Sullivan knew that Oliver meant what he said. He’d seen that same light in his father’s eyes on numerous occasions when the man had gone after something he really wanted. In the last year, that light had all but gone out. Sullivan had hoped a sense of purpose would reenter his father’s life, but why did it have to be Marlene’s baby? Nothing but disaster lay at the end of a custody battle. He couldn’t allow him to do that to Marlene.
His hands on the wheelchair’s armrests, Sullivan leaned down until he was face-to-face with his father. “Listen to me, old man. If you sue or do anything at all to threaten the unity of that family, I swear I’ll oppose you with every weapon at my disposal.”
“Are you crazy, Sullivan? You can’t talk to me that way.”
That was just it, Sullivan thought. He’d held his tongue far too long. Standing by, observing his father and brother go at each other, he’d remained silent. And Derek had died.
Straightening, Sullivan shoved his hands into his pockets and distanced himself from his father. “Somebody should have. A long time ago, somebody should have. Then maybe Derek would still be here.” There was only bewildered confusion in his father’s eyes. He didn’t have a clue what he was saying, Sullivan thought. “You can’t always get your way, Dad. You drove Derek away with your deeds. All he ever wanted was to be himself, but you weren’t interested in that. You were interested in him being a younger version of you.”
Oliver gripped his armrests, wishing he could stand toe to toe with this stranger he had thought was his son. He dammed the frail health that had passed this sentence of immobility on him.
“And what’s so wrong with that? At his age, I’d already been running this company for five years. I was someone,” Oliver shouted. And then it was as if all the power, all the energy had been siphoned from his face. “Derek turned out to be a nobody.” There was deep regret in his voice.
“Did it ever occur to you that maybe he failed on purpose just to show you that everything you turned your hand at didn’t instantly become a success?”
Oliver’s gray brows meshed into one quizzical line. “Meaning what?”
“Meaning him, your son.” He saw that his father didn’t comprehend. Sullivan tried again. “That you didn’t raise sons very well.”
“What are you talking about?” Oliver shook his head. “I raised you.”
Sullivan thought of the parade of nannies after his mother’s untimely death. Of the impersonal boarding schools. And of the man he’d turned out to be, one who would have gone ahead and taken a child from his mother simply because he was following edicts his father had instilled in him.
“Maybe that isn’t to your credit, either. Excuse me, I need a little air.” Nothing was going to be resolved here. He had to get the machinery in gear to help Marlene if he was ever going to look at himself in the mirror again.
Sullivan stormed toward the French doors and noticed for the first time that Osborne had framed the interior doorway with a silver garland. Somehow, in light of the conversation, it didn’t seem appropriate.
He looked over his shoulder at his father. “And by the way, Merry Christmas.”
Sullivan slammed the door in his wake.
“This is nice,” Nicole whispered to Marlene over her third cup of eggnog. “Very nice.”
She looked around the banquet room that Dr. Pollack had reserved for the afternoon. The restaurant was situated on the crest of a hill, and they had a clear view of the city below. Washed clean by the rains, everything looked fresh beneath the clear blue sky.
The room, decorated for the season and sporting nineteenth-century murals that gave it a Victorian flavor, had a cozy feel to it. There was even a fire burning in the brick fireplace. Nicole loved it.
Originally, Dr. Pollack had been Marlene’s obstetrician. Nicole had gone to her on her sister’s recommendation and remained as much because of the woman’s kind, easygoing manner as her competence. She was doubly glad she did now. Nicole always loved a party.
“Do all doctors do this?” Nicole had no regular physician. Only Marlene’s relentless urgings that she was endangering the baby’s health had finally convinced her to see the obstetrician.
Marlene laughed. “I don’t know. Maybe when they have a bumper crop.”
She looked around at the women at the party. She was one of the few in the room of twenty women or so who wasn’t pregnant.
“Hey, look,” Nicole pointed toward a woman near the fireplace. “There’s Erin.”
