“Hello?”
“Oh, uh, hi. Jason. It’s Penny.”
“I recognized your voice,” he said, and sounded pleased to hear from her. “How was your spa day?”
“Fabulous,” she said. “Actually, one of the reasons I was calling was to thank you.”
“You already thanked me.”
“Not as profusely as I would have if I’d known how truly wonderful the experience was going to be.”
“Did your sister enjoy it, too?”
“So much that she’s ready to join the Jason Foley fan club.”
“I have a fan club?”
She laughed. “Not really, no. At least not that I’m aware of.”
“Well, you’re welcome anyway. But you said that was one of your reasons for calling.”
“Yeah. I also wanted to let you know that I have a doctor’s appointment Tuesday.”
“Is something wrong? Are you feeling okay?”
“Nothing’s wrong,” she assured him. “I’m fine. It’s just a checkup.”
“Oh. Okay. What time is it?”
“Two o’clock.”
“Are you just keeping me informed, or are you asking me to go with you?”
She knew he expected her to balk, and maybe there was a part of her that wanted to, that wanted to keep this baby all to herself. But she knew that wouldn’t be fair, that this was too important for her to shut him out.
“That’s up to you,” she said.
“I’ll pick you up at the store,” he told her.
“I can meet you—”
“I’ll pick you up,” he repeated.
She sighed. “You’re pushing again.”
“I’m being environmentally conscious—saving you gas, since we’re both going in the same direction,” he countered.
“You have an answer for everything, don’t you?”
“Not yet,” he said. “But I’m working on it.”
And that was precisely why she was worried.
When Jason arrived at McCord Jewelers Tuesday afternoon, the first thing he noticed was that the Santa Magdalena Diamond had been given a place of honor at the center of the showroom floor. Set atop a pedestal inside a glass case and spotlighted, it was shown to full advantage. Certainly, anyone gazing upon the gem would be attracted by its beauty, and alarmed to learn of its history.
Originally mined in India, the Santa Magdalena Diamond had apparently caused misfortune to everyone who had ever owned it, so maybe it wasn’t so surprising that Paige and Travis had decided to donate the diamond to the Smithsonian rather than risk being subjected to its reputed curse. But using it on an interim basis to generate traffic through the store was another brilliant idea. And apparently a successful one, as the sales staff were all busy with customers, while still others were avidly browsing.
“It seems busy for a Tuesday afternoon,” he commented to Penny when she joined him.
“Business has been good. Partly, it’s the season—we’re always busy between Thanksgiving and Christmas. But busier this year, I think, because of the diamond. We haven’t had a quiet moment in the store since it was put on display.”
“That was the point, wasn’t it?”
“Yes, as much as I’m sure it disappoints you, the McCord fortunes seem to be turning around.”
“Believe it or not, I’m not disappointed at all,” he told her.
Penny didn’t know what to believe, especially when she herself had mixed feelings about the gem. She was happy it had been found, grateful it was helping to resolve the family’s financial woes, and still a little resentful that it had meant so much to Jason that he’d used her to try to get information about the search for it.
The Santa Magdalena Diamond was a status symbol to him, and finding it—especially if he’d been able find it before the McCords did—would have been quite the coup. There were times she couldn’t help but wonder if he thought of their baby in the same way. If it was all about the acquisition to him. And if, as soon as she gave in to his demands, he wouldn’t want her or their child anymore.
“And in case you didn’t hear,” he continued, “the Foley-McCord feud is over.”
Jason’s comment snapped her out of her reverie.
“I thought that was just a rumor,” she said lightly.
“You don’t believe it?”
“I’m reserving judgment.”
“In that case, I will do everything I can to prove it to you.”
Penny knew he would, and what worried her was how much she already wanted to believe him.
The doctor’s surprise upon seeing Jason come into the examining room with Penny was obvious.
“I’m Jason Foley,” he said, introducing himself before Penny could—or maybe because he suspected that Penny wouldn’t. “The baby’s father.”
Dr. Brennan looked askance at the mother-to-be. Apparently, she remembered Penny telling her that the baby’s father wasn’t around and wouldn’t be involved in the pregnancy or birth. Which had obviously been wishful thinking on her part.
She put her regrets aside as the doctor went through the usual checkup routine, including the measuring of her blood pressure and her weight. Penny kicked off her shoes before stepping on the scale, as if that would make a difference. And while the doctor didn’t comment on her action, her raised brows told Penny that it hadn’t gone unnoticed.
After noting an additional three-pound gain on her chart, Dr. Brennan excused herself for a moment. That wasn’t a usual part of the routine, which of course made Penny wonder about it.
“We usually do an ultrasound at twenty weeks,” the doctor told Penny and Jason when she returned. “But we have a room and a machine available, so I’d like to take a look at your baby today.”
Penny swallowed. “You think something’s wrong with the baby?”
Jason moved closer and took her hand.
For a minute, she’d almost forgotten he was there. But now she was glad of his presence and his support. If there was something wrong, if she’d done something—
“I don’t think anything’s wrong,” the doctor’s assurance interrupted her panicked thoughts. “But I have some questions that an ultrasound may be able to answer.”
