Matchmakers Box Set: Matchmakers, Encore, Finding Hope (17 page)

He looked at the clock. It was four o’clock in the morning. He wanted to go to her room, but he didn’t. Instead he fought with himself and tossed in bed until it was time to get up.

Sophia sat by her window looking out at the empty street, the streetlight illuminating her isolation. It was four-thirty in the morning. She’d walked down the hall to David’s room. She’d wanted to tap on the door. She had wanted to open it and climb into bed with him. She needed him. Instead, she’d kept quiet and walked back to her own room.

In the morning, she’d make some changes to her life. First of all, she was going to learn to apologize and forgive. Dammit, it was about time. She was going to ask Carissa if she’d be her daughter, and she was going to tell David she’d marry him if Carissa’s answer was yes. She was ready for that, too.

Maybe a baby would arrive on their doorstep. Maybe, just maybe, after another call to Sally Foster, the house on Cherry Street would be that very doorstep.

She’d yet to hear from Pablo, and she guessed he’d have found her at all cost if things had worked out with new venues.

Only one venue had ever escaped them. She often wondered if they’d ever get the chance to perform at the Vatican. Perhaps it was just a dream that would never be reality. However, at that very moment, it didn’t matter. She loved David more.

In the morning, well, later in the morning, everything would be okay.

She’d missed him.

“He said he had business and left very early. He dropped Carissa off at work. That’s all he said.” Katie relayed the information as she poured Sophia a cup of coffee. “Sit down. Let me make you some breakfast.”

“I’m not very hungry, Grandma.”

“You should eat something.”

“I’ll get something. Maybe I’ll go for a run.”

“You’re already dressed.”

“Yeah, I guess I am.” She sat down in the chair at the table.

She’d had all of her words worked out. David would understand. If she said the words
I’m sorry,
he’d forgive her. After all, even after ten years, he’d asked her to marry him.

The doorbell snapped her back to reality. “I’ll get that.”

She could see the figure beyond the frosted glass of the front door. Without seeing the face, she knew whom it belonged to. An enormous smile crossed her lips, and her heart began to flip in her chest.

“Pablo!” She flung open the door and herself into his arms, which were already out and waiting for her.

“Bella!” He kissed her square on the mouth. Photographic flashes flickered in the street.

“Get in here.” With a grimace, she pulled him through the door and into her arms again. “Where have you been? I’ve called and called. Oh, Pablo, I’ve needed you.”

She stepped back from him and looked him over. His beauty seemed marred by worry. His dark eyes were heavy, and his wavy, black hair was longer than he usually wore it. His perfect physique was hiding behind a sweatshirt and a snug pair of jeans. The world was used to seeing him looking exquisite. Even Sophia rarely saw him in such relaxed attire.

“Bella, what has you so upset?” He touched her face with the gentleness of a lover.

“Where do I start? But first, what’s going on with you? Why haven’t you returned my calls?”

Slumping, he let her lead him to the couch where they sat with their fingers interlaced. “Sandra left.”

“Why?”

“Sophia, someone has put her up to something. Paid her off for a story about how evil I am.”

“That’s not true.” Her voice rose with her anger.

“Ah, from your lips to God’s ears!” He raised his hands. “But it is what it is.”

“And Pierre?”

“Oh, Sophia.” He gathered her hands in his again. “I know you’ve kept our secret out of respect for our art and our friendship. Perhaps I even used you a bit in front of the media, which has been pointed out to me.” His brows rose, and he shook his head. “But I’ve never asked you to lie, have I?”

“Goodness, no.”

“Well, no longer is there need for you to hold your tongue. Pierre and I are to be married at Christmas.”

“Pablo!” She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him on the cheek. “I’m so happy for the two of you.”

“Thank you. You’ll be there?” His heavy Italian accent sang in her ears.

“I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

“Good. Then we have one more order of business.” He stood and pulled a letter from his pocket and handed it to her.

Sophia opened the letter, and her eyes grew wide. “Oh, Pablo!”

“It’s the invitation that we’ve waited our whole lives for.”

“The Vatican.”

“The Vatican. Can you believe it, Bella?” His voice was pure and full of joy.

