Walk a Straight Line (14 page)

“Yeah,” Karen confirmed. “He just asked me out today, and I told him I'd have to think about it, you know? But then you showed up, and . . .”

“Yeah,” Michael said. Then he addressed her in a quiet tone. “Karen, if this guy sounds great, then move on, because I have. Gina is great, and I feel strongly about her.”

Karen hunched her shoulders in disappointment; then she straightened. “That didn't hurt like I thought it would. Maybe I am over you, and I'm just holding on to the familiar. So I guess I should move out and give you back your space.”

Michael smiled. Karen was growing up. He would have to congratulate this Arthur person if he ever laid eyes on him. A thought suddenly occurred to him. “Hang on!” Michael exclaimed, “Does Arthur have a last name?”

“Okay, don't laugh. Bugle. His last name is Bugle,” Karen said.

Michael's mouth hung open.

“Dang. His name's not that bad,” Karen defended.

“No, it's not that,” Michael said. Then he began to laugh. “You have no clue, do you?”

“What?” Karen's brows rose. She opened her hands in question. “Will you just tell me?”

“Arthur Bugle is rich—filthy rich. You did good!” Michael slapped her on the back several times.

“Uh . . . I . . . I don't understand what you're saying.” Karen eyes narrowed depicting her confusion.

“He is one of my company's top clients, and he definitely doesn't work in the building. Haven't you ever heard of
Arthur's Pickles.
”

Karen's mouth formed an “O” as recognition dawned. Her eyes widened, and she was silenced by shock. She whispered, “Sugar, honey, iced tea . . . I didn't have a clue.”

“Well, you'll have more than that soon,” Michael promised her. His smile was for two reasons—she'd met someone, and he would soon have Karen out of his hair. Arthur would know how to handle her, though. He was sure of that. Arthur Bugle was more crafty and wily than Karen was. Michael chuckled. She had met her perfect match!

Karen finished cooking, and the two shared a meal, as friends.

Michael left the next morning feeling content. His steps were light, for a burden had been lifted off his shoulders. Karen had told him that she would be looking for her own place. She could move to the Arctic Circle for all he cared. Michael was just happy for her and for himself. Now he could finally have Gina spend the night. He'd taken her on a tour of his penthouse—and they'd dropped in a couple times—but they'd never stayed over.

Michael rubbed his hands. But that was about to change.

Finally, his life was looking on the up and up.

Thanksgiving Day was beautiful. The sun was bright and clear in the sky and provided enough warmth for a lovely fall day. A light jacket was all that was needed. Gina and Michael pulled into Keith's driveway. The leaves were falling off the trees, and they left a hue of brown, yellow, and red colors that was breathtaking. Gina breathed in deeply to sniff in the smell of pinecones.

She was dressed in a purple form-fitting dress with a ruffled flare on the hemline. When she walked, she exposed a scintillating view of her slender thighs. She held back a smile, knowing Michael's eyes roamed her best attributes.

She knocked and turned the knob. Discovering it unlocked, she stepped in. An array of smells assailed her senses and her stomach rumbled. Her mouth watered from the delectable aromas, and she clenched her stomach to still the unbecoming noises.

“Something smells good, Bro!” Michael yelled from behind.

Keith came out of the kitchen with an apron wrapped around his waist. “Hi, Gina,” he greeted with a warm hug and a kiss on the cheek.

Gina blushed from the close contact.
I see nothing has changed,
she said to herself. His proximity enticed her. Her body tingled. Her breath quickened. She hunched her shoulders to limit the physical contact.

Keith loosened his hold, and Gina stepped back.

Colleen and Terence arrived. She'd been overjoyed when Colleen agreed to share Thanksgiving dinner with them. It was almost like old times—Except for Terence, of course.

“Hi, Terence,” Gina said, politely. Terence bent his tall body to place a kiss on her cheek. Gina kept her smile plastered on her face, but she couldn't help the small cringe.

Colleen grabbed her with an exuberant grin. Her taller frame overshadowed Gina's smaller one. Gina felt like she was standing between the Twin Towers before the tragedy. “It's good seeing you, girl.”

“Same here,” Gina returned.

Michael strolled over and he, Colleen, and Terence made small talk.

Gina tapped her feet as her mind wandered away from the conversation. She looked at Keith. Of their own accord, her feet trotted toward him. She was like a moth drawn to a flame.

Keith saw her approach and gave her the salad that he was holding. “How're you?” he inquired once she was in close proximity.

She felt her body shiver and fought the goose bumps rising on her flesh. He was hotness personified. “I'm okay,” Gina replied with practiced nonchalance. “What about you?” Here she was making small talk when she'd much rather hug him and feel his body up close.

“I can't complain—and, might I add, you're wearing the ‘you-know-what' out of that dress.”

