by Mary Leo
The light flickered in the hallway.
Chapter Five
Gaby awoke with a start. Her baby gave her one of the sharpest kicks she’d ever felt before.
“Okay. I’m up!”
After Hamilton had helped her to her chosen room last night, the one with the best view of the mountains, he hadn’t lingered, which Gaby was thankful for. Instead he’d told her goodnight, and then walked to his room at the end of the hallway.
Her room had its own private bath, and a positively lush bed that even the best hotels couldn’t match. Once she’d showered, pulled on her favorite peejays, grabbed a romance novel, and crawled in bed, she’d thought she’d be awake for hours. Instead, she must have fallen right to sleep because the next thing she knew, sunlight poured in through the sheer drapes on the window and the smell of bacon tickled her nose. She loved crispy, dry bacon and Hamilton’s bacon was by far the best she’d ever tasted.
She quickly washed up, combed her hair, slipped on an extra-large sweatshirt over her jammies, a pair of slouchy socks, and made her way to the kitchen.
“I made a pot of decaf coffee if you want a cup, and the organic bacon is from Artie’s in town. I stopped off at Bentley Farms to pick up a couple organic turkeys for Thanksgiving dinner and while I was there I bought three gallons of raw milk and a few dozen eggs from their pasture-raised chickens. The bread is free from GMOs and the honey is local. There’s a pan of scalloped organic potatoes about to come out of the oven, and I picked up some cupcakes from Bella’s bakery. If you think I did any of this for you, you’re mistaken. This is how I eat now.”
Gaby snickered, knowing damn well he was either telling the biggest whopper of his life or he’d recently abandoned his fast-food lifestyle, which made sense with his new leaner body. She had noticed that he’d lost some weight the previous night, but couldn’t really be sure. Now that he wore a tight brown T-shirt and jeans, not only had he lost about ten pounds but he’d been more active at the gym. His chest and arm muscles looked heavenly under that shirt, and she could only imagine what it would feel like to be wrapped in his arms. The thought warmed her body, but she knew she couldn’t afford to dwell on the feeling.
Instead she would concentrate on his food which looked and smelled heavenly.
“I didn’t eat very much for dinner last night, so I’m starved,” she told him regaining her composure. Just because she was pregnant didn’t mean she still didn’t long for his touch, to make love to him then to cuddle up and sleep with him all night long. But that couldn’t happen. So food would have to play interference. “And thank you for all of the organic goodness, even if it isn’t just for me.”
“It’s not,” he reaffirmed as he slid four large blueberry scones on a plate.
“And I suppose you’re drinking decaf now, as well?”
“No. I made the coffee for you, but don’t let it go to your head. I’m your host and my mom always taught me to go over and above for a guest. Brewing decaf is about as over and above as I’m going to get.”
“Thank you,” she said as she poured the aromatic blend into a white mug he had pulled from a cupboard and set down in front of her. Then she grabbed one of the cupcakes with orange frosting and colored sprinkles off the plate, took a delicious bite and sat on a wooden chair at Grandpa Win’s table. She could hear him now, scolding her for sitting with her knees pressed up against the table. She wished she could pull her knees up now, but that comfort would have to wait another month or so.
“I miss Grandpa Win. He was a force of nature. I thought he would live forever,” she said reminiscing over all the meals she’d shared at this table. She had envied Hamilton’s big, loving family. And even when his dad had disappeared from the picture, Grandpa Win seemed to take up the slack. Those boys were never without a strong male presence.
“I did, too. But even the last man standing has an expiration date.”
She swallowed and stared at him. “I can’t believe you said that.”
“Why? Because it was cold and unfeeling?”
“Yes.”
“I told you, I’ve changed. Isn’t that what you want? A cold and unfeeling man to agree to this adoption?”
Her baby rolled and kicked as she instinctively brushed a hand over her tummy, then she sat back for a moment to catch her breath. “That’s not what this is all about.”
“No? It seems to me that’s exactly what it’s about.”
