Circle of Friends Complete Collection

by Susan Mallery

  “Some mothers are just a little too dramatic for their own good,” he said, bending down and kissing her on the cheek. “You remember Rachel.”

  His mother, an attractive, petite woman smiled broadly at Rachel, then held out both her arms. “Of course. Welcome, welcome.”

  Rachel found herself hugged, then kissed on the cheek. “Thanks for having me, Mrs. Brockett.”

  “Nina. I insist.” She nudged Carter with her elbow. “We’ll have her calling me Mama like everyone else before too long, eh? So what’s this? You made something. See? A girl who can cook. That’s new for you. A step up. Come, come. We’re all in the kitchen. No matter how nice I make the rest of the house, everyone wants to be in the kitchen.”

  “It’s Carter and Rachel,” Nina called as she led the way into the overly crowded kitchen. “Carter, remind her who everyone is. Oh, what’s this, dear?” She took the casserole dish from Carter.

  “A seven-layer dip,” Rachel said. “Carter mentioned you always had chips on hand.”

  “You didn’t have to bring anything, but I appreciate that you did. Very thoughtful. Carter, she’s thoughtful. Did you notice?”

  Rachel felt herself blush but before she could say anything, she was caught up in another confusing round of introductions.

  There were too many people in the small space. Adults, kids, a large dog.

  Carter pointed to his sisters. “Merry, Liz and Shelly,” he said. “Their husbands are Adam, Frank and Gordon.”

  She recognized the three men who had visited her the previous week, although now that they were in casual clothes instead of their uniforms, she wasn’t sure who was who. As for Carter’s sisters, she was pretty sure that Merry had short dark hair and Shelly had long brown hair, but if anyone got a haircut, she was in trouble for sure.

  “And you remember Jenny, from the Blue Dog Bar, right?” Carter asked.

  Jenny?

  Rachel turned and found herself staring into the smiling face of the pretty female bartender.

  “Hi,” Jenny said. “Good to see you again.”

  “Hello.”

  Rachel opened her mouth and closed it. She didn’t know how to politely ask what the woman was doing here. Staying in touch was one thing, but like this?

  “I’m an ex-girlfriend,” Jenny said, obviously reading Rachel’s confusion. “Carter and I dated for a while about...what, five years ago, I guess.”

  Carter put his arm around Rachel’s shoulder. “We broke up, but would she go away? Not even for money.”

  Jenny lightly punched him in the arm. “You never offered to pay me to leave. I might have left then.” She smiled at Rachel. “Carter’s a great guy, but he does seem to hang on to his women. Even when he dumps us.”

  Rachel didn’t know what to think. She’d never been in a situation like this, and she wasn’t sure what she should say or do.

  “You dumped me,” Carter said. “I’m sure of it.”

  “Sorry, no,” Jenny said with a smile. “But don’t sweat it. I’m grateful.” She turned back to Rachel. “Carter broke my heart, so I decided to date someone totally inappropriate. It turns out, Dan was the love of my life.” She held up her left hand and wiggled her ring finger. The diamond band there sparkled impressively. “We’ve been married three years now.”

  Just then a little girl burst into the kitchen. “Tanya stole the ball and she won’t let me play.” After her announcement, she burst into tears.

  “I’ll handle this,” Merry said. She picked up the child and carried her back outside. Jenny excused herself and went with her.

  Rachel found herself being offered a drink—she chose flavored water—and a chair, which she declined. A few minutes later, in a relatively private moment, she turned to Carter.

  “You and Jenny really went out?” she asked.

  He shrugged. “Yeah. But it was a long time ago. It doesn’t mean anything.”

  “I don’t mean to be rude or too curious, but why is she here?”

  “Sometimes my mom and sisters like one of my girlfriends enough to keep her around even after we stop going out. It’s made for some entertaining holidays, I can tell you.”

  “You mean several of them will join in with the family?”

  “Sure. It’s okay if they bring a date, but when they’re single, it’s a little uncomfortable. Or they become close friends. I dated this other woman, Shawna. She and Jenny got so close they were in each other’s weddings.”

  She was torn between wanting to get the facts and wondering if she’d crossed the line into the land of too much information.

  “I’m not sure this is a completely normal family,” she murmured.

  He leaned close enough for her to feel his breath on her ear. “I can tell you that it’s not, but that’s what makes it so much fun.”

  She was aware of every part of his body. The need to lean in—to touch and be touched—was powerful and just a little scary.

  “So, how are you two getting along?”

  Rachel jumped as Nina appeared from nowhere with a plate of tiny quiches.

  “We’re good,” Carter said as he took three quiches, placed them on a napkin and handed them to Rachel. “How about you? Having fun?”

  His mother ignored the question. “A baby changes everything. Have you thought of that? It’s not just you anymore. There’s another life.”

  Rachel was glad she hadn’t taken a bite. She had a bad feeling that she would have choked.

  “You’re kidding,” Carter said as he collected a couple of quiches for himself. “Another life. Huh. I didn’t know that. I just thought, ‘Hey, a baby. We’ll keep it on the bookcase.’”

