Three Hearts

by Susan Perkins

  Since his first glimpse of her in the sleazy tramp outfit, Travis had only seen her in her office clothes, jeans or other casual gear. Now she'd be able to show him she could dress elegantly when required. Darcy rushed into her bedroom and began to sort through her wardrobe.

  "Hmmm..." She looked in the mirror as she held an electric blue cocktail dress against her body. "Too dressy. Oh, blast. I forgot to ask what sort of restaurant we're going to. What sort of clothes shall I wear? It's not a real date, so will he expect me to pay for my own meal? What on earth have I got myself into?"

  Twenty minutes later, the entire contents of her wardrobe lay on the bed, and Darcy was no closer to choosing an outfit for her meal with Travis.

  "What are you doing?" Brooke stood in the doorway, a puzzled expression on her face.

  "Looking for something to wear on Friday night. Travis and I decided to go for a meal. Trouble is, I forgot to ask him where we're going, and I'll look a fool if I call him. What do you think of this, Brooke?" She held up the blue cocktail dress.

  "Nah, too dressy. You don't want to look silly if he takes you somewhere posh. What about this one?" Brooke pulled a knitted beige dress out from the bottom of the pile.

  "Too understated for a proper restaurant. Oh, what am I going to do?"

  "Leave it until tomorrow. Perhaps you can find out where you're going, then you'll know what to wear." Brooke bounced on the bed. "You must really like Travis. You never got all worked up like this when you went out on a date with Phil."

  "Probably because I usually knew where I was going, and I didn't go out on 'dates' with Phil. You know there's a group of us who go to functions together. Okay, Brooke, help me put the clothes back on the hangers." She started putting everything back into the wardrobe, and Brooke jumped off the bed to help her.

  THE FOLLOWING DAY, Travis rang Darcy.

  "I'd like to pick Brooke and Minnie up from school if that's okay with you."

  "I think that's a good idea," Darcy's response startled him. "It will be good for you and Brooke to start being alone for short periods."

  "Thanks, I'll bring her straight home as soon as we've dropped off Minnie." Travis managed to hide his surprise that Darcy hadn't objected, or put any restrictions on the meeting. "See you later then."

  AT FIRST BROOKE WASN't sure about getting in Travis' car, but a flustered teacher arrived at the gate to say Darcy had rung the school to say it was all right. The two girls clambered into the back seat of the car and Travis drove to Minnie's house. After dropping the other girl off, he found himself the victim of persistent questioning.

  "Do you like my aunt?" Brooke wanted to know.

  "Of course I do, she's a very nice lady." Travis didn't dare say what he really thought. Darcy was a very sexy lady who kept disturbing his dreams. If he told his daughter his true feelings, she would think he was either mad, or a sex maniac.

  "What about me? Do you like me, too?"

  "Hmm. Let me see. Eight years old, quite pretty with nice colour hair. Reasonably well behaved. Lots of fun to be with." Travis pretended to consider all these points before solemnly answering the child. "Yes, Brooke, I think I can honestly say I like you. In fact, I like you lots and lots, more every time I see you."

  "You and Darcy are going out to dinner tomorrow, aren't you?" Brooke rushed on before Travis agreed. "Where are you taking her?"

  "I thought about making a reservation at one of the restaurants on Bay Hill. Do you think she'd like that?"

  "Is it a posh place? Will she have to get all dressed up, or would a nice summer dress or slacks be all right?" Brooke's head tilted to one side as she asked this question. Travis saw his daughter in the rear-view mirror and the expression on her face showed that his answer was extremely important.

  "I guess a nice dress would be appropriate. The weather's warm now, so something summery would be just the thing." He waited to see if his comments had met with her approval and was relieved to see her nod.

  "Fine, I'll tell Darcy." Brooke remained totally unaware she'd given the game away, and Travis hid his amusement as he turned his attention to his driving.

  When they reached home, Brooke hopped from the back seat and rushed into the kitchen whilst Travis walked more slowly, giving her a chance to impart her important news. He entered the kitchen in time to hear Brooke say, "So you'll be all right in that cream silky dress you've got."

