“Now you know you can do it,” Silvia said, putting her arm around Lisa’s waist. Lisa hugged her, then stepped away. “I don’t know what you mean.”
“Of course you do.”
“Mom, please.” She held up her hand. “I’m exhausted.”
“Okay. At the moment I’m more concerned with Maggie.”
“Maggie? Did she call again?”
“No, just the one message, but she sounded so odd, Lisa, and your Aunt Carmela thinks she’s in trouble.”
Lisa pulled her mother over to the far side of the room so they wouldn’t be overheard by Mary Bea. “Maggie thinks Keith might still be alive. That’s what she told Nick yesterday.”
“Oh, dear.” Silvia’s eyes filled with worry. “Perhaps I should have asked her to come home instead of…”
“Instead of what?” Lisa asked, suddenly suspicious.
“Oh, nothing.”
“You told her not to come back, didn’t you?”
“I wouldn’t do that.”
“But you told her Nick and I were spending time together.”
“It’s the truth,” Silvia said, looking as innocent as she possibly could. “Okay, I told her I thought it was good that you and Nick had a chance to talk about your lives. But that’s it. I certainly didn’t know Mary Bea would get sick. I feel terrible about that.”
“It’s not your fault, Mom. I doubt whatever you said had any effect on Maggie anyway. She seems determined to find out the truth—whatever that is.”
“Lisa, why don’t you go back to Maggie’s house, take a shower, change your clothes, and catch up on some sleep? I’ll stay with Mary Bea.”
Lisa immediately shook her head. “No, I can’t leave her. Besides, the doctor said she can go home later this morning. I’ll just wait. Nick’s with Roxy and Dylan. He said he’d get them off to school, then come down here.”
Silvia smiled somewhat sadly. “You and Nick sound like a family when you talk like that. “They did sound like a family, and it was beginning to feel comfortable, cozy, loving, warm. But the kids didn’t belong to her, and eventually their mother would come home and Lisa would go back to her own life, a life without children. She suddenly wondered if she was making a mistake.
“I think it was a mistake to let you sleep alone last night,” Jeremy said when Maggie answered her hotel room door.
She pulled her robe around her shoulders and wished Jeremy wasn’t such an early bird. She was still half asleep and could feel her hair sticking up from her head.
“I didn’t sleep a wink,” Jeremy added. “I couldn’t stop thinking about you.” He slid into her room before she could think of asking him to wait while she changed. He kissed her before she could think of brushing her teeth. Not that he seemed to care, and once his mouth touched hers, she didn’t much care either.
“I like you like this,” Jeremy whispered against her mouth. “Beautiful and dazed and ready to go to bed with me.”
“Uh—I’m still asleep.”
“Good, then you won’t resist.” He picked her up and tossed her on the bed.
She squealed in protest, but he climbed on to the bed and pinned her arms over her head with one hand. Then he let his glance drift down the length of her body, pausing just long enough on her breasts to cause them to tingle. Finally, his gaze came back to rest on her face. He suddenly looked serious. “Call him,” he said.
“What?” Maggie was having a little trouble following the conversation, considering Jeremy’s crotch was resting against her upper thighs, and if they didn’t have clothes on, if he slid forward just an inch or so, they could do all the things she’d dreamed about the night before—only this time he’d really be in the room.
“Maggie. Maggie.” Jeremy let go of her hands and snapped his fingers in front of her face.
What? “”Call him.” Jeremy got off of her and sat on the edge of the bed. He tipped his head toward the phone.
“Call who?” she asked as she sat up.
“Keith. I want to know if you’re still married, and I want to know now.”
She looked into his eyes and saw desire and impatience. “He’s—he’s not registered, Jeremy.”
“I know that. Call Serena. I’m sure they’re together.”
“Ouch,” she said softly.
“Sorry.” He touched her hand. “I just need to know if you’re free, Maggie. We’re good together. I think we could be great together if you’d give us the chance to find out.”
She was so tempted to say yes, to have the ultimate adventure, the fantasy of her life. Who would blame her? No one. Everyone wanted her to be happy. But how could she be happy with Jeremy, when he knew nothing about her? At least none of the important things, like Roxy, Dylan and Mary Bea.
Maggie reached for the phone. Jeremy was right about one thing. They needed to end the mystery. They’d tried calling Serena the night before, but she’d never answered.
Taking a deep breath, Maggie called the operator and asked for Serena’s room. She wished they would give her the room number. She would have liked to knock on the door and stare Keith right in the face.
The phone rang once, then twice, then three times. A man answered. “Hello,” he grumbled.
Maggie’s heart skipped a beat. “Keith? Oh, my God, is that you?”
