No Foolin' (Willowdale Romance Novel) (18 page)

Tommy settled onto the swing next to her. “I think it’s going well, don’t you?”

The night was warm and moist. She took a deep breath. “Yes. I was surprised how shy they were at first, but they seem to be settling in. You’d think they hadn’t .
 . .” Kate cleared her throat. “Thanks for your help with this. These two need to make a real shot at having a family.”

Tommy slid his hand over hers. “But they’re still just kids. It might do them well to see us together. With your stepfather gone now, you’re gonna need some help supervising this fledgling little family. Might be a smart idea to give them a positive role model. What do you think, Katie? Would you marry me?”

Kate pulled her hand away. “Marry you?” she managed to whisper. This seemed more serious than his feeble offers at The Hideaway.

“I made some stupid, stupid mistakes. But we were kids. And kids make mistakes, look at Dina and Mitch.” He dragged his knuckles along her cheek. “I didn’t realize how much you meant to me until I saw all those pictures of you with Teague. Damn near ate my heart up. You’re the best thing that ever happened to me, and I blew it. I blew it big-time.” He pulled his hand away from her face and gestured behind him. “If those two can work to make love happen, why can’t we?”

Kate didn’t immediately argue back. She was so tired, she couldn’t even round up the right words to fight it.

Tommy seemed to take that as a good sign. “And face it, kid. You need me. No job, sullied reputation .
 . .” He let the words hang there for good effect.

Marry Tommy? She could never marry Tommy for love. But he did raise some good points. Could she marry him for convenience? Her nose wrinkled just thinking of it. She wondered if this was how her mother felt when George proposed. Kate wouldn’t be the first person to accept a marriage proposal that wasn’t grounded in true, heart-swollen love.

“Think about it,” Tommy said, patting her hand. “There are some very good reasons for the two of us to be together. Not the least of which, I love you. Always have. And besides, don’t you want your own baby? Even though Ellen and I got divorced, Jane is the best thing that ever happened to me. Love that kid. Don’t you want that? That biological clock of yours has got to be ticking.”

And her kitchen timer went off. “Time for the main course,” she said quietly.

Tommy stood up. “I’ll get it. You think about what I said.” He left her on the deck, and she wondered how she could even be giving a serious moment’s thought to this preposterous proposal.

DINA STABBED A piece of steak with her fork and was grateful to keep her mouth busy with something other than talking. Why was this so hard, sitting here with the guy who got her pregnant? She studied her plate, pushing around a stray pea with her fork.

“The food is good,” Mitch said. “This was really nice of them.”

Dina nodded. “Do you think something’s going on between them?”

Mitch set down his fork. “Do you? Kate just hooked up with a movie star. You think she’s going to be happy with someone like my brother?”

Dina shrugged and put her hands in her lap. “She loved him before. And it’s not like she has a choice now. Teague’s with someone else, and Kate has no job.”

“You think she should settle for Tommy?”

Dina felt her throat close up. “You think we should settle for each other because of the baby.”

Mitch threw his napkin down. “The baby is a very good reason to settle. We have to be realistic here.”

Dina pushed away from the table, crying. “So you
are
settling. I don’t want to make you do something you don’t want to do.”

“I never said I didn’t want to do it! I’ve been pushing to be part of this even before you admitted it.”

Dina walked to the stairs and turned around. “I’m not feeling well, and I’m sure arguing like this isn’t good for the baby. We’ve got an ultrasound tomorrow at ten if you’re interested.”

Kate and Tommy ran in from the deck. “Everything alright in here?” Kate asked. “Where did Dina go?”

“Upstairs.” Mitch turned up his hands. “This didn’t exactly work out. Thanks for trying. I’m not sure what’s going to happen with us.”

“PLEASE, LET’S JUST wait five more minutes.” Dina watched the door of the exam room for Mitch. “I told him about the appointment. I figured he’d come. Maybe.” She smoothed the blue paper gown across her thighs and nervously swung her legs off the end of the exam table. A florescent light flickered overhead.

