by Lacey Baker
Still standing, Parker moved until he was in front of Drew. Squatting, he lifted her hands into his again and spoke softly, “You can tell me what’s wrong, Drew. If you’re sick I’ll get Quinn or I’ll take you to the hospital in Easton. If you just need to get out of here for a while, I can do that too. Just talk to me,” he pleaded.
“I’m fi—” she started to say before standing abruptly. “I need the bathroom.”
Her words were strained and Parker stood with her. “Sure. Let’s get you inside.” He walked with her, moving quickly.
When they arrived at the small entryway to Amore, he guided her up the steps and into the foyer of the restaurant. Parker held her hand this time, walking right beside her, waving to Salvatore Gionelli, the owner of the restaurant, as they passed by the hostess quickly.
At the doorway to the Ladies’ Room, Drew pulled out of his grasp.
“I said I’m fine, Parker,” she told him again with more than a little agitation in her tone.
“You’re obviously not fine,” he countered, trying to keep his voice down as a few other people had come into the restaurant behind them.
Drew dragged her hands over her face and took another deep breath. “I’m trying to go to the bathroom and you’re on my back like you intend to go with me,” she said through gritted teeth.
“I’m worried about you,” he admitted.
She shook her head. “Don’t be. I can take care of myself.”
“I know that, but I’m still worried,” he admitted, taking a step closer.
“I’m fi—” she started to say once more but Parker put his hand up to her lips to stop her.
“Don’t tell me you’re fine again. You definitely are not fine and I’m not leaving you alone until you tell me what’s going on,” he told her, growing steadily impatient.
“You want to know what’s wrong, Parker?” she asked almost defiantly. Her shoulders had squared and she was staring into his eyes like she was ready to haul off and slap him.
“I do,” he admitted with more than a little caution.
Parker was almost positive Drew wasn’t going to hit him. Physical violence didn’t really fit her personality. Still, her eyes were looking a bit wide, her face still too pale, and she was now clenching and unclenching her fists at her side. But he refused to back down because now, more than ever, he was certain there was something going on with her.
“I’m pregnant, you idiot!” were the last words Parker heard her say before she turned and pushed into the Ladies’ Room.
* * *
She was the idiot. A raving, nervous, sweating idiot!
Drew wanted to run to her car, to get inside and start the ignition and drive to her house, or possibly off the nearest cliff. She wanted to sink so far into the floor Parker could never see her again. She wanted to disappear and …
Another pressing need prevailed and she moved quickly into the nearest stall where the nausea she’d been feeling for the last fifteen minutes finally took over. Minutes later when she was certain she could stand up straight and that there was nothing left in her stomach to revolt and/or escape, Drew stood up straight, then leaned against the stall door, trying to steady her breathing.
Her words played over in her mind as did Parker’s, and she couldn’t help but groan. This was not the way she’d wanted to tell him. It wasn’t what she’d rehearsed. In fact, it was just about the worst possible scenario come true.
“If you stay in there any longer, I’m coming in.”
Oh hell, was he really talking to her through the Ladies’ Room stall? Of course he was, he was Parker Cantrell, which meant there was absolutely nothing that he didn’t believe he could do and get away with.
“Perhaps you missed the sign that said ‘Ladies’. It’s in big white letters on the door,” she snapped.
She almost stomped her foot she was so angry with herself for not following her plan and at Louisa and Marabelle for holding her up so that she ran into Parker before she was absolutely ready. And, of course, at Parker for … well, for being Parker!
“I know what the door says, Drew. What I’m really interested in getting a replay of is what you said just before you barged through the door.”
He was speaking in a really calm voice. It didn’t have the hint of laughter that his voice normally held. It was still deep and sexy as hell regardless.
A part of her wanted to retract her words and wait patiently until he believed her and left the bathroom before she came out of the stall. There were two problems with that scenario: 1. Parker wouldn’t believe her, and 2. She’d never been a coward before, she wasn’t about to start now.
