The Manning Brides (11 page)

“Say something,” she whispered, her eyes holding his. Her hands pressed against the sides of his jaw. “Tell me you’re pleased about the baby.”

Everything he wanted to tell her—his joy, his excitement, the overwhelming love he felt for her—it all formed a huge lump in his throat. To his dismay, Rich couldn’t utter a single word. Finally he threw back his head and released a shout that sounded like a war cry.

“Rich?” A frowning Bill Hastings appeared in his doorway.

Rich grinned and waved. He broke away from Jamie, but took her hand in his. “Hello, Bill. Have you met Jamie Manning, my wife?”

Jamie’s smile grew and grew. “Jamie Warren Manning,” she corrected.

“Your
wife?
” Bill frowned again, but recovered quickly. “When did this happen? You never said a word. This isn’t the same Jamie Warren you…you know, is it?”

“Yup,” Jamie answered for him. “I’m the one he wanted you to ask out.”

“You two are
married?
”

“We’d better be.” Rich said, tucking his arm around Jamie’s slim waist. The time would come when that same waist would expand, her belly filled with his child. Thinking about it, he felt shaky inside. Rich hadn’t realized men were susceptible to those kinds of emotions. He’d assumed they were reserved for women. His heart was full. Overflowing with a happiness so profound, it was unlike anything he’d ever experienced. His throat thickened as though he might break into tears. Rich couldn’t remember the last time he’d wept. It wasn’t something men did often. But knowing Jamie was pregnant with his child, his son or daughter, was enough to reduce him to tears.

“I see,” Bill said slowly, clearly not seeing a thing.

“I’m pregnant,” Jamie announced.

Bill grinned, then turned to Rich. “But you offered me Seahawks play-off tickets to take her to dinner, and that wasn’t more than two months ago.”

“You
paid
him to take me to dinner?” Jamie muttered under her breath.

“What can I say?” Rich teased. “I was young and foolish.”

“This is all rather sudden, isn’t it?” Bill continued, choosing to ignore the whispered conversation between Rich and Jamie.

“Not really,” Rich answered. “We’ve had a fourteen-year courtship.”

“Fourteen years!” Bill looked astonished. “It seems congratulations are in order. I’m very pleased for you both.”

“Thank you,” Jamie returned graciously.

Bill left the office then, and Jamie whirled around to face Rich. “You told him we’re married!” she cried.

“You mean we’re not?”

“Rich, we can’t tell your coworkers and not our families.”

Rich hadn’t given the matter much thought. It had happened spontaneously. But if a husband had just learned he was about to become a father, he should be able to tell someone, and in this case Bill was that someone.

“Since you told Bill,” Jamie said, pacing his office, “then I should be able to tell someone, too. Agreed?”

“Agreed.” Personally Rich could see no harm in letting the news out. Especially when revealing the truth might actually help him achieve his goal.

Jamie reached for his phone, hesitated momentarily, then sighed deeply and punched out a phone number. Rich had no idea who she was calling. It didn’t matter.

While she was waiting for whomever she’d phoned to answer, Rich moved behind her and slipped his arms around her waist. He closed his eyes and reveled in the emotion he experienced as he held her tight. He wondered how long this euphoric feeling would last. All day? A week? A month? Deep down, he began to doubt it would ever entirely leave him.

So this was love. This feeling of warmth and fullness. The sensual alertness. This knowledge that the woman you loved more than life itself was giving birth to your child.

Rich rubbed his cheek against the side of her neck. She smelled of wildflowers and spring.

“Mom, it’s Jamie.”

Rich tensed. She’d asked to tell one person and she’d decided to tell
her mother.
Rich didn’t know Doris Warren well, but what he did remember of her wasn’t reassuring. She loved to gossip. Except she didn’t call it that, as he recalled. Doris
networked.

“Jamie,” Rich whispered in her ear. “You’re sure you want to do this?”

“Mom, I’m calling because I’ve got some fabulous news.”

“Jamie?” Rich was in a panic.

“I’m pregnant.”

He couldn’t hear Doris’s response, but he knew from the loud, squeaking sound that came from the receiver that Jamie’s mother was more than a little surprised.