Marlene saw a small-boned woman with a torrent of auburn hair that caught the firelight and looked almost red. She was talking to another woman, punctuating her sentences with animated gestures.
The name was vaguely familiar, but Marlene couldn’t recall why. “Erin?”
Nicole looked at her sister impatiently. She’d only mentioned the woman to her three times. “You know, Erin. The woman I got into a conversation with last month. The one who offered me a job at her floral shop.” She saw that Marlene still didn’t remember.
This would jar her memory. Nicole leaned her head in closer to her sister, lowering her voice. “Her ‘significant other’ went out for the proverbial newspaper and never came back. He’s been missing ever since.”
“Oh, Erin,” Marlene said, finally remembering. Instantly, her face clouded with sympathy. How awful to be so callously abandoned by someone you loved.
Nicole passed her hand over her abdomen. “I know it’s horrid, but it made me feel as if I wasn’t quite so alone in this.” Craig had been gone almost six weeks now, but even before he’d died, he hadn’t wanted the baby. It had made her feel isolated.
Marlene looked at Nicole. Was that how she felt? Alone? Had she gotten so wrapped up in her own problems that she had neglected her sister? Marlene threaded her arm around Nicole’s slender shoulders.
“You’ll never be alone, Nic,” she promised. “Not as long as you have me.”
“And the babies,” Nicole added. “Don’t forget the babies.”
Just then, Nicole’s baby kicked, sending a ripple through her stomach. Marlene felt it against her own ribs. She laughed, looking down at her sister’s quivering abdomen. “Not likely.”
“So how are you two?” Sheila Pollack came up behind them and placed a hand on either sisters’ shoulder. A tall, stately blonde with emerald green eyes, she looked more suited to being in the center of a party than in the middle of an operating room. But medicine had been her passion ever since she could remember. She felt an obligation to take a personal interest in each of her patients’ well-being. Inspired, she’d thrown this Christmas party at her uncle’s restaurant.
“Fine,” Nicole answered.
“Terrific,” Marlene assured her.
Sheila smiled as she nodded, pleased. “I’m so glad you both could make it. I know how busy you are, Marlene.” Sheila gestured around the room. “What do you think of my baby of the month club?”
Nicole looked at her. “Baby of the month club?” she echoed.
She nodded. “Not a free month from now until August. There’s at least one or two babies due each month. I’ve never had such a fertile group of patients before.”
Sheila thought of the tiny life forming beneath her own heart. As of yet, she hadn’t told anyone. She was determined to keep this secret to herself as long as possible. She wasn’t certain if it would shake or enhance her patients’ confidence to know that their doctor might deliver before they did.
Sheila smiled at Nicole. “And you’re the first one up, now that your sister’s had hers.” She saw the cup in Nicole’s hand. “How do you like the eggnog? It’s nonalcoholic, but still has a kick.”
“I know. This is my third one,” Nicole admitted without a trace of embarrassment.
Sheila’s grin widened. “Isn’t science wonderful?” Tucking an arm through each of theirs, she directed them none too subtly toward a lively looking woman with dark hair. “Here, let me introduce you to some of your fellow mothers-in-waiting.” Sheila
winked. “Misery loves company.”
Nicole shook her head. “I’m not miserable,” she lied.
Sheila had her doubts. Nicole couldn’t be comfortable with the weight she was carrying. She made a mental note to request another sonogram right after Christmas. The last had shown that there was only one fetus, but she wanted to be reassured. “Music to my ears, Nicole. Then you can lead the cheering section.”
Nicole looked a little skeptical. “I wouldn’t go that far.”
Marlene laughed as she allowed Sheila to lead her away. She glanced at the way the doctor’s dress fit her and noted that it was a little tight. She dismissed the observation as soon as it registered. After all, it was the holidays. Everyone tended to overeat.
“Mallory, I’d like you to meet Nicole Logan and her sister, Marlene Bailey.” Sheila smiled warmly at the petite redhead. “Mallory’s in real estate. She sold me the house I’m living in.”
