by Pamela Bauer
“Not married and not babbling about how wonderful life is,” Krystal finished for her. “Maddie, you’re happy and you have every right to be.”
Her eyes still reflected her bewilderment. “No wonder you didn’t want any champagne. And that’s why you weren’t feeling well before the ceremony. And why you hardly touched your food at dinner.”
“You noticed I didn’t have an appetite.”
“Of course I noticed. I’m pregnant. I notice what everyone’s eating,” she said with a grin. “And you will, too, once you get over the beginning phase. How are you feeling now?”
“Lousy.”
“You have morning sickness in the evening, too, right?” she asked with a sympathetic grimace.
Krystal nodded. “And I’m tired all the time and I cry buckets for no reason.”
“Well, you always did that,” Maddie said with a teasing grin. Her smile faded. “I should have been there for you at the church.”
“It’s all right. You didn’t know.”
“But you could have used a friend.”
“Garret was with me.”
“I asked him to keep an eye on you.”
Krystal smiled weakly. “Thanks.
“I have to admit. This is quite a shock.”
“For me, too,” Krystal admitted. “How did it happen?” She quickly apologized. “I’m sorry, Krys. Please forget I asked that. It’s none of my business.”
“Yes it is. We’ve been too good friends for there to be secrets between us. I want to tell you everything, but I can’t…at least not here.”
“No, of course not. There’ll be plenty of time for girl talk after this is all over. Dylan and I aren’t going back to France until the fourteenth.”
The door opened and two women Krystal didn’t recognize entered the rest room. “I wanted to tell you yesterday, but there never seemed to be a right time.” She glanced around. “Not many people know. Leonie doesn’t.”
“Why not? She’s a dear and she is so understanding. You know that better than anyone who’s lived at 14 Valentine Place.”
“Yes, but…” She paused, as again the door opened admitting more women. “It’s really complicated, Maddie. I’m going to tell Leonie…soon, but until I do, I need you to not say anything.”
She reached for her hands and gave them a squeeze. “You know you can trust me to keep your confidence.”
The door swung open again and this time Krystal recognized the woman’s face. It was one of Quinn’s sisters announcing that the dancing would soon begin and all bridesmaids were wanted in the ballroom.
“Tell her we’ll be right there,” Maddie instructed her, and the woman disappeared out the door again. “We’d better go.”
Krystal nodded, dabbing at the moisture in her eyes. “Thank goodness for waterproof mascara, huh?”
Maddie grinned and wiped her eyes, too. “I just can’t believe we’re both having babies!” As Krystal bent to pick up her shoes she asked, “Are your feet going to be okay?”
“Yeah. I’m not even going to try to put on these shoes. I’ll dance in my stockings.” As they walked out the door, Krystal placed her hand on Maddie’s arm. “I’m sorry I couldn’t tell you sooner. I wanted to, but…”
Maddie gave her another quick hug. “It’s all right. I understand.”
As Krystal knew she would. “Thanks. I’m thinking of leaving early. You don’t think Dena will mind, do you?”
“Maybe I should go home with you. We could say I wasn’t feeling well and you were going home to keep me company. No one would question my reasons for leaving.”
Krystal shook her head. “Dylan would insist on going with you and then there’d be two bridesmaids missing. I’ll be just fine. You don’t need to worry about me.”
“But I do worry. Do you want Dylan to give you a ride home?”
“No, I’m going to call Shannon.” And with another deep breath she headed back to the ballroom.
GARRET KNEW THAT everyone in his family—especially his mother—thought Samantha Penrose was a good match for him. He understood why. Even he had to admit they had a lot in common. They were both dedicated doctors, wanting to make a difference in the world.
What his family didn’t understand was that Samantha—like him—wasn’t looking for a mate. She’d made it perfectly clear that she’d be willing to pick up where they left off three years ago. At one time he would have jumped at the opportunity. But not now, which was why he was relieved when she was called back to the hospital that night.
