Hannah's Blessing

by Collette Scott

  “I think that’s great news. She’s a good influence on Devlan. He’s suddenly more perceptive to children. I’m really so glad you’re here.”

  “I’m sure,” Diana muttered.

  “Yes, because now he’s eager to have his own children. You know, to pass on his name. I told him that he’d have to wait at least a year or two. I’m still in my prime, you know.”

  “I can see that.”

  A sleek eyebrow lifted before she smiled again. “Ah, well, as much as I’d love to stay and chat, I really have to get going. I’m planning on moving my things over after the holidays. I have to go to Italy, but when I get back we’re going to start making plans. It’s so exciting.”

  A pained smile passed over Diana’s lips, but she nodded in understanding. “I know. I’ve been there once myself.”

  “That’s true. You have already been married. Well, me too. Second time is always the best they say. We’ll see.”

  “I wish you the best,” she murmured.

  “Yeah, thanks.” She raised her brows. “You know, Devlan told me how beautiful your daughter is. Maybe we can find a spot for her in the wedding party.”

  “Maybe,” Diana echoed, although she knew she and Hannah would be gone by then.

  “Again, we’ll see after the holidays.”

  Diana could feel the tears welling in her eyes. It was getting increasingly difficult to hold them in. Children? Had he not panicked when they had unprotected sex? Did he not tell her that it would have to be something discussed and agreed upon?

  Apparently only when it involved her.

  “I understand that Mrs. Maclean already hired a chef for Christmas dinner, so I guess I can leave you to handle the rest of the dinner plans for now. I’ll be working right up to Christmas Eve.”

  All of Roxanne’s chattering was driving her to distraction. Right then she desperately wanted to do was go and lie down. She nodded distractedly. “Of course.”

  “Okay, then. I’ll see you in a couple of days, Diana. May I call you Diana?”

  “Naturally.”

  “Well good, Diana. Tell Hannah her Aunt Roxanne said hello and happy holidays.”

  “I will, thank you,” she muttered.

  Roxanne slipped out as easily as she had sailed in, leaving behind her the lingering smell of her strong perfume and the tattered remains of Diana’s heart.

  Pleading a migraine, Diana remained hidden for the rest of the day. At one point she began to doze, her sleepiness overpowering her will to think. After a brief nap on the living room sofa, Diana sat silently with her chin resting on her knees. She stared blindly out into the rain, watching the wind tossed waves crash onto the beach. Tears blurred her vision and filled her eyes as sadness washed over her.

  All along you knew this would happen.

  However, Devlan’s callousness had taken her completely by surprise. He had always been so courteous and open. Why could he not tell her himself?

  He tried that night on the beach.

  He had gone away before he had a chance, but she could not believe it was out of cowardice. As she continued to think, she wondered over and over again if she had done something wrong. Maybe her cold reaction had frightened him off. In all their brief relationship, Devlan had always been honest and straightforward. It was so unlike him to do something so cruel, especially when he had said that Roxanne was nothing more than a friend. Had he lied because of his fear of her temper?

  He had kissed her on the beach the night of her birthday until her head spun. He had told her then that he did not want her to be angry. So what had happened between him and Roxanne that made him decide to marry her so quickly? Just a month ago he had been making love to her on their private vacation, and now he was planning a wedding to another woman. She just could not believe it.

  A confrontation was due here. He had to give her that one last courtesy before she left. If it was true, she and Hannah would leave immediately. She would figure out where to when the time came.

  The rain eventually came to a stop, but the sky remained dark and dreary. Hannah popped in quickly, carrying one of her ever-present dolls. She was dressed in a short, pink frilly dress that Lani had picked out, and it suited her fair coloring well. Diana smiled at her tremulously. It would soon be just the two of them again. Her wide blue eyes gleamed large in the darkness, and she fingered the doll nervously.

  “Mommy, what’s wrong?”

  Diana had to smile at the beautiful young girl as she slowly made her way into the spacious room. “Nothing, I was just thinking.”

  “What were you thinking about?”

