The Rock'n'Roll Romance Box Set (Pam Howes Rock'n'Roll Romance Series) (132 page)

  
‘Over my dead body,’ Livvy shouted. ‘You devious bastard! Why didn’t you
just come clean and tell me it was Jodie? And you dared to give me a hard time
over Roy. Well that’s it. Now I’ve
got the name of your tart for my solicitor I can get the divorce sorted as soon
as possible and marry Roy.’ She
ended the call before she was tempted to blurt out that she was pregnant. She
felt sick and angry; angry at Daniel for not admitting his love for Jodie
earlier and angry at Jodie for betraying her friendship.

  
The lounge door opened and Courtney popped her head in. ‘Mom, why are
you shouting? Are you okay’

  
Livvy shook her head as her cell phone rang again. ‘Ignore it.’ She
cancelled the call and switched the phone off. ‘Come and sit with me.’ Courtney
curled up beside her and Livvy put an arm around her shoulders. ‘Your dad is
having an affair with Jodie. She’s moved into the ranch with him.’

  
‘What?’ Courtney stared at her. ‘Jodie - from the office? Well if Dad’s
living with her I’m not even going to visit in the school holidays now,’ she
said, folding her arms mutinously.

  
‘Don’t be too cross with him, sweetie,’ Livvy said. ‘I don’t want you to
fall out with him. We can’t expect him to stay alone forever.
I’m
lucky, I’ve got Roy
and you girls and I wouldn’t wish your dad to be lonely. But I’m very angry
because it’s Jodie, who I considered to be my friend, and because
he
could have made things easier by
being honest with me when he was here.’

  
Courtney nodded. ‘He talked to Jodie quite often when you were away.
And
she came over to see him. He always
sent me off to bed early. I thought they were having business meetings.’

  
‘Well maybe they were, some of the time,’ Livvy said, thinking of Daniel
having Jodie in their bed. God, if she’d known what he was up to she’d never
have made love with him that one last time before she left for Glasgow.
The thought made her cringe now. And him going on at her, telling her he wanted
another baby with her, when all the time he was screwing Jodie. She swallowed
the bile as it rose in her throat. ‘Well, at least we know where we stand now,’
she said to Courtney. ‘In a few months we’ll all be together and hopefully
Harley’s leukemia will go into remission. By Christmas you might get your Happy
Family wish.’

  
‘Please don’t let Dad make me go home, Mom. I couldn’t bear to be away
from you and Harley.’

  
‘You’re not going anywhere, sweetie, except back to bed. I can hear a
car engine. I expect it’s Sheena being brought home.’ She kissed Courtney who
ran back upstairs, calling, ‘Don’t forget to switch your phone back on in case Roy
calls you later.’

  
The front door opened and closed and Sheena popped her head around. Her
eyes filled with tears and her lips quivered. She looked at Livvy who held out
her arms.

  
Sheena threw herself down on the sofa. ‘I so didn’t want to say
goodnight to him,’ she wailed. ‘He can’t even see me again this week. He’s got
stuff on with Jess and his family. I don’t know when I’ll next get to see him.’

  
‘Maybe when me and Roy get married,’ Livvy ventured. ‘You can come down
here and help me plan everything. I’m hoping you’ll be my bridesmaid, along
with the girls.’

  
‘Oh, I will.’ Sheena smiled through her tears. ‘But it’ll take ages for your
divorce to come through, even if Roy
gets
his
quickly, and Jess will be
with Jon at the wedding.’

  
‘There’ll be odd days when you can get together. And my divorce might
not take as long as you think, although I’d prefer us to marry next year after
the baby arrives. I don’t want to be a waddling bride,’ Livvy said and told
Sheena the events of the last hour.

***

CHAPTER NINETEEN

SEPTEMBER 2001

Livvy hurried into the lounge. Courtney
was calling her but she couldn’t hear what she was saying above the noise of
the microwave. ‘What do you want, a drink of juice or something?’ She looked at
her daughter who, recovering from a bout of tonsillitis, was tucked up under
her duvet on the sofa.

  
‘
New
York
’s
on the news. It’s on every channel. Something’s happened.’