Kate patted her hand. “I’m sure something came up with work, or maybe he’s having car problems.”

“I have a cell phone. He could call.” Dina’s big eyes were slick with tears.

The ultrasound tech cleared her throat. “I’m sorry. We’re booked solid today. We have to get started.”

Dina sniffed and lowered herself onto the table, the sound of paper rustling beneath her. The tech lifted the gown and squirted her belly with jelly. She moved the wand over her tummy while Kate and Dina gazed at the screen.

Dina sucked in a breath. “Oh! That’s my baby?”

The tech nodded and grinned. “There’s your baby’s heart. See it beating?” She pointed to a tiny, fluttering image on the screen.

Dina nodded. “Can you tell if it’s a boy or a girl?”

“Yep. You want to know?”

Dina nodded enthusiastically.

“You’re going to have a little girl.”

Dina cupped her hand over her mouth, and Kate felt her own womb tighten with longing for a child of her own. Tommy had been right, what he’d said the night before. Only, she was pretty certain a baby would never be in her future. She wondered what kind of father Teague would be to his child.

Once the procedure was over and Dina’s belly had been wiped dry, the tech handed Dina a picture of the baby’s profile and a DVD recording of the whole procedure. Dina slid down from the table and checked her phone, frowning.

This is not the time to bolt, buddy,
Kate thought.
Mitch better have one heck of an excuse for missing this appointment.

TEAGUE HELD JENNIFER by the hand as they walked into the doctor’s office. “You’re having a little boy. Are you excited?” he asked her. He tugged his ball cap brim lower and adjusted his sunglasses.

“Yes. I name him T, like you.” She laughed and sat down in a chair while Teague checked them in. He was nervous, too, and dropped the pen a few times as he filled out her information.

He turned around and knocked right into someone, clumsy fool that he was. This was no way to lay low, bowling people over. “I’m sorry,” he said quietly.

“Teague?”

He’d know that voice anywhere. He looked up at her. “Kate? What are you doing here?”

She blinked a few times. “This is my stepsister, Dina. She’s expecting a baby in three months.”

Dina looked as if she’d forgotten that she was carrying a child. She lifted a shoulder and dropped her chin, gazing at him coyly. “Hey, Teague. Nice to meet you.”

Kate gently whacked her with a handful of pamphlets. “Go wait in the car.”

Dina slunk away, watching him over her shoulder.

Kate turned back to him, shaking her head. “What are you doing here?” She crossed her arms over her chest and tapped her foot.

He couldn’t lie to this woman. Not anymore. Not about this. He let out a deep breath. “Come here. I want you to meet someone.”

She shook her head and stepped back. “I already met the other woman you’re sleeping with, back in Maui. I don’t need to meet another.”

He shook his head. He was surprised how calm he felt when he was no longer desperate to cover up the truth. It felt good. “I haven’t hooked up with Simone again, no matter what you read. And I’m not here with a girlfriend. I’m here with my sister.”

Her face didn’t change, didn’t morph into relief like he hoped it would. “I thought you said you didn’t have any brothers or sisters.” A cool tone laced her voice.

“You’re right. I did tell you that, to protect her.” He held up his hands. “I didn’t think I had any siblings until I got a call from the director of the facility where she lives. They tracked down her family to figure out what to do about this baby. And that’s how, after all these years, I found out I have a sister. Would you like to meet Jennifer?”

Kate looked over at his sister. “Sure.” She followed him over to the plastic row of chairs in the waiting room.

Jennifer looked up, and Teague watched Kate take it all in with one quick glance at Jennifer’s features: her mouth agape ever so slightly as it always was, her eyes just a little too wide, the too-big grin that broke out. “Hi,” Jennifer said in her deep, slow voice.

Kate stuck out her hand. “Nice to meet you, Jennifer. When are you having your baby?”

