Intercepted by Love: Part Six: A Football Romance (The Quarterback's Heart Book 6) (3 page)

“
H
appy Birthday
!!!” An entire crowd of people greeted Andie as Cade helped her through the front door of her parents’ house in Itasca. Standing behind her father and mother were several coworkers from
The Love Lives of King David
production she was working on before the show was cancelled.

“Papa!” Andie opened her arms and rushed toward her father who hunched over his walker. He’d had a stroke a little over a year ago and had been wheelchair bound until Cade’s celebrity status opened the doors to an expensive stroke rehabilitation center.

“Happy Birthday, my darling. When and who are you today?” His speech was slow and slurred, but so much better than when he had to use a speaking device. Andie’s father was an archaeologist, and he and Andie enjoyed historical reenactments of their favorite personalities and cultures.

“Not one of King David’s wives, that’s for sure.” Andie hugged him tightly. “I’m proud to be Antoinette Marie Wales, soon to be Prescott.”

Beside her, Cade greeted her father and shook his outstretched hand. “Dr. Wales, it’s so good to see you on your feet again.”

“You just wait. Soon, I’ll be walking my daughter down the aisle.” Her father jiggled the walker. “This morning, I took two steps without this thing.”

“Wow, that’s great.” Andie clasped her hands together. “This is wonderful news.”

“Parts of my leg and one foot are numb, so it’s hard for me to balance,” her father explained. “But they have this machine that supports my weight while I practice moving my legs. I look like a robot strapped into all the mechanical braces.”

“He’s practicing for hours every day. Those therapists work him hard,” Andie’s mother said, wiping her hands on her apron. “You should be proud of your dad.”

“Oh, I am.” Andie hugged her mother. Hopefully he’d be ready to walk her down the aisle soon. Knowing how her father was, he’d want to ditch the walker rather than use it in front of everyone. “I’m real proud of him and grateful to you, Mom, for taking care of everyone.”

“That’s what I’m here for,” her mother said. “How’re you feeling? How’s the baby?”

“All okay. I’m not sure I needed the bedrest. No contractions. Kick counts on target.” She kissed her mother on the cheek.

“Well, I’ll let you greet your guests.” Mother stepped back. “We were pleased as punch when your former coworkers showed up. They’ve been holed up in the basement with my pinball machine.”

“Sylvia!” Andie held her arms out for her best friend from Hollywood, Sylvia Miyamoto.

“You’re looking so awesome.” Sylvia hugged Andie. Behind her stood Leroy Chan, the King David expert who had been the scriptwriter for the show.

“I’m so surprised you all flew out here,” Andie exclaimed. “It’s only a birthday party.”

“We were in the area,” Sylvia said, bouncing on her heels.

“We wouldn’t miss it for the world,” Leroy held out his arms for a quick hug. “You’d have made an awesome, blushing Princess Michal on her wedding day to King David.”

“We never did get to shoot that scene,” Andie said, unable to help sighing. “Although I must say we set up the wedding tent so lavishly.”

“Everything was exactly the way you dictated,” Leroy said. “Down to the details of the bronze mirrors and Michal’s jeweled sandals.”

“Yep, no glass back then,” Andie said. “What are you working on now?”

Leroy snatched a glance at Sylvia, and something seemed to pass between them. Were they dating? Was there something they weren’t telling her?

“Okay, what’s up?” Andie crossed her arms and looked from one to the other.

“Nothing, nothing at all.” Sylvia seemed to be sizing up Andie, her curious eyes traversing her from head to shoulder to large bosom to pregnant belly.

“Well if it isn’t the chip off the old block,” a familiar voice said, sounding from the door.

“Ronaldo,” Cade said, holding Bret for his buddy to greet. “What a surprise.”

Ronaldo Silver had been the boss and producer for Andie and her group back in Hollywood.

“Wow, he’s getting big.” Ronaldo shook the little guy’s hand. “And what big blue eyes you have.”

Bret drooled and stuffed his other fist into his mouth. He’d been trying to pop his first tooth.

Ronaldo made a show of studying Cade’s ring finger. “No ring? Not even your Super Bowl ring?”

“Not yet. The ring ceremony’s mid-June.”