She turned to him, the significance of what he’d said to her about Pierre sinking in. “They don’t know about the two of you?”

“Not yet. That’s why it is crucial we live out this one, last dream before things that shouldn’t matter do.”

Sophia nodded. How could loving someone ever be bad? But if the Vatican knew that Pablo DiAngelo intended to marry another man, they’d cancel the performance. Sophia looked at the letter once more.

“Pablo, this is in three days.”

“We leave now.” The statement was precise.

“But the party.”

“You’ll give your condolences.”

“Oh, Pablo, so much has happened. I have to tell you...”

“Bella, either we go now or we miss out on what we’ve always wanted. Won’t what you want to tell me wait?”

She was sure it would. Her head was spinning when her grandmother entered the room.

“Oh, Grandma.” She smiled, crossing the room toward her. “Oh, the most wonderful thing has happened.” She noticed her grandmother’s eyes shift to the man behind her. “Grandma, you remember Pablo.”

“Mrs. Burkhalter, it’s a pleasure.” Pablo held his hand out while Katie looked him over with skeptical eyes.

“Mr. DiAngelo, how unexpected.”

“I know. My apologies.”

“Grandma, we’ve been invited to the Vatican!” Her voice still bubbled over with the enthusiasm of having one of her dreams come true.

“Oh, Sophie, that is wonderful.” Her grandmother gathered her in her arms and hugged her tightly.

“It is, isn’t it?”

“When?”

Sophia stepped back, and tears began to fill her eyes. “I have to leave now.”

“Now?” Disappointment filled her grandmother’s voice, and that alone was enough to break Sophia’s heart.

“I know. The timing isn’t great, but Grandma…”

Katie touched her granddaughter’s arm. “I’ll have another birthday. If you must, go.”

“Oh, thank you.” She hugged her grandmother again. “I have to call David. I have to tell him. I have to say goodbye.”

“David?” Pablo stepped up to her. “Please, David?”

“Oh, Pablo, that’s what I’m trying to tell you. He’s asked me to marry him.”

His eyes narrowed, and Sophia could see his disappointment. She knew he’d understand when she explained. They’d spent years sharing their stories. Love found. Love lost. He wouldn’t look at her like that for long, or so she hoped.

“Go pack. We must leave within the hour.”

David sat in the office of Todd Krantz, tapping his fingers on the desk as Todd read over the contract they had penned.

“I think it’s solid,” Todd said, sliding it into a folder.

David ran his hands over his face. “God, what am I doing?”

“Well, like you said, you’re not obligated to do this. This is not your child.”

“I know.” His heart was racing. “I know.”

“Well, let’s get this thing signed.” He stood behind his desk and gathered the folder and the paper that bore Mandy’s address. They headed out to the car and drove through town toward the motel.

When they pulled up, she peeked through the curtains of the dingy motel window. Sweat had formed on his brow, and his heart was thumping at a particularly unpleasant pace. He took his cell phone out of his pocket and laid it on the seat. The last thing he needed now was an interruption. How would he explain what it was he was doing, especially to Carissa or Sophia?

When Mandy opened the door for them, one look at her told him he was doing the right thing. It had only been a day since he’d seen her, but she looked weaker—as though she had begun dying.

“David, what can I do for you?” Her voice shook, and she swayed.

“Mandy, why don’t you sit?” He was already walking through the door before she could slam it in his face.

She didn’t argue. David was already nervous, but when she ran the heel of her hand between her breasts to ease the obvious pain she was in, he felt the blood rush from his head, and he too sat down.

“This is Todd Krantz. He’s my lawyer.”

“Lawyer? Are you suing me?” Her voice dropped to a whisper. David shook his head, and she sighed. “What then?”

“Mandy, I’ve decided I want to help you. I want your baby.” The words sounded like those from a character on one of his aunt’s soap operas.

“David, get out.” She stood quickly and then sat back down, panting and clutching the arm of the sofa with one hand and her forehead with the other.

“Carissa doesn’t want her sister going to strangers. So, if you need to think of this on other terms, think of Carissa.”

Her eyes softened. “Carissa. I was sure she thought I was crazy. She didn’t say a word to me when I spoke to her.”