“Why are you being so purposely mean to me?”
“Is that what you think I’m doing?”
“Yes.” She could feel her eyes watering, but she reined in her composure while Hamilton turned away from her and walked back into the kitchen.
From her vantage point at the table, she could see him slip on bright orange heat-resistant gloves, open the oven and pull out a roasting dish filled with the bubbling potatoes. The rooms instantly filled with their creamy aroma, and if her stomach wasn’t growling and her mouth wasn’t watering, she’d walk away from the table in a huff.
Instead, she watched as he plated the incredible looking breakfast, and set the steaming food down on the table in front of her. Hamilton could have his own cooking show, and a string of restaurants if he had wanted them. He was a better chef than her own father, and a better cook than some of the best chefs in the country. He’d won countless cooking contests when he was a teen, and had been accepted at L’Academie de Cuisine’s in France, but turned his back on his God-given talent after spending a few weeks with his dad. Instead, he went the traditional route and eventually received his MBA in business.
“How about we enjoy our food for now,” he said as he sat down across from her. “I’m sorry if I came across mean. Let’s change the subject, and get the elephant out of the room. I used raw milk and butter in the potatoes, so they should be laden with calories. I didn’t know if you were watching your weight or not, but I came up with this recipe a few weeks ago and I’ve been wanting to try it out on someone.”
“What about your girlfriend? Doesn’t she like scalloped potatoes?”
Hamilton coughed, grabbed his mug of coffee and took several swallows. He had a look on his face as if he was a cat who just swallowed the canary.
“My girlfriend?”
“Yes, the one you told me about in Denver. The one you said you were serious about and were thinking about proposing to. That girlfriend.”
“Um, I’m not dating anyone right now.”
It was the way he said it that sent up a red flag in Gaby’s mind. “Did you and she break up? I hope I didn’t have anything to do with it.”
He slid his food around on his plate, took a big bite of eggs, chewed and swallowed before she could blink her eyes. “Of course you didn’t. That time we spent together in Denver had nothing to do with anything.”
Gaby put her fork down and stared at him. She could smell bullshit a mile away, especially when Hamilton was standing knee deep in the stuff. “Then what was it, if I may ask?”
Hamilton was one of those fast eaters, who seemed to inhale his food. His plate was nearly empty, while she was just getting started.
“Fine. I lied. I didn’t have a serious girlfriend when we were in Denver, and I don’t have one now. But it doesn’t change anything.”
She had thought even then that something wasn’t right about his ‘so-called’ girlfriend, but she’d been reluctant to know the truth. She hadn’t wanted anything but sex that weekend, but her emotions had gotten the best of her when they’d made love in the shower. It was the first time in her life that she’d felt such raw honesty with a man, such passion, and she knew right then if she didn’t leave, didn’t take control of the situation, she’d be setting herself up for a massive fall, especially since he’d said he had a serious girlfriend. That made Gaby the ‘other woman,’ and there was absolutely no way she could ever condone that role.
“Yes it does. It changes everything. You lied to me when I was vulnerable.”
She suddenly felt betrayed
by the one person in her life she had always trusted. Someone she could rely on for the truth. How could this happen? Had he lied about other things? The thought made her question everything he’d ever told her. She grabbed another cupcake off the plate, a chocolate one this time with a mountain of chocolate frosting.
“Only after you lied to me. I was saving face.”
She licked off some of the frosting, pulled the paper off the cake part and took a big fat bite. She loved cupcakes and hadn’t had anything that tasted this good in years. She chewed, swallowed and focused on what he’d just said.
“Saving face? You? Since when did you ever care about that kind of thing? Besides, you didn’t know I was lying. I could have been telling the truth, so your lie was worse than my lie. Grandpa Win would be very disappointed in you.”
She knew how much his grandfather had meant to him and there was never a time when he would ever lie around him. Grandpa Win expected the truth and because he expected it, the truth was exactly what he got . . . from everyone.
“Let’s leave my relatives out of this.”
