“Did Nicky shock you when he told you the news?”
“Not exactly.”
Chase’s mouth was a thin line. “I see. You read the tabloids.”
“I saw the stories, of course, but I didn’t believe them.”
He seemed to turn that over in his head before he smiled a little. “Sorry. I should have known you aren’t the sort who believes the kind of filth those so-called newspapers put out.”
The sudden warmth in his voice sent a tingle down Amanda’s spine. She tried to keep her voice level. “It was the article in Today’s Woman that made me wonder, and the cover picture.”
His eyebrows rose just a little.
Amanda said, “Actress or not, Desiree would have had to be a miracle woman to get back into that kind of shape within three weeks of childbirth.”
Chase laughed.
Nicky was making hills and valleys with the rest of his spaghetti. “Tell me the chosen child story again, Daddy.”
“At bedtime, Nicky.”
“No, now!” He saw the disapproving angle of Amanda’s eyebrows and turned back to his father with a smile. “Please, Daddy?”
Chase looked at Amanda and shook his head a little, as if apologizing for boring her with the details. But she didn’t find the story at all tiresome. It was a simple but absorbing tale, in fact – about two people who wanted a child, and so they had selected this little boy and named him Nicky.
“The first time I saw you,” Chase said, “you were two days old. You were lying in a big white basket, and you were wearing a pale yellow sweater with bunnies on it, and you were kicking your feet and just getting ready to start screaming for your bottle. But then you saw your toes, and they fascinated you so, you forgot to cry.”
Nicky chuckled.
“When I picked you up, you snuggled your face right into my neck, and you’ve been my little boy ever since.”
Amanda’s throat was tight, and she had to blink back tears. She could picture that scene – the big man and the tiny baby, and the primitive instinct which sprang so suddenly to life and bound them together – and it caught at her heart.
But then, Chase had sounded a bit huskier than usual, too, so she had nothing to be ashamed of.
Nicky sounded doubtful. “Did I really think my toes were funny?”
“Well, it looked to me as if you did. And toes are pretty silly things, when you think about it.” Chase leaned down to capture Nicky’s foot, then stripped his shoe off and began to tickle his toes. The child shrieked with delight.
Before the mock-fight was over, Nicky was so covered with spaghetti sauce – despite his towel-napkin – that Amanda offered to put him straight into the tub. “If you try to carry him upstairs, you’ll have it all over you too,” she pointed out to Chase.
He ruefully agreed. “Not that I don’t deserve it, tickling him like that. Do you want me to supervise?”
“No, I’ll dig out the bathtub toys while the water’s running.”
In a few minutes, Nicky was splashing merrily in the tub. When Amanda came out of the bathroom, the kitchen floor had been wiped up and the plates put in the dishwasher, and Chase was relaxing in the sitting room.
“Sorry about the mess,” he said. “The chosen child is one of Nicky’s favorite tales, and he’ll go on for hours if nothing distracts him.”
“I can understand why he likes it. It’s a beautiful story.” She cleared her throat. “If you don’t mind my asking...”
Chase shrugged. “Feel free.”
“Do you know anything about his origins?”
“Not much. We – especially Desiree – didn’t want to know the details. It would make him more ours, she thought, if we weren’t looking for resemblances or character traits or interests that he might have inherited.”
Amanda nodded in understanding.
“And of course we were right in the middle of making Winter of the Heart when we learned that a baby might be available soon, so there wasn’t a lot of time for asking questions even if we’d wanted to. It was a private adoption, and the lawyer offered to handle the fine points, so we let him.”
Amanda told herself that she should drop it right there. But she couldn’t stop herself from saying, “As busy as both of you were with your careers, I’m a little surprised you went to all that trouble for a child.”
She thought he might take offense, or simply ignore the question; it was none of her business, after all.
But his voice was calm. “Desiree was the one who was set on having a baby – she insisted no woman could be completely fulfilled without one. I was less excited, I must admit, but once I picked Nicky up...” He smiled a little. “He really did burrow his face right into my neck, you know, and his breath tickled and sent shivers down my spine, and from then on he was the only kid in the world, as far as I was concerned.”
“He’s still a snuggler, isn’t he?”
Chase said dryly, “Except when he remembers that he’s getting to be a big boy, and then just try to hang onto him for half a minute!”
Nicky reappeared, wrapped toga-fashion in a bath towel. He climbed onto Amanda’s lap and buried his face against her shoulder. She smiled at Chase over the top of Nicky’s head and started to sing a soft little lullaby.
“You’d better let me put him to bed,” Chase said. He pushed himself up with reluctance from the deep couch and lifted the child into his arms. There was a sleepy little protest, but Nicky’s eyelids were so heavy that Amanda was sure he didn’t really know he’d been moved.
She stayed in her chair, looking up at Chase as he loomed over her, the child cradled in his arms. “Come upstairs for a drink?” he said.
It was early yet, and she wasn’t ready for the evening to be over. “All right,” she said.
