Lawful Wife (Eternal Bachelors Club)

by Folsom, Tina

  “Are you sure you’re okay?” Holly asked again, looking her up and down.

  “Yes, I’m fine. It’s just . . . ” Sabrina hesitated, then lowered her voice to a whisper. “I think I’m pregnant.”

  “What?” Holly’s eyes widened in surprise.

  “Shhh!” Sabrina cautioned with a look to the door through which the seamstress had disappeared. “I took a home pregnancy test yesterday, and it was positive.”

  “Oh my god!” Holly cupped her hands over her mouth and shook her head. “Are you sure?”

  Sabrina shrugged and brushed nervously over her gown’s skirt. “I don’t know. I only did the home test. With all the wedding preparations I don’t have time to see a doctor. It will have to wait.”

  “But you have to see one, Sabrina. Like, today,” Holly insisted. “If you want to, I’ll come with you.”

  “Thanks, Holly, but I think I’ll wait until after the wedding.”

  Holly tilted her head to the side, her look one of disapproval. “Why?”

  “I’m stressed out enough as is, Holly. I don’t need this looming over my head as well.”

  “Do you want this baby?”

  “What? Of course I want it!” Sabrina cupped her hands protectively over her stomach. Having Daniel’s baby would be a dream come true. Finding out before the wedding that the home pregnancy test was wrong would be a huge disappointment, one that she didn’t want to face right now. “What kind of question was that?”

  “An honest one.” Holly placed her hands at her hips as if ready for a fight she was determined to win. “I just don’t understand why you don’t want to go to the doctor and find out for certain. It seems like not knowing would cause more stress than actually knowing.” Holly frowned. “Have you told Daniel about this yet?”

  Sabrina averted her gaze and shook her head.

  “Sabrina! Why not? Are you afraid he’ll be upset?” Holly asked.

  “No, why would he be upset?” Sabrina asked quickly and adamantly. “I know he’ll be thrilled, but I don’t want to tell him until I’m one hundred percent sure. It would crush him if I told him I was pregnant, and then found out I wasn’t. You know how inaccurate those home tests can be.”

  “Which is all the more reason to go see the doctor as soon as possible,” Holly pressed.

  “I’ll think about it, okay?”

  Holly nodded reluctantly.

  “In the meantime, I need you to promise me that you won’t say anything about this to anyone. Not even Tim.”

  Holly sighed. “Fine. My lips are sealed for the time being.” Then she broke into a smile. “I can’t believe you’re going to have a baby.”

  “I know!” Sabrina squealed with delight and hugged Holly. “And you’re going to be an aunt.” Because to her, Holly was like the sister she never had.

  “Oh, I’m going to be the best aunt in the world.” Holly laughed.

  “I have no doubt about it.”

  “I’m going to spoil that baby as if she were my own.”

  “She?” Sabrina laughed. “What makes you think it’s a girl?”

  Holly shrugged. “Women’s intuition? Okay, so I’m hoping for a girl so I can show her how to shop and get her nails done and tell her all about boys.”

  Sabrina had to stop laughing and try to appear normal again when the door opened and Julia appeared with a glass of water. She didn’t want anybody else to find out prematurely, because she knew just how fast gossip could spread in a small community like Montauk.

  8

  After dropping Holly off at the Maidstone Country Club, Sabrina drove into the village of East Hampton.

  It looked busy in town when she arrived. Nevertheless, she found an empty parking spot and pulled in. After stuffing several coins into the meter, she adjusted her purse on her shoulder and walked along the sidewalk, not sure yet what she should get for Holly.

  She wandered along the main street, glancing in store windows, trying to find inspiration, when she saw Mrs. Teller, the Sinclair’s next door neighbor coming toward her.

  “Hi, Mrs. Teller,” she called out to her with a smile.

  The woman’s eyes widened, clearly recognizing her. But instead of returning Sabrina’s friendly greeting, she dashed into the street and crossed to the other side of it, before Sabrina had reached her. Surprised at her odd behavior, Sabrina stopped for a moment. No, the behavior hadn’t only been odd, it had been downright hostile if she’d interpreted the deep frown on Mrs. Teller’s face and the sneer around her lips. As if she were appalled by what she’d seen.

