Steven stood up immediately. “What’s wrong, Moira? You look like someone just died.”
With her eyes wide, she scanned all the men. Their heads turning with concerned expressions. She didn’t know if this was the time or the place, but she didn’t know what to do. “Steven—”
“Moira, what’s wrong?”
Her hands instinctively went to her stomach. “Steven, the little stick said ‘yes.’”
“Little stick? What?”
“Steven, I’m pregnant.”
“What? What did you just say?”
“I said the fucking rabbit died, Steven.” It was all she could get out, and she barely got that out. Her hand slapped over her mouth to stop the scream from coming out. How could this happen?
Steven’s face lit like a Christmas tree as his head snapped to look at his mother. Gail’s hands jumped to her cheeks, and the smile on her lips couldn’t have been bigger.
“Moira, sweetheart.” He leaped across the firepit, and swung her into his arms. “Are you kidding me, we’re going to have a baby? I knew it, God damn it, I knew it.”
She stood frozen with shock, barely feeling the ground beneath her feet when Steven set her down. Their family and friends ravaged them. Everyone crowded around waiting to take their turn to congratulate them.
Steven’s father hugged his son fiercely. “I’m so happy for both of you.” Daniel Porter reached over and kissed her on the forehead. “Now you’re going to take good care of yourself and everything will be fine,” he assured her. She nodded quickly. “Steven will make sure you have the best doctor in town, and if he doesn’t I will,” he said, curling her into his arms. “Don’t be scared, honey. We love you. You’re like the daughter we never had.” He tucked his head next to hers. “Don’t tell the boys, but Gail and I always wanted a girl.”
“Well you’ve got me, Daniel,” she said, feeling safer in his arms. She missed her parents, but Steven’s parents had been so good to her she couldn’t help but love them. “Thank you.”
* * * *
It took a while before the commotion calmed down. Dane sat in his chair the entire time. He hadn’t gotten up to congratulate the happy couple because he wasn’t happy at all. Her words had somehow shoved a knife in his chest. The night he had told Steven his feelings about Moira, he had lied. He did love her, and he knew he would be standing right where Steven was if he had found her first.
“Dad?” Charlotte poked him. “What’s wrong? Aren’t you happy? This means we get a cousin, right?”
He gave Charlotte and April a reassuring smile, then pulled them onto his lap. “Of course I’m happy, girls. I guess you’re going to be babysitting soon,” he said.
“Yeah, that would be cool,” April said, playing with the lapel of his shirt.
Dane looked up to see his brother standing over them. Steven reached down and lifted Charlotte into his arms. “You know I still love you girls.”
“Yeah we know. So can we babysit?” April asked brightly.
“Of course you can,” he said. “Why don’t you girls go tell Moira?” They ran off, and Steven crouched in front of him. He picked up a small stick of wood and turned it over in his hands. “You didn’t just want one night with her, did you, Dane?”
His jaw went taut.
“Are you going to be able to be happy for us?”
“I am happy for you,” he said, lowering his gaze.
“You’re lying, but maybe in time you will. Lydia is a great woman. Why don’t you try?”
“She’s nice, but she’s not my type really.” He stared at Steven. “I prefer brunettes.”
“Maybe Lydia would be, if you gave her a chance.”
“I can take care of my own love life, thanks.” Moira joined them. Dane pushed himself out of the chair, wrapping her in his arms. “I’m happy for you, Moira. You’re going to be a wonderful mother.”
Moira bit her lip, giving him a weak smile. “I hope so.”
“There’s nothing to be scared of,” he said. “We’ll all be there for you.” He gave her a comforting smile. “I’ll always be there for you.”
Steven cleared his throat but didn’t interfere, which said a lot about his brother. She would be Steven’s wife soon. He knew eventually he’d get over his infatuation with her. At least he hoped he would. Until then, Steven would just have to deal with it. “My asshole brother is the luckiest man alive,” he said, darting a look at Steven. He unfurled his arms, and stepped away from her. “Ya know, I think Dane is a great name, don’t you, Steven?” He turned and gave his brother a suggestive grin.
