Firestorm (16 page)

She couldn’t resist prodding him. “Let’s see,” she said, deliberately keeping her tone light. “You have a mother, a father, and three older sisters. Your mother and sisters are all trying to get you married off. Your father runs GreenTex. Did I leave anything out?”

Jake swallowed the last bite of his sandwich. Then he grinned. Kate loved the way one corner of his mouth lifted just a little off-center and the tanned skin at the corner of his eyes crinkled when he smiled. When he spoke, his voice reminded her of soft, warm velvet.

“I told you more than that, honey.” His attention focused on the control panel now, he spoke in a matter-of-fact tone. “There’s Mom and Dad. Then there’s Debra. Deb’s forty-six, but she’d kill me if she knew I’d ever told anybody that. Scott’s her husband.

He’s the one who woke us up this morning.”

“Debra and Scott,” Kate repeated, trying to fix the names firmly in her mind.

“Scott—” She hesitated. “Scott Carrington, isn’t it?”

“Yeah. They have three girls. Cat—Catherine—is about twenty. Lenore’s sixteen, going on thirty. And Tracy is seven. I imagine she must have been a big surprise to Deb and Scott, but she’s a neat kid. You’ll meet them soon enough.”

“How about your other sisters?”

“You’ll like Leah. She was forty-three last week. Damn! I forgot to send her a present, so she’s likely to skin me alive. Can I count on you to keep her from clobbering me?”

She couldn't help smiling. “I don’t know. How tough is she?”

“Not very. She’s pregnant again, hoping that this time she and Ben will have a boy.

I guess the baby’s due pretty soon.”

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“Do they have other children?” Kate wondered how Leah felt about being pregnant at such an advanced age.

“Ruthie. She’s about a year and a half old. Ben was a widower. He had three teenage daughters when he and Leah got married four years ago. Somehow, I never pictured Leah with kids, but she’s good with them. Maybe it comes from her being a psychologist before she decided to become a mom.”

“Does Leah’s husband work for GreenTex, too?” Kate asked, struggling to catalog all the names firmly in her mind.

“Uh-uh. Ben’s a cardiologist. Scott’s the only in-law who works for GreenTex.”

“What about your sister whose husband has a job in Kuwait?”

“Shana? She’s thirty-four, three years older than I am. She and Bear have two girls and a boy. Yasmin’s ten, Selena’s eight. Their little boy, Jamil, is about six months old.”

Jake grinned at Kate. “We’ll be landing in another twenty minutes or so,” he commented as if he'd said all he intended to say about his siblings.

“Oh.”

Setting the empty food tray on the floor beside her seat, she tightened her seat belt and tried to relax. When the sea of white disappeared and she saw the ground beneath them, she realized they’d begun their descent.

As Kate tried to keep Jake’s nephew and nieces’ names matched with the proper parents, her tension mounted until the plane touched down.

* * * * *

Jake had brought Kate to a world of luxury beyond her wildest imaginings. First, he’d invited her aboard a multimillion dollar airplane as if it he thought that mode of transportation was no more out of the ordinary than climbing into a car and driving to the general store.

At Houston’s Hobby Airport, he’d taken the keys to what the terminal manager said was one of his brother-in-law’s cars—some exotic foreign job she couldn’t even pronounce the brand name of. They’d driven straight to a hospital where a uniformed attendant parked the car.

She looked around the private sitting area outside the room where Jake was visiting with his father. This VIP tower was like no other hospital accommodations she’d ever seen. Since when did hospitals provide suites with original oil paintings and sleek designer furniture for its patients?

As she caressed the glove-soft leather covering on a chair arm, she stared at a massive chrome-and-glass lamp that rested on plush mauve carpeting. Staring down at Ann Jacobs

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her simple beige suit, she felt as out of place as she would have if she’d suddenly found herself on Mars.

When the outer door opened, Kate looked up and saw a woman and three girls.

And a tall, blond man whose arm was wrapped in a proprietary way around the waist of the striking dark-haired woman. When the woman moved, Kate noticed the diamonds flashing at her throat, on her fingers, around her wrists, and in her ears. A subtly draped jumpsuit of pale gold silk enhanced her well-kept body. Kate felt dowdy and fully intimidated by the time the glamorous family entered the room.

