Nobody's Baby But Mine Part 34

"When you come over for dinner, maybe we'll have some time to talk, and you can tell me about your work."

A smile of pure pleasure lit his face. "I'd like that."

She realized that she couldn't remember the last time she'd asked him anything beyond a cursory, "How was your day?" This business of listening to each other was going to have to go both ways.

His smile faded, and his forehead creased. "I don't suppose I could bring my son along when I come to dinner?"

She hesitated for only a moment before she shook her head. "I'm sorry. My mother wouldn't allow it."

"Aren't you a little old to be taking orders from your mother?"

"Sometimes she has a feeling about how things should go. Right now, she has feelings about who should come to the house and who shouldn't."

"And my son isn't welcome?"

She regarded him unhappily. "I'm afraid not. I hope ... soon. It's really in his hands, not Annie's."

His jaw set in its familiar stubborn line. "It's hard to believe you're letting an old woman who's half-crazy make decisions about something so important."

She drew him to a stop and pressed a kiss to the corner of that stubborn jaw. "Maybe she's not as crazy as you think. After all, she was the one who told me I had to take this walk with you."

"You wouldn't have done it otherwise?"

"I don't know. I have a lot at stake in my life right now, and I don't want to make a mistake. Sometimes mothers know what's best for their daughters." She regarded him levelly. "And their sons."

He shook his head, and his shoulders slumped in resignation. "All right. I guess I know when I'm in over my head."

She smiled and had to restrain herself from kissing him again. "We eat early. Six o'clock."

"I'll be there."

[image]

Lynn showed Jane off to Jim that night as if she were a beloved child brought before a stranger to display her tricks. She sang Jane's praises until he began to look dazed, then shooed the two of them into the living room so they could patch up whatever differences remained between them.

As Jane took a seat in Annie's chair, the resemblance between father and son made her ache, and she wanted to move next to him on the couch and fold herself into those st.u.r.dy Cal-like arms. Instead, she drew a deep breath and told him how she had met Cal and what she had done.

"I didn't write the tabloid article," she said, when she reached the end of her story, "but nearly every word of it was true."

She expected his censure.

"I guess Ethan would have a few things to say here about divine providence being responsible for getting you and Cal together," he said.

He surprised her. "I don't know about that."

"You love Cal, don't you?"

"With all my heart." She dropped her gaze. "But that doesn't mean I'm going to be an afterthought in his life."

"I'm sorry he's giving you such a hard time. I don't think he can help it. The men in our family are pretty hard-headed." He looked uncomfortable. "I guess I have a confession of my own."

"Oh?"

"I called Sherry Vogler this afternoon."

"You called my doctor?"

"I couldn't relax about your pregnancy until I made sure everything was all right. She gave you a clean bill of health, but I couldn't bully her into telling me whether I have a grandson or a granddaughter on the way. She said you'd decided to wait, and I had to wait, too." He looked sheepish. "I know I was out of line talking to her behind your back, but I don't want anything to happen to you. Are you angry?"

She thought of Cherry and Jamie and then of her own father, who'd never seemed to care at all. The next thing she knew, she was smiling. "I'm not angry. Thanks."

He shook his head and grinned. "You're a nice lady, Janie Bonner. The old bat was right about you, after all."

"I heard that!" the old bat called from the next room.

Later that night as Jane lay sleepless in her narrow iron bed, she smiled at the memory of Annie's indignation. But her smile faded as she thought of all she would be losing when she left here: Jim and Lynn and Annie, these mountains that seemed to be more a part of her every day, and Cal. Except how could she lose something she'd never had?

She wanted to close her eyes and cry her heart out, but she punched the pillow instead and pretended it was Cal. Her anger faded, and she lay back to stare at the ceiling. What was she doing here? Was she subconsciously waiting for him to change his mind and realize he loved her? Today had shown her that wasn't going to happen.

She remembered the humiliating moment this afternoon when he'd shouted out that he would stay married. His offer had cut her to the quick. The words she'd longed to hear had been uttered on the cusp of his anger, and there hadn't been an ounce of true meaning behind them.

She made herself face the truth. He might very well come around, but it would be out of duty instead of love because he didn't feel the same way about her that she felt about him. She had to accept that and start living her life again. It was time for her to leave Heartache Mountain.

The wind had whipped up outside, and the room had grown chilly. Although it was warm under the covers, the cold seemed to have settled into her bones. She curled deeper into the bedclothes and accepted the fact that she had to leave. She'd always be thankful that she'd taken these two weeks for herself, but now she had to stop hiding and resume her life.

Miserable, she finally fell asleep, only to be jolted awake by a crash of thunder and a cold, wet hand settling over her mouth. She sucked in her breath to scream, but the hand clamped down tighter, and a deep, familiar voice whispered in her ear. "Shhh ... It's me."

Her eyes shot open. A dark shape loomed over her. Wind and rain blew in through the window next to her bed and whipped the curtains against the wall. He eased his hand from her mouth and reached out to close the window just as a boom of thunder shook the house.

Rubber-limbed from the fright he'd given her, she struggled to sit up. "Get out!"

"Lower your voice before Medea shows up with her handmaiden."

"Don't you dare say anything bad about either one of them."

"They'd eat their own children for dinner."

This was too cruel. Why couldn't he just leave her alone? "What are you doing here?"

He planted his hands on his hips and scowled down at her. "I came to kidnap you, but it's wet and cold out there, so I'll have to do it some other time."

He lowered himself onto the straight chair that sat at the sewing machine next to her bed. Beads of water glistened in his hair and on his nylon parka. As another flash of lightning lit the room, she saw that he was still just as unshaven and haggard-looking as he'd been this afternoon.

