“Usually I don’t stay at Dylan’s parties very long,” Adam said.
Suddenly Leigh realized exactly what was going on. Adam wanted to extricate himself from this woman’s interest and he was using her. He was intimating they were involved when they weren’t. Anger bubbled up; Leigh didn’t like the idea of being used as a smokescreen.
Pulling away from Adam’s hold, she gave Nicole a very bright smile. “I just saw Dylan go into the kitchen. Will you excuse me? There was something I wanted to ask him about his decorator.”
Before either Adam or Nicole could comment, she was wending through the guests on the way to the kitchen. She had seen Dylan go in there, but right now she just wanted an escape.
However, she’d only just stepped into the gleaming black and tan kitchen when she found Adam beside her, his hand on her arm. “Leigh, are you all right?”
Dylan had turned at the sound of Adam’s voice. He’d been looking for something in the refrigerator.
Now he asked, “Is something wrong?”
Holding on to her temper, Leigh managed, “Everything’s just fine. You’re giving a beautiful party, Dylan.”
With a puzzled look, Dylan glanced at Adam and then back at Leigh. “Would you two like some privacy?”
Leigh said, “No” at the same time Adam said, “Yes.”
Dylan chuckled and then drawled, “O—kay. I just came in here to look for olives. The bartender said we ran out. But I can do that later.” As he left the kitchen, he told Adam, “I’ll head off anyone who tries to come in.”
Leigh quickly started after Dylan. “There’s no need for that. In fact, if you just tell me where the powder room is located—”
This time Adam firmly clasped her arm and didn’t let go. “I’ll show you where the powder room is after we talk.”
Wisely Dylan slipped out of the room.
Leigh looked up at Adam. “I don’t think we have anything to talk about.”
His deep voice was concerned. “What’s gotten you so ruffled?”
“I don’t like being used. I thought you invited me here tonight because we’d…mended fences and could become friends again. But that wasn’t the reason, was it?”
Adam’s face had set into an unreadable mask. “No, that’s not the reason. I thought you’d make the evening more pleasant.”
“Pleasant?”
He shrugged. “I needed a date, Leigh. It was better to come with someone I knew. I could more easily extricate myself from a situation I didn’t like—whether it’s from a windy investment banker or an account manager from a cosmetics company.”
“And you didn’t consider how I’d feel?”
“I thought you’d enjoy mingling…that you’d have a good time.”
“Did you really? Or was this some kind of payback?”
An emotion flickered in Adam’s eyes, but she couldn’t tell what it was. Surprise that she’d figured it out?
“I’m not stupid, Adam. You were hurt all those years ago. I’m sorry about that, but can’t you see we were too young for whatever was happening between us?”
“We were young, Leigh. You left and I got over it. Tonight has nothing to do with that. I look at the world in realistic terms now. Bringing you here tonight was simply practical. I didn’t have an ulterior motive.”
Adam had always been honest with her. Yet on the other hand, he’d always been able to deny what was going on inside of him, too.
After he studied her for a few silent moments, he finally admitted, “Okay, I understand now. No one likes to feel used.”
She suddenly saw that must have been the way he’d felt ten years ago. After he’d taken her under his wing and made her feel at home in Portland, she’d left his life.
“Would you like to leave?” he asked.
Being with him now was going to be uncomfortable. Since she finally knew the score, though, she wouldn’t be distracted by him and could maybe dive into the party with a little more enthusiasm.
“We can stay. But I’m not going to hang on your arm like an ornament. I don’t do that, Adam.”
Could she see a smile in his eyes? Did she see respect there? She couldn’t really tell. So she turned away and she went back out into the dining room, determined to have fun if it killed her.
Chapter Six
As Adam started across the street to the entrance of the Oregon Zoo, he spotted Leigh immediately. He’d not been here often, even though it was only five minutes from downtown Portland. He’d brought a date to the summer concert series a few years back. That woman had come and gone, and he hadn’t thought much about the zoo after that….
