by Nora Roberts
“I don’t think so.” Jack shook his head. “I think when it comes down to the sticking point, those four are too solidly linked. New York maybe, but not Europe. The pull from the other three’s just too strong.”
“I said almost the same to her not long ago, only half-kidding.”
Jack ate one of the almonds from the dish Angie set on the bar. “I thought I got it before, before Emma and I changed direction. But living there, being in the mix the way I am now? It’s the next thing to a psychic connection there. A little spooky sometimes, to tell the truth.” He lifted his beer, a half toast. “That’s love, man, wide and deep as it gets.”
“Always has been.” Del considered for a moment. “I still say this isn’t something Laurel’s got on the brain, but if there’s anything there, the other three would know. You could feel out Emma about it.”
“No way. Not even for you. If I start that, it’ll lead to a whole discussion on what I think about you guys, how I might feel you out about it.” Jack popped another almond. “The end is madness.”
“You’ve got a point. Besides, that would only launch the idea balloon on it anyway. We’re fine. We’ll leave it alone. We’re on a smooth road for the moment, so why test the detours?”
Jack grinned. “That’s what I thought about Emma and me.”
“You’ve got to stop that.”
“I have to admit, it’s fun poking at the vulnerable spots. But speaking of Emma and me, you’ll do the best man thing, right?”
“Sure. Wouldn’t have it any other way.”
“Good. That’s about the only thing I have to do. Mostly, I just have to smile and say that’s great when she tells me what they’ve come up with for the wedding. Parker told me my deal’s the honeymoon, then gave me the contact for a travel agent she says is the best—and an entire packet on Bora-Bora because she says it’s somewhere Emma’s always wanted to go, plus it’s exotic and romantic. So I guess that’s where we’re going.”
Intrigued, Del studied Jack over his sparkling water. “Do you want to go to Bora-Bora?”
“You know, I do. As soon as I looked at the packet, I thought, hey, this is it.Your sister’s a little scary, Del.”
“She can be.”
“Carter got a packet on Tuscany, which included those ‘Learn Italian’ discs for both of them.”
He had to laugh. “I guess that’s taken care of.”
“Apparently. Hey, I’ve got to run. I got an e-mail before I left the office. Emma’s in a cooking mood.”
“I’ll get your beer.”
“Thanks.”
“Jack? The getting married suit? It looks good on you.”
“Feels good. Who knew? See you later.”
It wasn’t just the getting married that looked good on him, Del mused. It was the whole life with Emma, the foundation he could so easily see—now—Jack building on. Home and family, dinner together at the end of a long day. They’d need more room eventually in the pretty little guest house. Knowing Jack, he’d come up with something.
The estate was turning into a kind of commune. When he considered it, Del decided it was something that would have pleased and amused his parents.
“Your table’s ready, Mr. Brown.” The maitre d’ stepped up to the bar. “Would you like to be seated, or would you prefer to wait for your party here at the bar?”
He glanced at his watch. Laurel was running late—or Mac who was dropping her off on the way to a shoot was running late.
“She should be here any minute. I’ll take the table.”
He decided to go ahead and order a bottle of wine, and had barely made his selection when he heard his name.
“Hello, stranger!”
“Deborah.” He rose to greet her, and exchanged a light, friendly kiss with the woman he’d known for years. “You look great. How are you?”
“Fabulous.” She tossed back her lush mane of red hair. “Just back from two months in Spain—with the last two weeks in Barcelona.”
“Business or pleasure?”
“Both, a lot of both. I’m meeting my mother and sister for a little catch-up girl time. I’m early, as usual; they’re late, as usual.”
“Sit down, wait with me.”
“I’d love to, Delaney.” She gave him a sparkling smile as he pulled out a chair. “I haven’t seen you since ... when? I think it’s since the Spring Ball. What have you been up to?”
“Nothing as interesting as Barcelona.” As the wine steward offered the bottle for approval, Del glanced at the label, nodded.