Gina glanced down and whispered a “Thank you.” Goodness, she couldn't talk to him without blushing. Desperate to keep up the charade of nonsense conversation, she asked, “Is Eve coming?”

“Yeah, she is. She told me that she had a quick errand to run, so I'm expecting her back any minute.” Keith played along, but growled. “Don't change the subject.”

“That's nice,” Gina said loud enough for Michael's benefit. She craned her neck in his direction, but he was still engaged with Colleen and Terence. Gina fiddled with her dress. She could not think of another appropriate thing to say at this point since she couldn't say what was on her mind.

Colleen looked in their direction. Gina figured she felt the need to play interference and walked over to them. She raised her right eyebrow at Gina, not fooled for an instant, but wisely decided to let it go.

Then Eve walked in. She looked flushed, slightly disheveled. Nothing like the diva she did the last time Gina met her.

Keith rushed to Eve's side in concern. He took both her hands in his. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” Eve answered. She greeted everyone before making her excuses to run to the bathroom. By the time she returned, everyone was seated at the table and waiting for her.

Eve had an apologetic smile on her face. “I'm sorry to keep you waiting. The baby was acting up.” Eve gave everyone a gracious smile.

“That's all right,” Michael volunteered, and then turned to his friend. “Terence, would you like to say grace?”

Terence nodded his head and urged everyone to hold hands. Then he said a brief prayer of thanksgiving and blessed the food. At the end of his prayer, a warm air filled the room.

“You brought the Holy Ghost down in here, Preacher Man,” Michael joked.

Everyone laughed and began to eat.

 

 

Keith, however, was concerned. For once, his mind was not on Gina. With his hand under his chin, he scrutinized Eve. Something was up with her. Of late, she'd not been herself. Since she hadn't been forthcoming, he needed to ask. Normally, Eve would come to him, but now, he was positive that he would have to break the ice to find out what was going on.

Eve had been working longer hours. He could count on one hand the number of times that she had been over at his house the last few weeks, choosing, instead, to crash at her place. Keith ran his eyes over Eve's body. Physically, she seemed well.

Hmm . . . If there were something wrong with the baby, Eve would've told him. He watched her laughing at something that was said. He couldn't put his finger on it, but something was definitely up. Keith was determined to find out that very night.

When everyone left, Keith put the dinnerware and utensils in the dishwasher and soaked the pots in the sink. Normally, he would have washed everything then and there, but he wanted to confront Eve before she fell asleep. She was undressing when he walked into the room.

“Hey,” Keith said.

Eve almost jumped out of her skin. She turned around and snatched a robe to cover up, her face a light rosy hue. “Keith! You scared the life out of me.”

“I'm sorry. I just wanted to talk to you.” He creased his brow in thought. Since when did Eve cover up around him? If anything, she was usually trying to undress around him. “Why'd you cover yourself?”

“I . . .” He interpreted her guilty look before Eve confessed, “I just felt funny about you seeing my big belly, that's all. I've gotten so big, I can barely see my feet.”

“You're beautiful,” Keith said, seeking to reassure her. Then he asked, “Is everything all right, Eve?”

“Honestly, I am quite unprepared for your show of concern. I am not sure how to answer you, because if I tell you the truth. you're going to be angry.”

Keith observed that Eve began to wring her hands, which was a dead giveaway that something was indeed wrong. He sat down on the bed and transformed his features into one of absolute patience. He wanted Eve to feel as if he had all the time in the world for her. “You can tell me, Eve. I can't promise I won't be upset, but I won't upset a pregnant woman,” he prompted.

Eve was still unsure. “I just don't know, Keith.”

He saw her lip poke. “Try me,” he urged with a calm tone.

“I know that look,” Eve chuckled nervously. “You'll sit there and wait for hours until I spill my guts.”

Keith didn't say anything to deny that she spoke the truth. He saw her gather her courage, walk over to him, and sat next to him on the king-sized bed.

“I've been seeing Bass,” she blurted and placed her hand over his.

Keith removed it. “Bass?” He shook his head, stood, and ran his hands over his head. “How long?”

“About three weeks.”

“I see,” Keith said, becoming as closed and hard as a shell. “Well, that explains everything. The long hours . . . the sudden disappearances . . . I should've known.” He walked out of the room.

Eve followed him into his office and plopped into the chair. “Is that all you're going to say? Your face is like granite. Have you no emotions?”

“What else do you expect me to say?” Keith asked.

“I don't know. But say something,” Eve responded. She twisted her hands.

“Why should I waste my time on words when you know how I feel about the situation already?” He refused to bend.

“Well, at least let me explain,” Eve offered. She didn't wait for an answer but rambled, “He called me out of the blue that day when I had the amniocentesis done. I remember, you'd just called me to check on me. Then my phone rang again. I thought it was you—but . . . He caught me off guard . . . But I thought that it was only fair for me to meet him, considering . . .”

