Forgotten Honeymoon (Best Friends Wedding Series)

by Beverly Farr

  Lars fingers tightened on the pen he was holding. “Yes?”

  “Well, Kelly’s pregnant, and I have reason to believe I’m the baby’s father.”

  Lars stood up. “What?”

  Nigel held up his hand. “Don’t get excited. I’m not planning to break up your happy home. I just think we should take care of the matter legally, so there aren’t any questions later.”

  Lars wanted to climb over the desk and throttle the slimy bastard. But he kept his voice cool. “What do you mean by legally?”

  “I had a friend of mine, an attorney, draw up a paper for me, that says I give up all parental rights to Kelly’s baby.”

  “In exchange for ...”

  “One hundred thousand dollars,” Nigel said flatly.

  “That’s interesting, because from what Kelly’s told me, you aren’t the father.”

  “So she remembers everything now?”

  No, Lars knew she didn’t, and he didn’t want her to. Lars said, “You told her you weren’t the father.”

  Nigel shrugged. “I didn’t think I was, after only one time. I figured she must have been cheating on me. But the more I think about it, the more I think I’ve got rights that need to be considered.”

  “One hundred thousand dollars’ worth.”

  He smiled. “You got it. I mean, you married the cash cow, why shouldn’t I get my sh–”

  Lars came around his desk and lifted Nigel to his feet. “Get out of here,” he said fiercely.

  Nigel brushed himself off. “There’s no need to get rough. It’s a simple business transaction. Pay me and Kelly doesn’t need to know. I’ll fade quietly into the woodwork.”

  Lars shoved Nigel backward. “Get out.”

  Nigel staggered. “I’m just warning you. The price goes up every day, and in a week, I tell Kelly.”

  It was blackmail, plan and simple. “No deal,” he said firmly.

  Nigel laughed. “You know how to reach me,” he said as a parting shot. “I’ll be waiting for a call.”

  Lars ran his fingers through his hair. He was tempted to pay the hush money and be done with it. But Nigel was a born liar, and he could still approach Kelly. And even if he didn’t, Lars knew had to tell her the truth.

  Even if that meant losing her.

  She’d said she no longer loved Nigel, but would that change if he was the baby’s father?

  CHAPTER TEN

  Kelly sat curled up on the couch in the den, idly reading one of her parenting books. The news channel was running silently on the flat screen television. He knew from past experience that occasionally, she’d glance up and catch the headlines scrolling across the bottom of the screen. She often did two things at once; she was a multi-tasker with a quick mind. “Hi, you’re home late,” she said with a smile when she saw him in the doorway. “Do you want something to eat?”

  “No, I’m fine.” Lars sat down next to her, and she snuggled up to him. For a minute he held her, saying nothing, savoring her warmth, and the floral scent of her shampoo. He wished that he didn’t have to tell her that Nigel might be the baby’s father. But he’d already procrastinated for two days, going to work earlier in the morning, and working as late as possible.

  As if by avoiding the issue, he could pretend that they were still a happy family.

  He kissed the top of her head, and she smiled up at him. His heart contracted painfully. Maybe he was a coward, but he didn’t want to take the risk of losing her. He cleared his throat. “Kelly, there’s something we need to talk about.”

  “This sounds serious.” She reached for the remote control. “I’ll turn this off, so--”

  “No. Stop.” The image on the television screen caught his attention, and he sat up straighter. He took the remote and turned up the volume. He listened as the newscaster gave a report on a hurricane currently raging over South Carolina. Rawlins Lightings’ largest plant was located outside Charleston.

  A map of the state appeared on the television screen. The newscaster continued, “Hardest hit were portions of North Charleston, Hanahan and Goose Creek. Major flooding in Mt. Pleasant and Charleston.”

  Just what he didn’t want to hear. If the plant were inoperable, Rawlins Lighting would be crippled. Lars hurried to the telephone and started making calls. Within half an hour, he learned that the plant had been damaged.

  “How bad is it?” Kelly asked, standing beside him, her eyes concerned.

