Finding Perfect (16 page)

He drew out the engagement ring, then slid it on her finger. The fit was perfect. She stared down at the diamonds glinting on her finger.

“Thank you,” she told him.

“You're welcome.”

He wrapped both arms around her and held her
against him. She closed her eyes and told herself everything would be fine. That she was making the right decision. Love would have been nice, but wasn't it better to sacrifice that silly dream in order to make sure Crystal's babies would be taken care of their whole lives? Isn't that what her friend would have wanted?

R
AOUL SPENT A SLEEPLESS
night. Not that Peter was a problem, but because he kept getting up to check on the kid. But the boy never stirred.

They both woke up to Raoul's alarm, then had a busy morning of getting ready. The plastic sleeve the hospital had provided protected the cast while Peter showered. The kid had managed to dress himself, except for tying his shoes, and had shown up at the kitchen table hair damp, face smiling, eyes eager.

“What's for breakfast?” he asked.

“Waffles.”

Those green eyes got bigger. “You know how to make waffles?”

Raoul showed him the waffle maker he'd bought a few months ago after wandering through a big-box store and seeing a demonstration.

“That is so cool!” Peter told him.

He scrambled out of his seat and hurried around to watch as Raoul finished mixing the batter.

“Here's the cup we use,” Raoul said, pointing to the plastic container with a big pour spout. “Go ahead and fill it to the line there.”

“I can do it?”

“Sure.”

Peter's break was in his left forearm, and he was right-handed.

The boy carefully dipped the cup into the batter and scooped up the right amount. Raoul raised the lid on the waffle maker.

“Go ahead and pour it in the center. It's already hot so it will spread out on its own.”

Peter did as instructed, then watched as the batter oozed out along the grid. “It's not filling in all the way.”

“I know, but this is the fun part.”

Raoul closed the waffle maker, locked the two handles together, then spun it until it was upside down.

“Whoa!” Peter stared. “That's the best.”

“Want to do the second one?”

“Sure.”

Raoul watched him, pleased the boy seemed rested and not in any pain. He was easy to be with. Bright and curious. When he thought about the fact that his foster parents might not be taking good care of him, he wanted to find them—or at least the dad—and beat the shit out of him.

Not an option, he reminded himself. He would trust the system to work this out. But just in case, he would talk to Dakota about what steps he could take to make sure Peter was in a safe environment.

But when he got to his office, after dropping Peter off at camp, Dakota wasn't there. She'd left early the day before. He checked the machine to see if she'd called in sick, but there wasn't any message.

By ten, he was worried and wondering whom to talk to. Just when he picked up the phone to call Pia, Dakota walked in.

She looked like hell. Her face was pale, her eyes red and swollen. There was an air of grief and loss about her, as if something important to her had been taken away from her. He was on his feet the second he saw her.

“What happened?” he demanded.

She shook her head. “Nothing.”

“It's not nothing. Were you in an accident? Did someone hurt you?”

If she'd had a boyfriend, he would assume he'd beaten her or slept with her best friend. But as far as he knew, Dakota wasn't dating.

“I'm fine,” she said, her mouth trembling as she spoke. “You have to believe me.”

“Then you need to be more convincing.”

She forced a smile that was more ghoulish than happy. “How's that?”

“Frightening.”

She sighed. “I'm fine. I know I look bad. I'm not hurt, I'm not sick.” She swallowed. “Everything is how it's always been.”

“Dakota, get real. Something happened.”

“No, it didn't.” Tears filled her eyes. “It didn't.” The tears spilled down her cheeks.

Instinctively, he walked toward her, but she shook her head and backed away.

“I'm sorry,” she whispered. “I can't do this. I can't be here today. I need a day or two. Sick days, vacation days, whatever you want.”

He felt helpless and confused. “Take whatever time you need. Can I call someone? One of your sisters? Your mom?”

“No. No one. I'm fine. I have to go.”

With that she grabbed her purse and practically ran
out of the office. Raoul stared after her, not sure what he was supposed to do now. Let her go? Follow her? Call a friend?