“Can I stay for the test?” Jason asked.
“As long as it’s okay with Penny,” Dr. Brennan said.
Making it impossible for Penny to refuse.
But she really was grateful he was there with her. The doctor didn’t seem overly concerned, but she’d probably done hundreds of ultrasounds and delivered hundreds of babies. This was Penny’s first, and she was terrified. She’d been doing everything the doctor and the pregnancy books said—okay, ice cream intake excluded—but what if she’d done something wrong before she knew she was pregnant? What if she was somehow responsible for harming their baby?
As if cognizant of her thoughts, Jason squeezed her hand reassuringly as they followed the doctor to another room.
The bed had been prepped and Penny was given a sheet to cover up her lower body.
“Do you want me to wait outside?” Jason asked.
“You’re not going to see anything you haven’t seen before,” she reminded him, even as she wished she could forget that he’d seen it all as recently as a week and a half earlier.
She wriggled out of her skirt and draped it neatly over the back of the chair. Then she hopped up on the bed and unfolded the sheet she’d been given. All the while, Jason pretended to be engrossed in a series of posters depicting the stages of a baby’s development through pregnancy. Or maybe he wasn’t pretending. Maybe he really was interested in what their baby looked like right now.
When the doctor came back in, she took the chair near the bed and directed Jason to stand on the other side, so that he could see the image that would be visible on the screen. Then she folded down the sheet and squirted some warm gel on Penny’s tummy, spreading it around with a plastic probe—a transducer she called it, and explained that it transmitted the echoes of the s
ound waves into a picture on the monitor.
“Well, that explains it,” Dr. Brennan said.
“What?” Penny stared at the screen but couldn’t really decipher anything other than a dark, elongated oval with two lighter colored shapes inside.
Two?
She blinked.
Maybe the doctor’s equipment was out of whack. That was the only explanation she could think of for there to be two images, almost like mirrors of one another. Unless—
Dr. Brennan smiled. “You’re going to have twins.”
Penny stared at the monitor, but she refused to believe what she could see with her own eyes. She’d barely had a chance to adjust to the idea of one baby and now the doctor was suggesting there were two babies?
“What do you mean? How can there be twins?”
Dr. Brennan pointed at the screen. “As you can clearly see, there are two babies in there. And the presence of those two babies explains your excessive tiredness and unusual weight gain.”
“I can’t have two babies,” Penny protested. “I don’t know what to do with one.”
“That’s a common concern of first-time mothers who learn they’re carrying twins,” the doctor said, as if that might reassure her. “Having a baby requires some major lifestyle changes, so having two babies requires even more.
“But you’re fortunate,” Dr. Brennan continued, “in that you have an interested partner willing to share both the joys and trials of pregnancy and parenthood with you.”
Penny managed a weak smile, though she thought the doctor was being rather presumptuous considering that Jason had, so far, been present at one appointment.
A thought which made her realize that Jason hadn’t said a single word since he’d come into the room, and she wondered if he was feeling as shell-shocked as she was. But when she glanced over at him, she saw that he didn’t look stunned or panicked, he looked…awed. As if he had never seen anything more amazing than the sight of those two tiny little hearts beating on the screen. And in that moment, something inside her own heart softened.
Chapter Nine
When Jason suggested picking up something for dinner, Penny didn’t object. Of course, he probably could have suggested they go straight to the airport and catch the next flight to Vegas and she would have nodded, still with that deer-in-the-headlights look in her eyes. And he couldn’t deny that the thought did cross his mind, but he’d meant what he’d said to his father. He didn’t want to manipulate her, and that’s what it would be if he took advantage of her current state of shock to pursue his own agenda.
He stopped at the supermarket near his condo to pick up a few groceries, and it was only when he parked the car that Penny seemed to register where they were. She got out when he did and followed him into the store. He grabbed a basket and started toward the produce section. He picked out some red and yellow peppers, a head of broccoli, a bunch of carrots, a zucchini, some spring onions and a handful of shiitake mushrooms. Penny didn’t say a word, even though he knew broccoli wasn’t one of her favorite vegetables.
He led the way toward meat and poultry, where he picked out a nice lean steak, because the doctor had said that red meat was a good source of iron. Again, Penny followed wordlessly behind him. Her unusual silence was really starting to worry him, so when they cut down the aisle with baby essentials on their way to the checkout and they were walking past a tower of diapers, Jason couldn’t resist teasing, “Think we should start stocking up on those now?”
And Penny burst into tears.
He put the basket down in the middle of the floor and pulled her into his arms. She came willingly, burying her face in his shoulder to muffle her sobs.
If he was surprised that she turned to him rather than away, he didn’t waste too much time thinking about it. He was too busy enjoying the feel of her soft curves pressed against him. He rubbed her back gently, murmured reassuringly, although he wasn’t exactly sure what he was reassuring her about.
After a few minutes—and more than a few curious glances from passers by—the flood of tears had reduced to a trickle.