“We’re thinking about stopping for coffee,” Dylan said as the last of the wedding guests filed out of the reception hall. “Want to join us?”
The us referred to Maddie and Leonie, since Shane and Jennifer had taken Mickey home and put him to bed earlier in the evening. Garret was tired himself, but he wanted to spend time with his brother and Maddie so he accepted their offer.
“Why not just come back to the house?” Leonie suggested. “We can get pastries on the way at that new twenty-four-hour deli over on Snelling.”
“That’ll work for me. I left my car at Mom’s this morning,” he told everyone.
“Yeah, and this way if Samantha gets back, you can pop upstairs and see her,” Dylan said with a sly grin and a nudge in his brother’s rib cage.
“Or she can join us for coffee. We’d love to get to know her better,” Maddie said.
Samantha, however, wasn’t home when they got back to the house, but Garret noticed Krystal’s light was on in her second-floor window. She’d left the party several hours earlier saying she was tired, yet she hadn’t gone to bed.
“It’s too bad Jason wasn’t able to come home for the wedding,” Leonie said as the four of them sat at the round wooden table. “I do believe that was one of the most beautiful weddings I have ever seen.”
“Mom, you say that about every wedding you attend,” Garret reminded her with an affectionate grin.
“I do not. This one was special.”
“I agree,” Dylan said, “but I’m not sure our baby brother would have appreciated it. He wasn’t too fond of having to come home from California for Maddie’s and my wedding,” Dylan reminded her.
“When you’re twenty, weddings are not on your list of important social events,” Garret added.
“I think he would have had a good time had he been home,” Maddie commented. “I know I had a wonderful time. What about you, Garret? Did you have fun?”
He grinned. “Let’s just say it wasn’t as bad as I thought it was going to be.”
“Bad?” Leonie tapped his wrist lightly in reprimand. “How could you even use that word about such a lovely party?”
“Because it was a party,” Dylan said with a chuckle. “You know he hates any gathering where there are more than four people—not counting family, of course,” he added with a grin.
Garret raised his coffee cup in salute. “True.”
“You’re like your father that way. He hated weddings.”
“I don’t hate them. I just feel more comfortable when there aren’t a couple of hundred people crowding around me.”
“There were actually five hundred at the wedding,” his mother pointed out. “That’s what made it fun. All the energy and excitement of people celebrating Dena and Quinn’s marriage.”
“You really love going to those things, don’t you?” Garret noted.
“Yes, and so do a lot of others,” his mother stated. “You noticed how many people groaned when the band announced the last number.”
“And what a way to end a celebration,” Maddie noted. “Doing the conga.”
“It’s too bad Krystal wasn’t there,” Leonie mused. “She loves a good conga line.”
The mention of Krystal’s name had Garret thinking about the way she looked when she’d been sick after the wedding ceremony. Fragile and vulnerable. When Maddie had told him that she’d gone home because she wasn’t feeling well, he’d wanted to phone her to see if she was all right, but
he knew she wouldn’t welcome such a call. She’d made it perfectly clear earlier in the day what she thought of his concern for her well-being.
“I’m a little worried about her,” his mother said. “It’s not like her to leave any party early.”
“She’s fine,” Maddie insisted. “I think she was just tired.”
“She’s been tired a lot lately. I hope she’s not rundown. I’d hate to see her catch one of those viruses going around. There are so many right now. It happens every year at this time. Kids go back to school and germs spread,” his mother continued, her brow creased with concern. “I wonder if I should check on her.”
“Do you want me to go up?” Maddie offered.
Dylan got up from his chair and came around to place his hands on her shoulders. “You, my sweet, lovely pregnant wife, should be in bed. I’m sure Krystal is fine and is more than likely sound asleep. You can talk to her in the morning. Right now, I’m taking you back to the hotel and putting you to bed.”
“I should get going, too,” Garret said rising to his feet, trying not to think about Krystal and how tantalizing she’d looked in her purple dress. “I’ll walk you to the car.”