“Yeah, maybe for a dog.” Steven laughed and dodged his fist when it shot out to give him a smack in the arm.
“Can I have my wife back now?”
“She’s not your wife yet,” Dane said.
Chapter Twenty-one
Three weeks had gone by in a flurry of last-minute wedding plans and the Oscars that fast approached. He’d be bloody grateful when all the excitement was over, and they could just relax for a while. The media still hadn’t backed off, and it meant Moira had to be protected all the time. Someone had spilled that she was pregnant, and that just increased the insanity. She didn’t like being under the microscope, and he couldn’t blame her.
He came home to find Dane and Moira’s personal security guard pacing on the back deck. He tossed his jacket on the couch, and headed for the French doors leading to the backyard. Moira hadn’t cooked dinner, and the radio wasn’t on like it normally was. The house felt strange, tense. When he opened the door, both Dane and Charlie turned. “So where did she give you the slip this time?” he asked, perturbed that she kept losing her bodyguard, on purpose. She’d turned it into a game these last few weeks.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Porter, I hardly took my eyes off her, and the next thing she was gone,” Charlie said.
He flipped his phone open, ready to dial Moira’s cell.
“Steven, that was ten hours ago,” Dane said carefully.
“What?” He stopped from dialing her number. “Why didn’t you call me?”
“I wanted to but…” Charlie said.
Dane interrupted. “I stopped him. She probably just needs a little time on her own. Jesus, Steven, I told you this would…”
“Shut up,” he growled at Dane, his fear rising by ten degrees per second. He turned his anger on Charlie. “Where was she when you lost her?”
“At the quay, sir. She wanted to go shopping.” He shook his head. “I’ve called our office and five men are looking for her.”
“Five? I want fifty. Have you called the police?” He glared at Dane.
“No, Steven. She’ll come waltzing in the door in the next few minutes. Don’t go crazy. You can’t expect her to be watched all the time. She needs her freedom.”
“She needs to be protected,” he growled. “It’s not the media I’ve been worried about.”
Dane’s brows tightened. “What? What do you mean?”
“Moira’s different.”
Dane shrugged, not understanding.
“Shit,” he whirled around, his fear throwing up all sorts of horrible scenarios that his logical mind tried to squash. “Things happen around her.”
“What are you talking about?” Dane grabbed his shoulder pulling him around.
“Her staff used to call her the Black Magnet.”
“What the fuck does that mean?”
Steven glanced at Charlie who peered intently at him.
“I didn’t believe it at first. Her crew told me she was bad luck. In the first five days that I knew her, a lot of odd things happened, too close together. Moira didn’t want to be with me not only because she thought our lives were too far apart, but because she thought I would get hurt.”
“What kind of strange things? I know about the fire.”
“First, the earthquake the night we met, then I almost lost her, Dane. The second day in Vegas I took her and her crew to the State Park. A natural bridge collapsed when she was on
it with the second earthquake. Then the fire happened, and that night we almost had the collision in the helicopter, remember?”
Dane began to sway his head. “It’s coincidence.”
“Yeah, you’d think that wouldn’t you, but it didn’t end there.” He explained the rest. “And it hasn’t stopped. It definitely slowed down, since she’s come to California, but last month she was almost pushed off the road heading down to Malibu by a dump truck that came around the corner.”
“You look like you believe this stuff,” Dane said.
“I do believe it, now. Callie, one of her staff, burst into tears after the fire. She was scared thinking one day Moira would be caught in one of her near misses and wouldn’t survive. Now I’m scared. I want someone with her all the time, to watch out for her. I can’t lose her, Dane.”
Charlie shuffled uncomfortably on the tiles.
“What is it?” he said, still pissed that Charlie had lost her again.