The suite was dim, with only a nightlight glimmering in the sitting room. That small bulb was not part of the room’s standard equipment; Amanda wondered if Chase had brought it with him, or if that had been one of the matters her staff had handled without consulting her. Not that it was important, of course – it was just that she wasn’t used to seeing one of the inn’s two most luxurious suites lit only by a glowing reproduction of a cartoon character.
“Make yourself at home,” Chase said, as he carried Nicky into the double bedroom. But she stayed near the door. It was silly, she supposed, but she felt a bit uncomfortable about being a guest in the suite.
There was a stack of paperbacks on the narrow marble-topped table in the tiny foyer. She shuffled through them, only half-aware that she was snooping. He had interesting taste in books; there were several titles she’d been wanting to read herself.
Chase returned and paused in the doorway. “Are you all right, Amanda?”
She ran a finger across the edge of the table. “I’m just checking the housekeeping.”
“Oh. I thought perhaps you were wondering how many women I’ve smuggled up here in the last week.”
She laughed a little. “Of course not.”
“Well, that’s a relief.”
“With Nicky around, you couldn’t smuggle anything.”
Chase winced. “True, but not flattering.” He moved across to the tiny built-in bar and investigated the contents. “How about a brandy?”
“That’s fine.” She sipped from the snifter he handed her. “Don’t misunderstand, Chase, I admire you for wanting to have Nicky with you – but bringing him along on location must complicate your life incredibly.”
“You’re right.” He tipped her face up to his and smiled. “He complicates things in all kinds of nice ways. Take you, for instance. If it hadn’t been for Nicky...”
But he didn’t finish. He kissed her instead, long and slowly and deeply, until Amanda’s knees were like rice pudding. He tasted like brandy, but not the ordinary sort. This was like an old and rich and smooth vintage which went straight to her head and seemed to disconnect every muscle in her body.
But it didn’t fog her senses. He drew her down on the couch w
ith him, and as his mouth moved across her cheekbone, to her temple, across her eyelids, she could feel each cell reacting to his touch.
“Amanda,” he whispered, “I want to go to bed with you.”
And that’s what I want, too, she thought. To make love with him, to be a part of him, even for a little while... No one else would ever know, but Amanda could forever treasure the memory that once upon a time, however briefly, she had been an important part of his life. Not because he was the sexiest man on American TV – her desire had nothing to do with that – but simply because he was Chase, and because she wanted to share the most intimate details with him...
And if she did, she knew, it would be the biggest mistake of her life. That, however, didn’t stop her from wanting. She shook her head a little in a vain attempt to straighten out her brain. “But I thought –”
His arms relaxed a little, and he let his long fingers wander through her hair, almost massaging her scalp. “You thought because I haven’t been harping at you about it, I’d given up the idea? Not at all. I figured when you were ready you’d let me know – one way or the other.” His fingertips slid down across her cheek, outlining her face. The contact was like lighting dancing from nerve to nerve.
“No,” she said. Her voice was barely audible. It was the most difficult thing she had ever had to say.
He didn’t stop the gentle tracing of her features. “Do you mean no for all time, or no for right now?”
She looked at him with something close to panic in her eyes. I can’t say it again, she thought. And I can’t even begin to explain. If he asks why...
Chase smiled. “You don’t have to tell me.”
“I’d better go,” she managed. She put the snifter down.
Chase followed her to the door. Almost against her will, she turned to him, with one hand on the knob.
He kissed her again, softly – almost tenderly – on the forehead. “Goodnight, Amanda.” There was a wry note in his voice. “I only hope you sleep as badly tonight as I expect to.”
*****
Stephanie’s French Revival mansion looked ethereally beautiful as Amanda and Nicky walked up the street toward it late the next morning. Set on a couple of acres of rolling lawns in the middle of Springhill’s best residential neighborhood, the big brick house with its ivy-covered tower, bright slate roof, and wrought-iron gates was a perfect setting for a movie. Amanda didn’t know much about the script, but from the bits of information she’d picked up, it was no surprise to her that the location manager had chosen this house for Diamonds in the Dew.
But though the house looked quietly elegant, like a lady waiting patiently for her cue, the once-quiet neighborhood was no longer peaceful. The streets were cordoned off and blocked by trucks and tents and equipment vans, and cast and crew bustled back and forth across the manicured lawn. Two young men were busy with cloths, wiping off a red Porsche which sat in the driveway just outside the massive front door.
Amanda paused across the street, not sure how close she would be allowed to come. Despite the hectic activity, nothing much seemed to be going on at the moment, and though there were cameras and lights and microphones, she couldn’t get a glimpse of Chase anywhere.
She did, however, see Stephanie, sitting in a lawn chair at the edge of the grass, so she crossed the street. “Is this spot reserved for the owner, or may we join you?” she asked.
“Of course you can. They’re between takes, but there’ll be some excitement again in a few minutes. I think there’s an extra chair somewhere.” Stephanie waved a hand vaguely toward a row of trees which separated the gardens from a ravine full of wildflowers.