  
‘Like what?’

 
 
‘I
don’t know. You need to turn up the volume.’
       

  
Livvy picked up the remote control. ‘This is live news from New
York City,’ she said, turning up the sound. ‘Oh my
God, look, there’s a huge fire in one of the World Trade Centre towers.’ As she
spoke a plane was making its way across the television screen and, to her
horror, crashed headlong into the upper part of the second tower. ‘Jesus
Christ! What’s going on?’

  
Courtney clapped her hands to her mouth and stared. ‘Dad’s in there.’ She
turned wild eyes to her mother

  
‘What?’
 

  
‘Dad’s at the Trade Centre for a meeting today. He called me last night
and told me he’s in New York all
week on business. Mom, what if he’s been hurt?’

  
‘Don’t worry; I’m sure he’ll be fine.’ Livvy felt her voice wavering.
‘They’ll evacuate the towers and get everyone out safely.’

  
‘Call his cell phone, or the hotel,’ Courtney pleaded.

  
‘Which hotel is it? He may not even have left there yet. It’s only just
gone nine in New York.’

  
‘He didn’t say. Call Mrs Grayson or Jodie’s cell, they’ll know.’

  
‘Jodie’s probably with him.’ Livvy rang the ranch but there was no
reply. She tried Daniel’s cell phone. There was no connection, nor was there
one when she tried Jodie’s number. She shook her head at Courtney, who glanced
up from the screen, tears running down her cheeks.

  
‘They’re saying that a plane also crashed into the North
Tower,’ Courtney cried. ‘It’s not
just a fire.’
      

  
Livvy ran to answer a knock at the door.

  
Laura Jackson greeted her with a smile. ‘I’m popping into Westlow for
some groceries,’ she began. ‘Can I get you anything, Livvy? You’re looking very
pale. Are you okay?’
  

  
Livvy grabbed Laura by the arm. ‘Come in, please. Something terrible is
happening in New York and I can’t
get hold of Danny. He’s in the towers,’ she said, feeling herself shaking
uncontrollably.
   

  
Laura caught Livvy’s arm as she swayed and she led her into the lounge.
She sat her beside Courtney who was sobbing wildly and gesticulating at the
television screen.
   

  
‘My Dad might be in there,’ she howled as Laura frowned.

  
‘What’s going on?’

  
Livvy shook her head in bewilderment. ‘Two planes have crashed into The
World Trade Centre. I don’t understand it.’

  
Laura stared open mouthed at the TV as the horror unfolded. ‘Jesus
Christ! Is it a terrible accident with air traffic control?’

  
Livvy shook her head again. ‘I don’t know. It must be. It can’t be
deliberate. Who would be so wicked?’

  
Laura shrugged helplessly. ‘Why would Danny be in there anyway?’

  
‘Courtney said he’s got a meeting today. He rang her last night. I
didn’t speak to him, so I don’t have any details. I’ve tried calling home to
find out where he’s staying and I’ve also tried his cell phone.’ Livvy ran her
hands agitatedly through her curls. ‘God, Laura, I don’t know what else to do.’

  
‘Ring Roy,’ Laura suggested.
‘Ask him to come over.’

  
‘He can’t,’ Courtney wailed. ‘Harley’s not allowed to come near me ‘cos
of my throat infection and he can’t leave her on her own.’

  
‘Isn’t Sammy at Jasmine House?’ Laura frowned. ‘She could take care of
Harley, surely?’
  

  
‘No, she’s at Jason and Jules’ place today, looking after the lady who’s
having their baby,’ Courtney replied.

  
‘Well look, call Roy anyway.
Get him to bring Harley to ours and I’ll look after her. Then Roy
can come here and help you locate Danny.’ Laura sat down besides Courtney and
put her arm around the distraught girl’s shoulders while Livvy called Roy, who
agreed to come right away.

***

‘Give me the number of Danny’s
office in LA,’ Roy said as he
picked up the phone for the umpteenth time. ‘There should be someone there by
now.’

