it’s the gift of trust, and you’re one of those people. So, you’re going to have to decide if you trust him,” Ronnie said, getting up and leaving Venetia alone with her thoughts.

As she went to sleep, she decided that no matter what her body told her, she was going to wait. It wasn’t like they had a lot of time alone or any place to be alone. She’d let fate decide if and when it was meant to be. Feeling much better, and knowing that she’d found the balance she was looking for, she fell asleep thinking about Lewis, but tonight they weren’t thoughts that hurt.

The next day, Ronnie left for a remote village where a woman was due to give birth. It had been a difficult pregnancy and she wanted to be there early. Venetia had wanted to go with her, but it would be a long trip and she knew that she should stay at the clinic, so she waved Ronnie off with promises to keep things running smoothly in her absence.

But Ronnie had only been gone a few hours when a runner came into the village to report that a midwife was needed in another village. Venetia started to send him after Ronnie but knew that she’d been gone too long; instead she packed a bag to go with him. Lewis, hearing the commotion, came running and immediately began to pack a bag for himself as well.

“I’m going with you. I’ve been wanting to for a long time,” Lewis said, a pleading look on his face.