“Well, catch me up. Who’s doing what, and who are they doing it with? What’s the latest hot gossip?”
Del smiled as he sampled the taste the steward poured in his glass. “I think you’ll need your mother and sister for that. It’s perfect,” he told the steward, and gestured toward the glass in front of Deborah.
“You’re too discreet. Always were.” She sipped the wine. “And you still have excellent taste in wines. Come on, spill something. I heard a rumor that Jack Cooke’s engaged. Confirm or deny.”
“That I can confirm. He and Emmaline Grant set the date for next spring.”
“Emma? Really? Well, here’s to them.” She lifted her glass.
“Though scores of single females may mourn. Obviously I’ve been out of the loop. I didn’t even know they were an item.”
“I guess it moved pretty quickly once it started.”
“I’m happy for them. Is it odd for you? I mean, Emma’s the next thing to a sister, and Jack’s your closest friend.”
“I had a moment or two,” he admitted. “But they’re good together. Tell me about Barcelona. I’ve never been there.”
“You need to go. The beaches, the food, the wine. The romance.” She smiled at him. “It’s in the air.”
They were laughing, leaning across the table toward each other when Laurel came in. It stopped her dead in her tracks, as if she’d walked into a glass wall—and she stood on the wrong side of it.
He looked so relaxed, she thought. No, they looked so relaxed, and gorgeous—both of them. If Mac had come in with her, she could have snapped a photo, captured that moment, that image of two beautiful people sharing wine and laughter over candlelight.
Anyone would think they were a couple, perfectly suited, absolutely in tune.
“Laurel, hi.”
“Hi, Maxie.” Laurel worked up a smile for the waitress who paused. “Busy night.”
“Tell me.” Maxie rolled her eyes. “I didn’t know you were coming in. We’ll fix you up.”
“Actually I’m meeting someone.”
“Oh, okay. Don’t let Julio see you.” She winked as she talked of the chef. “He’d be tempted to drag you back into the kitchen on a night like this. We miss you around here.”
“Thanks.”
“Gotta keep it moving. I’ll talk to you later.”
She nodded, then slipped into the rest room to give herself a minute. Stupid, she told herself, stupid to lose her balance because Del was having a drink with a friend. Stupid to feel somehow less because a handful of years before she’d have been back in the kitchen hustling instead of sitting at a table. She’d have created some lovely dessert for a couple like Delaney Brown and Deborah Manning.
“Nothing wrong with that,” she muttered, and dug out her lip gloss as she scolded herself in the mirror. She was proud of the job she’d done here—and the money she’d earned to help launch Vows. She was proud of her talent, and proud that talent enabled her to have a business, earn her living, create something that made people happy.
She took care of herself, made her own way, and God, nothing was more important to her than that.
But it stung, she couldn’t help it, to remember that she’d always be, in some sense, on the wrong side of that glass wall.
“It doesn’t matter.” She replaced the lip gloss, took a breath. “It just doesn’t matter.”
Confidence, she reminded herself, was like lip gloss—all you had to d
o was put it on.
She stepped out of the rest room, turned toward the dining room, and started toward the table.
Okay, she mused, it helped considerably to see the way Del’s eyes warmed when he spotted her. He rose, held out a hand for hers as Deborah shifted and glanced up.
Laurel saw the momentary struggle to place the face with a name. She and Deborah didn’t run in the same circles, after all.
“Laurel, you remember Deborah Manning, don’t you?”
“Sure. Hello, Deborah.”
“Laurel. It’s good to see you again. Del just told me about Emma and Jack. You must be planning a spectacular cake.”
“I have some ideas.”
“I’d love to hear them. Weddings are so much fun. Can you sit down? Del, we need another glass.”
To her credit, Deborah caught on quickly, and her flawless redhead’s skin flushed at her bungle. “I’m an idiot.” She laughed as she got to her feet. “Del’s been waiting for you. He was sweet enough to keep me company.”