  
Livvy wrote down the number and went to sit beside Courtney, who was
crying hysterically. Almost an hour had gone by since the second plane had
crashed into the South Tower and harrowing scenes of terrified people, running
for their lives, and others, trying to escape the inferno by jumping from the
burning sky scrapers, filled the TV screen, alongside reports that a third
plane had hit The Pentagon building in Washington DC.

  
Livvy had tried Daniel’s cell phone, and the ranch, continuously to no
avail. Now Roy had taken over, but
so far was having no more luck than she.

  
He stuck up his thumb as his call was finally answered and spoke for a
while then scribbled down a number. He hung up and turned to Livvy and
Courtney. ‘The staff have been trying to contact Danny, but the phone lines in New
York are out of action. Maria, the girl I spoke to,
said that he and Jodie were due to attend a meeting with a bank at eight-thirty
this morning in the North Tower.
She’s not sure which floor. I’ve given her the number for here, and she’s given
me his hotel number for later. She said she’d call as soon as Danny makes
contact. He’s apparently fired your housekeeper, so that’s why there’s no one
at the ranch. There’s nothing more we can do now, Liv other than sit tight and
wait.’

  
Livvy nodded. ‘I guess you’re right. But I feel so helpless.’

  
‘I’m so sorry, Courtney.’ Roy
put his arms around the girl’s shoulders and held her while she sobbed against
his chest. He felt lost for words at the sadness in her eyes.

  
‘I can’t take it in,’ Livvy whispered. ‘It’s like some horrible
nightmare. Did Maria say
why
Danny was having this meeting with the bank?’

  
‘Something to do with a merger. The meeting was to finalise the
financial details.’

  
‘Why on earth does he want a merger? He works 24/7 as it is. How on
earth can he juggle all his businesses
and
expect to take proper care of
Courtney in school holidays now that he’s fired Dolores? Danny’s priorities
have always been work, work, and
then
us.’

  
Roy shook his head,
signalling with his eyes to Livvy as Courtney stiffened in his arms and turned
to stare at her mother.

  
‘He might have chosen his work over us, Mom, but he’s still my Dad. Now
I may never see him again and I feel real bad for saying that I don’t want to
live with him.’

  
‘Courtney, I didn’t mean anything - I was just saying…,’ Livvy tailed
off.

  
‘Go and make us a pot of tea, Liv,’ Roy
suggested as the phone rang. He put Courtney gently aside and leapt up to
answer it. ‘Hello. Nothing concrete as yet, Laura. I’ve spoken to a member of
Danny’s staff. She’ll call us as soon as they have any news. Is Harley still
okay with you for the time being? Great. Oh, you have? Well thanks for that,
Laura. I’ll speak to you soon.’

  
He hung up as Livvy carried a tray of mugs through to the lounge. ‘That
was Laura.’ He took the tray from her and placed it on the coffee table. ‘She
rang Jane and Ed to tell them the news and they’re watching it on TV. Oh -
Jesus Christ!’

  
‘What?’ Livvy followed his gaze. They stood in shocked silence as the South
Tower of the Trade Centre began to
collapse. Courtney leapt up, her mouth a silent O.

  
‘It’s okay, Courtney, it’s okay.’ Roy
pulled her close. ‘Your Dad’s in the North
Tower. They’ve already evacuated
people from there.’

  
‘Try his cell phone again,’ Courtney pleaded. ‘If he’s outside now he
may have a signal.’

  
Livvy redialled. ‘Still no connection.’ As she replaced the receiver the
phone rang out immediately. It was Eddie, for Roy,
wanting to know if there was any news and to say that Jess was on her way to
see if she could help by taking Harley for the rest of the day. Within five
minutes of Roy hanging up there was
a knock at the door and Livvy ushered in a worried looking Jess.

  
‘Livvy, I don’t know what to say,’ Jess began, as Livvy shook her head.

  
‘There’s still no news,’ she told Jess. ‘We’ve tried and tried Danny’s
phone but there’s no connection.’

  
‘I guess you’ll just have to wait until he contacts you. He must be
frantic by now, knowing that you’ll be seeing it all on TV.’

