Time Heals Everything
Page 15
“Such as?” If I can give him those things, she thought desperately, trying not to hunch away within the circle of his arms, perhaps than he will change his mind about a family.
She would do anything for that dream she had held, of a perfect family, even if it meant giving in to their active sex life. Something Kat wasn’t certain she wanted, even if it was the necessary route towards fulfilling her dreams.
Closing her eyes, knowing that it was useless to protest, she allowed herself to give in to the sensation of his hands caressing her breasts. Surprised to find that there was pleasure in his touch, she opened her eyes to gaze at his face, wondering if she dare give in to the fledgling hope that their marriage had a chance.
“Such as,” he chuckled, “enjoying the trying. Let me seduce you . . . let me show you more of the world which you started to see on our honeymoon. . . . And later, we’ll talk about having a baby.”
When she protested, he kissed her, his lips tasting of the brandy he had consumed. Watching as he moved to the sideboard, she accepted the glass of wine he poured her, watching as he drained his snifter.
“Come, my love,” he whispered as he set down his glass. “Let me show you all the secrets that I still have to share with you . . . and perhaps you can practice what I showed you on our honeymoon.”
* * * *
“Hello, Nick.”
Wrapped in a dark blue silk, Kat’s auburn hair bounced softly about her shoulders. She was a vision to behold as she made her triumphant return to the club.
Nick couldn’t believe his eyes.
She’s home, his mind kept repeating, she’s finally back! And look at her! She’s never looked better! But his face betrayed none of his thoughts. “Welcome back, kid,” he replied casually as he folded his newspaper against the distressing headlines that shouted about the growing tensions of war in Europe. “When did you get home?”
“Last week.”
She slid casually onto a bar stool, trying not to notice how swell he looked or how great it was to see him again. “It took me awhile to get settled in, I guess, especially with a child in tow.”
His blonde brows hiked into his hair. “Kid, I may not be good at math, but even I know it takes nine months to make a baby. What’d you do, kidnap one?” Or did her rich husband go and buy her one? Me, I’d have had more fun making one, if I ever wanted kids, but what’s money for, right?
“Ash has a son,” she said softly, interrupting Nick’s thoughts. “He was widowed some years ago,” she began uneasily. “The boy is very sickly, but I know I can make him better, Nick. With lots of sunshine and good food – some loving attention. But it means cutting back on my time here at the club.” She lowered her eyes for a moment before looking up, a hopeful expression burning in her bright eyes. “I’d make certain to be here on weekends or on important dates but . . .”
“Hey, look,” he interrupted, his eyes steady on hers. “If you were anyone else, I’d say that you and your hubby were trying to welch out on your contract.” He paused to look down at his pencil, now broken into two pieces. “But you’re not. Look, Kat, you still own half of the club, so let me know when you’re going to be here, and we’ll make it work. Ted found this girl – Madeline. And while the crowd will be happy to have you back, the dame’s not bad.”
For a moment, she could only stare. This is a huge change from before, when he threatened to throw us all into court. Warmed by his reaction, she reached across the bar, her hand briefly touching his arm to show her appreciation. As she did, the long sleeve of her gown slid up, revealing a charming ruby and diamond bracelet – and something else. Before he could comment, she was whirling on her stool, her eyes taking in the club’s new veneer.
“Nick, it’s gorgeous in here . . .” She slid from the stool, moving abut as she fingered the new tablecloths navigating the unfamiliar floor layout, listening to the sound of her shoes on the shiny stage. When she reached the center, she laughed, whirling about.
Seeing how between one turn and the next, she suddenly turned pale, Nick dashed to her side. In his mind, he could see the fading bruises on her arms and had known instantly that his instinct about Ash’s temper had been right.
Son of a bitch, he thought darkly, not allowing his anger to show in his eyes. I should have stopped that wedding when I had the chance. He knew that there was little that he could do a long as she stayed with Ash. Kat was married and out of his reach. “Say, what’s up kid?” he asked as he pushed her down onto the ever-present white stool. “You don’t look so hot.”
