Fantasy Man

by Barbara Meyers

  Quinn cleared her throat. “I’m fine. You were saying?”

  “His name’s Tony. I’ve been based out of Miami for almost a year. It sounds so corny to say it was love at first sight, so I told myself it was lust at first sight. I met him a few times when he and Reif were in college and I never forgot him. We kind of connected right after they graduated, but I was all set to start college and he was going into the police academy. I hadn’t turned eighteen yet and if I told my parents I was dating a twenty-three-year-old man? They’d have flipped. Tony and I didn’t even stay in touch. But when I saw him on one of my domestic flights I re-introduced myself. We went out for a drink when we landed and there was this chemistry. I can’t explain it.”

  She didn’t have to. Quinn had lived it. She had a vague recollection of Reif surrounded by his family after the graduation ceremony, but no one had bothered with introductions.

  Emma sipped more tea and took a tiny bite of cracker. “He’s in law enforcement, but he wouldn’t tell me any more than that. Whatever he does is dangerous and he didn’t want to get involved with anyone. He told me that up front, but it didn’t work out that way. I hardly ever saw him but when I did, it was like fireworks every time, you know?”

  Quinn nodded. All too well.

  “The last time I saw him, he told me he wouldn’t be around for a while, but not to worry. He’d be in touch when he could. But it’s been months and I haven’t heard from him and I can’t get hold of him. I don’t even know where he lives or who he works for.”

  “So he doesn’t know?” Quinn asked carefully.

  Emma’s eyes filled with tears and she shook her head. “I’ve been avoiding my family, avoiding Reif, because I don’t know what to tell them. The truth sounds so dumb. If Reif finds out it was Tony who knocked up his sister and abandoned her—it’ll kill him. Tony’s the brother Reif never had and now I’ve come between them.” Emma dropped her head into her hands.

  Quinn’s heart went out to her, she looked so miserable. It was like the two of them were living in mirror universes. “Would you like to lie down for a bit? We’ve added a bed to the guest room.”

  “Thank you, and thank you for the tea.”

  “You’re welcome. I’m sure everything will turn out all right. But maybe, just for now, you shouldn’t tell Reif about Tony? It might be best.”

  “Maybe you’re right.”

  * * * * *

  “We have company,” Quinn said when Reif arrived home that night. She was in the kitchen working on the salad when he walked in, the mail in one hand, his laptop case in the other. Her heart gave its usual pitter-pat whenever he was around.

  He stared at her. “Company?”

  “Your sister. Emma.”

  “Em’s here? Where?”

  “She’s upstairs resting.”

  “Resting? Em’s never at rest. She’s a ball of energy. I don’t think she ever took a nap in her life—”

  He broke off as a floorboard creaked. He set his laptop and the mail down and went back into the hall out of sight. “Hey, Em. This is a nice surprise. How long are you staying?”

  “Just a couple of nights.”

  Quinn imagined them hugging before she heard Reif say, “Hey, are you okay?”

  “I’m fine,” Emma answered. “A little tired is all.”

  They returned to the kitchen. “How about a glass of wine?” Reif opened the refrigerator and removed a bottle of pinot grigio. “This goes great with salmon.” He turned in time to see Emma turn green just before she bolted for the bathroom.

  Quinn sighed and retrieved the box of saltines from the cupboard. Reif stared at the doorway Emma’d just exited through. “Sounds like she’s throwing up. He cocked his head. “I hope she doesn’t have the flu.”

  Quinn edged him aside and found a can of ginger ale in the refrigerator. “Maybe you shouldn’t mention salmon in front of her.”

  He stared at her blankly. “Why?”

  “Just don’t, okay?”

  His eyes narrowed in suspicion. “What’s going on?”

  “It’s none of my business.”

  “Q, if you know something—”

  “I’m pregnant,” Emma blurted from the doorway.

  Reif turned to her, the bottle of wine still in his hand. “Pregnant?”