“Is Jake in with Dad?” the woman asked.

Kate realized then that she must be one of Jake's sisters. “Yes.”

“I'm Deb. This is Scott. And these are our daughters.” She smiled and turned to the girls. “Cat. Lenore. And Tracy.” Affectionately, she ruffled the youngest girl’s hair with a jewel-laden hand. “You must be Kate Black. Scott said Jake was bringing you with him.”

“Yes. I’m glad to meet you.” Kate hoped she appeared more at ease than she felt.

“Don’t let me keep you. I know you must be anxious to see your father. And Jake.” She smiled tentatively at the intimidating group.

“Go on, love. I’ll wait out here.” Scott stepped away from Deb and sat on a couch across from Kate. “Girls, let your mother go in first and see how Grandpa Jacob is feeling.”

Then he turned to Kate. “I suppose your first oil well has you bursting with excitement,” he said cordially.

The arrival of more people saved Kate from having to make more than a monosyllabic reply. Scott introduced the newcomers, Ben, Leah, and tiny Ruthie Schulberg. While Deb had overwhelmed Kate with her opulent display of wealth, Leah stunned her with pure intensity.

Leah's dark, intelligent eyes focused on her, as though she might be assessing Kate’s suitability for Jake.

Kate’s cheeks still burned, minutes after Leah had gone in to see her father.

“Will Jake’s other sister be here soon?” Kate asked Ben, whose daughter was busy tugging at his horn-rimmed glasses. At least he didn’t intimidate her. Maybe that was because of his quiet poise and unassuming manner that reminded her a little of David.

“They’ll be in tonight, won’t they?” Ben asked Scott. Kate thought she detected a little discomfort on Ben's part.

“About seven o’clock, unless their plane is delayed. Kate, would you like a drink?”

Scott asked as he got up and crossed the room. She watched him open the doors of an ebony sideboard to reveal a small refrigerator and a large selection of liquor.

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“Something soft, please.” Kate turned back to Ben. “May I hold Ruthie?” she asked, sensing that the squirming toddler had just about worn out her daddy's patience.

Ben handed his daughter over. Ruthie was soft and sweet smelling, with fine dark hair she’d obviously inherited from both her parents. It felt good to hold her.

Soon Ruthie tired herself out and rested her little head against Kate's breast. In spite of the noise from Deb’s girls chattering and Ben’s stiff conversation with Scott, she drifted off to sleep.

After a while Tracy curled up by Kate's feet, and Lenore and Cat stopped their bickering and included Kate in their conversation.

The cozy scene of Kate with his nieces settled around her met Jake when he came out of the Old Man’s room. For a minute, he just stood and watched her. Holding Leah’s baby, with Tracy at her feet, Kate looked happy and maternal. And she was keeping the older girls occupied with questions about their school and career plans.

Despite the inappropriateness of time and place, Jake wanted to hand Ruthie back to Ben and take Kate in his arms. “Honey, come here,” he said instead. “Mom and Dad want to meet you.”

Noting how gently she touched his niece’s cheek after settling her onto the chair, Jake’s wary heart softened a little more. He couldn’t keep his hands off Kate any longer, but in deference to the horde of relatives around them, he looped one arm over her shoulder and rested his hand above, not on her breast.

“Their bark’s worse than their bite,” he whispered when she started to tremble.

“Don’t tell me you’re scared.”

“A little.”

Once they got inside, Jake introduced her to his parents.

While they exchanged pleasantries, he watched his father's expression. Kate was obviously charming the hell out of the Old Man, though it didn’t look to Jake as if she was even trying.

His father’s wish, expressed frequently over the years, echoed in Jake's mind.

I want grandchildren who will carry on my name, and I’d like to have them before I'm too old to enjoy them.

Jake would like that, too. But he wasn’t about to let the Old Man push him. If he should decide Kate was the woman he wanted to spend the rest of his life with, his father would be the first to know.

Looking at the family members gathered around him, he read the speculative looks that passed between his mother, Deb and Leah. He could almost hear them scheming. It didn’t take a genius to figure out that thoughts of rings, showers, flowers, musicians, reception menus, and so on, were running rampant in their heads.