Kat drew in an unsteady breath. “I didn’t come to tell you about Anton . . . that’s Ash’s son. Or . . . well not just about him.”
Silence hung between them as Nick carefully helped her from the stage and back to the bar, hooking one of the shiny new stools with his foot before pressing her gently down onto its cushion. “Oh, yeah?” His voice was even, cool, and non-committal.
Did you come to tell me about those bruises, kid? And how he’s hit you? I’d pump him full of lead if I could. The sight of those fading fingerprints on her fair skin was bad enough, but her next words hit him like a fist in the gut.
“I’m pregnant, Nick,” she said in a rush, “and it’s not Ash’s.”
“Another honeymoon baby, huh? Some guys will believe anything.” Instantly he regretted his words, his hand reaching out for hers, only to have her pull back. “Kat,” he began, suddenly feeling like an ass. “I didn’t mean that the way it came out.”
“Yeah, you did.” Her voice was suddenly tired, sounding far older than her years. “I guess our last night together was more than either of us expected.” Her eyes were aching pools of sadness. “I wasn’t expecting you to jump for joy, but a smile would have been nice. A shoulder to depend on would have been nicer. But it’s all right . . . what is it that they say about cats always landing on their feet? Well, I guess that includes me, too. I’ll see you Friday.”
With a whisper of silk, she was gone, leaving him to stare after her, regretting what might have been, and hating himself for doing so. Frustration ate at him. The thought of Ashton brutalizing Kat had him gazing at the pistol on the counter beneath the bar. There had been a time when he wouldn’t have thought twice about taking out someone like Montserrat. But Kat would know, he reminded himself, letting his fingers fall away from the gun. And what good would it do, anyway, now that she’s got a kid on the way? Nick shook his head and dropped wearily onto his seat behind the bar. No, it’s better that I bide my time. But sooner or later, that French bastard is going to get what he deserves …
* * * *
Gazing at her reflection, Kat swept a critical eye over what she saw there. A bit of alteration – a seam let out here and there and no one would suspect she was three months along. At least until people start counting back. It wasn’t as if Ash and I kept separate beds before our wedding... But . . . Wincing she sat at her dressing table, her thoughts drifting back to Ash. He’s not going to be happy. What if he doesn’t want to keep the baby? She bit her lip. And if he goes after me now as he did in San Diego, there’s no telling what will happen. What am I going to do? Slowly, her hand caressed her abdomen in a comforting circular gesture. Don’t worry, little one, come hell or high water, we’ll survive.
Yeah right, whispered a small voice. Nick never wanted kids and Ash isn’t crazy about the idea either. What are you going to do now?
Well, it’s not as if I don’t have options, she shot back fiercely. And it was true – Kat still had the stash of her own personal funds, which she had accumulated over the years; there was still her ownership in the club as well as the house that she and Nick had once shared. I’m going to survive – we’re going to survive, she thought firmly. With or without either one of them, we’re going to make it, because this baby deserves a good future, and I’m going to see that it gets one. Brushing the troubled thoughts aside, she gave her hair a final pat, forcing a bright smile to her lips. “Show time,” she sighed.
&nbs
p; The applause that greeted Kat as she crossed to the stage was deafening, and she beamed her appreciation to the crowd as she grasped her microphone. “It’s good to be back, ladies and gentlemen,” she called, winking at a couple of her most loyal customers. The cheers that rang out even brought a brief smile to Nick’s cold features. Nodding to Ted, Kat crooned her signature song that the expectant crowd demanded before crossing over to an up-tempo beat that had couples moving to the dance floor.
As catchy as the tempo was, however, it was apparent to most of her regulars that Kat’s heart wasn’t in her work tonight. She sang, she smiled, she let the music move her like always, but something cold was winding around her gut and rising up into her mouth, as though she could sense that something wicked was waiting just out of sight. But what is it? As she entertained her audience, her eyes desperately scanned the room.