“Well, she had plenty to say when she got home, but she doesn’t want her sister to live with strangers.”

“I don’t want her to either,” Mandy admitted. “But why the lawyer?” She shot a look in Todd’s direction.

“I intend to take only the baby. I don’t intend to take the mother in this deal.” His words were crisp and steered toward hateful. He knew she didn’t need further explanation.

“I guess I was a handful last time, wasn’t I?”

“I’m not pointing fingers and passing blame. I have Carissa, and that’s all I ever wanted from you. Now Carissa wants Hope, and I want her to have her in her life.”

“Hope?”

Damn. He hadn’t meant to let that slip.

“Hope is what she’s named the baby.”

“Hope.” The name settled on her lips. “I really like that.”

Tears were already forming in her eyes. Looking at her, David couldn’t remember the young woman who had seduced him in the hangar so many years ago. The eyes he was staring into belonged to someone else—someone who had aged well beyond her years and obviously regretted every moment of it.

“I need to know, honestly, how likely are you to survive this?”

“The contractions will most likely set off my heart’s rhythm. Even if they give me medication in the hospital, my heart is that weak. They can do a transplant, but I don’t want that.” She moved closer to him and covered his hand with hers. It felt cool and skeletal. “I’m okay with this, especially now.” She smiled, but he couldn’t muster one. “Since you’re here and so is he”—she nodded in Todd’s direction—“I want you to know that I don’t want them to resuscitate me. I want to die.”

Her words slammed into him. He hadn’t expected them to. He hadn’t expected to care, but his heart wouldn’t let her suffer before and it wouldn’t now.

Todd stepped in. “Mandy, I admire your courage. David wants what’s best for both of your girls. We’ve drawn up some papers that say you give up all parental rights to the baby and give them to David.”

“Give them to me. I’ll sign them.”

“They also state that if you survive the birth there are no obligations owed to you by Mr. Kendal and you will not seek custody of your daughter or reimbursement for medical expenses.”

“I said I’d sign them.” She reached her hand out.

David wanted to speak. He wanted to apologize. He wanted to tell her not to sign the papers, but he couldn’t.

He watched her sign away her daughter and essentially her life.

“Keep the name,” she said on a weak breath.

“What?”

“Hope. I want that to be her name.”

“Okay.” He drew in a deep breath. “How does this all go down?”

Mandy winced and rubbed her stomach. “I have DNR papers, medical papers, and my will in my purse. You need to be there with me when I go into labor and have the baby. My will already states you as the baby’s father, but I want your name on the birth certificate.”

“I’ll be there. Where can I write down my cell phone number?”

Todd handed him the note pad by the phone. He jotted down the number and his schedule for the following week and handed it to her.

“Tell me if you think you’ll go longer. I’ll cancel my work schedule, too.”

“I’m sure it’ll be soon. I’ve been having a lot of contractions.” She winced and rubbed her stomach again.

“Maybe you shouldn’t be alone.”

“I’ll be fine.”

David nodded and stood to leave.

“David,” she called after him. “Thank you. This means so much to me.”

He couldn’t answer. He only nodded as he and Todd left the motel.

He picked up his cell phone from the seat as he sat down. It rang in his hand, but he let it continue to ring. It was Sophia.

He silenced it and slid it into his pocket. His voice wouldn’t be steady. Not yet. He couldn’t come up with the words to tell her what he’d just done for his daughter. He wasn’t sure Sophia loved him enough to accept it.

He blew out a breath and rubbed his chest with his palm, easing away the ache much as Mandy had done earlier.

CHAPTER TWELVE

Sophia threw items from the bathroom counter into the half-packed suitcase on her bed. A flicker of movement nearby made her jump.

“Oh, Grandma! You scared me to death.” She threw the items in her hands into the suitcase and returned to the closet.

“When are you leaving?”

“As soon as I get downstairs.” She shook her head. “I can’t believe he finally got the Vatican. Oh, Grandma, this is so amazing!”

“Yes, it sure is. What did David say?”

“I keep calling his phone, but he won’t answer. Carissa doesn’t answer either.”

“What about Carissa’s audition?” Katie folded a shirt that Sophia had tossed on the bed and set it into the suitcase for her.