Lethal Affair (14 page)

He cut her off. “It's a fair question.
After all, this young lady is important enough to our son to bring
home to meet us. I just want to make sure her heart is in the right
place.”

His eyes bored into Kylie's,
unwavering, daring her to show weakness.

Kylie met his stare with a steady one
of her own. “Mr. Hammond...”

“
Stanley.”

She took a deep breath. “Stanley. My
job pays me well enough, and I own shares in the company that are
on a steady rise. My being here is merely out of respect to Drew's
wishes that I meet you both. If you're implying...” she waited a
beat to see if Drew would come to her aid but he remained silent,
staring into the flames at the fireplace with intent concentration,
“...that I'm seeing Drew for some ulterior motive, then rest
assured I'm no gold digger.”

She left it hanging and waited,
watched as Olivia blushed deeply and shifted uncomfortably in her
seat. Glancing sideways, she saw that errant muscle in Drew's cheek
do a hard core work-out. It was easy to see how this household
operated.

Stanley maintained steely eye contact
with Kylie over his cut crystal glass. The ice cubes tinkled
merrily as the steel gave way to grudging acquiescence. “Point
taken. Thank you for being so direct. I can admire that when it
comes to business. To my mind however, women belong in the home and
once they're married, should dedicate themselves to domestic
pursuits.”

She refused to rise to the bait and
fumed inwardly instead. So far all she'd done is defend herself.
Like father, like son? She was getting a clearer picture of Drew's
characteristics now, and where they came from. Absently she sipped
more wine, then quickly put it down when she remembered what it
was.

Olivia was doing a decent job of
hiding her distress. She leaned toward Kylie. “Don't you like the
wine, dear? Can I get you something else?”

Kylie gave her a genuine smile. “The
wine is great. But I'm feeling a little jumpy in my stomach. Maybe
some mineral water if you have it?”

Olivia went to fetch the drink, her
hand shaking as she poured the sparkling water into a tall glass
with ice, added a lemon wedge. She topped off her own glass with
straight vodka and took a healthy slug before returning to the
couch.

The Philippine woman appeared in the
doorway and announced that dinner was served. Olivia asked her to
kindly bring the drinks, then guided Kylie out of the room and into
a formal dining area with French doors leading out to a fairy lit
garden. The doors stood open to admit a soft summer
breeze.

The table was laid out with formal
dinnerware, with an artful trio of crocuses floating in water at
its center. First up, creamed lobster soup, ladled out wordlessly
by the Philippine woman. Wine flowed and the conversation remained
civilly polite as the meal wore on. Kylie held her own, warming up
to Olivia while remaining wary of Stanley. Drew mostly grunted at
the appropriate times, and by the time they'd plowed through a
magnificent array of courses and were offered dessert and coffee,
Kylie thought she might burst from having to mind her manners like
never before.

The liquor had loosened Stanley up. He
made a toast. “To Drew and Kylie, may you both find what you're
looking for.” Granted it was a strange one, but to Kylie it seemed
friendly enough as she raised her mineral water.

Drew decided to throw a monkey-wrench
in. “We've already found it in each other father,” he said. “We're
getting married.”

The blurt seemed to surprise even Drew
himself as they were all stunned into momentary silence. He'd done
the opposite of what he'd said in the car earlier, his outburst
completely overshadowing the more disturbing fact that again he'd
turned on a dime. This was a habit, she realized, to say one thing
and then do another. He simply lived by his own agenda, doing and
saying whatever pleased him in that particular moment. He'd done
just that with the issue of them having sex, as well as making the
assumption now that they were getting married. She'd agreed to no
such thing!

Olivia was the first to recover. “This
is wonderful news. There's so much to do, so much to...”

“
Hold on,” boomed Stanley,
cutting her off. “Olivia, didn't you tell me they've only been
seeing each other for four months? Drew, that's not long enough.
What the devil are you thinking?”

