At First Sight

by Linda Cajio

  He looked as unhappy with the notion as she felt. She turned away and strolled over to the sliding glass doors. She had barely spoken to him all day because of his words on the beach, but this was something she shared with him. Maybe, she thought, knowing Dan wasn’t as interested in her as she was in him would somehow make the reality about Patrick easier to face.

  She was embarrassed now to realize that Dan didn’t feel the same degree of attraction for her as she felt for him. She’d assumed …

  Looking out on the fog-ladened evening, she forced her thoughts to more immediate matters and said, “I think they are getting something arranged soon. I … ah, expected it. After all, I can’t really keep Patrick, no matter how much I like him.”

  “But you want to,” Dan said softly, coming up behind her.

  She swallowed back a lump of tears. “I—I don’t know. I never thought it would hurt so much just to think of him leaving.”

  He put his hands on her shoulders and pulled her back against him. “Maybe we’re both jumping to a conclusion here. You said they hadn’t found anybody yet. Maybe it will be a while longer before they do.”

  His body was warm and comforting against hers, and she felt safe and protected … and cared for. It was an odd feeling, she thought, but it was what she needed at the moment. She allowed herself to open to it. She knew Dan was trying to calm and reassure her, and she liked that. The problem was that she couldn’t afford to become too attached, as she had with Patrick.

  Dan should be easier, she thought, slowly pulling away from him. He’d made it clear that he barely found her attractive. Now that ought to put a damper on any notions she might have had about her relationship with him.

  “Angelica?”

  “I’m okay.” She turned around and forced herself to smile into the concerned brown gaze behind the tortoiseshell glasses.

  “Are you sure?” he asked.

  “Yes, I’m sure.” Darn him, she thought. If he wasn’t interested in her, then why did he look as if she were more than a business acquaintance or even a friend? “I’m just going to miss him, when he goes to his permanent home.”

  He nodded.

  As she continued to gaze at him, she could feel a change in the air between them. Their mutual concern for a child was slowly being replaced by something else. She could sense a primitive desire rising, and found herself helplessly staring at his mouth. She had a desperate urge to show him that the passion in their kiss had been shared equally by both of them. He had to have felt that overwhelming, mind-spinning rush of emotions. She told herself she should be happy he had agreed with her that the kiss shouldn’t be repeated, even if it wasn’t for the same reason. She really ought to be pleased that this wouldn’t be a conflict between them any longer.

  She noticed he was silent, just looking down at her. His expression was unreadable.

  She licked her lips unconsciously … and caught his eyes following the movement.

  A rush of feminine power shot through her. Maybe he wasn’t quite as detached as he claimed. Although her libido wanted to prove he was as attracted as she, she knew it would be wrong to do so. It really would. But maybe just a little personal satisfaction wouldn’t be out of line.

  She was about to reach out and touch his arm, when he smiled the politest, non-sexiest smile she’d ever seen.

  “Well, since you’re feeling better, I really should get back to my work,” he said, patting her arm. “You were right about that, too. I expect to be in the den until very late. When you go up, would you leave the light next to the stairs on for me?”

  “Sure,” she muttered, wondering if she had imagined his interest.

  “Great.” To her annoyance, he strode out of the room whistling.

  She was tempted to run after him and grab him and kiss him, just to see how mildly he reacted.

  Dammit, she thought. She was more confused about him than ever. And if he kept this up much longer, she wouldn’t be able to vouch for her sanity … or her self-control.

  Seven

  “Angelica, Clark says Mark IV has called again,” Dan said, grinning at her as he held his hand over the receiver on the kitchen phone. “He thinks they sound frantic enough to get a good meeting out of them. What do you think?”

  She lifted her head from feeding Patrick his morning bottle and gave him a heart-stopping smile. Dan felt his stomach tighten with desire.

  “Well, we didn’t plan it,” she said, “but obviously this trip to the island has produced something unexpected. But I don’t know if I can do a meeting. Not with Patrick.”

