by Lisa Ruff
“Yes, but this is a business trip,” Anna said lightly.
“All right.” George nodded and picked up the glasses. “Another round coming up.”
He left the table and both women watched him leave, then Mimi turned to Anna. “I didn’t mean to imply that you drank too much around—”
“And that’s not how I took it.” Anna laid a hand over her friend’s and squeezed.
Mimi turned her hand and gripped Anna’s. “What’s wrong, Annie? I’ve been doing all the talking, but I get the impression you have something you want to say.”
“Not really. I just—” Anna stopped and looked out the window again, then back at her friend. If she couldn’t tell Mimi the truth, who could she tell? “I’m pregnant.”
Mimi’s mouth dropped open. “Whoa.”
George chose that moment to return with the drinks. He set them on coasters. “Sure I can’t tempt you, Annie? My peach margaritas are near perfect.”
“Not for me,” Anna said softly.
Keeping her eyes on Anna, Mimi nodded. “Bring me one. I definitely need a drink.”
George looked from one woman to the other, a concerned frown darkening his face. “Is everything okay?”
“Everything’s great,” Mimi shot him a quick smile.
He paused, then nodded and left the table. Anna looked over at Mimi, her smile a bit lopsided, near to tears as she was. “I’m not supposed to drink when I’m pregnant.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll drink for both of us.” Mimi ran a hand through her sandy-brown hair, pulling it loose from her ponytail, and leaned forward over the table. “First, let me ask, are you sure?”
“As sure as a doctor’s blood test can be.” Anna took a sip of her lemonade, letting the cold liquid slide down her dry throat. “If throwing up this morning and yesterday failed to convince me. God, and three days ago, too.”
Anna put her hands over her face. Reality was starting to sink in and panic flooded through her. What was she going to do? How could she be pregnant? What had she ever done to deserve this? Sucking in a deep breath, she held it for a moment, then let it out slowly, remembering the answer: she had done one thing, one night, and it had felt so right. And now? Dropping her hands she forced a smile as she looked over at Mimi.
“Except I wasn’t. Sure, I mean.”
“Huh? I don’t understand.”
“I didn’t connect the dots, so to speak. I just thought I was nervous about seeing—” She stopped and fiddled with the straw in her glass. An image of Evan popped into her mind, not that he was ever far out of it, especially today. She felt a blush suffuse her face and couldn’t meet Mimi’s gaze.
“About seeing who?”
Anna shook her head and waved away the question with her hand. “Silly me. Working with my parents is stressful, you know?”
Mimi was silent, looking at her through narrowed eyes. “Right.”
Anna squirmed under her friend’s intent stare. Mimi knew her too well to accept the evasion.
“So how did it happen?” Mimi asked, letting the explanation slide. “I can’t believe you weren’t using birth control.”
“Who knew the twenty-four-hour flu would make such a mess of my life?” Anna’s attempt at humor fell flat and she shrugged. “At least that’s what the doctor thought the culprit might be.”
“Oh, boy.” Mimi looked at her, sympathy brimming in her eyes.
George appeared with a tray carrying two stemmed glasses. He set them on the table, ice cubes clinking in the pale peach-colored liquid. A lime wedge decorated the salt encrusted rim. “Two peach margaritas. You looked like you needed one, too, Annie.”
Anna touched him on the arm, appreciating his gesture. “Thanks, Mr. Green.”
He eyed her for another moment, seeming about to speak, then shook his head. He put a basket of tortilla chips between them along with a small bowl of salsa. “Here’s an appetizer to complete the festivities. Can I get you anything else?”
Anna smiled up at him, noting his keen gaze, so much like his daughter’s. “This looks great.”
From the expression on his face, he didn’t buy her cheerfulness, either. But he patted her shoulder and left them alone without another word. Mimi took a sip of her drink, then set the glass back down.
“Who’s the lucky father?” she asked bluntly.
“There isn’t one.”
Mimi giggled, stirring the ice around in her glass. Her dark blue eyes were full of impish humor. “Not another trip to Bethlehem? Should I alert the media?”