Drew dug his heels in. “You and Mom
got married within two months of meeting each other.”

Stanley waved an imperious hand.
“Those were different times, different circumstances. But you...
you're in line for a partnership at the agency. You'll need a
corporate wife. Is Kylie here up to the task?”

Drew swallowed hard and stubbornly
maintained. “We love each other and we want to get married. End of
story.”

This was crazy, nuts. Off
the charts insane, and however unexpected, Kylie had to agree with
Stanley. What was this about a
corporate
wife? Seeing the panic in
Olivia's eyes, she realized that hell was about to break loose over
chocolate mousse and cappuccinos.

Stanley's eyes narrowed as he studied
his son. They were in a staring match stand-off, neither willing to
back down. “Come into my study,” said Stanley. “We need to
talk.”

About to rise, Drew had his father
sitting down again. “Whatever you have to say can be said
here.”

Stanley waved his highball glass in
Ligaya's direction who had been standing to one side. She scurried
off to fill his order.

“
Marriage,” said Stanley
commandingly, “is a serious step. We know nothing about this girl,
her family. What's the real reason you want to rush into this
thing? Although I suspect I know the answer to that already.” His
direct gaze landed on Kylie who was trying to figure out how to be
diplomatic for Drew's sake, truthful for hers.

This time it wasn't such a shock when
Drew spelled it out in plain language. “Here are the facts. Kylie's
pregnant and I intend to marry her. Isn't that right,
Kylie?”

All eyes turned to her. She tried to
read reactions: Olivia was obviously distressed, Stanley was
indignant and Drew was actually expectant, waiting for her back him
up.

She chose her words carefully. “It's
true that I'm pregnant. And while I enjoy Drew's company,” – okay,
an exaggeration but she had to give him something - “we barely know
one another. Not at a base level. Drew, when you spring things on
people like this, they tend to get defensive. But I'm not being
defensive as much as practical when I say that not once have you
asked me if I love you. For me it's an important ingredient for a
successful marriage. You've made some very big assumptions and an
impulsive, if not reckless leap. So Stanley, you can set your mind
at ease, there will be no wedding.”

Like a burgeoning storm cloud, Drew
visibly darkened. He muttered under his breath, “You're
embarrassing me.”

She laid a cautioning hand on his arm
and he brushed it off. Abruptly he got to his feet and hauled her
up with him. “We're leaving. Thanks for dinner, Mom.”

Olivia's eyes teared up. She gulped
down the rest of her wine and busily poured more. Avoidance, or
fear, Kylie guessed.

“
Seems to me that Miss
Lambert here has some sense in her,” called out Stanley when Drew
dragged Kylie through the house. Stanley's laugh followed them out
the door.

Outside by the car Drew bent over,
hands on his knees while he struggled with his temper. Teeth
gritted, he fought for equilibrium. Kylie stood to one side, uneasy
with his emotional state. The hold he'd had on her arm as he'd
steered her out of the house had been tight as a clamp. The fact
that he hadn't given her a chance to thank his mother for the
dinner played across her own emotional field.

She waited for him to get a grip.
Looking up, she caught sight of Olivia hovering by the front
windows, peering out anxiously.

Drew straightened. In stony silence he
opened her door for her and hesitantly she climbed aboard. She was
prepared for the storm to break, for harsh words to rain down. But
not for the thunder that struck.

In the driver's seat now, Drew's
backhand lashed out in a hard slap to her face, landing with a
resounding smack. Ears ringing, Kylie gaped at him in the gloom of
the interior.

“
How dare you embarrass me
like that,” he said with quiet menace that promised more to
come.

Kylie's hand rose to her cheek.
Bruises would form, but none so damaging as the one he'd just now
inflicted on her heart.

It was unforgivable.

She said nothing. What would be the
point? For her, this was over. Lightening quick, she opened the
door and leaped out into the night, tearing down the driveway and
into the darkness that reached out to engulf her.