Charlie glanced at Dane, and then shook his head as if in resignation. “I think he might be telling the truth,” Charlie said.
“What?” Both men said at the same time turning their attention on him.
His stomach rolled over. “What haven’t you told me?” Steven said.
“Umm.”
“Not fucking ‘umm,’ man, tell me.”
Charlie furrowed his brow and said, “She made me promise not to say anything. I mean, I thought I was going a little nuts, to be honest.”
“What—the—fuck happened?” Steven felt his insides tightening with unease.
“It’s just like you said. So far, we had three close calls in the car. We didn’t get hurt, but two of the accidents were head-on collisions, the third one was a drunk driver. And then there was the woman who had the stroke. She just dropped right in front of us.” Charlie stuffed his hands deep in his blazer pockets.
“And—” Steven said seeing there was more.
“Well, the robbery.”
“Robbery?” His eyes grew.
“We were at the Plaza in Santa Monica. This guy came running through the store. It happened so fast. He was looking behind him, and he ran right into Moira. They both ended up on the ground. I grabbed the guy, and then the store security was on top of him.” Charlie’s cell phone started to ring, but he ignored it. “She made me promise not to tell you, she wasn’t hurt, just a little banged up.”
“Jesus Christ, man, and you didn’t think I should know this?”
“I’m sorry, sir, but Moira—”
“Wait a minute,” Dane interjected. “You two both sound like you’ve lost your minds. Accidents happen, people have strokes, and this is LA. There’s robberies all the time.”
“And whenever my Moira steps out the door they happen right in front of her. It’s no coincidence, Dane. I don’t know what the fuck it is, but it’s not coincidence.” Steven flipped his phone open and called Moira. The line was busy.
The phone rang in the house, and all three men charged for the kitchen. “Moira—”
“Hey, sweetheart.”
“What the hell are you thinking?”
“Steven, please, I’m a big girl I can go shopping on my own you know. I don’t need a bodyguard, it’s ridiculous.”
“That’s not the point,” he yelled into the phone.
“Don’t get all growly, Mr. Porter. Besides, I just bumped into Dane, lucky, too, because I’ve got a flat. That’s why I’m calling. I was going to be home before you, but I’ll be a little late.”
Steven’s body turned to ice. “What, what did you just say?” his words choked in his throat.
“I said, I’ve got a flat, and Dane’s with me, so you don’t have to worry.”
He hit the conference button and slammed the phone down. “Moira.” He could barely think, let alone talk straight. His eyes shot to his brother. “Are you in the car?”
“No, why?”
“Get in the car and lock the door. That’s not Dane. Moira, for the love of God, get in the car or run for the closest store.”
“What? What are you talking about? Just a minute. Sorry—what, Dane?”
“Moira!” he yelled. His eyes bored into Dane’s.
“Oh shit,” Dane whispered.
“Moira,” they both yelled at the same time.
They heard a commotion and Moira’s cry. “Dane, what are you doing?”
The phone dropped to the pavement, the sound sending a sickening feeling into Steven’s stomach. He heard someone pick it up. His body turned rigid with anger. Don’t panic, he thought. “Moira?”
“Hey, brother,” Kyle answered back.
“Kyle,” he growled into the phone.
“You still remember me, huh?” he said with a sarcastic drawl.
He hadn’t heard Kyle’s voice in almost twenty-five years, but he didn’t need to, it was like talking to himself. “Kyle, what the fuck are doing?”
“What’s the matter, Steven? You sound—perturbed. Something wrong?”
He had to calm down. It had been a long time, but he was guessing Kyle’s life hadn’t changed much, and more than likely had gotten worse. Maybe he was making too much of this, but he didn’t think so. “Kyle—stay with Moira until I come to get her. Where are you?”
“Nah, I don’t think so. I think you’ll come and get her when I tell you, if I tell you. Until then, we’re going to have a little visit. Looks like you never told her about me. That’s just rude, Steven,” he said, his tone dripping with sarcasm. “I’m not surprised. You always control what people do and how they think, just like you convinced Mom and Dad to turn their backs on me. Guess you didn’t think I was important enough to tell your little wife to be either.”
