Riley was sitting straight up in her seat by then. “Vic? A client of Asher’s?”
Misha raked a hand through her healthy shoulder-length tresses and smirked. “I don’t get why you’re surprised. It wouldn’t take much more than Vic mentioning he was on your staff to do the deed.” She popped a chunk of ice into her mouth and crunched. “Asher Hudson may be the most shrewd agent in the business, but he’s like an eager-to-please little boy when it comes to you.”
Riley looked away, downing the rest of her ginger ale as she stood and began to pace her office while Misha rambled on. An eager-to-please little boy was a far cry from the unyielding man she’d left a couple of weeks earlier. God, what if he had to come to New York on business? How would she handle it? How would they handle seeing each other after the drama that had exploded between them?
Maybe she wouldn’t have to suffer it. He was as stubborn as she was. He probably wouldn’t even grace her with his presence. Riley managed a smile at the thought and ignored the warning cries that said the dramatics of the situation were just beginning.
Three weeks later…
Talib Mason scratched his whisker-roughened cheek and regarded his partner with a cool grin. “Isn’t there some law against using business funds for pleasure trips?”
Asher didn’t bother to look away from the PDA he was tinkering with. “Whatever do you mean?” he murmured.
Talib’s grin simply broadened. “Come off it. Your business for Victor Lyne? Hell, that won’t take up nearly as much time as business with your lovely wife.”
Gracing his friend with a narrowed gaze, Asher shrugged. “One of the perks of being the boss.”
“Well, it’s good to see you smile, anyway,” Talib noted, rubbing his fingers through the full mass of waves on his head. “You’ve been like the walking dead for the past six weeks.”
Asher stood then and cursed Riley below his breath. “Why the hell does she have to fight me so? Why can’t she just…submit, just once give in?” He turned when Talib’s deep, British-laced accent filled the air.
“Would you love her nearly as much as you do if she gave in to you on something that means so much to her?”
Asher’s expression relayed a quiet confidence. “I can change her mind.”
“And you really think that’s the best way to go at this?”
Asher waved off Talib’s concerns.
“Maybe you should—”
“What? Wait for her to come around?”
“I was going to say compromise.”
“I’m heading to New York. That’s compromise enough.”
This time it was Talib’s turn to wave off Asher.
“All right then, how’s this for a compromise? By the time I’m done with her, she’ll go anywhere I ask.”
Easing a hand into his trouser pocket, Talib stood as though in awe. “Seduction? You really think you could seduce a woman like that into following you back here?”
Asher smirked. “She’s my wife.”
“She’s a hard-as-nails journalist, and she’s no fool.”
“And I, my friend, am very persuasive.”
Talib laughed then. “Tell me you’re not foolish enough to believe this could work.”
Asher walked past Talib and clapped a hand on his back. “If it doesn’t work, I’ll think of something else. But you can bet your ass, I’ll have a helluva time trying.” Growing serious then, he crossed his arms over the front of the sandalwood crew-neck shirt he wore. “I’m not sure she believes I love her enough, Tal. I don’t think she quite believes me when I say she’s mine and I’m hers—forever.” Closing his eyes against the dazzling Phoenix landscape past the office windows, he turned back to Talib. “Giving her an ultimatum was the last thing I should’ve done. But I would’ve said anything to get her to stay.”
“Why would you let things go that far?” Talib took a seat on the edge of the desk.
“Her living in New York scares the hell out of me.” He slapped his hands on the windowsill. “It scares me more since we got married.”
“Understandable. So tell her then.”
“I would.” Asher turned back to the view. “Then she’ll want to know why, and I’m not ready to tell her that story.”
“Ash—”
“I don’t need her feelin’ sorry for me because I froze up, did nothing…”
“I think she’ll probably feel proud when she learns what really happened there.”
“Humph. Right.”
Talib stopped himself from saying more and silently prayed that his two stubborn friends could somehow cross the bridge that was beginning to separate them.
