A Friendly Arrangement

  She sucked in a breath and managed to smile, although it made her face feel plastic and tight.

  Roth clenched his fists to his sides. He could sense something off between him and Holly. He didn’t know if it was her, or the confusion blowing through his head. They needed to talk, but that’d have to wait until he got back.

  They may be on unstable ground, and their arrangement up in the air, but that didn’t make the way Mr. Body Builder grabbed and groped Holly at every opportunity any easier to take. For the last half hour the guy couldn’t seem to keep his hands off her.

  Roth had planned on chatting with Holly’s grandmother for a few minutes, but even after they’d said their good-byes he hadn’t been able to make himself leave. Not after he’d witnessed MaryAnn and Hailey dragging Holly across the room and introducing her to Muscle Man. At least they hadn’t attempted to pair him up with anyone, but at this point it might have been preferable, because he couldn’t stop the rush of anger consuming him at the way Body Builder Bob touched Holly. Nobody should touch her like that. Unless it was him.

  It’d almost have been laughable the way they constantly tried to hook her up with a man, if it wasn’t so annoying. The guy wasn’t anything like the men Holly dated.

  Were they so desperate to get her married that they just grabbed the closest available man? Didn’t MaryAnn know her daughter’s type? Who would make her happy?

  Maybe he needed to help them with Holly’s Husband List.

  Roth sat on the edge of his seat. Ready to pounce and deck the guy. He’d stopped the constant side hugs, and instead changed his tactics to quick shoulder massages as he stood behind her. From the look on Holly’s face, she was none too happy about the situation. She’d even moved away from him a few times, only to have him follow.

  Just when he didn’t think he could take another second, Andrew sauntered over and whispered something in her ear and then steered her away from Mr. Brawn.

  He should’ve been the one to rescue her instead of her brother. Wasn’t rescuing Holly his job? A job he enjoyed. He wanted her to need him, even if it was just a little. He liked being there for her. Protecting her. Supporting her. Holding her.

  That didn’t sound very much like friendship. Then again, Holly was the type of woman men dreamed about. And not as a friend.

  Face it. What you have with Holly hasn’t been just friendship for a long time.

  Why hadn’t he seen that before?

  He took a long, slow pull on his beer until he drained the bottle. Time to get out of here, finish up Omar’s ring, and pack. He’d have plenty of time to analyze his feelings for Holly over the next week. Time away would make everything clear. They’d figure it all out when he got home.

  “Would you look at that?” Holly’s mom came up beside her and nudged her in the arm, pointing her toward Bernard and Jonathan, the new guy from her mom’s office. “I told you I’d find someone for Bernard. I think those two hit it off.”

  Holly grinned. “Congratulations, Mom.” She may find it annoying that her mom was always on the prowl to fix up single people—especially when it came to her—but she meant well. And truth be known, she’d actually been quite successful at pairing up couples. Her pride and glory being Alex and his wife Mia.

  Mom’s eyes were wide and bright as she scanned the room. “Where’d Roth go?”

  “He’s leaving tomorrow. I’m sure he has a lot to do before morning.” That empty feeling in the pit of her stomach returned. This would be a hard week knowing he wasn’t across the hall. Her only reprieve would be the time she could spend in his apartment taking care of his plants. At least she could get a semi fix of him. His smell, being surrounded by his belongings. You’re almost sounding stalkerish.

  “I have someone I’d like him to meet.” The brightness in her mom’s smile dimmed.

  “Leave him alone, Mom. Roth doesn’t need help finding a date.”

  “Oh no, you might have to wait to play matchmaker for Roth until another day.” Andrew came up beside them, draping his arm over their mother’s shoulder. “I think you should listen to Holly. Leave Roth alone.”

  “Not you, too.” MaryAnn frowned up at her son as she shrugged out from beneath his arm.

  “Actually, I think Roth has already found his match.” Andrew drew out the moment by leisurely taking a sip of his beer. “If he hasn’t found his special someone already, then I’ll start wiping my ass with C-notes.”

