Carol, her neighbour, breezed past on her way back from the letter box and she doubled back to stop at Mattie’s window.
She let out a low wolf whistle. ‘You’re looking swish today. Expecting a special visitor?’
‘Not really.’ Mattie tried to sound airy about the fact that she was wearing her prettiest maternity top and two layers of mascara, but she promptly spoiled it by blushing.
Carol smiled knowingly, then glanced out to the street where a car was pulling up. ‘This not-really-special visitor wouldn’t be male and about six feet three, would he?’
Mattie blushed again. ‘Possibly.’
Grinning broadly now, Carol began to fan herself with her mail. ‘Call the hospital Emergency,’ she panted theatrically. ‘I’m having palpitations.’
Mattie laughed, but then she heard footsteps on the front path and, sure enough, it was Jake who was heading her way and her heart began to quicken too.
Carol disappeared and suddenly Jake was knocking on her front door.
‘Behave, Brutus,’ Mattie ordered and, to her relief, the little dog obeyed her.
She opened the door and saw that Jake had made an effort with his appearance too. He was impeccably dressed in an open-necked blue chambray shirt and dark trousers, and his sleek tan boots were very well polished. She felt a rush of longing. Good heavens. She hadn’t thought it was possible to be heavily pregnant with twins and still feel this kind of wanting.
He kept his hands behind his back, as if he was hiding something.
‘Good morning, Mattie.’ His deep voice rippled over her like sexy music, and he smiled shyly as he brought his hands in front of him to reveal two potted plants—a small rose bush, covered with the sweetest miniature pink blooms, and a cluster of irises, with frilled petals as deep blue as a mid-summer sky.
‘They’re in honour of your babies,’ he said with a shy smile.
‘They’re gorgeous,’ Mattie whispered. ‘Pink for the girl, blue for the boy.’ Her eyes swam with tears. Stop it. Stop it right now.
‘I thought you might prefer living plants to cut flowers.’
She nodded her thanks, and sniffed. She was overwhelmed. ‘I…I’ll put the kettle on.’
‘No, you won’t. You’ll stay here and I’ll put the kettle on.’
‘Jake!’ She rolled her eyes at him. ‘Honestly, I’m fit as a—’
‘Yeah, I know,’ he interrupted, smiling. ‘You’re as fit as three fiddles, but humour me, Mattie. I’ve been to the library and I’ve read up on expecting twins. You’re supposed to take it easy in the last trimester. So now it’s my turn to be the helpful type and you’ll have to accept it graciously. Put your feet up and stay on that sofa.’
To cover her surprise, she said meekly, ‘All right. I’ll have peppermint tea, please. The tea bags are in the blue pot with the wooden lid.’
Taking him at his word, she kicked her sandals off and made herself comfortable on the sofa with her feet up.
But she couldn’t relax.
Jake’s behaviour was too bewildering.
It was so hard to reconcile the man in her kitchen fixing her herbal tea with the man she’d first met. She kept seeing Ange’s knickers on the bathroom floor and those tangled bed sheets.
And then, no sooner had Ange been out of the picture, than Jake had leapt into Mattie’s bed.
She couldn’t stop thinking about that awful farewell at the airport: You do know that I can’t promise you a future together, don’t you?
When he’d returned to Mongolia, she’d realised that everything about Jake Devlin had pointed to one dangerous fact—he was a playboy.
Now he was trying to protect her.
It was all terribly confusing.
Anyone looking from the outside might reasonably assume that a man who’d given up his job to hang about, waiting to help and support a pregnant woman, must care deeply about her. Mattie would have liked to believe that too, but it was so hard to believe that a man who obviously loved to play the field would still find her attractive when she was the size of a whale.
Her entire life these days was dominated by the babies. She was sure she could feel her hips actually spreading. She needed to go the bathroom every five minutes and her ankles swelled if she was on her feet for too long.
She now had weekly visits to the doctor and the babies’ progress was being strictly monitored, which meant there were times when she truly felt exactly the way Jake had described her—like an incubator.