“What? What?” He sounded confused, then alarmed. “Who is this?”
“It’s your wife.”
“I—I don’t have a wife. You must have the wrong number.”
“But—” Maggie stared in disbelief as the dial tone rang in her ear. She turned to Jeremy. “Keith answered the phone.”
“What did he say? “”He said he didn’t have a wife.”
Jeremy stared at her for a long moment. “Are you sure it was him?”
“It sounded like him.” She looked at the receiver still clenched in her hand. “He said I had the wrong number.”
“That’s it. Give me the phone.”
Maggie handed him the receiver, and he dialed the operator once again. She watched him with worry and anticipation and fear. After a moment, he hung up.
“No answer.”
They’d spooked Keith. Now he knew someone was on to him. “He’s going to leave,” Maggie said.
Jeremy nodded. “Get dressed, then meet me downstairs. I’ll keep an eye out in the lobby. If they try to leave, I’ll stop them.” He stood up, then bent back down to kiss her. “Don’t worry, Maggie. We’ll find out the truth.”
“He hates me,” she whispered. “What did I do to make him hate me?”
“Maybe you should hate him. He’s the one who left, who treated you abominably. Help me out here, Maggie. Get mad. Fight. That’s the only way you’ll get through this.”
“You’re right.” She thrust her chin up in the air. “I’m not some wimp he can just walk out on without an explanation. I want him to answer to me, to tell me to my face why he faked his own death.”
“What are you going to do then?”
“I’ll probably kill him.”
“That works for me.”
Lisa tucked Mary Bea into her own bed just after one o’clock Tuesday afternoon. The little girl was exhausted, and Lisa hoped she would sleep for a few hours and give her body a chance to rest. Lisa had worried that Mary Bea was going home too soon, but the doctor had assured her that Mary Bea would recuperate just as fast, if not faster, at home. Lisa had a feeling that’s what they told everyone these days, insurance being the way it was. But she forced herself to take the comments at face value. “Everything okay?” Nick asked from the doorway.
She turned her head and sighed at the sight of him. He looked so damn good in his faded blue jeans and navy blue knit T-shirt, rugged and handsome and fresh from a shower. She, on the other hand, felt like a rumpled bed. “Everything’s fine,” she said, scolding herself for even noticing her ex-husband’s looks. She didn’t need to stare at him. She knew what his body looked like. She’d traced it with her mouth a hundred times. Goodness, where had that thought come from?
“Lisa? What are you thinking about?” Nick asked curiously.
She knew she couldn’t tell him the truth. “I was thinking about taking a shower, then a nap. I’m tired.” She walked into the hall and pulled Mary Bea’s door closed so they wouldn’t disturb her.
“I’ll bet you are. Mary Bea told me she loved you,” Nick said softly. “She said she was glad you were her aunt.”
Lisa felt a rush of warmth steal across her body. “She really loves me?”
“Yeah, and she wants to know if we’re getting married again.”
Lisa cleared her throat. “What—what did you tell her?”
“I didn’t say anything.”
“Why not? Why didn’t you tell her that you don’t want to marry me?”
Nick sent her a steady look. “I’m not sure that’s the truth.”
She stared at him in amazement, then shook her head. “I can’t have this conversation with you right now. I’m so tired, I can’t think.”
“You’re right, I’m sorry. Listen, I know you probably want a shower and a nap more than anything else in the world right now, but I made you a surprise.”
“You did? What?”
“Homemade chocolate chip cookies. Your number one comfort food, as I recall.”
“Oh, man, I thought I smelled cookies when we walkedin the door.” Lisa immediately turned toward the stairs and, despite Nick’s laugh, hurried to the kitchen.
The cookies were on a plate on the counter and were still warm.
“They’re only the slice and bake kind,” Nick warned.
“I don’t care.” She broke one in half and popped a bite into her mouth, then closed her eyes as the delicious warmth of chocolate and sugar melted in her mouth.
“You look like you’re having an orgasm,” Nick commented.
Lisa opened one eye and scowled at him. “Yeah, and you’re interrupting.”
“It would be a lot more fun if I could share it with you.”
“Get your own cookie.”
He walked over and slid his arms around her waist, then pressed his mouth against hers, tasting the chocolate on her lips. “Mm-mm, I like this cookie the best.”
She pushed him away with a laugh. “You think you can sweet-talk me with a cookie?”
“I know I can,” he said confidently. “Just let me—”
He stopped when the doorbell rang.
“Probably my mother,” Lisa said.
“Maybe it’s Maggie.”
“She wouldn’t ring her own bell,” Lisa replied, as they walked to the front of the house to answer it.