  “It’s a secret,” Diana whispered, drawing her hand over her eyes.

  “I like secrets,” Hannah whispered back.

  Diana pulled her onto her lap and hugged her tight. The little ragamuffin hugged her back, her actions bringing tears to Diana’s eyes. How would she explain to Hannah her time of fun had ended? This poor child had been through so much already. Why did she have to suffer heartbreak again?

  Lani poked her head in and smiled broadly. “Dinner’s ready, Mrs. Somerset. Hannah, we made you some chicken nuggets and Mrs. Maclean found some sauce. Are you coming?”

  Hannah’s face brightened. She pulled away from Diana with barely a glance. It was one of her favorite meals. Rushing for the door, she paused in the doorway and glanced over her shoulder at her mother with a bright smile. “Mommy, everyone here is so nice. I don’t ever want to go home.”

  Diana tried to smile back, but her lips were frozen in place. She was exhausted, both physically and mentally. “We’ll talk about that later. Go eat your dinner.”

  Hannah opened her mouth to argue, but Lani’s insistent calling caught her attention. Spinning on her heel, she turned and fled the room, leaving Diana to watch her with a sad frown. According to Roxanne, soon this house would be full of laughing and running children. The sudden urge to run away from the house, from the visions of dark haired children giggling and playing on the steps, brought her to her feet. As soon as she stood, a wave of dizziness almost caused her to sit back down. Pressing her hands to her face, she was suddenly overcome with a thought. Their trip to Hawaii, as Roxanne had reminded her, had been a month ago. A whole month had passed since her week of pure bliss. That also made her menstrual cycle late.

  She was late!

  Desperation seized her, and she began to form another plan in her mind. With growing fear, she joined the others in the spacious kitchen and grabbed a bite to eat, ignoring Mrs. Maclean’s curious stares and Lani’s speculative one. Still pleading a headache, she picked at her food and ate silently while she formed her plan. As soon as they were done, she asked Lani to put Hannah down to bed. The child pouted briefly, but Lani was quick to make the idea sound fun. Diana concocted a story about doing some last minute shopping and slipped from the house as soon as she could. She had much to do and not a lot of time to do it.

  She needed to be sure before Devlan returned.

  ~

  “Mindy, I need help.”

  There was a brief silence before the woman on the other end of the line spoke. “Jesus Diana, where are you? On a payphone?”

  “Yes,” she said quickly. “I need help.”

  “Wow, I didn’t even think they made those anymore. What happened? Is Hannah okay?”

  “Yes, Hannah’s fine. Actually she’s doing fabulously. We’re leaving Los Angeles, and I was hoping that we could stay with you for a short time. At least until I get myself settled in a new job.”

  “Of course, hon, when do you expect to be here?”

  Diana took in a shaking breath. The conversation was proving to be a little harder than she had expected. The tears burned her eyes like fire, and no matter how many times she blinked them back they struggled for their freedom.

  “I would think in a couple of days.”

  “Oh, Diana, you can’t come now. There’s a big storm coming. They’re expecting a foot of snow. The airport will probably shut down and
the roads will be closed.”

  A sob escaped Diana’s lips as a wave of despair washed over her.

  “Can you wait a couple of weeks, Di?”

  “No,” she moaned. “We have to leave now.”

  “Hold on a minute, hon, I’ll go get Allan.”

  The tears began to careen down her face while Mindy called for Allan. Once again they were coming to her aid. Diana glanced up at the foreboding sky, cursing the winter weather with a vengeance. She felt so trapped and alone.

  “Hi, Di, how are you?”

  Diana’s attempt at laughter only came out as a moan. “I’ve got to get out of here now, Allan, and I don’t know how.”

  “Were you going to fly or drive?”

  “I wanted to drive out there in a borrowed car and pick up mine. Now I don’t know what to do.”

  “You could head south, Diana. Phoenix is only six hours away from you. I have a friend in Scottsdale who can help us out. He has a big condo down there where you and Hannah can crash. I’ll drive your car down and meet you there, okay?”

  “Are you sure, Allan? I mean, it’s so close to Christmas.”