“So, I take it you’ll get your wedding ring first.” Ronaldo gave Andie a side-eyed look.

“Depends on whether she plans the wedding or not.” Cade shrugged, giving her a long suffering glance.

“Who says she has to plan the wedding?” Ronaldo fist bumped Cade. “You’ve got time in the off-season. Oh, and now that you’re the hot man of the hour, I bet there’ll be any number of wedding consultants who’d offer up their services to you for free. You’re Super Bowl MVP. You proposed on TV. What a story.”

“That’s an idea,” Sylvia said, inserting herself between Ronaldo and Cade. “I can do all of the costume designs.”

“And I can write the script,” Leroy chimed in.

“We might be able to spare a set down at The Lakeside Theater,” Ronaldo added.

“Lakeside Theater?” Andie asked. Was this why her friends were here in upstate New York? “What are you guys filming?”

“Not filming,” Sylvia said. “We’re doing a series of plays for the summer. Ronaldo here’s designing the set.”

“Set design?” Cade asked his friend. “I thought you were a producer.”

Ronaldo’s lips pressed together, grimacing. “Doing penance. After my aunt found out about Dick and Barbara and their love child, you, she assigned me to revitalize the summer theaters in upstate New York. We have locations in Skaneateles, the Catskills, and here in Itasca. She’s always had fond memories of her summers as a child in New York.”

“Ha, ha, more like it’s exile for you,” Cade said. Everyone knew how much Ronaldo loved the Hollywood scene.

“Exile or not, this thing is happening,” Ronaldo said, puffing his chest. “Set the date, and I’ll plan the wedding for you two, as a present.”

Cade’s eyes widened, and he stared at his friend and then at Andie. “You think?”

“Um … well, it’s an attractive offer,” Andie said. “Except I haven’t set a date.”

“Why not?” Sylvia looped her arm over Andie’s shoulder. “Cold feet already?”

“She wants my mother to attend,” Cade said. “And no one knows where she is.”

“You should find her then,” Ronaldo said. “That shouldn’t be too hard.”

“Wait, whoa there,” Andie cut in. “Aren’t you working with the FBI? Do you know something we don’t?”

“Not me, but my brother, Fernando. The FBI’s still very interested in Barbara Prescott’s testimony.”

“I thought all the perps were caught,” Andie said. “Rob Cash is in jail, Roxanne has probation, Devon’s in jail, and Dick is dead.”

“Oh, those were just the little fish,” Ronaldo said. “Itty bitty tiny minions. The real kingpins are much more mysterious. Fernando’s been tracing the money trail, and it’s all leading back to someone big in Los Angeles having to do with the revitalization projects and money laundering. Bribes are being paid to city council members and environmental impact reports are being fast tracked. Have you ever wondered how they were able to build a football stadium on Lake Hollywood? Anyway, there’s more at stake, including a big project on Griffith Hills and a new financial district. It might even mean leveling Chinatown and moving it south to Monterey Park.”

Cade swallowed, shaking his head. “Wouldn’t it be dangerous for my mother to return if she was involved with these bad guys?”

“We can fix that,” Ronaldo said. “Once she returns and fingers the bad guys, we can change her appearance and give her an entire new life, including a story for why she’s associated with you two and your babies.”

Andie’s heart leaped at the chance. She’d do anything to redeem Cade’s mother and give her a new lease in life. She looked at Cade expectantly. “Isn’t this a good thing? We should do it.”

Cade’s face turned grim, and he clenched his fists, blowing out a harsh breath. “Absolutely not. Wherever my mother is, let her stay away. If she’s safe, that’s all I care about. You guys can plan a wedding for Andie and I’ll go along with it, but keep my mother out of it. That’s non-negotiable.”

T
he next day
, Andie and Sylvia sat at a table on the wraparound porch of the Lakeside Café. The weather had warmed up into the mid-sixties. For upstate New Yorkers, it meant flip-flops, sundresses, and sandals. Sylvia, however, was huddled inside a warm sweater while complaining about the nippy breeze coming off the water.

Cade had taken baby Bret for the day to let Andie have time to catch up with her girlfriend and show her the sights around Canandaigua Lake and Itasca University.

