Not So New in Town

by Michele Summers

  “I want to kiss you there,” he said, continuing his assault as he blazed a trail down her stomach with his lips and mouth and teeth.

  Flames of pleasure singed her flesh as she clutched his shoulders. “Oh…oh—”

  “Lucy? Is that you?”

  Ice froze in Lucy’s veins. “Wha—?” She lifted her head and stared into Brogan’s stunned face. “Julia,” she whispered. She scrambled to sit up, pushing Brogan off as he yanked up her shorts.

  “Lucy?” Julia’s voice came from the next room.

  “C-coming,” Lucy croaked, clearing her throat. Brogan jerked her up and pulled her top down from around her neck. Her knees wobbled, and his hands gripped her waist to keep her from collapsing. She attempted to smooth her almost-had-sex-on-the-sofa hair in place. On shaky legs, she managed to move past Brogan toward the front room.

  “Lucy, something’s wrong…I heard noises—” Julia met her at the entrance of the sunroom. She took one look at Lucy’s disheveled, interrupted sex-capade appearance, and her face registered horror-movie proportions. Julia’s eyes went from shocked to scary, bitchy glare-down. And Lucy’s still-tingling nipples weren’t doing her any favors. “Lucy, what…who… Did you just have sex? In my house? Under my roof? With Parker sleeping upstairs?” Julia came close to screeching.

  Lucy knew this was not one of her finer moments. Not because she shouldn’t have sex. And not because Parker slept upstairs. Not that she had sex…she didn’t even have an orgasm (thank you very much, Miss Interloper). This moment hit high on the embarrassing Richter scale because she’d been about to get it on with Brogan Reese. Which was wrong on too many levels to number. But what really infuriated Lucy, aside from the fact that she had no control when it came to Mr. Hotty Beefcake, was Julia declaring this her house. When did that real estate transaction take place? Last time Lucy spoke with her dad, he still owned the house, and Julia lived under his roof.

  “Look—”

  “Julia, you don’t look so good…” She and Brogan spoke in tandem.

  In a blur, Brogan scooped Julia up in his arms. “Lucy, call the doctor,” he barked as he strode toward the living room and lowered Julia in her satin pink bathrobe onto the sofa. “Breathe,” he said as Julia groaned and clutched her belly.

  Son of a buzzle! The baby? Now? Lucy scrambled for her phone on the end table and knocked it to the floor with her nervous fingers. “Dammit!” She dropped to her knees, her hands shaking as she scrolled contacts and pressed for Julia’s doctor. Hurrying to the living room, she stopped next to the sofa.

  “Lucy, tell him to meet me at the hospital,” Julia said before she rocked forward in pain.

  “Hello? Dr. Andrew’s service?” she asked the operator. She watched as Brogan brought Julia a glass of water and supported her shoulders as she took a small sip, holding her steady. Lucy explained the situation to the emergency operator. “Just a minute… Julia, she wants to know if you’re having contractions, and if yes, then how far apart?”

  “I’m having something…a searing pain across my back and middle. They started when I saw you—arrrgh!”

  Fried frog legs. This wasn’t good. How did Lucy explain to the operator that almost having sex with her sister’s ex-boyfriend brought on contractions? After relaying Julia’s description over the phone, Lucy said, “Uh…okay. I’ll bring her in right now.” Pressing the phone off, she said, “I need to take her to the emergency room. The doctor will meet us there.” Her gaze darted from Brogan’s concerned face to Julia’s, contorted in pain.

  “Go pack her bag and bring it out to the car. I’ll drive Julia to the hospital, and you stay here with Parker,” Brogan ordered in a no-nonsense voice.

  “My bag is already packed. It’s in the closet,” Julia panted as Brogan lifted her again as if she weighed no more than a puffy cotton ball. Lucy ordered her legs to move, but her mind couldn’t get past the picture Brogan and Julia painted—Julia’s shiny dark hair falling over Brogan’s strong arms, Brogan murmuring soothing words next to Julia’s temple as he carried her toward the front door. The perfect, beautiful couple. Lucy’s knees knocked together.

  “Lucy…now!” She jumped at Brogan’s command, and her feet skidded across the Oriental carpet and down the hall to Julia’s bedroom.

