My Only One (22 page)

“Oh, and I put in a lunch, too.” Susan smiled. “Your favorite, pasta salad.”

Italian food had been the rage of the year, and Abby couldn’t have been happier about that because it was her favorite kind of food. “It will be a lot better than that yukky airline food. Thanks for saving me from indigestion.”

“You’re welcome.”

Abby smiled and picked up one of her suitcases. Tim, who was dressed in his Coast Guard uniform with his dark blue overcoat, picked up the rest of her luggage. The winter sun was shining brightly into the hallway of the apartment building, strong and welcome to Washington, D.C. Outside, a foot of snow lay on the ground, and the temperature was in the low twenties. It was January, and Abby was leaving to fly to Baja, Mexico, and begin her annual study and videotaping of the gray whales' calving ground.

“Take the two months and
enjoy
yourself down there,” Susan admonished as they walked toward the exit. Courtney raced ahead and danced around Tim, who was laughing at her playful antics. In her arms was a Teddy Ruxpin doll, a stuffed bear, one of the fads of last year. It had been Abby’s gift to the little girl at Christmas—along with a plush, bright yellow Big Bird toy.

“I love going to Baja. It’s a place of joy, Susan. I cry all the time down there. To watch a mother whale give birth is only second to watching a human give birth.”

Abby thanked Tim for opening the apartment door and walked through the slush on the sidewalk to Tim and Susan’s newly purchased car, a dark blue Toyota Cressida. The sun was mildly warm, but the icy chill of winter hung in the air. The winter had been long and harsh, one of the worst that Abby could recall. She’d used the time constructively, however, and had accomplished all the goals she’d set for herself. She climbed into the front seat and shut the door and rolled down the window.

Susan placed her hand on the window frame. “Heard anything from Alec of late?” she asked as Tim placed the luggage in the trunk.

Abby shook her head. “No.”

“I was so hoping that Alec could have attended our wedding.”

“It wasn’t for Tim’s lack of trying,” Abby said. Tim had used every tool at his disposal to obtain permission for Alec to attend their wedding. The Soviets had gracefully declined without giving any reason. Abby’s hopes of seeing Alec had been dashed—as usual.

Worriedly, Susan touched Abby’s shoulder. “I just want you to stop grieving. It’s so hard to see you alone, knowing how much you love Alec. And how much he loves you.”

“He’s never said it in his letters,” Abby reminded her softly, the pain widening in the region of her heart. “And I haven’t told him how I feel, either. I’ll get over him with time, Susan. Don’t look so worried.”

“Look at you, Abby. You’ve lost weight, you don’t laugh or smile like before. Take care of yourself, huh?” Susan placed a kiss on her cheek. “We’ll write, I promise. Get some sun down there and relax. When you come home in April, I want to see you healthy and happy. Understand?”

Abby hugged her friend, then got into the car with Tim. Maybe Susan was right, she thought. Two months at the calving grounds off Baja, the strong, warming sun and the lovely warm waters of the Pacific would be just what she needed. Taking the itinerary out of her purse, she realized that a month after she arrived, a contingent of scientists from various foreign countries, including the Soviet Union, would be coming aboard as observers of the whale-birthing activities. That gave her four weeks to be alone, to allow the whales and ocean to help her get her life back on track and in order.

* * *

“A
BBY
,
THE
POLARIS HAS
dropped anchor nearby. Your six visitors are coming on board in about fifteen minutes,” Captain Mike Hathaway called from the bridge of the science ship
Seafarer.

Dressed in a pair of short denim cutoffs and a summery pink blouse, Abby waved that she understood Hathaway’s message. She didn’t move her eyes from the video camera taping a pod of whales lolling in the distance near the shoreline. One of the mothers was about ready to give birth in the fifteen-foot deep shallows. Several other female members of the pod were gently nudging her, as if to reassure her that everything was going to turn out just fine.

The birth would be recorded with the use of telephoto camera lenses, and Abby knew she must hurry. There in the San Ignacio Lagoon, the weather was perfect, with barely a breeze to ruffle the surface of the emerald-and-turquoise water. Gulls constantly hovered overhead, hoping for handouts. Their cries serrated the blanket of silence that was always a part of the area. Occasionally whales came to the surface to blow or exhale, the sound carrying far across the lagoon and reaching Abby’s ears on board the ship.

