Chapter Nine
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Her eyelids flickered open. She was comfortable. She was relaxed. And for the first time, in a long time, she felt sated.
A cool breeze fluttered over her warm skin. She shifted in her bed. That wasn’t quite right.
Her head filled with memories of last night. She slid her hand under the covers and frowned as it brushed against the skin on her thigh. Tacky. What was that?
She lifted up her white duvet and glanced underneath. Oh no. Color flooded her cheeks. There were chocolate smears around her breasts and that tacky feeling on the edge of her thigh was definitely huckleberry jam.
But most importantly there was no one lying next to her in bed.
She sat bolt upright. There was no sign of Adam at all. Her hand ran over the mattress. No warm bump. No evidence he’d been there at all.
The only scattered clothes across the bedroom floor were her own – and she definitely hadn’t opened the bedroom window. She clutched the covers to her chest. “Adam?”
Silence. Her voice echoed around the apartment.
She slid her legs out of the bed, her toes hitting the cool wooden floor. She ignored the discarded clothes and padded through to the living room with her duvet wrapped around her. It would have to go straight in the wash. Heaven knows how many desserts were smeared across it.
The kitchen was a mess. The remnants of their love-making session would take hours to clean. Her stomach twisted. For some tiny reason she’d hoped Adam might be here. That by some miracle he’d be sitting on her sofa, sipping coffee.
A blinking red light caught the corner of her eye. Her answering machine. She hurried towards it, pressing the button quickly.
The machine beeped. “Hi…Lisa. It’s me, Melody.”
She was going to be sick. She was going to be sick right now. Every hair was standing up on end on her body. She was angry at herself. For a second she’d hoped it was a message from Adam. But had she even given him her phone number? Instead, it was the last person she wanted to hear from.
Her sister’s hesitant voice continued. “I have news…I wanted to let you know that…you’re going to be an auntie.”
There was a wobble. Her legs definitely wobbled. She let herself sag down on the floor.
She could hear her sister suck in a breath, almost as if she were gathering her nerve, filling herself with determination. “Joe and I, we’re really happy. We’ve wanted this for the last year.” She paused for a second. “And there’s something else. I’ve had my scan already,” her voice shook, “I’m having a girl.” There was silence for a second as Lisa heard her suck in a deep breath to continue, “I’ve called mom and dad. They’re happy too. At least I think they want to be. This will be their first grandchild, Lisa. They should be able to enjoy it. But this thing between you and me is still hanging between us. Their loyalties are divided. I hate this, Lisa. I hate it. I want my sister back. I want an auntie for my child. Call me. Please.”
The machine buzzed again. Message left at 7.36am. Her head shot around to the clock. It was after nine. Had Adam heard the message? Had he heard the message before he left? Maybe the phone had woken him? It certainly hadn’t woken her.
She buried her head in her hands and breathed.
It was inevitable. She should have expected this. Melody had never made any secret of the fact she wanted to be a mother. She’d just never expected her sister to become a mother with her ex-fiancé. Then again, it seemed as though she wasn’t too good at judging men.
She looked up and pushed her mussed-up hair out of her face. She stood up and picked up the duvet, dropping it in the laundry basket and moving across to her kitchen floor. So much for her desserts. Looked like Adam wouldn’t be back to give them the attention they deserved.
The red gerberas and purple larkspurs were still on the table, pushed to one side. It was almost as if they were mocking her.
Adam was gone. She’d no idea when he’d left. But he hadn’t left a message and it didn’t look like there was any note. Most importantly he hadn’t bothered to wake her and tell her he was going. He’d just disappeared.
Pity. She’d didn’t think he was the type. She was embarrassed by how much she actually liked him. And she was annoyed with herself over how hurt she felt.
She walked back through to the bedroom and grabbed a t-shirt and yoga pants, pulling them on. The red light was still flickering so she bent forward and pressed delete. Melody could wait. She put her hand on her hip and sighed.
This kitchen wouldn’t clean itself.
*
The spring that had been in Adam’s step at 7:30 am this morning was slowly, but surely dying a death.
Nothing was going to plan. His pager had sounded even though he wasn’t officially on-call. One of the other doctors in the ER was having problems and needed assistance – so naturally, Adam had gone.
Lisa had been sleeping so peacefully he couldn’t bear to wake her. And he’d only be an hour tops. He’d pick up some breakfast for them from the diner on the way back. Or so he thought.
That had been six hours ago. After he had inserted a chest tube and a temporary pacing wire the patient had just been transferred to a Level One facility. Thank goodness. Marietta Hospital dealt with emergencies as best it could – but it didn’t have the facilities of a Level One trauma center.
Things had been so fraught when he’d arrived there hadn’t been time to change – meaning his shirt was currently blood splattered and the only clothes available were hospital scrubs. He hardly wanted to walk back along Marietta Main Street in those.
His stomach growled loudly as he headed towards the exit. He would go home first, change, then head to the diner to pick up some food for them.
He pulled his phone from his pocket and his steps slowed. Lisa. He didn’t even have her number. He couldn’t call her to explain. He couldn’t even send her a message.
