Something in his tone stopped Adam from putting the phone down there and then. “You’re just trying to scam me again, Branson.” The man was probably trying to get him back with Jenna…and an unending supply of Roth cash. And if not cash, then the Roth connections were certainly a drawcard. He wasn’t falling for it.
“I wish to hell it was a scam,” Stewart muttered.
Adam stiffened. “What does that mean?”
“What I did was wrong, Roth, but what you did in getting my sister pregnant and not taking responsibility is far worse.”
Adam’s breath stopped dead. “What did you say?” he croaked, not caring that he was showing the shock rolling through him. He felt as if someone had sliced his chest open.
“Jenna’s pregnant. And I expect you to do something about it.”
Adam shuddered, then inhaled some air and started to breathe again. This couldn’t be. Jenna had lost weight. She would have said.
Or would she?
“Roth? Did you hear me?”
Adam swallowed. “Leave it with me,” he managed to say.
“So you’ll go see Jenna and fix things?”
“Yes.”
“Good.” There was a pause. “No one else knows yet, Roth, except me and my wife. I’m giving you time to make things right.” The other man disconnected the call.
Adam sat there and stared at the hand piece before slowly putting it down to rest. Usually, he would never let another man hang up on him or threaten him. It was a measure of his complete and utter shock. Yet he had to admire Stewart Branson for taking a stand for his sister.
Jenna.
She’d once told him she was his worst nightmare. Right now he had to agree. She was pregnant…having his baby…and he doubted Stewart Branson was going to like the outcome.
After seeing Adam last night, Jenna hadn’t been able to face going to work today so she’d called in sick. And she was sick—with morning sickness. She’d started feeling off-color a few weeks ago, but this morning she’d been feeling light-headed and nauseous, the morning sickness seeming to hit her with all its force. It was as if now that she’d acknowledged it, its very strength had intensified.
She’d suspected she was pregnant after she’d missed her last period. She just hadn’t wanted to take the test. But after she’d been ill last night at Vicki’s place, her sister-in-law had taken that out of her hands and had gone out to the local pharmacy and bought a pregnancy kit. It had confirmed her worst fears.
She was pregnant.
But was it really her worst fear? For all the problems ahead of her, she wanted this child more than anything. How could she not want the child of the man she loved? With new wonder she touched her stomach again, aware of a life beating beneath her heart. It was the most glorious feeling on earth.
Of course it didn’t discount the fact that she had some heavy-duty thinking to do. She’d made Vicki promise not to tell Adam. He wanted nothing to do with her and seeing him again last night had merely confirmed that. His eyes may have eaten her up for that initial moment when they’d run into each other, but they’d soon hardened again. He thought she was a dreadful person. He would not want her to have his child.
On the other hand, she couldn’t quite let the feeling go that a man had a right to know he was going to be a father. She would be distressed to not tell Adam. It would feel dishonest, and if he found out the truth later wouldn’t it confirm his low opinion of her?
Yet with all his wealth, he might even try to take her baby away from her and raise it himself. The thought made her feel more than physically ill. It made her feel heartsick. Could she really believe he’d do that? Could she afford to believe he wouldn’t? And if that were the case, wouldn’t it be stupid of her to tell him about the baby at all?
Oh, God, her head was spinning.
Right then her doorbell rang. She jumped. No one knew she’d stayed home today, except the people at work. She hoped to high heaven it wasn’t Marco. She really couldn’t stomach him right now and would probably be rude.
Hopefully, it was only Vicki. Her sister-in-law might have called her at work and learned she’d stayed home, and had decided to check on her. The phone had rung a couple of times this morning, but she hadn’t answered. And she’d turned off her cell phone, too. She hadn’t wanted to see people today.
The doorbell rang again and this time the person kept their finger on it. Already she had a headache and the sound went right through her, making her head swim. She rushed to answer it. Vicki would be worried about her, but all the same—
“Adam!” Her knees turned weak when she saw who it was, and she had to grab the door handle to hold herself up.
He stepped past her into the apartment without any greeting whatsoever. This was obviously not going to be a friendly visit.
Heart thumping with dismay, she slowly closed the door and turned to face him. The last time he’d been here was over a month ago. He’d been angry and upset then. Looking at him now, she knew nothing had changed. He still looked angry and upset, a pulse beating in his jaw, his nostrils flaring. Outside the movie theatre last night may not have happened. Clearly, she’d been wrong that he might have been glad to see her, if only for a heartbeat.
And then something occurred to her. Could Vicki have told him? She instantly dismissed that. Her sister-in-law had promised she wouldn’t. Vicki knew she needed time to think about this.
“Adam, why are—”
“I owe you an apology, Jenna.” He cut right across her in a hard voice.
She blinked. It was the last thing she expected him to say. “You do?”
He stood there watching her, his whole body tense, telling her something was terribly wrong in spite of the apology. “You weren’t trying to scam me about the money for your brother. I know that now. I’m sorry I accused you of something you didn’t do.”
She frowned. The words coming out of his mouth didn’t match the angry look of him. “How do you know all this?”
“Stewart told me the truth,” he said curtly. “He phoned me.”