She’d begun to wonder if she could ever change back into the reckless, happy girl who’d shared this flat with Jake.
That special day when they’d brewed billy tea for Roy and had gone to the movies seemed so very long ago. As for their one passionate night—that perfect, blissful night—it now felt as if it had happened in another lifetime.
Mattie hoped she didn’t look too anxious when Jake returned with her tea and a mug of instant coffee for himself.
To her surprise, he didn’t sit opposite her.
Looking super-relaxed and totally in charge, he sat on the end of her sofa, mere inches from her bare feet.
The sofa cushion dipped with his weight. His knee brushed her leg and heat rushed over her in a sweeping flash. It wasn’t fair! He looked so cool, while she was taking so many deep breaths she was in danger of hyperventilating.
‘Have you seen Roy lately?’ she asked breathlessly.
Jake nodded. ‘I’m a bit worried about him, actually. I don’t think he’s very well.’
‘Really? I’m sorry to hear that. Have you spoken to the staff at the nursing home?’
‘They assure me he’s as well as can be expected, but to me he looks like he has one foot in the grave.’
‘Poor darling.’
Jake’s dark eyes rested on Mattie. For the longest time he watched her. ‘You look well,’ he said softly. ‘Actually, you look—’
‘Blooming?’
He laughed. ‘I was thinking of something more flattering.’
Really?
Mattie held her breath, but Jake had apparently decided to change the subject. ‘So what happens to Brutus and Pavarotti when you go into hospital? Who’s going to look after them?’
‘Gina and Tom will collect them some time next week, in case anything happens early.’
‘Early?’
‘It can happen with twins.’
‘Yes, so I’ve discovered.’
‘At the library?’
Jake nodded. He was frowning deeply and his eyes had turned stony as he glared at a spot on the carpet.
‘Anyway,’ Mattie continued, hoping to distract him, ‘Gina and Tom will take Brutus and Pavarotti back to Willowbank, and I think Gina’s parents will probably look after them.’
He nodded and then reached into his trouser pocket. ‘I bought something for your menagerie.’ With a smile, he produced a blue rubber fetch-and-play toy in the shape of a bone. He held it out to Brutus. ‘This is for you, chum.’
The little dog immediately went into paroxysms of delight, rolling and wrestling with the rubber bone.
‘Jake, it’s perfect. He loves it.’
Jake dug into his other pocket and pulled out something that looked like a twig with a pretty hanging mobile attached.
Mattie laughed. ‘Is that for Pavarotti?’
‘Yes. It’s a pedicure perch.’
‘A what?’
‘A pedicure perch.’ His dark eyes sparkled. ‘Pavarotti can wrap his little claws around this stick and peck at the mobile and have a pedicure at the same time.’
She laughed so hard she almost hiccuped. ‘Wow!’ she said between giggles. ‘That’s outrageous, but I love it.’
Without warning, Mattie stopped in mid-giggle. For a minute there, she’d let go of her doubts and fears. She’d been as happy as she had been in those first few days with Jake. They’d packed so much into their short time together. The laughter, the happiness—the passion.
Jake had warned her that it cou
ldn’t last.
That was still true. It couldn’t last, could it?
She had to ask. ‘Jake, why are you doing this?’
‘Doing what?’
She held up the perch. ‘Why are you here? Why are you being so thoughtful?’ She gulped. Oh, heavens. She mustn’t get teary in front of him.
For a long moment he seemed caught out, as if he didn’t know how to answer her. Mattie could see his mind working and it was almost as if he was asking himself the same question.
He stared at her, his face serious, almost worried. He dropped his gaze to Brutus, pouncing on his blue rubber bone. ‘Remember the day we took Roy out and we brewed billy tea?’
‘Yes, of course.’
‘I realised then that you’re always going the extra mile to make other people happy, but I wondered if anyone ever does that for you.’
The little perch trembled in Mattie’s hand. ‘Is that what this is about? You’re trying to make me happy?’
Jake smiled. ‘That’s the aim.’
‘Oh!’
Mattie couldn’t help it.
She burst into tears.
