One True Love

by Barbara Freethy

  "No love and kisses?" Nick asked. "And you're planning to marry the man in what -- three weeks?"

  "Four." Lisa faced her mother. "I'm going to check on the children, Mom."

  "There you go again, running off just when things get interesting. Does Roland know that about you?" Nick asked.

  "His name is Raymond, and he knows all the important things." Lisa paused at the door. "I wouldn't have to run off, if you'd leave. Don't you have something else to do? Some other woman to harass?" As she said the words, it occurred to her that she knew nothing about Nick's personal life. Now she couldn't help but wonder. Surely there had been a woman or two in all the time they'd been apart. "Well?" she demanded, crossing her arms in front of her chest, pleased that Nick suddenly looked uncomfortable. "Do you have a woman in your life?"

  "I have lots of women in my life, sweetheart."

  "Then why haven't you gotten married?"

  "I did that already."

  "You can do it again."

  "I don't think so."

  "You can't stay single for the rest of your life."

  "Why can't I?"

  She shrugged. "You'll end up alone."

  "Being married didn't stop that from happening, did it?"

  After that comment, Lisa wanted desperately to turn on her heel and leave, but Nick was waiting for her to do just that, and it irritated the hell out of her. He thought he knew her so well. But he didn't. He might have known the girl, but he didn't begin to know the woman she was today.

  Lisa glanced at her mother, who was smiling to herself as she stirred the browning meat on the stove. "I'll set the table for you, Mother," Lisa said. "Is there anything else I can do to help with dinner?"

  "I thought you were going to see to the kids," Nick said. "You know, the kids in the other room?"

  "Why don't you do that? You seem to have a tremendous need to leave a room first, so go right ahead." She waved him toward the door.

  "Fine."

  He walked out of the kitchen without a backward glance, and Lisa couldn't believe how much it bothered her that he'd gone. She'd told him to go. She'd wanted him to go. But it did feel odd, being the one to stay behind -- not that she'd ever tell him that.

  * * *

  "You still haven't told me who you are and why you're pretending to be a friend of Serena's when it's obvious you don't even know what she looks like." Jeremy Hunt leaned forward in his chair, minimizing the distance between Maggie and himself, his brown eyes intent on her face.

  Maggie wanted to look away, but there was something about his eyes that held her gaze, something about him that made her want to linger. She should have left an hour ago.

  After the embarrassing moment by the tennis courts when he'd accused her of not knowing who Serena was, she'd considered confessing everything. Then they'd been interrupted by two men eager to talk to Jeremy about a screenplay, and she'd found herself swept along to the bar with the three of them.

  Since she thought she'd have just as good a chance of tracking down Serena in the club restaurant, she'd gone along. Unfortunately, she'd now had two glasses of wine and was not a speck closer to finding Serena, although she was more than a speck closer to Jeremy. Since his friends had left, he'd moved his chair next to hers. If she shifted her leg ever so slightly, it would touch his thigh. She felt downright excited by the thought.

  Jeremy looked devastatingly handsome in the candlelight, sexy and somewhat dangerous -- at least dangerous to her, to her good sense, to her plan of finding Serena and going home.

  "Crystal?"

  The name shattered the intimacy between them. Good Lord! What was she doing? She wasn't Crystal. She was Maggie. Or maybe she was Crystal. Maggie certainly wouldn't have gone to a bar with a man she didn't even know. Great. Now, she was thinking of herself in the third person.

  "What did I say?" Jeremy asked, his gaze roaming across her face. "You look frightened."

  Maggie licked her lips. "I should be going."

  "Why? Because I know you're not a friend of Serena's?" He paused. "Are you out to hurt her? Because if you are, as her neighbor, I would in good conscience have to stop you. If you're not, why don't you tell me what's going on?"

  She was tempted to do just that, but the story sounded so ridiculous even to her own ears that she couldn't imagine telling this man, this stranger, that she didn't trust her own husband. Still, she had to tell him something.

  "All right. I'm not her friend. But I don't want to hurt her," Maggie said hastily. "She's a friend of a friend, and I need to ask her something."