  Travis pretended he hadn't heard the words as he greeted Darcy warmly. Brooke grabbed some cake and disappeared into the garden.

  "Would you like a piece of cake?" Darcy asked politely, filling the kettle and plugging it in.

  "No, thank you." Travis perched on the edge of the kitchen table. "I realized today that Brooke's quite a mature young lady. She worries about you, you know."

  "About me?" Darcy said in astonishment. "Why on earth would she do that?"

  "She talks about you all the time, almost as if she's the adult and you're the child." Travis felt a warm pleasant feeling flood through him when Darcy grinned at him.

  "Yes, she can be a proper little mother hen at times. You don't think she's worried about us though, do you?" Darcy looked concerned as she waited for his reply.

  "Us? No, I don't think so."

  WHEN THEY REACHED THE restaurant on Friday evening, Travis helped her from the car and held her arm as he guided her through the doors. Darcy's day had been bad and she was in a foul mood. Everything had gone wrong in the office. Brooke had mislaid something she had to take with her to Minnie's, which in turn made Darcy late. She'd been forced to rush to get ready for this evening instead of enjoying the long, luxurious bath she'd promised herself, and now Travis was touching her. His attentions irritated her and she wished he'd keep his hands to himself. How can I stay calm if he keeps mauling me like this? Doesn't he feel my erratic reaction every time his body connects with mine?

  "You don't have to keep up the pretence when Brooke's not here," she snapped as he held out her chair for her.

  "Pardon?" He looked puzzled as he took the seat opposite her.

  "I said when Brooke's not with us, there's no need to keep pretending we're an item."

  "In what way do you consider I'm pretending we're an item?" Travis asked, glaring at her.

  "Holding my arm. Pulling out the chair. You know what I mean."

  "Darcy, I simply did what I'd do for any woman in my company. I treat her like a lady. Obviously, something you're not used to, so I'll skip it. Except of course when my daughter is around."

  Darcy felt foolish. She'd allowed her emotions to overrule her common sense again. Embarrassed, she focused her attention on placing the napkin on her lap. Then his last words caught her attention.

  "We don't know yet that she is your daughter." Her anger refocused on Travis.

  "You may not believe it, but I'm certain she's mine." Travis turned to the wine waiter and ordered a bottle of Pinot Gris without consulting Darcy.

  Suddenly she realized this was all so silly and she was tired of playing games. Why can't we have one evening alone without the constant roller coaster ride about how to cater for Brooke's needs and whether or not she was his daughter?

  "Travis."

  He glanced up from studying the menu and looked at her.

  "Can we start this evening again? We seem to have got off to a bad start. My only excuse is that I've had a lousy day. I really appreciate you inviting me out, so can we put all our differences behind us just for this night?"

  "Of course. Let's enjoy ourselves without thinking of the future. I suggest we forget about everything but our meal." He dazzled Darcy with his smile as he looked across the table at her. "Now what would you like to eat?"

  Over the food, they talked randomly, keeping to neutral subjects. Everything went well until the coffee stage when Phil Callaghan came over to their table. Darcy hadn't realized he was in the restaurant. Her heart sank when she saw he'd had far too much to drink and his mood was dangerous.

  "Well hello, Darcy. Aren
't you going to introduce me to your friend?" He caught the back of Darcy's chair to steady himself and she instinctively sat as far away from his touch as possible.

  "Of course, Phil. Phil Callaghan, this is Travis Denton. Phil's a friend, one of the group I go out with at times."

  "That's right, I'm a friend. A very good friend." Phil stressed the last three words and put his hand on Darcy's shoulder in a proprietary way. "What are you, Mr. Denton?"

  "I'm a friend of the family." Travis showed obvious distaste for Phil's drunken state. "Darcy has been showing me the sights while I've been in New Zealand."

  "I'll bet she has." Phil's tone had taken on a nasty innuendo.

  "That's enough, Phil." Darcy moved away from him. His grip was hurting her. "I think you should get your friends to take you home. You've obviously had too much to drink."