"You planned to kidnap me?"

"You don't seriously think I'm going to let you stay here much longer with these crazy women, do you?"

"It's none of your business what I do."

He ignored that. "I had to talk to you without those vampires listening in. For one thing, you need to stay away from town for the next few days. A couple of reporters have shown up anxious to check out that tabloid article."

So that was why he'd shown up tonight. Not to bring her a declaration of undying love, but a warning about the press. She struggled to swallow her disappointment.

"They're a bunch of bloodsuckers," he growled.

She sat higher in the pillows and met his gaze straight on. "Don't do anything to Jodie."

"Fat chance."

"I mean it."

He glared at her, and a flash of lightning picked out the hard glitter of her eyes. "You know d.a.m.n well she's the one who sold that story to the tabloid."

"The damage is done, and there's nothing more she can do, so what's the point?" She pulled the quilt to her chin. "It'd be like squashing an ant. She's pitiful, and I want you to leave her alone."

"It's not in my nature to let somebody hit me without hitting them back."

She stiffened. "I know."

"All right." He sighed. "I'll leave her alone. I guess we don't have to worry too much about it anyway. Kevin held a press conference this evening, and he says he's holding another one tomorrow for the next batch of reporters who show up. Believe it or not, he's pretty much defused the whole thing."

"Kevin?"

"Your knight in shining armor." She didn't miss the bite of sarcasm in his tone. "I walked into the Mountaineer to get a beer and found him holding court with a bunch of reporters. He told them that the story was true."

"What?"

"But only up to a point. He said the two of us had been dating for months before that fateful night. According to him, the birthday thing was a surprise you'd arranged. Middle-age kinkiness, I believe he called it. I've got to say, the kid was pretty convincing. By the time he was done, even I believed that's the way it happened."

"I told you he was a sweetie."

"Oh, yeah? Well, your sweetie also made it clear that the only reason you and I started to date was because he'd he'd just dumped you, and you were so upset about it he pa.s.sed you on to me as a consolation prize." just dumped you, and you were so upset about it he pa.s.sed you on to me as a consolation prize."

"That jerk."

"My sentiments exactly."

Despite his words, he didn't sound all that upset with Kevin. He rose and pushed the chair aside. She stiffened as he sat on the edge of the bed.

"Come on home, sweetheart. You know I'm sorry about what happened before, don't you?" He closed his hand over her arm, where it lay beneath the covers. "I should have called Brian as soon as my feelings toward you changed, but I guess I wasn't ready to face what was happening. We can work it out. We just need to be alone for a while to do it."

He was breaking her heart. "There's nothing to work out."

"There's the fact that we're married, and we have a baby coming. Be reasonable, Jane. We just need a little time."

She hardened herself against the frailty inside her that made her want to agree. She refused to be another weak-willed woman victimized by her emotions. "My home is in Chicago."

"Don't say that." Once again, the edge of anger was back in his voice. "You've got a perfectly good home on the other side of this mountain."

"That place is yours, not mine."

"That's not so."

A rap sounded on the door, startling them both. Cal shot up from the edge of the bed.

"Jane?" Lynn called out. "Jane, I heard something. Are you all right?"

"I'm fine."

"I heard voices. Do you have a man in there?"

"Yes."

"Why'd you have to go and tell her that?" Cal hissed.

"Do you want him there?" Lynn asked.

Jane fought the tide of misery rising in her chest. "No."

There was a long pause. "All right, then. Come in my room. You can sleep with me."

Jane pushed back the covers.

Cal caught her arm. "Don't do this, Jane. We need to talk."

"The time's past for talking. I'm going back to Chicago tomorrow."

"You can't do that! I've been doing a lot of thinking, and I have things to tell you."

"Go tell them to somebody who cares." She jerked free and rushed from the room.

Jane was going to bolt, and Cal couldn't let it happen. Not in a million years. He loved her!

He'd learned from his father that the women got up early, so he arrived at Heartache Mountain right at dawn. He hadn't slept at all since he'd climbed back out into the rain from Jane's bedroom window last night. Now that it was too late, he saw the mistake in his strategy.

He should have told her he loved her the minute he came into her room, while he still had his hand over her mouth. Instead, he'd gone on about kidnaping and reporters, jabbering away instead of getting to the heart of the matter, the only part of what he had to say that meant anything. Maybe he'd been ashamed that it had taken him so long to figure out what should have been obvious to him for a long time.

The reality of his feelings had hit him like a lightning bolt. Yesterday afternoon he'd been struck by the truth as he'd driven h.e.l.l-for-leather off the mountain right after he'd made a fool of himself by yelling out that he'd stay married. The expression on her face-the look of absolute contempt-had devastated him. Her good opinion meant more to him than any sportswriter's. She was everything to him.

Now he understood that loving her wasn't a new feeling, only his acceptance was new. Looking back, he figured he'd probably fallen in love with her when he'd tackled her in Annie's backyard that day he'd found out how old she was.

More than anything in his life, he knew he couldn't let this marriage break up. As much as the idea of ending his career scared him, it didn't scare him half as much as losing her. That meant he had to get her to listen to him, but first, he had to make certain she stayed put.

The front door of Annie's house was locked with the new dead bolt he'd installed not two weeks earlier. He figured there wasn't a chance in h.e.l.l they'd open it for him, so he kicked it in and made his way to the kitchen.

Jane stood at the sink in her Goofy nightshirt with her hair all rumpled and her mouth open in an oval of surprise. As she took in his appearance, her eyes widened with alarm.