But at the moment she didn’t have the energy to take the test. Besides, it would probably be more accurate if she waited another couple of days.
Her monthly cycle had been due a week ago, but she knew better than to depend on that as an indication of pregnancy. Her periods had always been irregular.
She closed her eyes, deciding she would rest just a few minutes before getting up and checking out what she was going to cook for supper.
She awakened suddenly, surprised by how easily she’d fallen asleep. The apartment had darkened and she realized she must have been asleep for some time.
Sitting up, she checked her wristwatch, shocked to see that it was just after eight. Gina should be home at any moment. The shop closed at seven-thirty, and normally the young woman would have already been home, but tonight she would have to wrap up the leftover pastries and wash out the industrial-size coffeemaker.
Colette went into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator door and stared at the contents. She didn’t feel like cooking supper. She shut the fridge door and walked back into the living room and ordered a pizza.
With a delivery time of half an hour, she hurried into her bathroom and jumped into the shower, then dressed in her nightshirt and a robe.
Checking her watch again, she wondered where Gina was? It shouldn’t have taken her that long to close up. She picked up the phone and dialed the number to the store.
She let it ring five times, then hung up. Apparently Gina had already left and would probably be walking through the door at any minute.
As she waited for Gina and the pizza, she tried to keep thoughts of Tanner at bay, but her mind refused to cooperate with her desire not to think of him.
What would it be like to live at Two Hearts and be loved for the rest of her life by Tanner? What would it be like to have his children, share his life? Each time he’d talked about Foxrun to her, the picture he’d painted of his life there had filled her with a wistful yearning.
Why…why did these thoughts torment her so?
He’d been a tremendous help at the shop all day, pitching in when the crowd got big, supervising the play area and giving a male opinion for the women shoppers who wanted one.
It had been around three when he’d left, telling her and Gina that he needed to make some phone calls and take care of some business at the ranch.
Thoughts of Tanner disappeared as the doorbell rang. She opened the door to a familiar, smiling young man holding a large pizza box. “Evening, Ms. Carson,” he said.
“Hi, Ralph.” Ralph had often delivered pizza to Colette. His father owned the pizza place where Colette placed her orders.
“I guess it’s a no-cooking night,” he said as they exchanged pizza for cash.
“You’ve got that right. I decided to treat myself to one of your father’s creative masterpieces.”
Ralph laughed. “Well, this masterpiece is just the way you like it…with lots of extra pepperoni.”
“Thanks, Ralph, and tell your dad I said hi.” He nodded and with a wave headed back to the elevator as Colette closed and relocked her apartment door.
The scent of rich, tangy sauce and spicy pepperoni filled the air as Colette placed the pizza in the center of the table. Now all she had to do was wait for Gina to get home.
The minutes ticked by. Colette set the table, made a pitcher of iced tea and still no Gina. Maybe Danny stopped by the store and they decided to grab a bite to eat, she told herself.
Gina was an independent adult. It was ridiculous for Colette to worry because she wasn’t home yet. But as the minutes continued to tick by, she couldn’t help the worry that fluttered through her.
By nine her concern was impossible to ignore. Gina was a conscientious young lady and always called when she made plans and was going to be home late.
As two single women living alone, Colette had always stressed how important it was that they each have an idea of what the other was doing or who they might be with. Besides, she’d mentioned to Gina that she’d have something ready to eat when she got home, and the young woman hadn’t mentioned any other plans.
So, where was she? Why hadn’t she called? By the time ten o’clock rolled around, Colette knew she had to do something.
She sat down next to the phone and clicked her fingernails on the plastic receiver. If nothing was wrong, then Gina would probably be angry that Colette had called in the cavalry. But there was no way Colette could ignore her unease and just sit around and wait for Gina to return.
Drawing a deep breath, she picked up the phone, punched in the numbers for information and asked for the number to Tanner’s hotel.
Tanner had just showered and crawled into bed when the phone rang. It took him a moment to answer as he fumbled on the nightstand for the phone. “Hello?”
“Tanner?”
He rolled over and turned on the bedside lamp. “Colette.”
“I’m sorry to bother you,” she said.
It was obvious from her tone of voice that she was not pleased to be calling him. “You aren’t bothering me,” he assured her, then waited expectantly.
“Tanner, it’s probably nothing, but I’m a little bit worried about Gina.”
Instantly adrenaline flooded through him and he sat up. “What do you mean? Worried about what?”
There was a long pause. “She isn’t home yet.”
“Home yet? You mean home from the shop?” He looked at the alarm clock on the nightstand. “Was she keeping the shop open late tonight?”
“No, and I’ve called there several times and there’s no answer.”
“Did she have a date with Danny after work?”
“She didn’t mention anything about a date. Right before I left the shop, I told her I’d have something to eat ready for her when she got home, and she didn’t mention anything about not coming directly home.”
Fear, rich and sickening, slammed through him. “I’ll be right over,” he said, and without giving her an opportunity to say anything more he hung up.
He grabbed his jeans and ripped them on, then did the same with his shirt. As he pulled on socks and his boots, frantic worry rocked through him.
If Gina had closed up the shop at the normal time, that meant she’d been missing for over two and a half hours. Where could she be?