“This better be damn good at one a.m.,” Misha slurred, scratching at the scarf that covered her head while she leaned against her front door.
Riley brushed past Misha and walked into her posh Manhattan condo. “Am I interrupting anything?” she whispered.
“Unfortunately not.”
“Good. I’ve made a mess of things. Such a mess of things,” Riley chanted, pulling her sweater more tightly around her frame.
Misha yawned. “I take it this is about Asher?”
“Yes and no.”
“Hmm…mysterious. Will this be a lengthy confession? Should I put on coffee?” Misha was already turning for her kitchen.
Riley blinked absently. “I don’t know if I should.” She settled on the edge of an armchair.
“Lord, you’re talkin’ crazy. Here.” Misha pulled Riley from the chair she’d chosen and led her to the one next to a floor vent, where soothing heat rushed out to warm the room. “September’s already chilly as hell. We’re in store for one cold winter.”
Riley barely listened to Misha’s rambling. Instead, she smoothed her hands across the cotton sweats she sported and continued to ponder her dilemma.
Misha stooped before her friend and wrapped her hands around the arms of the chair. “Talk to me,” she urged, shaking her head when Riley only closed her eyes. “Tell you what, let me go and get that coffee started first. Maybe it’ll loosen that tongue of yours.”
“Misha, wait. I, um, I don’t know if I should…”
“Sweetie, it’s only coffee.”
“I just don’t know if it’s good for…”
“For what?” Misha clutched the backs of Riley’s knees. “Honey, you’re scaring me.”
In response, Riley reached inside her sweater and pulled something from an inside pocket.
Misha’s dark gaze widened when she focused on the white plastic stick Riley handed her. Her arched brows lifted higher when she took note of the telltale plus sign in one of the clear ovals of the pregnancy test.
“Oh,” Misha breathed before pressing her free hand to Riley’s nonexistent waist. “Guess Asher was determined to leave an impression this time.”
“Guess so…I, um…have to admit I was a bit forgetful about some things while I was out there with him, namely, my birth control pills.” Riley covered her face with her hands and appeared to shiver anew.
Misha was laughing then as she pulled her friend into a tight squeeze. “Oh, congratulations, girl! This is the most incredible news! The most blessed news.”
Riley burst into tears then, and Misha joined in with tears of joy and laughter.
“So what did Asher say when you told him?” Misha folded her legs beneath her and watched with expectant eyes. When Riley simply shook her head, Misha’s expression turned from expectant to disbelieving.
“You haven’t told him?”
“I didn’t, um…I didn’t tell you all about my trip to see him in Phoenix.” Riley settled on the floor, next to Misha, and absorbed more of the flowing heat. “We didn’t part on good terms. He gave me an ultimatum.”
Misha tilted her head. “Ultimatum?”
“Either stay in Phoenix with him or forget our marriage.” Riley did an admirable job of staving off more tears as she spoke.
“No way,” Misha breathed, now bracing her hands behind her as she settled b
ack.
Feeling stronger, Riley stood to pace the room as she recounted the conversation with her husband.
Silence filled the living room for a long time after Riley shared the story. Misha experienced an uncharacteristic moment of uncertainty about what to say. Wincing in frustration, she tugged the scarf from her head and raked a hand through her wrapped tresses.
“Sweetie, I’m sure he’ll be thrilled when you tell him.”
“Misha, this is about more than that.”
“Oh, honey, when he hears about the baby, whatever problems you left in Phoenix will—”
“No, Misha, no. Are your forgetting that we aren’t like other couples?” Suddenly feeling overheated, Riley whipped the sweater from her back. “We don’t live under the same roof. Hell, we don’t even live in the same time zone.” Closing her eyes, she inhaled deeply before cupping her hands over her belly. “The baby in our future doesn’t change the fact that we’re at a stalemate.” She shrugged. “Neither of us is willing to compromise.”