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Jake felt as if the walls were closing in on him. As soon as he could politely do so, he extricated Kate from his mother and sisters and wished the Old Man a restful night.

“Tell Shana and Bear to come on over to my place when they leave here,” he told his mom as they left.

* * * * *

“No, Mom…not tonight…For God's sake, Dad is having surgery in the morning. Do you really think you ought to be asking us over to dinner tonight?” Jake shifted the portable phone from one ear to the other. “Yeah. I know you want to get to know Kate.

Well, now isn’t the time.”

“But Jake. You’re serious about this girl. Finally. After I’ve despaired of ever seeing you married to a good woman, you’ve brought one home. Now you won't even let your own mother get to know her.”

His mother’s tone was petulant, but Jake refused to give in.

“I’ll bet you don’t even have any food in that tiny apartment of yours. What are you going to eat?” she asked, apparently trying to use reason.

“I’ll order pizza. And my condo’s not exactly tiny, Mom. It’s got seven perfectly good rooms. And a pool, before you tell me I have to bring Kate to the house for a swim.”

More than a little annoyed, Jake held the receiver at arm’s length and let his mother rave.

“…club. Or would you rather have it at a hotel?” Jake caught those scary words and brought the phone back to his ear. “…could get Debra to help her find a gown that’s just perfect…”

“Stop with the matchmaking. If and when I decide to get married again, I’ll let you know. You might at least wait ‘til I give a woman an engagement ring before you start thinking about flowers and receptions. That way, you’ll avoid being disappointed when your schemes fall through. Goodbye. We’ll see you in the morning at the hospital.”

Jake set the phone back in its cradle and turned to Kate.

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Chapter Eight

“Better watch out, honey. If you don’t, Deb will be taking you shopping for a wedding gown. Leah will be planning parties. And my precious mother will be arranging the wedding of her dreams. God only knows what Shana will pull to try and get us married off, when she gets here. Do you see now what I meant when I told you they drive me insane?”

“I guess so. They're all so…”

Kate didn’t finish her sentence. Jake figured she couldn't find just one word that adequately described his female relatives.

“So what, honey? Pushy? Overbearing? Ostentatious? Hmmm. How about

‘downright obnoxious’? Hey, they didn’t scare you off, did they?” He shouldn’t have left Kate in the clutches of his enthusiastic mother and sisters while he and Scott had gone over some company business with the Old Man.

“No. They were…very friendly. Does Deb always wear so much jewelry?” Kate asked as if she were trying to get the women’s effusive welcome off her mind.

“No. Sometimes she wears more. Deb’s got a thing about diamonds. And Scott’s so crazy about her, he buys her all she wants. I think it must get his blue Boston blood hot to see her flashing rocks as big as spotlights.”

“Oh.” Kate’s soft, sweet face registered confusion.

“We’re not very traditional, honey,” Jake said casually. “Don’t let my sisters get to you.”

“What do you mean traditional? There’s nothing wrong with liking jewelry or having children late in life. Or even being concerned over your son’s or brother’s happiness,” she said with a twinkle in her eyes.

“They don’t put you off?” Jake asked, watching Kate to gauge her reaction.

“No more than you do. I'm not used to riding around in private jets and fast foreign sports cars, and when Pop was hospitalized he stayed in a plain old semi-private room.

I admit, when I saw Deb and her girls come into that hospital suite wearing clothes that probably cost more than I’ve spent on mine during my entire life, I felt out of place. But they were kind, and they welcomed me. They obviously adore you and want you to be happy.”

If Jake wanted answers, he was obviously going to have to fish. “How traditional are you?”

“In what way?” Kate asked.

“Religion, for one.”

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“Not very. It would have been hard to follow Jewish traditions very closely, growing up in a place where the closest temple was fifty miles away. There were only five Jewish kids in my high school when I was there. There were fewer than that when my father was a boy, I imagine.”

“Just so you know, Scott’s a Christian. So was my former wife, if you apply the term loosely. Shana’s husband is a gentile, too, as is the Old Man’s stepmother whom we all adore.”

“You think this should bother me?”

“It could. I hope it doesn’t.”

“It doesn't. Jake, why are you angry?”

When he looked at Kate, Jake’s body began to stir. “I’m not angry,” he said, but that was a lie because he was furious with himself.