by Aubree Lane
Annie felt dirty and ashamed. What she thought was going to be a noble gesture turned out to have a dark seedy side to it, and she wanted out as quickly as possible. David was counting on her success, though, so she felt obligated to give it one last shot. “One hundred thousand now and the other hundred thousand when you don’t show up for court.” She got up to leave. “And that’s my final and only offer.”
Hannah smiled. “Fine. I accept, but I have a few conditions of my own.” She drained the glass and continued. “First and foremost, Erika is never to know that Mommy Dearest was paid off, that means this conversation stays between you and me. No one else can ever know. Secondly, I must be allowed to call her from time to time.”
Annie stood rooted to the hard tile floor, unable to believe that Hannah had agreed to her terms. “There won’t be a problem with the last part,” she reassured Hannah. “I can’t see either Larry or Terence denying you all access to Erika. Unfortunately, Marissa and her husband know I’m here. It was David’s idea for me to approach you. He will be your contact from now on, but no one else need ever know. But before I leave, could you clear something up for me?”
“How can I give up my child?” Hannah said, anticipating her question. “How can I be such a monster, etcetera, etcetera?” she stood up and began pacing back and forth, getting increasingly agitated with each step. She turned on Annie with blazing eyes. “Everyone always assumes I’m the bad one! I would have let Larry have Erika right off, but my dearly departed father knew how to keep me in line. It was his idea to say Terry was her father. He thought he would be easy to handle. Terry surprised him, though. He never gave up fighting for Erika. Daddy was livid when I allowed Erika to spend her summer vacations with him.” The booze had taken hold, and her words began to slur. “I fixed his goose but good. He worked himself into a corner, and he couldn’t get out. I showed him I was smarter than he ever gave me credit for. I may not have been a good mother, but I wasn’t about to let him hurt my baby. I got her out of here. Paid a price for it, too, but it was worth it.”
Annie bit her lip. “Hannah what are you talking about?” she asked, unsure whether she wanted to hear the answer. “How was Alexander going to hurt Erika, and what price did you pay?”
Her questions snapped Hannah back to reality, and her tone softened. “Oh pooh, there I go rambling again. Don’t listen to me. I’m just angry that he left me such a mess to clean up. As for the price I had to pay.” She waved her arms around the room. “This is it, a big old empty shell of a home. Of course, that’s all it ever was. I should be happy to be rid of it.”
She was lying, but Annie allowed Hannah to escort her to the door without any further interrogation. David would find out the truth. She’d have her answers soon enough. Besides, Hannah looked as if she was about to break. She was an extremely troubled woman, and Annie believed she had just contributed to her misery.
“Hannah, will you be all right? Can I call someone for you? Maybe a friend could come and stay with you.” Annie asked before Hannah closed the door on her.
Hannah laughed. “Oh my, let’s not call any of those trusted friends. I don’t think I could take it. My good old trusted friend, Marissa, turned on me in high school. She showed me what she was capable of and now she’s done it to you.” Hannah waved a conspirator’s finger between the two of them. “I think people like you and me have had enough of all our trusted friends.”
Annie didn’t understand a thing Hannah was rambling about. “What has Marissa done to me?”
Hannah jerked her shoulders straight and blinked. “You really are a fool. You don’t even know.” She wrapped her arm around Annie’s shoulders and led her back into the cold depressing mansion. “Have I got a story to tell you.”
• • •
Annie hit the final note of their last song of the evening. The patrons in the newly opened sports bar began stomping their feet on the faux hard wood floor expressing their desire for the duo to continue. Annie smiled but begged off. Marissa reluctantly followed her off the small egg-shaped stage.
Marissa grabbed her sleeve. “What’s with you tonight? We only sang two songs.”
Without bothering to turn around, Annie slipped out of her grasp and rushed over to the table where David sat waiting for them.
David raised his beer mug in her direction. “I just ordered another beer and was settling in for the night. What’s up?”
Annie took the mug out of his hand. “Then you won’t need the rest of this.” She raised the beer to her lips, ignored the scowl on his face, and drained the container.
Marissa joined them and started in on Annie. “You realize that once you move to Hawaii we won’t be able to do this anymore. For all we know, this could be our last chance. Come on Annie, just one more song.”
The waitress arrived with David’s beer and Annie commandeered it while he was paying the tab. She shot him an audacious smile and sucked the brew down. It was one of those dark German beers he preferred. Annie didn’t care for the flavor, but the day had left such a rotten taste in her mouth that it no longer mattered.
“And could you bring us another round?” David asked the waitress before she stepped away to deliver the rest of the drinks on her tray.
David was a generous tipper and Annie had no doubt the drinks would arrive shortly. He had a knack for getting people to do exactly as he wished. She had even gone to see Hannah just like he wanted.
Marissa reached over the table and touched her hand. “Annie what’s wrong? Did you and Terence have an argument?”
“That would explain it all, wouldn’t it? Terence and Annie had a fight,” she sing-songed sarcastically. “No wonder Annie’s in such a bad mood.”