  Sabrina looked down at herself, wondering if something was amiss with her wardrobe, but she couldn’t find anything dirty or torn that would warrant such a reaction. Despite the warm temperatures that had most of the vacationers in the Hamptons wearing shorts, Sabrina wore a colorful summer dress that neither showed too much cleavage nor was too short.

  Shaking her head, Sabrina continued walking down the sidewalk and tried to put Mrs. Teller out of her mind. Maybe she was having a bad day and wasn’t in the mood to talk to anybody.

  For a moment, she gazed into the window of a lingerie store. Lisette’s was stenciled over the window. Holly loved beautiful lingerie. It was part of who she was. Yet Sabrina hesitated. The revelation that Holly wanted to quit her job had come as a complete surprise. A welcome one, actually. But did this change who Holly was? Did this mean that suddenly, pretty lingerie wasn’t one of her priorities anymore? Sabrina shook her head at her stupid thoughts. Holly was Holly. She was an extremely beautiful woman with long blonde locks, a gorgeous smile, and a figure any woman would kill for. Even if she didn’t plan to work as an escort anymore, she would still take care of her appearance, and her taste in lingerie would certainly not change.

  Having convinced herself that lingerie was always the perfect gift for her friend, she entered the store. A doorbell chimed and soft music played from speakers somewhere in the ceiling. Inside the store it smelled of scented candles. She’d been to this shop once before with Raffaela and found the sales staff very helpful, though she didn’t think she really needed any help this time. She knew Holly’s taste as well as her size.

  One sales woman was busy helping another customer at a display of bras while the owner of the store stood at the checkout and finalized another customer’s purchase. She looked up for a moment, glancing at Sabrina, a smile already on her lips, when her eyebrows snapped together and her lips set in a grim line.

  “Hi,” Sabrina said in her direction, but got no response.

  Feeling awkward, she cast a look over her shoulder, checking whether anybody else had entered behind her who might have caused the scowl on the owner’s face, but there was nobody.

  Brushing off the feeling of unease, Sabrina walked to a display of negligees and browsed through the selection, gravitating toward items in black and red, two of Holly’s favorite colors when it came to lingerie.

  She lifted a red negligee with black trim made of lace and inspected it more closely. The fabric was soft, yet the lace felt rough and she wondered if it would feel comfortable on Holly’s skin. Sabrina brought the lace to her cheek and rubbed it against her skin. And indeed it felt scratchy. Maybe she should get a negligee made entirely of silk instead.

  She turned toward another display, when she nearly bumped into the owner of the store.

  Jolting backwards, Sabrina gasped and pressed a hand against her chest. “Excuse me. I didn’t see you.”

  The owner, Lisette, addressed her in a low voice. “I would like you to leave. Now. Without making a scene.”

  Shocked by her words, Sabrina’s heart began to pound. Her eyes darted back to the negligees. Had she done anything wrong? “But I only touched the negligees.”

  “We don’t want people like you here.”

  The hostility in the woman’s words, made tears shoot into Sabrina’s eyes. Why was this woman so nasty to her? She hadn’t dirtied the negligee when pressing it to her cheek. Sabrina wasn’t even wearin
g makeup that could have rubbed off on the garment.

  “But—”

  “Leave!”

  This time the woman’s voice was louder, and from the corner of her eye, Sabrina saw that the other sales woman and her customer had taken notice and were casting curious looks in her direction. The doorbell chimed again, and Sabrina didn’t dare look in the direction of the door, not wanting for even more people to watch the embarrassing scene.

  “What is going on here?” a familiar voice suddenly asked, making Sabrina look up.

  Paul Gilbert walked toward them with long, determined steps, tossing the owner of the store a displeased look.

  “Paul,” she murmured, relieved to see a friendly face. “I think there’s been some sort of misunderstanding. I didn’t do anything wrong.”

  Paul nodded and placed a hand on her elbow, pulling her away. “We’re leaving, Sabrina.”

  As he guided her toward the exit, Sabrina felt her control crumble and sensed tears running down her cheeks. When she was finally outside and Paul led her away from the store, her next breath left her chest as a sob.