“That’s kind of hard to do when we’re sitting in Grandpa Win’s house, eating breakfast on the very table he built for his beloved Gracie.”
Just then, she felt the table rumble, as if some massive truck had just driven by and caused the cabin to shake. Only the main road was a half-mile away. “Did you feel that?”
“What?”
“The table shook.” She placed both her hands on the table, wanting to feel the rumble again.
“Impossible.”
“No. I felt it.”
“It’s your baby pushing against your belly.”
“You mean ‘our’ baby, don’t you?”
He slid his chair away from the table and stood, grabbing his now empty plate. “Oh, no you don’t. I’m not going to get all fatherly over a child you want me to give up for adoption. I won’t do it, Gaby. I won’t allow you to get me thinking about that baby, then force me to give it away. That’s too much.”
“How do you think I feel?”
“Nothing. That’s how I think you feel. I think you don’t feel a grain of compassion or love for that child inside you or how the heck could you ever think of giving it away?”
“I’m giving her away because I love her.”
A tight grin creased his sexy lips, telling her he didn’t believe a word she said. “Seems to me, the only person you have ever loved is yourself. You run away from everything whenever it gets a little uncomfortable. That baby is no exception. She must make you very uncomfortable. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have some work to do in my room.” Then he pulled her keys out of his pocket and tossed them on the table. “You can leave whenever you want to. I’m not going to try to stop you. This is all on you, Gaby. Everything you do from here on out will shape your world, and mine, for that matter. Make sure it’s what you want because there’s no coming back from this one.”
Chapter Six
Gaby didn’t move from the table. Instead, she finished off the bacon and put a deep dent in the scalloped potatoes. After she finally felt satiated, she cleared off the table, covered the leftovers and put them in the fridge. Then she loaded the dishwasher.
She thought about getting a room in town, but she really didn’t want anyone to see her baby bump, and she especially didn’t want her dad to know, ever. He’d be devastated by an adoption for his only grandchild, and she’d never hear the end of it. Then there were her friends in town, Maddie and Ciara. She hadn’t even told them yet. She had no idea how they would react, so she didn’t want to take a chance that they’d tell her dad.
She’d booked a return flight back to LA on Wednesday assuming that was when the rest of the Winchester family would be arriving at Win Creek Cabin. She had nowhere to go for the next two days, so for now, she wasn’t budging. Hamilton would just have to adjust to having her around.
“You’re still here,” he said as he walked into the room carrying his coffee mug.
“Ah-huh,” she mumbled, and her attention quickly returned to the book she was trying to get into.
She had grabbed a romance novel by Nora Roberts from the hundreds of books that sat on the shelves lining the walls of the living room. She was just settling in on the sofa that faced the massive windows--with a cup of hot chocolate nearby, a roaring fire crackling behind her--when she heard Hamilton’s footsteps on the wooden floor in the hallway. Both Grandpa Win and Grandma Win had been avid readers, a trait Gaby always admired. She rarely took the time to read a book anymore, especially not an actual print book. That luxury had died off years ago. Now, if she read anything, it was her Twitter feed on her phone.
“I thought for sure you’d be packed up and gone by now. That’s what you usually do when things get tough.” His voice echoed from behind her in the kitchen. She could hear him open the dishwasher and add his cup to the rest of the breakfast dishes.
She pulled her legs up on the sofa, deciding to ignore his sarcasm. It wasn’t like Hamilton to be so mean to her, so she chose to blame his sour behavior on the awkward situation they were in or maybe it was his job that was making him grumpy, or being back in the cabin after all these years. He had told her the last time they’d met that he hadn’t been back inside the cabin since his grandpa died five years ago.
If none of those were the reason for his dour behavior, then her mom had been right; a man really did change after he learned he was going to be a father.
Still looking down at her book, she said, “If it’s okay with you, I’d like to stay here until my flight leaves on Wednesday.”
“I’ll pay for another ticket if that’s what’s keeping you here.”