A message. He’d heard her sister this morning. Lisa hadn’t mentioned Melody much. And even though it sounded as though they might have had a bit of a fallout she’d probably be over the moon to find out she was going to be an aunt.
A little feeling of dread was creeping up on him. What must Lisa have thought when she woke up this morning to an empty bed and no note? He groaned. She wouldn’t know it hadn’t been intentional. She wouldn’t know he’d expected to be back in an hour.
He was hoping against hope that the message from her sister had put her in a good mood today because there was every chance that, after a killer date, he was in the proverbial dog house.
How on earth was he going to get out of this one?
*
It seemed as though Marietta’s population had exploded over night. The diner was packed at the seams and the street had TV vans parked all along it.
Word had got out about the celebrity wedding. No doubt Nancy and Jared had cut a deal with some magazine regarding photographs and interviews.
Lisa pushed her way through the reporters and cameramen. Every booth and table was taken so she grabbed the last stool at the counter.
She signalled to Julia and ordered a diet soda and some scrambled eggs. Last night she hadn’t given a second thought to the wasted cakes and tarts – this morning after cleaning she’d realized there was hardly a bit of food left in the house. It all seemed like such a waste.
Julia, the waitress, was clearly harassed. “No, I don’t know them. I haven’t met them. I’ve no idea where the wedding is – probably The Graff, it’s the only decent hotel for miles.” She gestured towards Lisa. “Why don’t you ask, Lisa. She owns the bridal salon. She’ll probably know a whole lot more than me.”
“Sorry,” Julia mouthed at her as the pack of piranhas turned and swooped around her.
“Have you met Nancy Parsons?”
“Is she getting her bridal dress from your store?
“Can you tell us what it looks like?”
“Who are the bridesmaids and what are they wearing?”
Lisa held up her hands as she saw a familiar face pushing his way through the crowd. Relief swept over her. The tinge of anger could wait.
She took a deep breath. “I’m not free to discuss any of my clients with you. All brides like to keep the details of their wedding secret. I’m sure Nancy Parsons is no different.”
“So she is a client?”
“When did she visit?”
“Is she wearing a traditional dress – or something more Hollywood?”
After being polite for a few seconds Adam finally shouldered the last reporter out of the way. “Leave the lady alone. She doesn’t want to discuss it.”
Julia stared pointedly at the reporter on the stool next to Lisa. “Here’s your check.” She gestured towards the crowded diner. “We’re pretty busy and I’m sure our local doctor needs to get fed. Mind letting him in?”
The reporter pulled some bills from his pocket and took a second glance at Adam. Adam folded his arms across his chest and glared at him, while Julia banged down a clean coffee cup and started to fill it. “Here you go, Adam.”
There was no clearer message. The reporter threw them all a dirty look and stood up, muttering under his breath.
This place was packed and it seemed like every second person had a notebook in their hand. This really wasn’t the time to tell Adam what she thought about waking up to an empty house.
“I’m sorry,” he said quietly. “I got paged by the hospital. I didn’t want to wake you and I thought I’d be out and back within an hour.”
She raised her eyebrows. She wasn’t going to let him off that easy – even though the words paged by the hospital were pretty much a get-out-of-jail-free card.
Lisa glared at him. “You couldn’t leave a note?”
Julia banged down her scrambled eggs then nodded her head at Adam. “Usual?” He nodded quickly.
“I didn’t think I would be that long. Really, I didn’t. And I didn’t have your number. We’ll need to remedy that, right now.” She wasn’t expecting it. They’d only had a few dates. She should be trying to play things cool. She didn’t want to appear like some crazy stalker girlfriend after a few dates. But Adam should be playing it cool too. So, when he reached over and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and leaned in close, her breath caught in her throat. His finger trailed down the side of her face. His touch was delicate and light. If she wasn’t sitting down her legs would currently be Jell-O. He picked up her phone with his other hand and quickly dabbed his number in. A few seconds later, his own phone beeped. “Now, I’ve got your number, and you’ve got mine,” he hadn’t stopped smiling at her.
“Did you really think I wanted to leave you?” His voice had lowered and had that sexy, husky edge to it – just like it had last night. Blood was currently rushing to all sorts of places in her body right now. He smiled at her. “But you look so peaceful while you’re sleeping. It seemed like a crime to wake you.”
Sometimes Marietta could be the smallest place in history. She could practically feel every eye in the place turn towards them. Julia had a smile on her lips and was nudging Flo, the short-order cook. It had been a long time since a man had treated her with such affection in broad daylight.
Heat rushed into her cheeks. She felt like a teenage high-schooler. She looked across into his dark eyes. She’d never been this close before at this time of day. Those dark brown eyes were just pulling her in. Making her think about all the things they’d done last night and how good he’d made her feel.
“What would you have done if you did wake me?” The low words were out her mouth before she even had a chance to think about it. Julia thumped down a plate of pancakes and bacon in front of Adam. “Don’t mind me,” she added cheekily.
Both of them pulled back and Lisa picked up her fork, twiddling it through her scrambled eggs. Part of her was relieved he hadn’t actually cut and run the way she’d suspected. Adam didn’t seem like that kind of guy. But when the evidence was in front of her and her confidence was at an all time low, it seemed almost believable.