  Moments later, she felt Paul’s arms around her, comforting her as she sobbed against his polo shirt.

  “I only put the negligee against my cheek,” she pressed out between sobs. “Just to see if the lace was scratchy.”

  “It’s okay now.” He patted her back as if she were a child.

  “I’m not even wearing makeup. I didn’t make it dirty.” She pulled free of him and caught his confused look. “I mean no makeup could have rubbed onto the negligee,” she explained.

  Understanding shone from his eyes. “Forget about it. How about I buy you a nice cup of coffee?”

  She sniffed and accepted the handkerchief he handed her. “Thank you.” She lifted her head. “I’m not normally so emotional.”

  “That’s quite all right. You have every right to be emotional. It’s a lot to deal with.”

  She nodded. Weddings were stressful.

  “Come, I know a great coffee shop.”

  Sabrina turned in the direction Paul indicated and froze. A few yards away, Linda Boyd stood watching them, her lips twisted into a sneer. That was all Sabrina needed now! Linda had seen her emotional outburst, and for all she knew she’d also watched the embarrassing scene in the shop. Knowing Linda, she’d probably stared through the shop’s window.

  Sabrina averted her gaze and forced a smile onto her face. “Yes, some coffee would be nice now.”

  9

  “Well . . . ” Father Vincent clapped his hands. “I think you two are ready for the big day.” He smiled. “It will be a beautiful ceremony.”

  “Yes, it will be,” Daniel agreed with a smile as he put his arm around Sabrina’s waist and pulled her to him. “And we have you to thank for that.”

  “Oh, most definitely.” Sabrina nodded. “Your introduction is lovely, Father.”

  “I’m glad you think so.” He turned to Holly and Tim, shaking Holly’s hand. “Well, it was nice meeting you both, too.” He shook Tim’s hand then looked back at Daniel and Sabrina. “If you two don’t have any more questions or concerns, I’ll be heading for my counseling session.”

  Daniel glanced at Sabrina, his heart swelling with love, and shook his head. “No, I think we’re all set. Thank you again, Father, and we’ll see you soon.”

  “Bless you.” Father Vincent bowed slightly then left them standing in the aisle of the small church.

  “Who’s up for some lunch?” Daniel asked.

  Holly wiped at her eyes and nodded. “Yeah, lunch sounds good.”

  “Are you crying?” Sabrina asked with a laugh. “Oh, Holly.” She hugged her friend. “If it makes you feel any better, I’ll probably be crying during the actual ceremony, too.”

  “I just can’t believe that Tim and I actually managed to pull it off to get you two together,” Holly said. “Maybe I should open a matchmaking business!”

  Sabrina chuckled. “Maybe you should!”

  Daniel laughed and started walking toward the exit. They really did have Tim and Holly to thank for all of this. If it hadn’t been for them, he would have never met Sabrina and would have never experienced what true love was. “All right, let’s go. There’s a great little shack near the beach. It looks like a dive, but Frank makes the best clam chowder and crab sandwiches within fifty miles.”

  “Oh, you’ve taken me there before. Great place!” Tim agreed.

  Daniel pushed open the heavy wooden door and squinted against the bright light of the midday sun. Behind him, the others exited, but before he could turn back to them and lead them in the direction of Frank’s Crab Shack, an auburn mane across the street caught his eye.

  He whirled his head to take a closer look and froze.

  Audrey!

  Audrey was just now entering the general store across the street, the door closing behind her. She was here in the Hamptons! Hiding from him in plain sight! So he’d guessed right: Audrey was staying close so she could watch with glee as chaos, caused by her vicious lies, ensued. She was most likely staying with the Boyds. No wonder Linda Boyd had known about the newspaper article so quickly and alerted his mother, when he doubted that Linda even read the New York Times.

  His heart thundered in his ears, and his hands turned to fists. He would wring Audrey’s pretty neck for the untruths she’d spread about Sabrina.

  Daniel turned back to Sabrina and their friends. None of them seemed to have noticed Audrey enter the store. This was his chance, but he had to make it quick, before Audrey escaped him.