There’s Nick, at his usual spot at the bar – nothing wrong with that picture. There’s Tim, serving drinks and laughing it up with customers …Ted’s here with me, and there’s Mary-Jo, laughing and clapping along … Everything’s normal, so what am I getting worked up about?
Then, she caught sight of Ash and her eyes caught sight of the direction in which he was heading. Oh, no – no. What’s he doing? Even as her lips smiled and her body kept singing and dancing straight through her number, her eyes watched fearfully as her husband approached the spot where Nick was leaning against the bar. From here, even under the bright new stage lights, Kat could still see the blue haze of his cigarette smoke as it blurred the lines of his face and dimmed the sunny glint of his blonde hair. The filmy haze seemed to wrap Nick in a barrier that removed him from the rest of the people in the club. Ash was breaking into that protective space even as Kat watched, wishing she could call out in time to separate them. But I can’t – and here I am, caught right in the middle of it. Oh, dear God, what am I going to do? What’s Ash going to do? What’s Nick going to do?
With ingrained discipline, she kept the momentum of her performance as carefree as before, all the while watching as her husband caught Nick’s attention.
Dragging heavily on his cigarette, Nick watched Ashton’s crossing of the club, noting the pauses in his graceful movements as a few patrons stopped him here or there to extend their warm wishes. He released a breath of smoke, drawing in a second as Ash continued on his winding way, releasing the blue-tinged mouthful of smouldering air right before Ash stopped before Nick’s spot at the bar.
“Nicholas, it is good to see you!” The gleaming of his opalescent eyes and the smile that curved the aristocratic man’s sensual lips reminded Nick of a Cheshire cat, but Nick couldn’t detect any forced gaiety in Ashton’s words.
Kinda hard to believe it’s good for him to see me. Unless he’s come to rub it in that I’m just his wife’s employer – that he was the one who won in the end. Keeping his own expression bland, he crushed the remains of his cigarette into the ever-present ashtray on the bar, and gazed into Ashton’s gleaming eyes. “Glad I can keep my customers happy. What can I do for the newlywed?”
“Do for me?” Ash’s voice purred with satisfaction. Nick desperately wanted to remove the expression from his face with a good right hook, but he managed to restrain himself from doing more than merely clenching his fist around the book of matches he’d drawn from his coat pocket. With an effort, he replaced the mangled matchbook and casually leaned an elbow against the bar, listening as Ash continued to speak.
“You have already given me the most precious thing in my life – Katherine. And so I thought that it was only right that you should be the first to know . . .” There was a dramatic pause; he was well aware that Tim, and the patrons who sat at the bar, were bound to overhear his words. “Katherine and I are expecting. I realize that it is too early to be telling people, but let’s just say that we had a very . . . romantic honeymoon.”
Yeah, thought Nick, romantic enough to leave bruises as souvenirs. The thought briefly crossed Nick’s mind that Ash knew the truth, and the marks were evidence of that knowledge, but then he changed his mind. No, he thought, the man has too much pride. If he had even an inkling of the truth, that kid would be going down the drain, one way or another. And probably Kat alongside, too.
“Congratulations,” Nick replied smoothly, revealing nothing as he poured two glasses of a fine wine in apparent celebration. “I hope all of you are very happy.”
“We will be . . . we are,” amended Ash, noticing that Kat had finished her set. “You will understand,” he continued smoothly, “if in a few months, she curtails her activities, yes?”
“And what are you two plotting, may I ask?” Intent on their conversation, neither had noticed Kat’s quiet approach or her watchful gaze, and she had planned it that way. She was well aware that both men had hair-trigger tempers, and the last thing she wanted was either of them at each other’s throats. Her gaze flickered from Nick’s neutral expression to the gleam in her husband’s eyes. When the latter placed a gentle kiss on her cheek and his arm wrapped around her waist until his fingers rested, lightly but pointedly, on her abdomen, Kat’s heart began to pound wildly.