Teague’s heart swelled as he watched her treat Jennifer like any other person—like a lucky woman waiting for her baby to be born.

Jennifer shook her hand vigorously. “Three weeks, then four days.”

“That’s so exciting. Congratulations!” Kate said. Her voice sent ripples of longing through him.

Teague squeezed Jennifer’s shoulder. “Can you stay here while I walk Kate to her car?”

Jennifer nodded.

Kate followed Teague outside and it took his every ounce of power not to wrap her in his arms, so he took a step back. “Now you know my secret. The one you helped me keep.”

Kate looked off and nodded. “I can see why you needed to keep it quiet.” The breeze ruffled her hair and he moved to brush it off her cheek, but stuffed his hands in his pockets instead.

“Yes. And I owe you more than I could ever give for helping me do that. I really hope that despite everything that’s happened between us, you can keep this a secret. I don’t want Jennifer hurt by the press. It’s not good for her or the baby.”

“And it’s not good for you,” Kate added with a frown.

He shrugged. The truth of it hurt him. She thought he only cared about his image, his reputation. “You know the drill.”

“And you don’t think June’ll find out?” She pursed her lips.

Did she have to be so cute when she was being difficult?
“I fired her after the film fest. Couldn’t stand another moment with that woman, no matter how good of a publicist she was.” He grinned. “But don’t worry. I introduced her to your stepfather. He’s hell-bent on carving out a career in Hollywood. June is smitten enough to think she can help him do it. They’re going to drive each other crazy. But that should help the family finances, no?”

Kate pinched the bridge of her nose. “I thought he was talking nonsense about becoming an actor. But she’s trying to help him? That pretty much guarantees he’ll never come home.”

“And that’s a bad thing?” Man, Teague was so bad at this stuff.

“His daughter is expecting a baby. She’s only eighteen, she’s all confused and we’re the only family she’s got. And it’s not like he’ll be sending the money home.”

“Oh,” he said quietly. Maybe that’s why she’d turned to the police chief for help. She certainly couldn’t shoulder this all on her own. She needed someone after all, but it wasn’t him.

She grabbed his hand and squeezed. “I won’t tell anyone about Jennifer. But I think people are going to find out. It’s a small town.”

He swallowed and found his voice. “I’ve been paying her residential facility pretty well to keep a tight lid on it. So far, so good.” Teague wanted to pull Kate close and carry her off to his motel room and start all over again. But he dropped her hand and backed away from her to make sure he wasn’t tempted. She had a new life, she had no room or need for him. She was working things out with her ex, trying to get her life together. He’d only make things worse.
Ride off into the sunset, dude .
 . . this party’s over.

Kate stood there quietly for a moment, then sighed. “It was good seeing you. Good luck with everything—the movie, the baby. Congratulations.”

Crickets chirped in the fields behind the office and the sun beat down on the back of his neck. Teague nodded. “Thanks. Jennifer and the baby will be the only people I know who are really related to me. I’m very excited, actually.”

“Did you find about anything about your parents? Your biological parents?”

He shook his head. “I only found a record of us being given up for adoption at the same time. There’s no information about my mother or father.” He shrugged. Water under the bridge. “I’ve gotta get back in there for Jennifer’s appointment.”

“Sure, of course. I’ve got lots to do, too.”

Right, like the police chief.
The thought made him wild.

“Take care, Teague.” Her smile was cheery as ever, although her eyes didn’t match the mood.

But he smiled and did the hardest thing he’d ever done. He walked away from the woman he loved. Guess she was right, after all—some people aren’t meant for love.

COULD SOMEONE BE more disinterested?
Kate plopped her painting gear in the spare bedroom with a huff. Teague couldn’t get away from her fast enough. But he certainly had his own issues to deal with, just like she did. Their week in Hawaii had been pure fantasy for both of them, as it turned out.