  Jeremy smiled somewhat sardonically. "That really clears things up for me."

  "I'm sorry. It's complicated."

  "You're very beautiful."

  Maggie's mouth dropped open at his blunt statement, which had completely changed the subject. "Uh -- thank you. I've always been partial to candlelight."

  "It's not the light. It's you."

  The look in his eyes was pure male, pure desire. She hadn't seen that look in a long time, and it made her ache. She wished she knew what to say, how to act.

  "You're scared of me, aren't you? I wish you weren't."

  "You're a stranger. I don't know you at all. You could be a serial killer for all I know." Good heavens. He could be just that! And she was sitting here alone with him in a town where she knew no one, where sex and drugs and women who ended up dead after a drink with a stranger were commonplace.

  "Relax, Crystal. I'm not a serial killer."

  "Like you'd tell me if you were."

  "That's true."

  "And everyone says afterwards, 'But he was such a nice man, we never suspected a thing.'"

  "You're right." His brown eyes gleamed with amusement. "So, what are you going to do now?"

  She took a sip of wine. "Leave, I guess. That would be the safe thing to do, the smart thing to do."

  "Is that what you want to do?"

  Maggie ran her finger around the edge of her wine glass as she set it down on the table. "It's what I should do."

  "Do you always do the right thing?"

  "Always." She smiled at him. "I'm pretty boring that way. What about you?"

  "I'm not all that exciting either. I spend most of my days envisioning imaginary conversations with people who don't exist outside of my mind."

  "Oh, heck, I do that, too," Maggie said with a laugh. "And I'm not even a writer."

  "Don't leave." He covered her hand with his. "Live dangerously."

  Oh, my, she was tempted to do just that, especially with his warm fingers creating all sorts of delicious shivers down her spine.

  "You're not going to drive back to San Diego tonight, are you?" Jeremy continued. "You haven't seen Serena yet."

  "I have a feeling I may never see her." Maggie checked her watch. It was past seven. She needed to call the kids and check on Lisa, then find a hotel room. He was right about one thing; there was no point driving all the way home tonight. Plus, she could try to find Serena in the morning. "I think I'll stay in town, and see if I can catch up with Serena tomorrow."

  Jeremy nodded, pleased with her decision, "Good. Then we can have dinner. We'll take two cars. I promise not to lead you down any deserted roads. You can leave whenever you want. What do you say?"

  "If I say yes, will you let go of my hand?"

  He looked down at their hands, then grinned. "My insecurity is showing, huh?"

  She never would have suspected that this man could feel even an ounce of uncertainty. He seemed so confident, so strong, so alive. When she was with him, she felt a bit the same way.

  "Yes," she said. "To dinner, not your insecurity. But I have one condition. Tomorrow morning, you make sure Serena doesn't leave her house before I get there."

  "I'll do my best, but I can't make any promises." He shrugged. "Serena doesn't always come home at night, if you know what I mean. She has an active social life."

  "Is she really beautiful?" Maggie asked.

  "Gorgeous."

&nbs
p; Maggie's heart sank.

  Jeremy frowned, "Serena and I don't have anything going on, Crystal, if that's what you're thinking. We're neighbors, that's it. And even if we weren't neighbors, she'd never give me a second look."

  "Why not? You're very attractive."

  A gleam came into his eyes. "I am?"

  She felt herself turn red. "Yes. But you already know that."

  "It's nice to hear it from you. As far as Serena is concerned, I'm too footloose and fancy-free. Serena prefers her men with a few more attachments."

  "You mean like wives?"

  "Serena has this incredible fascination with wanting what she can't have. Instead of accepting that something is out of reach, she works that much harder to get it." He paused. "You really don't know her at all, do you?"

  "No."

  His eyes connected with hers. "What is it you need to ask her?"

  Maggie wanted to tell him the truth, but she couldn't. She wasn't ready to give up the pretense just yet. It was fun being a single woman for a change, and if she could keep the guilt at leaving her children out of her mind, she just might be able to enjoy a nice dinner in the company of a very nice man. Everything would end if she told him who she really was, a neurotic, anxiety-ridden single mom with three children and a deep suspicion that her husband had been having an affair.