He picked up some maple syrup and poured it on his pancakes and shot her a cheeky sideways glance. “Let’s leave that answer until later, okay?”
He winked at her. Adam Brady winked at her. She was fourteen all over again.
She’d come in here all angry and annoyed. She would be leaving like some horny teenager.
Adam started on his pancakes. “So, it looks like the press have rolled into town. I suspected this would happen. Why were they hassling you?”
“They all want an exclusive on Nancy’s dress. It would help if I’d actually seen it – but I haven’t. I’ve no clue what it looks like.”
He smiled. “But you wouldn’t tell anyway, would you? Why don’t you give them a horror story about the bridesmaids instead?”
“Oh don’t.” She leaned her forehead on the counter top. “I have a horrible feeling these dresses could ruin me.”
He wrinkled his brow. “What are you talking about? Surely everyone will want to know where Nancy got her bridesmaid dresses? Won’t that be good publicity for the salon?”
She sat back up. “It should be. I’m just not sure I want the world to know they got those dresses at my store.”
He started to smile. “Uh oh. What’s wrong with them?”
“Nothing. Everything.” She put her head back down on the counter.
He shook his head. “I don’t get it.”
She turned her head sideways to look at him. “Neither do I. It’s just – the dresses that they’ve chosen. They’re not my normal stock. To be truthful, I’d thought of getting rid of them.”
“They can’t be that bad – you wouldn’t have bought them in the first place.”
She winced. “I was having a bad day.” She waved her hand. “Anyways, I was really hoping for a boost in business. I’d hoped that if everyone knew the bridesmaid dresses were from my salon it might increase my online sales. It’s a side of the business that I’ve never really developed.”
The smile left Adam’s face. “Why not?”
“I just never got around to it. It didn’t seem as important as the actual salon stuff. But now…Mags sorted out a website for me. If this thing with Nancy’s wedding takes off – it could be the difference between having a mildly successful business – a rip-roaring business or…,” her voice tailed off.
“Or what?” He sounded serious.
“It could be the nail in the coffin.” She sighed again. “I’m just not sure about these dresses.”
“Surely a dress is just a dress?” He reached out and took her hand, wrapping his warm hand around hers.
She shook her head. He was a guy. He just didn’t get it. “Dr. Brady, you obviously know nothing about weddings. The dress is the single most important thing that you have to get absolutely right. On most occasions, a bride will step into a dress – often one they didn’t even intend to try – step in front of a mirror and know it’s just right.”
Adam was obviously trying to make it look as if all of this wasn’t going straight over his head. “So, I’m obviously a novice at these things. Is it the same with the bridesmaid dresses?”
She groaned and shook her head. “It’s almost the opposite. Usually the bridesmaids end up in a style or color they would never wear in a million years. This time was different. Ruby and Polly couldn’t agree on anything.”
“And they finally agreed to something in your shop? Surely that’s good?”
“It would be – if they’d picked something I loved and was proud to stock. Something I wanted the world to know was mine.” She leaned on one hand. “I’m just worried that the press will hate the style and color and my salon’s reputation is ruined – before I’ve even got it off the ground.”
Adam leaned a little closer and she got a waft of his aftershave. The same one he’d worn last night. For an instant it took her r
ight back there. The feel of his skin against hers, the stubbled jaw scraping against her. The way he touched her with his hands and tongue. The way he stroked her hair and her skin as if they were the finest silk in the world. “Stop worrying,” he whispered. “Just for the record, I think you have impeccable taste; I bet the dresses aren’t as bad as you think.”
His lips brushed against her ear as he said the words. He was sending shivers down her spine. Part of her was so happy he’d turned up when he did. Another tiny part of her was worried. She was falling for this guy big style. How well did she really know Adam Brady?
He moved back and straightened up on the stool, picking up his knife and fork again. “Congratulations, I heard the message from your sister. You must be really looking forward to being an auntie.”
Her fork poised en route to her mouth. All of a sudden she didn’t really want these scrambled eggs any more.
She gave a little shrug. “Maybe.” She looked over at his surprised expression. “My sister and I – we don’t really see eye to eye.”
He took a drink of his coffee. “Well, isn’t this the time to make up? You don’t want to miss out on seeing your new niece, do you?”
“It’s not that simple.”
“Why not?” It was a reasonable question and he’d have no idea how much it was making her stomach twist and turn. A few journalists crowded closer to them at the counter and Adam dropped his hand to the small of her back. It was a protective move. But the instant feel of the warmth of his hand flooded her with more memories from last night. More reasons to forget about the past and move on to a promising future.
She sighed. Maybe it was time to just get things out there. She was worried that she didn’t know that much about Adam, but the truth was he didn’t really know her either.
“No one really knows, but my sister ran off with my fiancé. They got married just after they left.” She bit her bottom lip and met his gaze. “I don’t have much luck with my sisters.”
Adam put his fork down and stared at her. “Wow. I guess you weren’t too pleased.”
The Fairy Tale Bride Page 9