  “Andrew.” MaryAnn sounded indignant as she put her hand over his mouth.

  Holly laughed at her brother’s comment. Leave it to him to be so open, even in front of their mother.

  “Why would you even say such a thing?” MaryAnn asked.

  Andrew shot Holly a stern look. “Because any man that looks at a woman the way Roth looked at Holly all night has more on his mind than friendship.”

  Holly’s chest fluttered at his words. Could Roth be feeling more for her than friendship, too?

  “What do you mean?” she asked.

  Her mother turned to her wide-eyed, her expression full of hope.

  Andrew shook his head. “Don’t give me that crap. Something’s going on between you two. You might not want to admit it, but the entire room heats up every time you are within five feet of each other. Hell, even when you aren’t. That guy’s got it bad.”

  “Holly, is there something going on between you and Roth? How come you’d—”

  Holly gave her mom her palms. “Don’t even start, Mom.” She couldn’t stop the giddiness from taking root in her belly. She actually wanted to leave the room, be alone, so she could relish Andrew’s comment while she played over everything she and Roth had said to each other tonight. If Andrew had noticed something, maybe she’d missed the same signs.

  “Then act fast, Holly. Roth is a great guy.” MaryAnn chewed on her fingernail as her gaze swept the room. “But for now I’ll check in with Bernard and Jonathan. I knew they’d hit it off.” Her smug expression made Andrew laugh, and he tousled her hair. She gave him a playful scowl as she smoothed down her hair.

  “You should get out of the real estate biz, Mom. Have you considered opening up shop in the dating field? How about Matchmaking Mama or MarryAnn’s?” He spelled out his last suggestion as their Mom shook her head, but the twinkle in her eye only fueled Andrew’s playfulness as he wiggled his brow.

  Holly almost choked on her drink, and she covered her mouth, wiping several drops of juice from her chin.

  Andrew was in top form tonight, and Holly couldn’t help but relax at his humor. He’d always been able to take some of the strain out of dealing with their overzealous mother.

  “You might be on to something, Andrew.” A smile teased Mom’s lips. “Jonathan and I are a lot alike. I’ve always liked older men, and from the way he and Bernard are looking at each other, Jonathan does, too.”

  Holly shook her head. “Mom, Dad is only three years older than you. You’re at least in the same generation. Unlike Bernard and Jonathan.” She glanced over toward the two men, then nodded slightly. They really did look like they were interested in each other. Maybe her mom really did know what she was doing.

  “No matter. I’m going to go check in with them.” She tossed a saucy grin over her shoulder and made her way nonchalantly across the room.

  Andrew slung his arm around Holly’s shoulder. “Our mom. She’s insane.”

  “She means well, although I’m glad some of the heat is off me now that she’s got Bernard and Jonathan on her mind.”

  “It’s nice that she wants everyone to be as happy as she is.” Andrew met her gaze. “If you’d quit trying so hard to be the different one in the family, maybe you’d realize having a permanent guy in your life isn’t so bad. Roth has feelings for you. If you have even an inkling that you might feel the same, you should see where things go. Sometimes something you didn’t think would make you happy makes you the happiest of all.”

  “Hmm.” His words released the butterflies trapped in her stomach.
She could only wish. Only hope.

  He shrugged. “Or you can expect Mom to continuously try to set you up with whoever catches her eye. No matter if he’s your type or not.”

  “You mean like my muscle-bound friend over there?” Holly rolled her eyes as she thrust her chin to where the latest contestant for Holly’s Husband List leaned against the bar talking to Hailey and Blake.

  “Exactly.”

  “Yep, he’s definitely not my type. At. All.”

  Her type had gone upstairs and would leave early in the morning for a week away.

  Chapter Eleven

  Holly didn’t know where to look first. Her email account sat open on her laptop, and her gaze immediately landed on the one from the Art Prize committee, her cell pinged with a second insistent message from Hailey in the span of less than five seconds, and the timer on her phone had just dinged, alerting her that the pregnancy test in her bathroom was ready to be checked.