Until Leigh suggested he come today. Adam wasn’t sure what Leigh’s attitude would be. She was standing in front of one of the ticket booths with children and parents. Last night, her upset with him had surprised him. He’d asked her to Dylan’s party for practical reasons. Yet she’d obviously read more into it than that. They hadn’t been together much after their talk in Dylan’s kitchen, and she’d been quiet on the way home.
He didn’t know what she expected from him.
After all, they were strangers now, even though they’d known each other long ago. Their meeting up again had been sheer chance. If she weren’t on a determined course toward something much bigger, maybe he’d let old feelings rise again. But she was still on a determined course. That kiss at his ranch had shown him he was better off keeping his distance. He didn’t want to want her again.
As Adam started up the incline, he could see at least five children gathered around Leigh—two were bald, one had a bandanna covering her head, another sported an inch of new hair growth spiking over his scalp. They all wore smiles and gathered close to Leigh’s sides as if she were a pied piper.
The smell of French fries and grilled hamburgers wafted to the entrance from a nearby restaurant. Adam stopped halfway up the incline, watching as Leigh smiled at the kids, hugged one, dropped an arm around another’s shoulder. She was dressed in a more relaxed fashion today with jeans and light blue hooded jacket. At this time of year rain was always a possibility.
One of the parents—a tall, lean brunette—approached Leigh with a smile.
As Adam walked toward them, he heard the woman say, “We can’t thank you enough for all the care you gave Marcy when she was in the hospital. She still talks about how nice you were, how you read her a book one night when she couldn’t get to sleep. You make a difference, Miss Peters. I hope you know that.”
Leigh looked embarrassed and her cheeks flushed. “I love working with children because they’re so appreciative of everything I do. Sometimes they seem so lost in those hospital beds, and I just want to make them feel as if they’re not alone.”
“You did that for Marcy when we couldn’t be with her. She couldn’t wait to come today.”
Silently Adam stood unmoving until the woman bustled her daughter into the entrance line.
Leigh’s gaze came up to meet his as he joined her. Her smile dimmed a bit, and he found he didn’t like that. He didn’t like that at all. Still, he had to remind himself this wasn’t a date. He’d come to be around the kids, hoping they could help him relate to Mark.
“I didn’t think you’d come,” Leigh said honestly.
“Why not?”
“Mark’s not a large part of your life. You don’t even know if you’re a match yet.”
“No, I don’t. But even if I’m not a match, I plan to stay in touch with Mark. And if I’m not a match, I’d like to do everything I can to find him a match.”
When Leigh examined his face, Adam felt as if she saw too much. She knew how unhappy he’d been growing up with his adoptive family. Maybe it was wishful thinking on his part to believe the Cambrys would accept him as family. But right now Mark was all that mattered.
Someone called to Leigh. Adam saw Shawna running toward them, a wide smile on her face.
“Hi! Sorry if I’m late. Dad dropped me off on his way to a meeting in town. I was playing chess w
ith Mark and tried to convince him to eat lunch.”
“Did the convincing do any good?” Adam asked.
“Some. Our housekeeper made him some chicken soup yesterday, and he actually ate most of the bowl.” Shawna looked at the kids who were milling about. “Are we ready?”
“We’re more than ready,” Leigh answered. “Come on, let me introduce you to everyone.”
The kids obviously loved the zoo. They chattered and pointed and giggled at the first exhibit of mountain goats cavorting on a rocky hill. Several of them pinched their noses shut when they walked down the curved ramp leading to the circular penguin house. They soon forgot the smell as they watched through the knee-to-ceiling window as penguins toddled around on a lifelike iceberg.
The awed expressions on the kids’ faces were unmatchable as they entered the polar bears’ “ice cave” with its dim blue lighting. Adam wasn’t a camera buff but he wished he’d brought one. He saw that many of the parents had theirs. After they stepped outside once again, at their request, he took lots of pictures of the parents with their kids.