  Emma sank into a chair. She nodded at Quinn when she saw the ginger ale. Quinn set it and the crackers on the table. “I’ll just leave the two of you alone to—”

  “No,” Emma said. “You can stay. I’d appreciate the support.” She gave her a weak smile.

  Reif glanced at the bottle of wine in his hand. “I think I’m going to need something a hell of a lot stronger than this.” He returned the wine to the refrigerator. From the cabinet above he retrieved a bottle of Crown Royal and splashed some over ice. He took a healthy sip before topping it off and then took the other seat at the table.

  Quinn would have liked a glass of that wine, but she could wait for dinner. Although she was pretty sure only two of them would be eating salmon tonight.

  “Do you hate me?” Emma asked in a small voice.

  Reif reached across the small space and covered Emma’s hand with his own. “Em. Of course I don’t hate you. I could never hate you. Why don’t you tell me what’s going on?”

  “I met—” she glanced at Quinn, “someone.”

  “Obviously,” Reif said, his glance once again moving between the two women.

  Emma turned back to him. “I thought it was love, but maybe it was just hormones, or pheromones or chemistry or whatever. I don’t know. I haven’t heard from him in months.”

  “You’re pregnant and he dumped you? Who is this guy? I’ll kill him.”

  “Reif, no, it’s not like that. He doesn’t know. He told me I might not hear from him for a while and I haven’t. But I didn’t think he would be gone this long and now I don’t know if I’ll ever hear from him again.”

  “I’m sure you will,” Quinn put in.

  Reif looked at her eyebrows raised. “What makes you so sure about that?”

  Quinn glanced at Emma. “We talked. I don’t think this chemistry is one-sided. I think as soon as he’s able he’ll make contact.”

  Reif turned his attention back to Emma. “Who is he?”

  “It doesn’t matter who he is.”

  “It sure as hell does. First, he needs to know. Second, if he’s not going to do the right thing, the very least he’ll do is support you and his child financially. So yeah, it does matter. Why can’t he contact you?”

  “Because of his job,” Emma hedged.

  “What? Military espionage? Navy SEAL? Astronaut on a space station?”

  “He’s in law enforcement. Don’t ask me for any details because I don’t know them. Just that what he does is dangerous.”

  “Oh, Em, come on. That’s probably a line he fed you so he could take advantage of you.”

  “It is not!” Quinn and Emma said together.

  Reif stared at them each in turn. “Either one of you want to tell me what’s really going on here?”

  “Quinn’s just defending me,” Emma said. “She believes as I do that T—he’ll be in touch when he can. That’s all.”

  “And we both know there are people who work in law enforcement who can be hard to reach for one reason or another.” Quinn had to defend her brother’s behavior, even if it was indirectly. There would come a time and place however, where she would delight in pointing out his hypocritical behavior.

  “Mmhmm.” Reif drained his glass. “I’m going to start the grill. You two stay here and see if you can’t come up with a better story to tell me than that.”

  Emma gave Quinn a questioning look. “Maybe I should tell him the truth.”

  “It’s up to you,” Quinn said as she turned to the refrigerator for that bottle of win
e. “But personally, I don’t think Reif or any man has to know every single detail of our lives.”

  Quinn took a wineglass from the stash she kept in the freezer and poured herself a glass, all the while fighting the twinge of guilt she always felt for withholding information from Reif. She still hadn’t given him the packet and the cell phone Tony wanted him to have.

  A lie of omission is still a lie. Reif’s words haunted her. She checked the cell phone periodically, to make sure all was well, but there’d been no texts. No news was good news as far as she was concerned. Still, if anything happened to her, Reif wouldn’t know he had a way of contacting Tony.

  She took a healthy sip of wine and let it slide down her throat. She’d lied to Reif from the beginning for her own self-interest. She’d just encouraged his sister to lie to him, too. She stared into her glass. There wasn’t enough alcohol in the world to drown this level of guilt. She’d have to come clean with Reif soon, and when she did she’d have to bear the brunt of the consequences. So would Emma.