Lisa opened the door and almost fell over. The man in the expensive, three-piece gray suit and red silk tie was definitely not Maggie. “Raymond,” she gasped. “What are you doing here?”
He sent her a satisfied smile. “I was worried about you, so I thought I’d drive down and see if I could help speed your return home.” His smile faded as he saw Nick standing behind her.
Lisa followed his gaze, realizing that Nick’s mouth was spotted with chocolate, the same chocolate that was on her lips, because she’d been kissing him when she was engaged to Raymond. She suddenly felt as if they’d been caught in bed together.”I’m Raymond Curtis, Elisabeth’s fiancé,” he said to Nick, extending his hand.
Nick ignored the gesture. “I’m Nick Maddux, Lisa’s ex husband.”
“Ex-husband?” Raymond’s arm fell to his side. His eyes widened in shock as he looked from Elisabeth to Nick, then back to Elisabeth. “You never told me you were married.”
“You never told him you were married?” Nick asked with a mocking
smile. “Gee, I wonder what else he doesn’t know. “
Chapter 21
“Raymond, let me explain.” Lisa took Raymond’s arm and pulled him inside the house. “Come in and sit down. Would you like some coffee or a cookie?” She self consciously wiped her mouth with the back of her hand, catching Nick’s sardonic grin out of the corner of her eye.
“Some coffee would be good,” Raymond said tensely, obviously taken aback by Nick’s unexpected revelation.
“I’m pretty thirsty myself,” Nick said, following them down the hall to the kitchen.
“I’d like to speak to Raymond alone.” Lisa paused at the door to the kitchen.
“I’ve been wanting to meet your fiancé, Lisa, I mean Elisabeth. I understand you’re quite the businessman, Raymond.”
“Well, yes,” Raymond said with little false modesty. “I run a very successful advertising firm, Curtis and Associates.”
“Lisa told me. She said you’re a shark.”
Raymond darted a curious glance at Lisa. “I hope that was a compliment.”
“It was, of course it was,” she said, feeling like a spectator at a tennis match. But she wasn’t a spectator. This was her life, not Nick’s. “Excuse us,” she said firmly, pulling Raymond into the kitchen and shutting the door behind her.
Raymond stared at her like she was a stranger, and as his gaze ran down her rumpled slacks and blouse, his expression grew more incredulous. “You look like you slept in those clothes.”
“She did,” Nick said, stepping into the kitchen.
“My God, did you sleep with him?” Raymond demanded.
“No,” Lisa snapped, trying to ignore Nick’s amused smile. “I slept with my five-year-old niece in the hospital. Didn’t you get my message?”
“No.” Raymond didn’t look as if he believed her.
“I called you early this morning, around seven-thirty. Where were you?”
“You know I always work out on Tuesday mornings.”
Lisa sighed, then nodded. Of course she knew that. Raymond’s habits were quite predictable, especially when they involved his obsession with exercise. “I forgot.”
“After that, I had a meeting with Paul to discuss his handling of the Nature Brand account.”
“Paul?” She couldn’t believe what she was hearing. “You gave Paul my account? How could you do that?”
“I waited for your ideas,” Raymond replied, his voice sharp, his expression tense. “They didn’t arrive as promised. I have to have something to present tomorrow at my lunch meeting. I can’t go in empty-handed.”
“You can’t reschedule?”
“No,
dammit
, I can’t,” Raymond said, practically shouting. He seemed to become aware of Nick’s curious presence and lowered his voice. “I have a business to run, and you’re showing an amazing lack of reliability.”
“My friend is in trouble.”
“Your ex-husband?” Raymond tipped his head toward Nick, who was lounging against the counter.
“No, my ex-husband’s sister, Maggie. That’s why Nick is here, Raymond. He’s helping me take care of the kids.”
“So you’re living here together?”
“Not exactly together.”
“I wouldn’t say that,” Nick said.
“You won’t say anything, because you’re leaving.” Lisa walked around the kitchen island, grabbed Nick’s wrist and dragged him out of the room. “Stay out, this is my business.” She slammed the door in his face.
Raymond looked at her in bewilderment. He shook his head, opened his mouth, then shook his head again. “I can’t believe you were married to that man. You never said a word. Why?”
“I was very young when we were married. It was over almost eight years ago.”
“I told you about my ex-wife. What’s the big mystery?”
Now that he asked, Lisa didn’t know why she hadn’t told him, except that she hadn’t wanted to think about Nick, much less talk about him. “There is no mystery. I just don’t think about him anymore.”
“What else haven’t you told me?”