Beneath her bare feet, she could feel the rough wood. The
Seafarer,
a two-hundred-foot ocean-going vessel, had been especially outfitted for such scientific expeditions. Its journeys were funded by the National Geographic Society and the World Wildlife Fund, U.S. Although the ship was made mostly of metal, the decks were fashioned from teak, but they needed another coat of varnish soon. The twenty scientists on board shared sea duties. Whether it was mopping the decks, cooking or painting, everyone pitched in and worked as a team. Abby loved it.

Lifting her chin, she saw the
Polaris
had dropped anchor about half a mile away, farther out in the bay, so it wouldn’t disturb the one hundred or so whales that eventually gave birth in various parts of the lagoon. Looking up at the skipper of the
Seafarer,
Abby called, “Mike, can you get Paul to meet those guys coming on board? I’m right in the middle of a shoot. The mother’s going to birth any minute. As soon as I’ve got it on tape, I’ll go make formal introductions.”

He smiled and waved. “You bet. I’ve got their quarters assigned. As soon as you’re done, come aft and press the flesh,” he said with a chuckle.

“No problem. Thanks!” Abby eagerly returned to the video camera set up on an aluminum tripod. The salt air was invigorating, and she inhaled it deeply. The past four weeks had begun to erase the darkness that had been with her since Alec’s leaving, and she was regaining her weight once again. Not only that, but she resembled a coffee bean, tanned golden brown by the hot Mexican sun. Her limbs were slender and strong because of all the exercise and her shared duties aboard the
Seafarer.
Abby actually felt as if she were thriving. The beauty of being able to watch the whales birth only increased her newfound happiness.

She heard the Zodiac bearing the foreign scientists drawing near. She frowned, hoping that the sound of the small motor wouldn’t disturb the whale mother in the distance. A huge, shining dark gray tail lifted up and out of the shallows, and Abby focused all her attention on the birth. Her fellow scientists would be taken aboard on the opposite side of the
Seafarer
from where she was taping, shown to their quarters and made comfortable. She’d have plenty of time to make introductions and welcome them aboard later. What was most important was recording the calving.

* * *

A
LEC WAS FROWNING AS HE STEPPED
on board the
Seafarer,
the last of six men to leave the Zodiac. At the top of the steel-grate ladder, he turned to a short man with a beard and thick glasses. The name tag on his shirt read, Paul Scotti,
National Geographic
Photographer.

“Excuse me, can you tell me where Dr. Fielding is? Wasn’t she supposed to meet us?” he asked.

“Abby will be a little late.” The man pointed across the ship. “She’s over on the port side now, in the middle of a shoot. There’s a gray whale mother calving, and Abby asked me to greet all of you. She’ll be over to welcome you on board as soon as the whale’s given birth, Captain Rostov.”

The sun was blistering hot and Alec wished for the hundredth time that he could climb out of his dress white summer uniform and take the heavy hat off his head. Sweat beaded on his upper lip and brow. His heart picked up the beat once again at Scotti’s explanation. “But she is on board?”

“Sure is. Let me show you to your cabin below deck, Captain. I’m sure Dr. Fielding will be with you, soon.”

Torn between going directly to Abby and following the friendly photographer’s advice, Alec decided upon the latter. He didn’t want to suddenly walk back into Abby’s life when she was taping an important event for the world to see. No, he’d waited this long, a few more minutes, even half an hour, wasn’t going to matter.

Just as they rounded the fantail and approached the hatch that led down to the cabins, Alec saw someone with red hair racing down the opposite side of the ship. His heart soared. Abby! She was obviously hurrying to meet the scientific group. The five men accompanying him, two Japanese, one German, one Scandinavian and one from the Soviet Union, had already gone below.

Everything slowed down to single frames for Alec as he tensely waited for Abby to round the fantail and realize that it was he standing there. She looked like a beautifully long-legged Thoroughbred in his eyes, her limbs golden from the sun, her hair drawn back in a ponytail. Alec suddenly tasted fear as never before. What if Abby didn’t love him? What if what he felt for her was only one-sided? She’d never mentioned the word. His body grew taut as she rounded the last obstacle, a huge coil of neatly stacked rope that sat in the middle of the deck.

As Abby lifted her head, Alec heard her give a little cry. She jerked to a halt, her mouth fell agape. Her eyes widened, and the flush of pink that had colored her cheeks instantly disappeared. Alec moved forward, his hand stretched out to catch her in case she fainted from the shock of seeing him.

