The Last Marchetti Bachelor

by Teresa Southwick

  “Hi, Luke.” She held out her hand to indicate the chairs in front of her desk. “Have a seat.”

  “Thanks.”

  She sat down, too, and took a deep breath. “I tried to get in touch with you. Have you stopped picking up your messages?”

  “Lately, yeah.” He folded his arms over his chest. “What did you need to tell me?”

  “I wanted to warn you that your mother will be present at this meeting.”

  “What? Why?” He asked standing. His expression went from easygoing to I’m-outta-here in zero point three seconds.

  “I guess that’ll teach you to check your voice mail. Flo will be here momentarily, per your father’s instructions. He left something for her in the file.”

  “I don’t want to see her.”

  “Then I can’t proceed. It’s my responsibility to carry out his last wishes.” She folded her hands. “As your lawyer, and friend, let me advise you to get it over with. You’ve put your whole life on hold. You can’t move forward until you get this behind you. And you can’t do that until the will is read.”

  The intercom buzzed. “Yes?” Madison answered, after pushing the button.

  “Mrs. Marchetti is here.”

  Madison looked at Luke. He nodded curtly. “Send her in,” she said.

  A moment later Flo walked into the office. She looked tired, older. There were lines on her face Madison had never seen before.

  “Hello, Madison. Luke,” she said. She studied him with what Madison somehow knew was a mother’s all-seeing eyes. “You look tired, Son. Are you taking care of yourself?”

  “I’m fine,” he answered. His voice was carefully devoid of emotion, as was his face.

  Watching the two of them tugged at Madison’s heart. She’d seen them together and had always envied the close relationship. She’d never had anything even remotely resembling it with her mother. And remote was definitely the operative word. Her father? Forget it. Would it be better to know what it was like and lose it or to never know what it felt like at all?

  “Won’t you both sit down, please?” Madison asked.

  When they did, she opened the file, then looked from Flo to Luke. They could look stiffer, but she wasn’t sure how. She’d been in awkward situations before, but never had the words cut the tension with a knife been more true.

  She cleared her throat. “Mr. Stephenson left each of you a letter,” she began.

  From the file she took two sealed envelopes and handed the appropriate one to Luke, then his mother.

  Flo’s hand shook when she took hers. “Am I to read it now?”

  “That’s up to you,” Madison explained. But she noticed that Luke put his in his shirt pocket.

  Luke’s mother glanced at the handwritten note, then looked up. “If it’s all right with you, Madison and Luke,” she said, glancing at him, “I’d like to read it aloud.”

  When Madison nodded and Luke shrugged, the woman began:

  “Dear Florence, if you’re reading this, it means I’m gone. When the doctors diagnosed the cancer, I knew it was just a matter of time. I know we agreed that it was best for our son and your children that you and Tom raise him as your own. Forgive me, Flo, but as my time on earth grows short, I just can’t bear the thought that I will cease to exist without him knowing about me—”

  Flo’s voice cracked, and she stopped to compose herself.

  Madison studied Luke’s expression for a sign of his feelings. He still wore the same dark, angry look.

  After several moments she continued.

  “I had to leave everything I’d acquired in my life to my only child, my son. Luke. That means he has to know about me—us. I am so very sorry. I hope someday you and Tom can find it in your hearts to forgive me. Always, Brad.”

  Flo looked up. “That explains why he changed our agreement when we all decided it would be best—”

  “How did you figure that would be best for me?” Luke said, his voice humming with anger. “All that solution did was protect you from disgrace.”

  “I couldn’t care less how scandal would touch me. But, yes, I was concerned about how it would affect my children and the new baby I carried.”

  “Right,” he said sarcastically.

  Madison wanted to jump in and help Flo make her case. But this was one of those times to keep quiet.

  Flo folded the letter and put it in her purse. “Think about it, Luke. It would have been worse than a divorce situation with joint custody.” She half turned toward him. “Visitations with your biological father would have set you apart within the family unit. Children need to feel wanted and loved and as if they have a place to fit.”

  Madison could relate to that. “It makes sense, Luke.”

  He flashed her an angry glare, then met his mother’s gaze. “So I grew up thinking I was a Marchetti. How does that make it all right?”

  “Brad agreed that it was best for you and promised to stay out of your life. Although, after reading his letter, I see now how unfair it was to him.”

  “And to Tom,” Luke ground out.

  “Yes,” she said, nodding miserably. “And most of all to you. But I was a young mother with three little boys. I hardly ever saw your—Tom. Every waking moment was spent working to expand the business.” She reached out a hand to touch him, but when he shot her a look, she let it fall without making contact. “Your father, Brad, was handsome, charming and attentive. He made me feel attractive and cherished at a time when I desperately needed it.”

  “And that excuses your behavior?” he asked.

  “Nothing could do that. I just want to try to make you understand. The mistake was mine and mine alone. Tom loves you. Don’t blame him for—”

  “The only thing I blame him for is letting me believe I was someone I’m not.”

