by Robyn Grady
Ivy was tapping that fake fingernail on the table like, Enough with the small talk already. “We need to discuss child support.”
He handed the phone back. “And visitation.”
“Thoughts?”
“I’d like every other weekend.”
She looked severely underwhelmed.
“And we need to organize that paternity test,” he told her again, like he had during all their phone conversations. “They’re accurate. Ninety-nine point nine-nine percent on a positive match. Zero if it’s negative.”
“Well, he’s got your eyes.”
Jacob snatched back the phone. “He does?”
“They were blue at first but going brownish now.”
Brownish? Teagan said his eyes were amber-gold. She said she’d never met anyone with eyes like his.
He couldn’t count the times he’d debated calling Teagan these past weeks. He remembered how his body had reacted whenever they’d made love...how good it had felt to simply watch her sleep. He wanted to move forward with the relationship, but that couldn’t happen until this situation was sorted. When he spoke to Teagan next, he wanted to have all the answers as well as a plan.
And the first step, damn it, was that test.
“I’ve been in touch with a reputable professional,” he said while Ivy collected her menu and scanned the appetizers. “The sooner we get that out of the way, the better. Don’t you agree?”
“Uh-huh.” She turned the page. “The sooner, the better.”
His temples began to throb. Steam was rising from around his collar.
“For God’s sake, Ivy, this isn’t a game.”
“Of course it’s not a game.” She slapped down the menu. “That’s insulting, Jacob. It’s insulting to Benson. If you don’t want to take care of your own son, just tell me now.”
His gut twisted so sharply, he groaned. “I would never try to run away from my responsibility.” Never in a million years.
Looking into his eyes, she slanted her head, exhaled and then reached for his hand. When her fingers curled around it and her nails dug in, he wanted to pull away. He didn’t need this contact. With or without a baby, that boat had sailed long ago.
He hoped that his expression said it all.
We’re a team in this, but not “together.”
Then he slid his hand from beneath hers.
Sitting back, Ivy returned her attention to the menu. She tapped on an item. “I need to try the duck liver crème brûlée,” she said. “Definitely the hazelnut soufflé for dessert.”
Eleven
“Sorry I didn’t call sooner.”
Teagan wanted to laugh. As if those words were in any way near good enough.
“I guess you’ve been busy,” she replied, gazing, unseeing, from the back seat of a cab on her way from Sydney Airport to her father’s house.
“I didn’t want to phone until there’d been some movement,” he said. “I just got back from giving a sample for a paternity test.”
Teagan’s stomach muscles twisted. She’d been making headway getting over Jacob Stone, pushing him plum out of her mind. What had begun with a bang had run out of gas and ultimately died. As far as his paternity test was concerned? Good luck.
And goodbye.
“Teagan?”
She didn’t want to talk. She wanted to hang up then calmly pitch her phone out the window so he couldn’t call again.
His voice in her ear was low and rich.
“Tea, I don’t blame you for being angry.”
“I am not angry.”
She wouldn’t allow herself to be. She was simply a tad busy herself now. After her flight had touched down ahead of time, she had called Wynn to say to expect her soon. Her brother had said he’d be there in thirty minutes to collect her. But as she had told Jacob, she was a big girl. She could deal on her own, and had hailed a cab.
“Ivy’s being Ivy,” Jacob was saying.
Sorry. Not interested. But she let him get it all out—the story behind finally meeting with the ex and how she hadn’t brought the baby along as agreed. He’d seen photos, though. It was a boy. Benson. Lovely name. Not that Teagan’s opinion mattered one bit.
And as the rehash went on, Teagan’s grip on the phone tightened. This conversation brought back memories she didn’t need now...the excitement of seeing those pink lines form on the stick from the home pregnancy kit...the bliss of anticipating sonogram images, hearing first words, seeing first steps.
Jacob had come full circle. He was back on the paternity test now.
“The results will take anywhere from a few days to three weeks.”
The cab was nearing her street. She wanted to be focused—happy—when she saw everyone again.
“Teagan? Are you there?”
“Uh-huh. Needing to cut this short, though.”
And then the cab pulled into the driveway and, in the distance, the Hunter mansion came into view, a huge, white structure set in an idyllic leafy enclave. The understanding hit her like a medicine ball to the gut.
God, I’m glad to be home.
“I’ll call later,” Jacob said.
As a security man opened the electronic gates, Teagan swallowed against the ache that had grown to the size of a peach in her throat. “I’m tied up for a week or two. So...good luck with it all.”
He hesitated before grunting.
“Wow.”
She frowned. “Wow what?”
“Nothing.”
She pulled the phone away from her ear. Time to hang up. But then she caught his next words.
“Tea, a bomb exploded in my life and I’m still sorting through the pieces.”
The cab was rolling down the drive, past the area where last year’s wedding marquee had stood...the place where the blast had gone off and precious lives had almost been lost.
“I know I left you hanging,” he went on.
She pressed her lips together as tears stung behind her eyes.
“I need to go.”
