A Tricky Proposition

by Cat Schield

“Are you sure about this?” Lily questioned as they waited for Evan to answer the door.

  “Positive. What a horrible sister I would be to stand in the way of your happiness.”

  Evan opened his door and leaned on it. He looked gray beneath his tan. “Ming? What are you doing here?”

  “My sister tells me she turned down your marriage proposal.”

  His gaze shot beyond Ming to where Lily lingered at the bottom of his steps, but he said nothing.

  Not being able to fix what was wrong in her own love life didn’t mean she couldn’t make sure Lily got her happily-ever-after. “She claims she turned you down because she thinks I would be hurt, but I’m moving on with my life and I don’t want to be her excuse for not marrying you.” Ming fixed her ex-fiancé with a steely gaze. “Do you promise you’ll love her forever?”

  “Of course.” Evan was indignant.

  Fighting to keep her composure intact, Ming headed down the steps to hug her sister. Confident they were out of Evan’s hearing, she whispered, “Don’t you dare come home until you’ve got an engagement ring on your finger.”

  Lily glanced at Evan. “Are you going to take your own advice and go talk to Jason?”

  Ming shook her head. “Too much has happened over the last few days. We both need some time to adjust.”

  “He’ll come around. You’ll see.”

  But Ming didn’t see. She merely nodded to pacify her sister. “I hope you’re right.”

  Finding Evan passed out last night had reaffirmed to Jason how much better off he was alone. After such a powerful incident, Ming was convinced he’d never change his mind.

  *

  “Hey, Dad.” It was late Sunday morning when Jason opened his front door and found his father standing there. “What’s up?”

  “Felt like having lunch with you.”

  From his father’s serious expression, Jason wondered what he was in for, but he grabbed his keys and locked the house. “Where to?”

  “Where else?”

  They drove to his dad’s favorite restaurant, where the pretty brunette hostess greeted Tony by name and flirted with him the whole way to the table.

  “She’s young enough to be your daughter,” Jason commented, eyeing his father over the menu.

  Tony chuckled. “She’s young enough to be my granddaughter. And there’s nothing going on. I love my wife.”

  When Tony had first announced that he was marrying Claire, Jason had a hard time believing his father had let himself fall in love again. But he’d reasoned that fifteen years of grieving was more than enough for anyone, and there was no question that Claire made his father happy. But his father’s optimistic attitude toward love didn’t stop Jason from wondering what would happen if Claire left.

  Would his father collapse beneath the weight of sadness again? There was no way to know, and Jason hoped he never had to find out. “So, what’s on your mind, Dad?”

  “I spoke with Evan earlier today. Sounds like he and Lily are engaged.”

  “Since when?”

  “Since this morning. Apparently Ming dropped her sister off and told her not to come home until she was engaged.” Tony grinned. “I always loved that girl.”

  “Good for Evan. He was pretty beat up about Lily last night.”

  “He said you weren’t doing too great, either.”

  Jason grimaced. “I found Evan on his living room floor, an empty bottle of pain pills next to him and I assumed…”

  “That he’d tried to kill himself the way I had when you were fifteen.” Tony looked older than his sixty-two years. The vibrancy had gone out of his eyes and the muscles in his face were slack. “That was the single darkest moment of my life, and I’m sorry you had to be the one to experience it with me.”

  “If I hadn’t you’d be dead.” They’d never really talked about what had happened. As a teenager Jason had been too shocked by almost losing a second parent to demand answers. And since Evan had been away at college, the secret had remained between Jason and his father while questions ate away Jason’s sense of security.

  “Looking back, I can’t believe I allowed myself to sink so low, but I wasn’t aware that I needed help. All I could see was a black pit with steep sides that I couldn’t climb out of. Every day the hole seemed deeper. The company was months away from layoffs. I was taking my professional worries out on your mother, and that was eating me up. Then the car accident snatched her and Marie away from us. I was supposed to have driven them to the dress rehearsal for Marie’s recital that night, but I was delayed at the office.” Tony closed his eyes for a few seconds before resuming. “Those files could have waited until morning. If I had put my family first, they might still be alive. And in the end, all my work came to nothing. The job we’d bid went elsewhere and the company was on the verge of going under. I was to the point where I couldn’t live with my failure as a husband, father or businessman.”