“Don’t you dare,” Anna said with a laugh. “You’ll blow my cover.” She shook her head and toyed with the straw in her margarita. She wished she could wallow in alcohol and forget this day. Sighing, she pushed the glass to the side. “I just meant I’ll be flying solo on this one.”
“Does he know?”
“Since I just found out this morning,” Anna said drily. “That would be a no.”
“So. Are you going to tell him?”
Anna looked away, out the window. Her gaze caught on a sailboat that was slowly creeping into the creek, white canvas bright in the sunshine. “Yes.” She turned back to Mimi. “He deserves to know. But I don’t expect anything from him.”
“Why not?”
Anna shrugged. “I just don’t.”
“He’s not a bastard, you know. At least not one hundred percent. Sure, he’s got the attitude, but I think it’s a cover. Sometimes, I can’t help but like him.”
Anna froze, her gaze locked with Mimi’s. She could feel the blood drain out of her cheeks as she stared. “Who are you talking about?”
Mimi was silent, then put her hands out and grasped Anna’s. “The father of your baby,” she said gently, her eyes filled with kindness. “Evan McKenzie.”
Reflexively, at the sound of the name, Anna’s hands tightened on Mimi’s. They were an anchor she badly needed right now. Tears filled her eyes and she squeezed them shut tightly. She didn’t know how her friend had figured out the truth, but she was glad that Mimi knew.
“What am I going to do?” Anna whispered.
“Take a deep breath, stop panicking and tell me what I can do to help.”
Anna followed orders, though the panic only receded a little. “Let’s see. Can you turn back the clock three weeks?” she asked, trying to joke about it.
“Sorry. That I can’t do.” Mimi shook her head ruefully. “I can be with you when you tell him, if you want.”
Anna sighed. “No, I’d rather not have an audience for that horror show.”
“You never know. He might be excited when he hears.”
With a snort, Anna shook her head. “Not likely. No, he’s going to freak out that our one-night stand had permanent consequences. I can’t say I blame him,” she finished softly. “I’m a little freaked, too. More than a little, truthfully.”
“It’ll get easier.” Mimi patted Anna’s hand and took a sip of margarita. “Just wait. Soon wonder will set in. Then anticipation. I think that’s why it takes so long to have a baby—to give you time to adjust to the big change. And trust me, nine months is an incredibly long time.”
“What did Johnny do when you told him?” Anna asked, though she knew the man who had fathered Mimi’s child had left them both after Jack was born.
“Oh, he was excited.” Mimi shook her head, her expression wry. “It was afterward that he got scared. He was the best expectant father imaginable. He rubbed my feet, brought me weird food at three in the morning. Anything I wanted, he bent over backward to do. But when he held Jack for the first time, the look on his face was one of utter and complete terror.”
“I don’t think Evan’s going to be a great expectant father.”
“Maybe it’s better if he isn’t.” Mimi twirled her glass on the table. “He’ll be the opposite of Johnny.”
“If only men were that simple to predict.”
Both women laughed. Anna dipped a fingertip into her margarita, then dabbed at the salt on th
e rim of her glass. Transferring the grains to her tongue, she let them melt there, savoring the sharp bite. She looked over at Mimi again.
“How did you figure it out?”
“About Evan?” Mimi shook her head with a laugh. “Ian mentioned that he’d gone out to see you a few weeks ago. Knowing that you haven’t been dating anyone else lately, he was the first person I thought of. Plus, I saw you giving him the eye at our wedding.”
“I was not!”
“Liar,” Mimi said. She took a drink, then licked the salt off her lips. Her eyes were sparkling with teasing glee. “I’ve caught him looking at you, too. Like a cheetah looks at a gazelle.”
“I don’t… He doesn’t…” Anna stammered to a stop, feeling a hot wash of color rise like a tide in her cheeks. “Really?”
Mimi giggled. “Trust me.”
Anna ran a hand through her hair. “This is ridiculous. We sound like we’re back in high school.”
“No matter how it feels right now, it isn’t the end of the world, Annie. Really. It can be a wonderful beginning.”