  “Not a problem. You need help. Hold on, and I’ll get Brad’s address.”

  There was another pause during which Diana glanced at the bag in her hands. She had stopped at a drugstore on the highway and purchased a pregnancy kit. As she stared at the results in the McDonald’s bathroom, the words of her high school guidance counselor rang in her ears.

  “Ladies, it only takes one time. Remember that.”

  Now the bag with the incriminating evidence was clutched in her hands in the parking lot of that fast food restaurant, and she was once again in flight mode. She needed to get away. As far away as she could get from the crashing waves that seemed to scream the truth every time they broke on the beach.

  “Okay, Diana, his name is Brad. Brad Vember. He lives in Scottsdale, off Scottsdale Road. I’ll call him and let him know that you’re coming. Do you have any money?”

  “Yes, I have some. I’ll pay him whatever he wants to let us stay until you get there.”

  “Don’t worry about it. Brad is an old friend of mine. He’s a real nice guy. He’s an artist down there. You’ll love him.”

  Diana laughed, but it sounded strained and shaky. “Please don’t push any more men on me, Allan.”

  Allan laughed. “I won’t push him on you. His tendencies go the other way. Brad is gay, Diana.”

  “Oh,” Diana said, a true smile flitting across her lips. “That’s even better.”

  “I’ll be there as soon as I can, okay hon? Call me if you need anything.”

  “I already did.”

  He chuckled on the other end, although there was very little humor in it. “I’ll see you soon.”

  Once they disconnected, Diana took a deep, steadying breath and reached into her bag. It was time to confront him. Diana pulled the business card from the bottom of her purse where she had stashed it among her lip gloss, discarded keys and Hannah’s miscellaneous toys. She was relieved that she still had it, even though she had never had the need to use it. Until now. As she stared down at the handwritten number to his hotel suite in Denver, fresh tears flooded her eyes. So much had happened since then; so many things had changed. Her daughter was no longer near death. Devlan had made sure of that.

  Flipping the card over, she ignored the office line and dialed his mobile. It was late in New York, but she knew very well how quick he was to take calls. On the fourth ring it switched to his voice mail response, and the sound of his clipped voice was enough to throw her over the edge. A heartbroken sob escaped at the same time as the line beeped, and she hastily pulled the phone away from her ear.

  Diana hung up the handset and leaned her forehead against the receiver. Unable to question him, her next step was to go back to the house and prepare for her departure. She still longed to confront Devlan, to find out why he had not just told her the truth, but that would be difficult when he was suddenly so hard to reach. So should she stay long enough to speak to him first?

  Returning to her car, she continued to allow her thoughts full rein. It seemed impossible to her that he would be so devious when all he had been was honest and up-front in the past. In fact, his candidness and determination were two of her favorite qualities about him. How could she have been so very wrong about him all this time? Because she was still overly trusting. Peter had done the same thing. Devlan’s step-brother had wooed her until she was hopelessly in love with him, and then proceeded to stomp on her heart. He, apparently, was no different. And no matter what her heart told her, she had known this would happen before she had even entered the relationship. She had jumped in with both eyes wide open. It was no more than she deserved.

  No, she would not remain any longer than it took to collect her belongings. There was no reason for her and Hannah to stay. Devlan had made his choice. She owed it to him to leave as peacefully as possible. She had learned her lesson once before. It was time to take matters into her hands and be strong. She would go to Phoenix and start fresh – away from Devlan.

  The house was still well lit when she pulled to a stop outside the gates in the silent Mercedes. She sat in the soft leather of the front seat for a moment and stared at the beautiful mansion before her. The majestic front steps beckoned to her, reminding her that everything she held dear was within that house. Yet she also knew that she had to leave it, before it was too late.

  She silently slipped through the side security gate and strode up the front steps. The door was unlocked when she entered, and the foyer was silent with no one appearing to greet her. There was a note on the crystal table, and Diana noticed it was addressed to her. She picked it up slowly and frowned.

  “Two phone calls,” she muttered into the silent room.