“The father?” Jamie repeated. She twisted around and grinned sheepishly up at Rich. “That’s not important. What
is
important is that after all these years, you’re finally going to be a grandmother.”

“Go ahead and tell her,” Rich whispered. Good news, especially news this wonderful, was meant to be shared. Now that Jamie was pregnant—and now that the situation between them had changed—Rich certainly didn’t plant to maintain the confidentiality of their marriage. He couldn’t see the point. He was too proud to keep Jamie’s pregnancy a secret.

“Yes, Mother,” Jamie returned, nodding absently. “Of course, I will. No…no, not yet.”

Listening to only one half of the conversation put him at a distinct disadvantage, but Rich didn’t mind. He was far more interested in spreading kisses along the side of Jamie’s neck.

“Of course I’m sure. One of those home pregnancy tests…. Yes, Mother. Listen I have to go now, I’m already late for work. Yes, I’ll call later. Yes, I promise.”

Rich’s teeth caught hold of Jamie’s earlobe. Her response was immediate; she went weak in his arms. Rich had never felt more powerful in his life.

“Rich,” she chastised softly.

“Why didn’t you tell her we’re married?”

“I couldn’t…Rich!” She swatted him playfully, but he couldn’t make himself stop nibbling her neck.

“Why couldn’t you tell her?”

“I…I thought I’d break it to her gently. A little at a time.”

“So you started by telling her you’re pregnant?” He found her reasoning a bit irrational, which wasn’t typical for Jamie.

“If I told my mother we were married, she’d say something to your parents. We both know she would. Mom’s like that.”

“Yeah.” But somehow the prospect wasn’t as intimidating as it had been when Jason had broached the subject earlier.

“It’ll cause problems.”

“No, it won’t,” Rich said. He reached for her hand and raised it to his lips, kissing her knuckles. “Because I won’t let it.”

Jamie glanced regretfully at her watch. “Let’s discuss it later. I’m late.” She seemed as reluctant to leave as Rich was to let her go.

“Meet me for dinner tonight?” Rich intended to make reservations at the best restaurant in town.

“What time?” Jamie asked.

He tried to judge when he’d be finished, but he had no way of telling. “I won’t know until later.”

“Don’t worry about it. Come to my place when you’re through here and we can decide then.”

Jamie left a few minutes later.

Rich didn’t know how her day went, but his was a total waste. More than once he found himself staring into space, dreaming of Jamie and his child, plotting how to convince her to make their marriage real.

His day wouldn’t have been so chaotic, though, if he hadn’t been at meetings for much of the afternoon. He’d be taking notes, and before he realized it, his mind would wander to Jamie. He wanted to spend the rest of his life with her, not a few stolen moments out of a hectic work schedule. At the end of the day, he longed to hurry home and find her waiting for him. It was easy to envision walking in the front door after a long day at the office and having Jamie there to greet him. Jamie and their son.

That warm feeling returned, and Rich knew he’d been lost in another world again. Luckily, he hadn’t embarrassed himself at any of the meetings.

At seven that evening, when he’d finished at the office, he hurried out the door. Bill and a couple of the other engineers invited him for a drink, but Rich declined. He knew they were eager to hear the details of his marriage, but he was in too much of a rush to get home.

Home to Jamie and his new life. His real life. Now all he had to do was convince her how much he loved her….

Jamie opened the door and smiled.

“Hi.”

If he didn’t know better he’d say she seemed almost shy. “Hi, yourself. How are you feeling?”

“The truth?”

Rich nodded. Of course he wanted the truth. He remembered she’d told him about the dizzy spells and nausea attacks. He’d listened, but in his excitement had forgotten.

“Don’t look so worried,” she said, laughing gently. “I feel fabulous. Wonderful. I’ve been walking on air all day.”

“Me, too.”

“I should never have told my mother, though,” she muttered.

If he didn’t kiss her soon, Rich decided, he might lose his mind. “Why’s that?” he asked, although he agreed with the sentiment.

Not giving her a chance to answer, he took her in his arms. His mouth met hers, and they strained against each other. Eager. Hungry. The kiss moist and hot. Before he could question the wisdom of his actions, he was unfastening her blouse. He’d freed four tiny buttons before he had the presence of mind to hesitate.

“Rich?”

“Do you want me to stop?”

“I…don’t know.”