“Alec!”

He gripped Abby’s upper arm as she swayed unsteadily. To hell with decorum. He knew in his official capacity he shouldn’t be seen embracing Abby, but he no longer cared.

“Come here,” he rasped, pulling her into his arms.

“Oh, my God,” she cried, her voice cracking, “You’re here! You’re really here!” She sank against him.

“It’s all right,
moya edinstvenaya,
” Alec whispered in a strained voice, kissing her hair, her temple, her cheek and finally, her waiting mouth. Hungrily, he molded her to him, tasting the salt of the ocean on her lips and the liquid sweetness that was only her. A little moan escaped Abby as she wildly returned his fevered kiss, her mouth wreaking havoc, spreading fire throughout his body as she claimed him with equal fervor.

Earth and sky ceased to exist for Abby. She felt the shocking strength and hardness of Alec’s body against her own, felt the way her body gave and yielded to him in so many wonderful ways. His mouth devoured hers, and she was consumed by the molten fire, the longing and lonely months without his nearness all melting away. As he framed her face with his trembling hands, she lifted her eyelashes and drowned in the sable fire in his eyes.

“My God,” she whispered brokenly, “you’re here…you’re really here. How…?”

Trying to control himself, Alec looked up. Paul Scotti had wisely left, and they were now alone on the fantail. Alec returned his attention to Abby. Gently caressing her wan cheek, he absorbed the utter happiness he saw in her blue eyes.

“Let’s go to your cabin and I’ll tell you everything,” he said. “There’s much to talk about, to share with you.”

Abby nodded jerkily. She refused to release Alec for fear she was imagining all of this. Had she been out in the sun too long? Was she suffering from the hallucinations that a sunstroke could create? Dazed, she led him below to her cabin.

Alec removed his hat upon entering, and placed it on a small bureau dresser. Abby sat on her bunk, which was attached to the bulkhead. Off came his uniform blouse and he hung it over the wooden chair at the table where her laptop computer sat. Loosening the black tie at his throat, he unbuttoned the top button of his shirt and then placed the chair opposite of where Abby was sitting.

“Now,” he said, as he sat down on the chair, “we can talk. If Dr. Belov wasn’t with me, I wouldn’t have had to wear this uniform at all.”

Abby shook her head and reached out. Instantly, she felt Alec’s cool, dry hand around hers. “Is this real? Are you here, or am I going crazy?”

He ached to take her into his arms, to make torrid love with her. Exercising steel control over his hungry urges, he gently cradled her hands as he shifted, their knees barely grazing each other’s. “I’m here,” he whispered, “and this is real. We’re real, Abby.”

Shaken, her voice wobbly, “I didn’t know you were coming.”

“I didn’t, either, not until the last moment. I’m sorry I dropped into your life like this.” He brushed her cheek. “I didn’t mean to shock you.”

Abby felt the strength of his hands around hers, his thumbs caressing her flesh as if to try and take her shock away. “How did you get here?”

His smiled disappeared and he held her eyes that sparkled with unshed tears. “You remember I was working for that admiral in Kamchatka last year?”

“Yes.”

“By becoming his assistant, I got some leverage to finally get to Moscow on special assignment. My old friend Misha Surin and his son, the colonel, were instrumental in helping to form a permanent Bureau of Oceanography at the Kremlin. Colonel Surin is running the bureau. He’s been assigned the best marine biologist in the Soviet Union to work with him on oceanographic concerns and issues.”

He leaned down and kissed her hands. “The bureau’s reason for coming into being is partly
glasnost
and partly because our own marine scientists, such as Dr. Belov, who has just come aboard the
Seafarer,
can help all endangered ocean species, not just whales. I’ve been working behind the scenes for the past four month with twenty countries negotiating an agreement to begin studying mankind’s pollution of the oceans and the effects it’s having on all life-forms.” A slow smile came to his mouth. “Abby, I’ve been assigned as the public affairs officer for the bureau. I’ll be working out of the Soviet embassy in Washington.”

She stared at him, going more deeply into shock.

“Abby? Do you understand what all this means?” Her eyes were dazed, and she didn’t answer. “It means I’ll be living in the United States. This all came about in the past two weeks. I tried to call you, but Susan told me you were already here in Mexico. I managed to talk Colonel Surin into letting me escort Dr. Belov here and to stay with him until his return to the Soviet Union two months from now.”