When Leigh came up to Adam after he’d taken a few at the elephant exhibit at the far end of the zoo, she gave him one of the smiles he loved. Then she said, “You’re helping them keep a picture of a memory forever.”
There was a viewing area for the elephants under an arbor. One of the parents slipped a quarter into the magnifying machine for her son. Adam understood that every memory was important to these parents—every smile, every burst of laughter, every wide-eyed look of surprise. He could see now why Leigh had wanted him to come along. Shawna was just as involved with the kids as he was. He watched while she lifted one little boy so he could use the magnifier.
At one point, Shawna walked beside Adam sipping her soda. “I told Mom and Dad I wanted you at my birthday party. They said you’re welcome to come and bring a guest. Lissa and Sullivan are supposed to be back. Maybe you can meet your twin for the first time at our place.”
Meeting his sister…his twin. It was hard to wrap his mind around the idea.
“I’ll be there,” he assured Shawna. “I don’t know about bringing a guest.”
She shrugged. “Whatever. Just so you’re there.” With a nonchalance only a teenager could possess, she added, “So you know, I invited Leigh, too.”
Then she gave him a little-sister smile that, in spite of his turmoil about Leigh, made him grin back in return. It was nice knowing Shawna wanted him at the party. It was nice knowing Mark enjoyed his e-mail. Growing up, he’d told himself he didn’t need connections, but now the beginning bonds forming with Mark and Shawna felt right.
Most of the group was standing at a concession stand that sold souvenirs. A handsome man who looked to be around forty saw Leigh, called to her and came over and gave her a hug. Adam found himself much too interested in the scene. The newcomer was dressed much as Adam was in jeans, athletic shoes, and a leather jacket. Adam couldn’t hear what the man and Leigh were saying, but they were laughing a lot in between the conversational bits. The guy even took Leigh’s hand once and gave it a squeeze, and before he left, gave her another hug and a kiss on the cheek.
Adam felt a knot in his gut and was glad when the group started moving again. A short time later he saw that Leigh was standing alone.
Hands in his jacket pockets, he walked up beside her. “I think they’re getting worn-out,” he commented. A few of the kids were dragging now, yet they still were having a good time and didn’t seem to want to go home.
“They’re not the only ones.”
She didn’t look as if she were dragging, not at all, but she did look a bit distracted. Did it have something to do with that man?
Adam nodded in the direction from which they’d come. “Was that guy back there an old friend?”
She looked surprised he’d brought it up. “Sort of.”
When she didn’t say more, Adam pressed, “Or is he an old flame?”
“Reed and I met at a workshop a couple of years ago. We dated for a while.”
“He’s a doctor?”
“He’s a psychologist. I liked him a lot, but he was ready to get married, settle down and have kids. I still had too many things I wanted to accomplish. I haven’t gotten involved with anyone for that reason.”
“You certainly are single-minded.” In a way Adam admired that, but in another way… “Leigh, you know being a doctor isn’t going to fulfill your every need. Don’t you want more than that?”
“After I earn my medical degree, I can have more than that. I’ve known women who had to drop out of school because they couldn’t balance work and a family.”
“There should be a happy medium.”
“Have you found a happy medium, Adam? From what I’ve seen of your life, work fills it up. You don’t seem to have any committed relationships, either.”
“Maybe that’s because I’ve decided getting involved demands too high a price if it doesn’t work out.”
They gazed at each other then, lost in what could have been.
They might have stood there that way forever, silent, separate, thinking about what had happened ten years before, except for the fact that Shawna came running over to them, all excited as only a fifteen-almost-sixteen-year-old could be. “Mrs. Bristol, Tommy’s mom, asked me if I’m free to baby-sit. She likes the way I’ve been relating to Tommy. Isn’t that great?”
Refocusing his attention on Shawna, Adam broke eye contact with Leigh. “Do you baby-sit often?”
She shook her head. “Only with Mark. I told her she could call Mom, and Mom would tell her how responsible I am. I’m thinking about being a teacher because I like being with kids. If I do a really good job, maybe Mrs. Bristol will spread the word and I’ll get lots of practice.”