Her words hung between them.

“Why didn't you tell me?” Keith asked.

“Because I knew exactly how you felt about the situation and Bass, and that's why I didn't say anything from the very start. But I was going to mention something to you.”

“Have you slept with him?” That was what Keith really wanted to know.

Eve's face told it all. Keith wrinkled his nose and closed his eyes. Disgusted, he was trying hard not to release the bile turning over in his stomach. He opened his eyes to give her a contemptuous glare. “Your face is answer enough,” Keith spat out. He could not believe her. “When you gave yourself to him, did you, for one second, think about the fact that the child you're carrying could be mine?”

“But it's not,” Eve returned. “I've told you that.”

“Well, we both agreed that we would wait until the baby was born to find out,” he doggedly reminded her. “And, if you remember, that's why we haven't been sleeping together, or doing, or
saying
anything else.”

Eve lowered her head in shame. She whispered, “I do love you, Keith, and I'm not going to apologize for saying that. I also was honest enough to tell you about Bass when I found out that I was pregnant, even though it made me look like a . . . terrible person.” Eve's eyes filled with tears of self-remorse.

“I don't think you're a . . .” Keith sighed deeply. He needed to get a grip because she was pregnant and very fragile. He assured her, “I understand fully what it is like to have a love for someone that you just cannot shake. I also knew that you were in love with Bass when you met me, and I can accept that I was a rebound thing. What I cannot deal with is the fact that this baby could be mine, and we agreed to put everything on hold until we knew for sure.”

“But I also told you that the possibility of you being the father was slim. We only had unprotected sex once,” Eve explained. She held her hands out, but Keith wouldn't concede.

“Well, you agreed,” Keith said. “But you just couldn't stay away from Bass as you promised. I mean, that's what caused this whole mess in the first place. Now, where has he been all this time, huh?”

Eve shifted her eyes away from him. “In Europe, on tour.”

He snorted, “Bass hasn't changed. He, his guitar, and his you know what have probably been leaving his imprint all over Europe.”

Eve gasped at his bluntness, but he wasn't taking it back. He'd meant every single word.

“Bass has changed,” Eve refuted, shaking her head. She entreated him. “I'm telling you, Keith. Bass is different, and he's prepared to be a father to this baby, if it's his—Which, I'm sure, that it is.” She felt the need to point that out.

Keith put both hands on his head and looked up at the ceiling. This was so complicated. He didn't know how he had even become entangled in such a scandalous position. He was about to be a father to a child who may not even be his. He wished that he had never gotten involved with Eve.

He'd met her through a mutual friend, and the two began dating. Eve told him all about Bass whose name was originally Trevor Browne. He changed it to Bass because he figured the name represented his true artistic nature.

Keith had heard him play the guitar, and Bass was admittedly good. But he was a dog when it came to women. That was why he hadn't expected Eve to fall under his spell again. But she had.

Keith had to give her credit, though. When she realized she was pregnant, she had confessed it to him right away. The only problem was that the time span between her sleeping with both him and Bass had been a short one. So, even though she and Bass were through, she was unsure of whom the father of her baby was. Bass had turned tail and ran at Eve's news. She had been heartbroken as a result.

Keith, however, had stuck around. He had even opened up his home and life to her, if not his heart, in order to help her through her pregnancy. He hadn't even told Michael the truth.

He had just gotten used to the idea of becoming a parent and had been softening toward Eve, and
bam
. Bass shows up to throw a monkey wrench into everything. For, Bass's sake, Keith prayed that Bass was the father of Eve's child—and not him. He clenched his fists.

Then Keith looked at Eve, and his heart won out. He could not be too hard on her. After all, he knew what it felt like to love someone even when you knew it would be bad for you. He was in love with his brother's woman. Life was just too complicated at times.

“Eve,” Keith said, “just please know that I care, and I will be here for you, no matter what . . . Whether or not this child is mine.”

“I love you, Keith,” Eve returned. “You are truly a wonderful and caring man.”

“Thank you,” Keith replied, “I love you too, Eve. But we're not in love with each other, and we both know it. So, I really hope that Bass is the baby's father.”

“Me, too,” Eve stated dreamily. He watched her struggle to her feet, stomach first, knowing she was tired and ready for bed. “I'll see you.”

“Good night,” Keith said.

He watched Eve walk away, signifying the end of one messed-up melodrama in his life. Then his mind wandered to Gina. If he were not the father of Eve's baby, he didn't know how he was going to stay away from Gina. Right now, that possibility was the only thing keeping him at bay. Otherwise, he would be going head-to-head with Michael for her. This was the second time in his life he could say he felt strongly about a woman, and it was eating away at him that he couldn't have her.