“I was telling Monsieur Nicholas about our little secret,” Ash announced, his eyes caressing her face. “I realize that it is usually the expectant mother who tells the father but, oui mon amour, I already know. Soon our little family will be growing and I wanted to be the first to tell Nicholas the good news.” Chuckling at the astounded look on Kat’s face, Ash pulled her close, whispering into her ear. “This is not my first experience, remember? And although it is rather soon, I am very, very happy.”
Stricken into silence by Ashton’s revelation, Kat could only watch numbly as Nick and Ash shook hands. Is this a dream or have I simply lost my mind? Ash and Nick – my husband and my former lover – both looking at me as if I’m the prize in a carnival show.
As always, it was Nick who spoke first, his voice silky as he continued to grip Ash’s hand. “It seems that I’ve known Kat since she was a kid, and now she’s going to have one of her own.” He shook his head in a sort of bewilderment that only Kat recognized as sarcasm. “Well, as you once said, the best man won.”
Chapter Eleven
Kat had never been so happy – when, that was, her moods allowed such a state of mind. When she was happy, she was ecstatic, but her moods were prone to swinging and shifting so quickly that it made even her head spin. There were days when Kat thought she would never feel normal again; not with the way she seemed to swing between manic bursts of frenzied activity where she couldn’t seem to stop moving, only to shift to a bone-deep despair which sucked every last scrap of life from her until Kat thought that breathing was too great a task for her.
She ran the gamut, it seemed every day, and under the swings, the spurts and tumbles, there was an edgy anticipation of what the next day would bring; of when her happiness would come crashing down around her. In the back of her mind was still the concern that one day, somehow, Ash would know the truth.
When she spiraled down, she struggled to remind herself of all that she had. Anton was making slow but gradual improvements; she had a wonderful husband who loved her and a child that she would be introducing to the world. Still, once the insecurity set in, she couldn’t seem to control the apprehension that plagued her.
The only thing which seemed to help to lift her from the worst of her humors, and which managed, at least for a time, to settle the gnawing nervousness within her, was Kat’s attentions to Anton. She had discovered quite by accident the presence of a heated pool within Ashton’s personal gymnasium, and the sight of it had immediately set her to thinking. Anton was already getting more exercise around the house and outdoors than he had been previously, but what would happen when the days grew too chilled for his tender lungs? The pool would make a perfect substitute, Kat decided, and went straight to Ashton with her idea.
That morning, she had captured his attention just as he was heading into his downstairs study. “Ashton!”
“Good morning, ma belle. You are up early. You should be getting more sleep, you know,” he chastised gently, taking her within his arms. “You are in a very delicate condition.”
“Oh, never mind all of that,” she replied with a hint of the capricious irritability that had begun to settle over her at odd times in the last few months. “I have an idea for Anton’s exercises!”
“Oh? I thought you were already giving him daily exercises in his rooms after we have luncheon together.”
“I am, but I was helping – walking with, I mean – Madam Megan when she was replacing the towels in your exercise rooms, and I saw the pool in there. I didn’t know you had a pool, Ashton.”
He chuckled. “Of course. It’s an excellent form of …” He paused, his leaf-green eyes widening as he caught on to her train of thought. “Exercise…” he finished, blinking at her. “Of course – why did I not think of it before? Katherine, my love, you have done so much already for him. You have opened my eyes to so many things about my own son of which I was ignorant before! You have shown me a new world, my Katherine – myself and Anton both are more blessed to have you than we could ever describe!” Joyfully, he swung her into his arms and kissed her until she was pink-cheeked with laughter.
“I don’t do that much, Ashton … I just want to make sure he eats well and sees that he could become well as a result. I want him to be big and strong so he can help me with his new little brother or sister,” she finished, touching her abdomen.