  Brogan was buckling Julia in when Lucy raced down the front walk, carrying Julia’s bag. “Here.” She handed it to Brogan, he tossed it in the backseat and jogged around the hood.

  “I’ll call you later with an update,” he said, slipping behind the wheel.

  “You’re going to be fine.” But Julia couldn’t hear her behind the closed window. “Don’t worry about Parker. I’ll take care of him,” she called anyhow as she watched Brogan’s taillights disappear at the end of the driveway.

  Chapter 19

  Dammit. Brogan glanced at Julia clutching her belly with her eyes squeezed shut. “You doing okay? We’re almost there.” Julia moaned, and her head rolled from side to side. “Five more minutes.” Really ten, but he didn’t want to add to her worry. The last time he’d rushed a pregnant woman to the hospital, his wife had been sitting next to him having a miscarriage. His insides burned with the very same searing pain he’d felt years before. No way in hell would he allow it to happen again. Not on his watch.

  Brogan gave Julia’s hand a reassuring squeeze. “Breathe, Julia. Nice and easy.”

  Julia released a huge breath. “Whoa. Did you feel that?” she asked, pressing his hand on her rock-hard belly.

  “Fuh…was that a kick or contraction?” Brogan gave her a quick glance as he accelerated through another intersection.

  “The baby’s kicking. All those contractions must’ve woken him up.” She pressed tight to his hand. “There it is again.” Baby? More like a bucking bronco. He smiled in wonder over the miracle of life growing inside Julia.

  Julia pushed his hand away. “What the frick do you think you’re doing with Lucy?” she said in a low voice. The pain etched across Julia’s face had morphed into scary anger.

  Shee-it. He didn’t want to discuss Lucy right now. Especially with Julia. And especially since he had no explanation. He couldn’t explain something he didn’t understand himself. He’d come over tonight to rip Lucy a new one about pimping him out to the single women in Harmony. He’d wanted to wring her neck…not kiss it.

  “Nothing happened. I came by to discuss work—”

  “You better not screw with her, Brogan. I mean it. Not under my roof,” Julia warned in a flat voice.

  Brogan didn’t have time to clarify if Julia meant not to screw Lucy ever or only under her roof. He pulled up to the hospital entrance where an orderly met them with a wheelchair and swept Julia away. Brogan knew Julia didn’t want him anywhere near Lucy. He understood.

  But he had no intentions of obeying.

  * * *

  “Hey, Julia…how you feeling?”

  The next morning, Lucy tapped on the door to Julia’s hospital room. The antiseptic smell made Lucy’s nose twitch. Pale blue washed the walls in the room, and bright sun poured through the vertical blinds. A game show played on the TV mounted on the wall, but the sound had been muted.

  The hospital bed propped Julia in the upright position, and meds and fluids dripped through an IV to stop the contractions. The doctor had said Julia suffered from dehydration, which could start premature labor. A surge of remorse swept over Lucy. She’d begrudgingly fetched numerous glasses of water for Julia the last few days, but last night when she’d allowed Brogan to make a meal of her body, hydrating Julia had been the farthest thing from her mind.

  “Here, I brought you magazines.” She handed Julia three magazines on fashion, home décor, and the latest Hollywood gossip. “There’s an article in there about John Stamos and how he has an evil twin bent on destroying the world.” John Stamos from Full House had been Julia’s huge crush back in high school. “Dr. And
rew says you can come home in a few days.”

  “How’s Parker?” Julia placed the magazines on the tray table that held a juice box with a straw and a plastic cup of ice chips.

  Lucy plunked her purple handbag on the nightstand next to the humongous bouquet of white and pink roses. Beside the gorgeous flowers sat a card that read Get well soon. xoxo Brogan. Alrighty then. Message received. Pinpricks of pain stabbed the backs of her eyes as she blinked away hot tears—from all the tossing, turning, and worrying she did last night, not from the obvious fact staring her in the face that Brogan still loved Julia, and she’d been a world-class fool.

  “Parker’s worried about you, but I told him the doctor wanted to keep you here for a few days to make sure everything was okay with the baby.”

  “Good. Thanks. Please bring him by after practice.” Julia fiddled with the juice box.