Mallory looked down at her expanding girth. “Now I just look like a house.” She eyed Marlene. “Do you have any children?”
“One.” It felt wonderful to say that, she thought. “A son.”
“She delivered in an elevator during that big storm at the beginning of the month,” Nicole chimed in. Just thinking about it still made her shiver.
Mallory looked at Marlene appreciatively. “A little more than three weeks and you look like that?” She looked up toward the sky. “Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.” Taking over as Sheila moved on to other guests, Mallory directed Marlene and Nicole to a group of women at the banquet table. “C’mon, let me introduce you around. I know everyone. So, what line of work are you in?” she asked Marlene.
“Advertising.”
Mallory’s eyes lit up. “Really? Listen, tell me what you think of this slogan—”
Marlene let herself in and closed the door quietly behind her. The lights on the Christmas tree crept out into the hall and lit up the foyer. Nicole had remained at the Christmas party, but Marlene had been in a hurry to come home to Robby. After all, this was his first Christmas Eve.
In honor of that, and in the spirit of the season, she’d given everyone at the agency Christmas Eve Day off as well as the week between the two holidays. They’d all worked hard during the preholiday madness and more than deserved a few extra days off. Except for two people, they all had families, and now that she was in the same boat, Marlene knew what it meant to want to spend a little extra time with loved ones.
She found Sally in the kitchen, putting the finishing touches on a tray of rum balls.
Marlene picked one up and popped it into her mouth. She savored the taste for a moment. “How’s my guy?” she asked.
Sally beamed. “He was a little angel while you were gone.”
Robby was almost too good to be true. Marlene was infinitely grateful to the powers that be for making him so. “Glad to hear that.” She debated taking a second rum ball, then decided to save them for later.
Sally nodded her head, eyeing Marlene. “Not like you.”
Marlene laughed. “Thank you for sharing, Sally.” She looked toward the stairs. “Is he up?”
“I put him down half an hour ago.” She indicated the baby monitor on the counter. It was one of several set around the house. “He’s sleeping like the baby he is.”
Marlene felt disappointed. She’d left the party as soon as it was politely feasible. “I wanted to play with him tonight.” It was only six o’clock, but Robby had already developed a pattern, and she knew that he would be asleep until after eleven. “Guess I’ll have to wait until Christmas morning.”
Sally dusted her hands on her apron. “Need some company?”
Marlene shook her head. “No, that’s all right. I think I’ll just have a little eggnog and watch my movie.” The videotape was exactly where she had left it, in the family room on the coffee table. As she picked it up, the doorbell rang. She exchanged looks with Sally.
“Well, looks like you’re going to get some company whether you want it or not.” Sally shuffled out to the foyer.
Her hand on the doorknob, Sally looked through the peephole. She hesitated a moment, then stepped back as she opened the door. She looked from the man in the wheelchair to the tall, stately man standing behind him.
“Yes?”
Osborne gave the small woman a perfunctory smile. “Mr. Oliver Travis to see Ms. Marlene Bailey.”
Sally gestured behind her. “Right this way.”
Oh God, not tonight, Marlene thought, coming forward. The only Travis she had wanted to see was Sullivan, not his father.
“I’ll take it from here, Sally.” Marlene’s tone was formal as she braced herself for what was coming.
Oliver looked around the house with a discerning eye, then turned his chair to face Marlene. “So, is he here?”
Marlene felt her spine stiffening. Did Travis actually think that she was just going to hand over her son to him? She looked at Osborne
“Who?”
“Sullivan.” Oliver’s answer surprised her, but she recovered quickly. “I know he was here last night.”
She took it as an accusation and treated it as such. “Whether he was or not is none of your business, Mr. Travis.”
“Everything is my business.” Oliver held up a hand that had once been powerful. “I didn’t come here to fight.”
He was undoubtedly accustomed to having his way, with people giving in to him automatically. That wasn’t going to happen tonight. “Why did you come here?”
Rendering apologies was not something he was accustomed to doing. Still, he was man enough to extend one when he was wrong. And Sullivan had helped him to realize that he had been, about some things.