In a heartbeat, Jake’s arms were around her and she was sobbing against his big solid shoulder. But he didn’t seem to mind. He kissed her forehead and stroked her hair and made soothing noises the way a parent might.
She clung to him—she had no choice—she was collapsing beneath the weight of her emotions. She was happy, sad, confused, scared, but, somewhere within the disarray, she knew that she loved this man.
Even though it was dangerous, and he might break her heart, she loved everything about him. Right now, she could smell his skin and his aftershave and his laundered shirt and the combination was wonderful.
‘Mattie,’ he murmured hoarsely, ‘you mustn’t cry. I didn’t want to upset you.’
There was a sudden knock at the open front door. ‘What’s going on?’
It was Tom’s voice.
CHAPTER NINE
TOM was like a soldier on sentry duty as he stood stiffly in the doorway, red hair standing up in spikes, frowning at them. ‘What’s happened? Are you all right, Mattie?’
Her face was flooded with tears, her throat was too tight for speech and her shoulders were shaking from the force of her sobbing. All she could manage was to nod her head vigorously.
Tom marched into the flat, jaw at a belligerent angle. ‘Are you sure you’re OK? What’s going on here?’ He shot a scalding glare at Jake. ‘Excuse me, but who are you?’
Slowly Jake rose from the sofa and the air in the small lounge room was suddenly thick with tension and testosterone. Jake was a head taller than Tom and he looked ready for a battle.
Without smiling, he held out his hand. ‘Jake Devlin’s the name. How do you do?’
‘Jake, this is Tom,’ Mattie supplied in a choked voice. ‘Tom Roberts.’
The two men shook hands grimly.
Jake said quietly and without warmth, ‘So, you’re the babies’ father?’
‘That’s right.’ Tom squared his shoulders. ‘And I’ve heard about you—Our Man in Mongolia.’ He spoke the way a policeman might address a hardened criminal.
Jake slid a smooth, questioning glance Mattie’s way.
‘Jake’s a friend, Tom,’ she intervened. ‘A…a good friend.’
‘But he has a habit of upsetting you?’
‘Not at all,’ she insisted. ‘Jake hasn’t upset me.’ She pointed to the plants on the coffee table. ‘He’s brought me lovely gifts.’
Tom eyed the plants suspiciously and Mattie surreptitiously wiped at her tears with the corner of a handkerchief. She noticed black smudges of mascara on the white fabric and she hoped she hadn’t ended up with panda eyes.
‘I didn’t know you were back in Sydney, Tom.’ She was pleased she could speak more calmly now. ‘Is Gina here too?’
He shook his head. ‘I had to come to town for a quick business trip and I couldn’t come without popping in to see you.’ He looked again at the potted plants and shot Jake a sharp-eyed glance.
‘Why don’t you take a seat?’ Jake suggested dryly and he sat again on the sofa beside Mattie, so close that his shirt sleeve brushed her arm, and her skin flashed hot and cold.
She hoped Tom would stop bristling and be pleasant to Jake, but she was out of luck.
As soon as Tom was seated, he attacked Jake. ‘I presume Mattie’s told you she’s expecting twins?’
‘Of course.’
‘And has she also told you that many women expecting twins have to spend their last trimester in hospital to ensure they have sufficient rest?’
Mattie didn’t dare to look at Jake, but she could feel his tension.
Tom pressed his point home. ‘In other words, Mattie mustn’t be upset.’
‘Tom, I can reassure you,’ Jake said smoothly. ‘I want nothing more than for Mattie to be rested and well and to have a safe delivery.’
Tom gave a slight nod of acknowledgement, but his expression was still doubtful.
Diplomatically, Mattie asked, ‘How’s Gina?’
‘Fabulous.’ At last Tom smiled. ‘Apart from the fact that she talks about the babies all day long and half the night and then in her sleep as well.’
Mattie smiled. ‘She’s a tad excited, isn’t she?’
‘Excited? There ought to be a better word.’
Jake rose. ‘I should go,’ he said. ‘I’m sure you two want to have a good long chat.’
‘There’s no need to leave,’ Mattie began, but Jake looked determined so she didn’t push it.