“I hope you’re right.” Anna sighed, not sure she could believe her friend. “Don’t tell anyone, okay? About Evan? Not even Ian.”
“Sure.”
“I know I’m asking you to keep a secret from your husband—”
“About something that doesn’t concern him,” Mimi finished. “It’s okay, Annie. You and Evan need to figure this out together.”
“There’s a concept.” Anna rubbed her forehead. “Poor Evan. This is really going to be a shock.”
“He’ll get over it.”
Anna wished she could be as certain as her friend. All day, she had been bracing herself for the coming storm. Time after time, she had warned herself of the worst possibilities: his horror, revulsion, panic, anger. At the same time, some irrepressible part of her wished for the opposite, that Evan would feel happy, loving and proud like a father-to-be was supposed to feel. But she had to bury that fantasy deep. False hope did her no good.
She knew exactly what she had to do next: find Evan and tell him. She owed him that much. After that, she would see where they stood. And knowing how gossip and speculation gushed through her family, she had to tell him before someone else did.
Chapter Six
Evan scanned the contract one of his salesmen brought him. His cell phone chimed. Ignoring it, he read through the terms of the deal, then handed it back to the other man.
“Trade-in’s got some miles. We’ll have trouble selling it off the lot.”
“Nah,” Brett said. “The jobber will take it off our hands.”
“What makes you think that?”
Brett shrugged. “I called him.”
“Getting ahead of me, aren’t you?”
“Just trying to close the deal, boss.”
Evan had to chuckle at the mock-obsequious tone. “Go forth, then, and sell more cars.” He waved a hand, shooing Brett away.
The other man grinned, gave a snappy salute and left the office. Evan pulled out his phone to check the text message that had been left. It was from Patrick: meet @ pops 1245. Evan frowned. The phone rang and Antonio’s number flashed on the screen.
“Hey, Pop,” Evan said, answering the call. “I just got a message from Patrick. Says there’s a big conference?”
“You must come.” Antonio’s voice was too large for the phone and boomed out. Evan held it away from his ear a foot and could still hear the older man clearly. “It is urgent.”
“What’s this about?”
“I will tell you in one half of an hour.” Antonio’s accent was thick, hinting at how aggravated he was. “The men of this family must act!”
The phone went dead. Shaking his head, Evan couldn’t help laughing at Antonio’s drama. The phone rang again before he could put it down. This time it was Ian’s number on the display. What the hell was going on? Evan sighed and sat back in his chair. Something had stirred up the Berzanis.
Punching the green button, he said, “Hey, Pop just called. What’s going on?”
“I’m not sure,” Ian answered. “Anna’s done something to piss him off.”
“Must be the project.”
“Maybe. Could be anything, though. You know how well they get along in a confined space.”
“His timing stinks,” Evan said with an irritated sigh. “We’re swamped right now.”
The showroom was indeed busy this morning. Leaving would be a problem, but that was the least of Evan’s reluctance. He simply did not want to get mixed up in another mess that involved Anna Berzani.
“You know Pop. The bigger his audience, the better. But whatever’s got him stewed, Patrick and I can probably manage it without you.”
“Yeah, tell that to your dad,” Evan said with a snort. “I can hear him now—‘You have let me down in my hour of need. I expected better of you.’”
“Like you haven’t heard it before?” Ian asked with a chuckle. There was a pause, then he added, “I can’t blame you for wanting to avoid Anna. She sure laid into you yesterday.”
Evan stiffened and leaned forward in his chair. He had a sudden sense that Ian was fishing for something. The suspicion made the hairs on the back of Evan’s neck stand straight up. What had Ian noticed to make him throw out this lure?
“She was a bit worked up,” he said as casually as he was able.
“I’ll say. I was surprised you didn’t bite back.”
Swiveling around to face the windows, Evan didn’t really see the neat rows of shiny new cars laid out on the lot. Absently, he tapped his fingers on the armrest in an effort to channel some of his unease.
“I figured I should minimize the bloodshed.” He forced a laugh. “Hell, she and Pop had squared off already. One duel-to-the-death per day is all the family can take.”