“I can’t believe all the varieties of ice cream out here,” Sylvia twirled her spoon in her carrot mango and blood orange rhubarb scoops.

“It’s like the food trucks you have in LA.” Andie alternated licks between the rosewater kiwi and jasmine tea Nutella concoction double-decked on her marzipan flavored waffle cone. “The university has a dairy farm on campus, and the students mix and match flavors for special projects.”

“Yum, it’s like macarons. I love the burst of flavor from each tiny cookie.” Sylvia moaned over her bright red and orange ice cream. “They really hit the taste buds hard.”

“Love it, and so does little Bonnie.” Andie licked a drop from the ridged cone, and rubbed her abdomen where Bonnie was dancing a jig. “Besides, she’s my excuse to indulge.”

The two friends fell silent while savoring the strange tasting ice cream combinations. White fluffy clouds drifted across the sky over the lake and the water shimmered prettily. Birds chirped and sang in the trees which were budding with fresh green after a harsh, icy winter. Busybody squirrels scurried and scampered up the tree trunks, and the scent of spring flowers and damp earth signaled the start of the new growing season.

Sylvia, who used to wear outlandish costumes, clothes cut in half and stitched with another half of a mismatched outfit, was wearing regular single-colored jeans and a heather gray sweater. Even Leroy, the King David expert, who dressed in flamboyant ancient Israeli garb, had worn normal clothes to the party the day before.

“I’m so happy you and Leroy will be around this summer,” Andie said. “Are you two, like, going out?”

“What makes you think that?” Sylvia dabbed a spot of orange from her chin. “When Ronaldo’s aunt offered him this special project, he recruited us right away. We were both waiting tables and jumped at the opportunity.”

“So, there’s nothing going on between you two?”

“Why would you suspect that?” Sylvia widened her eyes in an overtly innocent expression.

“Just wondering why you both are dressed normally. I mean, not that what you used to wear was not normal, but you have to admit, you and Leroy looked like a perpetual Comic-Con convention was in town back in California.”

Sylvia wiped her hand over her naturally curly hair. “People in upstate New York are so conservative, they kept trying to direct us to the airport, thinking we were on our way to a foreign land.”

“I can picture you two being escorted by Homeland Security.” Andie chuckled, waving her hand back and forth. “Speaking of fashion faux pas, don’t look now, but there’s a woman wearing hot pink leggings, oh gosh, check out the panty lines.”

Sylvia swiveled in her seat, swiping a napkin from the next table. “Didn’t anyone tell her halter tops went out with the last rotary phone?”

“What’s with the floppy plastic Easter hat?” Andie suppressed a snort. “Oh, no, she’s coming our way.”

“Uhm, uhm, uhm,” Sylvia grunted. “She’s lucky she isn’t wearing those blue and red checkered bandanas in LA.”

Andie lowered her face as the woman sauntered past them, taking a seat at the next table. She returned her focus to her friend. “Speaking of you and Leroy … Spill. All during my party, you two were exchanging secret glances, like you’re up to something.”

“Oh, hell no.” Sylvia sat up straighter. “We’re not up to anything except helping you plan your wedding.”

“And here I thought you were helping Ronaldo with the summer lakeside theater.”

“There’s that, of course.” Sylvia’s eyes flitted across her face. She was definitely hiding something. “So, what’s the real reason you’re not setting a date?”

“Cade told you already. I want his mother to attend.”

“Then set a date and send out invites, announce it on social media. Maybe she’ll contact you.”

Andie squirmed in her seat, staring at the glittering rock on her ring finger, feeling the heat broil her face. She really did want to marry Cade, but would it work out? Would they stay together through thick and thin the way her parents had? Or would one of them be sacrificing for the other, only to end up dumped?

“Well? Are you afraid of marrying Cade?” Sylvia asked.

Strange how a best friend always knew.

“All this doesn’t feel real.” Andie’s throat tightened.

“Hello? Girl? The rock? The baby? The whole nine yards? The Super Bowl MVP? You should be on cloud nine.”

“And I am, which is why it doesn’t feel real.” Andie lowered her voice. “I married Declan three years ago, and it feels like it was only yesterday.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa there, girl.” Sylvia’s sat up straighter. “You’re not still hung up on that clown, are you?”

