Passionate Bid (21 page)

“Excuse me?”

“Oh, I shouldn”t have said that. I know brat is a bad word. And I”m assuming Sam isn”t one.”

“She”s not. Sam and Julian are getting along fine. He loves our daughter and is really enjoying his time with her.”

“Really! That is so good to know. You just gave me hope, Joanie. I should ask, no, beg him again to have a baby with me.”

Why was she telling her all of this? Something wasn”t right here. And this woman rubbed her like sandpaper on skin. Abrasive. “What exactly is your reason for being here? I doubt just to tell me how much you wanted a baby with Julian.

That”s personal. And we”ve just met.”

Georgina”s pale blue eyes betrayed her ardor. Her smile wavered. “You”re right. I shouldn”t have told you about my eagerness to have a baby. I”m sorry. I got carried away. Well, I”m here to talk about us and Sam.” Joanie”s hackles rose. Why would this stranger talk to her about her daughter? No, she didn”t travel from New York to Oregon talk. That’s bullshit. What is your game, bitch?

“You came here to talk about my daughter?”

“Yes. You probably didn”t know this since you didn”t actually live with Julian. He”s a meticulous one, you know. Always washing and cleaning. And babies are messy, he said. I suppose that”s understandable. All doctors are clean.

And Julian hates dirt, snot and dirty feet. Kids are always dirty. He said dealing with animals in his clinic is bad enough. Coming home with a brat in a house is the last thing that he wanted in his well-organized life. If Sam is a messy eater or a puddle-stomping kind of kid, then Julian won”t like that. Maybe our Sam is different. Maybe Julian wouldn”t get mad if she gets dirty.” Our Sam? “Sam could swim in a mud and Julian would just laugh about it. I don”t know where you got the idea that he hates kids. And I highly doubt that Julian would compare the pets he treated to kids. I may not know him that well, but I know enough that he”s not that mean.”

Joanie remembered the first day she left Julian in her house. He cleaned and washed everything. And she thought he liked to wash Sam”s feet because he enjoyed doing it. Were his niceties all for a show? If yes, for what? So she would change her mind and sign the papers without asking for the money and still get his wishes about spending time with Sam?

Georgina waved her hand as if dismissing her comment. “Oh, I knew you”d say that. See, that”s what Julian wanted you to think. He planned this act.” She sat on the chair with her back straight.

Or you’re the one acting. “I”m sorry, but did you come here to talk bad about Julian?”

“Oh no! Goodness, of course not. I”m just letting you in on Julian”s plan. Kind of warning you. Like I said, I wanted to talk about Sam. Julian said Sam”s turning four and she”s having a birthday party. So I came right away to meet my future stepdaughter. I have all kinds of toys for her. Mostly something with butterflies. You don”t mind do you?”

Stepdaughter? Joanie”s head began to throb. “Thank you for all the trouble. But Sam doesn”t need the toys.”

“Joanie, I knew you”d say that. It”s just…I thought if I join the birthday celebration, she might like me. And, believe it or not, I want us to be friends, too. For Sam. Only if it is okay.”

Julian said the same thing. He wanted us to become friends. Engaged. His fiancée wanted to be her friend. Sam, a stepdaughter. Joanie shook her head no. This woman was lying. Julian didn”t plan to stay here. He didn”t know anything about Sam before he came. His idea of staying only came up because she made a demand and he countermanded. “You said Julian planned his act. What about you? What is your plan?”

“Plan? No, Joanie. I came here as a friend. You see, Julian was open about his past. He told me he was forced to marry you and that your father pointed a gun at his side. I told him he deserved it and I laughed. He didn”t think it was funny.

What happened the night that caused him his bachelorship was unthinkable, he said. He said he”d rather die a bachelor than marry someone like you. But I think he just said that because he had a girlfriend at the time.”

“Joanie, Julian was just mad at what happened. When he said he”s married to his unwanted, untidy wife—which, by the way, I don”t believe because you look great in your green top—I stayed away from him. You know, married men are trouble. With my line of work, I know. I even explained to Julian that I didn”t want another scorned wife chasing me with her sharp scissors.” Georgina laughed and sobered quickly. “But Julian pursued me. When he wants something, Julian gets it. Even if he has to use seduction, which by the way, he”s really good at. And the rest is history. So, I came to ask for your friendship. Do you think we could be friends?”

