Twins on the Way

by Janice Maynard

  The doctor’s smile was professional but sympathetic. “Not at all. Ms. Corelli said she’s been under a lot of stress...and I understand she flew cross-country today. But to be honest, I would seriously doubt that this was anything other than an isolated incident. We’ll do some blood work to make sure. I don’t think we have any reason to admit her, though.”

  When the man in the lab coat exited, Gavin wanted to talk to Cassidy. But before he could do so, Gianni and Carlo arrived. Cassidy’s father leaned down to kiss her. “What’s happening? Are you okay?”

  Cassidy nodded. “The doctor says so. He thinks it’s a hormonal thing and very normal.”

  “Thank God.” Gianni touched her hand, his smile tentative. “I owe you an apology, my daughter. I reacted poorly when you told me you were pregnant. I want you to come home. You and Carlo will both work by my side. I take some of the responsibility for his foolishness. I thought it was a good thing for the two of you to compete, but I see now that I was wrong.”

  Cassidy stared at her father. “But you believe that women should stay home and raise children.”

  Gianni shrugged. “I am old-fashioned, what can I say? If you want to be a mother to your children and still work at the casino, I will try to adjust. I don’t want to lose you, Cassidy. You are my dear daughter, and I see your mother in you every day. Besides, practically speaking I need your instincts and training to help me keep up with the times.”

  “This is a big turnaround for you.”

  “Yes. But today I saw what my stubborn ways drove my son to attempt. I would hate for you to do anything so foolish. We are a family, we three Corellis. We belong together.”

  Carlo spoke not a word during all of this. Finally, Gavin saw Cassidy stare at her brother. “Say something, Carlo.”

  His smile was rueful. “I want you to come home, too. And I’m sorry for being such an idiot.”

  Cassidy shook her head. “The funny thing is, I was always jealous of you, Carlo. If we actually try to work together instead of against each other, imagine all we can accomplish.”

  Gianni nodded. “We will get out of here now. Give us a call when you’re ready to come home.”

  Fifteen

  Cassidy reeled. A huge portion of her life had done a one-eighty turn. Instead of being the disgraced child, Cassidy had heard a retraction with her own ears. Her father actually said he needed her. Perhaps if she looked out the window, she would see pigs fly.

  Only Gavin remained a problem. And sadly, this relationship was not going to be tied up so neatly in a bow. The exam room was tiny. Four adults had occupied the space, and yet not once had her father acknowledged Gavin’s presence.

  Surely he wondered why the cyber expert who tracked down Carlo’s culpability was hanging around in the midst of a pregnancy scare. Anyone with half a brain could figure out that Gavin and Cassidy had some kind of relationship.

  But Gianni Corelli, for once, hadn’t butted in. Perhaps it was his silent way of finally acknowledging that Cassidy was a grown woman and capable of making her own decisions.

  She took a deep breath. “Would you mind stepping outside again so I can get dressed?”

  Gavin straightened from where he had been leaning against the wall. “I’ve seen you naked.”

  The statement was flat...uninflected. But it made her flush nevertheless. “This is different.”

  She held his gaze with difficulty. Finally, he nodded. But on his terms. “I’ll turn my back, Cass. That’s all you’re getting.”

  Dressing hurriedly was an act of cowardice. She couldn’t bear the thought of being vulnerable in front of him. There were things to be done, and she needed whatever armor she could find.

  When she was decent, she muttered, “Okay.”

  Gavin faced her, his hands in his pockets. “That’s it? Carlo is forgiven? I thought you said your father would be upset.”

  “He was. He is. But everyone makes mistakes, Gavin. Carlo is family. He did a stupid thing, but Daddy won’t kick him out.”

  “He kicked you out.”

  “Yes.” She sighed. “But he apologized. I don’t want to spend my life being mad at him. He’s my children’s grandfather.”

  “So what now?”