His hand cupped her breast, which was sheathed in a pale cream teddy.

“I thought you’d be starved by now,” she murmured hoarsely.

“I am,” he said, kissing her once more. Slowly. Thoroughly. Until there could be no doubt of what he wanted. “But it’s you I’m hungry for.”

“What…about dinner?”

“Later,” he whispered, easing the silk blouse from her shoulders and reaching for the zipper at the back of her skirt. “I need you, Jamie.”

“I need you, too. Oh, Rich, I need you so much.” Her voice was a fleeting whisper.

Rich tracked a row of kisses down the side of her neck. “Is this what you want?”

“Yes…”

He dipped his tongue into the hollow of her throat. “How about this?”

“Yes…”

His eased the straps from her teddy over her shoulders, blazing a trail of warm, moist kisses toward her breast.

The sound of the doorbell went through him like an electric shock.

Jamie tensed. “I…I’m not expecting anyone,” she said, picking up her blouse and pulling it on.

“Don’t answer it,” Rich said urgently.

Whoever was at the door must have heard him because the buzzer sounded again in a long, angry blast.

“I’ll get rid of whoever it is,” she muttered, buttoning her blouse as fast as her fingers would cooperate. She hurried to the door and checked the peephole, then groaned.

“Who is it?” Rich demanded.

Jamie closed her eyes. “My mother.”

“W
hat are we going to do?” Jamie cried, looking at Rich. She’d been an idiot to announce her pregnancy to her mother, but Jamie had been so excited and happy. Keeping such wonderful news to herself for even a minute longer than necessary was just too hard. Rich had apparently felt the same way, because he’d told a coworker.

They’d both agreed weeks before not to tell anyone about their marriage
or
the pregnancy until Jamie was five or six months along and her condition was obvious. All of that had flown out the proverbial window when Bill Hastings had stepped into Rich’s office.

If Rich had found it necessary to announce their marriage, then surely she was entitled to tell someone about the pregnancy. So Jamie had done what came naturally; she’d called her mother.

“I don’t think we have much of an option,” Rich said calmly. “Open the door.”

“But…” Once again the doorbell buzzed, now in short bursts. There wasn’t time to argue, but the prospect of facing her mother filled Jamie with dread.

She opened the door. “Mother,” she said, her voice unnaturally high. “This is a pleasant surprise.”

Doris Warren’s face revealed dismay. Slowly her gaze traveled to Rich, her eyes widening.

“Hello, Mrs. Warren,” Rich said.

“Rich.” She nodded stiffly in his direction, then turned to Jamie, her mouth tightening. “You didn’t return a single one of my calls, Jamie Marie Warren.”

Her mother had called the bank a total of seven times. With uncanny luck, Jamie had managed to avoid speaking to her. However, she was pragmatic enough to realize she’d need to soon. But first she had to talk to Rich so they could decide how much to explain. That hadn’t been possible with Rich tied up in meetings all afternoon.

She’d arrived home, eager to see her husband. Her phone had rung three separate times and she’d let the caller leave messages. Not surprisingly, all three were from her determined mother. Jamie hated having to avoid her, but it was necessary until she’d had the chance to talk to Rich. Now the matter had been taken out of her hands.

“Perhaps we should all sit down,” Rich suggested, gesturing toward the couch.

“I…don’t know if I can,” Doris Warren muttered. She immediately collapsed onto the sofa. “I can’t remember when I’ve ever spent a more distressing day. How could you do such a thing to me?” she asked, glaring at Jamie. “I’m beside myself. My only daughter’s having a baby! My only child…” She paused. “You’re
sure
of this?”

“Yes, Mom, I’m pregnant.”

“Who’s the father?” It was more than obvious that she suspected Rich, as once again, her narrowed gaze traveled to him.

“I am,” Rich announced proudly. He smiled over at Jamie and reached for her hand, squeezing it reassuringly.

Jamie was in the recliner, and Rich sat on the arm, his hand continuing to hold hers.

“There’s no need for concern, Mrs. Warren,” he began.

“No need for concern!” Jamie’s mother shot back. “I can tell you right now, I most certainly am concerned. This is my daughter you’ve been fooling around with, and I insist—no, I
demand
you do the honorable thing.”