“That’s fine.” Look how mature I am, Laurel thought. “You should stay, finish your wine. We can get another chair.”
“No, no. I’ve been waiting for my mother and sister. I’m going to step out and give them a call, make sure I haven’t been stood up. Thanks for the wine, Del.”
“It was good seeing you, Deborah.”
“You, too. Enjoy your dinner.”
She strolled off, but not before Laurel caught the look of baffled speculation.
“I’m late,” Laurel said brightly. “Completely Mac’s fault.”
“It was worth the wait.” He held her chair. “You look beautiful.”
“I was thinking the same thing about you.”
With the smooth efficiency the restaurant was known for, a waiter removed Deborah’s glass, replaced it, and poured Laurel’s wine. She sipped, nodded. “Very nice.”
She took the menu the waiter offered, but didn’t open it.
“Hi, Ben.”
“Hi, Laurel. I heard you were here.”
“What’s good tonight?”
“The red snapper, topped with crab, sautéed in a white wine reduction, and served with jasmine rice and asparagus.”
“Sold. And a small side salad with the house to start.”
“I’ll play,” Del said. “What else is good?”
“You might like the pork tenderloin with honey-ginger sauce. We’re serving it with fingerling potatoes and roasted vegetables nicoise.”
“Sounds perfect. I’ll have the salad as well.”
“Excellent choices.”
He’d barely stepped away when another server placed the restaurant’s signature olive bread and dipping sauce on the table.
“You know, the service is always good here,” Del commented. “It’s better with you.”
“We like to take care of our own.” She nibbled on some bread.
“I’d forgotten you used to work here—or didn’t think of it when I suggested we have dinner here. We’ll have to have dessert, so you can check out your replacement.”
“I think it’s my replacement’s replacement now.”
“Once you’ve had the best, it’s hard to settle for less. Do you miss it at all? Working with a team, I mean, the energy, the controlled chaos.”
“Not always so controlled. And not really. I like having my own space, and restaurant hours are brutal.”
“And you have so much time on your hands now.”
“Well, it’s my time, and that makes a difference. Ah, looks like Deborah’s mother and sister showed up.” She lifted her glass toward a nearby table, and Del glanced over to see the three women being seated.
“They probably weren’t late, or not by much. She tends to be early.”
“That’s right.” Casually, easy, mature, Laurel congratulated herself. “You dated her.”
“Briefly, and long ago. Before she was married.”
“I hope you didn’t date her while she was married. After her divorce?”
He shook his head. “I represented her in the divorce. No dating clients, and I have a policy about dating former clients in divorce cases. Just a bad idea.”
“Penny Whistledown.” Laurel pointed at him. “I remember you handled her divorce, and you dated her a couple years after.”
“Which is why I know it’s a bad idea.”
“She was so needy. If she couldn’t get you at home or the office, she’d call the house nagging Parker about where you were.” She sipped her wine again. “That, Counselor, was a serious error in judgment on your part.”
“Guilty as charged. You’ve had a couple.”
“Uh-uh. I steer clear of needy men.”
“Errors in judgment. Drake, no, Deke something. How many tattoos did he have?”
“Eight, I think. Maybe nine. But he doesn’t count. I was sixteen and hoping to piss off my parents.”
“It pissed me off.”
Her eyebrows winged up. “Really?”
“Really. He hung around most of that summer, in his torn-off-sleeve T-shirts and motorcycle boots. He had an earring, and I think he practiced his smirk in the mirror.”
“You remember him better than I do.”
She paused while Ben served the salads, topped off their wine. “We know too much about each other’s dating past. Could be dangerous.”
“I won’t hold yours against you, if you don’t hold mine against me.”
“Fair and reasonable,” she concluded. “You know, people are wondering what we’re doing, what’s going on with us.”
“What people?”
“Here, tonight. People who know you.” She inclined her head slightly toward the table where the three women were pretending not to be talking about them. “And people who know me.”