  So, this was the burden his father had carried all these years. Guilt had driven him to try to take his life because he’d perceived himself a failure?

  And just like that, Jason’s doctrine citing the dangers of falling in love lost all support.

  “I thought you were so desperately in love with Mom that you couldn’t bear to live without her anymore.”

  “Her death was devastating, but it wasn’t why I started drinking or why I reached the point where I didn’t want to go on. It was the guilt.” His father regarded Jason in dismay. “Is that why you and Ming never dated? Were you afraid you’d lose her one day?”

  “We didn’t date because we’re friends.”

  “But you love her.”

  “Of course I love her.” And he did. “She’s my—”

  His father interrupted to finish. “Best friend.” He shook his head in disgust. “Evan had another bit of news for me.” Tony leaned his forearms on the table and pinned Jason with hard eyes. “Something Lily told him about Ming.”

  Now Jason knew why his father had shown up at his house. “She’s pregnant.”

  “And?”

  “The baby’s mine.”

  So was Ming. His. Just as he’d told her the night of Max’s bachelor party. He’d claimed her and then pushed her away because of a stupid pledge he’d made at fifteen. Had he really expected her to remain his best friend just because that’s how it had always been for them?

  And now that he knew the truth behind his father’s depression, Jason could admit that he wanted the same things she did. Marriage. Children. The love of a lifetime.

  But after he pushed her away last night, would she still want those things with him?

  Jason’s chair scraped the floor as he got to his feet. He threw enough money on the table to cover their tab and gestured for his father to get up. “We have to go.”

  “Go where?” Tony followed his son out the door without receiving an answer. “Go where?” he repeated, sliding behind the wheel of his BMW.

  “I have an errand to run. Then I’m going to go see Ming. It’s way past time I tell her how I really feel.”

  *

  Ming swam beneath the pool’s surface, stroking hard to reach the side before her breath gave out. After leaving Evan’s house hours earlier, she’d been keyed up. After cleaning her refrigerator and vacuuming the whole upstairs, she’d decided to burn off her excess energy, hoping the cool water would calm both her body and her mind.

  The exercise did its job. By the time she’d completed her twentieth lap, her thoughts had stopped racing. Muffin awaited her at the edge of the pool. As soon as Ming surfaced, the Yorkie raced forward and touched her nose to Ming’s. The show of affection made her smile.

  “What would I do without you?” she asked the small dog and received a lick in response.

  “I’ve been asking myself the same question since you left last night.”

  A shadow fell across her. Ming looked up, her stomach flipping at the determined glint in Jason’s blue eyes. Relief raced through her. The way their conversa
tion had ended the previous night, she’d worried their friendship was irrevocably damaged.

  “Luckily you aren’t ever going to find that out.” She accepted Jason’s hand and let him pull her out of the water.

  He wrapped her in a towel and pulled her against him. Dropping his lips to hers, he kissed her slow and deep. Ming tossed aside all the heartache of the past twelve hours and surrendered to the powerful emotions Jason aroused.

  “I was wrong to dump all that stuff about Evan on you last night,” he told her.

  “I’m your friend. You know I’m always there for you.”

  “I know I take that for granted.”

  He took her by the hand and led her inside. To Ming’s delight he pulled her toward the stairs. This wasn’t what she’d expected from him after she confessed her feelings. She figured he’d distance himself from her as he’d done with women in the past.

  But when they arrived in her bedroom, he didn’t take her in his arms or rip the covers off the mattress and sweep her onto the soft sheets.

  Instead, he kissed her on the forehead. “Grab a shower. I have an errand to run and could use your help.”

  An errand? Disappointment sat like a bowling ball in her stomach. “What sort of an errand?”