“Mother!” Jamie had never seen her mother more agitated. “Rich isn’t a criminal. In case you’ve forgotten, it takes two to make a baby.”

“I did seduce you,” Rich delighted in reminding her.

Jamie frowned back at him. “You did not.”

“See,” Doris cried, “he admits it!”

“What would you like me to do now, Mrs. Warren?” Rich asked, seeming genuinely contrite.

If Jamie didn’t know better, she’d think he was enjoying this.

“I insist you marry Jamie, of course.”

“But are you sure you want me for a son-in-law?”

“I—Yes!”

“Rich!” Jamie was growing angry at this silly game of his.

Rich’s fingers tightened around hers. Although he did a valiant job of trying to disguise a smile, he failed miserably. His lips quivered and his eyes fairly sparkled. “I believe we should tell her, darling.”

Darling!
Jamie couldn’t remember Rich using that term even once. She looked up at him, astonished by his nerve.

“Tell me what?” Doris asked.

“It’s complicated.” Jamie decided to lead into her marriage slowly, giving her mother time to adjust to one shock before hitting her with another.

“Life is always complicated,” Doris countered, pinching the bridge of her nose.

“Rich and I have been friends for years.”

“The very best of friends,” Rich added.

“That much is evident.” Jamie’s mother raised her chin a notch, as though she needed a great deal of restraint to remain civil.

“Not evident yet,” Rich said, “but it will be soon.”

“What are you doing?” Jamie muttered under her breath.

“Explaining,” Rich answered. Then, turning to his mother-in-law, he smiled serenely down at Jamie and said, “There’s no need to worry, Mrs. Warren. Jamie and I are already married.”

“
What?
” Doris sprang to her feet. “Jamie, is this true?”

“Yes,” she admitted reluctantly. “But I’d hoped to break the news to you a little more gently.” She frowned at Rich, not bothering to hide her irritation.

Her mother sat back down and pressed her hand over her heart. “The two of you are married…. When?”

“Several weeks ago,” Rich said.

“You didn’t say
anything
—not even to your own mother.” This was directed at Jamie.

“There’s a perfectly logical explanation….”

“I can already guess.” Doris’s hand flew out, her index finger pointed accusingly at Rich. “The two of you
had
to get married.”

“That’s ridiculous! No one
has
to marry in this day and age.” Jamie felt as if she were in a tug-of-war, caught between her mother’s shock and her husband’s amusement. She wondered if he’d behave the same way when it came to informing his own family.

“You’re right about one thing,” Rich remarked. “Jamie and I did marry for the sake of the child.”

“Will you stop!” Jamie vaulted to her feet.

“Darling…” Rich stared up at her blankly, as though he couldn’t understand what had caused her outburst.

“Don’t
darling
me!” she snapped at him, her anger getting the best of her. How Rich could find humor in this situation was beyond her. He made her pregnancy sound like…like a joke.

“Jamie, tell me what’s going on here.” Now it was Doris Warren’s turn.

“Rich and I are married,” Jamie explained, facing her mother. “I never would’ve agreed to the wedding if Rich hadn’t insisted on it.”

“I should hope he insisted.”

“You don’t understand, and frankly, Mother, I doubt I can explain now. Suffice it to say, I’m married and pregnant, and you needn’t worry about me. I couldn’t be happier.” Telling her poor confused mother everything at once was sure to complicate things even more than they already were. Someday soon, Jamie would answer all her questions, but not now. Not when Rich was acting as though this had all been contrived for his amusement.

“You’re happy?” Doris’s bewildered gaze locked with Jamie’s.

“Blissfully.” It was Rich who answered for them. Jamie needed all the fortitude she could muster not to contradict him.

“Then…I’m happy, too.” Doris stood, but seemed surprised to find herself on her feet. She glanced around the room as if she wasn’t sure where she was. Taking the cue, Rich walked to the door and held it open.

“Shall I call you ‘Mother’?”

“Ah…” Doris Warren stared up at him for an awkward moment. “If you wish.”

“Goodbye then, Mother Warren. Jamie and I will be in contact with you soon.”

As though in a stupor, Jamie’s mother walked out the door. Rich closed it after her. The lock had barely slipped into place when Jamie turned on him.

“What do you think you were doing?” she demanded.