“Does that bother you?”
“No. Not really. Maybe a little.” She shrugged and gave her salad her attention. “It’s natural enough, especially when one of us is a Brown of the Connecticut Browns.”
“I’d say it’s natural enough because I’m sitting here with the most beautiful woman in the room.”
“Good. That’s very good. A popular standard for a reason.”
He laid his hand on hers on the table. “I know who I’m looking at.”
Undone, she turned her hand over to link her fingers with his. “Thanks.”
Let them wonder, she thought. Let them talk. She had what she’d always wanted right in her hand.
They ate, sampling each other’s choices, sipping good wine, talking about whatever came to mind. They’d always been able to talk, Laurel mused, about anything and everything. She found herself able to put that glass wall around them, close everyone else out on the other side and savor the interlude as much as the meal.
Ben set a trio of mini soufflés on the table. “Compliments of Charles, the dessert chef. He heard you were here and wanted to do something special for you. He’s a little nervous,” Ben added, lowering his voice as he leaned down.
“Seriously?”
“You’re a tough act, Laurel. If you’d rather have something else—”
“No, this is great. They’re beautiful.” She sampled the chocolate first, with a dollop of whipped cream. And closing her eyes, smiled. “Gorgeous. Try it,” she told Del, then took a taste of the vanilla. “Really wonderful.”
“He’d love to come out and meet you.”
“Why don’t I go back? After we do justice to these.”
“You’d make his day Thanks, Laurel.”
She tried the last while Ben walked away. “Mmm, the lemon’s exquisite. Just the right blend of tart and sweet.”
“A Brown of the Connecticut Browns. That’s what you said before.” He shared the soufflés with Laurel. “But I’m with the Diva of Desserts.”
“Diva of Desserts.” A laugh bubbled out, then she paused and just grinned. “I like it. I may get a sign. God, I’m going to have to work out like a maniac tomorrow, but I don’t want to hurt his feelings,�
� she added and took another bite. “Listen, I’ll only be a few minutes in the back.”
“I’m coming with you.”
“Are you sure?”
“Wouldn’t miss it,” he said, and rose to take her hand.
“It’ll have calmed down by now,” she told him. “The dinner rush is well over. But don’t touch anything. Julio can be fairly insane. If he threatens to fillet you like a trout, don’t take it personally.”
“I know Julio. I’ve met him several times when he’s come out to the table.”
Laurel spared Del a glance as they approached the kitchen. “Then you don’t know Julio.”
She pushed open the door.
Calm, she’d said. They obviously had different definitions of the term. People moved everywhere at once, it seemed to Del, and the noise level—raised voices, the clatter of dishes, the hum of vents, the thwack of knives, and sizzle from the grill—was simply huge.
Steam rose in air thick with heat and tension.
At a section of the enormous stove, Julio stood in his apron and short chef’s hat, cursing steadily in several languages.
“Can’t decide?” he boomed. “Need more time?” He erupted with a stream of gutter Spanish that singed the already simmering air. “Don’t want mushrooms, want extra carrots. Assholes! Where’s my fucking plate, goddamn it.”
“Nothing changes,” Laurel said just loud enough for him to hear.
He turned, a scrawny man with beetled black brows over molten brown eyes. “You, don’t talk to me.”
“I’m not here to talk to you.” She turned away to approach the younger man who’d stopped drizzling raspberry sauce around a slice of chocolate cake on a dessert plate. “You must be Charles.”
“Don’t talk to him until he gets that done. You think this is a social club?”
Charles’s eyes rolled in a handsome face the color of freshly ground coffee. “Please. Just one minute.”
He completed the plate with a scattering of berries, added thin cookies around a bowl of trifle. As if by secret signal, a waitress scooped them up and out the door.
“I’m so pleased to meet you. So pleased.”
“Your soufflés were wonderful—the lemon one in particular. Thank you.”