  Julia’s restrained, cool demeanor unnerved Lucy. Her complicated food orders, ridiculous errands, and self-centered requests would be a warm welcome over this chilly reception. “What else do you want? Dr. Andrew said no work, which means no computer, but maybe I can bring some DVDs or—”

  “I want you to stay away from Brogan.” Blat. Right there in the open. Julia didn’t waste any time. She’d cut right to the chase.

  Lucy lifted her chin. “That’s going to be kind of hard since I work for him and he’s helping with Parker—at your insistence. In case you forgot that one small detail.”

  Julia’s face hardened. “I need to know you’re keeping an eye on Parker and not on what’s in Brogan’s pants.”

  Low blow. Not backing down, Lucy jammed her fists on her hips. “You’ve got nothing to worry about. I’m always about my job and my responsibilities. And when I’ve collected my last paycheck, I’m blowing this Popsicle stand.” She snatched up her handbag, causing Brogan’s love note to flutter to the floor.

  “What do you mean? Where are you going?” Agitation replaced Julia’s fury. “You’re not leaving me again, are you?”

  The nerve. “Uh, yeah, I am.” She bent to pick the note off the floor. “Don’t worry. I’ll run your errands and grow fresh mint for your water, and I’ll even buy your underwear until you give birth, but after that…I’m outta here.”

  “Why would you do that when you have a good job at BetterBites? That’s just dumb and irresponsible. This is your home—”

  Typical. Julia wanted Lucy gainfully employed but didn’t want her to have anything to do with Brogan. Well, it didn’t work that way. “Not according to you it isn’t. You made it perfectly clear last night that I was trespassing under your roof.” Fuming, Lucy hefted her handbag over her shoulder.

  “That’s not what I meant.”

  Lucy’s laugh sounded flat. “Forget it. It never felt like home after you moved in anyhow. You can have it. All that pink nauseates me.” She chucked the note onto Julia’s lap. “And you can have lover boy too.”

  Lucy rushed from the room before Julia witnessed scalding tears spilling down her cheeks. Choking back sobs, somehow she made it through the hospital, out to the parking lot, and inside the minivan, where she banged her head on the steering wheel. “Idiot.” A sob wracked her chest. How could she have lost her cool like that? She was supposed to remain calm and levelheaded, not cause Julia to go into labor. Lucy reached for leftover napkins in the glove compartment and wiped her wet face. Coming home to Harmony, her expectations had been low. She knew she’d be at Julia’s beck and call. But she was willing to do it for her sister and her nephew. She wanted to mend fences. She wanted to be a part of their lives. She wanted a family.

  What had changed? Wiping her nose with the napkin, she faced her answer. Her own deluded fantasies about Brogan. Immature, romantic fantasies…not reality.

  Inhaling deep breaths, she made a solemn promise to change her attitude. From this moment forward, Lucy would be the best stepsister and aunt possible. She’d help Julia have a healthy baby and help Parker adjust to his new sibling. And she’d be the best marketing consultant for BetterBites, increasing their sales beyond their wildest dreams. Because that was her specialty. Creating opportunities and desires. And she was damned good at her job.

  What she wouldn’t be was the “girlfriend stabilizer” while Brogan waited for Julia to rejoin society after her convalescence, picking up where they’d left off. Nope. Lucy and Brogan were never going to happen. Ever.

  * * *

  “Lucy’s avoiding me,” Brogan said to Javier, pushing his empty beer mug away. Parker and half his football team whooped it up in the middle of the Dog on Monday night. Six tables had been pushed together to accommodate the kids. Pizzas covered the tabletops, and the boys drank gallons of Coke. The coaching staff and parents sat together within listening range. Not wanting to give anyone the wrong impression about his relationship with Parker, Brogan chose a booth in the corner and had invited Javier to join him.

  “Of course she is. I don’t blame her. But she’s still doing a damn good job.” Javier reached for a spicy chicken wing. “She booked a tent with concessions for Morgan’s tennis exhibition this coming Saturday. In-store traffic has increased over fifty percent since she started tweeting.”

  A steady stream of customers flowed through the door of the Dog. The smell of sweet, buttery onions and grilled burgers permeated the air. Country tunes played from the jukebox, and the dance floor held a few swaying couples. Everything Javier said was right. Lucy had performed better than he’d ever dreamed. Her marketing ideas had been effective and right on target. New people dropped by the store every day. And he didn’t give a shit.