  
‘Maybe he’s tried to text me,’ Courtney cried. ‘My phone’s in my bag.’
She shot out of the room as Roy
looked at Livvy and Jess.

  
‘If anyone gets out of there alive it will be a bloody miracle,’ he
whispered. ‘But let’s keep that from Courtney. She needs to have hope.’

  
‘Sit down, Jess. Would you like a cup of tea?’ Livvy offered.

  
Jess nodded and flopped down on the sofa. ‘She’s very together, very
composed,’ she said as Livvy left the room.

  
‘She’s in shock,’ Roy
replied. ‘She’s pregnant, Jess. I’m worried sick about her.’

  
‘Really?’ Jess raised her eyebrows. ‘Yours or Danny’s?’

  
‘Mine,’ he replied. ‘We’ve been keeping it under wraps because of the
divorce and custody thing. But she’s nearly six months. We can’t hide it for
much longer. I’m surprised nobody’s commented on her weight gain, actually.’

  
‘I hadn’t noticed,’ Jess frowned. ‘But then again, we’ve hardly seen
anything of her this summer with you both keeping a low profile. I presume
Danny doesn’t know?’

  
‘No,’ Roy replied. ‘Apart
from Livvy’s folks and her mate Sheena, we haven’t told a soul, not even the
girls or Sammy. I haven’t even told your dad and he and I never keep secrets
from each other.’ Roy went on to
tell Jess how important the baby was to he and Livvy and why.

  
Livvy strolled back into the lounge carrying a mug of tea.

  
‘I’ve told Jess about Roy Jnr,’ he began as Courtney ran into the room.
Livvy silenced him with a warning look.

  
‘There was nothing from Dad, but
I’ve
sent
him
a text
asking him to get in touch,’ she said. ‘It went off alright.’

  
‘Okay, honey. Well maybe he’ll contact us soon. Go and lie on your bed
for a while. Give Harley a ring or send her a text to see if she’s okay. Tell
her that Jess will pick her up later.’

  
‘Sit down, Livvy,’ Jess said as Courtney left. ‘You look wiped out. You
should be resting. Are you okay?’

  
‘Numb!’ Livvy replied. ‘It’s unreal. They suspect terrorism. A fourth
plane’s come down in Pennsylvania.
When’s it going to end?’
 

  
‘They’ve halted all domestic flights in the US,’
Roy told her. ‘So there’s nothing
in the air as we speak.’

  
‘Just look at all those frantic people.’ Jess stared at the TV screen as
hordes of New Yorkers huddled in groups, staring in disbelief at the debris and
the remains of the South Tower.
‘Oh my God, no!’ Her hand flew to her mouth as the North
Tower began to collapse, one floor
at a time.
 

  
Roy pulled Livvy close as
they stared at the terrifying scene. She grew heavy in his arms and he realised
she’d fainted. He swept her up and lay her on the sofa, kneeling on the floor
beside her. ‘Call the doctor, Jess,’ he said as he patted Livvy’s pale cheeks.
‘The number’s on the pin-board in the kitchen. Come on, Liv, open your eyes,
please, darling.’

  
Livvy’s eyes flickered open and she stared blankly. Roy
turned as Courtney ran back into the room. ‘It’s okay, sweetheart,’ he
reassured her. ‘Your mom’s fainted. She’ll be fine.’ He stroked Livvy’s hair
back from her face as Courtney threw herself onto the sofa.

  
‘The North Tower
has collapsed,’ she cried. ‘I heard it on the radio. What if Dad’s trapped in
there?’

  
Roy looked on helplessly as
Jess pulled Courtney up, held her with one arm and dialled the surgery with her
free hand.

  
‘Ask him to come right away,’ Roy
said as Livvy struggled upright. ‘Stay where you are, Liv.’

  
‘He’ll be here as soon as he can,’ Jess said and hung up.

  
‘Call Ed and get him to come over,’ Roy
said. ‘Ask him to bring a bottle of brandy. We’ve no alcohol in the
house.’
 

  
Jess nodded and went to answer the door to frantic knocking.

  
‘Harley’s with Phil so don’t worry about her,’ Laura began, hurrying
inside. ‘Can I do anything here?’