Even with the tension zipping back and forth between him and Leigh, Adam couldn’t help but admire this teenager. She was everything he’d ever want a daughter of his own to be.
A daughter of his own. Since when had he thought about having kids?
Shawna gave both him and Leigh a quick appraisal. “Is something wrong?”
Leigh’s smile was forced. “No, nothing’s wrong. I think this excursion has just tired out all of us.”
“Yeah, the parents are talking about taking their kids home. Are we leaving, too?”
“That’s probably a good idea. Why don’t we go over and say goodbye to everybody.”
Shawna looked at Adam. “Are you leaving?”
“Yes, I’m going back to my office for a while. Tell Mark to look for an e-mail tonight. I took some pictures of Thunder. I’ll download them and send them to him.”
“He’ll like that,” Shawna said with a smile. “Don’t forget to put my birthday party on your calendar.”
“I won’t forget.”
When Leigh turned to go, Adam wanted to clasp her shoulder, keep her there, straighten things out between them. But pride kept him still, kept his hands at his sides, kept his guard up.
“Goodbye, Leigh,” he said in a low voice.
“Goodbye, Adam,” she returned with a bit of sadness.
Then she was walking away, and he stood there alone.
For the past three days, Leigh had tried to think of everything and anything except for Adam. It wasn’t quite so difficult when she was working. She’d accepted a double shift yesterday because she simply couldn’t keep analyzing what Adam had meant to her and what he could mean to her again.
Actually that wasn’t true. He obviously hadn’t forgotten and hadn’t forgiven her for what had happened ten years ago. How could she blame him? If their positions had been reversed…
Unfortunately, tonight her mother was working late, and Leigh had no distraction at all as she came home, made herself a supper of a tuna salad sandwich, carrot sticks and rice pudding her mom had bought at the deli. After that she thought about her options. She could go out somewhere and try to keep herself distracted, but she’d already shopped for groceries on Monday and had no desir
e to walk the mall or even go ice-skating. Her other option was to stay in and do something productive—like cleaning. Then her mother wouldn’t have to give up the little spare time she had to do it. Decision made, Leigh put her few dishes in the dishwasher, changed into navy leggings and a red T-shirt, then tugged the vacuum cleaner from the pantry closet.
It was almost seven o’clock by the time she finished vacuuming. She was thinking about taking down the curtains and shaking them out outside when the doorbell rang.
Leigh smiled. It was probably Mr. Benson. Often he came over to borrow an egg or a cup of sugar, or to ask to borrow their broom. She guessed he really didn’t need anything he borrowed, but rather that he was lonely and he wanted someone to talk to. Leigh always asked questions of the elderly widower—how his son was doing, what new feat his granddaughter had accomplished, when his family would be visiting him next. Tonight she was glad for any interruption that would fill up her time as she quickly went to the door.
However, when she opened it, she didn’t find Mr. Benson. She found Adam.
Knowing she looked a mess—strands of hair had escaped her ponytail while she was working—she felt heat flush her cheeks. Unable to contain her surprise, she asked, “What are you doing here?”
He was wearing a blue-and-black rugby shirt and black jeans. His expression betrayed nothing as he asked, “May I come in?”
Not only she was a mess, but the apartment was a mess. She’d moved the furniture to sweep, vacuum cleaner attachments lay here and there, and small throw rugs were draped over the armchair. Recalling their “nondate” Saturday night and the tension between them on Sunday, she replied, “This isn’t a good time.”
Adam didn’t seem put off by her reluctance to let him in. “Is your mother home?”
“No, she’s not.”
“Then this is a good time, Leigh. We need to talk.”
It had rained again today and was still raining now. Adam’s hair was damp and there were drops of rain on his shirt. He smelled male and damp and sexy. The look in his eyes was so intensely encompassing that all she could do was back up a few steps and watch him enter the apartment.
Take A Chance On Me (Logan's Legacy) Page 8