  Devlan had called, the note said, leaving the phone number for his office in New York and a message to call as soon as possible. She grimaced. Roxanne probably told him of her visit.

  The second phone call was from Esther Holmes. Diana glanced at the number again with a contemplative frown. Thomas was a lawyer. Perhaps he could help her. He would know exactly what to do about her newest dilemma and how to get Hannah out of Devlan’s will.

  Folding the paper and placing it in her purse, Diana shut off the light behind her and headed for her bedroom. She had much to do, and Esther could wait until Phoenix.

  Once she finished packing, Diana slipped into Hannah’s room and gathered up her belongings. Allan had said it was a six-hour drive to Phoenix. If she could do most of the driving that night, Hannah could sleep in the car. That would save her a lot of explaining during the long drive.

  Glancing over at her sleeping child, Diana sighed sadly. How she hated tearing up her child’s roots again. The lifestyle Devlan had given her had suited her well. She had blossomed in the care he offered. In fact, both of them had. It had been so easy to be spoiled by him.

  Quickly throwing Hannah’s belongings together, Diana returned outside to the car. Fortunately, the security guard was lax in the evening, expecting most of the mansion’s inhabitants to still be coming and going. She encountered no one as she loaded up the trunk and returned to the house to gather Hannah. The sleeping child posed more of a problem for Diana. She was not pleased at being awakened and questioned Diana loudly. Diana hushed her as best she could while she supported her over the potty.

  “We’re going for a long ride tonight. You can stretch out in the back seat and sleep there. I’ve laid out nice soft blankets.”

  “But why, Mommy?”

  “We have to,” she replied as she pressed soft kisses all over her face.

  “I don’t want to.”

  Diana bit her lip as she sighed. She had to get Hannah outside without a scene. Smoothing her hair away from her face, she smiled more bravely than she felt. “We have to. It’s very important.”

  “Why is it important? What’s wrong?”

  “Nothing’s wrong, darling. We just h
ave to.”

  “Are we going to see Uncle Devvie?”

  “I don’t know.”

  She helped Hannah slip on an oversized sweatshirt over her nightclothes, and then tied her sneakers. Hannah rubbed her eyes as she sat on the bed, watching her mother closely.

  “Where are we going?”

  Thinking quickly and taking a large gamble, Diana spoke quickly. “We’re going to see Allan.”

  “Allan? Will AJ be there too?”

  Diana sighed in relief. Hannah still remembered her old friends. Shrugging, Diana smiled at her daughter. “I don’t know, we’ll see.”

  “Okay.”

  Diana bent to pick up Hannah and rushed out the front door feeling like a thief in the night. Once again they were lucky, and no one spotted their speedy exit. Diana stood for a moment in the silence of the foyer, looking around as the memories invaded her heart. There was the bar she had seen Devlan stand at the night he took her to dinner. The outside lights were on, shining down on the pool where she had first seen his lithe length and thick muscles as he had angrily worked off the ruined evening. The beach lay beyond, where he would have seduced her if Mike had not found them and Roxanne had not called. So much had happened here, and it was all over now.

  Soon they would be in a new area to start a new life.

  Again.

  Chapter 17

  The blackness all around her was mesmerizing. There were no streetlights on this highway, and she had not seen another car in miles, only an occasional tractor-trailer. Beyond the windows was the vast emptiness of the desert and the secrets it held within. She had no idea how long she had been driving; she had lost all acceptable radio stations an hour before. Hannah still slept peacefully behind her, a good thing, for right then Diana needed all her concentration to stay on the road.

  They were well within the desert now, miles from any civilization. This area of Arizona was rugged and beautiful in a dangerous and desolate way. The pale whitewashed sand of eastern California had been replaced with red, mineral-laden soil. The desert was desolate and dangerous but full of life in the form of cacti and prickly brush. The occasional sight of a tall saguaro appearing out of the darkness frightened her even as it awed her, and the sky above was clearer and littered with more stars than she had ever seen in her life. They glittered so brightly above that she felt as though she could reach up and grasp one.