“Reassuring your mother.” Rich walked past her and sat nonchalantly in the recliner. His actions only fuelled her anger.

“You confused her.” And Jamie, as well. Just when she was beginning to believe there was a chance of something wonderful between them, he’d lapsed into these childish antics. The man obviously didn’t recognize a crisis when he saw one. “What’s wrong with you?” she cried, continuing to pace.

“Wrong?” His eyes went wide with a look of pure innocence.

“You made everything sound like a joke.”

“The pregnancy isn’t a tragedy. I couldn’t be happier about it. Besides, the sooner we explained everything to your mother, the sooner she’d leave and the sooner we could get back to what we were doing and—”

“You were like this in high school, too.” Jamie’s anger wasn’t going to be appeased that easily. Nor would she allow him to lead her into the bedroom and silence her concerns with his kisses. There was too much at stake.

“You’re going to drag high school into this?”

“Life isn’t one big laugh, you know.”

“I never said it was.”

“No,” she argued, “you just act that way. We’re dealing with my mother here and she has—”

“I’m not the one who told her you were pregnant.”

“Oh, no,” she cried, throwing her hands in the air. “You had to tell Bill Hastings instead.”

“That was better than blurting it out to relatives.”

“Mom would know soon enough anyway.” Jamie noticed the laughter was gone from Rich’s eyes and he was beginning to frown.

“If you expect me to apologize for my part in this marriage then you’ll have a long wait. You’ve obviously got regrets, but—”

“I didn’t say that.”

Rich glared at her. “As I recall, you made a point of saying that
I
insisted we get married.”

“You
did!
”

Rich ignored her outburst and continued without pausing. “You also insinuated you didn’t want the marriage.”

“I didn’t.” Jamie’s original idea hadn’t included any of this.

From the first, her instincts had told her that marriage, even a marriage of convenience, wasn’t to be taken lightly. Rich had never shared her concerns and, in fact, had carelessly brushed them aside.

“The only reason I went along with this scheme of yours,” she reminded him, “was because you insisted.”

Anger flashed from his blue eyes. “If you’re so overwhelmed with regrets, you might’ve said something sooner.”

“I did!” She didn’t want to rehash old arguments, but they’d need to clear up the past before they could deal with the future. “I tried to explain my feelings before we were married, but you refused to listen to me. You never do.”

“I
never
listen to you?” he challenged.

“Okay, to be fair, you listen, then you ignore my worries and tell me how foolish they are. The wedding’s a prime example of that.”

“Then why did you agree to it?”

“Because…I want the baby.”

“Then you should be pleased,” Rich said as he marched toward the front door. “You’ve got your baby—it’s just
me
you don’t want.” With that parting shot, he was gone.

He shut the door with enough force to rattle the pictures on the wall. Jamie’s first instinct was to run after him and tell him she didn’t mean any of it. True, she hadn’t been keen on marrying him, but not for the reasons he believed. She loved him, but she couldn’t let him know. She needed to remind herself repeatedly that their marriage wasn’t a love match. Rich had never intended it to be. She was the one who had problems remembering that this was a marriage of convenience.

She was the one who couldn’t keep her heart out of it.

Rich hadn’t meant to argue with Jamie. Fighting was the last thing on his mind when he went to her apartment. From the minute she’d left his office that morning, all he could think about was making love to her again. He longed to hold her in his arms and tell her how thrilled he was about the pregnancy. But nothing had worked out the way he’d planned. Instead, they’d gotten into a shouting match during which she’d repeatedly reminded him that she hadn’t wanted to marry him in the first place.

She didn’t seem particularly concerned about what she was doing to his ego, either.

All right, so maybe his attitude toward Jamie’s mother wasn’t the best, but no way was he going to sit there wearing a frown and pretending this pregnancy was some unthinkable disaster. So he’d taken a lighter approach. If Jamie wanted to fault him for that, then fine. Guilty as charged.

He had a sense of humour. He liked to tease. Always had. A fact that Jamie delighted in reminding him. Leave it to a woman to reach back thirteen years to their high school days to dig up something they could fight about.

Rich walked across the living room, loosening his tie as he moved. So, Jamie still regretted their marriage. No wonder she’d been so eager to offer him the option of a divorce.