Lisa hesitated, realizing that part of why she hadn’t told Raymond any of it was because it put her in a bad light. That age old fear of rejection reared its ugly head once again. She didn’t want to lose Raymond to the truth, but she knew that she couldn’t marry him without telling him all of it.
“Sit down.” She pulled out a chair for him at the kitchen table.
Raymond sat down, waiting for her to begin.
She took a deep breath, wondering if she could really get out the words. She hadn’t told anyone about Robin, hadn’t spoken about her from the day after the funeral until she’d arrived at Maggie’s on Friday night.
“Elisabeth, what is it?” Raymond prodded. “Surely, it can’t be that bad.”
“It is bad, Raymond.” She sat down and folded her hands together on the table. “Nick and I had a baby, and she died when she was two months old of sudden infant death syndrome, which means they don’t really know what killed her.” Her words came out in a terrifying rush, and she wasn’t sure any of them made sense.
Raymond didn’t reply for a long moment. Then he put his hand over hers. “I’m sorry, Elisabeth. I had no idea.”
“I know.” She looked into his eyes, uncertain as to what she would find—rejection, disgust, wariness. Instead, she saw compassion and a bit of confusion. “Nick and I separated a few days after the funeral,” she added. “It was a very painful episode in my life, and I never told you, because I didn’t want to relive it. I suppose I was afraid of what you would think.”
“Is there more?” Raymond asked.
“No, that’s pretty much it. The bracelet you saw was mine, not my mother’s. She sent it to me because she wanted me to have it.”
“And that’s why you don’t want children, because of this baby that you lost?”
“Exactly.”
Raymond sat back in his chair. “I have to admit I’m surprised. I never imagined you’d been through such a terrible experience. You’ve always seemed so young and pretty, untouched by life.”
Because that’s the way she wanted to look, and the way she suspected he wanted her to look. “I should have told you. In the beginning, it didn’t seem important and after you asked me to marry you, I feared it might make a difference.”
“Why would it?” he asked, but he didn’t look as compassionate as he had a moment earlier.
She licked her lips, trying to find the right words, the diplomatic answer. “Because I thought you liked the fact that I didn’t have any baggage, no ex-husband, no relatives to speak of, no friends of my own, except the ones we have together.”
“Elisabeth, I have plenty of my own baggage. I wouldn’t have held a previous marriage against you.”
“But I failed, Raymond. I know how you hate failure.”
He looked at her in astonishment. “Elisabeth, I failed too, and I left behind not just a spouse but a kid.”
She knew all that. But she had always believed he expected more from her than he did from himself. “I’m glad this is all out in the open.
And I’m sorry that I didn’t call you yesterday when I took Mary Bea to the hospital. I got caught up in what was happening and didn’t think
about work. I hope you’ll accept my apology. “”Of course.” Raymond hesitated, his eyes searching hers. “Elisabeth, do you think I’m too old for you?”
“No, absolutely not.”
“You’re sure? When I saw you with that guy, your ex husband, I couldn’t help but notice that you were the same age.”
“That didn’t keep us together.”
“No, I guess it didn’t.”
“And you and your first wife were the same age, and it didn’t help you.”
“All right. You’ve convinced me.”
Lisa offered him a somewhat shaky smile. Good, she’d convinced him.
Now she just had to convince herself. Deep down she knew it wasn’t the age difference that was the problem.
“Come back with me now, Elisabeth.”
She tensed. “I can’t leave Mary Bea. We just brought her home from the hospital, and her mother hasn’t returned yet.”
“Why can’t you leave her with her uncle?”
“Because I promised Maggie I would stay.”
“You promised me you’d help me win this account,” Raymond reminded her, suddenly all business again. “This is very important to the agency, to our future together. You should have a sense of responsibility, a loyalty to me, to the company, to your job.”
“I thought you’d given the account to Paul,” she replied, still irritated that he’d moved ahead without her and now was questioning her loyalty.
“Not officially. But he wants it.”
“Of course he does. He’d like your entire agency, in fact. He’s a cold-blooded, ruthless little shit.”
“Elisabeth!” Raymond looked shocked by her language.
“I’m sorry, but it’s true. I have held my tongue where he’s concerned, but you have to know who he really is.”
“I’m more interested right now in finding out who you really are, because I have to tell you, you don’t look like the woman I proposed to a few months ago or the woman I’m used to seeing in the office. That woman is cool and calm and professional, and she knows what her priorities are. She doesn’t act without thinking first. She doesn’t take off at a moment’s notice, and she certainly doesn’t wear clothes she spent the night sleeping in.” His mouth curled with distaste.