Not in a million years. Joanie thought about the first night Julian wrapped his arm around her. Seduction. That was what it was. To get to Sam. “ “I regard my friends with affection and trust. The friends I have, I can rely on them. I”m sorry, but you don”t fall in the category.” Snakes belong in a cold pit, not in a warm embrace of friends.

“I understand. But in time, I”ll gain your trust. My being here is the first step.

I wanted to explain, to let you know I didn”t steal Julian from you. We just fell in love. Julian is here to make you sign the divorce papers. I should be happy. Well yes, I am happy. But knowing another woman”s heart is breaking because of me kept me awake all night. Please don”t hate me.”

Awake all night fucking Julian.

Julian had told her everything but missed the part about his unofficial engagement. But then he had made it clear he would go back to New York. Maybe to go back to this woman throwing vile at her with her words. “The only hold I have on Julian is the wedding certificate. He can marry anyone he wishes when our divorce is final. Let me tell you this; insist on seeing my Sam, and I won”t just hate you. I”ll cut your hair and choke you with it. We have nothing in common. Friends are bound by things they both love. We don”t have that.” Georgina”s eyes turned icy, but only for a brief second. Her smile, however, remained pasted on her face. “Oh, Joanie. Soon I will be Julian”s wife. Sam will be our connection. Julian would want to see Sam again. Maybe buy her stuff or ask her for a visit. Wait, he did mention over the phone the he”d bring Sam to New York to see her great-grandma. Grandma”s staying with us, you see. So, when that happens I hope we can meet without hostility.”

What visit? Joanie seethed with anger. She wanted to scream, send the woman out of her house. But she would not lose her composure. Not in front of this woman trying to kill her with her offer of false friendship and sincerity.

Julian, that rat! She”d eat dirt before she let him take Sam away so he and this viper could be with her. She rubbed her temples. She could feel the sign of a migraine starting.

“No. Julian and I agree that after his time with Sam is over, he won”t be back here again.”

“Oh, I see. Well, I guess that is for the best.”

“I beg your pardon, but I”m going to ask you to leave. And please take all the things you brought for Sam. Don”t worry, if you and Julian marry, I won”t chase you with my scissors.”

“Oh, if that”s what you want, and if no contact would make our lives wonderful, consider it done.” Georgina opened her purse and took out a purple, laced handkerchief. “By the way, when I was getting ready to leave, I found this on his desk. I think it belonged to your mother.”

Joanie couldn”t imagine what it was. She took the bundle from Georgina”s hand and opened it. “Oh my god! Oh my god!” A lump formed in her throat. She swallowed, but it was hard. Her head began to buzz. She”d been looking for this clip. She remembered wearing it on her wedding day, but it kept slipping off her hair. She stared at her mother”s heirloom. The precious clip dad gave her on their wedding day was broken in half. Tears blurred her vision until she couldn”t see the clip anymore. “How did this happen?”

“I don”t know. But I am guessing Julian broke it. Because when I found that in his drawer, there were angry notes about you. But I could be wrong. Joanie, I am so sorry. If I knew this would bring you grief, I would have kept this in my safe or had it fixed before giving it back to you. But you see, this is not mine to keep. It”s yours, although I am not sure how it ended up in Julian”s desk.”

“I wore this to our wedding. It was falling off my hair so I asked Julian to hold it for me.” God, why didn’t he just give this to me? Why break it?

“Joanie, I am so sorry.”

Joanie looked at the woman Julian had bedded countless times. The insincerity in her voice and triumph in her eyes for hurting her were obvious. No, she wasn”t sorry at all. But she brought the clip back—to hurt her further most likely—but it wasn”t an excuse to return her acidity. “Thank you for bringing this to me”

“You”re welcome. I am staying at The Riverhouse Premier Hotel tonight. Please tell Julian where to find me. If you need anything, just call me.”

I’ll call you from my grave. “As soon as Julian and Sam come back, I will tell him where you”re staying. I”m sorry, but I”m going to ask you to leave. My head hurts.”

“I don”t mind at all. Should I help you with anything? Put the toys away? There are goodies in the bag, too.”

“I don”t need help. Please take your toys back.”

“Here is my card. Call me if you need anything or if you just want to talk.” Joanie didn”t see Georgina leave. She stayed sitting on her father”s chair and mourned the loss of a special memento.