“We can’t do this over the phone,” he said. “We need to talk face-to-face.”
She was gripping the door handle, needing to get out. “Not possible.”
“I’ll fly over.”
He thought she was in Seattle. “You’d need to add another twenty thousand miles to the trip. I’m in Australia.” Before he could interrupt, she wrapped it up. “We had a nice time.” The absolute best of her life. “But it was two nights followed by two phone calls. We don’t owe each other anything.”
As the cab approached the front doors, she heard him exhale.
“How long are you out of the country?”
“A week. Maybe longer.” She closed her stinging eyes. Why was she even telling him this?
“I’m coming over,” he said.
She coughed out a laugh. “No, you are not.”
“I should have called sooner.”
“You already said that.”
“You wanted me to meet your family.”
“That was before—”
“Before I was a plus one?”
Did he mean the baby?
She withered, shook her head and murmured, “That’s not it.”
“Tea, I want to see you. I need to hold you. A few hours on a plane...”
She didn’t respond. That ache in her throat was so big now, she didn’t know whether she could.
He asked her, “Did I read us wrong?”
“You weren’t reading anything wrong three weeks ago,” she told him as the cab pulled up. “We don’t have anything more to say.”
Long pause, then...
“Okay.”
She breathed out. Finally. “Okay.”
“You have a great time with everyone.”
She would. And she w
as going to hang up.
Damn it, she wasn’t being a bitch.
Still, she had to add, “This isn’t going anywhere.”
“Okay.”
“Anyway... I can’t just tell everyone that you’re coming over out of the blue. They have no idea I was seeing someone.”
“Okay.”
“Stop saying that,” she snapped.
“Okay.” When she growled again, he chuckled. Then, “No. Really. I understand.”
She held her roiling stomach and closed her eyes. “No, you don’t understand.” There was so much he didn’t know. Would never know.
“If you’re happy, I’m happy for you.”
“That’s a cliché.” But she almost grinned as she said it.
There was another long pause before he admitted, “I wish I could hold you right now.”
“Well, you can’t.”
The driver was taking luggage from the trunk. Soon she would be inside, hugging her family, not listening to Jacob’s deep, rumbly, gorgeous voice that made her remember the amazing color of his eyes and the incredible way he made her feel when they touched...when they kissed.
She bit her lip but the tingling only grew.
“Jacob?”
“Yeah?”
Damn it. “I miss you, too.”
“I’ll be there in twenty-four hours. Okay?”
She eased out a smile and nodded. “Okay.”
And then she saw Grace hurrying out through the front doors, waving her arms, pointing to a sparkling diamond solitaire and gold band on her wedding finger. While her friend did a fairy-tale twirl, Wynn appeared and the driver opened Teagan’s door. She told Jacob, “I have to go,” and as she approached the steps, her brother strode forward with a just married grin plastered across his face. Wynn grabbed her up, swung her around and Teagan finally cast Jacob Stone from her mind.
Of course, that didn’t last long.
* * *
July in Australia was the middle of winter. In Sydney, temperatures were traditionally mild. Early frost and fog were common. In all recorded history, the sands of Bondi Beach had been covered in snow only once. On the morning of June 28, 1836, the colonial outpost had awoken to a drift that coated the streets in a crisp white fall an inch deep.
Today, however, was all endless blue skies and seventy-five degrees—more than comfortable enough for a mug of something warm while lounging outside on the patio area near the pool. As Teagan and Grace strolled out holding hands, with Wynn a step behind, the rest of the family turned in their seats.
Cole sent over a salute before bringing his beautiful wife close. Resting a gentle hand on her belly, he mouthed the words, Baby on board.
So much taller—and older—than he’d looked a few months earlier, Tate sprinted over. He didn’t stop until he flew into her arms. Swinging him up, she held on tight. Her baby brother felt so warm and...well, heavy. He smelled of Aussie sunshine and fresh oranges, his favorite fruit. She’d come home to congratulate Grace and Wynn, but this single moment of bliss was better than just about anything.
She balanced Tate on her hip and dropped a dozen kisses on both his cheeks. “You’ve grown.”
“I’m in grade two next year.”
“Bet you’re loving it.”
“I have a good teacher. Her name’s Ms. Walton. She’s older than my kindie one.”
“Older like a grandma?”
He thought about it. “Older like you.”
Teagan laughed. “Have you made lots of friends?”
His eyes twinkled. “I have a girlfriend, Tea.”
“Awesome. What’s her name?”
“Bella Blossom Bird. That’s alit-ration.” He scratched his head then pointed to the others. “Cole told me that.”
“You can learn a lot from your brothers.” She winked at Wynn. “All three of them.”
Her father was sitting in a high-backed lounger. His hair was more salt than pepper now. His eyes were less lively and more wrinkled at the corners. Beneath the royal-blue sweater, his shoulders were stooped, like they were bearing an enormous weight. Guthrie Hunter was a highly intelligent man. He could see his way through any business challenge and come out on top. Teagan’s Georgian-born mother had possessed a different kind of smarts—a wily but also demure way of navigating the trickier barriers that life sometimes threw a person’s way.