  Reif stared at the pile of charcoal as it heated. He felt sick inside at the thought that some good-for-nothing lowlife had cooked up some crap about being a cop and taken advantage of his sister. He’d always thought Emma had better instincts where men were concerned. But maybe he’d been wrong. Maybe she was just as gullible as the next woman when a guy said the right thing, presented himself in the right light, just to get her into bed.

  While his situation with Quinn was different, Reif still felt responsible for what had happened between them. He still wanted to make it right. Which was more than he could say for Emma’s loser.

  He put the lid on the grill and vowed he’d find out who the father of Emma’s baby was. One way or another, he’d make sure the guy did the right thing, or Reif would find a way to make his life miserable.

  Dinner was an awkward affair. Quinn had warmed to Emma right away. If things had been different maybe she and Emma could have been friends. She’d probably fall in love with Reif’s entire family given the chance.

  She squelched that thought. There’d be none of this falling in love business, she reminded herself. She liked Reif. She was fond of him. She wanted to sleep with him and not being able to do so was driving her crazy. But she wasn’t in love with him.

  Whatever Reif thought about Emma’s predicament, he stepped back from his angry stance and tried to be supportive.

  “I guess Mom and Dad don’t know yet,” he said once they were seated. Emma didn’t seem to have a problem with the salmon once it was cooked and on Reif and Quinn’s plates, but she’d opted for a peanut butter sandwich and carrot sticks for dinner.

  “No. I haven’t told anyone. Of course, I haven’t seen them in a few months so that makes it easier. I keep thinking the father will get in touch with me and somehow it will all be all right.” Emma stared at her plate. “That sounds dumb, I guess.”

  “No, it doesn’t,” Quinn said at the same time Reif said, “Yeah, it does.”

  Quinn glared at him. “You don’t know the whole story. I’m sure there’s a very good reason Emma hasn’t heard from him. Sometimes people have very good reasons for doing what they do.”

  “If I don’t know the whole story it’s because the two of you have decided it’s better that I don’t. I would certainly like to know what it is that’s prevented him from contacting her.” Reif’s gaze moved between the two of them, but both women concentrated on their meals.

  “Uh huh.” Reif picked up his fork. After a few bites, he put it down again. “Look, Em, whatever you need, whatever you decide to do, I’m here for you, okay? You know that.”

  She gave him a shaky smile. “I do.”

  “I’ll even lay off the guy until we know what’s what, deal?”

  Her smile got stronger. “Deal.”

  “Then I’ll break both his legs.”

  * * * * *

  Reif was ready to leave for work before Quinn was awake but Emma was up and already nursing a cup of tea. A slice of dry toast she hadn’t touched sat on a plate in front of her. Reif had offered his bed to his sister, but Emma and Quinn had already decided to share the bed in the guest room.

  Reif poured coffee into a travel mug. “Sleep okay?”

  “Like a baby.”

  “Does that mean you woke up crying and in need of an underwear change at some point during the night? Wait, no, that’ll be six months from now.”

  “Ha. Ha. I slept fine. I’m fine, Reif. Really.”

  “Okay.”

  Emma rested her chin in her hand, watching him as he leaned on the counter and sipped his coffee. “What’s the story with Quinn?”

  “What story? What did she tell you?”

  “She didn’t tell me anything. I didn’t ask her. I’m asking you.”

  Reif breathed an internal sigh of relief. He hadn’t thought about speaking to Quinn in private so they could get their stories straight in case Emma asked.

  “Are you sleeping with her?”

  “Maybe you didn’t notice. She has her own room.”

  “Well, that’s certainly an evasive answer.”

  “Look, she’s a…friend of a friend. She needed a place to stay. Temporarily,” he emphasized. Even as he offered this explanation he was acutely aware that he wasn’t telling his sister the whole story. Which was exactly what he’d accused her of last night. But he had good reasons. Very good reasons.

  So, came the unwelcome thought, might she.

  “I like her,” Emma said.

  “Me too,” Reif admitted.

  “I could see the two of you together.”