  His mother glared at him. “I’m being serious.”

  “You’re meddling,” he said. “We talked about that.”

  His mother turned to Rachel. “You’re a sensible girl. What do your parents say about all this?”

  Rachel opened her mouth, then closed it. She cleared her throat. “My parents are gone. They died in a car accident when I was twelve. My baby brother was with them and he was killed as well.”

  She felt Carter’s gaze on her. Nina touched her arm. “So it’s just you? You have no other relatives?”

  Rachel managed a smile. “I’m okay.”

  “Of course you are,” the older woman said. “You have us, now. We’re your family. We’ll be there for you. No matter what. You have a problem, you call. Promise?”

  Rachel felt a tightness in her throat. “Thank you.”

  Nina smiled and moved away.

  “She’s trying to be supportive,” Carter said when they were alone.

  “I know. She wants me to feel welcome. Better that than stoning me or something.”

  “We gave up stoning a while ago.”

  “Good to know.”

  “Mama’s a little over-the-top,” he said. “But she’s right. You do have all of us now.”

  “Wherever will I put you?” she asked, her voice deliberately teasing. There was already so much going on today, she didn’t need an emotional moment to push her over the edge.

  Just then one of Carter’s sisters walked over. Rachel was pretty sure it was Liz.

  “I’m glad you two agreed to get married,” she said. “Mama is so excited. She was starting to think no one would ever trap Carter.”

  Rachel winced. “I didn’t exactly trap him.”

  “Sure you did, but don’t worry about it. He’s had it coming for years.”

  Carter sighed. “Thanks for the support, sis.”

  “No problem. I’ve always taken care of my baby brother. Oh, Tanya, honey, no. That’s breakable. You put that down right now.”

  Liz fled across the room.

  “You didn’t trap me,” Carter said in a low voi
ce. “We’re in this together, making our own decisions.”

  Rachel nodded, but inside she felt funny. She’d never thought of herself as the kind of woman who would have to trap a man into being involved with her. And she hadn’t. As he’d said, she and Carter were figuring out what they wanted for themselves. They weren’t a couple. This wasn’t even a real date. So why did she feel guilty?

  “Do you want this baby?” she asked.

  “Absolutely,” he said without hesitating. “I might have issues with women, but all my life I’ve wanted to be a father. I don’t know anything about it, but I’m willing to learn. I want to be there for my kid. I want to make a difference in her life.”

  She smiled. “Still convinced we’re having a girl?”

  “It’s just my luck.”

  “What about my luck?” she asked.

  He grinned. “You have me. How much luckier could you get?”

  * * *

  IT WAS DARK when Rachel and Carter walked back to his house. She felt tired, but in a good way. There were still complications to be dealt with, and she doubted she would ever figure out who was who in his family, but she’d felt welcomed with open arms.

  “I like them,” she said as he opened his front door and let Goldie push into the house first. “Everyone was great.”

  He sighed heavily. “I knew it. This always happens. A guy thinks he’s getting lucky because he’s charming or smart and then he finds out that the only thing his girl is interested in is his family.”

  He was teasing, of course, but even more intriguing was his use of the words his girl. She wasn’t. That wasn’t the deal. But for a moment, she felt a shiver of something very close to longing.

  “I find it hard to believe you’ve ever had trouble getting women on your own,” she said. “So don’t look for sympathy here.”

  “Ouch. After my family and heartless. I’m crushed.”

  He looked good crushed, she thought, studying the strong, handsome lines of his face before finding her interest settling on his mouth. Carter had a lot of good qualities but right at the top was his amazing ability to kiss her until her entire body turned to mush.

  “You’ll survive,” she murmured, knowing she should look away but finding it difficult to do so. Just one little kiss. What could it hurt?

  “Rachel.”

  He spoke her name in a low growl that caused goose bumps to break out on her arms and the little hairs on the back of her neck to prickle.

  She forced herself to take a step back. Right. Be sensible. “Complications,” she said as she reached for her car keys in her purse’s outside pocket. “We don’t need any more complications. There are other things we need to deal with.” Although at the moment, she couldn’t remember what they were.

  “Don’t look at me like that,” he told her.

  “Like what?”

  “Like you mean it.”

  Before she could decide if she did or not, he leaned in and kissed her. As it was exactly what she’d been hoping for, she did little more than melt against him and wish she could purr.

  His arms came around her, supporting her, comforting and arousing. She felt his strong hands on her back. Her purse slipped to the ground, but she managed to keep hold of her car keys. That was something, right? That meant she wasn’t totally losing control.

  But it was hard to stay sane when he moved his lips against hers in a way designed to make her go crazy. She couldn’t figure out if it was the pressure, the intensity or some chemical connection that defied description. Whatever the cause, she wanted him right then. The fact that they were still on his front porch didn’t matter.

  She parted for him. He nipped her lower lip before slipping his tongue inside.

  The first erotic stroke made her thighs tremble. The second had her insides clenching and the third had her wet and swollen and nearly whimpering with need.