  “I never got Max and Rachel a wedding present.”

  “Oh, Jason.” She rolled her eyes at him.

  “I’m hopeless without you,” he reminded her, nudging her in the direction of the bathroom. “You know that.”

  “Does it have to be today?”

  “They’re leaving for Alabama tomorrow morning. I want them to have it before then.” He scooped up the Yorkshire terrier and the dog’s stuffed squirrel toy. “Muffin and I will be waiting for you downstairs.”

  “Fine.”

  Half an hour later Ming descended her stairs and found Jason entertaining Muffin with a game of fetch. She’d put on a red sundress with thin straps and loved the way Jason’s eyes lit up in appreciation.

  She collected the Yorkie’s leash and her purse and headed out the front door. When she spotted the car in front of her house, she hesitated. “Why are you driving the ’Cuda?”

  “I told you, I never got Max and Rachel a wedding present.”

  Understanding dawned. “You’re giving him back the car?”

  “The bet we made seems pretty stupid in light of recent events.”

  “What recent events?”

  He offered her his most enigmatic smile. “Follow me and you’ll find out.”

  *

  When they arrived at Max and Rachel’s house, Jason didn’t even have a chance to get out of the car before the front door opened. To his amusement, Max looked annoyed.

  “Why are you driving the ’Cuda?” he demanded as Jason slowly got to his feet. “Do you have any idea what the car’s worth?”

  “I don’t, since you never told me what you paid for it.” Jason took Ming’s hand as she reached his side and pulled her close. “Look, I’m sorry that I didn’t get you anything for your wedding. Ming was supposed to help me pick something, but she backed out at the last minute.”

  “Jason.” She bumped her hip against him in warning. “You are perfectly capable of shopping on your own.”

  “No, he’s not,” Max put in.

  “No, I’m not. So, here.” Jason held out the keys.

  “You’re giving me back the ’Cuda?” Max’s thunderstruck expression was priceless.

  “I realize now that I had an unfair advantage when we made the bet. You were already in love with Rachel, just too stubborn to realize it.”

  Max took the keys and nodded. “Being stubborn when it comes to love means you lose out on all sorts of things.”

  Jason felt the barb hit home. He had missed a lot with Ming. If he hadn’t been so determined never to be hurt, she might have married his brother, and Jason could have ended up with a lifetime of pain.

  Rachel had come out to join them. She snuggled against her husband’s side and looked fondly at the bright yellow car. “What’s going on?”

  “Jason’s giving me back the ’Cuda,” Max explained with a wry grin. “Can I interest you in a ride?”

  To Jason’s surprise, the blonde’s cheeks turned pink. Unwilling to delve too deeply into whatever subtext had just passed between husband and wife, he reached for the passenger seat and pulled out a box wrapped in white-and-silver paper and adorned with a silver bow.

  “And because the car is a really lousy wedding present,” he continued, handing the gift to Rachel, “I got this for you.”

  Rachel grinned. “I think the car is a lovely present, but thank you for this.”

  Jason shut the ’Cuda’s door and gave the car one last pat. “Take good care of her,” he told Max.

  “I intend to.” Max leaned down and planted a firm kiss on his wife’s lips.

  “I meant the car,” Jason retorted, amused.

  “Her, too.”

  After spending another ten minutes with the newlyweds, Ming and Jason returned to her car.

  “What was that about?” she asked, standing beside the driver’s door. “You didn’t need me to help deliver the car. You could have had Max come pick it up.”

  “It was symbolic.” He could feel her tension growing and decided he’d better tell her what was on his mind before she worked herself into a lather. “I won the car because I bet against love. It sits in my garage, a testament to my stubbornness and stupidity. So I decided to give it back to Max. Apparently in addition to its financial value it has some sentimental value to him, as well.”

  Her lips curved. “I’m happy to hear you admit that you were idiotic and pigheaded, but what caused your enlightenment?”

  He leaned against the car and drew her into his arms.

