Mad About You (41 page)

"Ginny." He stood and reached for her. "We can make it work this time, I know we can."

She stepped back out of reach. "Not unless I mean more to you than just a vehicle to get to your son."

He frowned, exasperated, jamming his hands on his hips. "How can you say that? Are you blind, Ginny? We're good together."

Her laugh was short and humorless. "Our sexual compatibility was never in question, Bailey, but I need more from you."

She captured his gaze and leveled her chin at him. "What can you offer me?"

His chest rose and fell as he pondered her question. Finally, he said, "Marriage, if that's what it takes."

Disappointment washed over her. The words were right, but the circumstances were wrong, and she knew it. She'd backed him into a corner, and he'd given her the answer she wanted to hear. She turned away from him. "You should leave."

"Not like this." He walked up behind her. "I love you, Ginny."

A sound of disbelief emerged from her throat. She pressed her lips together and shook her head.

"I do, Ginny. I always have. But I don't want to make you long-term promises this time until I know I can keep them. That's why I asked you to be patient."

She spun. "And while I'm being patient, you also expect me to warm your bed."

He dropped his gaze. "You're right, it's not fair. I'm sorry."

She took deep, even breaths to control the emotions racing through her. She didn't want to provoke any more discussion
—
she just wanted him to leave. "You're going to be late for work," she said calmly.

Bailey stared at her for several seconds, frustration clouding his eyes. Slowly he nodded, then reached for his shirt draped over the couch arm. He shrugged into it, buttoned two buttons, then pulled on his boots one at a time, leaving his jeans tucked haphazardly inside.

"I'll call you later," he said.

She watched him walk out of the room, then heard the front door open and close. Tears welled in her eyes, and she angrily wiped them away. He was the one who had overstepped his bounds. So why did she feel so miserable?

* * *

"Rough night, Bailey?" Lenny asked when he walked into the office.

"I'll be in the shower," Bailey barked, ignoring his boss's chuckle.

At the first burst of hot spray from the shower head, Bailey sank forward, supporting himself with both arms on the tiled wall. He rolled his head, loosening his stiff neck, and allowed the therapeutic water to work its magic. The rising steam helped to lighten his head, but his heart still felt heavy in his chest.

Although his first priority was Chad's well-being, Bailey felt sure his son's future would most benefit from living with both him and Ginny, from seeing their love for each other. Except Ginny wanted a commitment. Why couldn't she just enjoy the time they spent together? He scrubbed his face with a rough cloth, then lathered up his beard.

Marriage. He loved Ginny, but the thought of marriage still spooked him. He'd hoped they could live together for a while, give it a dry run before putting it in ink again. Holding a razor angled on his chin, Bailey frowned at his own image, then lowered his hand. And what kind of message would they be sending to Chad? He could hear him now.
My folks are shacking up.

While he shaved with the dull razor, he tried to sort things logically. He wanted to be with Chad, and he wanted to be with Ginny. Chad wanted to be with him, but he suspected deep down he wanted to be with Ginny too. Ginny wanted to be with Chad, and had hinted she wanted to be with him too, but only if he offered her a long-term commitment. Bailey sighed, wincing when he nicked himself on the chin. He had two choices—commit and have them both, or don't commit and lose Ginny, plus see Chad on a sometimes-only basis.

He rinsed the razor, then wiped the fog from the small hanging mirror to look at himself. He studied his own eyes, searching them for a shred of doubt, a trace of hesitancy. None. Having a wife and a son was a huge responsibility... but he could handle it.

He’d asked himself before what was it between Rita and Jerry that kept Jerry coming home at night… but it wasn’t anything Rita did or didn’t do—she just loved Jerry. Jerry came home every night because he knew loving his wife and child made him a better man. It was worth the tradeoff of being a carefree bachelor.

And suddenly Bailey knew the same thing about himself. Being a husband to Ginny and a father to Chad were worth any sacrifice he had to make.