“To offer a peace pipe, so to speak. You like Indians, Ms. Bailey?” He continued before she could answer. “No, they’re not Indians any more, are they? These days they’re Native Americans.” Oliver snorted. “Everyone gets offended because they’re not called by some fancy new label. In my time, things were what they were and there were rules for everything. Now, the only rule is that there aren’t any rules.” He looked truly saddened. “None of the old ones at any rate.”
Oliver sighed. He knew that he was rambling, but the young woman had the decency to let him. Maybe he’d been wrong. Maybe he could get to like her after all. “Well, at any rate, they used to have this custom of smoking a peace pipe when making a treaty with the enemy.”
She still wasn’t certain she understood why he was here. Was this all just an act to throw her off, or was he serious? If he was, his choice of words left something to be desired.
“Is that what I am, the enemy?”
“I don’t know what you are yet, but I intend to find out. You’re my grandson’s mother, and it seems that I’m going to have to learn how to live with that.”
Her expression gave nothing away. “Yes, you are.”
It was the first time she saw the man smile. “Spunky, aren’t you?”
She hadn’t heard that word in years. Slowly, a smile curved her own lips. Maybe this was a peace treaty after all. But what had suddenly brought it on? “I try to be.”
Oliver nodded. “Just like Sullivan.” He pursed his lips, a thoughtful expression on his face. “Talked back to me today. First time I can remember that I couldn’t get him to carry out an order.”
“Which was?”
“Making arrangements to take you to court,” Oliver told her honestly. “Said it was my fault Derek left home.” It was hard at his age to admit he was wrong, but better now than never. Mistakes were for fools. The only thing worse than a fool was someone who stubbornly refused to admit he had made a mistake when he had. “Said a lot of things that made me think.” He got directly to the point. “I lost my firstborn, Ms. Bailey. I don’t want to lose my first grandson.”
She knew it had to have taken a lot for him to come here tonight. That he did touched her. And she had been wrong. Oliver Travis wasn’t anything like her father at all.
“You
won’t. And it’s Marlene.” She smiled. “You can visit Robby any time you want.”
Her answer seemed to please Oliver to no end. “Fine I’ll have my lawyer draw up papers about the visitation rights tomorrow.”
Did he really think that was necessary? Marlene shook her head. “It’s Christmas. And we don’t need papers. Just a handshake.” She extended hers to the old man. “We’re family.”
He took her hand, enveloping it in both of his. “Yes, I suppose we are in a manner of speaking.” He could see why Sullivan had sided with her against him. The lady had style. “Too bad Derek never had the opportunity to meet you. Things might have turned out differently if he had. I might have gotten a grandson in the usual manner.” Oliver smiled at her knowingly. “I still might.”
She had no idea what he was referring to, but let it go. They’d made enough headway today.
She glanced down at the tape in her other hand, surprised that she had held on to it throughout the conversation.
“I was just about to watch my favorite movie. It’s a Christmas Eve tradition. Would you like to join me?” Her invitation took in the man with Travis as well.
Oliver thought of declining, then paused. It had been a long time since a pretty girl had asked him to spend some time with her.
“I’d love to,” he told her a moment later. “For a little while.”
“My name is Osborne, Miss,” Osborne said to her as he followed Travis into the living room.
“Glad to meet you, Osborne.” Marlene hugged the tape to her. “Very glad.”
He should have gone home, Sullivan thought, but somehow, it seemed too empty a place to go to. He didn’t want to be alone tonight. Instead, he made his way to Marlene’s house. Where he belonged, he thought. At least for a little while.
Sullivan caught a glimpse of the car in his rearview mirror as he pulled into Marlene’s driveway. His father’s limousine. The long, black vehicle was disappearing down the road.
Damn that old man, he’d harassed her on Christmas Eve. Sullivan swore under his breath. How could he? Had his father become so obsessed with getting custody of Derek’s son that he’d actually come to have papers served on Marlene on Christmas Eve?
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