  "I'm not going before I get a goodnight kiss." Phil lowered his lips towards Darcy's and she turned her head to avoid him. "Oh, I see how it is. I'm not good enough for you now you've got Mr. America here. Well I hope you realize you have to take her and the brat, they come as a package. She tries to make out the kid belonged to her dead sister but everyone knows it's really Darcy's child."

  Phil's voice stopped abruptly as Travis hit him under the chin. The other diners stared in amazement, but Travis looked stonily at Darcy.

  "Shall we go?" His voice dripped ice and she saw the cold anger in his eyes. "I think we've seen enough of the cabaret, don't you?"

  Wordlessly, Darcy waited while he paid the bill, and then followed him. To her surprise, he didn't head for the car, instead he walked the short distance to the piazza overlooking Caroline Bay. Several people sat at the outside tables of the nearby restaurants, but he headed for a lonely seat on the deck alongside the lift where they would be able to talk privately.

  "I apologize for Phil," Darcy said in a small voice. "He's not normally like that. It must be the drink talking."

  TRAVIS DIDN'T ANSWER immediately. He had to get his temper under control. The real cause of his anger stemmed from his jealousy of the drunken Phil. The lout had evidently enjoyed favours from Darcy that Travis had been denied. On top of that, absolutely nobody was going to throw around accusations about his daughter. When he did speak, his words dripped with scorn.

  "I take it that was the Phil Brooke dislikes?"

  "Yes, that's him. Please don't take any notice of what he implied. The alcohol and anger made him say those things."

  "And why should he be angry? You told me there was nothing between you." Travis waited for her answer. Will she lie or tell me the truth?

  "There is nothing between us. Phil wants a relationship, but I've told him I can't consider anything serious until Brooke is old enough to fend for herself. I especially wouldn't date Phil because Brooke doesn't like him. However, that doesn't stop me from meeting him as a friend."

  "Why should he think Brooke is your child?" His assurance about his paternity had been badly shaken. Surely his investigators weren't mistaken. Brooke must be his and Kelly's child, not the offspring of the woman standing in front of him.

  "He doesn't think that. He knows Brooke is Kelly's daughter. Anger and jealousy made him say those hurtful words. Haven't you ever said something in anger merely to hurt someone, then regretted it later?"

  Travis thought of the immature rows he'd had with Kelly and had to admit he'd said things to hurt her, even when he knew they weren't true. However, he'd grown up a lot since then and admitting such a thing to Darcy was unthinkable.

  "Maybe when I was younger, but certainly not recently."

  TRAVIS WAS GRATEFUL when Darcy changed the subject.

  "You never told me how you and Kelly met."

  He stood up and approached the railings looking out over the dark waters of Caroline Bay. He sensed Darcy moving closer to him.

  "We met at a party. I got dragged along to a college function by a friend. His younger brother's fraternity needed more guys as they'd invited too many girls. Kelly had been taken along by her roommate." Silence ruled for a few moments, then Travis continued. "Your sister was very beautiful. All the guys were after her, and I felt flattered when she chose me. She told me later she felt safe with me. Heaven knows why. I was no different from any other guy at the party."

  Darcy made a sound which sounded like a snort of disbelief, but when he glanced sideways she wasn't looking at him.

  "We dated for several months before deciding we were passionately in love."

  "That sounds a bit cold and clinical. Did you sit down and have a vote on it?"

  "Sorry, Darcy. What I meant was that I know now it was only infatuation which drew us together. Unfortunately, we didn't realize this until after we were married. It seemed as if from the day we said our vows, we started arguing. Eventually I suggested counselling, but Kelly refused. She said she wanted to go home to New Zealand. I'd just started working freelance and we didn't have much money, so I told her it was impossible. We had a huge argument and the next day she left. She wrote a note saying she was going to divorce me and come back here. The end of the note said she knew marrying me had been a big mistake."

  "You didn't go after her?"