She wasn't physically hurt—he could figure out that much. So what had happened? Had she heard bad news? But if there'd been a disaster in the family, he would have heard about it. News traveled fast in Fool's Gold.

He would give her time, he decided. If she wasn't back at work in a couple of days, he would go talk to her. If she wouldn't talk to him, he would insist she talk to someone else.

 

P
IA STUDIED THE SIGNS
and did her best not to shudder. Bad enough that busloads of men were pouring into town. Worse that there was going to be a bachelor auction.

It was embarrassing. Not for her specifically, but for the town.

“I just don't like this,” she said.

Montana grinned. “That's because you already have a good guy in your life.”

“Even if I didn't, this would scare me. Who are these guys? What do they want?”

“If you have to ask the question, then Raoul is doing something very, very wrong.”

Pia turned away from her friend and did her best not to blush. “I'm newly pregnant. We're not…you know.”

“I guess it would be weird to have sex knowing that someone else's embryos are growing inside of you.”

Pia winced. “Thank you for spelling that out so clearly.”

“Am I wrong?”

“No, but still.”

Montana grinned. “So, did you ever…you know? Before the pregnancy?”

Pia thought about that amazing night. “Once,” she admitted, then waited to be struck by lightning for the lie. “Actually it was one evening, but several times.”

“Impressive. A man with stamina.”

“It is an appealing characteristic.” Although she was sure there would come a time when it was safe for them to do the wild thing while she was pregnant, she had a feeling she was going to have to wait until after the babies were born to have a repeat performance of that one, magical night.

“He did set the standard really high,” she added, “and we should talk about something else. How's your sex life?”

“Nonexistent.”

“Then you should check out the new guys.”

“No, thanks.” Montana stapled the cardboard handles onto the auction paddles. “I'm focusing on my career right now.”

“You got the job?”

Montana grinned. “I did and I love it. The dogs are so great. Well-trained and friendly. Max is the best, too. He's really patient. I'm doing lots of reading and I've started my online class. I'm going to Sacramento in a few weeks for an intense three-week training seminar. Max is even paying for that, if you can believe it.”

“You like Max,” Pia said, pleased to see her friend so happy.

“Of course. He's so nice and he knows everything about dogs and…” Montana wrinkled her nose. “Um, no. Don't even go there.”

“Office romances are very stylish.”

“It's not like that. He's in his fifties and even if he wasn't, I admire him. I don't want a romantic relationship with him. We're friends.”

“If you say so.”

“I do.” She nudged Pia. “It's already happening. You're engaged and now you want everyone else paired up.”

“I don't. I just want my friends to be happy and if—” She paused as she saw Montana's eyes practically bug out of her head. “What?”

“The ring. It's incredible.”

Pia resisted the urge to tuck her hand behind her back. She loved her engagement ring, but she was having a little trouble getting used to it. And not apologizing for it. The stones were stunning and the whole thing was so bright, it was practically a light source.

“Raoul picked it out,” she murmured.

“Does he have a brother?”

Something she should know, but didn't. “I can ask.”

Montana grabbed her hand and stared at the ring. “I love it more than life.”

“Thanks.”

“Make you a little nervous?”

“Some. Nothing about the situation feels real to me. Not the engagement or even being pregnant.” She lowered her voice. “I've peed on a stick and had an ultrasound. I'm really, really pregnant. So why don't I feel different?”

“You've gone through a lot in a very short period of time. You'll get there.”

“I hope.” Although Pia was starting to have her doubts. Maybe there was something wrong with her.
“What if I can't bond with the babies when they're born? What if I can't love them?”

“You won't have a choice. You're going to be a great mom, Pia. Stop doubting yourself.”

Pia put down the signs. “I want to believe you, but I can't. Both my parents left me. So has every guy I've ever cared about. I want to think it will be different with Raoul and the babies, but I'm not sure.”

“Raoul's not going anywhere. He's a good guy.”

He was a guy who was marrying her to get a readymade family. Not because he was crazy in love with her.

