“Are you two soon ready for breakfast? I made our first appointment for nine-thirty.” Claire Peters’s voice trailed off as she saw the two of them and guessed what they had been doing.
Leigh’s color was high but she didn’t skitter away, and Adam was glad about that. Instead she merely shifted in Adam’s arms.
He answered Claire, “We’re ready when you are.”
“I suppose I interrupted something,” Claire determined matter-of-factly.
Adam released Leigh now and answered for them both. “We were discussing the Cambrys’ party tonight. We were both invited, and we’re going together.”
“I see.” Claire didn’t look happy about it, but she didn’t say anything more, either. Adam guessed that Leigh was going to get an earful later.
For now, though, she smiled at her mother. “After we look at apartments, I need to shop for something simple to wear tonight.”
“I’m sure we can find something,” Claire decided, although she didn’t sound as if her heart were in it.
Leigh touched Adam’s arm, and with a smile said, “I’ll help Mom with breakfast.”
“I won’t be long,” he replied as he watched Leigh pick up her jacket and leave the barn with her mother.
Two hours later Adam had returned from his ride, still thinking about kissing Leigh. At breakfast their gazes had connected often. They were on the verge of something again, something that was going to hurt them both. He knew that and so did she, but they couldn’t seem to help themselves.
As he groomed Thunder, he thought about the party at Jared’s, about Leigh’s suggestion to call Lissa. If she didn’t want to answer the phone, she wouldn’t pick up. If she didn’t want to talk to him, he’d be able to hear it in her voice. Either way, he’d be prepared for tonight.
The legs of his jeans were wet from the ride but instead of going to the house to change first, he took his cell phone from his belt, searched for the number he’d entered after Jared had given it to him, and pressed Send.
“Hello?” It was a soft melodic voice that sounded a bit sleepy.
“Lissa Grayson?”
“Yes, I’m Lissa. Who’s this?”
“Adam Bartlett.”
There was a shocked silence, then an exuberant “Adam! Oh, my goodness. I’m so glad you called. I just got back yesterday and I’m not even out of bed yet. Well, I mean…”
He heard a male chuckle nearby.
Although he should feel awkward at this intrusion into her life, he suddenly felt relieved, and a smile came to his own lips. “I should have known better than to call before noon. You’re a newlywed.”
At that, she said, “Hold on a minute, Adam.”
He heard a brief mumbled conversation and suspected she was telling her new husband who was calling. Then she returned to the phone. “Okay, I’m awake and I’m all yours. Are you going to Shawna’s party tonight?”
“That’s why I’m calling. A crowd didn’t seem the best place to make introductions.”
“I hadn’t thought of that, but you’re right. I can’t wait to see what you look like. Ever since I heard I had a twin, my mind’s been spinning.”
“I know what you mean. Did you know that I’m a match for Mark?”
“Jared left the news on the machine here at the vineyard. I’m so glad. Everybody was so disappointed when I wasn’t a match, and I felt as if I’d let them down somehow.”
“Now you don’t have to be worried about it. I know there’s no guarantee the transplant will take, but if we all believe it will, that’s got to help.”
“I can’t believe I’m actually talking to you! Jared called me in Scotland to tell me he’d met you. He said you’re the CEO of a software company, but he didn’t say much else. Are you single…married…involved?”
Lissa’s excitement at finding him and wanting to know about his life created a joy inside of him as he’d never known. She had no ax to grind. She didn’t want anything from him. She just wanted to get to know who he was.
Still…answering her question wasn’t easy. “I’m single.”
“Hmm,” she said teasingly. “Do I hear something else attached to that?”
He laughed. “It’s a long story.”
“So, tell me about it. Sullivan went out with Barney. He’s our dog.”
It was odd, but Adam already felt as if he’d known Lissa for a lifetime. It was unlike him to confide his personal life to anyone, but she seemed to really care. “I have someone staying with me right now. I knew her in high school. She’s a nurse at Portland General and has been the liaison during Mark’s transplant process. There was a fire in her apartment building, and she and her mom had nowhere to go.”