  Dan chuckled and winked at her. He took his hand away and said, “Clark, tell them well have to get back to them.”

  “But, Dan, we can’t stall them forever!” Starlight’s lawyer protested. “Mike Jimenez is asking for an answer today.”

  “Tell him we do want to reopen negotiations, but I can’t give him an answer just yet. We’ll call him next Monday to set up a date.” He glanced at Angelica as he spoke.

  “I suppose we can’t put it off much longer,” she said. “Not if we don’t want to lose the deal altogether.”

  “If we have to, well bring Patrick to the meeting. Mark IV can meet the Chairman of the Board.” Into the phone, he said, “Okay, Clark.”

  “I just wish you would tell me your game plan for this,” Clark said. “I’d like to at least know what I’m supposed to be doing.”

  “When I know, Clark, you’ll know.”

  “One of those, eh?”

  Dan laughed at the man’s conspiratorial tone. “One of those.”

  “One of those what?” Angelica asked as he hung up the phone.

  “Seat-of-the-pants power plays,” he said. He walked over to the counter and poured himself another cup of coffee.

  “Oh, well, it’s working beautifully so far,” she said airily, then leaned forward and smiled. “Mark IV is very eager, Daniel.”

  Dan grinned at the gleam of anticipation in her eyes. The tigress was emerging. “I know. They shouldn’t have showed that. So what do you think we can get this time?”

  “I think,” she pronounced with great satisfaction, “that they would change Patrick’s diapers if we wanted it in the contract. But what about Garner? Will he be the negotiator again? If he is, I refuse to answer for my temper.”

  “Clark didn’t say.” Dan frowned. “He’s been talking to Mike Jimenez, one of the vice presidents. I doubt, though, that they’ll send Mitch again. The man blundered badly.”

  Her eyes narrowed. “The man was a preschool dropout, Dan.”

  “I believe you’ve mentioned that before.” He smiled to himself as he remembered their first disastrous meeting with Garner.

  She grinned crookedly at him. “I have the feeling you’re not quite so angry with me about that mess anymore.”

  “No, not quite,” he admitted, laughing.

  As they continued to talk about the possible implications of Mark IV’s continued interest in licensing Diana’s game, Dan found his attention becoming more and more focused on her. He forced himself to ignore his body’s reaction to her, just as he had for the past three days, ever since their late night mind-blowing kiss on the patio. It wasn’t easy, though. The only thing that kept him sane was the hope that eventually it would all pay off.

  So far, it seemed to be going well, he thought. He had noticed subtle changes in her. She was more open, and her eyes seemed to meet his more often. Also, she had acquired the disturbing habit of shifting her body … just as she was doing now. He watched her slowly uncross her legs and recross them. Her movements were just enough to draw his gaze, but not enough for him to judge if it was on purpose. She was doing something to her lips, too, he thought as his attention was captured by the faint moistness of her mouth. He didn’t know what it was, but he loved it. He only hoped it wouldn’t drive him insane.

  Patrick finished his breakfast, bringing their business discussion to an end. However, talking was far from over, and Dan made a mental
shift from sexy woman to innocent baby as “The Patrick Show” commenced. Both he and Angelica had started “talking” to the child after breakfast since Patrick was most awake then. The kid loved the attention, and Dan freely admitted he loved to watch the infant avidly follow every head and mouth movement.

  “… And Dan has to go and get you diapers,” Angelica said sweetly to Patrick, who was staring at her wide-eyed.

  “No, I don-n-n-n’t,” Dan singsonged, scowling at her.

  “Yes, you do-o-o-o,” Angelica singsonged back. “There’s no room service here, Patrick, and that means good old Danny will discover the joys of running out for something every five minutes.”

  Angelica smiled brilliantly and Patrick laughed.

  “But we brought a box of diapers with us—”

  “And they’re almost gone.”

  “What ever happened to liberated females, who can go to the store with the same equality as men?”