  Flo sat up straight, and her eyes flashed with emotion. “You are his son. He walked the floor with you when you were a teething infant. He attended every single solitary sporting event you ever played, from high school football to T-ball, even though you stood in the outfield, plopped your mitt on your head and picked grass. He was at the hospital when you were eighteen and had your broken ankle pinned. He held you when the pain was so bad you cried, while you waited for the medication to kick in. He was your father when it wasn’t easy or fun. But he welcomed all of it because he loves you.” She stopped to take a deep breath. “Don’t you dare criticize his actions. His motives are unimpeachable.”

  Luke rubbed a hand over his face. “I will never understand how he could know what you did and not walk out.”

  Flo’s mouth thinned, then she stood. “Then you’re an idiot. In spite of that, you’re a Marchetti, my son, and a member of the family.”

  Without another word, she walked to the door, opened it, and left the room.

  Madison looked at Luke. “Well, that could have gone worse. Although I’m not sure how.”

  “If I had known she would be here—”

  “If you hadn’t turned into a world-class hermit—”

  “So this is my fault?” he asked.

  “You could be more conciliatory.”

  “Don’t sit in judgment of me, Maddie. How would you feel if you were in my shoes?”

  “You mean if I found out I was adopted and there was someone out there who cared enough about me to put my needs above everything else? I’d do the dance of joy.”

  His eyes narrowed. “You have no idea what I’m going through.”

  “Being loved more than life itself?” She nodded. “That’s true. I don’t. But your mother is only human. Everyone makes mistakes. Even you.”

  “Yes, but I—”

  The intercom buzzed. “I’m still in a meeting,” Madison told her secretary.

  “Sorry. Mrs. Marchetti left, and I just assumed you were finished. There’s a phone call.”

  “What is it?” Madison asked. Since they’d already been interrupted, she might as well see what was so important.

  “The doctor’s offic
e is on the line. They want to confirm your appointment.”

  Madison’s heart jumped into her throat. She went hot all over as she looked at Luke and noted the intensity of his gaze. “Tell them I’ll return the call later, Connie.”

  “Is something wrong?” Luke asked. Concern made his eyes dark.

  She couldn’t help the glad little ripple that went through her. Had anyone ever been concerned about her that way? If so, she couldn’t remember who or when. “No.”

  “You didn’t eat enough to keep a bird alive when we had dinner the other night. And that day in my office you were dizzy.”

  “I’m fine. It’s a checkup,” she explained. Now, she thought. Tell him. She had the perfect opening.

  He stood up. “Okay. If you’re sure. I have to go.”

  “But I haven’t read the will yet.”

  “Right now I don’t care if it ever gets read.”

  “You don’t mean that.”

  “You’re wrong. I’ve never meant anything more.” He walked to the door and stopped with his hand on the knob. Then he glanced at her over his shoulder. “As far as I’m concerned, Maddie, nothing she said makes a difference. That twenty bucks is still mine.”

  Chapter Five

  While he waited for Maddie, Luke glanced at his kitchen table one last time. Flowers—check. Wine—check. Candles—check. No flame yet, but it wouldn’t be long. She would be here any minute. She could pretend that there was nothing personal between them. But if that were true, she wouldn’t have arranged to come to his house tonight. And he was glad she had. When they were together, electricity crackled and things heated up. Especially him.

  The doorbell rang. “Here’s Miss Hot-and-Bothered now.”

  He went to the door. It had been a week since that disastrous meeting in her office. Seven days of thinking about what his mother had said without being able to understand. Seven days and nights of no contact with Maddie. Suddenly he needed to see her like a parched man needs water.

  He opened the door. “Hi. Come on in.”

  “Thanks,” she said.

  He drank in the sight of her. She wore a floral print cotton jumper with a soft white T-shirt underneath. And sandals. Her toenails were painted orangey-red. A scrunchy held her red hair on top of her head, letting the curls cascade to one side, over her ear. Could she possibly be more feminine, he thought. His heart rate cranked up several notches, heating his blood and sending it south, to pool in his groin.

  Then he noticed her briefcase and remembered why she was here.

  “You brought the will.” It wasn’t a question.

  She nodded. “What changed your mind? Have you read the letter your father left you?”

  He shook his head. “But it’s time for the will. No guts, no glory. I just called to reschedule the appointment. Who knew my legal eagle was so accommodating? I’ve been trying to figure out why you insisted on coming to my place.”

  “Because I need to get this over with, and you can’t walk out. It’s your house.”

  “Get this over with?” he questioned.

  She had more rules than the IRS, including nothing personal. He figured nothing, including an act of God, could force her to set foot in his house. Had she insisted on dropping by because she was worried about him again? Afraid his state of mind would cause him to drive too fast? He liked that she was concerned about him. From puberty on, the opposite sex had come on to him. He’d been told he wasn’t hard to look at, and the fact that he had money drew women. Besides his mother, he couldn’t remember a single one who’d cared enough to worry about him.

  But he wondered how long it would last. The attraction always faded. It would with Maddie, too. Only a matter of time.

  She looked down for a moment, then met his gaze. “‘Get this over with’ wasn’t the best way to put it. But you know what I mean.”

  “No, I don’t. But I’m very interested in this new legal maneuver of yours to get the job done. The do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do method.”

  “What are you talking about?”