  With a tiny prayer to the patron saint of acting, if there was such a thing, she smiled normally. “You and Patrick go home. I appreciate all you’ve done. When the babies are born, I’ll contact you and we can arrange for a paternity test if you are still interested. After that you can make a decision about how much or how little involvement you would like to have.”

  His eyes narrowed. “So pragmatic. Problem solved. You’re really going to ignore the fact that we have this insane chemistry between us?”

  What did he want from her? Was she supposed to blurt out her love when he had been nothing but suspicious of her from the beginning? She might be brave, but she wasn’t that brave.

  “Of course I care about you, Gavin,” she said calmly as her heart was breaking. “But I have my life to lead and you have yours.” She couldn’t stay with him for the twins...not without something beyond sexual attraction. It would destroy her. She needed more than a father for her babies. She needed Gavin’s love and trust.

  “So that’s it? You’re staying here?”

  “You heard Daddy. Everything is forgiven. I appreciate your taking me in when I came to North Carolina, but thankfully your house can get back to normal. If you would ship my things to me, I would appreciate it.”

  Now ice replaced the heat. “God, you’re a piece of work. You never would have sought me out if it weren’t for the pregnancy, would you?”

  “I’m not the one who left Vegas and never looked back.”

  Where had it sprung from? Such bitter enmity? The memory of their first night together in this very town was so sweet and wonderful. Yet they had come to this.

  She wanted him to say he loved her...to beg her to marry him...to demand that she return to North Carolina and claim her rightful place as the mother of his children.

  But Gavin did none of those things. He simply stared at her with hot eyes, eyes that judged her and found her wanting.

  At last when she couldn’t bear the standoff one second longer, he put his hand on the door. “Have a nice life, Cassidy.”

  The angry sarcasm flicked her on the raw. “Don’t forget to send me a bill for the jet trip. I’m a Corelli. We can afford it.”

  Whatever bleak expression she saw in his gaze must have been mirrored on her face. She couldn’t believe she had been so nasty to him. Maybe they were not good for each other at all. Perhaps if they stayed together, his cynicism would drag her down.

  He shook his head as if trying to free himself from a bad dream. “It’s on the house,” he said, the tone glacial. “Consider it payment for our one wild night in Vegas.”

  * * *

  Gavin walked the streets of the neon city for an hour before he was calm enough to go in search of his brother. He found Patrick at Mandalay Bay feeding quarters into a slot machine.

  Patrick looked up in surprise. “Where’s Cassidy?”

  Gavin couldn’t quite meet his little brother’s gaze. He was still raw inside. “She’s with her family. Where she belongs. If you’re up to it, I’m ready to fly home.”

  Patrick’s face fell. “I thought we were staying a couple of days.”

  “Maybe another time.” Maybe when hell froze over. He never wanted to set foot in Vegas again. Cassidy had given him the ephemeral promise of happiness and warmth, but it was all a sham. He’d made another mistake with a woman. And this time, he might never recover.

  * * *

  Cassidy found healing in work and in the steady, burgeoning presence of her twins. She talked to them constantly. Every night before bed she read them stories.

  H
er relationships with her father and her brother improved daily. Carlo’s faux pas had given him a dose of humility. And Gianni Corelli was trying to change his attitude about women. Both men had Italian blood in their veins...and centuries of chauvinistic history. But even so, they were making an effort, and Cassidy appreciated it.

  In the dark of the night when there was no work to do and no stories to be read, she thought about Gavin. She told herself the pain would get better...that she wouldn’t crave his touch every second of the day. But in that arena, she hadn’t made much progress. No crying, though. It wasn’t good for the babies. Cassidy would be strong for them. She and her twins would build a family together.

  Whenever she thought about the future, it was in terms of how she would manage to be mother and father at the same time. She’d waited her whole life for a man to come along who would be her perfect ideal of a mate. Someone strong and caring and decent and kind.

  Maybe that was asking too much. Maybe that was her problem. It wasn’t really fair to ask Gavin to be an instant father. Not when the only contact he’d had with her was that one night in Vegas.