  “They’re running their practices and businesses and raising children at the same time. It’s a feat beyond the scope of the male’s ability, so that’s why we send you guys out for diapers.”

  “Don’t let her fill your head with that stuff, Patrick,” Dan said to the baby.

  “Are you going or aren’t you?” Angelica asked, grinning at him.

  “I’m going.”

  “See, Patrick? Dan had the opportunity to say no, and he blew it.”

  She rose from her seat, indicating “The Patrick Show” was over.

  Dan patted her on the rear as she went by. “I’m a sucker for you, babe.”

  “What!” she gasped in shock, as much for his words as for his action.

  “Since I’m relegated to the inferior male department, I figure I’m entitled to be a Neanderthal,” he said. “And I think I’m going to like it.”

  Smiling in pleasure, he strolled out to get the diapers.

  As Angelica settled into her paperwork a short time later, she admitted that getting a Neanderthal reaction from Dan did hold a certain satisfaction. At least he had some reaction to her.

  It was enough that she knew it, she thought. That was all she wanted—just a little something that told her she was attractive to him. Okay, so now that she knew it, she could forget it.…

  Instantly she felt again the sensation of his hand on her derriere.

  “Forget it,” she said out loud, and forced herself to focus on her work.

  She wanted to get things in order before the “Today” show was over on the TV. Patrick was sitting in his rockerseat, watching as fixedly as any adult. Once the show was over, she knew he would cry that his friends had gone away. Besides, if she got her day’s work organized she could take him for a morning outing without a guilty conscience.

  She grinned as she thought of Dan on his way down to the village for some diapers. He wouldn’t be too happy with her when he discovered she’d thought of the outing after he’d left on his errand.

  She would promise to do the next two errands in apology … and combine them with outings for Patrick. Truthfully, neither she nor Dan had considered that option this morning.

  To her amusement, when Dan returned with diapers, he was torn between annoyance with her for thinking of an outing, and annoyance with himself for not thinking of it. To her further amusement, he immediately opted to join her and Patrick for a stroll.

  “We didn’t have to go and buy another box of diapers,” she said, as they were walking back up the road to the house hidden in the trees.

  “Yes, we did,” he said firmly. “I had to make the second trip count. Besides, I’ll be damned before I’m running down to the general store every fifteen minutes for diapers.”

  She patted his arm. “Poor soul. You’re lost without your room service.”

  “You loved it, too, and you know it.”

  She giggled.

  As they came into sight of the house, they discovered a visitor waiting for them.

  “It’s about time,” Martha said, as she rose from her makeshift seat on the redwood planter.

  “What are you doing here?” they both asked in astonishment.

  Martha was silent for an endless moment. Angelica felt her stomach plunge in fear.

  “Can we go inside?” the woman finally asked. “I think we can talk better there.”

  Dan nodded. He walked around the stroller and opened the door. “Come in, Martha.”

  She nodded, then bent down and said to Patrick, “Hiya, hiya, Patrick. Have you been having fun here?”

  Patrick smiled and happily kicked his feet. Angelica closed her eyes briefly at the endearing movement. Dammit, she thought. She had a pretty good idea why Martha had come, and she knew she was nowhere near ready for it.

  Once inside the house, Angelica bitterly noticed that Martha smiled and chatted cheerfully about her ferry trip to Nadera. The woman was acting as if this were an everyday visit. And that meant something was seriously wrong.

  In tense silence, she took a seat on the low-slung sofa, Patrick firmly held in her arms. Dan sat close to her, his thigh touching hers. He even put his arm around her, his fingers gripping her shoulder in comfort and concern.

  “You’re not here for a social call, Martha,” Angelica said bluntly, when the woman was settled in a padded chair.

  “No, I’m not,” Martha said, breathing out a sigh. Her gaze was as measuring as the first time they had met, and Angelica fought the urge to panic.

  “Have you come to take Patrick?” Dan asked.