He dragged a washcloth over his skin, enjoying the invigorating friction. He sighed in contentment, thinking through the day ahead of him.

Fridays were normally a light workday, but he had three jobs to visit, two of which he suspected would be problematic, plus he had to get Lenny a name for his replacement. And he was hoping to get out to Shenoway to take a look at the footers the builder had promised would be set.

His pulse quickened at the thought of breaking ground on his new home. A sprawling four-bedroom, three-bath ranch with a full basement—a slightly upscale version of the plan he and Ginny had originally chosen. Lots of room for a big family, he thought with satisfaction, his imagination galloping ahead. Then he shook his head, laughing to himself.

First he'd have to convince Ginny to marry him again.
Then
they could think about growing their family.

He turned off the water and emerged from the shower with a kernel of a plan. Chad would be with Edward and Peg for the evening, so Ginny would be free. Maybe she'd agree to go out with him. A bona fide date, complete with flowers and everything. But he'd have to come up with a charming invitation over the phone. He smiled... he'd think of something.

With the phone call to look forward to, the morning's schedule seemed more tolerable. As expected, he encountered trouble at one of the jobs with a city inspector who didn't like the sprinkler system his crew had installed. Bailey kept his cool and handled the man deftly, reaching a compromise on the modifications.

Before he left, every member of his crew stepped up to shake his hand and wish him luck with his new job. Bailey felt a few pangs of regret, knowing he'd miss some aspects of his old job, but his anticipation of joining the design team overrode any sentimentality.

He laughingly assured his men he'd be back to check on their progress on his own time, just to make sure they didn't try to pull anything with the new crew chief. A group of them wanted to take him out for a drink after work, but he politely refused, saying, "If my plans work out, I'll be drinking with someone a lot prettier than you guys."

When he broke for lunch, he called Ginny, as nervous as a sixteen-year-old.

"Hello?" she asked softly.

"Ginny, hi, it's Bailey."

"I was hoping you’d call.
"

His pulse spiked. "You were? Is everything okay?"

"Yes," she said quickly, then sighed. "No. Bailey, I'm sorry for the way I acted this morning. You're right, it would be foolish to make promises that couldn't be kept—I'd never want you to do that."

Surprised, he swallowed. "Okay," he said simply, his mind spinning. "So, where does that put us now?" he managed to ask.

"Let's just play it by ear, okay?" she asked. "And move slowly."

"Sure," he said, still searching for firm ground.

"So why did you call?"

He cleared his voice. "I wanted to check in to see how things are going today, you know, with Chad."

"Not great." She sounded tired. "He hasn't really talked much, and I know he's still upset with me, but I got him to agree we'd go somewhere this afternoon to look for a new game console."

"That's a start."

"I suppose."

"What time are Edward and Peg picking him up?"

"Around six, I think. They're going to take him to eat before the laser show starts."

"When will they bring him home?"

"Around eleven."

"Great, that gives you plenty of time."

"To do what?" Her voice was cautious.

"To go to dinner with me."

She was silent.

"A real date, Ginny. Put on something nice and let me buy you dinner for me being such a pain lately."

She laughed. "Lately?"

"Okay, for being such a pain
always."

"I don't think Columbus has a restaurant
that
nice."

"That's why I'm throwing in flowers and candy."

"It sounds like you're sucking up," she said carefully.

"Guilty," he admitted. "So, what do you say?"

She laughed again. "You certainly are persistent."

"What time can I pick you up?"

"Six-thirty?"

He blinked in surprise. "I'll be there."

"I expect you to be on your best behavior, Bailey Kallihan. No funny stuff."

His heart sang. "No funny stuff," he agreed.

* * *

Virginia slowly hung up the phone. A date with Bailey. She felt schoolgirl foolish with anticipation, but reasoned that a nice dinner in public would be both relaxing and safe. After their emotional exchange that morning, she looked forward to them being on friendly terms again.