So taking a deep breath, Drew turned and slid the latch on the stall door to the side. Pulling on the door, she watched as Parker moved his well-built body back two steps, allowing her space to move forward. Drew gratefully took the space and headed directly to the sink where she switched on the water and leaned forward to rinse her mouth. When she finished, she was surprised to look into the mirror and see Parker standing behind her offering her a paper towel.
For what felt like endless seconds, they only stared at each other. Then she turned to face him, accepting the paper towel and drying her hands and mouth. When that was done, Drew accepted that she had no choice but to look up at him once more.
It really wasn’t a great hardship to stare at Parker Cantrell. He had a golden complexion, his hair so close-cut he almost looked bald. His eyebrows were dark, eyes even darker, jaw strong, chiseled arms like a wrestler, and chest and abs like a bodybuilder. Today he wore jeans that weren’t tight, but fit his muscled thighs and legs perfectly, and a black T-shirt that hugged all the amazing contours and ridges of his upper body. The short sleeves left a portion of his biceps and his lower arms, roped with thick veins, bare. He looked like a biker, a bad-ass biker boy who was trying his damnedest to keep a tight rein on his control.
Drew took a deep breath and asked, “Do you remember that night we were together?”
If it were possible, his eyes darkened even more. “I can’t seem to think of anything else” was his reply.
She clasped her hands in front of her and, in an effort to hide her nervousness, silently dared them to move again.
“I doubt either one of us will ever forget that night,” she said quietly.
“What are you trying to tell me, Drew?”
Parker crossed his arms over his massive chest so that he looked even more opposing. Only Drew wasn’t intimidated by him, not in the least bit. Instead she was more than sorry to realize she was still unabashedly attracted to him.
“I’m trying to tell you that on that night, that hot summer’s night…”
“We lay beneath that big old oak tree, staring up at the summer’s moon and decided to sleep together,” he finished for her.
Drew nodded. That’s precisely what they’d done after they’d left Charlie’s. He’d driven them down to Fitzgerald Park on his motorcycle. It had rained earlier that evening so the air wasn’t as thick with humidity, but the grass was still damp from the quick summer shower. Parker had carried her shoes in his hands as she walked around, wiggling her toes against the cool blades of grass. They’d stopped at the oak tree and kissed. The kiss had turned so desperate they’d ended up falling to the ground in an attempt to get each other undressed. Then she’d cracked an eye open and that’s when she saw it. Just over Parker’s shoulder the summer’s moon had shown so big and brightly. He paused to see what had grabbed her attention, and they’d stared up at the moon together.
Then she’d invited him back to her house.
“That night I wished on the summer’s moon that you would make love to me,” she told him.
“And I did,” was his response.
“And we made a baby,” she said simply. “I’m pregnant with your child, Parker.”
There, she’d told him. Then she held her breath waiting for his response. Instead the Ladies’ Room door opened and in came none other than Louisa Kirk.
Without a word she raised her arm and slapped Parker over the shoulder with her purse.
“You haven’t changed a bit, Parker Cantrell. Still chasing girls into whatever dark corner you can get them in to do your deeds. Shame on you!” she yelled.
ALSO BY LACEY BAKER
Homecoming
About the Author
Lacey Baker, a Maryland native, lives with her husband and three children in what most would call Suburban America, a townhouse development where everybody knows each other and each other’s kids. Family cook-outs, reunion vacations, and growing up in church have all inspired Lacey to work towards her dreams and to write about the endurance of family.
Visit
www.laceybakerbooks.com
www.sweetlandromance.com
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
JUST LIKE HEAVEN
Copyright © 2013 by Lacey Baker.
Excerpt from Summer’s Moon copyright © 2013 by Lacey Baker.
All rights reserved.
For information address St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.
www.stmartins.com
eISBN: 9781466808416
St. Martin’s Paperbacks edition / December 2013
St. Martin’s Paperbacks are published by St. Martin’s Press, 175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010.