There were a few moments when Lissa seemed to be thinking about what he’d told her. “I think there’s a lot you’re leaving out since you haven’t really told me if you’re involved now.”
“Leigh’s coming with me to the party tonight. You can meet her and draw your own conclusions.”
Lissa laughed. “I’ll do that. I can’t wait for you to meet Sullivan.”
Then Lissa launched into the story of how she and Sullivan had met. Finally she revealed, “And the best news of all is, I’m going to have a baby. Just think, you haven’t even known me a day and you’re going to be an uncle!”
An uncle. A real sister. And Lissa cared. It all seemed surreal to Adam but he was slowly getting used to the idea. “Congratulations. You sound happy about it.”
“We’re both thrilled.”
When Adam heard noises in the background again, the barking of an excited dog, he knew her new husband was back. “I won’t tie you up any longer right now. Maybe we’ll find some more time to talk tonight.”
“You can bet we will. And I’m only two hours away, Adam. We can get together anytime we want.”
He liked the sound of that. He liked the sound of Lissa, and he couldn’t wait to meet her in person.
That evening, the Cambrys’ house blazed with light. Cars were parked around the circular drive and on the macadam area beside the garage.
“Full house,” Adam commented to Leigh as they walked up to the front door.
“Shawna told me they didn’t only invite her friends, but some neighbors, too.”
As always, Leigh looked pretty tonight. He could tell she’d shopped frugally and practically but she still looked elegant in her black slacks, white silk blouse and vest with multicolored fringe. On top of it all, she wore a red jacket. He’d seen the sale price on the sleeve before she’d removed it.
After his visit to Mark, he’d been running late, and they hadn’t had much time to talk in the car. She had told him Claire had found two apartments she liked. The problem was, the one with the two bedrooms wouldn’t be available for another month. The other had a nice location and a reasonable price, but only one bedroom. The one-bedroom apartment was available immediately.
A uniformed maid opened the door before Adam could even ring the bell. Chatter flowed out from inside, and as he and Leigh stepped into the living room, he saw Shawna surrounded by a crowd of her friends. She was wearing black leather slacks and a short pink top with little beads hanging all over it. When she spotted him, she waved.
As soon as the maid took Leigh’s coat, Danielle came toward them, hands outstretched. “I’m so glad you could come. The table in the dining room is loaded with food and there’s dancing in the family room. Lissa isn’t here yet,” she said to Adam. “She called, though. She and Sullivan are running a little late. Something about their dog splashed around in a mud puddle and they had to give him a bath.”
Adam was smiling as he guided Leigh toward the family room and the music.
“Did you call your sister?” Leigh asked.
“Yes, I did. I can’t wait to meet her.” Adam had glanced into the dining room and now canvassed the family room. “I don’t see Jared. I wonder where he is.”
“Maybe he’s running late for some reason, too.” Leigh had brought a prese
nt for Shawna and now took it to a table heaped with gifts. His present for Shawna was tucked into his inside jacket pocket.
Adam was about to ask Leigh if she wanted to get something to eat when Shawna breezed in, her hand clasped in a boy’s. He was tall and rangy looking. “Adam and Leigh, I want you to meet Peter. Peter Bennett, my brother Adam and a friend of his, Leigh.”
The boy gave them an offhanded grin. “Nice to meet you.”
“Nobody’s dancing,” Shawna said, looking around, seeing teenagers in one group of conversations and adults in another. She looked at Adam. “If I put a slow one on, will you two dance?”
“Are you insinuating that I’m too old to enjoy a fast one?” he joked.
Her cheeks reddened. “No, but Peter prefers slow ones.”
The boy was looking at Shawna as if he’d rather dance a slow dance with her someplace private. Adam wondered how Jared handled that. That was a part of being a father that would be damn tough.
He glanced over at Leigh. “A slow one okay with you?”
“That’s fine with me.”
Shawna went to the entertainment center and soon soft strains of a new pop idol’s ballad poured from the speakers. It had been ten long years since Adam had danced with Leigh. Now he opened his arms to her.