If only it could be that easy. If they’d had an argument, she would have been able to dissolve their engagement without looking back, but Terence was an angel. He called her every day from Ohio and was being so damned irresistible that she still hadn’t been able to concentrate on her work. She found it impossible to balance the two, but she couldn’t bring herself to dissolve Annie H. Designs either. Something had to give.
Maybe that something was Marissa and the entire Wright family.
Annie was still reeling over the story Hannah told her about how Marissa betrayed her. She came out with Marissa tonight wanting to clear the air, but she found it hard to look at the woman, let alone confront her. She banged her fist on the table and headed for the exit.
• • •
David glanced at Marissa, who gazed in the direction of Annie’s departure. He took a long pull from the new mug of beer that had just arrived. “That girl needs help.”
Marissa rested her elbow on the table and her chin in her hand. She tapped her lower lip three times with her pinky finger and agreed. “Yes, she does.”
David groaned. He knew that look. Marissa’s wheels were spinning again.
Chapter 21
“Welcome back, Annie. Thank you for stopping by,” Mrs. Barrington said as she elegantly descended the sweeping staircase.
The woman had left Annie waiting over an hour before making her appearance. Even though the time gave her a chance to survey all the final touches that had been completed in her absence, she was still pretty irked about being forced to cool her heels.
Phoebe and Nathan had done a fantastic job dressing the place. Their execution of the final stage of this project was impeccable. Annie couldn’t imagine what Mrs. Barrington had to complain about.
Mrs. Barrington guided her to one of the freshly reupholstered wing chairs. “Come in and sit down. I think we need to talk.”
Here we go again, Annie thought.
“I was on the phone with Terence. He’s worried about you. He believes you were upset during one of your telephone conversations, and he feels you might be keeping something from him. He is terribly concerned.”
Mrs. Barrington put on her best motherly face, but it didn’t fit. There wasn’t any way Annie was going to open up and tell her the intimate
details about where her relationship with Terence was headed. The woman obviously adored him and could not be expected to remain objective. “I’m sorry, Mrs. Barrington, but my relationship with Terence is off limits. I’ll be happy to discuss the work we’ve done here.” She stood to leave. “If not, I’ll be on my way.”
Mrs. Barrington sighed heavily. “So there is a problem. I understand why you wouldn’t want to talk with me, but let me give you a bit of advice that has served me well, then I’ll let you go and promise never to interfere again.”
Annie wanted to roll her eyes but didn’t want to be scowled at by the older, and as Mrs. Barrington believed, wiser woman. Instead, she returned to her seat and allowed Mrs. Barrington to lecture her one last time.
Mrs. Barrington gently picked up her hand and patted it. Annie felt her brave face begin to crack. A lump formed in her throat and tears, once again, filled her eyes.
“Follow your heart, Annie,” Mrs. Barrington urged softly. “Money, career, and even family won’t mean a thing if you don’t have someone to love. Love is the ultimate gift one person can give another. Opening up and accepting such a gift is not always easy, but when you do, no matter how it works out in the end, you won’t regret a single moment. I promise.”
Mrs. Barrington opened her arms out to her.
The tears flowed freely down Annie’s face, but she stopped short of crying on Mrs. Barrington’s shoulder. “I have to go,” she said hastily and hurried out into the garden. Every fiber in her being wanted to run away and hide, but the tears blurred her vision, so she dropped onto her favorite bench and gave into her sobs.
“Excuse me, Miss. I’m sorry to intrude, but are you all right?”
It was Mrs. Barrington’s gardener. Annie didn’t know his name, but he reminded her of Mr. Green Jeans from the old Captain Kangaroo reruns she used to love to watch as a child. The man had always been extraordinarily nice to her. They even shared a horror story or two about the trials of working for such a difficult woman.
Annie wiped her eyes with the back of her hand. Her nose was runny, but she hesitated over using her sleeve to dry it.
Mr. Green Jeans sat down beside her and wrapped a caring arm across her shoulders. “Go ahead,” he said noticing her dilemma. “I won’t tell anyone.”
Annie held on to the end of her cuff and wiped both nostrils. She sniffed hard and struggled to get her emotions under control.
Mr. Green Jeans rubbed her arm sympathetically. “What did she do this time?”
“Well,” Annie said through a series of crying jags. “She butted into my personal life.” Annie brushed her soggy hair away from her face and hiccupped one final sob back inside where it belonged. “But honestly, she didn’t do anything. I’m just a little raw right now.”
The gardener nodded. “Is this about that guy who came looking for you that day?”
Annie nodded and held up her hand to show him the engagement ring Terence gave her, but her finger was bare. She had forgotten she had taken it off. “We’re engaged, but I should postpone it. If I were smart, I should probably call the whole thing off.”
She looked at her naked finger again. Her hand didn’t feel right, and it was downright wrong to burden this charming old man with her problems. “I’m sure you don’t want to hear about it, though.”
She had given herself the perfect opening to leave, but she stayed, oddly comforted by this gracious stranger.
“Enough of that,” Mr. Green Jeans scoffed. “Go on and tell me all about it. You look like you could use a friend.” He gave her arm a little squeeze and raised his voice firmly. “I’m yours for as long as the lady of the house decides to stay inside.”