“Do you love him?”
Riley blinked. “What?”
“Asher. Do you love him?”
“Yes.”
“More than the column?”
Riley hesitated and then shook her apprehension off. “Yes.”
Misha’s gaze narrowed in a telling manner. “But?”
Riley wouldn’t pretend and reclaimed her place in the armchair. “The column, my career…It’s always been there, and it never changes.”
“Ah.” Misha flexed her toes toward the vent. “So you love it because it doesn’t change, and yet that’s exactly what you want Asher to do.”
“I don’t.”
“Don’t you?” Misha gave her a saucy wink. “Honey, you’re forgetting that I’ve been there since the two of you got together. Asher’s wanted you—all of you—since then. He’s never made a secret of it, and you stayed with him, loved him and married him, anyway.”
“I do love him.”
“I know, and you also thought that you could change him.” Misha sat crossed-legged in the middle of the floor. “Men like Asher Hudson don’t change. You want ’em, you gotta take ’em as they are.”
The words frustrated Riley more and more. She felt the overheated sensation course through her once more. “Dammit, Misha, Asher knows how to compromise. It’s what he does for a living.”
Misha didn’t bother to tell her friend that the fact that Asher Hudson didn’t compromise was probably why he was so successful.
“Maybe I could…persuade him to come around to my way of thinking. Who knows?”
“Oh, honey, is it really so hard to be the bigger person here? No pun intended.” Misha cast a humorous glance toward Riley’s tummy. “You’re about to have a baby with the man you love. It’s surprising how many women are never able to boast about that.” Satisfied that she’d provided the more thorough argument, Misha stood. “In the end, isn’t it about what’s best for my little nephew? What kind of life will he have being with two parents who can’t even decide where to live?”
Riley reached for her sweater and began to fidget with the frayed sleeves.
For a second time, Misha tilted her head. “My God…Are you thinking of not telling him?”
“I haven’t decided yet.” Riley had the decency to admit it.
“Coffee for me. Herbal tea for you.” Misha decided to leave and prepare the beverages, instead of telling the mother-to-be that she was being an idiot. Before she left the room, however, she turned, with a last bit of advice.
“Don’t play with this man, hon. Especially not when he’s your husband.”
“A baby’s not a reason to stay together,” Riley continued, watching Misha, with hurt and defiance filling her eyes. “I know that better than anyone. It’s hell on the parents, but that makes it three times as hard on the kid.”
“So what?” Misha challenged. “You really think you could even get away with not telling him this?”
“He’s in Phoenix.”
“And you just figure you won’t see him for the next nine months?”
“We’re practically on two different coasts. I think it could be arranged.”
Misha propped a hand on the waistband of her gold sleep pants. “And what if he comes here for Vic?”
“That’s just a rumor.”
“Mmm-hmm…And when the baby comes?”
Riley’s cool vanished somewhat. “Then I guess we’ll be having this conversation again.”
“The test was accurate, love. You’re pregnant.”
Riley gave a refreshing sigh and nodded over the confirmation.
Dr. Lettia Breene cocked her head. “Have you told Asher yet, hon?”
Riley laughed. “That’s the question of the week.”
Lettia smiled and slipped a pen into the front pocket of her crisp white coat. “I know how…unorthodox your situation is. I know it makes things more difficult, but you need to be aware that keeping your stress level low is of the highest importance.” Turning back to her desk, Lettia leaned over the front and scribbled a prescription for prenatal vitamins. “Contact me with any side effects you may experience after taking these.” Lettia passed Riley the prescription. “These things affect each woman differently, and we may need to make some adjustments.” Lettia’s firm expression softened into one of sweet delight as she pulled Riley into a hug.
“Congratulations, girl.” She pressed a kiss to Riley’s cheek. “Stop by the front desk, and my assistant will give you the next appointment date.” She gave Riley a quick shake. “Next time we meet, I expect to see that worry gone from your eyes.”