  He ran his hand through his hair. “Reports differ,” he said flatly. “All I know is that there’s some structural damage to the roof, and some of the equipment, and a lot of water damage. Two hundred employees are out of work, and some of those are without homes.”

  “What are you going to do?”

  “First thing to do is to fly out there and assess the damage.”

  “Do you have to go?” The minute she asked the question, she checked herself. “Sorry. Of course you’ll go. If my dad were here, he’d go.”

  Lars wished her father was here instead of finishing up his eight week cruise. He wanted to do what was right for the employees and the company.

  Kelly put her hand on his arm, drawing his attention. “When are you leaving?”

  “First flight in the morning,” he answered. “Would you like to come with me?”

  She looked surprised, but happy that he’d asked. “Yes, I would.”

  “Is it safe for you to fly, with the baby?”

  She nodded. “I’m not in the third trimester yet. I can fly.”

  Good. He wanted her with him. And he wouldn’t tell her about Nigel until they came home. There was one good thing about the hurricane -- it had given him a few days reprieve.

  #

  Kelly sat next to Lars on the airplane. He sat silently with his laptop, going over reports. This was the first time Kelly had actually seen Lars at work, she realized. Before she’d just interrupted him for a few minutes in his office and then left.

  She was worried about him. For the past few days he’d worked long hours at the office, and the night before, he had gotten only a few hours sleep. He looked tired, but when she suggested that he close his eyes and take a nap during the flight, he said, “I don’t have time to sleep.”

  That was irrational, but she didn’t want to nag him. She put her hand on his, to give him encouragement, but he kept reading, not even acknowledging her touch with a smile.

  She put her hands together in her lap and stared out the airplane window. She knew this was a serious situation, with the damaged chandelier plant, and she knew he was thinking ahead, trying to solve the problem. But why did he ask her to come with him if he wasn’t going to pay any attention to her?

  By noon, he was dressed in jeans and a hard hat, white shirt and a tie, tromping outside the damaged building. He talked with city utility officials, two engineers and a local builder to determine whether the roof could be repaired or whether the building should be rebuilt completely.

  Kelly wandered around the plant parking lot, amazed by the damage that one big storm and heavy rains could do. Trees were uprooted, big chunks of the parking lot were gone, and the plant was a mess, with broken windows and most of the roof sagging in towards the center.

  She waited an hour, then two, while Lars and the other men talked. Finally, feeling very hungry and worrying that he’d forgotten all about her, she decided to take the rental car back to the hotel where they were staying. But first, she wanted to tell Lars her plans.

  He was no longer in sight. They must have walked around to the back of the building. Kelly carefully picked her way across the muddy ground. Good thing she’d worn her sneakers, she thought. They didn’t match her t-shirt and her flowered maternity jumper, but today she’d gone for comfort instead of fashion.

  She found the men all looking intently at cracks in one of the outside walls. One of the engineers sketched something on a clipboard. Lars shook his head. He said, “I don’t want to spend that much money and run the risk of it still not being right. I’
d rather spend more and have a guarantee.”

  “Excuse me,” Kelly said.

  Lars turned to see her. “Kelly,” he said quickly, walking over towards her. “I’m so sorry. How long has it been?” He looked at his watch. “You win the Most Patient Wife award,” he said, patting her arm. “Can you wait another ten -- fifteen minutes? Then I can wrap this up.”

  Kelly nodded. “That’s fine.” She didn’t want to be a nuisance. She walked away from the building, towards a cluster of trees. Squirrels scurried overhead, chattering.

  Kelly looked around, wishing there was a dry place to sit down. She found a large tree limb on the ground and sat on that. It was a little damp, but at least it wasn’t muddy. She took a deep breath. As if to mock the surrounding damage, the air was fresh and still.

  She sat, waiting, and eventually, closer to thirty minutes than fifteen, Lars finished his conversation with the other men. She watched as they shook hands and slapped each other on the back. Lars wiped his hands on his jeans and walked towards her. “Finally,” he said with a smile for her patience. “You must be exhausted.”