She was trying to get her head around that. “Stewart?”
Her brother was going to get help for his addiction as soon as he came back to Australia, but where Adam was concerned Stewart had been more than pleased to let sleeping dogs lie. She swallowed, suddenly getting a bad feeling about this. If Stewart had told Adam the truth, then why was Adam still looking so furious? Surely he’d be relieved she’d been telling the truth.
She could feel a mounting sense of panic. “I don’t understand. Why would he call you now? It’s over and done with.”
“He wanted to abuse the hell out of me.”
“For you not believing me?”
“That—” a pulse ticked beneath the taut skin of one cheek “—and other things.”
She swallowed hard. Dear God. “Oth-other things?”
He stood in the middle of the living room. “You should have told me, Jenna,” he grated harshly. “You should have said something.”
A shiver went through her. What was he talking about? Was this merely about—
“You should have told me about the baby.”
In an instant the air was sucked from the room.
“You know?” she whispered, unable to move, unable to do anything but try and get through the next seconds.
He gave a hard jerk of his head. “I know,” he rasped. “Your brother blasted me about you not more than half an hour ago.”
“Oh, God.” Her feet moved then, and she made her way to the couch, sinking onto it before she fell down in a heap. Adam knew she was carrying his child. He was here to see her about it. She wasn’t prepared. She didn’t know what she was going to do…or say to him. It was all so new to her.
She moistened her mouth and looked across at him. “Vicki promised she wouldn’t tell you, but I didn’t think about her telling anyone else.” Another thought came to mind and she groaned. “Oh, God, he’s probably telling my parents right now.”
“No. He said only he and Vicki know at this stage.” His lips twisted. “Your brother’s giving me the chance to make things right.”
That was something at least.
“You weren’t going to tell me at all, were you?” he said icily, drawing her focus back to him.
“Um…I don’t know. I only found out for sure last night.” She explained about returning to Vicki’s and becoming sick. As she finished speaking she suddenly noticed how white he was around the mouth. Through anger?
Or angst?
“You’re not pleased about the news.” It wasn’t a question. She could see it was a fact.
He stood there, not moving. “No, I’m not pleased.”
In spite of everything, the words caught at her heartstrings and she hugged her stomach. “I won’t get rid of my baby, Adam. Don’t ask me to.”
His face turned pale. “I didn’t…I wouldn’t.”
Her shoulders sagged a little. There was no way she’d have an abortion, but she was glad to hear him say it.
“But this is the one time I can’t do the right thing, Jenna,” he said, his jaw tightening with absolute firmness. “I have strong feelings for you, but I can’t marry you. And I can’t be a father to the child.”
She managed to lift her chin. “I don’t think I’ve asked anything of you yet, Adam.”
“I know, but I want to assure you I’ll still set you and the child up for a life. I’ll even acknowledge in writing that the child is mine. It’s just that…” He swallowed. “I can’t be involved with it at all.”
Her nerves tightened. “That ‘it’ you refer to is your own flesh and blood,” she choked, unable to let him get away with this one thing. This was their baby they were talking about.
His head reeled back, and he heaved in a breath then slowly expelled it. “Yes, you’re right.” He pushed a hand through his hair. “Look, I need to explain something. I don’t want you thinking…” He stopped for a second, his eyes turning dark with inner pain. “My wife was pregnant when she died in the car accident.”
Jenna gasped. “Oh, my God, Adam.”
His eyes said he appreciated her sympathy. “We’d known for a few weeks, but we hadn’t told the family. We were going to tell them that night at a dinner party.”
She knew immediately. “The balloons. Your wife was bringing them home for the party, wasn’t she?”
He nodded jerkily. “We didn’t get to tell the family the news about the baby, and I didn’t tell them afterward, either. Only Todd knows. I almost drank myself to death after that, but he came around and made me get up and start living again. He was relentless. He wouldn’t let me be.” He took a shuddering breath. “I owe him a bloody hell of a lot.”
Now it made sense why Adam had been so determined not to encourage Todd’s wife.
“Adam, I’m so sorry.” She wanted to get up and go to him, but she sensed he couldn’t handle her touching him right now. He was holding on to his control by mere threads. Her being pregnant had brought all this up again for him.
“I loved Maddie and I loved my unborn child,” he said with full sincerity. “Losing them almost killed me. It did kill a part of me. I’m not capable of going through that pain again. I’m sorry, Jenna. I really am.”
Jenna’s heart broke for him. She could only imagine what it was like to lose his wife, his child, his whole world. If anything happened to him—to their child—she knew she wouldn’t have a life without them. She’d merely exist.
As Adam existed.
In her heart of hearts she knew what she had to do. She’d let him pay for the upkeep of his child. She’d even let him pay for some of her own expenses, so that she could look after their child properly. But what she would never do now was tell him she loved him. She wouldn’t burden him in such a way. It would only add too much guilt to a man who already felt far too much responsibility for his family and friends. A man who’d already been through so much…lost so much more.
Her eyes stung and she blinked the tears back as she pushed herself off the couch to stand up. “Adam, I—” Suddenly she felt dizzy. She stopped to get her balance, thinking she’d gotten up too quickly.