* * * *

CHAPTER EIGHT

Doctor Lydia Barrymore was finally on
her way home from a busy roster of patients. Thankfully no one had
gone into labor, so for now that meant the possibility of a quiet
evening at home with her husband and their two faithful Siberian
Huskies.

About to pull into her driveway, a
figure suddenly dashed across her path and she braked hard. Caught
in her headlights the figure froze for a full three seconds, then
rushed off into the dark.

What the... was that...?

She hastily lowered her window and
called out, “Kylie? Kylie Lambert?”

The woman froze again and hesitantly
turned. In the moonlight her cheek appeared to have a red welt and
black mascara trailed over it, her eyes wet with tears.

Lydia Barrymore held up her hand.
“Wait. Stop right there. Just let me pull in.” She eased her car
into her driveway and got out, turned to the woman she'd taken on
as a new patient that very morning.

She walked over to her as Kylie hadn't
moved an inch. “Are you alright?” She looked around, saw no
one.

Kylie swiped angrily at the tears. She
wasn't a woos, wasn't one of those simpering women who cry at the
drop of a hat. Or at getting smacked soundly on the face. She was
just... pissed! Frustrated and utterly pissed.

A car cruised up the street toward
them, going slow. Kylie stiffened and moved deeper into the shadow
of a giant oak, slipped behind it when the silver convertible
passed by.

Instinctively guessing what was
happening, Lydia pretended to be searching through her purse for
something while the car went by. When it was out of sight, she said
quietly, “You can come out now.”

Kylie took a deep breath and exhaled
slowly. She looked up briefly at the stone and Tudor-style home
tucked back behind a small stand of maples, and tried for a smile.
Pain lanced through her cheekbone. “I know this is a helluva way to
meet up with a patient, but silly me, I don't have the number for a
cab company and I could really use one right now. Do you think you
could...”

Lydia gently took Kylie's arm and
steered her up the driveway. “I'll do better than that. The
universe arranged things so that I would be here at this precise
moment in time to rescue you, and that's exactly what I intend to
do.”

Lydia's no-nonsense tactic bore no
argument and Kylie was grateful for her intervention. “What are the
odds, huh?” she murmured.

“
Let's get some ice on that
cheek. Then you can tell me how this happened.”

Inside, incandescent lighting glowed a
welcome home and even more-so, two furry Siberians with pale blue
eyes as they launched themselves at Lydia. On her command they sat
politely, one all white, the other liver and cream, both lifting a
paw to shake Kylie's hand. She was instantly charmed, her dilemma
momentarily shoved aside.

“
These two are Bonnie and
Clyde, my precious babies. They make up for the fact that I've
never had kids of my own,” said Lydia. “And this is Frank. Come and
meet Kylie Lambert.”

A short, rotund man came out from the
depths of the house to meet her. When he saw her face he smiled
grimly. “Kylie Lambert. Are you related to Rita and Joe Lambert by
any chance?”

Lydia filled him in. “Rita brought her
to my clinic. She's their daughter and by some strange twist of
fate, landed in our driveway this evening in need of
assistance.”

Frank leaned in and kissed his wife,
then led them both to a sitting room. The house was every bit as
opulent as the Hammond residence, yet it felt cozy and lived in.
The difference struck Kylie immediately.

Lydia pressed an ice pack onto Kylie's
cheek while Frank placed a cup of herbal tea in front of
her.

“
Now,” said Lydia, “how did
you get this? Who's car was that you were avoiding?”

Kylie looked at Lydia Barrymore and
saw an older woman with gray in her hair and wisdom in her eyes.
“I'm afraid that the father of this child I'm carrying and I don't
see eye to eye.”

Anger sparked. “He hit
you?”

“
A disastrous dinner at his
parent's house a few streets over. I didn't back him up when he
announced we were in love and getting married. Didn't take my lack
of support very well.”