  “For Pete’s sake, Em. We are not together.”

  “I never said you were. I didn’t mean anything by it. But you’re awfully defensive this morning.”

  “She’s too young for me.” Reif wondered where that had come from.

  Emma snorted in disbelief. “I hardly think so. She’s my age if I had to guess. You’re hardly an old man. Yet.”

  “I’m still your older brother, though, don’t forget. I’ve got to get going. I’ll see you tonight. He kissed Emma’s cheek and then messed up her hair. She swatted his arm before he got out of reach.

  Quinn came down and offered Emma a sleepy greeting before she poured herself some coffee. Just as Reif had, Quinn leaned against the counter to sip from her mug.

  “You don’t look like you’re quite awake,” Emma said. She’d finished half her tea and most of the toast.

  “Usually I’m up earlier and I go for a run,” Quinn said. “Then I work at a pizza place. Eleven until two weekdays.”

  “You’ve still got some time,” Emma pointed out. It wasn’t even nine. “How do you and Reif know each other?”

  Quinn hadn’t been prepared for such a question, even though it was perfectly natural for Reif’s sister to be curious about her brother’s relationship with the woman living in his house.

  “He’s, uh, a friend of a, uh, friend.”

  “I see.”

  “I, uh, needed a place to stay for a little while and Reif was kind enough to offer.”

  Quinn took a sip of coffee, congratulating herself on explaining her presence to Emma without divulging any relevant facts.

  “So you’re not sleeping with him?”

  Quinn hadn’t swallowed her coffee and ended up spitting it back into the mug. “In case you hadn’t noticed,” Quinn said tartly, “we have separate bedrooms.”

  Emma grinned.

  “What’s so damn funny?”

  “You and Reif told me exactly the same story. What’s funny is I don’t believe either one of you.”

  “I don’t have time for this.” Quinn took her coffee and stomped up the stairs, telling herself it didn’t matter what Emma said or what she thought.

  Except somehow it did. She didn’t want Emma to find her situatio
n with Reif amusing. In fact, she wished she could ask Emma’s advice, although that would be completely out of line. Pardon me, Emma, but could you give me some tips on how best to seduce your brother?

  The whole time Quinn spent getting ready for work one thought dominated—Emma Callaghan was, at this moment, carrying Quinn’s niece or nephew. She could perfectly well imagine Tony and Emma together. Just as easily she could see Tony trying to explain his undercover work to Emma without telling her anything because he couldn’t. Saying it was dangerous and it had to do with law enforcement was the best way of describing his current tenure with the joint task force. Telling Emma he’d be out of communication for an indefinite period of time but that he’d get in touch with her as soon as he could was the only thing he could tell her.

  Tony never should have become involved with Emma, Quinn lectured him in her head. The timing was bad. He should have known better. Of course, Tony could lecture her right back if he knew about the way she’d behaved with Reif. And it was looking more and more like Tony would know because Reif was going to tell him. Reif was willing to risk his relationship with his best friend by telling him the truth.

  She looked in the mirror. “And what about you?” she asked herself. “Are you going to risk your relationship with Reif by telling him the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?” Neither she nor her reflection were surprised when she didn’t answer.

  Quinn’s mood hadn’t improved when she came back down the stairs nearly an hour later. Emma met her in the hallway. “Quinn, I didn’t mean to upset you. I want us to be friends.”

  Quinn nodded. “Me too.” But she was still wary. She wasn’t sure given the circumstances that she and Emma could ever be friends.

  “If I give you some money can you bring me back some pizza? I’m pretty sure I’m going to be hungry in a couple of hours, and I think I’m craving that.”

  “Sure. I don’t need money, though. Free pizza’s one of my perks.”

  Chapter Fifteen

  Like most nights, Tony Fontana was exhausted but he couldn’t sleep. He had more on his mind than most people did to keep him awake. He’d been headed into undercover police work anyway, but he’d managed to get himself thrown into it sooner than he’d expected simply by being in the wrong place at the wrong time.