Outside her doctor’s office, Riley leaned against her Mustang and groaned. Telling Asher about the baby would relieve the lion share of her stress. And where would that leave things? He’d never relent on trying to get her to move to Phoenix then. Shaking off the unease, Riley reached into the pocket of the lightweight lavender jacket she wore. She was in search of her phone when the chimes sounded to signal her next appointment. As she was already late, her thoughts shifted away from Asher and back to business as she rushed off.
Bastian Grovers smiled knowingly when he looked up from checking his PDA and saw his lunch date arriving at the Shell.
“Damn,” Riley moaned spotting the empty tea glass and used linen napkin on the table. “And I had my heart set on the shrimp Alfredo.” She closed her eyes in regret when Bastian patted his stomach.
“And, boy, was it good,” he proclaimed. “I ordered after trying your cell for the fifth time.”
“Please forgive me.” Riley thought back to her doctor’s appointment. “It couldn’t be helped.”
“No worries. I managed to handle a bit of paperwork I’d been putting off as well.” Bastian set aside his work and focused on Riley more closely. “Are you okay? You look tired—around the eyes.”
It felt good to drop the facade. “I could use a nap, but I wanted to be here for our talk.” Riley took one final refreshing sigh. “So do I have time to hear the condensed version of what you wanted to discuss?”
“Walk me to my car while we talk?” he bartered.
“So how much farther before I find out what’s on your mind?”
Bastian grinned and nudged Riley’s shoulder with his own. “I need a favor, Riley.”
She slowed her steps and squeezed his arm. “You okay?”
Clearing his throat, Bastian forced a more calming expression to his face. “It’s a professional favor.”
“Professional, huh? Now what could a lowly columnist do for a high-powered sports editor like yourself?”
“Forget it.” Bastian was rolling his eyes as he grimaced. “You could give my entire team a run for its money. You have on several occasions, as I recall.”
“So what’s this about, then? You don’t look too eager to tell me.” Riley tilted her head for a closer look at his face.
Bastian’s grimace sparked the faint dimple in his cheek. “It’s about Victor Lyne.”
<
br /> Riley closed her eyes in realization. “Well, well, my little researcher’s name is getting around town like a rocket these days.”
“You mean someone else already asked you for the story?” Bastian seemed to groan.
“Huh?” Riley didn’t mind letting her bewilderment show. “Would it be too much to ask you to start from the beginning?”
Bastian stopped walking and pressed a hand to the front of his champagne suit coat. “I want the exclusive on the newest addition to the New Jersey franchise.”
“That’s still speculation.” Riley shrugged and looked down. “Besides, I haven’t seen or spoken to Vic since I got back from Phoenix.”
“I was sure Asher would’ve mentioned it, seeing as how he’s Vic’s rep.”
Bastian spoke in an absent tone, and Riley didn’t bother with a response. Silently, she acknowledged her surprise—and suspicion.
“Bottom line, Riley, is that we want to officially break the story about his signing.”
“Um, Bastian—” Riley tucked a clipped lock of hair behind her ear “—you do recall that Vic works just one floor down from you?” They’d reached Bastian’s SUV, and Riley leaned against the back.
Bastian moved close. “I’m asking you because we’re tight, and I know your…interest in sports matters. You may be thinking of running the scoop.”
“It never crossed my mind.” Riley brought her hands together in a loud clap. “But it’s not even about that. It’s up to Vic to share the story—if there is one—with whomever he chooses.”
“So what do you think?”
Riley tugged on the lapel of his suit. “I think I have no interest in running an exposé on my fact finder’s moonlighting. You’ve got my blessing.”
Bastian clenched a fist in triumph and then pulled Riley into a tight hug and planted a lengthy kiss on her mouth.
Riley laughed. “You may want to learn to control those emotions when you ask for stories. Everyone doesn’t know you as well as I do.”
Hudsons Crossing Page 10