  “Me walking out of my house. The strategy won’t hold water, Counselor. You were going to walk out on me—when we were at your place. Remember?”

  “That was different,” she said. Her cheeks turned pink.

  When was the last time he’d seen a woman blush? Probably the last time Maddie had heard one of his double entendres. She looked so cute it made him want to tease her some more, to see if he could turn her lovely, smooth skin that same rosy shade.

  “Let’s go into the kitchen.”

  She made him hot all over and he needed to take his focus off her. If you can’t stand the heat, go into the kitchen? The rest of his life was topsy-turvy, why not this?

  He reached over to take her briefcase, and their fingers brushed. If it had been pitch-black, he was sure he would have seen a burst of sparks between them. If they were close enough to the candles, they would spontaneously light without the matches he’d set out.

  She quickly pulled her hand back. “Thank you.”

  Her sexy, breathless voice reached inside him and grabbed his primal need in a steely grip that belied her fragile look. He wanted her. Once wasn’t enough. He had implied to her that he wanted to go forward with what they’d started. He hadn’t changed his mind. But she’d wrung a promise out of him not to pursue anything personal. At least this house call hadn’t been his idea. And he was beginning to think it was a bad idea.

  It would take precious little to make him break that promise. He was trying like hell to find his emotional equilibrium, and every time he saw her, she turned him inside out and upside down. All it took was a smile, a blush, painted toenails, curls on top of her head and a voice so soft and seductive he could lose his self-control in a heartbeat. If he didn’t get a grip, he would be walking out of his house—for Maddie’s sake.

  He set her briefcase beside the kitchen island. “I’ve got a lasagne in the oven.”

  “You didn’t need to bother,” she said. “This won’t take that long.”

  “No bother. It’s one of the new frozen entrées that Alex and Fran developed.” Pain shot through him, reminding him he wasn’t a part of Marchetti’s anymore. Time to change the subject. “It’s the least I could do, since you made a house call. And I won’t be responsible for you missing a meal. Not on my watch.”

  “I didn’t realize I was anyone’s ‘watch,”’ she said. But the grin on her face told him she wasn’t annoyed. In fact, she appeared pleased.

  “It’s just an expression. But I haven’t seen you eat much lately, at least not when you were with me. I’ll pour you some wine—”

  “No!” Her tone was sharp. His gaze shot to hers and she looked uncomfortable, as if she hadn’t meant to speak so abruptly. “I—I mean I want to stay clearheaded. This is business. Remember?”

  “If I forgot for a second, there’s no doubt in my mind that you would remind me,” he said wryly.

  But he would like to forget it and for more than a second. He’d like to take her into his bedroom and pick up where they’d left off in hers. What was it about Maddie? She certainly wasn’t the most beautiful woman he’d ever known. And she was small and delicate, the complete opposite of his usual willowy, voluptuous type. She wouldn’t make the cover of a magazine as the sexiest woman alive. But he couldn’t get her out of his mind.

  Maybe it was the vulnerability she tried to hide. Or the fact that she wasn’t the typical barracuda lawyer type. She wanted to use her knowledge and power to help others. Did she see him as just another charity case?

  He took a deep breath. Talk about needing a clear head. Maddie had a way of clouding his thoughts, distracting him, every time they were together. He studied her more closely. She said she was okay, but she wasn’t a good liar. He couldn’t shake the feeling that something was up with her.

  There were circles under her eyes, and her face looked thin. Other than when she blushed, her cheeks were pale. And her vehement refusal of a glass of wine seemed
over the top. And what was her rush to get the will reading behind her?

  Then his stomach knotted. It was so simple. She wanted to get it over with so she wouldn’t have to see him anymore. And the part of him that was thinking with his head realized that would be for the best. She was good for him. Now. She was his anchor in a changing world. But as soon as the crisis was over, the need would disappear. And so would she. That was the way it always worked for him. There was just one problem. The idea of not seeing Maddie made him want to put his fist through the wall.

  “I’ll serve dinner,” he said abruptly.

  “Can I help?”

  He shook his head. “Just have a seat.”

  “Okay.”

  She looked at the elaborate table. “Do you have candles and flowers for all your guests?”

  “Only the special ones.”

  “This isn’t a date, Luke.”

  “If you say so.”

  Madison sat in the chair with her back to the open sliding glass door. She was only too happy to move away from Luke. When she was close to him, any semblance of deductive reasoning went right out the window. He was constantly on her mind. And when they were in the same room, she felt a physical ache to be in his arms. Maybe if she had never known the magic of letting him possess her. And she’d thought losing her virginity would simplify her life. Ha! If things could get more complicated, she wasn’t sure how. And she still wasn’t certain why she’d let him be the first. She watched him fill two plates with lasagne, salad and garlic bread. Beneath his black T-shirt, the muscles in his back rippled as he moved. The sleeves of his shirt pulled snugly around his biceps. His jeans sat low on his hips and clung to muscular thighs, making him look all male and trouble with a capital T.

  Something fluttered in her chest, and suddenly she found it difficult to breathe. The ache, the physical pain to have him hold her, grew more intense. She had never felt anything like this in her life. She was afraid that he could crush her as easily as a dry leaf.