  Should she laugh, cry, or scream?

  Breathe. One thing at a time.

  She pressed her hand to her chest, closed her eyes, and drew in a lungful of air, counting slowly to five with each breath. Another email pinged into her account, and that made her decision. She’d get the emails out of the way. Hailey could wait a few minutes, because she probably only wanted to talk to her yet again about that position in her law office—the one Holly really didn’t want to have to think about—and she didn’t want to deal with the pregnancy test. Not yet.

  She ran her fingers through her hair. The fact Art Prize had sent an email instead of calling pretty much gave her the answer about the job. But that only lessened her hope for a second. Maybe they wanted to arrange a second interview. Or their phones weren’t working. Or…

  Or you didn’t get the job.

  Either way, she’d figure it out. She’d be okay. Everything happened for a reason, including hard times. Heck, if you didn’t have hard times, you’d never appreciate the good ones.

  With one click she opened the message and read through it quickly, then again more slowly. They’d decided on someone with more education and experience, but wanted to keep her name on file in case they had another position she might be better suited for in the future.

  Her shoulders sagged with disappointment. She’d really wanted that job. But she didn’t have time to wallow in self-pity. She’d have to step it up and send out more feelers for other clients. At least she had a second phone interview with the nine-to-five position in a couple hours. They seemed to like her, and if today went well they’d probably schedule a face-to-face interview. She also had been exchanging emails with the west coast businessman that Brooke had recommended. Hopefully something would come of that after they could set up a time to talk on the phone. And if nothing else, she had plenty of work she could handle for the shelter to keep her busy so that her mind didn’t constantly return to Roth and when he’d be home.

  She squared her shoulders and took a mouthful of her now lukewarm coffee. She wouldn’t flounder in disappointment over the Art Prize job. The email had encouraged her to try again later, and she definitely would.

  She picked up the cell and eyed Hailey’s message.

  Good news. Call me.

  Holly frowned. This didn’t sound like something to do with the job. She gasped, covering her mouth. Hadn’t Hailey told her she had a doc appointment this morning? Holly scrolled down to the second message—Are you there? Call me—and then the third. Hello?

  Her hands shook as she scrolled through her contact list to dial Hailey’s number. She picked up on half a ring.

  “Can you guess?” Hailey asked in a singsong voice.

  Holly’s heart raced, and a stab of guilt pierced her chest that she’d forgotten her sister’s appointment. “Congratulations. Blake is going to be thrilled.”

  “He’s over the moon. So am I. I can’t wait until you have the chance to experience this someday. You’ll be a great mom.”

  “Are you asking me to come over to the dark side?”

  Hailey giggled. “It’s not as dark as you’re making out.”

  Holly needed a confidant. Hailey had always been her strongest, and if she didn’t tell someone she’d burst. “Hail, what if I told you I might be coming over to the dark side?”

  “Wha-what are you saying?”

  Holly pulled the phone away from her ear when her sister screeched.

  “Are you telling me you’re preggers, girl?” Hailey asked.

  Holly nodded to herself, swallowing hard. “I have a pregnancy test on the bathroom counter. I just haven’t had the guts to look. I mean, what if I am? What if I’m not? I don’t even know how I’ll feel either way. I’m so damn confused.” She pinched the skin between her eyes. “My life is all over the place.”

  “Okay, first of all, who? When? Where?” Her sister took a deep breath, and Hailey pictured her fanning her face. “Never mind. Dumb question. Andrew, Alex, and I were just talking the other night about how not gay Roth is. It’s Roth, isn’t it? Oh. My. God. Mom is going to have a cow. What will Roth say? Are you excited? Why didn’t you tell me Saturday?”

  Hadn’t Hailey listened to anything she’d just said? Couldn’t she hear her confusion and fear? Holly took a calming breath. “Roth doesn’t even know. I’m not sure this will be good news for him.” As a matter of fact, she was sure it wouldn’t, but she didn’t need to share that right now. “And I didn’t tell you because it didn’t really dawn on me until you told me your suspicions. And then, well, I thought about how I’d been on antibiotics, how Roth and I have been—”

  “Everyone knows antibiotics decrease—”

  “I know. Don’t lecture me.” She already felt sick over her own stupidity. Her hormones had totally taken over her good sense when it came to Roth.