His cold attitude made her uncomfortable. She had to try to somehow lure the sweet Hamilton back. This new guy was too much of a challenge. He had come around to the front of the sofa to face her, his demeanor stern and unfriendly.
“It’s not the money. I just thought we could hang out like we used to when we were kids. Bake pies. String popcorn and cranberries for the Winchester Christmas tree. Take long walks.”
His forehead furrowed. She could see he wasn’t buying into any of her holiday cheer.
“You want to bake pies and string popcorn.”
“Yes. We used to do it every year. Remember?” She put the book down on the rustic wooden coffee table in front of the sofa.
She had warm memories of sharing some of Thanksgiving week with the Winchester clan. None of her dad’s other wives or his girlfriends could boil water, much less cook an entire turkey dinner. Her dad was always so busy at his restaurant that he never took the time to actually cook a turkey at home. One year she’d gone to his restaurant and shared dinner with him and Mindy, his third wife, but her dad couldn’t sit still at the table, so she had spent most of the meal talking to Mindy about hair care, makeup and breast implants. All of which, Gaby couldn’t have cared less about. She was all of fourteen years old, wore her hair short, like she did now, rarely wore makeup and talking about breast implants only made her cringe. It was perhaps the single worst Thanksgiving she’d ever spent in Plymouth Rock, Colorado . . . until now.
“Yes, I remember, and as we got older we’d talk about staying in contact with each other,” Hamilton said. “You’d leave and I’d never hear from you until the next round of holidays or sometimes not until summer. So, in answer to your question, no, I don’t want to bake pies or string anything with you. What about your dad’s place in town? Maybe he’s in between women right now, and would enjoy your company.”
“I can’t stay there.”
“Why?”
“He doesn’t know I’m pregnant and I don’t want him to ever know.”
“I thought so.” Hamilton closed his eyes and shook his head. “And just how the hell do you think you’re going to keep this from him?”
“I’m not going to tell him.”
“How do you know I won’t?”
“Because you’ve always kept my secrets.”
Gaby stood. She didn’t like him hovering over her like some dominant parent scolding her for doing something he didn’t condone.
“This isn’t about sneaking out to a movie or snitching a tray of cannoli from his restaurant, this is about a baby, our baby, his grandchild. If you can’t tell him what you’re planning to do then you shouldn’t be doing it.”
Emotion welled up, scratched the back of her throat and caused her eyes to water. “I don’t have a choice. I can’t keep this baby. I can barely take care of myself, let alone another person. I’m not ready to be a mother. I’m not prepared for this kind of responsibility, this much commitment, and neither are you. I know you’d resent me and this baby in no time. It’s written all over you. All you want right now is for me to leave so you can get some work done. You’re just like my dad, and I won’t put my daughter through what I went through. It wouldn’t be fair to her.”
“Gaby, you’ve got me all wrong.” His face softened, and he took a few steps toward her just as the front door swung open. His mom, Catherine, walked in, decked out in her best designer boots, skinny jeans, a furry gray vest over a red long-sleeved sweater and bright red horned-rimmed glasses hid her deep gray-colored eyes. His mom’s silky white short hair stood up in little trendy tuffs that encircled her narrow face, giving her an elegant look that Gaby had always admired about his mom. No matter where she went or what she wore she always looked as if she just stepped out of a photo shoot.
Gaby loved Catherine, and would have liked nothing more than to spend some time with her, but her timing couldn’t have been more wrong.
“Yoo-hoo! I hope I’m not disturbing anything but . . . ” She stopped in her tracks when she spotted Gaby, and drew in an audible breath.
Oh yeah, all wrong on so many levels.
***
Hamilton had called his mother earlier that morning out of desperation. He didn’t like being cold to Gaby. It went against every instinct and emotion he had for her. He knew he couldn’t be a pushover anymore, but acting like a cold-hearted jerk was fine during his business dealings, but not when he dealt with Gaby. The way he had it figured, if his mom strolled into the picture and tried to talk some sense into Gaby, she might actually listen.