“Of course not, but even though I remember everything, the concussion knocked a couple of years out of my life, so all I remember are events, like names and dates in a history book. What if I don’t really remember everything? There are still blanks in my mind.”

“But you love Cade, you know that.”

“I believe I do.”

“You believe you do? Wait, is there a snake in paradise? Have you been speaking to Declan?”

“Of course not.” Andie turned her partially melted ice cream cone into a paper cup. “I just don’t see what Cade sees in me.”

“He thinks the world of you, Andie. The world. He proposed on worldwide TV. He loves you.”

“But why?” Andie hated the pathetic sound coming from her throat. “I bet you think I’m so lame, but the same thing happened with Declan. He was way out of my league, and he married me.”

“He must have cared about you at one time.”

“Or maybe I was a decoy or something.”

“Oh, no, he’s not gay. That man’s not gay. Didn’t you say he slept with every skirt in Hollywood?”

“He did, but he says he still loves me, even after the divorce was final. He said he’s letting me go, because he wants me to be happy.”

“Huh, he’s playing a sick game, as if you need his permission to be happy.” Sylvia shoved her swirl of melted red and nuclear orange ice cream to the side. “I fail to see what all this has to do with Cade. That man is true blue.”

“I know, but …” Andie cracked a piece of waffle cone and nibbled on it. “Why me? He could have his pick.”

“And he picked you.” Sylvia pointed a bright pink nail extension at her.

“What if I’m not enough for him?” Andie’s stomach lurched as Bonnie did gymnastics inside her womb. “I’m ending up like my mother, taking care of others. Did you know my mother wanted to write mysteries? She showed me some of her work last night, and she’s really good.”

That comment of Roxanne’s niggled in her mind. Maybe Cade was only with her because she was too pathetic and naïve. She was the perfect mother for Bret, and with a baby coming, he’d have her tied down at the family homestead while he flew all over the country playing ball and doing endorsements, commercials, and charity events to draw praise from the media.

Sylvia sighed and sat back in her chair, tipping it backward. “You’ve got a baby coming and another one you’re adopting. Seems kind of late to wonder what you want to do with your life.”

“I’m sort of stuck, don’t you think? Babies, burping, diapers. I’m going to miss out on all the exciting things you and Leroy are doing with the summer theater, and then when summer’s over and you guys go back to LA, what will I do?”

“Whatever you want to, girl. You’ll be married to Cade, and I’m sure he can afford for you to take up a hobby. How about painting or yoga or I don’t know, learn a musical instrument?”

“I love history.” The words blurted from Andie, and everything came back. “My father and I, we love history.”

“Then you can watch the History channel together. Sounds like fun. Didn’t you used to do reenactments?”

“Yes, we did, but now he’s unable to crawl on his belly in a mock battle.” Andie pressed her lips together. “Besides, there’s got to be more. I don’t want a hobby. I want to do something unique, something that means something.”

Sylvia tapped her hand. “Actually, I overheard Ronaldo. He’s got plans to expand the theater so it operates all year. Of course, the crowds are gone in the winter, but you might be able to use the stage and sets for other purposes. He doesn’t want it to sit unused and boarded up for more than half a year. If you come up with a business proposal that makes sense, he might put you in charge of it.”

“We’ve already got plenty of restaurants and hotels in the area,” Andie said. “Coming to plays is an offshoot of vacationing here, not the main reason people come.”

“I’m sure you can think of something that puts Canandaigua Lake on the map year round. Keeping the tourists coming would be great for the economy.” Sylvia’s mouth elongated in a smile. “Ronaldo wants to make this area a destination on its own. He’s got big plans.”

Blood shot through Andie’s veins, and jitters danced in her gut. Big plans. Ronaldo always had big plans. But if she got in the ground floor of them, who knew if she could someday be a business leader the way Dinah Silver was?

“Great, I’ll think about it, but I’m not sure Cade would approve of me working outside of the home.”

“What is this, the nineteen-fifties?” Sylvia gave an indignant huff. “I say you do what you want.”