Kate snapped open the newspaper, scanning the want ads before she laid it on the floor to and started painting the room a lovely, pale pink for the baby. But there wasn’t much work available that interested her. Not that she had the luxury of being interested in her work. She doubted she’d ever work in a school again. But she needed something to bring in money. She laughed to herself. It seemed like yesterday that summer had rolled around and she was looking for a temporary job. How her world had changed. Delores was coming over later to check out Mama’s Depression glass, but that certainly wouldn’t bring in much.

She rolled another stripe of paint on the wall and wished she were doing this for her own child. Dina was in bed, crying because Mitch hadn’t shown up for the ultrasound. He’d been the one wanting to marry Dina. Now the roles were reversed. She didn’t know much about astrology, but she figured the planets must have been all out of kilter. Nobody was getting what they wanted these days.

After covering the first wall with paint, she called Dina in to take a look. “Come see, it’s so pretty.”

Dina didn’t answer, so Kate wandered into her room. Dina was tucked into a little ball, sobbing quietly.

Kate squeezed her shoulder. “Honey, it’s going to be okay. This is a scary time for both of you.”

Dina reached for Kate’s hand. “I just don’t understand.”

“The two of you are going through a whirlwind of emotions. And let’s not forget you’re pregnant. I’ve heard those hormones and all those changes can turn you upside down.”
Not to mention you had the diva thing going on before this anyway .
 . .
“You’ve got so much to deal with. But you’ve got to be willing to fight for what you want.”

Dina sat up and blew her nose. “So, why aren’t you fighting for Teague?”

Well, that was one way to slow down a conversation. She turned up her hands in a helpless gesture. “There’s not really anything to fight for. There wasn’t much there to begin with.”

“Does this mean you’re getting back together with Tommy?”

“Uhhh
 . . .”

The doorbell rang and Kate patted Dina’s hand, wondering how much more drama she could stand in a day. It better not be Tommy looking for an answer to his crazy proposal. Did Dina know about that?

She opened the door.
Hello, drama.
She braced herself against the doorframe. “Mitch. I’m not sure if I’m glad to see you or not. Dina’s really angry you didn’t show up for the appointment.”

He shuffled his feet. “I know. I was scared to come. Scared to see a real live picture of the baby. Makes it kind of real, you know?”

She closed her eyes and nodded. “I can understand that. It all looked pretty real in the doctor’s office, but if you’re coming in to break that girl’s heart you’re going to have to do it another day. Dina’s really upset, and I’m worried about her.”

“Do you think she’d be upset if I gave her this?” He snapped open a white velvet box. A tiny solitaire diamond sat on top of a gold band.

Kate blew out a breath. “I don’t know. Let me see if she wants to talk to you.” What was it with the Larsen boys and this rash of proposals?

Kate knocked on Dina’s door. “Mitch is here to see you. Should I send him in?”

Dina sat up in her bed. “No!” She patted her hair and stripped off her ratty shorts. “Not yet. He can’t see me like this. Give me a few minutes. I’ll come down when I’m ready.”

Kate trotted back downstairs and let Mitch in. “Give Dina a minute. It might help if she catches you doing this.” She handed him the paint roller and directed him into the nursery. “I’ll give you two some privacy. I’ll have my phone on if you need me.”

Kate hopped in her Jeep and headed for the park. She’d take a walk around the jogging loop and blow off some steam. Seemed like a good plan. When she got there, she settled on a bench instead, too tired to do a few laps. She crossed her fingers that things were going well back home. She frowned. Her home for now. The taxes were paid off, but now she didn’t have a job. Was it just fantasy to think she could keep Mama’s house with no steady income?

A smart woman would accept Tommy’s proposal. It really was best for everyone. But Kate wasn’t a smart woman. She’d had the misfortune of feeling the intense burn of desire with Teague. He’d ruined her. Hell, she was imagining him walking across the park to her right then. She’d never be able to shake him.