They’d all parked in the back. Dylan had just opened the door for Maddie and tucked her inside the rental car when he patted his pockets. “Oops, forgot my keys inside.” He looked at Garret and said, “Watch my girl while I run back in and get them.”
Garret nodded and glanced back at the house, once again noticing the light on in Krystal’s window. Maddie saw the direction of his gaze and said, “Is that a professional concern or friendly concern in your eyes?”
“Both.”
“She told me you were with her when she got sick at the church.”
“Yes, but she wasn’t happy I was. She didn’t want anyone to know about it—not even me, a doctor.”
“No, I don’t imagine she would. No woman wants anyone to see her in that condition.”
“I’m also her friend.”
“Yes, thank goodness you are. For some reason she didn’t feel as if she could tell me about the baby. I guess she didn’t want to spoil Dena’s big day.”
Garret frowned. Baby? Krystal?
“I think she thought she could get through the day without any problem,” Maddie continued. “I can relate to that. Morning sickness is so unpredictable. You can be sick one minute and feel fine the next.”
Morning sickness? The reason Krystal had been sick at church was because she was pregnant? He was too stunned to say anything, not that it mattered. Maddie kept talking.
“I know they teach you about that stuff in school, Garret, but unless you’re a woman and you’ve suffered from it, you have no idea how terrible it can be. You feel so miserable.” His expression must have revealed his shock for she suddenly gasped. “Oh, my gosh! You didn’t know, did you?” He didn’t need to answer her question. “Oh, please don’t tell her I told you. I thought since you were with her that she would have told you…”
“Are you sure…” he began, but Maddie cut him off.
“Shh. Here comes Dylan and he doesn’t know yet,” Maddie warned him just seconds before he came into view bouncing a set of keys in his hands.
“Hey, I got ’em.” He patted Garret on the arm. “We gotta go. We’ll see you tomorrow morning for brunch, right?”
“Er…yeah, if I can make it,” he said absently, his mind still trying to comprehend what Maddie had just told him. Krystal was pregnant?
Maddie tossed a goodbye in his direction, doors slammed shut, and the car pulled away. Garret didn’t move. He simply stood there staring up at Krystal’s window.
It all made sense—now. How come he hadn’t seen the signs himself? He was a doctor for crying out loud.
Maybe because she’d worked very hard at not letting him see any of the symptoms. He tried to think back to what she’d worn the last few times he’d seen her. Silky-type cargo pants that were baggy. A dress that hung loose over her slender frame.
He wondered just how pregnant she was. It was something he was going to find out. Instead of getting in his car, he went back inside 14 Valentine Place.
CHAPTER SIX
WHEN GARRET LET HIMSELF back into the house he found his mother at the sink rinsing out the coffee cups.
“What are you doing back? Don’t tell me you forgot your keys, too?” she asked.
“No, I’m going upstairs. I want to leave a message for Samantha.” He told the white lie because he couldn’t tell her the truth. Right now he wasn’t sure he knew the truth. “Don’t worry about me, Mom. I’ll let myself out. You go on to bed.”
“Okay, dear. Good night,” she called as he headed for the stairs.
When he came to the second-floor landing he stopped. He could see the sliver of light beneath Krystal’s door. He raised his fingers to the wood and rapped.
She didn’t answer right away and he knocked again, this time with more force. The door flew open and there she stood, mouth open, wearing nothing but a pale blue nightgown. Her hair was mussed, her eyes half-shut. As usual, she looked beautiful. And also as usual, his body reacted.
“Were you asleep?” he asked.
“Of course I was asleep.” She glanced over her shoulder to the clock. “It’s two o’clock in the morning.”
“I saw your light from downstairs.”
“I must have fallen asleep with it on. What’s happened? Is something wrong with Leonie?” Panic replaced the sleepy look in her eyes.
“No, Mom’s fine,” he reassured her.
