Mark was one of the security guards from the agency that Luke hired. He was a big six-foot six ex-military type who had a bull-dog face and a body like a professional wrestler.
Anyone would feel safe with him looking out for them.
"Okay," I said and finished my morning routine. Then, I went to the bedroom, lying back down on the bed and pulling the tray of food closer. I munched on a cracker and sipped at the honeyed peppermint tea, then closed my eyes, waiting to find out if it helped my nausea.
It did. It seemed to fill the hole in my stomach, quieting it down. I sighed, relieved that I wasn't going to run right back in and heave once more. Instead, I watched Luke change into a pair of dark grey slacks, admiring his perfectly formed buns and muscular back. He pulled out a clean shirt from a hanger and began to fasten the buttons. Finally, he slipped a tie over his neck and adjusted it, then turned to me.
"How do I look? Fit for a visit to my lawyer?"
"You look incredibly handsome. That grey makes your eyes so blue."
"Oh, yeah?" Luke said and came over to the bed, leaning over me, a smile on his face. "Good enough for a kiss?"
I smiled, narrowing my eyes. "More than good enough."
"Don't tempt me," he said after he kissed me three times in a row. "I'll be late."
I watched him slip on his socks and then his jacket. He looked like a professional off to meet another professional to talk about important matters and I remembered that first time I saw him in the mall with his red umbrella.
I had thought he was cute in a handsome but still boyish way. He still was, but I'd come to know him so much more intimately and realized just how good looking he really was.
He was handsome enough that he could be a model. Yet, he seemed totally unaware of it. He never primped in front of a mirror, he never fussed about his hair or clothes. They were all just details he had to take care of so he could get to what really mattered to him -- his business. Space. Rockets. Satellites.
I felt incredibly lucky that there was also a part of what mattered for him that belonged to me. He'd chosen me to be his partner in life. I exhaled and watched as he stuffed his money clip, phone and some change into his pockets, running a hand through his hair to get it out of his eyes.
"Do I need to lose the beard?" he asked, turning to me and rubbing his jaw. "Will I be seen as a reprobate if I keep it? It's awfully nice not to have to shave every day."
"You look marvelous, simply marvelous darling," I replied, grinning, hoping he caught the Billy Crystal imitation. "But keep it trimmed. No Odin King of Asgard for you, okay?"
"No Odin," he replied. "Got it. And you look good enough to eat, but I'll let you decide when that happens," he said and bent down to kiss me once more.
"I'm so sorry that I've been out of commission," I said and pouted. "I hope to be back in working order soon. I want to go to Bora Bora for our honeymoon."
"We will," he said and kissed me once more. "I'll call you later and let you know what Pete advised about the thing. Have a good morning. I love you."
"I love you," I said and watched as he left the bedroom, closing the door behind him.
I settled back into the bed and pulled the covers up to my chin. Maybe, if I slept all morning, I'd feel better when I woke up after lunch.
At least, I hoped so.
I spent the day alone, sleeping on and off, watching television on and off, and mostly just getting through another day of nausea and fatigue. I had a calendar on my laptop and each day, I put a big X on it, marking one more day I made through which meant I was one day closer to being over morning sickness.
I hoped that I wasn't like poor Dana and was sick almost the entire time...
Around two in the afternoon, Luke called me to fill me in on what he and Pete talked about.
"I didn't want to call you until now. You usually sleep most of the morning and come alive after lunch. How are you feeling?"
"I'm not too bad," I said. "I managed to eat some more crackers with tea, so I'm not in the bathroom heaving my guts out. How did your meeting with Pete go?"
"Informative," Luke said, but I could tell he didn't sound too enthusiastic.
"What can we do about the video?"
"I hired a company to scan the web and look for any references to you, for any video of the event, and contact the site owners, demanding that they take it down. Pete will write a letter we can send to any who don't cooperate, threatening legal action, but there's really not a lot we can do other than sue whoever refuses. Most of the companies who post these kinds of videos are untraceable or hosted somewhere in Upper Slobbovia so there's not much we can do. Besides, the US sites that post such videos and images are merely conduits for content and have no involvement in what is posted, so they can claim they aren't responsible. As long as the content is posted by third parties, the site owner is immune from prosecution, but they will take the images or videos down if ordered by a judge."
"That sucks," I said and leaned back, rubbing my forehead in frustration. "Doesn't New York have a revenge porn law yet?"