  “My dad swung by my house earlier and we had a long talk about what happened after my mother and sister died.”

  She sighed and relaxed against him. “You’ve talked with him about it before, haven’t you?”

  “We talked about his depression, but I never understood what was at the root of him trying to take his life.”

  “I thought it was because he was so much in love with your mom that he couldn’t live without her.”

  “That’s what I believed. Turns out I didn’t know the whole story.”

  “There’s more?”

  “Today I found out why he was so depressed after my mother and sister died. Apparently he stayed at work when he was supposed to drive them the night they died. He thinks if he’d chosen his family over the business they might still be alive. It was eating him up.”

  “You mean he felt guilty?”

  Jason nodded. “Guilty because he’d failed her. Not devastated by loss. All these years I was wrong to think love only led to pain.” He watched Ming’s expression to gauge her reaction to his tale. “When my dad fell in love with Claire, I thought he was nothing more than an optimistic fool.” Jason winced. He’d spoken up against his father marrying her and a rift had formed between them. “Then Max fell in love with Rachel. Until he met her, he’d had a block of ice where his heart should be.”

  “But Rachel’s great.”

  Jason nodded. “And she’s perfect for Max, but when he fell head over heels for her, I was even more convinced that love made everyone else crazy and that I was the only sane one.”

  It scared her how firmly he clung to his convictions. “And now your brother has gone mad for Lily.”

  “That he has.” He gave her a sheepish smile. “Max and his brothers. My dad. Evan. They’re all so damned happy.”

  “You’re happy.”

  “When I’m with you.” He set his forehead against hers. “I’ve been a stubborn idiot. All this time I’ve been lying to myself about what I wanted. I thought if you and I made love, I could keep things the way they were between us and manage to have the best of both worlds.”

  “Only I had to go and fall in love with you.”

  “No. You had to go and tell me you wanted us to
be together as a family.” At last he was free to share with her what lay in his heart. “Did you know when you chose me to help you get pregnant that a baby would bind us together forever?”

  “It crossed my mind, but that isn’t why I decided on you.” She frowned defensively. “And I’d like to point out that you agreed to help me. You also had to realize that any child I gave birth to would be part of us.”

  “From the instant you said you wanted me to be your baby’s father, all I could think about was how much I wanted you.” He took her hand and kissed her palm, felt her tension ease. “After prom night I ran from the way I felt about you. It went against everything I believed. I’ve been running for the last fifteen years.”

  “And what is it you want?”

  “You. More than anything. Marry me. I want to spend the rest of my life showing you how much I love you.” He produced a diamond ring and held it before her eyes.

  Heart pounding, she stared at the fiery gem as he took her left hand and slid the ring onto her finger. It fit perfectly.

  “Yes. Yes. Of course, yes.”

  Before she finished her fervent acceptance, he kissed her. As his lips moved with passionate demand against hers, she melted beneath the rush of desire. He took his time demonstrating how much he loved her until his breath was rough and ragged. At last he lifted his head and stared into her eyes. Her stark joy stopped his heart.

  Grinning, he hugged her hard. “And just in case you’re worried about everyone’s reaction, I cleared this with your sister and parents and my brother. The consensus seems to be that it’s about time we take things from friends…”

  “To forever.” She laughed, a glorious sound of joy. “How lucky can a girl be?” she murmured. “I get to marry my best friend and the man I adore.”

  Jason cupped her face and kissed her gently. “What could be better than that?”

  Ming lifted onto her tiptoes and wrapped her arms around his neck. “Not one single thing.”

  Epilogue

  One year later

  Bright afternoon sunshine glinted off the brand new paint on the galaxy blue Mustang parked in the driveway. Ming adjusted the big red bow attached to the roof and waved goodbye to the Stover brothers, who’d dropped the repaired race car off moments before. With her anniversary present for Jason looking absolutely perfect, she glanced toward the colonial’s front door. The delivery had not been particularly quiet and she was surprised her husband of one year hadn’t come out to see what the commotion was about.