Ian chuckled. “True enough.”
“I’ll shake loose of this place for a while and head over to the house,” he said more calmly than he felt. “We’ll get Pop settled down before he scalps Anna.”
“Sounds good,” Ian said easily. “See you there.”
Disconnecting the call, Evan slipped the phone into his pocket. A vision of Anna Berzani rose in his mind as clearly as if she were standing in his office: the businesswoman in suit and heels. The image quickly dissolved. Or rather, Anna’s clothes did. She lay on her bed in San Francisco. Her tousled red curls were spread across white pillows. Her smoldering chocolate eyes beckoned and her skin was flushed with passion. The memory brought arousal rearing its insistent head. Evan groaned.
Closing his eyes, he forced the phantom woman away. When he opened them again, he stared hard at the car lot outside. Red, black, blue, silver: the vehicles represented his kingdom. They were real. Anna was a fantasy. One unbelievable night hadn’t changed that fact. Another reality was that Evan had been born a bachelor. He would always be one. He couldn’t fool himself into believing anything different.
Evan left his office, determined to hold on to that truth. He would go to the Berzanis’ and help put out Antonio’s little fire. He had spent too much time lately avoiding the family, feeling as if he had betrayed them, even though they had no idea of his deceit. This was another chance to atone for his misdeed. At least his secret was safe for now; the spotlight would be turned on Anna.
As he walked through the showroom, one of his salesmen was chatting with a customer. John held up his hand as if to wave, but his thumb was tucked against his palm. Evan gave an inward sigh. The discreet signal meant the prospect was on the fence and the junior salesman wanted help talking him into a purchase. Evan adjusted his tie and walked over. Antonio might have a crisis with his youngest daughter, but as far as Evan knew, it wasn’t life and death. Business came first. It was life.
Forty minutes later, Evan wheeled out of the parking lot and headed toward the other side of town. A cash down payment was in the safe, but it had taken longer than expected. At the Berzani homestead, he parked on the street and headed up the walk. As he had
for nearly twenty years, he knocked once and let himself in.
The interior of the house was cool, dim and quiet. No one was in the living room off to the left of the entry hall. As always, there was a fabulous aroma coming from the kitchen. Oregano, sage, basil: the herbs filled the house. And though he was not born a Berzani, they smelled like home.
Evan followed his nose down the hall to the back of the house. As he passed the staircase he ran a hand over the newel post. For an instant, he thought he saw a girl descending from the second floor. It was Anna—a younger version. She wore a bikini covered by a red, tiny excuse for a skirt. She was going for a swim or something. A yellow-and-turquoise beach towel was draped over one shoulder, sunglasses perched on top of her head. It was a vision from many years ago, a moment he had forgotten. Except some demon in his head had decided to dig it up to torment him.
This had to stop, but how? Time, he told himself, it would take time. He had ridden this roller coaster before; somehow, he had survived those early years and he would again. Shaking his head, he passed the dining room, the setting for so many family meals he had shared with Anna and the whole Berzani clan. It was quiet. Strangely, there weren’t any sounds coming from the other side of the kitchen door, either. He pushed through and stopped abruptly. The three men sitting at the kitchen table turned to look his way as if pulled on strings.
“Sorry I’m late.” Evan’s heart began to pound when no one said anything. “What’s wrong?”
ANNA SAT IN THE CAR FOR a moment after pulling into her parents’ driveway. A soft, sweet-smelling breeze wafted in the open window and flirted with her hair, twirling tendrils across her cheeks. Worries also swirled around inside her head: Where was Evan? What was he doing? Were his parents okay?
And the biggest of all: How was she going to tell him she was pregnant?
In a burst of frustration, she closed the windows, turned off the engine and got out of the car. What a wasted afternoon. After seeing Mimi, she had gone in search of Evan, only to be stymied. At the car dealership, a salesman had said he was out on a family emergency. He had given her Evan’s card with his cell phone number, but she had been reluctant to call. If there was trouble with his father or mother, it was no time to disturb him with her news.