“I’m a little wrinkled,” Lisa said, suddenly losing patience with his questions, with his needs. What about her needs? What about the sleepless night she’d just spent worrying about her niece? “Give me a break, Raymond. I spent the night at the hospital. I’m exhausted. I’m sorry I don’t look as crisp and clean as a new hundred dollar bill.”
He held up a hand. “I’m sorry. That was uncalled for. I just don’t understand you anymore.”
“I’ve only been gone a few days, Raymond. I haven’t changed all that much.”
“I think you have.” He stood up. “This was a mistake. You need to take care of your business, and I need to take care of mine. I’ll see you when you return.” His glance drifted to the box sitting on the counter. “Maybe I should say if you return. You never sent out the wedding invitations. You lied to me.”
“I addressed them. I meant to send them,” she defended. “It’s just been so crazy around here.”
“Do you want me to mail them, Elisabeth?”
“No, I’ll take care of it. I will.”
“Elisabeth, are you sure you want to marry me?”
She stared at him, stunned by the question. “Of course, I do. I—I love you. I thought you loved me.”
“I do.” He shook his head. “We’ll talk when you get back, when things are normal again.”
As he turned to leave, Lisa put a hand on his arm, knowing she had to cross the breach that had developed between them. “I appreciate your driving all the way down here to see me. It means a lot to know that you care that much about me. I’m sure Maggie will be home today or tomorrow, and I promise I will come home as soon as she walks in the door.”
“Where did she go?”
“That’s a long story.”
“Forget it, I don’t want to know. “Lisa followed him to the front door. She hoped he would stop and kiss her goodbye, especially since Nick was sitting in the living room, but Raymond simply walked out the door.
As his car pulled away from the curb, Nick came to stand behind her.
“He’s gone already? What did you have—a quickie in the kitchen?”
“No, we didn’t have a quickie in the kitchen. Raymond is far too sophisticated for that.”
“And far too old. The man has to be at least fifty.”
“Fifty-two,” she said tightly. “Not that it matters. We have a great deal in common.”
“And he takes care of you,” Nick taunted. “You finally found that father you were always looking for.”
“That isn’t it at all. Raymond understands me. He doesn’t try to change me, to take over my thoughts, to rule every aspect of my life.”
Nick stared at her for a long moment. He could not for the life of him understand what she saw in the guy. “Do you really have fun with him, Lisa? He has enough starch in his shirt to dry up Niagara Falls.”
“We have a great time together. He’s very, very kind.”
“Nice, kind, ambitious—when are you going to tell me you’re madly in love with the guy?”
“I’m madly in love with the guy,” Lisa repeated, slamming the front door, because it released some of her tension. “It’s your fault that he left, announcing I was your ex-wife that way.”
“I didn’t know you hadn’t told him. You’re the one who yelled at me for not telling Suzanne, and I’m not even engaged to her.”
“She probably wouldn’t have you.”
The doorbell rang again.
“Maybe that’s Raymond,” she said hopefully.
Lisa threw open the door. “Ray—” The word died on her lips, for standing on the porch were Bill and Kathy Maddux, Nick’s parents. Bill was an older version of Nick, long, lean legs, a strong build and gray hair. Kathy, on the other hand, was a short, rather plump blond with the biggest smile Lisa had ever seen.
“Lisa,” Kathy said with genuine delight. “Good heavens, I haven’t seen you in ages.” She opened her arms, and Lisa couldn’t help but give her a big hug. It felt nice to hug Kathy again. In many ways, she was the kind of mother Lisa had always wanted. Although she felt like a traitor to her own mother for even thinking that.
“Mom, Dad, what are you doing here?” Nick asked. “Your trip doesn’t end until Friday.”
“Tell him, Bill,” Kathy said to her husband.
“You tell him.”
Kathy rolled her eyes. “Your father got seasick.”
“The boat was just too damn big. Couldn’t find my way half the time.”
“They were on a cruise of the Greek islands.” Nick said to Lisa.
“That’s right,” Kathy said. “We went halfway across the world, and all your father wanted to do was read his golf magazines.”
“Now if they’d had a golf course on board, I’d have been happy,” Bill said. “Where’s Maggie?”
“Anyway, we decided to come home early. We missed everyone. Where’s Maggie?” she asked, repeating Bill’s question.
Nick shot Lisa a questioning look.
“Why don’t you both come in and sit down?” Lisa suggested. “Nick made cookies. Would you like one?”
“Nick made cookies?” Kathy asked, putting a hand to her heart. “Good heavens! What exactly did he want from you, Lisa?”
Lisa blushed a thousand shades of red.
Bill laughed and punched Nick in the arm. “Like we don’t know the answer to that question, huh, son? I must say I never thought I’d see the two of you together again.”