“Jenna, are you okay?”
“I—” She vaguely heard Adam’s voice just before everything turned black.
“What the hell!” Adam watched Jenna begin to topple over. He lunged forward before she could fall to the floor, and she collapsed unconscious in his arms like a rag doll, her face white.
He felt the blood drain out of him. “Oh, my God,” he said hoarsely, and stretched her out on the couch, putting a cushion under her head. Then he knelt beside her, tapping her face. “Jenna, wake up.”
She just lay there.
His lungs were tight. He could barely breathe. He swallowed a lump of fear in his throat and tapped her face again. This time she began to come around. “Thank God,” he murmured, falling back on his heels with relief.
But only for a moment. An instant later he surged upward and moved to sit beside her. “Jenna?”
She opened her eyes and blinked. “What happened?”
“You fainted.”
Her forehead wrinkled. “Fainted?” She went to get up, then lay back down. “I feel so dizzy.” She swallowed. “My ear is really sore now. I’m starting to feel nauseated again, too.”
He shot to his feet. “Stay there. I’ll get you a bucket or something, then I’m calling my doctor.” He strode into the kitchen and found a small bucket under the kitchen sink. It would do. He took it back into the living room, along with a towel, and put both beside her on the floor.
She had her eyes closed and seemed to be resting. His hands shook as he flipped open his cell phone and called the family doctor. Oscar was in a consultation, but Adam insisted on speaking to him and the receptionist immediately put him through.
Adam told him the problem in a rush then ended with, “She’s pregnant, Oscar.”
A pause came down the line. “Is she hemorrhaging or having any other problems with the baby?” Oscar asked sharply.
Adam had already thought of that. “No, I don’t think so. She’s just dizzy.”
“To be on the safe side, I’ll call an ambulance anyway. Now give me the address. I’ll meet you at the hospital.”
Fear jumped inside Adam’s chest, but he managed to tell the doctor the address.
“And Adam, it’ll be fine. It’s probably more to do with morning sickness than anything else.”
“I hope you’re right, Oscar.” Adam hung up. He could hear the understanding in Oscar’s voice. Apart from Todd, only the medical people at the hospital had known Maddie had been pregnant. Oscar had been one of them.
He crouched back down beside Jenna, his chest so tight watching her lie there with her eyes still closed. “Jenna?” he said gently, touching her arm. “The doctor’s going to send around an ambulance.”
She lifted her eyelids, fear flickering in her eyes.
“There’s nothing to worry about. It’s only a precaution. My doctor thinks it may just be some morning sickness.”
Her hand went to her stomach in a protective fashion. “It’s probably best.”
Something twisted inside Adam as he sat on the floor next to her, not caring about his clothes, not caring about anything but Jenna right then. He wouldn’t let himself think about the baby. This was about Jenna. He had to get her well again.
Time ticked by.
“Adam?”
“Yes?”
“I think I’m a little scared.”
“Don’t be.” But his heart was thudding almost out of his chest. He felt so helpless. “Would you like a drink of water or something?”
“No.” She swallowed. “Just you.”
“I can supply that.” He held her hand, realizing she felt hot. She must have a temperature, too. Oh, God, that didn’t sound like morning sickness to him.
“Adam, I’m sorry.”
“For what?”
“For doing this to you.
I’ll be fine. I really will.”
“I know you will. And there’s nothing to be sorry for.” He touched her cheek. “Now rest. They’ll be here soon.”
They were, but it wasn’t soon enough for Adam’s liking. He would have read them the riot act if he hadn’t been so damn relieved to see them.
The paramedic seemed to think the baby was fine, but Adam didn’t relax until the doctors at the hospital had thoroughly checked her over and diagnosed an ear infection. Then they gave her some antibiotics that were safe for early pregnancy to stop any further infection, and something for the dizziness that had a mild sedative effect, and said they were keeping her in overnight. He felt much better about it all once Jenna was tucked up in bed in the private room he’d insisted they give her. He would pay. He didn’t care about the money.
“I think I should call your parents,” he suggested, as she was nodding off.
Her eyes burst open. “Don’t let them find out about the baby.”
He squeezed her hand. “I’ll make sure no one tells them.”
She sighed and closed her eyes. “Thank you,” she murmured, then her eyelids fluttered open briefly. “Vicki might tell them. Don’t let her,” she ended as she fell asleep.
The thought of calling her parents wasn’t pleasant, but the thought of calling Jenna’s sister-in-law gave him an on-the-spot headache. The woman had despised him last night. Still, he had to speak to her first so that she wouldn’t inadvertently mention the baby.
Thankfully he’d had the forethought to grab Jenna’s keys, handbag and cell phone from the side table as they’d left her apartment. No doubt her parents’ telephone number and Vicki’s would be on speed dial.
Jenna’s sister-in-law was upset, then cold with him, but he got an assurance she would say nothing about the baby. “For Jenna’s sake, not yours,” she snapped. She suggested that she call her in-laws, but Adam felt he should do it himself. She hung up after saying she’d be there soon.
Then he called the Bransons, who were alarmed, naturally, but he assured them Jenna was fine.
High-Society Seduction Page 15