“Kyle,” Dane interrupted. “Moira is pregnant. She’s not feeling well. Just stay with her, and we’ll come and get her.”
“Oh hell, my other brother. Geez it’s like a family reunion.”
“Kyle, don’t do this.” Dane glared at the phone. “I didn’t abandon you. Don’t do anything stupid,” he pleaded.
“Yeah, yeah, I know you’ve got the hots for her, too, little brother. That must piss Steven off. She is a cute little thing, isn’t she?”
“Kyle, you fucking asshole,” Steven roared, losing his control. “Touch Moira, and I’ll spend the rest of my life hunting you down, you understand me? You piece of shit.”
“What’s the matter, Steven—finally got an Achilles’ heel, huh? You want to know what pain feels like, brother? It’s being abandoned by your family, left to rot on the streets.”
“You did that to yourself. No one put those drugs in your arm. No one forced you to steal from the family. Your addiction did that. Don’t blame us for being a fucking loser,” he spit out.
Dane grabbed Steven’s arm and shook his head sharply. He mouthed, “Don’t piss him off.”
He yanked his arm from Dane’s grip.
“You haven’t changed a bit, Steven. You’re still a conceited bastard who thinks he owns the world. Well, I’ve got what you want, and you’re not getting her back. You’re gonna feel the same suffering I’ve gone through for over twenty-five years. It’s your turn to feel loss, Steven.”
The phone disconnected, and Steven smashed the counter with his fist. “Dane?”
“Steven, he’s angry, and he has a worse temper than you do. Don’t fuckin’ antagonize him.” Dane ran his hand briskly through his hair. “Jesus, if Moira puts up a struggle he could…” He darted a worried look at him.
“He could what? Of course she’s going to put up a struggle, for Christ’s sake, Dane, it’s Moira.”
“Calm down, Steven, you have to calm down.”
“You’ve been in contact with him, haven’t you?”
“I couldn’t just throw him out of my life like you and Mom and Dad did.”
“He walked away. He made the choice.” He glared at his brother. “Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Because you wouldn’t understand, just like now. I’ve tried to h
elp him when I can. He’s lived a hard life, Steven. He got off the drugs years ago, but he never got a break.”
“Where does he live?”
“He’s not stupid. He’s as smart as you in fact. He wouldn’t take her there.”
“If he’s smart, why couldn’t he get his fucking life together? Jesus, what am I saying? I don’t give a shit what he does. We just have to find him. Think, Dane. He’ll take her somewhere. Where?”
* * * *
It wasn’t long before ten police officers filled the kitchen and living room. They milled around, asking questions. Their radios squawked quietly as they spoke to everyone, but mainly concentrated on Dane. His mother and father had made it to the house in record time. Daniel Porter paced the floor, the phone glued to his ear, while his mother tried to calm him down.
“Someone will know his routines, where he hangs out,” his father said into the phone. “I want to know where. Thanks.” As soon as he hung up, he dialed another number.
“Steven.” His mother pulled his hand into her own. “Kyle won’t hurt her.”
“Bullshit, he blames me for us turning our backs on him. He wants to hurt me by hurting Moira.” He grabbed the counter, it was either that or he was going to start breaking things.
“Mr. Porter.”
He turned to see the sergeant behind him.
“We found her car and her phone. It was at the Santa Monica Place Shopping Center. We’re having the video cameras reviewed to see if we can get a plate and description of the car your brother was driving. We doubt he went on foot. His apartment has been searched, but there’re no leads to where he could have taken her.”
“We should have let him rot in prison instead of getting him off,” he said, turning to his mother.
“Steven,” she snapped at him. “He’s your brother, regardless if he’s led a different life. Don’t talk like that.”
Too Grand for Words (BookStrand Publishing Romance) Page 28