  He moved his hands up and down her back. She wanted to grab his wrists and guide him so that his clever fingers could touch her breasts. She wanted to be swept away by the most intense passion she’d ever experienced. She wanted...

  He drew back.

  Every cell in her body screamed in protest as he stepped away and gave her a regretful smile.

  “Not a good idea,” he said.

  Of course it wasn’t a good idea. But wasn’t that the point? How could he be rational at a time like this?

  Still, she wouldn’t let him know that she hadn’t wanted him to stop.

  “I’ll be going,” she said, proud of herself to being able to speak in a steady, nearly normal tone of voice. “Have a nice evening.”

  “You, too.”

  A few deep breaths helped clear her mind enough for her to remember their plan. Pretend dating only. Nothing more. A smart woman would quit while she was ahead and Rachel had always been one of the brightest girls in her class.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  “YOU DON’T HAVE to do this,” Carter said, sounding more apprehensive than he should have.

  Rachel held in a grin as she slipped her hand into the crook of his arm and sighed. “I want to do this. You did a beautiful job remodeling your kitchen. Now it’s time to finish it off.”

  “It is finished,” he grumbled as they walked through the aisles of the large home-improvement store.

  “White walls? Come on. Have a little imagination. Color is our friend. Besides, you get to pick any color you want. You don’t have to run it by your landlord and then plead for your choice.”

  “My choice is white.”

  She chuckled. “No, it’s not. Besides, it’s too stark against the maple cabinets. Quite the bold selection here in Southern California, where most people favor oak.”

  He shrugged. “I thought they looked nice.”

  “They do. They’re beautiful and they deserve something better than white walls.”

  He mumbled something under his breath, but Rachel didn’t mind. If Carter really had wanted to keep those stark white walls, he wouldn’t have asked her to come with him after work to look at paint chips.

  The invitation might fall under the category of “pretend dating” but she intended to enjoy every minute of it.

  “You’re lucky to have your own house,” she said. “I’m saving, but with real estate prices what they are, it’s going to take me awhile. But I have a whole shoe box full of articles and pictures I’ve cut out of magazines, or downloaded off Web sites. I have this dream about the perfect closet, all organized with shoe shelves and hooks for belts and purses.”

  He eyed her suspiciously. “We’re just here for paint.”

  “I know that. Don’t worry. I don’t expect you to completely redo your closets just to satisfy my urges. At least not this week.”

  He groaned and she laughed.

  They walked into the paint department. Carter held out the small drawer she’d insisted they bring along to help with the color choices.

  “So maybe cream?” he said. “Cream would look nice with the maple.”

  “I don’t think so.” She ignored the chips of cream and white and headed to the yellows. “Nothing superbright,” she murmured more to herself than him. “It has to blend. But nothing too boring.”

  Carter had gone with black appliances, which made it easy, and a fairly neutral black, gray and cream flecked granite. The cabinets were light, and that meant a bland paint color would cause the whole room to fade away.

  “A warm color,” she said. “You get that great morning sun in there.”

  She plucked out three different yellows, then moved to peach. “Hmm, more on the orange side or more salmon?”

  Carter took a step back. “That’s a lot of color.”

  “I know. We’ll grab all the ones that interest us, then narrow the choice down to three or
four. Then we buy samples. Better to paint big squares of color on the wall and live with it for a week, than get the wrong color.”

  She fanned out her selections. Rather than pick, he made a strangled sound in his throat.

  “Are you always like this?” she asked. “It’s paint, not a room full of snakes.”

  “I could deal with snakes.”

  “What a typical guy.”

  “That’s me. Mr. Beige.”

  She discarded a couple of samples until they had four she liked and he didn’t flinch at. After collecting the samples, she dragged him over to the fabric department.

  He stared at the bolts of cloth. “Why are we here?”

  “I was thinking I could make some valances for your windows. Nothing fancy, but they’d dress them up.”

  He looked as if he was about to run for cover. “Those go on the top of the window, right?”

  “Uh-huh. The miniblinds are practical, but not especially attractive. Roman shades would be nice, but I can’t see you agreeing to that, what with how you’ve reacted to a little color.”

  He stiffened. “I’m reacting fine. I have samples here. I’m going to put them on the wall.”

  “I know, but you’re pretty whiny about it.”

  He looked outraged. “I do not whine.”

  “Of course not.”

  “I am rational and completely in control of the situation.”

  She held in a smile. “Okay, so I was thinking of something like this.”

  She pulled out a bolt of fabric and spread out the cloth, then put the paint chips on top. “See how they all go.”

  He frowned. “How did you do that? You just picked that one out and it’s perfect? That’s not right.”

  “I’m gifted. Now, do you like this?”

  He studied the striped fabric. “Yeah. There aren’t any flowers on it.”

  “You’re not the flower type. So we’ll get the fabric, then when you choose the paint color, we’ll use the valance material to pick out coordinating chair mats and a tablecloth for that little table. The simple stripe in the valance means you can get a different pattern for those or none at all.”