  Wind blew through the trees, sending a shower of raindrops down on her. Kelly blinked and looked upward, smiling, then heard a loud cracking sound.

  In an instant, Lars ran to her, grabbed her and threw her to the ground, with himself on top of her. “Oooph,” Kelly gasped as his weight pressed her into the mud.

  The tree tipped over, crashing, narrowly missing them. The trunk landed right beside her, the rough bark scraping her arm. A heavy branch struck Lars’ back.

  “Are you okay?” Lars demanded, lifting himself up an inch.

  Kelly spit a dirty leaf out of her mouth. “I think so.”

  The other men hurried towards them, and lifted the branch so Lars and she could stand.

  She was covered with mud and leaves and twigs. She felt a little shaky, with the wind knocked out of her, but overall, fine. She brushed herself off with trembling hands. “How are you?” she asked Lars. His shirt was torn and the skin on his back was scratched. His tie was undamaged.

  “Fine.” He was still concerned about her. “And the baby?”

  As if he could hear them, the baby rolled over inside her. “So far so good,” she said, wanting to reassure him. “From what I’ve read, babies are pretty well insulated from most bumps and bruises.”

  He took her arm and gently guided her away from the trees and out to the parking lot. “I shouldn’t have brought you here,” he said grimly. “It isn’t safe. If I hadn’t reached you, and that tree had landed a few inches closer ...” He shuddered.

  He did care for her. “Don’t even think about it. We’re fine.”

  “If I’d lost you, Kelly, I --”

  “You’re not going to lose me,” she said firmly and squeezed his arm. “I’m staying right here.”

  For a moment there was a look in his eyes she couldn’t decipher. “I still shouldn’t have brought you here.”

  #

  That evening in their hotel room, Lars dressed for his meeting with the Rawlins’ employees. “I don’t want you to go,” he said as he pulled a tie from his suitcase. “I think you should stay here and rest.”

  Kelly thought he was being overly cautious. “Either I sit in the hotel room, or I sit in the gym. I don’t see what the big difference is.”

  Lars shook his head. “You could have been killed this afternoon.”

  “So could you,” Kelly countered. “I know you want to take care of me, but I’m not a little china doll that is going to break. I’m a grown woman and I feel fine.”

  “All right, you can come,” he agreed finally. “But if you get tired, I want you to lie down in the car.”

  “Yes, sir,” she said mockingly, then raised one eyebrow. “Are you going to join me in the back seat?”

  “I’ll think about it.”

  She reached up to kiss his cheek. “I want you to do more than think about it.”

  He looked away. “I have to get dressed,” he said coolly, then walked over to look in the bathroom mirror as he tied his tie.

  Kelly sat down on the king-sized bed and frowned. For the past few days she felt as if he was avoiding her. She wasn’t an expert on how often married couples made love, but why wasn’t he more anxious to repeat the experience? They’d made love four days in a row, then nothing for the past three days.

  Was he too busy with work or bored with her? Kelly didn’t know if she should be concerned or just keep her mouth shut. The last thing she wanted for him to do was to put it on his day planner as a task for the day.

  Forty minutes later, Lars stood in the local high school auditorium, addressing a crowd of three hundred people. He wore suit pants and a tie, but the sleeves of his white shirt were rolled up, giving him a more approachable look. “First of all,” he said calmly. “This is not a time to panic. The plant’s in bad shape, but that’s good. You know we’d been thinking about renovating, and now we have the opportunity to do it right. From the ground up.”

  There were a few laughs and some people clapped.

  “It will take at least four months, maybe more, to take down the original structure, and build a new one. I looked into the possibility of transporting our equipment to a temporary location, but it was cost prohibitive, so we’ll shut down production until we get the plant rebuilt.”

  There were a few murmurs of dismay.

  He continued, “Now I can see in your faces that some of you are thinking, ‘That’s fine for the plant, but how am I going to feed my kids?’ Well, don’t worry about that. Rawlins Lighting is going to pay your wages and benefits, until the plant is running again.”