Now that she planted the bad seed, all she had to do was wait for the roots to grow. Before the brat”s birthday, Joanie would sign Julian”s papers, and Julian would be hers.

Georgina drove on the rough road cursing every time she hit a rut. She couldn”t imagine why people would live in a miserable place like this. There was nothing here but old gnarly trees, old houses, and restaurants she wouldn”t dare step foot inside.

She thought about Joanie Saint Claire. The moment she spotted her on the porch, she knew who she was. And she hated her. She was the opposite of a woman that Julian described to her. Joanie”s face and body—even she could admit—was more than beautiful. Not as tall as she, but what was height when you had a package any man fantasized of having. Freaking Joanie was a doll. The kind of woman she hated in her modeling business. Young and beautiful and with an innocent look on her face. God, she wanted to claw her face.

Well, she might do just that if her first plan failed.

Sam wrapped her arms around Julian”s neck as he carried her home. Joanie”s home loomed in the distance. It looked like a house taken from nature itself. The neutral color of the sidings, moss on the roof, even the weathered porch added character to the home. Rustic. How come he”d never noticed how beautiful it was?

He looked for any sign that Joanie was burning something in the kitchen again. No smoke coming out of the house this time. Good, he thought. His wife hadn”t burned the house or herself yet, but what if she used the knife and cut her wrist and now laying bleeding on the floor? The other night, he watched her cut Sam”s pizza and he thought she”d take out her thumb before she could remove the crust. Damn. He hurried his steps eager to see his wife”s smile.

The front door opened. Joanie came out and stood by the front door. It was only then that he was able to breathe. He smiled, Joanie didn”t. The moment he met her eyes, he knew something wasn”t right. Her eyes were red rimmed. He didn”t like what he was seeing. She was looking at him the same way they”d met in the woods. Not good. Still, he kept his smile. When he reached her, he leaned in for a kiss, but Joanie turned her face. He kissed her temple instead.

“We had a great time.”

“Hey, bug. I missed you.”

“Mama, I caught a frog and a butterfly and a lady bug. But we let them go.

They need to go home to their mama.”

“Good girl!”

“Something wrong, Joanie?”

She took Sam from him. “Sam, go in the kitchen. Your lemonade is on the table.”

“Yum! Lemonade.”

Something was definitely not right here. When he left her this morning, everything was fine. Damn it, what happened?

The whole time they were gone, his mind was focused on Joanie. How he wished they were watching Sam together. And by the time Sam released the frog she named Art, he had arrived at a conclusion—he wouldn”t go back to Manhattan a single man. He would give their marriage a chance to bloom, to flourish.

For years he had tried erasing Joanie”s face from his mind. He dated blondes or brunettes and tall women left and right. But for some odd reason, he always spotted women with hair just like Joanie”s. And each time he would look, to find out if it was Joanie. He tucked his hand in his pocket and followed Joanie inside.

She stopped in the middle of the room. When he faced him, her face was hard as granite. “Thanks for spending time with Sam.”

“We had fun. We wished you were with us.”

“I bet.” Her words were heavy with sarcasm.

“What”s going on? Got a bee in your brain?”

“Brain? What brain? Because the way I”ve been acting for the past few days one would think I didn”t have a brain at all.”

Okay, PMSing. She’s just suffering from cramps. That’s all. “Acting like what? Trying to become a great cook? Is it the oven? Don”t worry about it.”

“You know what I”m talking about. Don”t try to be funny, Julian. You”re a vet, not a comedian.”

“Okay. I give up. What”s wrong? And what”s up with the brown bags?

Recycling?”

“No. You”re taking them with you when you leave today.” What the fuck! “Joanie…”

“Thank you for spending time with Sam. I bet she had a great time. We appreciate everything. But it”s time for you to leave.”

“What”s wrong, love?”

Joanie shook her head no. Tears welled in her eyes. “Here, take it.” He recognized the envelope right away. “What”s this, Joanie?”

“This is the reason why you came here. I am giving it to you now—signed.

You don”t have to give me the money. I don”t need it anymore. Your condition still stands. You can spend time with Sam until her birthday. But you are not staying with us anymore.”

Count to three…count to three… “Joanie, I need an explanation. I thought we had an understanding. Last night—”