“Yes, but if I didn’t take care of the babies, he wouldn’t want to marry me. I mean why else would he marry me? He’s got everything going for him. Super Bowl MVP, fame, fortune, great looks, and plenty of attention.”

“I get it,” Sylvia said, nodding. “You still think Cade’s out of your league. But you’re using the wrong measuring stick. If we look at fame and salary, then yes, he’s miles ahead of you, but you are out of his league when it comes to family. Look what a mess he has.”

“I know, and I’m trying to fix it for him.” Andie’s shoulders drooped. Even her friend thought the only reason Cade was with her was family. “Do you think Ronaldo can really get Cade’s mother into a witness protection program?”

Sylvia leaned forward, interest glittering in her eyes. “You think she’d take the bait? My suggestion. Set a date and we’ll lure her back.”

She made a motion like a fisherman reeling in a catch.

“It might be dangerous,” Andie countered. “Cade said to leave her out of it. He thinks the bad guys are watching us and will eliminate her if she shows up at our wedding.”

“Hmmm … that is a problem.” Sylvia tapped her fingers on the tabletop. “Why is it so important for you to have her back? Didn’t she almost get you killed by stealing the chips from you?”

A rock lodged in Andie’s throat. She put her hand over her belly and rubbed where her baby was kicking. “She’s double-crossed everyone and she needs to pay for what she did to me. I hope to God my Bonnie doesn’t have birth defects from the drugs they shot me with.”

Sylvia’s mouth gaped and she sucked in a sizzling breath. “So you want to put her away? This entire ‘let’s ask Barb to come to the wedding’ is a ruse?”

“No, not a ruse. Cade needs closure. He’s got abandonment issues, but now everything’s more complicated. I don’t want her walking into a trap. If only she could turn herself in, she’d be safe. Then she could pay for her crimes and if the witness protection thing works, she could come clean, eventually.”

The unfashionable woman at the next table coughed into her napkin. Andie held her breath, waiting. She really didn’t want to do the Heimlich on a stranger.
Please, please, please be okay.

The stranger cleared her throat loudly and pushed her chair back, scraping the floor. Good. She was okay. Andie returned her attention to Sylvia. “What were you saying?”

Sylvia shook her long spoon. “You’re too naïve. People like Cade’s mother will never turn themselves in. You know. I know. I’m sure Cade knows it, too.”

“We’ve got to figure out a way to trap her safely.” The gears and cogs turned in Andie’s mind. “I’m thinking this lakeside theater could work out great. What if we staged two weddings?”

“You’re brilliant! One could be part of a play, and the other could be real.”

“Exactly, and once we spot her, the FBI can move in and whisk her away to safety. I actually think she’s in more danger out there, wherever she is. I’m sure she left a trail somewhere.”

A sneaky smile creased across Sylvia’s face, and she rubbed her hands. “Oh, I’m sure she left plenty of track marks. We’ll catch her yet.”

C
ade couldn’t believe
Ronaldo Silver, his playboy friend and onetime mentor, would follow him to Bret’s doctor’s appointment. What did that guy really want?

The baby checked out healthy, and his growth was off the charts. A big boy. Cade texted the stats to Roxanne, Bret’s biological mother, and shot a picture of Bret sleeping in his stroller.

“You sure Andie’s okay with you texting your baby mama?” Ronaldo put his sunglasses on when they exited the medical building.

Cade held the door for another patient who’d walked into the wrong office, confusing geriatrics with pediatrics. The woman who wore thick dark glasses nodded, but did not say “thanks.” Strange, he thought small town people were friendly and chatty.

“Roxanne’s on probation, and she’s going forward with the adoption. I don’t see why she should be shut out of Bret’s life.” It wasn’t as if he had any feelings for Roxanne other than disgust at the way she and his mother colluded to get her pregnant from a discarded condom.

“You don’t think she’ll renege on it, do you?” It was just like his friend to pinpoint the one or two things which worried Cade.

“Not if I keep her happy.”

“You’re paying her off?” Ronaldo lowered his sunglasses, dropping his jaw.

“I’m not admitting to anything.” Cade pushed the stroller to the side of his car. The woman with the thick dark glasses almost fell over Bret’s stroller.