  “Uh.” Daniel cleared his throat. “Why don’t you guys go on ahead and I’ll meet you there?”

  Sabrina gave him a confused look. “Why? I thought it was your idea to go to Frank’s.”

  He pasted a charming smile onto his face, while inside he was seething. “If I tell you, I’ll have to kill you.” He winked playfully. Then he quickly added, “It won’t take long. I promise.”

  Tim whistled, jabbing him in the side. “Sounds like Daniel wants to buy something special for you, Sabrina.”

  Daniel instantly noticed the smile that pulled at Sabrina’s mouth. “Why didn’t you say so immediately?” Her eyes sparkled.

  He pressed a brief kiss on her mouth. “Looks like I can’t keep any secrets from you.”

  “Looks like it.” Sabrina winked and left with Tim and Holly.

  Daniel waited and watched until Sabrina, Tim, and Holly were out of sight before he made his way across the street and entered the general store.

  He surveyed the interior. A fair number of customers were shopping in the large store that carried everything from milk to greeting cards to glassware.

  He spotted Audrey in the far corner looking at a display of fancy bottles of olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Quietly and swiftly, he approached her.

  “Audrey,” he said, coming up behind her.

  She gasped and spun around to face him. “Daniel,” she greeted him coolly, her eyes already darting past him as if looking for an escape route.

  “We need to talk.”

  Daniel glanced around. Too many customers were close by and would be able to overhear their conversation, and what he had to say to Audrey wasn’t meant for anybody else’s ears.

  “In private,” he gritted out between clenched teeth, while his eyes searched for a place that would afford some modicum of privacy. A sign caught his attention.

  Before she could protest, he grabbed Audrey’s wrist and dragged her to a door. Restrooms was printed on it. He pushed the door open, pulling a reluctant Audrey with him, then opened the door to the men’s room and pushed her inside.

  “Get your fucking hands off of me!” she said, jerking her hand from his grasp.

  Daniel locked the door. “I know it was you, Audrey.”

  “What are you talking about?” Audrey braced her hands at her hips and glared at him defiantly.

  “Damn it, Audrey! Don’t play stupid with me. It was you who went to the news
paper with that ridiculous story about Sabrina being a call girl. I know you were the reporter’s source.”

  “Prove it!”

  “I don’t need to prove it. We both know it was you, so cut the crap!”

  “So what? People have a right to know when somebody in their community brings a two-bit hooker into their midst and makes her out to be a respectable woman.”

  “Sabrina is not a hooker!” Daniel shouted and raised his fist. He’d never hit a woman, but by God, he was close to it now. “This afternoon, you’ll be contacting the reporter, telling her that you made a mistake, that it was a case of mistaken identity and ask her to withdraw the story and issue an apology.”

  She smiled in the smug way that he’d always hated. “No.”

  “Don’t push me, Audrey. You have no idea what I’m capable of.”

  “You’re not the only one who can issue threats.” She crossed her arms over her chest. “You can’t order me around anymore! You dumped me for that lowly piece of—”

  Daniel pushed her against the wall, pointing his finger in her face. “Don’t finish that sentence!”

  “Even if I don’t say the word, it’s still true. I have proof, Daniel! Hard evidence that can’t be disputed. The paper won’t issue a correction, let alone an apology. I have documentation.”

  “What fucking documentation? There is no proof, because Sabrina isn’t a call girl! Whatever you have is faked!”

  “It’s not!” Audrey insisted. “I have it in black and white!”

  “Tell me now, or—”

  “Or what? I’m not your girlfriend anymore!”

  “Thank God for that!” he muttered. He’d dodged a bullet when he’d found Audrey in bed with his attorney.

  Audrey glared at him, her mouth now spewing venom. “I’m glad of it! Luckily I never married you! Imagine the horror of finding a charge for an escort service on your credit card statement! As your wife I would have sunk into the ground out of shame! Luckily I was spared that humiliation!”

  “Credit card statement?” That’s how she’d found out? He gripped her arms, leaning in so his face was only inches from hers. “How did you get my statements?” The only people who handled his credit card statements were his assistant Frances and himself. “Frances would have never—”