  Admittedly, since then he had shown a marked interest in taking her to bed, but sexual attraction wasn’t strong enough glue to hold a relationship together when neither of the parties really knew each other. That wasn’t quite true, though. She did know Gavin, maybe more than he realized. She had seen his relationship with his mother and his brothers. She’d witnessed his attempt to help her and shelter her even in the midst of his doubts.

  There were so many reasons she had fallen in love with him. But she made the choice to cherish the memories and not be sad. Gavin needed someone in his life. She was convinced of that. But clearly, it wasn’t her.

  She thought about moving out of her father’s house and getting her own place. She would need help after the birth, though, so that wasn’t really practical. Her father wouldn’t be much assistance, but Carlo was actually getting excited about the twins.

  The day the beautiful baby furniture arrived unexpectedly from North Carolina, Cassidy broke her no-crying rule. After Carlo helped her assemble the crib, he took off to play basketball with some friends. Gianni was at the casino. Cassidy sat in the middle of the floor in the babies’ room and sobbed.

  The day she and Gavin had picked out those pieces, she really hoped everything was going to be okay. She’d even begun to imagine how she might use her training and talents to start some kind of business in Silver Glen.

  But she’d been both misguided and naive.

  Twice now she’d thought about flying to Silver Glen to see if there was any kind of chance with Gavin. But twice she talked herself out of it. If he wanted her, he would have come. His silence spoke volumes.

  The day arrived when she had to put away her stylish clothes and don maternity tops and pants. She wore them proudly, not at all worried about gaining too much weight. Heartbreak had a way of keeping the pounds in check.

  Still, it took her by surprise when she walked past a mirror and saw her rounded belly. Being pregnant was both magical and exhausting. The morning sickness had finally abated, but the fatigue remained.

  She found herself counting the days until her due date, in part because she was excited, but also because once the twins were born, she would have an excuse to contact Gavin.

  What would he say when that day came? Would he even consent to a paternity test? The man was an enigma...

  * * *

  Gavin acquired three new clients in the weeks following his return from Vegas...big clients. He stayed busier than ever, troubleshooting problems and making suggestions for improvement to the businesses in his care.

  The thing with Cassidy felt uncomfortably like failure. And failure was rarely part of his vocabulary. He had been almost ready to confess to Cassidy that he believed her about the babies and that he wanted her to stay...maybe forever. But then her father had taken her back with open arms and Gavin had lost his bargaining chip.

  If Gavin thought there was a chance she could fall in love with him, he would have said something. But he’d trapped her with an unintended pregnancy. She was young and bright and beautifully alive, and she deserved a man better than he was, a man who hadn’t spent far too many years bound by his cynicism. He told himself things ended as they should have. But deep down, he didn’t believe it, particularly in the middle of the night when he was aching and sleepless.

  Cassidy had brightened up an existence he hadn’t even recognized as gray. She’d made him want...had made him feel.

  He was accustomed to keeping his own counsel, but the situation ate away at him. He should talk to somebody. Anybody. But his pride got in the way.

  So he couldn’t decide if it was a good thing or a bad thing when Conor showed up one afternoon. Gavin had just changed into running clothes and was sitting on the back porch tying his shoes. His brother was attired similarly. Gavin eyed him with suspicion. “This is a little coincidental, don’t you think?”

  Behind Gavin’s house, a three-quarter-mile trail led up the side of the mountain. The route was steep and rocky and challenging. His custom was to run up and back three times.

  Conor grinned and shrugged. “You’re a creature of habit. And I could use the exercise. Race you to the top.”

  Before Gavin could stand up, Conor took off, his long legs eating up the distance. Gavin’s competitive instinct kicked in. No way in heck was he going to let his baby brother beat him.

  Conor, however, was a skier and a natural athlete. Gavin was determined, but Conor had a head start. They made it to the top and turned around, hurtling downward on the narrow trail at breakneck speeds. At the bottom, they started all over again.