  “Listen. Don’t look at it. We’ll look together. I’m right around the corner. I’ll be there in ten minutes.”

  “Maybe less, knowing you.” The smile that spread across her face wasn’t anything she could stop.

  “Don’t worry. If you are, Roth will be excited. What man wouldn’t want to be a father?”

  Roth.

  “And you’ll be a wonderful mom.” The exuberance in Hailey’s tone filled the room.

  Me? Maybe? I don’t know.

  Holly pressed her palm to her forehead and closed her eyes. Everything had happened way too fast.

  “Holl, you okay?” The worry in Hailey’s voice seeped through the phone. “Never mind. Stay where you are. I’m almost there.”

  Holly couldn’t have moved if she tried. She wanted to check out the test, but she wanted Hailey’s support, and with or without her sister, a deep fear crept across her clammy skin.

  Too many changes in way too few weeks. How much could one person take?

  In less than ten minutes—seven minutes to be exact—Hailey’s four distinctive taps hit the door.

  Holly let her in, but before her sister walked by she gave her a huge bear hug.

  “You ready, or do you want to play small-talk first?” Hailey slung her arm across Holly’s shoulders.

  “Promise me no matter what, you’ll stay and make me a hot chocolate.”

  “And we’ll dish. You’ll feel better after a good talk either way.”

  Together they walked into the bathroom, and their eyes met in the mirror. Holly gave her twin a shaky smile, and Hailey lifted her chin and nodded. “Let’s do this.”

  They looked down at the countertop, and Hailey squealed at the same time Holly gasped.

  “Congratulations, sis. It looks like we get to grow big and beautiful together.” Hailey hugged her, but Holly’s body and brain buzzed with a numbness she’d never felt before.

  A few minutes later Hailey had her situated at the counter with a huge mug of hot cocoa. Holly still gripped the pregnancy test in her hands, even though it was kind of gross to have carried it out to the kitchenette, but she couldn’t put it down.

  She had to keep taking a peek at it to make sure t
he pink plus sign wasn’t a figment of her imagination.

  Hailey cleared her throat, and Holly looked up to meet her gaze. “So tell me what’s going on with Roth. From the beginning, please.” Hailey clinked her spoon against the side of her mug and took a slow sip, studying Holly from over the rim.

  Holly told her sister everything. From Roth’s confessions about his family and his bad relationship with his father and brother. How he didn’t want to get married, have a family. Even how he’d made up with Omar but regretted that he’d never gotten to know his father. And finally, she made her own confession. The one involving their mutual attraction and their arrangement, and how she might be in love with him, but not because she was pregnant, but because she—well, I just am.

  “Friends with benefits.” Holly grinned. “I never knew anyone who has done that in real life, only what I’ve seen in the movies.”

  “It was genius, until I fell in love.”

  Hailey squeezed her hand and took her empty cocoa mug, rinsing it in the sink. “Just from the couple of times I’ve met Roth I like him. And the way he treats you tells a lot. He may say he’s just your friend, but his eyes and his body tell another story. That man—”

  “Is attracted to me and nothing more.” Holly put her elbows on the counter and rested her chin in her palms. “Neither of us wanted anything serious. Long-term. Binding. And a baby is binding. As in a lifetime.” She scrubbed her face. “I can’t believe I didn’t put two and two together about the antibiotics. I know better. Everyone knows better.”

  Hailey leaned across the counter, and her eyes commiserated with Holly’s. “What are you going to do?”

  “I have to prepare myself for heartache, because after I tell him, that’s exactly what I’ll get.”

  “Maybe not. He might hear the news and be hit with an entirely new set of feelings. Ones he might not have expected.”

  Holly shook her head. “I won’t hold my breath.”

  Hailey let out a long sigh. “And the baby?”

  “I don’t know.”