Before going to Colette’s apartment building, he raced the three blocks from his hotel to the shop. As he ran, his heart pounded frantically, his mind filling with horrifying possibilities.
When he reached the shop he found the interior dark and the front door locked. Nothing looked amiss, and a quick look around the entire perimeter of the building yielded no clues.
He hurried on to Colette’s apartment, cursing the vivid imagination that presented all kinds of terrible visions in his head.
Had somebody snatched her off the street as she’d walked home? Was she right now in the hands of a madman? Or had she simply gone off somewhere and neglected to tell Colette? In either case she was in a world of trouble.
He didn’t have to bother knocking on Colette’s door. The moment he stepped off the elevator, she opened the door to admit him into the apartment.
“Any word from her?” he asked.
She shook her head, looking unusually small and fragile in a pale pink robe, her face etched with light lines of tension. “Maybe we should call the police?” she suggested, toying nervously with the belt of her robe.
Tanner raked a hand through his hair and expelled a sigh. “They’d laugh us into next week. At this point all we could tell them is that she’s twenty-one years old and is a few hours late for supper. They won’t do anything until she’s been missing at least twenty-four hours.”
Colette sank down on the edge of the sofa, her forehead still wrinkled with furrows of worry. “So what should we do?”
Tanner moved to the bank of windows and paced back and forth. “Do you remember Danny’s last name?”
“Burlington.”
He stifled a groan.
There were probably a million Burlingtons listed in the Kansas City phone directory.
“We know he lives nearby, so I could probably figure out which Burlington it is,” she said as if she’d read his thoughts.
“You have a phone book?” he asked, for the first time feeling a wave of hope.
She nodded and went into the kitchen. Tanner followed right behind her. Surely Gina was with Danny. With the thoughtlessness of youth she hadn’t realized anyone would worry.
Colette pulled a phone book from a cabinet and opened it on the kitchen table, seeking the pages that would have the numbers for all the Burlingtons in the city.
Tanner moved to stand next to her, vaguely aware of the sweet, clean scent of her and the warmth of her curves against him as he pressed closer to view the numbers.
She ran a well-manicured pink fingernail down the page, scanning the numbers in what appeared to be surprising speed.
“Here’s a possibility,” she said. Tanner moved from her side to the phone and punched in the number as she read it off to him.
It was the wrong Burlington.
They called four numbers. Three of them didn’t know a Danny and nobody answered at the fourth place. Tanner was just hanging up the receiver when they heard the front door open and close.
Gina walked into the kitchen and there was a moment of stunned silence. Her bottom lip was slightly swollen, her hair was in disarray, her panty hose were in shreds and her knees were bloodied.
“Don’t panic,” she exclaimed hurriedly. “It looks much worse than it is.”
Despite her words, it was sheer panic that shot through Tanner. In three quick strides he was before her, and he grabbed her by the shoulders to assure himself that she was really all right.
For a moment he couldn’t speak. No question seemed as important as hugging her to his chest, assuring himself that she was really okay. It was only after a long, fierce bear hug that he stepped back. “What happened?”
She broke free from him and set her purse on the table. “A little weasel tried to snatch my purse.”
“How did your knees get so skinned up?” Colette asked.
“When he grabbed for it, he didn’t realize it was looped over my head and I fell.” She smiled faintly. “I think I scared him more than he scared me. I was screaming like a banshee and I managed to hit him with a couple of shots of my pepper spray. I went right down to the police station to make a report. That’s where I’ve been all this time. I tried to call but the line was busy, then decided I’d just explain when I got home.”
Fear grappled with rage inside Tanner as he stared at his baby sister. “Pack your bags,” he said curtly. “You are not staying in a place where you get mugged and have to carry pepper spray.”
Gina sank down in a chair at the table. “Don’t be ridiculous,” she scoffed. “I’ll do no such thing.”
Tanner’s anger increased. The frustration he’d felt for the past two weeks where she was concerned exploded. He’d tried to be patient, had tried to make her see things his way without being harsh, but now his patience was shot.
“Gina, for God’s sake, you could have been killed,” he exclaimed, residual fear still strong and bold inside him.
“But I wasn’t,” Gina replied. “I handled it just fine.”
“This time…but what about next time?” Tanner wanted to bellow, he wanted to grab her by the shoulders and shake some sense into her. “I mean it, Gina. I’m leaving here Sunday morning and you will be beside me in that truck.”
Gina rose. “I don’t want to fight with you now, Tanner. What I need is a nice, relaxing bath, so I’ll just tell you good-night now.”
Without another word she left the kitchen. Tanner turned his frustrated gaze to Colette. “I don’t know how to make her understand. She’s so damned stubborn.”
The corners of Colette’s lips turned upward. “Gee, I wonder where she gets that?” The smile fell away, and her warm brown eyes were filled with sympathy. “Maybe she’ll think differently in the morning.”
“I hope so.” He sighed. Now that the tenseness of the moment had passed, he was exhausted. “I better get out of here so you can get some sleep.”
Together they walked from the kitchen to the front door. “So, you’re really leaving Sunday morning?”