  At the start of the fifth trip to the top, Gavin began to question his sanity. Sweat poured down his back and dripped into his eyes. His thigh muscles screamed. His lungs burned.

  Conor’s pace had slowed noticeably, but so had Gavin’s. They changed position frequently, either elbowing each other out of the way or sliding past if the other one paused to breathe.

  At the completion of five circuits, Conor held up his hand. “Enough.” He leaned forward, both hands on his knees, his labored gasps audible.

  Gavin joined him, mimicking his stance. “What was that about?” he asked.

  “You’ve been hiding out. It’s not good for the soul.”

  “Since when did you become a philosopher?”

  Conor didn’t bother to answer the rhetorical question. He straightened and swiped his arm over his forehead. “Humidity’s a bitch today.”

  Gavin agreed, but that was hardly the point. “Why are you here, Conor?”

  Conor’s eyes danced with mischief, despite his fatigue. “Patrick told me he met your sexy visitor. Said he took the two of you to Vegas.”

  “Patrick should mind his own damned business.”

  “He told me Cassidy is a sweetheart.”

  Gavin felt his neck tighten. “Patrick can stay the hell away from Cassidy.”

  “Why? You don’t want her.”

  Gavin saw red. Literally. His response was gut-deep and fierce. He swung his fist at Conor’s jaw and connected with a satisfying crack that sent pain shooting down his arm. Conor staggered backward, but remained standing.

  His younger brother rubbed his chin, his expression no longer lighthearted. “You are one screwed-up sonofabitch.”

  Gavin agreed with him, but a man never showed weakness. “I’m doing just fine.”

  “Listen to me, Gavin. I know you. You’re a perfectionist. You never allow yourself to make a mistake because of what happened when you were twenty-one.”

  “You mean when I was a credulous fool and ended up in jail?” Even now the memory was raw, though buried deep.

  Conor leaned against a support beam for the porch. “Maybe I never told you, but Pat
rick and I admired the hell out of you back then. Still do for that matter.”

  “I don’t want to talk about this.”

  “You went to jail, Gavin. For five long nights. Because you knew you were innocent and you wouldn’t let your own family bail you out. It wasn’t your fault the woman you met was psycho. It was your first date. You paid for it with a hell of a big tab. From where I’m standing, you’re still paying.”

  It pissed Gavin to hear his little brother lay out the truth so neatly and with such painful accuracy. “I should have known,” he muttered.

  “Any guy would have done the same. She was cute and sexy and she came on to you. How were you supposed to anticipate that she would cry rape?”

  “Did you know Mom wanted to pay the hush money?”

  “Not because she thought you were guilty.”

  “Then why?”

  “She couldn’t bear the thought of your being in jail. None of us could.”

  “You had doubts.” It was the first time Gavin had ever said it out loud. The only time he had ever given voice to the stunning, sick feeling in the pit of his stomach.

  Conor stared at him intently, as though trying to do some Vulcan mind meld thing. “No. We were in shock and upset and worried. But we knew you weren’t a rapist. God, Gavin. Give us some credit.”

  Gavin stared into the distance, unable to meet his brother’s earnest gaze. The worst of what happened was in the past. His slate was wiped clean. What remained was the fear of being duped again.

  “I barely know Cassidy.”

  Conor understood what he wasn’t saying. “It’s like being hit by a drunk driver, Gavin. The victim goes through all the what-ifs. But in the end, the accident is a quirk of timing. Sheer bad luck.” He paused. “You did nothing wrong. You met a pretty woman on campus and asked her out on a date. She targeted you, but it didn’t work. The likelihood of another such accident is less than nil. You’ve been with Cassidy, even if not for months and years. You know her. Trust your instincts. They won’t steer you wrong. You’re a mature man, not a kid anymore.”

  “Thank God.” Gavin’s muttered response was more of an honest prayer than Conor realized. “Thanks for the pep talk, little brother.”