  "Like I said, I'd just started working freelance and was building up a client list. I heard from friends that Kelly had stayed with them when she first left, and apparently she'd consulted a lawyer. I agreed with her. We'd made a mistake, so there didn't seem much point in following her. When I asked our friends to keep me informed about her movements, they told me she'd returned to New Zealand. I assumed she'd get in touch when she wanted a divorce and our marriage would eventually be legally over."

  "What sort of work do you do?"

  Travis realized Darcy didn't know much about his background. Maybe if he filled her in on his life she would feel happier about giving him custody of Brooke.

  "I'm a freelance civil engineer. It allows me to choose the jobs I want to do, plus it brings in a good income." Travis turned around and looked at her. "I'm able to look after Brooke financially you know, otherwise I would leave her with you."

  "So how did you find out about Brooke?"

  "Once I got my business on a sound footing, I started socializing again. I met someone else about a year ago and this past June, I reached the point of asking her to marry me. To do that I needed to find Kelly and get a divorce."

  "I hired investigators who found out Kelly had died giving birth to Brooke." Travis paused for a moment. "I got them to take a photo of Brooke and send it to me. As soon as I saw the picture, I realized she was my daughter. The dates and everything else fit. Besides, you knew your sister. We may not have got on well towards the end, but she wouldn't have betrayed me by having an affair while we were still legally married. Brooke is definitely my daughter."

  "Am I to understand you had someone spying on us as long ago as June?" Darcy voice hissed with anger.

  "Not June. It was September when they took the photos. Once I saw them, I contacted a lawyer over here to find out the procedure to gain custody. You know the rest."

  "I think it's time you took me home, Travis."

  "Not yet. We have to talk about how to tell Brooke who I really am." Travis turned from the view to look at her, but Darcy had now managed to get herself under control.

  "I thought we agreed not to tell her until the results came through." He could tell Darcy was grasping for one more reason to delay the inevitable.

  "Come on, Darcy. You know I'm her father. What reason would I have for telling lies?" Travis looked at her as if he didn't believe she was so stupid.

  "How should I know, Travis? I hardly know you. There might be all sorts of devious plans in your mind regarding Brooke. You agreed we wouldn't tell her until we got the results and I'm holding you to your word. Now please take me home." Travis was forced to follow her as she stormed off to the car.

  DARCY HAD A TERRIBLE night. She'd had difficulty getting to sleep. His words kept appearing unbidden in her mind. I met someone els
e about a year ago... He had a fiancée — and fiancées meant marriage! Images raced through her mind of the new Mr. and Mrs. Denton and their daughter, Brooke. Any contact between the child and her aunt in New Zealand would be discouraged by both parents. If Travis got custody of Brooke, he'd take her to America and out of Darcy's life forever! The tears slipped down her cheeks as she realized Travis would also disappear from her life.

  She tossed and turned and the nightmare of Travis dragging Brooke from the house returned to haunt her. When the phone rang the next morning, she was not in the best of moods and, thinking it was Travis, she answered brusquely.

  "Yes."

  "Don't snap my head off, Darcy." Laura's voice came down the line. "What's upset your morning? You sound positively aggressive."

  "Sorry. I had a bad night," Darcy apologized. "What can I do for you, Laura?"

  "I got the test results late yesterday, Darcy. I tried to ring you last night but you must have been out. I'm sorry, but there's no easy way to break the news to you. Travis is Brooke's father. There's no doubt about it." Laura waited a few moments and when Darcy remained silent, she spoke again. "Darcy, did you hear what I said? Are you okay?"

  "Sorry, Laura. Yes, I heard you." Darcy's voice was choked with tears, and she thanked heaven Brooke was still at Minnie's. "What happens now?"

  "You and I should meet. We know Travis wants custody and we have to decide on a plan of action. Whatever you do, don't discuss custody or anything else with him before you speak to me. It would be best not to tell Brooke until both he and you have had a chance to talk to myself and Mr. Case."

  "Okay, Laura. I'll do as you say and try to get Travis to agree to wait a few more days." Darcy hung up the phone and let the tears flow unheeded down her face. The end loomed threateningly. She would lose Brooke to Travis and his new wife and her own life would be completely empty.

  Chapter Six

  "Absolutely not!"