“Then what is it?” She obviously was confused as to why he would be at her door in the middle of the night.
“I need to come in.”
“Sure.” She stepped aside and he walked past her.
It had been a while since he’d been in her room, but it looked the same. It reminded him of a sexy boudoir with its large brass bed draped in peach chiffon as the focal point. Satin pillows lay scattered across the floor and the bed linens were in a tangle. The one light that was on had a peach-colored scarf draped over the shade giving everything a rosy glow, and the room smelled the way she did—of a floral fragrance that had just a hint of wildness to it.
“Do you want to sit down?” She gestured toward the futon.
“No, I’m not staying long.”
“If you came here to check on me, it’s not necessary,” she said. “I’m not sick.”
“I know. You’re pregnant.”
That stunned her into silence. She looked at him the way his patients did when he had a syringe in his hand, her face growing paler by the minute. With the thin cotton nightgown the only thing covering her body, he could see the gentle swell of her belly. Aware of his eyes on her, she reached for her robe and pulled it on.
“It’s too late. I’ve already seen it,” he said as she tied the sash.
He waited for her to say something, but nothing came out of her mouth. For the first time since he’d known her, she appeared to be at a loss for words.
“It’s true, isn’t it?” he said.
She moistened her lips with her tongue, then said, “Yes. I’m sorry.”
He frowned. “For what? You don’t need to apologize to me, Krystal.”
“I feel I do. I feel this is all my fault. If I hadn’t practically begged you to take me bed, we wouldn’t be in this—”
“Wait a minute!” he cut her off. “Are you saying that I’m the father?”
Her eyes darkened and her voice rose. “Of course it’s your baby. Nobody else could be the father.” When he didn’t say anything, she cried, “You think it’s Roy’s?”
“You were back together…” He didn’t finish when he saw the look on her face, which wasn’t much different from the one that had been there when she’d been sick in the bathroom at the church.
“For three days!”
He ran a hand across his forehead. This was getting him nowhere.
“Think,” a small voice inside him whispered, but it was hard
to do when he felt as if he’d just stepped off the planet and was falling into a black hole in space.
“I don’t understand how this could have happened. We used protection.” He stated the thought foremost in his head.
She shrugged. “It must have failed. Condoms aren’t the most reliable form of birth control.”
“Weren’t you on the pill?”
“No, I was not,” she stated with a hint of indignation. “I didn’t plan to go to bed with you, in case you’ve forgotten.”
How could he forget? She reminded him every chance she had. “I am aware of that but I thought—” He stopped abruptly, realizing he’d never asked her about the pill. He’d assumed she was on it and they would have double protection.
“You thought what? That I take it regularly so whenever I pick up a guy I can sleep with him?” Her cheeks colored. “I wasn’t planning to have sex with anybody that night. Not you or Roy. For your information, Garret, I don’t go to bed with every man who buys me dinner and pays me compliments.” He could hear the tears in her voice and it made him feel like a first-class jerk.
“I didn’t say you did,” he said quietly.
“You didn’t have to say it. It’s there in your attitude,” she accused him on a muffled sob.
The only attitude he had right now was one of disbelief. Ever since he’d been a child he’d mapped out what he wanted for his life. Become a doctor, make a difference in the world. Having a child with a one-night stand had never been in his plan.
“How do you think I feel? I’m the one who did the good deed here. I went out on that date with you as a favor and I’m the one who ends up pregnant,” she reminded him. “And now you stand there and treat me like I’m cheap.” She burst into tears.
He raked a hand over his head. “For God’s sake, I don’t think you’re cheap, Krystal. I’m trying to understand how this happened.”
“What’s there to understand? We had sex. I got pregnant.”
Yes, that about summed it up. He’d gone and done exactly what his father had warned him not to do when he was a teenager. He’d gotten a girl pregnant. Only Krystal was no girl—she was a woman and he was a man. They were two adults who should have known better.