He turned to Tom, gave a stiffly polite nod. ‘Nice to meet you.’
‘You too,’ Tom replied without conviction.
‘See you later, Mattie.’ Jake bent down and kissed her cheek. His mouth only brushed her skin briefly, but her heart leapt as high as the moon and she was sure his lips left a scorch mark.
She wanted to tell him that he was welcome to drop by any time, but with Tom frowning ferociously, as if he were guarding her like one of his sheepdogs, she held her tongue.
‘Thanks for the gifts, Jake. They’re gorgeous.’
‘My pleasure. Take care.’
When Jake left she felt as if all the fun had gone out of her day. It took a huge effort to paste on a smile for Tom’s benefit.
‘I hope he’s not going to make a habit of upsetting you,’ Tom said even before Jake’s footsteps had died away.
‘He won’t,’ Mattie assured him, but she couldn’t be sure it was the truth. She was simply a mess where he was concerned.
For the babies’ sake, she should snap out of it.
What a stuff-up.
Jake couldn’t believe he’d made such a hash of visiting Mattie. As he stormed to his car he felt so fired up and mad with himself he wanted to kick something.
He’d gone in there all gung-ho and he’d ended up with Mattie in tears. As if that wasn’t bad enough, when the babies’ father had arrived, he’d very nearly started an argument with him.
Our Man in Mongolia. That was below the belt.
Then again…
Jake slowed his pace as he tried to sort out what had just happened.
Truth be told, Tom probably had good reason to be so upset. He must have had a shock when he’d turned up at the flat expecting to see the woman who was carrying his children resting up safely and serenely, only to find her in another bloke’s arms, sobbing her heart out.
Give the man a break.
Yeah, maybe.
Even so, Jake couldn’t shrug the incident aside. He’d been on the brink of some kind of breakthrough.
OK, so Mattie had been weeping in his arms, but if they’d been given half a chance, her tears might have broken down barriers and he might have begun to make some kind of sense of the turmoil inside him.
Then good old Tom had barged in like the SAS saving the world.
Jake pressed his car’s central locking device and, as he heard the lock’s click-click, he remembered Mattie’s
question.
Why are you doing this?
He’d told her that he wanted to help her, but that was only half the truth, wasn’t it? And even then he’d made her cry.
Just as well he hadn’t told her the rest—that he was starting to realise that he needed to be with her, that she was the best thing that had ever happened to him.
If he’d told her that, she might have expected a promise of some kind of serious commitment—a confession that he loved her, that he was ready for marriage and a family of their own. But how could he be?
That was going too far. Way too far.
It was downright terrifying.
The true answer was that Jake was taking this venture one step at a time. One day at a time. He didn’t dare to look any further ahead and how could he tell Mattie that?
Perhaps, after all, he should be grateful to Tom for barging in when he had.
Jake was asleep when the phone rang. His first thought as he swung out of bed was Mattie. Panic kicked him in the chest. Had something happened to her? He groped in the dark for his phone.
‘Mr Devlin?’
‘Speaking.’
‘It’s Sister Hart from the Lilydale Nursing Home.’
‘Yes? What is it? Is Roy OK?’
‘I’m afraid I have bad news. Roy’s had a heart attack.’
Whack! Jake felt as if his own heart had been chopped with an axe. ‘How—’ His throat was dry and he had to swallow. ‘How is he?’
‘It’s quite serious. He’s been taken to hospital, of course, so you’ll need to ring the Coronary Care Unit to check on his condition.’
‘Right.’ Already Jake’s mind was racing. He wouldn’t simply telephone. He’d drive straight to the hospital. He knew the first few hours after a heart attack were crucial. He had to try to see Roy.
It was the early hours of the morning, still dark, as he drove through the Sydney streets. His hands were sweaty on the steering wheel and fear gnawed at his stomach and clutched at his throat. He loved Roy and he couldn’t bear it if he died.
He accepted that Roy couldn’t live for ever, but he felt a nagging sense of injustice on Roy’s behalf. The guy was a legend. He deserved a hero’s old age.
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