She said something then, but her words were muffled against his shirt. So he dipped his head toward her and, inhaling the familiar fresh citrus scent of her shampoo, realized it was just one of the many things he’d missed about her.
“What did you say?” he asked gently.
She drew back, just a little. “I said, I d-don’t even know how t-to change a d-diaper.”
“Well, we’ve got some time to figure that out.”
“I d-don’t know how t-to do anything.”
“We’ll figure it all out,” he said. “Everything will be okay.”
She tipped her head back to look up at him. Her green eyes were red-rimmed and shimmering with tears, her nose was red, and her cheeks were streaked, but she was still beautiful. And still wary. “How do you know?”
“Because we’re going to take it one step at a time,” he told her. “Together.”
After her meltdown in the middle of the grocery store, Penny just wanted to go home and hide under the covers of her bed forever—or at least until after her baby was born.
Babies, she mentally amended, and nearly melted down again.
Clearly, her pregnancy hormones were out of control, and while hiding under the covers still seemed like a good idea, she knew that she had to talk to Jason first. But not until after dinner. She tended to avoid confrontation at the best of times, and an empty stomach was definitely not the best of times.
Even though Jason ate out so often during office hours—whether with business associates or just grabbing a bite on the run—he’d learned to cook so that he could enjoy a homemade meal every once in a while. Penny used to think she was a decent cook, but his abilities in the kitchen put her efforts to shame. And even after a long day at the office, he never complained about putting in some extra time in the kitchen. And his cooking was one of the perks she’d enjoyed while they were dating.
While Jason chopped and diced, Penny sat back and watched. His movements were easy and sure, and without a cookbook in sight. When the veggies were prepared, he dumped them into a large glass bowl and set it aside. A new knife, a new cutting board and the steak was cut into long thin slices.
Watching him reminded her of being at one of those Japanese restaurants where the chef does all the cooking in front of the customers. Except that she’d been intimately involved with this chef, and watching Jason’s hands chop and mix and stir with such effortless mastery brought to mind memories of those hands moving with the same effortless mastery over all the erogenous zones of her body.
He drizzled olive oil into the deep frying pan, then tossed in the garlic cloves he’d crushed, and the sizzle and scent made her mouth water. Or maybe it was the delicious man in front of the stove who really made her mouth water.
“What are you thinking?” Jason asked her.
She couldn’t very well tell him the truth, so she went for the next thought that popped into her mind.
“I was thinking that two babies mean I have twice as many reasons to be terrified.” And it was absolutely true, even if it hadn’t been what she was thinking in the moment.
“I thought I was the only one who was scared.”
She stole a slice of pepper from the bowl while he wasn’t looking. “And I didn’t think anything scared you.”
“Neither did I, until you told me that you were pregnant.”
“You didn’t show any signs of panic.”
He shrugged as he stirred the meat. “I wouldn’t be a very effective negotiator in the boardroom if I didn’t know how to hide my feelings.”
“And your motives.” The words were out before she could stop them, or maybe she didn’t even try.
“You’re right,” he admitted. “Although I’m usually more forthright in my personal life than in my business dealings, the line got a little blurred when we were together.”
“For you, maybe. I didn’t even know there was a li
ne.”
“I think we’re getting a little off-topic here.” He dumped the veggies into the pan, added the stir-fry sauce he’d already whisked together—again without a recipe.
“You’re right. I’m sorry. But I honestly don’t see how we can come to any agreement about anything when I can’t trust that you mean what you say.”
“I never told you anything that wasn’t true,” he told her.
“You just never told me the whole truth.”
“I’m telling you the whole truth now. I want to be with you, Penny, and to be a father to our babies.”
He dished up the stir-fry, setting one bowl in front of Penny and one on the other side of the table. She picked up her fork, though she suddenly wasn’t feeling very hungry.
“I also think,” Jason continued, “that two babies need two parents on hand.”
She wasn’t fooled by his easy tone—she wasn’t going to be fooled by anything he said again. So she didn’t want to admit that she was feeling more than a little unnerved by the thought of handling twins on her own, especially remembering that her mother had often said two babies were about ten times as much work as one. On the other hand, her meltdown in the supermarket had probably given him at least a hint of her feelings.
“Maybe I could hire a nanny,” she suggested.
He sighed. “You’re right. There are other options. But I want to be involved, Penny. Let me help. Please.”
Maybe it was that he’d asked instead of demanded. Maybe it was just that she was feeling more than a little panicked. But whatever the reason, she found herself actually considering his offer.
“Okay,” she finally said. “You can hire the nanny. You can more easily afford it, anyway.”
“I don’t want to hire someone.” He stabbed a piece of steak with his fork. “I want to marry you.”
She shook her head, but not as vigorously as she might have three days—or even three hours—earlier. “Don’t you think a wedding would cause more problems than it solves?” she asked him.
“No, I don’t,” he replied, and sounded as if he really meant it.
She pushed her empty bowl away. Obviously, she’d been hungrier than she’d realized, or the babies were, anyway. And just thinking babies nearly sent her into a tailspin again.
The Texas Tycoon’s Christmas Baby Page 10