  "I didn't think the question was that difficult." Jeremy sat back in his seat, studying her with an intensity she found very appealing. She'd had to fight for Keith's attention. They'd rarely had a conversation without the television on, one of the kids shouting about something, the phone ringing or Keith sneaking peeks at his scientific magazines the minute she got distracted. Now she was all alone with Jeremy, and he wanted to know her.

  Actually, he probably wanted sex, a one-night stand, she told herself. Not that she was going to provide it. She wasn't that crazy -- at least not yet. She'd just have dinner with him, flirt a little, then go home.

  "I'm still waiting," he said with a smile.

  "I need to ask Serena about a friend's husband. My friend found something of Serena's, and well, she's afraid her husband might be having an affair, and she wanted me to check things out for her."

  Jeremy's smile faded. "Maybe she'd be better off not knowing."

  "It's the not knowing that's driving her crazy."

  "And what if he is having an affair -- do you think your friend can handle it?"

  "I guess she'll have to." Maggie got to her feet, determined to change the subject before he discovered the mysterious friend was her. "If we're going to have dinner, let's go. I'm starved. I worked up quite an appetite today, and since I'm sure I burned off at least two-thousand calories, I'm ready to replace them."

  "Thank God, a woman who eats." Jeremy stood up, and they walked toward the door. "I may never let you go." His words were light, but his tone was serious.

  Maggie took a deep breath, feeling once again out of her league in this situation. She hadn't gone on a date in fourteen years, and she had no idea how to act. She just knew she had to make one thing perfectly clear. She put a hand on his arm, stopping him at the door.

  "Jeremy?" She hesitated, then took a deep breath. "I'm not going to sleep with you tonight. I just wanted you to know that."

  He smiled at her. "I can live with that. Is that what you think this is about?"

  "Isn't it?"

  "Sex is pretty easy to come by in this town."

  "So, you weren't thinking about -- you know."

  "Oh, I was definitely thinking about it. I still am." He pulled her to one side of the doorway as another couple pushed past them. "You stated your intentions clearly up front, so I'm going to state mine." He looked deep into her eyes. "Before you leave tomorrow, you and I are going to share one hell of a kiss."

  Maggie swallowed hard. "I can live with that."

  * * *

  The phone rang just as the ten o'clock news came on the television. Lisa turned down the sound and reached for the phone, hoping it was Maggie. "Hello."

  "Hi, it's me," said Maggie. "How is everyone?"

  Lisa felt an enormous sense of relief at the sound of her friend's voice. After the hectic evening she'd spent with her mother, Nick and the kids, she needed to talk to someone who really understood her. "Maggie. Thank goodness. I was beginning to worry when you didn't call back."

  "I got a little distracted. How are the kids?"

  "They're great. Mary Bea crashed early. The birthday party wiped her out. Dylan's asleep, too, but I think Roxy might be up if you want to talk to her."

  "In a minute. Tell me first about you. Are you holding up okay? Should I come home?"

  "No, I'm fine." Lisa leaned back against the pillows on Maggie's bed. "Tell me what you've been up to."

  "A whole lot of exercise," Maggie said with a laugh.

  "That sounds good. Are you still feeling stressed?"

  "Not as much as I was. In fact, I feel better than I have in ages."

  "I'm so glad."

  "Thanks for rescuing me, Lisa."

  "It was my pleasure."

  "I can see why you like the big city. It's got a pulse, an excitement that I haven't felt in a long time."

  Lisa sat up in the bed, disturbed by Maggie's choice of words. "The big city? Where are you, Maggie? I thought you were in San Diego."

  Maggie uttered a small laugh. "I was -- last night. I'm in Beverly Hills at some incredibly posh hotel that's probably going to set me back a month's mortgage payment."

  "Oh, my God, you went looking for that woman."

  "Guilty."

  "Did you find her?"

  "Not yet. I'm hoping to see her tomorrow." Maggie paused for a long moment. "I think she might be a hooker."

  "What?"

  "You know, a call girl."

  "What on earth would she have wanted with Keith?" Lisa groaned as the foolish words fled from her mouth. "I'm sorry. I'm sure she had a legitimate reason for contacting Keith."

