Lies Lovers Tell (24 page)

Six months later

“How are we going to get all this stuff home?” Trish asked, rubbing her rounded stomach as she looked around the disarrayed living room of Sean and Maya’s Santa Barbara mansion.

“One of Sean’s drivers will drop it off,” Maya said. “Or we’ll have a company deliver it.”

Trish prepared to rise. “Here, let me help you. Aw! Stop it, Anthony,” she said to her stomach. “He’s just like his father was,” she continued, walking over to help Maya place the extensive amount of baby shower gifts into boxes. “Impatient, stubborn, it’s like he’s trying to kick his way out of here.”

“You tell that boy you’ve got three weeks to go and that he can’t come until we get his nursery set up.”

“You tell him, Aunt Maya,” Trish said. “And I told you it doesn’t matter if the house isn’t perfect before we move in. I’m not trying to rush out of our suite at the Marriott. I still can’t believe people live like this…and now I’m one of those people!”

Maya smiled her understanding. It was hard to believe how much both their lives had changed in six months. Maya had resigned her position at B&A and told Ester that she’d soon be joining her as Maya’s assistant at S.W.I.’s newly opened Southern California branch office. She’d wanted to start right away on her plans of fitting into Sean’s conglomerate of businesses, but after all that had happened, Sean had insisted she take a three-month break. They had gotten married two months ago on the island of Lanai in Hawaii. There were only a handful of guests at the elegant, sunset ceremony: Sean, Maya, Malcolm, Trish, Ester, Sean’s friend, Neil, who thought Ester the most beautiful woman he’d ever met, and the minister. It was the most perfect day of Maya’s life.

Trish’s life had done a one-eighty as well. She was about to have her first child, Tony’s son. As a gift to her and the baby, Sean had purchased her a three-bedroom, two-bath home in Woodland Hills. Malcolm was working with Sean during the day, and taking computer classes at night. He’d asked everyone to start calling him Malcolm; the name Stretch belonged to his old gangster lifestyle, a life he’d vowed to leave behind. Trish’s commercials were big hits with the target market and Trish was now a minicelebrity. And not only had the Champion advertising team embraced her pregnancy, but they’d capitalized on it by filming a new set of commercials. In this one, a noticeably pregnant Trish took a bite of chicken and rubbed her stomach. “Me and my baby? We’re
both
champions!”

The sound of male voices told Maya and Trish the men were back.

“You were right, Malcolm,” Sean said as he walked into the room. “Half of Babies ’R’ Us is in our house!”

“I told you,” Malcolm said. He walked over and gave Trish a kiss. “But that’s okay, because me and my babies…we’re all champions!”

Everyone laughed as Trish swatted at Malcolm. “You nut!” she said, beaming at the love that had come to her out of the blue. What had started out as late nights reminiscing with Malcolm about Tony had turned into late nights of Trish and Malcolm realizing theirs had become more than sisterly/brotherly love. Malcolm vowed he’d be a father to little Anthony, and Trish promised to give him a child of his own. In hindsight their being together seemed obvious; but with twenty-twenty, it always is.

“Come on, roly poly,” Malcolm said, helping Trish up. “Maya, can we get this stuff later? Mami’s tired. She needs to get her rest.”

“No worries,” Maya said.

“We’ll have it delivered,” Sean added.

“Thanks, girl.” Trish gave Maya a hug. “The shower was awesome. You did your thing for a sista.”

Maya hugged her brother as she continued talking to Trish. “Anything for two of my favorite people.”

Sean and Maya stood in the door as they watched Trish waddle out to the car, Malcolm mocking her as he swayed his tall, lean frame from side to side. Their laughter traveled with the wind, settling its warmth around Sean and Maya as they closed the door.

“You know what I think?” Sean asked, pulling Maya toward him. “I think you’d look cute with a little waddle like that.”

“I am not going to waddle,” Maya protested. “I’m going to be cute pregnant, with all my extra weight going into the perfect little ball in front of me. Then I’ll have the baby and drop those pounds in time to head up my part of the Angel’s Way project.”

“Oh no, we’re not having any working mothers here. You’re going to stay home with our child.”

“
You
might stay home with it, I’m going to be out conquering Los Angeles.”

Sean silenced Maya’s protest with a kiss that took her breath away. He decided it was better to get to work on the baby project and argue about the consequences later. He had no doubt that Maya could conquer anything she put her mind to. Because he wasn’t an easy man to tame and she’d conquered his heart. And that, he thought as he led them to the bedroom, was the truth.