  The other night when he had her half-naked and panting with need played in his head. If Julia hadn’t interrupted, he’d like to think he would’ve put a stop to it before going all the way. He’d like to believe he held a tight rein over the physical urges of his body. He balled his hand into a fist, but these days he wasn’t sure of anything.

  “Lucy’s being careful. You’re her boss, and I bet she doesn’t want to give this wacky town any more to talk about.” Brogan gave a sharp nod. Javier was right. Lucy hated being the subject of Harmony’s gossip even more than he did. But having Julia go into premature labor, right after catching them half-naked, had scared Lucy into avoiding him like he was a rabid, horny dog foaming at the mouth.

  “You’re right. And I don’t need the complication right now. New York is breathing down my neck.”

  “You need a life. Told you we should hire a couple more guys. Ryan Bingham is still interested in hooking up. He’s got great New York connections and worked several years with Dean & DeLuca.”

  “Another round, please,” Brogan said to the waitress. He drummed his fingers on the sparkly laminate tabletop. “I know. Ryan’s a good guy. But I’m not ready to relinquish that kind of control yet. We’re still rocking from the payout I had to make to Kathryn’s dad. We need to stay the course and present a united front. I don’t want New York questioning who’s in charge.”

  Javier gave an impatient wave of his hand, but the depths of his dark eyes showed concern and pity. Brogan hated that. Because of his stupidity and carelessness, he’d almost cost Javier his career.

  “Stop blaming yourself. It’s over and done with. You did the right thing. You married her,” Javier said in a low voice.

  “Yeah, and then I divorced her.” Brogan remembered how panic had set in and he’d had to get out.

  “Not before giving it everything you had. It wasn’t meant to be, and BetterBites survived. You think you’re the only guy who ever mixed business with pleasure and got screwed in the end? We fixed it, and we’re moving forward. New York wouldn’t be investing if they didn’t believe in us.”

  Brogan’s stomach churned.

  “You’re pushing yourself too hard. Trying to sell your mom’s house, making a success of BetterBites, dealing with New York—” Javier stopped. Brogan knew he wanted t
o add “chasing the demons of your dad,” but Javie never pushed when it came to Brogan’s past. “Take a couple days off. I can handle things around here, especially with Lucy’s help. And Margo is more than capable in the back of the house.”

  “I’m fine—”

  “Brogan, we’re going in the other room to play pinball,” Parker said, standing next to his booth.

  Didn’t spending time with Parker count for taking time off? Not if it gave him a bigger headache than he already had. Brogan checked his watch. He needed to have Parker home around nine. “Sure. We have to leave in an hour. Need any money?” He started to fish for his wallet in his back pocket.

  “Nah. Aunt Lucy gave me some earlier.” Parker waved to his football buddies. “Let’s go.”

  “Wait.” Parker reluctantly turned around. “Where’s your Aunt Lucy? I haven’t seen her all day.”

  Parker shrugged. “With my mom. She came home from the hospital today. Aunt Lucy’s been doing a lot of stuff from home.” Yeah, Lucy had been doing a lot of hiding. Parker shoved his hands in the back pockets of his bright-orange board shorts. “She works for you. Don’t you know where she is?” he asked as if Brogan were dumber than bird droppings. Yep. The respect that kid had for him grew and grew.

  “Never mind. I’ll speak with her tomorrow.”

  “Whatever.” Parker loped off after his friends.

  Javier’s shoulders shook as he chuckled. Brogan smiled. “I’ll shoot you for him…rock, paper, scissors. Loser gets Parker for the next week.”

  “Not on your life.” Javier burst out laughing.

  “What’s so funny?” Dottie Duncan appeared by their booth with a longneck beer in one hand and a bowl of popcorn in the other. Brogan and Javier both moved to stand. “Don’t get up, boys. Move on over, Brogan.” She gestured with a tilt of her bleached-blond head. Brogan didn’t dare glance at Javie, knowing he’d start laughing again. He slid along the booth as Dottie plopped down and shimmied her black denim-clad butt on the leather seat.