When she placed her hand on his shoulder, he could feel its warmth through his suit coat. At least he thought he could. Her other hand was so small, so fragile in his, and he closed his hand around hers and brought it into his chest. When she looked up at him, everybody else in the room faded away. It was only the two of them and the music, her perfume and his cologne mingling, the heat of their bodies coming together. Other couples were dancing now, too, but Adam paid them no mind.
As his arm tightened around Leigh, his jaw brushed her temple. “Did your mother say anything about finding us in the barn this morning?”
Leigh’s shoulders lifted and fell, then she looked up at him. Her face was only a few inches from his. “She’s just worried about me.”
“What’s there to worry about?”
“She doesn’t want me to get sidetracked.”
“We’re both responsible adults now, not teenagers. Even if we decided to get involved, we can take precautions.”
“You mean against pregnancy,” Leigh murmured.
“Yes.”
The idea of an involvement and what it would mean wisped around them like a cloud. Pictures played in Adam’s mind. Was he contemplating an affair with Leigh knowing he’d have to let her go in June?
Usually he could tell what Leigh was thinking, but now she turned her head away and rested it on his shoulder. Was she thinking about the heartache they’d be asking for? Was she imagining sleeping with him? Why was the timing always wrong for them?
One song stretched into two and Adam decided to stop thinking about the future and simply enjoy what was happening right now. Leigh was soft and fragrant and warm in his arms. He was aroused, and he suspected she was too from the flush on her cheeks, the sparkle in her eyes, the closeness of their bodies.
Then suddenly he felt a tap on his shoulder. When he turned, he saw Chad. The teenager had Jared’s hair but resembled his mother. Beside him was a beautiful young woman, who looked a bit like Adam did himself.
Chad said somberly, “Adam, Lissa Grayson and her husband Sullivan. Sullivan and Lissa, meet Adam Bartlett and Leigh Peters.”
Adam’s heart raced as he released Leigh and turned to face Lissa. The next moment his twin was hugging him, and he knew he finally had a real family.
Chapter Ten
Twenty minutes later Adam decided he liked Sullivan as much as he liked Lissa. Her husband had a quick wit and an easy laugh. It was obvious he adored his new wife, and she loved him.
While Sullivan answered Leigh’s interested questions about the vineyard, Lissa tugged Adam through sliding glass doors onto the patio, her long dark-brown hair flowing behind her. She pulled out one of the white wrought-iron chairs at a small round table, and he sat across from her. They just stared at each other for a while and then both of them laughed.
“You do look like me,” Adam admitted with a smile.
“No, you look like me.” Then her smile slipped away, and he saw that Lissa Grayson could be a very serious young woman, too. “Tell me how you grew up,” she prompted.
“Why don’t you go first.” He’d never really talked about his background to anyone except Leigh, and it seemed odd to do it now. Lissa must have seen that he needed to get comfortable with the idea so she started slowly.
“The Cartwrights loved me. They always have and they always will. But my sister, their biological daughter, was so beautiful, so accomplished, so intelligent that I was always insecure. Until Sullivan came along. Then I felt beautiful and intelligent and special, too.” She hesitated a few moments but then went on to tell Adam about growing up at the vineyard and the makeover Jared had helped her with. It seemed she’d connected with Jared, though she still thought of the Cartwrights as Mom and Dad.
She pushed her waist-length hair over her shoulder. Propping her elbow on the table, her chin in her palm, she said, “So now I want to know more about you. Are you and Leigh Peters involved?”
“Just because we were dancing doesn’t mean we’re involved.”
“You were doing more than dancing. I saw the way you two were looking at each other. But if you don’t want to talk about it, I’ll understand.”
Lissa was so ingenuous, so absolutely natural, and he saw that she wanted to know because some part of her already cared about him. Feeling more comfortable now, he told Lissa the story of how he and Leigh had met at her locker in high school, of the note she’d left him three months later. Somehow that led into his life with the Bartletts and how he’d always felt as if he were odd man out.