“Besides,” Montana continued. “You never know how things are going to work out. My parents loved each other every day of their marriage. When my dad died, we were all scared Mom wasn't going to make it. But he wasn't the only love of her life.”

Pia hadn't heard that. “What do you mean?”

Montana grinned. “She has a tattoo on her hip. It says Max.”

“Your Max?”

“No. He's new to the area. The tattoo is old. Over the years, Dakota, Nevada and I have tried to find out who he is, and Mom isn't saying a word. My point is, love happens. You're going to do great with the babies and I'm guessing Raoul is going to fall madly in love with you. You'll see.”

 

R
AOUL PARKED IN FRONT
of the large house. “I know it's old,” he told Pia, “but I had Ethan go over the whole thing and it's sound. The floor plan is great. Plenty of bedrooms, a large kitchen, which needs to be gutted, but then you could have everything you wanted. There's
a big yard out back, some great trees for climbing. It's the perfect family home.”

He waited anxiously while Pia glanced at the three-story house with round eyes. It was in one of the older neighborhoods in town—an affluent section built in the 1920s. The second he'd seen the house, he'd known it was exactly what he'd been looking for.

“There are eight bedrooms, including three on the third story. The second story has a decent-size master, but I thought we could tear down the wall between it and the smallest bedroom to expand it. Upgrade the bathroom, make the closet bigger.”

She turned to him, her expression unreadable. “Because you have a lot of shoes?”

“I know you do. It's a chick thing.”

“I guess it is.”

She didn't seem that excited about the house. “Are you okay?” he asked. “Don't you like the place?”

“It has potential,” she said, opening the car door. “We should go inside.”

He followed her, wondering what was going on with the women in his life. Dakota had returned to work the next day, but she still wasn't herself. He'd asked what was wrong several times and she kept insisting everything was fine. Too bad she was a lousy liar. And now Pia was acting strangely.

He followed her up to the front porch. It was as wide as the house and several feet deep.

“Are you mad because I went looking at houses without you?” he asked.

“No. You said you were going to. It's fine.”

He thought about mentioning he'd brought Peter with
him the previous day and the kid had loved the house, but he wasn't sure it would help.

“I know I've been busy,” he said as he fished the key out of his jacket pocket. “Having Peter around. His foster parents are due back in a couple of days. Mrs. Dawson has been investigating them and can't find any kind of trouble, so he'll be going back to them.”

She turned to him and pressed her hand against his chest. “Raoul, I'm not mad because you're taking care of a little boy who's hurt. I think it's wonderful and amazing. In fact, I'd love to come to dinner with the two of you, before Peter has to leave. I'm not mad about the house. I'm not mad about anything.”

“You swear?”

“Yes.”

She raised herself on tiptoe. He bent down and kissed her.

The feel of her mouth against his, her body so close, made him want to pull her against him and take advantage of the empty house. One night with Pia hadn't been enough. But until he talked to her doctor about when it was okay to seduce Pia back into his bed, he wasn't going to do anything to put the babies in danger.

“Tonight?” he asked, knowing they were talking about dinner but wishing it were something else. “Sure.”

He opened the front door and led the way inside.

They stepped into a large two-story foyer. The formal living room was to the left, the dining room to the right. There was a study, an eat-in kitchen and a family room, all on this level.

“Let's start at the top,” he said, pointing to the stairs.

“Okay.”

He led the way. At the top floor, he pointed out the three bedrooms. There were several large linen closets off the hall.

“If we give up this closet,” he said, pointing, “we can have a Jack-and-Jill bath. Now with three kids, it could still be a problem, so I talked to Ethan about turning this other one into a half bath. Just a toilet and sink.”

“Uh-huh.”

He showed her the three bedrooms. They were all about the same size, with sloped ceilings and bay windows with window seats.

“Great for reading,” he said.

“Especially on rainy days. You'd need a bunch of cushions, though, and maybe some blankets.”

He watched her cautiously. She was saying all the right things, but something was wrong. He felt it in his gut.