As Teagan set Tate on his feet, then took his hand and headed over, her chest constricted so much, she could barely get a breath down. She wished her mom were here now. If she could have anything, any wish, it would be to wipe out disease from the world.
As Tate scampered off to his father’s side, Teagan saw the bundle sloped against her father’s chest. Honey was wrapped in a soft pink baby blanket, fast asleep.
What an angel.
Teagan kissed her father’s cheek as he said welcome home. Then she focused on the baby. Her eyelashes were so long, they brushed her cheeks. Her mouth was the perfect shape and color. A rosebud. One tiny hand was bunched up, peeping outside of the blanket. Her skin was so fine, it was almost translucent.
Cole and Taryn had moved closer.
“Isn’t she adorable?” Taryn said quietly. “Such a delicate little thing.”
“Lolly Legs,” Cole said. “I reckon our cat weighs more.”
Teagan caught the teasing tone in her brother’s voice but she didn’t miss the element of concern, either. Some kids were chubby, like Dex before his growth spurt. Others were naturally smaller...thinner.
Her father asked, “Would you like to have a hold?”
“Oh, I don’t want to wake her up.”
“She’s due a feed about now,” he said.
“We should wake her soon then,” Taryn said almost gravely.
Teagan looked around at them all. Wynn’s expression said, We’ll talk about Honey later when Dad’s not around.
Tate was tugging on Taryn’s skirt. “I’m hungry, too.”
“Would you like me to peel you another orange?”
He beamed. “Yes, please.”
Taking Tate’s hand, Taryn said, “Why don’t you come into the kitchen and help?”
As the pair headed off, Teagan was careful scooping Honey up. She felt warm and, yes, small and absolutely perfect. What did her life have in store? Teagan brought her baby sister higher and inhaled that sweet baby scent.
It’s all about getting up when you’re down, Honey. Finding your own way. Trying always to believe in yourself.
“I’m guessing someone must have told you.”
Teagan focused on her father. “Told me what, Dad?”
“That Eloise and I...it’s not going to work out.”
She slid a quick look Cole’s way. His eyebrows jumped and everyone except Teagan took their seats again. With Honey in her arms, she preferred to stand.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “I’d really hoped you could see a way through.”
He propped an elbow on the chair arm and rubbed his brow with that hand. “Eloise is a mess. Drinking more and more. She wanted her own place, so I arranged another nanny for the kids, but they’re not getting what they need.”
Honey’s tiny hand flexed as if to say she agreed.
Teagan asked, “Has the baby gone to all her pediatric appointments?”
“She doesn’t have any problems,” Taryn said, “although she is in the fifth percentile for weight.”
Which meant ninety-five percent of babies her age weighed more.
Teagan was usually happy to help but not control things. Only now, looking down into this precious innocent face, something new and fierce roared up inside her.
Eloise is a mess.
“You can’t let Honey stay there,” she said. “Babies are so fragile.” During that brief window when she’d been pregnant, she’d done so
much research. “Their brains and bones need every bit of nourishment.”
Cole was nodding. “Dad knows that, Tea.”
“He’s going to file for custody,” Wynn added.
Teagan was taken aback. “For Tate, too?”
“For them both,” Wynn confirmed.
Eloise was the farthest thing from a model mother, but these kids must love her nonetheless. Of course, her father would bring in more help to try to compensate. But it wasn’t the same as having your mom.
Wynn read her mind. “There’s no other way. You said it yourself. That baby deserves the best start in life and Eloise isn’t capable of giving her that. It’s our responsibility to step in. We need to protect them both, end of story.”
The atmosphere was so dark and heavy. The topic needed discussing, but this time was also meant to be about family getting together to celebrate. Teagan tried to lift the mood.
“So, tell me more about this whirlwind wedding,” she said to Grace and Wynn. “Was anything planned or did you plunge in on a whim?”
Grace’s face brightened. “We started talking one night about all the arrangements a big wedding would involve.”
Wynn took his bride’s hand. “The following week, we stood before a celebrant and signed the papers.”
“And the honeymoon was in Italy?” Teagan asked.
Grace’s head rocked back as she sighed. “We are definitely going back.”
“Not for a while, though.” Wynn winked at his new wife. “I have an office to run.”
Cole and Taryn were sitting in a love seat. Now he put an arm around his wife and sent a manufactured frown his younger brother’s way. “Surely they can do without you for another month or so.”
Wynn laughed. “That’s strange coming from you. Before you met Taryn, you practically slept at the office, weekends included.”
Guthrie’s bushy eyebrows jumped. “It’s good to slow down.”
“I haven’t slowed down.” Cole leaned in to steal a kiss from his wife. “I’ve simply directed certain passions elsewhere.”
“We’ll all be calling you Daddy soon.”
Cole gave Wynn a deadpan look. “You won’t be far behind.”
Grace and Wynn turned to each other, a sparkle in their eyes.