  The crowd cheered its approval, and he held up his hands to silence them. “But don’t think of this as a free ride. In exchange, I want you to spend the time cleaning up Hanahan and Goose Creek. There are a lot of people without homes tonight, a lot of people who don’t have jobs, who need a helping hand. You can be those helping hands.”

  The crowd’s response was deafening. Kelly clapped as well, tears filling her eyes. She hadn’t known what Lars was going to tell them. She was so proud of him tonight.

  Eventually, the crowd quieted and he spoke again. “Now this isn’t all charity,” he said. “It’s good business planning. Think of all the people who will be rebuilding and remodeling their homes. If we help them, what kind of light fixtures do you think they’ll be putting in their kitchens and their front hallways?”

  The crowd chanted, “Rawlins. Rawlins. Rawlins.”

  Lars listened, smiling. “That’s right,” he said over the noise, and the room quieted. “Now, I don’t know about you, but I’m hungry. And there’s a heap of barbecue over in the cafeteria. Let’s go eat.”

  Kelly stood with a paper plate in one hand, shaking hands with the other. Lars came up and put his arm around her waist. “How are you holding up?” he asked quietly.

  “I’m fine.” Her feet ached and she felt as if she’d shaken five hundred hands, but she was happy.

  “I think we can go, now,” he said.

  As they walked outside to the rental car, she said, “You were fantastic. But is the Board of Directors going to go along with your plans?”

  He shrugged. “The worst thing they can do is fire me.” As her eyes widened, he reassured her, “And they won’t do that.” He smiled. “Not when I’m married to the daughter of our biggest stockholder. I think I’d have to blow up the plant myself before they fired me.”

  “There’s nothing like a little job security,” she said wryly.

  She thought, then asked, “Isn’t it going to be expensive to keep everyone on the payroll?”

  “For eight months, yes.”

  She gasped, “That long?”

  He kissed her nose. “Hopefully not. But in any case, it’s good public relations, and it’s good for company morale. Employees are more willing to work hard for a company that will back them in times of trouble.”

  “So this was a business d
ecision, pure and simple.”

  He shrugged. “It was the right thing to do.”

  #

  Frank and Margaret Rawlins walked down the gateway to the terminal gate. Kelly hugged her mother. “Oh, Mom,” she said. “You look great, so tan and well-rested.”

  At her words, her mother looked worried. “I used sun block every day, but something must have gotten through ...”

  “Too much rest, if you ask me,” her father said. He shook Lars’ hand and pounded him on the back. “Nice handling of the plant crisis. We came back as soon as I heard, but you’d already taken care of everything. I couldn’t have done it better myself.”

  “Thank you, sir.”

  “How’s everything else?” Frank asked. “Are the Vice Presidents threatening to mutiny?”

  “Not yet,” Lars said quietly. “But I do have a few questions --”

  “Tomorrow,” Frank said, holding up his hand. “Let me get my land legs first.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Margaret stepped back to look closely at Kelly. “Have you gained weight? You look ...” her voice trailed off.

  “Pregnant,” Kelly supplied, answering the unspoken question. “Yes, mom, I’m pregnant.”

  “So soon?” her mother gasped, and hugged her again. “That’s wonderful. When’s the baby due?”

  Kelly glanced over at Lars. She’d told him that her mother would notice. There was no more hiding the truth. She just hoped her mother was up to another shock. “At the end of the year,” she said. “Possibly early January.”

  “But that’s --” Her mother mentally counted backwards, eyes widening as she realized when the baby was conceived. “That’s wonderful,” she said, looking between them both. “A baby is always wonderful. I’m happy for both of you.”

  Kelly sighed with relief. Her mother was handling the news well.

  Margaret turned to her husband. “Frank, did you hear that? We’re going to be grandparents.”

  #

  Kelly turned to Lars as they entered the kitchen. “My mom’s right, you know. We should be discussing names for the baby. We don’t want to be unprepared.”