She noticed a spring in her step as she moved through the rest of the day. Chad had adopted his sullen act again, dodging her hugs, refusing to look at her or utter anything but grunts. They drove to an electronics superstore after lunch. Remembering the incident of their last shopping trip all too well, Virginia nervously kept an eye on her son's hands. The salesclerk announced the game console model they were looking for as already being outdated, which put a defensive frown on Chad’s face. They were presented with the latest model, and Ginny glanced at Chad.

"What do you think?"

"I want the same one," he insisted. "It’s the one I like."

"Maybe we can find one somewhere else," she suggested, but the salesclerk shook his head no.

Chad’s mouth and shoulders drooped. "I guess it'll do, even if it’s not as good."

The salesclerk opened his mouth to argue, but she silenced him with a look. "We’ll take it."

But Chad was morose while their purchase was being rung up. And when they returned to the car, he slammed the door and maintained his silence for the drive home. The bag with the new Nintendo remained untouched.

He retreated to his room when they arrived home with another door slam. Ginny cleaned the house, burning pent-up frustration over dealing with her son and nervous energy over her impending date with Bailey.

Fifteen minutes before her parents arrived, Chad descended, looking clean-cut and all-American in his jean shorts and red and white striped T-shirt. He wore a pleasant expression, and even whistled under his breath as he kept watch out the window.

"It makes me happy that you want to do things with my parents," she ventured.

He shrugged. "They're cool. Besides, I've never had grandparents before."

His words hit her like an open-handed slap. He'd never had a father before, and he adored Bailey. He'd never had an aunt, uncle, or cousin before, so he liked Rita and her family. He'd never had grandparents before, so he looked forward to spending time with her folks.

But he'd had a mother before, and he wasn't about to let Virginia take Lois's place.

"They're here!" he yelled, throwing open the door.

Virginia hugged her parents and chatted for a few minutes before seeing them off with a wave.

She tried to put aside her earlier revelation about Chad's attitude toward her as she readied herself for Bailey's arrival.

After a leisurely shower, she opened her closet door and frowned. At last she decided on a white knit miniskirt topped with a V-necked yellow summer cardigan. The thin fabric had a sexy sheen and draped nicely around her shoulders and waist. She stepped into a pair of white leather sandals, then dried her hair. For once, she left it loose and swinging around her shoulders, then applied her makeup carefully.

When she appraised her image in the full-length mirror, she was relatively pleased with the result. Then she frowned—she needed jewelry. Virginia pulled her favorite gold hoops from her jewelry case, then decided the locket would be the perfect foil for the low-necked sweater. And fitting for the occasion, she thought happily. She rummaged through the case, frowning when she didn't find the necklace in its usual compartment. Fifteen minutes later she had removed and separated every piece of jewelry, but still hadn't found her precious locket.

Desperately trying to stem her rising panic, she forced herself to remember the last time she'd worn it. She'd shown it to Chad before they washed the car yesterday—had she then worn it outside? She thought she remembered putting it on the dresser, but she couldn't be sure. She ran down the stairs and outside to look all around her car and in the driveway. She even moved her car, but still couldn't find it.

Her worry escalated as she climbed the stairs to her bedroom. She performed another search of her dresser and jewelry case, then fell to her hands and knees to search the carpet in her room. Nothing. Spent, she sat on the floor with her back against the bed, no longer able to ignore her rising suspicion. In her mind she saw Chad's tear-streaked face and heard him yell, "I'll get you back!"

She leaned her head against the mattress and sighed.

Chad had stolen her locket.

Chapter Eleven

WHEN THE DOORBELL RANG a few moments later, she dragged herself to her feet and walked down the stairs, wrestling with whether to divulge her suspicions to Bailey. At the last second she decided against it, thinking if she confronted Chad and he owned up to it, no one would be the wiser. Resolved, she conjured up a smile reflective of her earlier anticipation, and opened the door.