  "I'm not so sure. Everything is different here, Lisa. And I can't help remembering the fact that Keith took several trips to L.A. in the few months before he died."

  "Maggie, come home," Lisa ordered.

  "I can't. Not yet. I have to know."

  "Why? What good will come of it? Keith's gone. Whatever relationship he had with this woman is over. Why not just let yourself believe it was innocent?"

  "Because it's driving me crazy," Maggie said. "I want to know. I want to understand. I want to be free of the stress and the tension. And every step I take seems to bring me closer to that freedom."

  Lisa switched the phone to her other ear. "So, what time do you think you'll be home tomorrow?"

  "I'm not sure. I'll call you in the morning. And Lisa?"

  "What?"

  "If for some reason I need to stay until Monday, is there any way you could cover for me?"

  Another day with Nick? Impossible. Lisa could hear the strains of music coming from his guitar right now. He'd taken it out to the backyard so as not to wake the kids, but Maggie's bedroom was right over the deck, and Lisa could hear every note of the haunting melody.

  How could she stay here with him? How could she listen to his music, hear his voice, watch his smile, feel his warmth? How could she do all that and address her wedding invitations at the same time? She looked down at the box on the bed. She'd brought it with her, knowing that the invitations absolutely had to go out on Monday. She'd already procrastinated far too long for good taste and proper etiquette. Now, she had to do it while her ex-husband played love songs. Life was full of irony.

  "Lisa, did you fall asleep on me?" Maggie asked.

  Lisa started at the voice in her ear. "Sorry, I was thinking about my schedule."

  "I wouldn't ask if it wasn't important. I have to find Serena. I have to end this."

  "All right, I'll stay until Monday, if you need me."

  "Thanks, you're the best."

  "You're the only one who thinks so. Nick's here, too, Maggie."

&
nbsp; Maggie drew in a quick breath. "He is? I thought he was out of town. That's why I called you. Are you two..."

  "I don't know what we are," Lisa said with a sigh. "I look at him and it feels like yesterday. But it was eight years ago when we were together, a lifetime. Everything should be different, but somehow it seems very much the same. He took me to the house today."

  "Oh, dear." Maggie's husky murmur said it all. "I'm sorry. I didn't do this to throw you two together."

  "I know. Nick wants to stay here until you get back. The kids really love him, and they want him to stay, so I said it was okay."

  "Is it okay with you?"

  Lisa had a lie ready and willing to be told, but this was Maggie after all, her very best friend. "I'm a little scared." She looked up at the ceiling as Nick's music played through her soul. "I loved him so much. I'd forgotten just how much until I saw him again. I try to remember how bad it was at the end, but instead I keep thinking about all the good times."

  "Is that so bad?"

  "Yes, it is! I'm getting married in a few weeks, Maggie. In fact, I'm sending out the invitations on Monday. Once I do that, I can't turn back."

  "Then don't do it, not until you're sure."

  "I am sure. At least, I think I am."

  "Lisa, hang on a second."

  Lisa frowned as she heard Maggie call to someone in the background that she'd be there in a minute. Then Maggie giggled like a schoolgirl.

  "Maggie, is someone with you?" Lisa asked.

  "Uh, sort of."

  "Who is it?"

  "You don't know him."

  "Him?" Lisa squealed. "It's a him? You have a him in your hotel room?"

  "Lisa, I have to go. I'll call you tomorrow."

  "You're not hanging up until you tell me what's going on," Lisa said, but the only reply she received from Maggie was a dial tone.

  Chapter Nine

  Sunday morning the kids and Nick slept late, which gave Lisa a chance to finish addressing her wedding invitations and down two cups of strong, caffeinated coffee. She'd slept little the night before, her dreams a mix and match of old and new, Nick and Raymond, Maggie, the kids, her old house, her current apartment and the robin, of course.

  As she carried her cup to the sink, she heard the faint sound of a bird, and she couldn't help looking out the window. The robin was sitting on a branch, singing his heart out to no apparent avail. Then the singing stopped as the robin seemed to stare right at her.