After he’d finished, she scolded, “You still didn’t answer my question. Are you and Leigh involved now?” Lissa’s green eyes were bright as she asked him for the truth.
“I’m telling myself I shouldn’t get involved. I’m reminding myself she’s leaving in June.”
Just then Sullivan came through the sliding glass doors and onto the patio. Crossing to his wife, he laid his hand on her shoulder. “How are you feeling?”
“I think jetlag is setting in.”
“Or pregnancy. Jared said we could stay the night if we’d like instead of driving back. That might be better for you.”
“Maybe that would be a good idea. I’ll give Mom and Dad a call. I’m sure they won’t mind taking care of Barney tonight. He’s going to love having a baby to romp with.” She reached out and covered Adam’s hand with hers. “You will be a real uncle, won’t you? I want you to come visit often.”
“I’ll come. I’d like to have you and Sullivan out to the ranch. We’ll set up a date after the transplant.”
Leigh came to the door then, too. “I’m sorry to interrupt, but Jared would like all of you to come in. He wants to give a toast.”
To his surprise Adam didn’t feel as if Leigh were interrupting. He felt as if she belonged by his side. Yet he knew that wasn’t going to happen. Still, as they went to the living room, he took her hand and she smiled up at him as if she were glad she was at the party with him.
As Adam and Leigh stood on the fringes of the crowd in the living room, a waiter made sure everyone had a drink. Jared draped his arm around Shawna’s shoulders and ushered her toward the fireplace. There he handed her a glass. “Sparkling cider,” he elaborated with a wink.
When she just rolled her eyes, everyone laughed.
Danielle and Chad came to stand beside him. They, too, had glasses in hand.
After Jared was sure he commanded all of his guests’ attention, he raised his and addressed the crowd. “This is a happy occasion for us. Shawna has turned sixteen and she’s definitely on her way to adulthood. We’ve never been more proud of her than we are right now. Shawna, happy sixteenth birthday.”
After a round of applause, Jared sti
ll didn’t move away from the fireplace. Rather, he waited until the applause died down, and then his gaze met Adam’s.
“There’s someone else here tonight who I’d like to introduce to you. I don’t know if all of you have met him yet. He’s giving us the greatest gift we could possibly imagine. Adam Bartlett is the man who will donate his bone marrow to Mark. He’s a perfect match, and we want to toast him and his generosity in helping us save Mark’s life.”
Again everyone applauded and Adam soon found all eyes were on him. He raised his glass to Jared’s, forced a smile and then took a swallow of his drink.
After the applause died down, everyone turned away and began mingling again. A few of the guests introduced themselves to Adam, most were friends or neighbors of Jared’s family. They kept telling him what a wonderful thing he was doing, and Adam felt awkward about all of it.
Standing beside Adam, Leigh watched him go still and turn inward. Whether he wanted to admit it or not, she was sure he was hoping Jared Cambry would be the father he never had. But Jared had just blown that idea to bits. He hadn’t acknowledged Adam as his son, and she could see the effects of that in Adam’s rigid stance as well as in his forced smile as he spoke to Jared’s friends and neighbors. Leigh ached for him and understood the child inside of him who’d wanted Owen Bartlett to accept him as a real son. She didn’t know what she would have done as she was growing up if she hadn’t had her mother’s support. Unlike her, Adam had gone it alone from an early age. She admired him for that, but she’d also seen the toll it had taken on him.
After the well-wishers had moved away, he leaned toward Leigh. “I want to find Shawna again and give her her birthday present. Then I’ll be ready to leave. Will you?”
“Whenever you’re ready.” She’d attached a card to her birthday present for Shawna that was on the table in the family room. It wasn’t necessary for her to be here when Shawna opened it. The trendy purse had caught Leigh’s eye and she hoped Shawna liked it. On the other hand, she couldn’t wait to see Shawna’s face when Adam gave her his gift.
Take A Chance On Me (Logan's Legacy) Page 13