His tone turned surprisingly loud, and Annie felt the man look back over his shoulder. She glanced to see what he was looking at. The draperies that framed the French doors off the patio fluttered lightly in the breeze, but nothing else. “Be careful what you ask for,” she warned with a sad sarcastic laugh.
His wrinkled face smiled, and his green eyes went soft with understanding.
Annie’s face crumpled upon seeing his kindly expression, and it all came tumbling out. He listened to her fears and her insecurities. He listened to every single personal detail about her relationship with Terence, about her business, and about the Wright family. When she finished, her voice was hoarse, and she knew, regardless of whatever else happened that day, that she had a friend in Mr. Green Jeans.
When her tears finally dried he asked, “Would you like to know what I think?”
Annie was emotionally drained, but she felt better than she had all week. Everything was clearer. She loved Terence. She didn’t know if it was enough, or if they would be able to work out their problems. But she was no longer convinced that putting their relationship on hold was the miracle answer she’d been looking for. “Yes, I would.” It was the least she could do after pouring out her problems to this nice gentleman.
He smiled and gave her arm one last pat. “I think you’re going to be just fine, and that you don’t need a stodgy old man giving you any advice.” He got up to leave. “Stay as long as you like. It’s a beautiful afternoon. I’ll make sure Mrs. Barrington is otherwise occupied and that she stays well away from you.” Then he gave her a wink and went inside.
Annie thought it was strange that the Barrington’s gardener felt comfortable enough to walk inside the house without first knocking. She decided he must have worked for the family for a long time and that he must be as trusted and loved as Eleanor was with the Wrights.
She leaned back and closed her eyes, letting the sun warm her face. A few moments later, one of the household staff came out and handed her a tall glass of lemonade. “Compliments of Mr. Barrington.”
“That’s very nice of him,” Annie said, accepting the glass, “considering I’ve never had the pleasure of meeting the man.”
The maid looked confused. “Miss Harper, you were just speaking with him.”
• • •
Two days later, Annie stood outside her apartment door and caught a whiff of a delightful aroma seeping under the door. The last time she smelled something this delicious was the morning Terence cooked breakfast after their first night of lovemaking.
She’d spent another disappointing day at the office twiddling her fingers and daydreaming about the only man she ever loved, and waffling back and forth about whether or not she should call off the engagement. They lost another client, and Nathan was at his wits end, but all his lecturing accomplished was to aggravate his ulcer, which he claimed he never had until Terence Javier entered their lives.
She froze, unable to stick the key in the lock. What if Terence was inside cooking for her? What would she do? What would she say? Her mind felt muddled, but her heart soared. What if Terence was inside? It sang with joy.
Bravely, she turned the key and stepped inside. Alan stood at the stove.
“Just in time,” he said, holding up a spatula. “Fried ravioli.”
“What are you doing here?” Her elation fell into the dumper, but her nose tracked the scent of a home cooked meal and drew her closer to the sizzling pasta.
Alan drizzled a stream of extra virgin olive oil into the pan. “My mom had some minor surgery this morning, and she wanted me here.” He looked up and beamed. “I need a place to stay.”
“What’s wrong with your apartment?”
“My cousin is housesitting for me, and I’m allergic to his dog.”
“Why can’t you stay at your mom’s?”
He shot her a killer smile. “She’s having her house fumigated while she’s in the hospital.”
Annie grinned. She always liked Alan and her stomach wanted him to stay. “Save those long lingering glances for Lena. As long as you behave, you’re welcome to sleep on the couch.”
He poured the ravioli onto the serving platter. “Why, are you jealous?”
Annie wondered where that came from, and how it was that all the men in her life knew her kitchen better than sh
e did. “Just because I don’t enjoy watching you fall all over yourself every time you see her, doesn’t mean I’m jealous. Although, I must admit, I am a little miffed that you never fed me grapes in the produce department while we were dating.”
Alan stiffened and cocked his head to one side. “When were we dating?”
She picked a piece of pasta off the platter and popped it into her mouth. The flavor of it burst onto her taste buds. “What do you call all the time we spent together?” she mumbled as her mouth relished the crispy flavor of fried cheese and Parmesan.
Alan gave her an incredulous look and snickered. “Hanging out. Annie, we were just hanging out together. We never even made out.”
She picked up a plate and held it out for Alan to fill. “What are you talking about? We kissed all the time.”
He took the plate out of her hand and set it back down on the counter. He looked like he wanted to talk. What did they have to talk about? Their romantic relationship was over. It was fine with her if he wanted to say they had only been hanging out. She picked up the serving spoon to serve herself, but Alan grabbed her wrist and halted her progress.
“I hate to burst your bubble, but there is a big difference between the way we kissed and making out.”
The spoon dropped from her hand and clattered onto the dish. She was slow, but she wasn’t that slow. Alan was seriously saying they had never dated. That they were simply friends of the opposite sex who spent time together. How could she have been so stupid?
He stepped around the counter and stood next to her. He stroked her arm as the information slowly sank in. Alan slipped his other arm around her waist and drew her to him. His lips broke into a sly smile. “Want me to show you the difference?”
Annie laughed nervously and pushed him away. “Knock it off, Big Dog, and just feed me.”