“Yeah, it’s past time I get back home.” He gazed at her, for a moment wishing he wasn’t taking one young woman back to Foxrun with him, but two.
At the moment Colette looked as beautiful as he’d ever seen her. Her brown eyes were luminous and the pink robe accentuated her creamy complexion.
He wanted to wrap her up in his arms and carry her to his truck, take her back to his ranch and fill the well of need he sensed inside her. But of course he couldn’t do that. She had a life here and a business to run.
“I’ll miss you, Tanner.” She said the words slowly, as if with great reluctance.
He took a step closer to her. “And I’ll miss you.”
Without conscious thought, he reached for her.
One last kiss, he told himself as he claimed her mouth. One last moment of savoring the sweet delight of kissing Colette.
The frustration of moments before fell aside as desire ached inside him. He didn’t just want to take her home with him, he wanted to take her home and keep her in his bed for at least a month. He wanted to wake up each morning with her in his arms and fall asleep at night after making love to her.
He broke the kiss, knowing his thoughts were foolish and to continue kissing her would only make leaving more difficult.
“Good night, Colette,” he said as he released her, then before he could say or do anything more foolish, he left.
“There’s nothing better than cold pizza,” Gina exclaimed as she grabbed another piece from the box in the middle of the kitchen table.
It was just after midnight as the two ate the pizza that had been ordered hours before. Gina had taken a bath and put antiseptic on her skinned knees, and other than a touch of body soreness from her unexpected fall, she seemed none the worse for wear.
On the other hand, Colette had done nothing but think since Tanner had left. Her initial thoughts had been of intense sadness. He was leaving day after tomorrow, and she’d never again hear his laughter, never again see passion in the depths of those beautiful blue eyes.
As Gina had bathed, Colette’s thoughts had turned to her. The trauma that Gina had suffered had horrified her, and for the first time ever Colette wondered if Gina wasn’t making a huge mistake in not returning home with her brother who loved her so.
Watching Tanner wrap Gina in his arms and hug her with such obvious love and concern had touched Colette deeply. She couldn’t help but think of all the times in her past she’d wished somebody had wrapped her up and hugged her with that same kind of love.
“Gina, maybe you should reconsider your decision to go back with Tanner,” she now said.
Gina set down her piece of pizza and stared at Colette with narrowed eyes. “What are you talking about?”
Colette shrugged. “You know Tanner only wants the best for you. Maybe it would be a good idea for you to spend another year at the ranch, finish up your teaching degree and not have to worry about paying rent or getting mugged.”
“He got to you.” Gina laughed without humor. “I should have known he would. He’s been subtly seducing you the whole time he’s been here just to get you on his side.”
“That’s ridiculous,” Colette scoffed, although she couldn’t control the sickening disappointment that rolled through her as Gina’s words imploded inside her.
“What’s ridiculous about it?” Gina shoved away from the table, a look of disgust on her face. “Tanner doesn’t like to lose and he’d do anything to increase his odds of winning, and the best way for him to win is to get you on his side.” She stood. “Face it, Colette, you’ve been played.” With these words she stalked out of the kitchen, and a moment later Colette heard the slam of her bedroom door.
Chapter Ten
Early Sunday morning Colette paced back and forth in her living room. She expected Tanner to arrive at any moment. He thought he was going to pick up Gina, but what he was going to get instead was a large piece of Colette’s anger.
Since Friday night, when Gina had told her she’d been played by Tanner, her anger had grown by the minute. At first she hadn’t believed what Gina had said, but the more she dwelled on it, the more she began to believe Gina’s words.
If he’d truly felt something for her and hadn’t just been trying to manipulate her, then why hadn’t he made love to her when she had been so out of control from his kisses, his caresses. If he’d felt the same, he wouldn’t have been able to stop himself from making love to her.
But instead he had called things to a halt. He hadn’t been willing to take his manipulation of her to that length. She’d been grateful that he hadn’t shown his face in the store the day before.
The hurt of Gina’s words had been too close to the surface. His kisses had felt so real, her heart had cried out. His desire for her had seemed so genuine.
Now she’d managed to shove the hurt aside and instead simply felt a slow burn of anger.
She poured herself another cup of coffee. It was just after seven, and she had no idea when to expect Tanner, but she had a feeling it would be soon, for he’d want to get an early start back to Foxrun.
Gina had left at the crack of dawn, choosing avoidance over confrontation with her brother. Danny had come by for her, and the two had planned to go out for an early breakfast, then spend the day at the park.
Colette was grateful the young girl wasn’t here. Despite her desire to the contrary, she already felt tears building inside her as she thought of never seeing Tanner Rothman again.
It was ridiculous, really. She’d never wanted a man in her life, had refused to ever consider the possibility of marriage. But there had been moments when Tanner had talked about the ranch and the small-town living that had sent a deep yearning through her.
She took a sip of her coffee, then touched her tummy. Okay, so she wouldn’t have a husband to hold her through the night, and she wouldn’t live in a charming little town where everyone knew everyone. But she would have her family. Her baby would be her family and that’s all she would ever need. Her baby would get all the love and all the attention and would never have to come second place to any man.
What If I'm Pregnant...? Page 11