  It was out, Angelica thought dimly. He’d asked the question she was terrified to ask. His voice had been so deceptively calm that she couldn’t help shuddering. She knew he was angry—extremely angry—and she realized that he was no more ready to let Patrick go than she was.

  “No,” Martha said.

  “Thank goodness.” Angelica sighed in immense relief. In the next instant, she glared at the woman. “Then why the hell are you here?”

  “Because we have a problem about Patrick developing back in Seattle.” Martha grimaced. “All the press about Patrick’s discovery has resulted in several complaints about his placement with you two.”

  Angelica blinked in complete confusion. What was wrong with her and Dan that anybody could complain about?

  “Martha, what are you talking about?” Dan asked, leaning forward. “What complaints?”

  “Have you seen the newspapers yet today?”

  They both shook their heads.

  “Well, in two of them there are several letters to the editors that chastise the department for placing a baby in an ‘immoral situation.’ ” Martha scowled fiercely. “One was quite explicit about, and I quote: ‘the wanton corruption of an innocent baby by two people cohabiting in sin.’ ”

  “Sin!” Angelica gasped, stiffening in outrage. “We are hardly cohabiting, let alone in sin!”

  “Angelica!” Dan warned softly.

  She ignored him as she continued their defense. “You know as well as I do, Martha, that the law doesn’t limit the placement of children to only married couples. Besides, Dan and I have never done anything! Anything! We hardly even—”

  “We can hardly keep our hands off each other,” Dan interrupted loudly, nudging her surreptitiously.

  She gasped again, shocked by his words and confused by his actions. Then she realized that she had almost given away the truth of their “engagement.” If there were trouble because they were “engaged,” she could easily imagine the havoc it would cause if the truth were discovered.

  “Okay, Martha,” Dan went on, “so we’re young and healthy and engaged to be married. Now why should that be a problem? Weren’t those people ever young and healthy?”

  “I doubt it,” Martha said. “We’ve also had several phone calls complaining about Patrick being with you. Depending on the number who continue to lodge complaints, it might be cause for concern.”

  “Why would anyone even listen to such nuts?” Angelica asked in disgust.

  “It all de
pends on how the nuts present their case,” Martha said.

  “So what do they want?” Dan asked.

  “Basically, they all want Patrick to be moved to a home that’s ‘proper.’ ”

  “That’s ridiculous!” Angelica nearly shouted. “This is a proper home. These people don’t give a damn about Patrick! They’re just crazy publicity seekers who complain about everything and everyone.”

  “That’s what the official feeling is right now.”

  “But will the department comply eventually?” Angelica asked angrily.

  Martha was silent for a moment. “We don’t want to.”

  “That’s no answer,” Angelica said, setting her jaw to hold back her fury.

  “No, it isn’t,” Martha agreed. “I know I told you before that we were still working on finding a good home for Patrick. But this can raise quite a stink. I can’t guarantee that the department won’t bow to the pressure and move him before that.”

  “I’ll begin a lawsuit,” Angelica exclaimed. “We’ve been approved as Patrick’s guardians. Dammit, you people investigated us thoroughly and gave us approval!”

  “And you had custody of Patrick when we did it.” Martha shrugged unhappily. “But remember, it was only temporary custody, so under the circumstances, the department may place him elsewhere.”

  “That’s not fair!” Angelica felt tears press against her eyelids.

  “It isn’t right or fair for Patrick or us,” Dan said. “If it’s perfectly legal for us to have Patrick, then why the hell would the department even give credence to one or two individuals?”

  “Normally, they wouldn’t,” Martha replied. “But a baby is an emotional issue, and we’re afraid the question of improper placement might gain more public support. Also, we’ll probably get volunteer families for Patrick—”

  “But they won’t care about him like we do,” Angelica interrupted, twin tears spilling over. She refused to cry, she thought. Crying meant acceptance of the situation, and she would not accept this.

  Dan’s grip tightened on her shoulder, giving her strength. “What do we have to do to keep Patrick with us, Martha?” he asked.