“Oh, we’ll just sit on the ground. I doubt we’ll be staying long.” Amanda settled onto the grass with a swirl of her khaki skirt. Nicky stood beside her, bashfully eyeing the small boy on Stephanie’s lap. “That’s Zack,” Amanda told him. “Don’t you remember him from the park?”
Zack fixed wide blue eyes on Nicky. He was a little younger, and his face still carried the slight pudginess of babyhood, but he was a born leader. “Let’s play,” he said, and squirmed to get down.
“Not on your life,” Stephanie warned. “Any noise, and we’ll have to leave.”
Zack frowned as if he didn’t think that was fair at all. Amanda didn’t blame him; after all, it was his home, and his lawn.
“Has Zack just had a haircut?” she asked. “Where do you take him? I need to ask Chase if he wants me to get Nicky’s hair trimmed.”
“At my regular salon. It doesn’t seem to be as scary as the barber shop.” Stephanie shifted Zack to her other knee. “I thought you said there was another nanny in the wings.”
Amanda ran her hand through Nicky’s curls so she didn’t have to look at her friend. “Oh, it just seemed to be less complicated for me to keep him for a few more days.” She tried to keep her voice calm. “I bet it’ll be nice to have your house back again.”
Though Stephanie’s elegant eyebrows rose slightly, she went along with the change of subject. “You have no idea how many hours I’ve spent in my car this week, running back and forth from the lake. If it isn’t swimming lessons, it’s play group, and if it isn’t the kids’ activities, it’s my own. Eventually I just gave up the whole idea of work for the duration. But it’ll be worth all the hassle just to be able to tell everyone who visits us that this is the very bedroom where Chase Worthington seduced Jessamyn Arden in Diamonds – Oh, here we go.”
There were calls for silence, and the bustle in the front lawn died to stillness.
The bedroom where Chase Worthington seduced Jessamyn Arden... Amanda hadn’t heard about that particular bit of the script. Not that it bothered her, of course. It was only a script – and even if there was more to the story than that, it wouldn’t be any of her business.
The camera had moved into place, and the massive front door swung wide. Chase came out, briefcase in hand, and walked around the back of the Porsche to open the driver’s door. The way each footstep struck the pavement said he was both furious and in a hurry.
Nicky sat up straight. Automatically, Amanda reached for the suspenders which held up his shorts, just in case he forgot the talk they’d had earlier and went running to his daddy.
Jessamyn Arden, in a silky pale green negligee, appeared on the threshold, shouting angrily. Chase answered, his voice cold and wrathful. Then Jessamyn tripped over her next lines, and the director cut the scene short. Chase and Jessamyn went back inside, and the two workers appeared to dust the car again – to remove any fingerprints Chase might have left, Amanda supposed.
Nicky tugged at her sleeve. “Why’s Daddy mad at the lady?”
“He’s not, darling, not really. Do you ever play Let’s Pretend?”
Nicky nodded.
“Well, that’s what Daddy’s doing today. He’s told you about it, I’m sure.”
In the next half hour, she watched in fascination as they did the scene three more times. Once Chase fluffed his lines and started to laugh; Jessamyn was obviously not amused.
Zack was squirming restlessly on Stephanie’s lap. “Just a few more minutes,” she said. “Then we’ll pick up Katie at dancing class and go back to the lake for the rest of the day.” Another take started just as she added, “I hear you’re going to the director’s party with Chase.”
Amanda tried to sound casual. “Well, not if I can’t find a sitter for Nicky. I’ve tried everyone on the inn’s list of babysitters, and no one’s available then.”
“Bring him here.”
“You’re a glutton for punishment, Steph.”
Stephanie rolled her eyes heavenward. “Not me, darling. I’m going to the party, too – it’s a reward for all the effort I’ve put into this production. But I’m arranging a second get-together for the younger generation, and that’s why you can’t find a sitter, because I’ve hired every one I could find to keep the urchins in order.”
“You’ll probably need them all.”
“Well, one m
ore child won’t upset the balance. If you’re free this afternoon, bring Nicky out to the lake house to play. He’ll be more comfortable Sunday if he gets to know Zack a little better first.”
Amanda agreed, and Stephanie gave in to the inevitable and took the restless Zack off down the street.
The next take went all the way through, and the director, apparently satisfied, ordered a break and a shift to the next scene on the shooting schedule. Crew members swarmed over the lawn, moving the Porsche out of the way and relocating cameras and sound trucks. Amanda watched as Jessamyn Arden, still wearing the silky negligee, tripped up to Chase, put one hand on his arm, and looked up into his eyes. She couldn’t hear what the woman was saying.
Chase shook his head and waved a hand toward where Amanda was sitting. Jessamyn turned and stared at her, eyes narrowed, and then went off toward her mobile dressing room, parked on the side street.
Family Secrets Page 11
